Page 73 of The I Do Over

First she stopped to pick up some snacks that she knew wouldn’t upset her stomach. Then, she stopped to gas up the car and called Nora to let her know she was going to stop in briefly to see her mother before heading out of town.

Then she tuned in to her favorite station, turned up the volume, and sang her way onto the highway.

The drive to the cabin would take less than three hours and her mother’s place was on the way, so it wasn’t a big deal to stop. Nora greeted her at the door with a smile.

“You picked a good day to visit,” she said, closing the door behind them.

“Really? Is she…does she know who you are?”

“Not really, but she’s in a good mood.” As Maddie went to walk down the hall, Nora stopped her. “I know it’s hard for you, but you need to know that she does ask for you, even when she doesn’t know exactly who she’s asking for. You’re the one she always wants to see.”

They usually had this talk every couple of months and while Maddie appreciated it, it was something she wasn’t sure she’d ever get used to.

Maybe it wasn’t the smartest thing for her to come here today considering her own fragile emotional state—especially since there was a good chance her mother wasn’t going to know who she was—but right now, she was the only person Maddie had in the whole world.

But as she walked into the living room, her heart skipped a happy beat when she saw the recognition on her mother’s face.

“Hey, Mom,” she said softly as she went over and hugged her.

“This is a lovely surprise, Madalyn! What are you doing here on a Monday afternoon? Shouldn’t you be at the clinic?”

Tears stung her eyes because it was so rare that they had real-time conversations like this. “Actually, I’m taking the week off,” she said carefully, sitting down on the sofa beside her mom.

“Oh? Going someplace fun? Maybe tropical?” Her eyes lit up. “Ooh…is there a new man in your life and you’re going away somewhere romantic?”

If only…

Shaking her head, she replied, “Nope. Just a little me time.”

Her mother studied her for a long moment before reaching out and taking one of Maddie’s hands in hers. “Want to talk about it?”

Maybe.

“It’s…it’s a lot,” she quietly admitted. “And I don’t want to bog you down with my nonsense.”

“Nothing that concerns you is nonsense, Maddie. Come on. I can tell something’s upset you.”

Ugh. Where do I even begin?

Sighing, she figured she had nothing to lose, so…

“Do you remember Knox Channing?”

Her mother smiled sadly. “Of course I do. I always felt bad about the way things ended for the two of you.” She shook her head. “At the time, we were just so shocked that you had rebelled like that, but once you went to Washington, I just felt awful. So many times I tried to talk to your father and get him to see reason, but…he wouldn’t be swayed.” She paused. “Wait. Have you seen Knox?”

Nodding, Maddie told her all about her therapy and how she finally went to see him to apologize, and how everything had gone up until last weekend. Then she wasn’t so sure if it was a good idea to share how that whole scene unfolded.

“I’m guessing by the fact that you’re going away by yourself that something happened. You don’t have to worry about upsetting me.” She smiled sadly. “I’m aware of how my condition makes things difficult—especially for you. But I really do want to help you, Maddie. Please.”

“Knox drove up on Friday like we had planned. I wasn’t feeling well—I got food poisoning from some leftovers—and then…” She shook her head.

“Madalyn…”

“Dad showed up,” she blurted out before sharing the rest of the story. “So Knox broke up with me, Dad’s pissed at me, and…and…I’m alone again.” Tears rolled down her face and her mother was quick to help wipe them away.

“Your father is always pissed at something, Maddie. That’s not your fault. That’s his. It’s a huge personality flaw.”

And for some reason, that made her laugh.

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