Page 258 of Heartache Duet

A

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And then I smile. “Let’s go try to get you laid.”

FORTY-SIX

ava

It’s incredible how much things can change in just a few weeks. Even though Trevor and I had looked up pictures and reviews of Sunshine Oak, we were blown away by the facility when we saw it in person. Sunshine Oak isn’t just a treatment facility; it’s a community, and it’s filled with people who love what they do and the patients they care for. Trevor was only able to stay for a few days before he had to go back, but he left more than satisfied; he left happy… and a little jealous.

When Lydia at Sunshine Oak informed me that I had a fully furnished apartment, I expected something similar to the one I had back in Texas, so when Trevor pulled up beside the building, we had to just stop and take a moment. It wasn’t anything grand, but it was a hell of a lot better than what we’d assumed. “I don’t think you’re going to have to worry about half-naked old men and crazy old hussies here, Ava,” he murmured. And I cackled, so loud and so free, that it had him doing the same, and it felt so good to laugh, especially with him. We were dumbstruck, unable to comprehend the pure luck that had been dropped on us. We needed saving, sure, but this was beyond anything I could’ve ever imagined. And then the apartment itself… two bedrooms, with a bathroom attached to the master, open kitchen and living with dark floors and new appliances. The living room opened up to a balcony that overlooked a communal pool, and I couldn’t wait to sit out there with the sun and the stars above me.

It was just a tad better than the apartment—not room—Mom has at Sunshine Oak. Hers overlooks the community garden, and every morning she wakes up and looks out the window, and there’s color. So much color. Not just through her vision but in her life. And the doctors… my God, where the hell have they been the past few years?

In a way, I hate that it’s taken the help of a random stranger with money to spare to get Mom the care she actually needs, but I’m grateful. So very grateful. And so is Mom. I can see it in her smile—because she does that now. She smiles. At everyone and everything. She’s started taking some classes; painting and gardening, and she’s even considering learning a second language.

“There’s so much to do here,” she tells me, looking through a pamphlet while we sit at the in-house hair salon. “Oh, Ava!” she laughs out. “Guess what I did yesterday afternoon?”

“I don’t know, Mama,” I say through a smile. “What did you do?”

“Pottery.”

I glance at her. “You did?”

“I had the room in a fit of giggles when I used my stub to make the opening of a vase,” she laughs, unable to control herself. “It reminded me of that night we went to the court with Connor. You remember that?”

My chest tightens. “Yeah, I remember.”

Her smile only widens. “Remember when we tried to spin the ball on each other’s fingers, and it went flying?” Another laugh, this one louder.

I try to keep my expression passive, but it’s hard. “Uh huh.”

She sighs, wiping at the tears of joy from the corner of her eye. “God, I miss that boy.”

Me too, I don’t say aloud.

“What happened to him?” she asks, her eyes serious when they meet mine. “What happened to you two? You were so—”

I cut in, my voice cracking when I say, “I don’t really want to talk about it.”

She offers another smile, but it’s sad. “Okay, baby. I just… he’s such a good boy, you know? I wish it had worked out for—”

“I know.”

Nodding slowly, she looks back at herself in the mirror. “This place is good for me, sweetheart.” She focuses back on me, a hand to her heart. “I can feel it in here.”

“Feel what?”

“The Happiness.”

Tears well in my eyes, and I reach over, grasp her hand in mine. “I’m glad.”

“You’ve spent too much of your best years taking care of me, Ava. And you know how much I appreciate you, but now… maybe it’s time for you to start taking care of yourself.”

I inhale a huge breath. Hold it.

“When are you going to be happy, Ava?”

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