Page 28 of What Comes After

I nodded and said, “Yes, I was just hoping to talk to you and Mary. Is this a bad time?”

“Well, I’m running out to grab a pizza for dinner right now, but if you want to hang for a bit, we can talk when I get back,” he said. “There’s nothing wrong, is there?”

Shaking my head, I promised, “No, not at all. I just have some plans that I wanted to fill you both in on.”

He dipped his chin. “Okay. Go inside and visit with Mary. You can talk to her about it if you want, and when I get back, you can fill me in. Does that work?”

“That works.”

Scott held the door open for me and waited until I was inside to let it go. As he took off to grab dinner for himself and his wife, I walked into the house and called out, “Mary?”

“Devyn?” she called back from the kitchen. “Is that you?”

I moved toward the kitchen, and once I entered, I answered, “It’s me.”

“Hi, dear. How are you doing?”

I smiled.

She was the closest thing I had left to a mother, so it wasn’t hard to take one look at her, hear her voice, and feel a level of appreciation, respect, and love for her that went beyond her just being my best friend’s mother.

“I’m okay. I just talked to Scott on his way out, and he told me I could come in to talk to you until he gets back.”

“Of course, you can. You know that. We’re always here for you.”

I did know that.

It was the only other reason I was dreading having to let go of my parents’ home. I’d no longer have Scott, Mary, or Theo just a few steps away.

Once I made this move, I’d really be on my own.

“I do. And I kind of have something I want to talk to you about now, if that’s okay.”

Her expression grew alarmed. “Is everything alright?”

“Yes. I made some plans about something, and I wanted to fill you in on them.”

“Sure. Go grab a seat at the table, and I’ll get you something to drink. What would you like?”

“Do you have any of your sweet tea?” I asked.

She beamed at me. “For you? Always.”

Warmth moved through me. While I knew they’d always be here for me, there was no question I’d miss having them this close by.

I grabbed a seat and waited for Mary to join me at the table. After she brought over a glass of sweet tea and sat down at the table with me, I took a sip and smiled at her.

There was no missing the concerned look on her face, even if she was doing her best to hide it.

“So, I wanted to come over and let you know that I’ve made a decision about something,” I started. “And since you’d likely find out about it anyway by this time next week, I didn’t want it to come as a surprise to you.”

“What’s going on?” she questioned me.

I swallowed hard, not feeling very prepared or ready to share it, but knowing I needed to. “I met with a realtor, and she’s got someone coming next week to take pictures of the house. I’m going to be listing it for sale.”

Mary’s eyes widened in shock. “What?”

“I wanted to tell you, so you didn’t see a sign in the grass next week and wonder what was happening,” I said.

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