“I have my phone,” Annie said, holding it up. “Call me if you need me to come home. I just fed Carolina so she’ll be good for two hours. After that, give her one of the bottles—”
“Honey, I got it. This isn’t my first rodeo.” Jack put his arm around her shoulders and gently directed her toward the front door. “You women have a great time together. We’ll be fine.” He dropped a kiss on her forehead.
“Thank you, Jack.”
“For what?” He cocked his head.
“For being the best husband and father in the entire world.”
He puffed out his chest and smiled.
Leaving the children with Jack, Annie drove over to the cottage. Quickly running up to the porch, she knocked twice. She turned the handle and popped her head inside. “Grandmother. Auntie. I’m out front.”
“Coming, dear,” Patty called out.
Annie stepped back out and waited for them. She tried to give them as much privacy and independence as possible, but because Grandmother was behaving strangely that morning, she stood by to help them down the stairs.
Dressed like they were going to a gala event, Grandmother wore a two-piece pant set in peacock blue, pearls around her neck and on her ears, and her hair piled high on her head with a silvery rhinestone clip. Auntie wore a yellow two-piece outfit and black pearls, leaving her hair down with soft curls resting on her shoulders. These two women knew how to live and definitely knew how to dress. Annie looked down at her maternity top and capris with her white Keds that had seen better days. She tugged on her ponytail, then let her fingers drop to her ears where her lobes were free of any jewelry.
“You both look lovely,” Annie said.
Grandmother’s gaze dropped to Annie’s shoes.
“I know. I’m not looking as put together as you all. But I did just have a baby.” She took Grandmother by the hand and led her down the steps, with Patty holding on to the railing, coming down on her own.
“Take it easy, ladies,” Annie said, helping them to the car.
“Annie McPherson-Powell. You treat us like children,” Lilly said.
The ride to downtown was lively. Grandmother and Patty kept Annie entertained. They went into more detail about their recent trip to Mount Pleasant, where they saw the movie and stopped at the store to get junk food. Annie discovered that it wasn’t the first time they’d snuck out without telling them.
“If you must know, we’ve done it a few times,” Patty admitted.
“How do I not know that?” Annie glared at Patty in the rearview mirror.
“When you’d go to your doctor appointments, we would sneak out. We’ve been to see Rebecca’s grandmother, Ethel, we’ve seen a couple of movies, and we’ve even been out to lunch,” Lilly said.
“I don’t mind taking you anywhere you’d like to go. We just have to schedule it,” Annie said.
“That’s the thing. We’re not used to being on someone’s schedule,” Lilly said.
“Grandmother, you knew when you moved to the cottage that things would be different. We live a few miles from town, in case you hadn’t noticed. We have to schedule things,” Annie said.
“Not with Uber,” Patty said, smiling.
Annie shot her a death stare “Uber? You’d rather take a ride from a stranger than from me or Jack…or Mary even?”
“We’ve met some very nice people during our rides. You’d be surprised,” Patty said, nodding.
“Okay, guys. Let’s change the subject, shall we? I will just say one more thing. Please, please let us know when you’re going out. We worry about you. And when I went into labor and couldn’t reach you, I got scared. That only added to my stress of giving birth.”
“I’m hungry,” Lilly said.
Annie shook her head and tried to conceal her grin. These two old women were a hoot. And if they ever knew the family admired their spunk, fortitude, and energy, they’d have a lot more to worry about than the occasional trip into town to see a movie.
“One of the drivers told us she’d been ziplining. It sounded interesting,” Patty said.
Annie grimaced.
After a lunch of fried flounder, hush puppies, and a slice of cheesecake they all shared, they headed to the house to visit with Mary.
“Grandmother! Auntie! So nice to see you both,” Mary said, opening her arms.
Grandmother leaned in, brushing her lips across her cheek. Patty hugged her tightly, kissing her on the mouth. “Hey, Sis,” Mary said.
Annie flopped up her hand. “Hey.”
“You look good,” she said.
“I do not. You don’t have to sugarcoat it, Sis. I look frumpy and fat.”
“No, you do not. Besides. You just gave birth.”
“Whatever,” Annie said, waving her off. We’re here to see your color palate for the refresh.”
“Yes. I can’t wait to see what you’ve chosen,” Grandmother sneered.
The four of them sauntered into the living room. Grandmother gasped. “My wallpaper. What have you done?”
Annie’s gaze flew up to the wall.
“I took down some of the paper so we can see how the paint will look,” Mary said.
Grandmother ran her hand along the wall. “This wallpaper was very expensive. I had it special ordered. From Europe.”
Annie could hear the hurt in her grandmother’s voice.
“I asked Annie what she thought about me tearing it down.”
“I never said you should tear it down. I told you to discuss it with them first. Show us your ideas. That’s what I said. If you heard something else, Mary, then that’s on you.”
The two-foot by six-foot section, now minus wallpaper, had several brushstrokes of varying paint colors.
Patty, who had been quiet up to that moment, stepped forward. “This is pretty,” she said, admiring the eggplant color.
“No! That’s awful,” Grandmother said, spewing spittle as she spoke, clearly agitated with Mary.
“Maybe this color would be nice,” Annie said, pointing to the celery sample.
Grandmother grunted.
“That’s nice too,” Patty said.
“You can never just leave well enough alone, can you Mary McPherson.” Grandmother tapped her cane a few times then moved away from the wall, looking around the room. “What happened to the chintz upholstered chairs?” She raised her brows to match her elevated tone.
“Those old things? I donated them.” Mary, sounding pleased by her generosity, soon was lambasted by Grandmother.
“Donated? You donated the chairs that had been in this room for over fifty years?”
“Mary! Why didn’t you just recover them if you hated the pattern so much? You had no right to just give away Grandmother’s and Auntie’s furnishings.” Annie crossed her arms and stared at her sister.
“You said this was Danny’s and mine. We could make it comfortable. That’s what we are doing. Now you’re taking it all back. That’s it. I didn’t want to live in the old drafty house anyway. I did it for you.” She whirled around and rushed toward the kitchen.
“Just a minute, young lady. You do not talk to me in that rash tone. Get your butt back out here,” Grandmother demanded.
Annie’s gaze bounced back and forth between them. She’d not seen her this angry since Annie and Mary drew lipstick patterns on one of the bedroom walls when they were kids. Or when they made mud pies and brought them inside. Or the time they captured some lizards and wanted to share them. She tried to hide the giggle that was building. This was beyond comical.
“Okay, folks. Let’s all simmer down,” Annie said, trying to play referee. “Grandmother, maybe you should be more specific in what you mean regarding this being their home and to make it comfortable.”
“Well, I sure as heck didn’t mean tear down wallpaper and give away chairs that cost me a fortune.” She harrumphed.
“What is done is done, Sister,” Patty said, finally finding her voice through the commotion.
Grandmother gave her a sideways glance. Clearing her throat, she began. “I would rather you see your time here at the house as more of a tenant and landlord relationship. You’d never just start pulling down wallpaper and painting walls without the landlord’s permission.”
“That’s fine. Consider this our thirty-day notice, then.” Mary crossed her arms at her chest while leering at Grandmother.
“Fine,” Grandmother stated.
“Good,” Mary said.
“Ladies,” Patty interjected. “Is this what you want? Family to get all riled up over some paint and some ugly wallpaper.”
“Ugly! Well, I never,” Grandmother said, sticking her cane out at Patty and shaking it. “You always liked our décor here.”
“It was always your home, Lilly. I just moved in. I’d never tell you how to furnish it, let alone decorate it. But I never loved those monkeys either.” She nodded toward the wall.
“If I let you take the paper down and paint, what else are you going to do? You’ve already given away priceless furniture. I think maybe it is best if you and Danny move out, and Patty and I move back in.”
Patty covered her mouth.
“That’s not going to happen, Grandmother. You’re too frail. I need to have you closer,” Annie said.
“Frail? I’ll have you know I am not frail. I may be getting up in years, but that’s just a number. My mind is fully functional, and I am insulted you feel we can’t live alone.”
Annie tossed her hands up in the air and stomped her feet. “We are not having this discussion. You and Auntie are living in the cottage, and Mary and Danny are living here. Paint the walls striped. I don’t care. Now, come on. I have a baby to attend to.” Annie cradled Grandmother’s elbow and led her out of the living room. Auntie followed behind. Grandmother kept stopping and looking back toward Mary and mouthing out demands and insults.
“You better not paint the walls striped. Leave the paper alone. I’m going to take an inventory of the furniture, young lady,” she yelled out.
Annie ushered them outside and drew in a deep breath. She counted to ten before speaking. “Mary is your granddaughter. You just talked to her like she was some nobody standing on the corner. You’ve hurt her, I’m sure.”
“Hurt her? She’s hurt me.” Grandmother pouted.
“I get it. This was your home for a good many years. And before that, it belonged to your parents. If you don’t want her to make any changes, then she has to be able to move out. And if she moves out, what are we going to do with an empty house?”
“Take me home,” Grandmother said, shaking loose Annie’s grip.
The ride home was excruciating. Every time Annie thought about saying something, she quickly changed her mind. She had four people, if you counted Danny, all disappointed in the day’s events. When she pulled up to the cottage she barely got the car in park before Grandmother hopped out. Frowning, Annie turned off the engine and stepped outside the car. “Are you going to pout like a baby or are we going to talk about this like adults?”
Grandmother and Auntie held hands as they ascended the steps. Once they got onto the porch, Patty fetched her key from her purse and unlocked the door. Helping her sister inside, she gave Annie a back-handed wave. “Bye, Annie,” she said.
“Auntie Patty. Please talk to her.”
“I hear you,” Grandmother called out.
“Glad to hear that,” Annie yelled back.
As Patty shut the door, she blew Annie a kiss. Shaking her head and grunting, she dropped into the driver’s seat and drove around to the garages. Jack would be there, and he would solve all the problems of the world. Or at least with Grandmother and Mary.
She bolted through the back door and came into the house via the back porch. She traveled down the long hall. The noise coming from the other room had her picking up the pace. Widening her eyes, she watched as Ashton bounced on the couch cushions with his shoes on, dropping to his bottom and then jumping down, running to Isla and pulling her tail. Jack was in the kitchen with a towel draped over his shoulder, warming up a bottle and Carolina in his arms, screaming at the top of her lungs.
“Jack,” she called.
He turned around, his face void of color except for two round red patches on his cheeks. Yellow gooey stuff soiled his shirt. He had something on his neck she didn’t even want to know what it was, and when he came close enough to her, she wrinkled her nose.
“Let me have her.” Annie held out her arms.
He gently rolled Carolina into her arms and took the towel away from his neck. “I’m exhausted.”
She unbuttoned her blouse and sat while nursing Carolina. “Ashton Robert Powell. Stop jumping on the couch and stop teasing the dogs right this minute.”
Ashton bounced one last time to his bottom and crossed his arms. “I’m hungry.”
“Let me finish feeding your sister, and I’ll fix you something.”
“I don’t know why he’s hungry. He had a cookie, a bowl of chips, and a popsicle.”
Annie tilted her head. “Sugar and carbs. Great. Okay, why don’t you go take a shower. I’ll put something together for us. I have a serious issue to discuss with you. I need your level head in this matter. I’m about to lose it with Grandmother.”
After Annie got the household settled, she made dinner. Nothing fancy, but edible. Grilled cheese sandwiches and soup always worked in a pinch. She sliced an apple for them to share.
Now that Jack had showered, he smelled so much better. Annie wrapped her arms around him and kissed him. “I’m sorry you had such a hard time today. I didn’t mean to be gone so long.”
“No problem. I don’t know how you do it.”
She cocked her head.
“Take care of the kids, the house, and me.”
“It’s going to be a new thing now that we have two children. Some things aren’t going to get done. Dinner might be late, the house might not be as clean, I might be tired—a lot, but we’ll manage.” She dropped a quick kiss on his nose.
“When do you think I should go back to work? The orders are piling up.”
“Tomorrow,” she said.
“Seriously?” She flashed a smile.
“Yes. But not before you solve this crisis.”
“Let me tuck Ashton in, and I’ll be right back. I do my best world problem solving with a glass of wine.” He winked.
“I’ll pour it and be waiting.”
“So, let me get this straight. Mary wants to redo the old house, and Grandmother is not having it and has threatened to move back in. Where will Mary and Danny go? The cottage?”
“We didn’t get that far. I can’t let Grandmother and Auntie move back there. I’d be worried about them all the time.”
“Well, to be fair, they did pretty good. Especially when we had caregivers Charles and Betsy there.” Jack twirled his wine before sipping it.
“I know. All their friends are there, their social circles. But we’re so far away if they need us.”
“Let’s see if we can find someone to move into the upstairs apartment,” Jack said.
“Maybe. I don’t know. I guess if I have to be completely honest, I’m not supervising them very well. Grandmother isn’t eating properly; they sneak out and Uber into town. Living downtown couldn’t be much worse, I suppose,” she said, trailing off. “I’ll discuss it with Grandmother in the morning.”
“What you should do is give them an ultimatum. They only get to move back with full-time caregivers.”
“Caregivers! They’d never go for that,” Annie said.
“Call it whatever you want, but that’s what they’ll be,” Jack said, nudging her shoulders gently.