“I am.” I so am!
“I came by to pick up the pants that were being hemmed for me and that other gal told me there was some sort of problem. You told me to come by this afternoon for them, right?”
“Chris, I’m so sorry,” she said as she held them up, still obviously unhemmed. “In all the hubbub the other day, I forgot to turn them in to the alterations department. It was a stupid, absentminded thing to do. I just walked off and forgot about them.”
“Hmm,” a grating, familiar voice said from behind her. Presley Ann wanted to crawl under a rock. “Forgetfulness has always been a pattern with you, Presley Ann. But such forgetfulness can have lasting implications. Alterations are one thing, but you have a little baby boy who trusts in you. Summer is coming on, you know. What if you were to just walk off from your car with him forgotten inside?”
Chris cocked an eyebrow as he looked over her shoulder.
Presley Ann turned and faced her aunt. “Not now, Aunt Dorothy.”
Dorothy shrugged her shoulder and gave Chris a quick glance before she continued. “That’s fine, don’t pay any attention to the voice of wisdom—until it’s too late. Right now it’s only a paltry pair of pants but what about when it’s your son dead of heat stroke?”
Presley Ann shuddered at the morbid thought and grew a little dizzy just imagining it and then shook her head. “You know I’m not giving Whit up, Aunt Dorothy. Why in the world are you pushing this adoption thing so hard?”
“Because it is obvious to everyone but you that you should give that child up so he can be raised in a proper home and not in the midst of a perverted relationship. The offer still stands, dear.” She flounced away.
A gentle hand on her shoulder got her attention. “You okay, Presley Ann?” When she turned back to him, Chris was watching her aunt walk away with disgust in his eyes. “Are you related to her?”
Presley Ann let out a long sigh. “Unfortunately. Yes. That was embarrassing, and I’m so sorry that you were subjected to our family drama.”
Chris grunted, and a big grin broke out on his face and he started laughing. His laughter was contagious and she couldn’t help but join him. “Darlin’, I got ya beat on the family drama. The stories I could tell you.” His expression grew serious. “I hope you didn’t take to heart what she said.”
There was a kernel of doubt in her heart. She heard of kids being forgotten in cars all the time. “Just the thought of that happening…”
Chris leveled his gaze on her. “Sweetie, you’re a good mom. I can spot a relative enjoying taking a family member down a notch or two anywhere. She’s just mean.”
“Thank you. Now, about these pants…” Presley Ann offered to hem the pants herself that night and deliver them to him in the morning, since there was no longer time for the alterations lady to fit them in. Because he definitely needed them for the following day, which was the day before Christmas Eve, he agreed and she added, “Thank you for not being upset about my forgetfulness.”
Chris put his cowboy hat back on his head as they walked toward the door. “Never occurred to me to be upset. Did that other sales clerk tell you I was?” Presley Ann simply shrugged. “I figured as much when you came running out of the back office after she disappeared with my pants telling me she’d get to the bottom of ‘this mess.’ That gal needs to get some people skills.”
“She’s also my cousin and that woman is her mother.”
Chris snorted as he stopped at the door. “Why am I not surprised? Listen, we’re all human and you’ve had your fair share of burdens to overcome lately. One of my sisters has ADD and she’s pretty forgetful, too, but she doesn’t want to take meds.”
“What does she do? How does she handle it?” Presley Ann asked, really curious about her strategy.
“She uses lists and reminders on her phone. She manages one of the family restaurants, and she does a great job. I’m telling you that to encourage you. Don’t let your aunt and your cousin shame you—or scare you like that.”
“I’ll try. How is Gwen doing?”
“She says she’s doing fine, but I can tell she’s tired. Last time she was in for a checkup, Emma told her that the baby was measuring longer than where he or she would normally be at this stage.”
“Well, but…that’s okay, right? I mean, you and Julian are both pretty tall. Maybe she got her dates wrong.”
“I dunno,” he said with a slight shrug but she could see the genuine concern in his eyes. Chris was such a sweet man and she imagined that he’d be concerned no matter what. “Hey, uh…I wanted to ask you about somethin’,” he said as he lowered his voice and turned toward her.