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Every Kiss(91)

By:Tasha Ivey


“Do the doctors know why?”

“They think it’s because she hasn’t been eating well enough lately. Some new medication she’s on isn’t allowing her to keep much down. Her body is just extremely exhausted and malnourished.”

Oh, thank God. I was expecting her to tell me that there’s no hope for her, that they don’t expect her to ever wake up. “That’s awful, but much better news than I expected to hear.”

“Me, too.” Eve’s gaze travels from Chesley’s feet all the way up to her face. “After all these years, I never saw this coming. I have never admitted it to anyone, but I’ve had this day planned since the day I knew Robert was the one for me. I knew that someday Wesley’s mother would want to know him. Even then, he had a kind soul. Who wouldn’t want to know him? So I plotted out exactly how all of this would go. She would show up, demanding to see him, and I would refuse, saying that he’s my son now. She gave him up, and I gladly filled that hole she left. I imagined myself telling her how unfit she was and how she wasn’t worthy of even looking into his perfect blue eyes. But all these years, I waited for that day, and it never came. I’m not ashamed to admit that I was glad for a long time because I didn’t want her to come along and take my son away from me. Even when Shane came along, my true firstborn, Wesley was still my first son. Always will be.”

I watch her circle around to stand by Chesley’s side, and I follow her, resting my hand on her shoulder. “I know he feels the same way. Nothing will change that.”

“I know.” She covers my hand with her own. “I’m not worried about any of that anymore. Now I just wonder if we made the right decision when we first told him about her. Just in case she ever did come back into his life, we’ve always been honest with him about it, and I sometimes think we shouldn’t have. What I thought would protect him from hurt in the long run has given him years of doubt and confusion. He’s wondered why she left him all this time, and when Sarah left, that was the nail in the coffin for him. She hurt him more than I thought possible, and he lost all trust in women at that point. Had he not known about his mother, maybe he’d be in a better frame of mind now.”

“But now, finding out about it as an adult, he probably would’ve felt betrayed by you. You did the right thing, and I’m sure he’d agree with me on that.”

“I do.” Wes’ voice is barely audible.

I jerk my head around to find him in the same state of limbo that I was in when I walked in. He stands just around the corner, not quite far enough inside to even see the bed. His hands are shoved deep into his pockets, and his head hangs low, as if he can’t bear to lift it.

“It’s weird, you know . . . hearing what people say about you when they don’t know you’re listening.” He still doesn’t look up. He just keeps his eyes trained on his shuffling feet. “I didn’t know you worried about any of that, Mom. You shouldn’t.”

Eve skirts around the bed and meets him at the door, her tiny frame looks even smaller compared to him, especially when his arms envelop her into a tender embrace. “Wesley,” she says into his chest, “No matter how old you are, I’ll always worry about you. I’m sorry if I’ve handled anything poorly. I’ve only tried to do what was fair for you.”

“You haven’t done anything wrong at all.” Wes finally looks up, his eyes immediately find mine. “It’s me who’s needs to wake up, stop being so damn scared of life, and just live it like I want to. I’m sorry for taking so long to realize that. I can’t make any promises, but I’m going to work on that.”

“That’s all I’ve ever wanted.” She tugs him down until he’s low enough for her to kiss his cheek. “I’m proud of you for taking this first step toward that. And I’m thankful that Callie facilitated all of it. I didn’t want you to think that I was pushing you into this so I could get rid of you or something.”

A nervous chuckle huffs from his throat. “You can’t get rid of me that easily, you know. I like your cooking too much.”

Eve pinches his belly. “I never doubted that.” She looks over her shoulder at me, jerking her head toward Wes. “Come here, darlin’.”

“Uh, okay,” I agree, taking a few steps until I’m an arm’s length away. Wes watches every step I make, clearly curious about what his mom is up to.

She takes my hand and pushes it into his. “I’m going to step out for a bit because my heart just can’t take anymore right now.” Patting his cheek, she looks up at Wes one last time. “Just take your time. Do whatever feels right.”