“I meant that, but I’m not a monk either, Mom.”
He’d been so focused for the last four years she was happy to hear him talking about having a little fun, too. “I know, I know. But remember there will always be a place for you and Tamara in my home. Always.”
That was the main reason she’d pushed the arrangement she and Bill currently had. He held the note on the house, and she made payments directly to him, so the kids would always have the home they grew up in to come back to.
“I know, but you raised us both to be independent and chart our own courses. Our home is not a brick and lumber dwelling, Mom. It’s you. It’s okay to let go of the past and take care of the present and future, maybe find a new place to make new memories. It wouldn’t bother me or Tam if you wanted to sell the house and find a smaller place so you didn’t have all the upkeep on a four-bedroom house.”
“Nonsense. This way you always have somewhere to bring your families for the holidays. And I’ll always have enough room for everyone.”
“Mom, we’ll come wherever you are for the holidays. Don’t worry about that. Can I ask you about something kind of personal?”
Raising her eyebrows, she leaned against the counter while the coffeemaker gurgled and hissed. Was he planning to ask her if she was already dating anyone? “Depends. What would you like to know?”
He sighed on the other end. “I talked to Dad last night.”
“What did he say?” Do I even want to know?
“He gave me the impression the two of you were considering reconciliation.”
That bastard. He’d called their son trying to enlist his help in whatever idiotic plot he was cooking up. At least she had confirmation it wasn’t her imagination. “Cariño, your father and I are not getting back together. I know it would probably make you and Tamara happy, but we had our reasons for splitting up.” Me, for discovering he was a cheating bastard, and him for being idiotic enough to think having a hysterectomy meant I would lose my femininity. She thought it, but she didn’t say it. They didn’t need all those details.
“Mom, I’m not four. I know there were problems, and probably knew all along. Tamara, too. If he’s dreaming and plotting, well…I love the man, he’s my dad, but I’m not pushing you at him. I want to see you both happy.”
She longed to hug him so hard. “I love you, baby. Thank you for understanding and caring so much about me. I’m not taking him back.”
“I liked that you allowed him so much access to us when we were still at home. I guess he’s thinking it would be easy to just get everyone on his side and coerce you into it?”
Well, it worked once before. She shook her head, wishing she could erase the memory of how she’d given in to her father and uncles pushing her at Bill.
She poured a cup of coffee and said, “Should I start looking for an apartment for you?”
“Already have a lead on one near the shop. It’ll be available mid-December, which is perfect. And once I’m settled, I’ll start looking for a house. If you want, I can look for a nice, smaller house for you, too.”
“Not so fast,” she said with a chuckle.
He responded with an easy laugh. “I know. I’m putting the cart before the horse. Actually, my main reason for calling is to talk to you about the shop.”
“The shop? What about it?”
“Well, you’ve built a solid, profitable, and popular business in Divine. I want to talk to you about expanding and maybe exploring some new opportunities—and maybe interview with Divine Drip’s beautiful, smart CEO for the position of manager. I’d like to assist in taking Divine Drip to the next level.”
“Next level? Where do I go from coffee, kolaches, cupcakes, and breakfast tacos?”
He made a quiet yet gleeful sound she recalled from when he was younger. “You’ve made Divine Drip so much more than that, Mom. Under one roof, you’ve pulled together multicultural food services, a mainstream bakery, a coffee house, and don’t forget the wedding cake business. You, Mom, are a force to be reckoned with. But you only have twenty-four hours in your day—”
The only other male family member who’d ever affirmed her abilities had been her Uncle Rudy. Her voice grew husky as she said, “Whoa, honey! You’re making me tired just talking about it.”
“And now you’re getting to the point I wanted to make, Mom. On your own, you can only do so much: managing the shop, food prep, advertising, equipment issues. You do it all.”
“No, I have very good help.”
“Which shows your ability to manage people. Mom, let me help you take Divine Drip to the next level. And if you don’t like my methods or don’t understand, just say so. Question anything. I don’t want to take it away from you or make you feel like you’re not in the loop. You’ll be consulted on every decision, and we only go forward with changes if you agree. Best of all? I’ll make you money.”