day. “How about I make us some waffles?”
“Actually, I think I feel like going out.”
Kate smiled. Definite progress! Although you’d never guess it by looking at them, they both loved going out to eat.
Kate grabbed her overnight bag and walked into the bathroom so she could brush her teeth. Just as she was about to turn on the faucet, the phone rang. And rang. And rang. Then Joely’s cheerful “I’m not here right now” message came on the answering machine. Kate listened through the door just in case it was Mitch calling for her. But it was another man’s voice: “Hi, Joely. It’s me, Drew. Haven’t seen you in a while. Where are you? Give me a call and I’ll treat you to your favorite, a venti caramel macchiato.”
Kate peeked into the living room to see why Joely hadn’t picked up the phone. Her sister sat in her recliner, staring blankly at the wall. Kate’s heart sank.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Later that afternoon Kate marched into her house, anger bubbling inside her. She tossed her bag onto the living room couch and turned down the volume on the Dave Matthews Band. Her bad mood had escalated when a detour took her past a horse farm, reminding her of when she was fourteen and had longed for a horse.
Instead of sending Kate to horseback riding camp like her friends’ moms, Aunt Suzy arranged for her to spend the summer cleaning stables. Aunt Suzy expected her to walk the three miles to the farm, but sometimes Kate borrowed her cousin Jonathan’s bike and Walkman to make the trip more tolerable. He didn’t even notice since Aunt Suzy chauffeured him to tennis lessons and baseball games in her air-conditioned VW bug. Family or not, Kate hated them both. Now Kate stood in front of Mitch. “Can you believe Aunt Suzy hasn’t so much as called Joely to see how she’s doing?”
Mitch looked up from tinkering with a broken watch and smiled at her. He was experienced enough with Kate’s Aunt Suzy rants to offer support mostly with his sympathetic brown eyes.
“My sister is going through chemo! She has an incurable disease! You would think that the woman who raised her would rush to her side.”
“There’s no sense in getting all worked up about it, Honey.”
Kate reached for the phone. “That’s it. I am going to give her a piece of my mind.”
“Don’t be crazy. You know you’ll never tell her how you feel.”
“Yes I will. I’m ready to finally lay it on the line.”
Kate’s throat tightened as she considered standing up to the woman who begrudgingly provided her shelter. From the outside Aunt Suzy looked like such a wonderful person, taking on her sister’s two kids. Everyone thought she was a saint, but Kate and Joely knew the truth. Aunt Suzy was such a good actress, though; sometimes Kate thought if it weren’t for Joely, she would start to doubt her own recollections. Although her aunt didn’t technically abuse them or anything, she managed to make them feel unwelcome. She would take them to Jonathan’s guitar lessons, but never let them participate. Whenever chocolate-chip cookies went missing from the cookie jar, she spanked them, even though they explained that Jonathan had eaten them. In Aunt Suzy’s eyes, Jonathan could do no wrong while Kate and Joely caused her marriage to crumble.
Kate looked up the number in her address book. Ring. Boy, was she mad. Ring. She had a lot she wanted to say to her. Ring.
“Hello?”
Kate hung up. She cursed and threw down the phone. Then it rang. She looked at the caller I.D. Her eyes widened. “She *69ed me.”
“Are you going to answer it?” Mitch asked.
She took a few deep breaths. Then she picked up the receiver. “Hello?”
“Did you just call and hang-up?” Aunt Suzy scolded.
“No. I mean, we must have gotten cut-off,” Kate explained, sounding apologetic.
“Oh, well. . . Kate, how are you?” Aunt Suzy asked, with the sticky sweetness of corn syrup. “We haven’t talked in so
“Actually, I think I feel like going out.”
Kate smiled. Definite progress! Although you’d never guess it by looking at them, they both loved going out to eat.
Kate grabbed her overnight bag and walked into the bathroom so she could brush her teeth. Just as she was about to turn on the faucet, the phone rang. And rang. And rang. Then Joely’s cheerful “I’m not here right now” message came on the answering machine. Kate listened through the door just in case it was Mitch calling for her. But it was another man’s voice: “Hi, Joely. It’s me, Drew. Haven’t seen you in a while. Where are you? Give me a call and I’ll treat you to your favorite, a venti caramel macchiato.”
Kate peeked into the living room to see why Joely hadn’t picked up the phone. Her sister sat in her recliner, staring blankly at the wall. Kate’s heart sank.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Later that afternoon Kate marched into her house, anger bubbling inside her. She tossed her bag onto the living room couch and turned down the volume on the Dave Matthews Band. Her bad mood had escalated when a detour took her past a horse farm, reminding her of when she was fourteen and had longed for a horse.
Instead of sending Kate to horseback riding camp like her friends’ moms, Aunt Suzy arranged for her to spend the summer cleaning stables. Aunt Suzy expected her to walk the three miles to the farm, but sometimes Kate borrowed her cousin Jonathan’s bike and Walkman to make the trip more tolerable. He didn’t even notice since Aunt Suzy chauffeured him to tennis lessons and baseball games in her air-conditioned VW bug. Family or not, Kate hated them both. Now Kate stood in front of Mitch. “Can you believe Aunt Suzy hasn’t so much as called Joely to see how she’s doing?”
Mitch looked up from tinkering with a broken watch and smiled at her. He was experienced enough with Kate’s Aunt Suzy rants to offer support mostly with his sympathetic brown eyes.
“My sister is going through chemo! She has an incurable disease! You would think that the woman who raised her would rush to her side.”
“There’s no sense in getting all worked up about it, Honey.”
Kate reached for the phone. “That’s it. I am going to give her a piece of my mind.”
“Don’t be crazy. You know you’ll never tell her how you feel.”
“Yes I will. I’m ready to finally lay it on the line.”
Kate’s throat tightened as she considered standing up to the woman who begrudgingly provided her shelter. From the outside Aunt Suzy looked like such a wonderful person, taking on her sister’s two kids. Everyone thought she was a saint, but Kate and Joely knew the truth. Aunt Suzy was such a good actress, though; sometimes Kate thought if it weren’t for Joely, she would start to doubt her own recollections. Although her aunt didn’t technically abuse them or anything, she managed to make them feel unwelcome. She would take them to Jonathan’s guitar lessons, but never let them participate. Whenever chocolate-chip cookies went missing from the cookie jar, she spanked them, even though they explained that Jonathan had eaten them. In Aunt Suzy’s eyes, Jonathan could do no wrong while Kate and Joely caused her marriage to crumble.
Kate looked up the number in her address book. Ring. Boy, was she mad. Ring. She had a lot she wanted to say to her. Ring.
“Hello?”
Kate hung up. She cursed and threw down the phone. Then it rang. She looked at the caller I.D. Her eyes widened. “She *69ed me.”
“Are you going to answer it?” Mitch asked.
She took a few deep breaths. Then she picked up the receiver. “Hello?”
“Did you just call and hang-up?” Aunt Suzy scolded.
“No. I mean, we must have gotten cut-off,” Kate explained, sounding apologetic.
“Oh, well. . . Kate, how are you?” Aunt Suzy asked, with the sticky sweetness of corn syrup. “We haven’t talked in so
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