Birthright by Judith Arnold Page A

a less contorted hug.
    Lily hugged her back. Grace was a dear friend, one of the River Rats. A year older than Lily, Grace had always been an inspiration to her. Unlike Lily, she’d never cared what anyone else thought of her. She used to say Lily should be flattered that everyone had such high expectations of her, but Lily used to argue that life was a whole lot easier when no one expected anything.
    Not that Grace had disappointed anyone’s expectations. She was happily married to a fellow RiverRat, Ed Pennington, and they had three children. Life had worked out sweetly for her.
    “I’ve been dying to call you,” Grace went on, “but I wanted to respect your privacy. We all did. Everyone wants to see you, though. Hi, Mrs. Bennett,” she said belatedly, then gave Lily another exuberant hug. “God, your mother looks prettier every time I see her.”
    “Maybe your eyesight is getting worse every time you see me,” Lily’s mother joked. “How are you, Grace?”
    “I’m fine. Better than fine,” Grace told her. “The kids are visiting with my in-laws for the week. It’s like a little honeymoon for Ed and me.” Abruptly her smile faded and she glanced anxiously at Lily.
    “I’m sorry.”
    “No, don’t be. I think it’s great that you and Ed are able to get some time alone.” She and Tyler had had plenty of time alone, but it had never seemed like a honeymoon to her.
    “Well, look…” Grace slid out of the booth, stood up and squeezed Lily’s shoulder. “I didn’t mean to interrupt your lunch. Just tell me you won’t hate me if I give you a call, okay, Lily?”
    “Sure.” Lily gave her a genuine smile.
    “How could anyone ever hate that girl?” Lily’s mother murmured as Grace headed toward the front counter, where her lunch companion was waiting for her, another young woman, who looked vaguely familiar to Lily. Probably another old schoolmate.
    It was strange to be back in Riverbend. So much had changed, and so little.
    The waitress arrived with their lunch, and Lily tore her gaze from the front counter. She realized her attention had shifted from Grace and her companion to Aaron’s mother. Evie Mazerik had a face as angular as his, but her eyes were a pale hazel, not the rich blend of colors in Aaron’s eyes. Her mouth had a slightly lopsided cast to it, even when she smiled. Perhaps that was a result of the stroke she’d had.
    Who’d have thought Aaron would come home to take care of her?
    As if aware of Lily’s thoughts, her mother said, “Now, tell me what brought you into town today.”
    Lily wasn’t ready to inform her mother that she’d been on her way to check out Aaron’s sports program. If she told her mother she was considering making a contribution to it, her mother would become suspicious—not about Lily’s wanting to give her money away but her wanting to give it to someone like Aaron, who’d had run-ins with the law as a teenager and would never win any awards for civic responsibility. Until Lily decided for sure what she was going to do, she saw no reason to discuss it.
    “It was a nice day,” she fibbed. “A perfect day to drive around with the top down.”
    “Obviously I’m not the only person thrilled to see you out and about.” Her mother dabbed her fork into the paper cup of salad dressing, then touched the coated tines to the spinach leaves.
    Turning the spotlight on her mother would be a good way to keep the spotlight off herself. “Grace was right, Mom—you really look terrific. I don’t know why you’re wasting money on anti-wrinkle cream.”
    “It’s not a waste of money. The cream is going to protect my skin, keep it healthy. When I saw how wonderful Gloria looked at her niece’s wedding, Ijust had to give this stuff a try.” She launched into a lengthy description of the wedding, the reception, everyone who’d been there and what they’d been wearing. Lily ate her sandwich and listened. Her mother seemed animated and happy. Whatever had