Muddy Bottom by Ashley Farley

Author:Ashley Farley [Farley, Ashley]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Ashley Farley

After dinner, Birdie brews a cup of chamomile tea and takes it outside to the back porch. The days are longer now, and the sun has begun its descent over the horizon. Sunset views will be even better from her second-floor windows at the new apartment.

She stayed at Max’s apartment until a few days ago when she returned home to prepare for the yard sale and move. The lonely memories in this house overshadow the good ones. She never realized how unhappy she was in her marriage. In her life.

Birdie misses her best friend, their long walks, deep talks, and easy companionship. Max has helped her stay sober for eighty-two days, some of them easier than others. Since coming home, she’s had to fight to ignore old habits. Countless times, she’s found herself standing at the pine hutch, looking for the Grey Goose bottle. Once, she even went as far as to check her old hiding places. But now, with Hannah home, the urge to drink is even worse.

She picks up her phone from the arm of the rocker and clicks on Max’s number. Max answers on the second ring. “It’s your favorite head case calling for her daily pep talk. Hannah’s home. If you come for a visit, bring your hacksaw. You’ll need it to cut the tension between us.”

Max chuckles. “You expected that, honey. Remember what we talked about.”

“Of course. Be patient. Think before I speak. Be a good listener. Don’t judge. I’ve broken all four rules already. I should’ve told her about selling the house and buying the bakery before she came home.”

“You mean you didn’t? Oh, Birdie. You have so much to learn. Telling her ahead of time would’ve given her a chance to adjust. Which would’ve made her homecoming less awkward.”

Tears blur Birdie’s vision. “I know, Max. But I was scared Hannah would change her mind about coming home for the summer if she found out she had to live in a two-bedroom apartment with me. I have three months to mend our relationship. If I fail, I may never see her again when she moves out to California.”

“Then don’t fail.”

“As if it were that easy. She’s so hostile toward me. And holding my tongue is proving harder than I thought it would be. She has no clue what she’s getting herself into. Not only in having a baby and being a single parent but in moving to a faraway strange city where she doesn’t know a soul.”

“She’s moving to San Diego, not Bangkok. FYI, they speak English in California. She’s a likable kid. She’ll make friends in no time.”

Birdie frowns. “Whose side are you on?”

“Yours,” Max says. “And hers. I want what’s best for both of you. If she has her heart set on California, you have to let her go.”

Birdie sighs. “But she knows so little about the real world. When I told her Jonathan extended her health insurance coverage until the end of the year, she looked at me with a blank face, as though she never considered who would pay the medical bills when the baby comes.

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