That Horse Whiskey! by C. S. Adler

Author:C. S. Adler [Adler, C. S.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781497693869
Published: 2013-03-13T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 9

Mom had been right about Dad. He had enough courage back by Monday to sit at the breakfast table reviewing old customers who might give him leads on remodeling jobs. Over his fried eggs and hash browns he even made Mom laugh about the customer who’d wanted a doghouse big enough for a bed so he could sleep there when his wife locked him out of their house.

“Lainey,” Dad said, as he was about to leave, “I’m sorry if I talked mean to you on Saturday. You sure didn’t deserve it.”

“That’s all right, Daddy.”

He stood facing the door, as if he couldn’t bring himself to face her, and his voice got husky as he added, “I just felt so bad about losing Cobb Lane and your having to move from here.”

She caught her breath. They were moving? No one had told her that. But she didn’t say a word for fear her dismay might send him skidding back into despair.

She waited until he’d gone before asking her mother, “What did Dad mean, we have to move?”

Mom’s plump shoulder rose in a shrug. “He thought I’d already gotten around to telling you, Lainey.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Because. You were dealing with so much bad news, I didn’t see the sense in rushing to deliver the rest of it.”

“We’re losing everything?”

“Well, we’re not quite out in the street yet, but the bank’s taking over Cobb Lane Development at the end of the month. That’s unless we can come up with enough of a payment on our loan to persuade them to extend it some more, and that’s unlikely.”

“The end of the month. That’s less than two weeks,” Lainey said.

“Don’t look so tragic,” Mom said. “Nobody’s dying. We’re just losing Cobb Lane and this house. That’s the way it is with most builders when they start out. You put up a house, and if it doesn’t sell, you move into it and wait for a buyer. Then you build another house and so on. Only this time we’re not exactly selling. We took a risk and lost, that’s all.”

Lainey chewed on her lip, trying to absorb the bad news as her mother eyed her with concern. Finally, she said, “Mom, I’d appreciate it if you didn’t keep things from me. I’m not a little girl you and Dad have to protect anymore. I’m part of this family, and I need to know what’s going on in it.”

Mom nodded. “Okay, from now on, I’ll keep you posted. You’ll get the news as it happens. I promise.”

“So when’re we moving?”

“Soon. I’ve started looking for a smaller place. We really don’t need four bedrooms anyway with just the three of us.”

Mom looked around her spacious kitchen, and even though her face didn’t show regret, Lainey suspected it was there. Mom had handpicked the colorful Mexican tiles that made the kitchen so attractive. Most of her time at home was spent in this room cooking, or doing household bills at the built-in desk, or watching the portable TV from a counter stool.

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