The Beautiful Misfits by Susan Reinhardt

Author:Susan Reinhardt
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Regal House Publishing
Published: 2023-06-15T00:00:00+00:00

14

Josie swore off alcohol and planned to ante up her good-mother status. She’d already spent the past twelve days of not working as if she were the newest recruit in the Mother Scouts of America, trying to earn a dozen badges in as many days.

Badge One—The Tenacity Badge: She’d called Finley four times this week from various phones.

Badge Two—The Handles Disappointment Badge: Every call had gone to voice mail.

Badge Three—The Face of Hope Badge: She’d left messages for Finley to come to Asheville.

Badge Four—The Acceptance Badge: Frank said Finley was home and doing well. Liar.

Badge Five—The Generous Badge: She’d promised to PayPal Frank a grand.

Badge Six—The Follows Through Badge: She’d said she’d pay upon delivery of her son.

Josie was still working on what the other six badges entailed.

She opened the sliding glass doors and stared into the sky, a full Flower Moon hanging fat and low.

Full moons over Josie’s head were like thieves in the night, warning her of their shifts and pulls. She’d lost her luminous career on the edge of a full phase. Her marriage to Frank had dissolved four years ago when a March Worm Moon ripened and sagged in the sky as if too heavy to rise. Both of her babies debuted into the world squirming and mewling when stout moons lured them like the tug of tides.

Tonight, she wouldn’t let that moon rob her of joy with Dottie.

Josie had bought new crafts projects and Sculpey Clay with her Michaels forty-percent-discount coupon. She and Dottie spent the evening kneading the firm rectangles into animals and creatures and cooking them in the toaster oven until they were hard but a tad burned around the ears and tails.

“Now you’ll have a whole farm to go with your Barbies, sweet pea,” Josie said, taking three hot bunnies from the toaster oven. Dottie ran splay-legged to her bedroom and returned with a bucket spilling with tangled and disheveled dolls, including Mary-Mary, half of her sequined scales missing and her scalp nearly bald from Dottie’s hair-salon games.

“Where Aunt Ruby?” she asked. “She gonna take me to the zoo to see otters and bears.”

“Well, Dottie. She met someone on a dating site for the elderly and said she deserves one last crack at love before she departs this earth.” Oddly, Josie had never seen Ruby in a car. It was as if she just walked into the night and vanished. Or appeared at her door like an ancient fairy. “She’ll be back, so don’t you worry.”

And she would. Paid or not. She’s a wonderful little child, a real delight, Ruby had said daily. You needn’t worry about her missing out on all the educational therapies. I’m teaching her enough until you find the right program.

By the time she and Dottie finished their roasted menagerie, Josie managed to push aside her worries over money and jobs and owing Ruby a week’s salary. She listed her BMW for sale on Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist. She’d barely thought about her mother’s bizarre move to Hendersonville, and realized that she could, as Ruby was quite fond of saying, Be in the moment.

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