At the Water's Edge (NEW COVER) by Harper Bliss

Author:Harper Bliss [Bliss, Harper]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Adult, Contemporary, Depression, Drama, Lesbian, Lesbian Romance, Recovery
Google: LmjKrQEACAAJ
Goodreads: 23493179
Publisher: Ladylit Publishing
Published: 2014-11-13T05:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

Waiting for my mother at the cabin feels like a do-over of our failed attempt a few days ago. Only, this time, Kay won’t come to my rescue before we have a chance to say anything of meaning.

I sit on the porch and hear her footsteps approach. Small, clipped steps walking purposefully toward me on the graveled path.

When my friend Trish had her first baby five years ago, she told me that the love she felt for little Josie was so obliterating she couldn’t compare it to anything else. I remember wondering if that was a universal feeling among new mothers around the world—if my own mother ever felt that way about Nina and me.

After my mom has deposited her pie in the kitchen, she grabs me by the shoulders, turns me toward her, and hugs me so tightly I fear she may crack one of my ribs. When we let loose, we both have tears in our eyes.

“Do you have anything stronger than coffee?” she asks.

I arch up my eyebrows, unsure this is the best way to start a coffee date.

“Just the one, to take the edge off. I know we have some serious business to discuss and the pie is just dress-up.”

I’m not used to my mother being so forthright. Taken aback, I head for the fridge and dig up the bottle of white wine I had planned on serving Kay tonight. I pour us both a modest glass and put the bottle back.

“I’m glad we never sold this place,” Mom says after we’ve installed ourselves on the porch, both of us looking out over the lake. “Although I came this close.” She brings her thumb and index finger together, only leaving half an inch between them. “He brought her here. To this place where we vacationed with you and Nina, our girls.”

Although Dad’s affair hung over our lives like a dark cloud, after the big confessional moment, it was never directly talked about again, despite silently dominating almost every conversation in the Goodman house. Again, Mom surprises me with her forwardness.

“Are you kidding me?” I need to take a sip from my wine to process.

Mom shakes her head, but not in her usual victim-like way. “That’s how I found out. She left a pair of tights under the bed. How cliché is that, Ella?” To my utter amazement, she even manages a chuckle. Who is this woman sitting next to me? She looks like Dee Goodman, but seems possessed by someone else’s spirit. She takes a big gulp of her wine. “I have a confession to make.” She twirls the stem of her glass between her fingers. “Your father and I contacted your doctor in Boston this morning. Not to check up on you, just to ask for guidance on how to, uh, handle this.”

“You did what?” Pure rage flares in the pit of my stomach, quickly making its way up. It’s so typical that she would go behind my back.

“I should have asked first. I know that.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.