The knock at the door sounded like someone running their hand over it instead of closing a fist to knock. It was a knock Meredith had heard many times over the years. It had just been a while since she was reminded of how delicate her mother could be.
Layla McLarson had never wanted for a thing in her life. She’d tried to raise her daughter the same way, but Meredith grew tired of the idea by the time she was five. Having others wait on her wasn’t how she wanted to live. She wanted to be able to dress herself, play in the mud, have friends who weren’t picked out before she was even born. It wasn’t until she ran away that any of that became possible.
“Promise me you’ll keep an eye on your sister and stay in here until I come get you,” Meredith whispered to Caleb.
She’d called her mother, even revealed her location in order for them to talk, but she wasn’t ready to introduce her children. It would’ve been nice if she had someone else around who could look after them during the family visit, but the only person she trusted that task with had grown a giant stupid bone and was hundreds of miles away causing her grief.
“I’ll keep her happy so she doesn’t cry.”
Caleb smiled as he rocked Grace in her bouncy chair. The baby’s eyes were drifting shut, so Meredith hoped the next hour or so she expected company would go by without any unwanted reveals. Eventually, she’d have to share the fact that she’d been married and had kids, but she needed to know where her parents’ hearts were first.
“Thanks, sweetie,” Meredith said softly as she closed the door.
The noise at the front door sounded again. Meredith had asked her to come alone, and the fact she was attempting her sad knocks told Meredith she’d followed those directions. Looking down at her clothes, Meredith shook her head and walked to the door. Her mother wasn’t going to approve of the plain purple V-neck shirt and jeans, but Meredith didn’t have any designer clothes to slip on.
Opening the door, Meredith came face to face with the woman who had given birth to her. She hadn’t seen her in seven years, but her mother hadn’t changed a bit. Her dark golden hair twisted in perfect ringlets on either side of her oval face. After seven years, Meredith would’ve thought she’d try a new style.
Before Meredith could say anything, arms wrapped around her and the familiar scent of vanilla filled her nose. Her mother hadn’t baked a thing in her life, but she loved to smell like she made cookies every day.
“Thank you for calling,” her mother said as she kissed her on the cheek and pulled away.
She didn’t let go of her, just gave enough room so she could get a look at her. Meredith hadn’t considered the baby weight still cushioning her middle. In her mind, if she ever saw her mother again, she would’ve looked the exact same as the day she left.
Her hair in general hadn’t changed, but she almost always wore it up in a ponytail, something her mother more than likely would cringe at. Meredith was sure the lines on her face made her look older and she always thought her eyes looked a little duller in the mirror. That certainly had to do with the lack of makeup she wore comparatively speaking, but she was sure her mom would see it plain as day.
Meredith looked over Layla’s shoulder to see a black sedan next to her truck. The chrome on the grille was probably worth more than the truck. Not being hip on the current models, she wasn’t sure how new the car was, but her parents used to trade vehicles in every two years.
She wasn’t really interested in the car. She wanted to make sure there wasn’t anyone else in the driveway expecting a greeting. Since Meredith had been strict about no other visitors, she thought her wishes would be respected, but she also thought her mother would make her driver do the road navigating.
“Did you have any trouble finding the place?”
“No, of course not. I entered it into the GPS and had maps brought up on my phone just in case roads weren’t where they were supposed to be.”
The door was open behind her, and it didn’t take Layla long to glance inside. The smile on her face hadn’t faded as she took in Meredith, a surprising enough feat. What was even more surprising was that it didn’t fade even when she got a look at the cabin her daughter lived in. Meredith expected her to start screaming or maybe even faint.
“Once you get up in the mountains, GPS isn’t always helpful. Do you want to come in?”
They could’ve stood outside and had their conversation, but Meredith assumed there was a delayed reaction coming as far as her mother taking everything in. With that in mind, the lumpy couch was probably the best place for the conversation.
“That sounds like a great idea. Is anyone going to join us?”
Layla didn’t look at Meredith as she continued to look around her. There wasn’t much to see in the cabin. From the door you could see the kitchen area and the couch.
“I hope not. I asked you not to bring anyone.”
Meredith moved out of the way and guided her mother towards the couch. She’d grabbed every toy that usually covered the floor and stuffed them in Caleb’s room, but she found herself double checking to make sure she hadn’t missed something.
“So this meeting wasn’t meant to introduce me to my grandson?”
The slow steps Meredith took came to a complete stop. Her eyes darted towards the door Caleb and Grace hid behind. She’d been listening for any sounds coming from it and hadn’t heard anything.
“What are you talking about?”
When Meredith had called, she’d been so straight and to the point that it made no sense that her mom had somehow read something about the kids in the conversation. Meredith had called Layla’s cell, told her she wanted to meet her, the address, and that was it.
“Your son. If my intel is correct, his name is Caleb, right?”
Meredith kept as calm as she could as she spun around to face Layla. Inside, it felt like she was about to explode. If she ever saw Toby again, she was going to kill him.
“I don’t have any idea what you’re talking about.”
The robotic tone to her voice was a dead giveaway that she knew exactly what her mom was talking about, but she hoped years apart wouldn’t make that obvious. Layla had only mentioned Caleb, so her mind raced to figure out what information was being shared with her and how often.
“Sweetheart, you’ve got to know that we’ve been keeping an eye on you since you left. I’ve wanted to come after you, but your father refused to let me unless you asked me to come. He wanted to give you the space you needed to figure out your place in the world. The only contact he’s allowed is through your husband. As long as he sends me pictures of you and Caleb somewhat regularly, I deposit four thousand dollars into his bank account each month.”
Layla opened up her leather pink and black checkered purse and pulled out her wallet. As Meredith stood in shock, her mother dug out a picture of Caleb taken around Thanksgiving the year before. His front tooth had just fallen out and he hammed it up for the camera. The goofy grin on his face made it one of Meredith’s favorite pictures.
“This is the last one I got before Lawrence passed. I know he wasn’t the best husband in the world, but he did think the world of you.”
Bringing up the kind of husband the man was snapped Meredith from her stupor. She’d always wondered how a hermit had the money to keep them fed and clothed, and where the money had come from for the life insurance policy. Not to mention the alcohol he was fond of drowning himself in.
“What do you know about Lawrence and what kind of husband he was? The man was a mean drunk, and it sounds to me like you made sure he always had his drink of choice in mass quantities.”
Layla sighed as she tucked the picture away. There wasn’t a table for her to put the purse down on, so she set it on the couch they were about a foot away from.
“Let’s sit down and talk for a few minutes. After seven years, there’s plenty that we both need to say.”
Without a word from Meredith, Layla sat down next to her purse. Meredith watched as she pushed her hands down on the couch, hopefully feeling every single lump the at least decade-old couch had to offer.
“I only called because I thought you were going to find out where I’ve been staying anyway, and I wanted to make it clear that I’m not coming back to whatever fantasy life you had planned for me.”
Meredith refused to sit and instead started to pace. Even with Layla knowing about Caleb, she kept one eye on the door to make sure it didn’t open. If her mother had any detective skills, she’d pick up the distraction, but Meredith couldn’t help herself. Her kids were her life, and she wanted to keep them protected.
“We only ever wanted to set you up for a life where you’d want for nothing. Perry’s finances would’ve made sure that’s possible, and your father was looking to retire, so it sounded like a great plan.”
“Retire? He’s just now fifty. Why in the world would he want to retire?”
The explanation for why they thought the contract was a good idea wasn’t necessary. Meredith knew generally why they planned the marriage. The retirement aspect was the only thing she hadn’t expected.
Layla scoffed. “Your father is brilliant when it comes to making money and finding people to make that money for him, but he hates working. Along with setting you up for life, the deal they were working on would buy your dad out so he could spend his days golfing and hanging out at the club.”
That news didn’t come as a complete surprise. Her father didn’t go anywhere without his clubs in the back of his car. She’d even wondered at times whether he slept with them.
“He must hate me for screwing that up for him. I’m surprised he hasn’t shown up here to drag me back and push me down the aisle.”
Looking at her mother, Meredith saw her lips purse and her brows scrunch together. It was clear she was confused about something.
“You didn’t screw anything up for him. Perry bought his shares of the company. Your father is still the face of it for business reasons, but Perry owns it and is making all the decisions.”
It was Meredith’s turn to be confused. She stopped her slow pacing and rubbed her forehead as she thought about her mother’s words.
“D0es Perry know where I am? He can’t, right? I mean he’d come grab his runaway bride if he knew I was hiding up here.”
“I don’t know for sure. He has the resources to find you, but the marriage was never important to him. The heir part of things meant something to him, but he found someone else to provide him with one that didn’t involve going against his personal beliefs.”
Meredith felt a headache coming on. She’d been expecting a totally different conversation to take place. There were supposed to be questions about why she’d run away and how she’d been spending her time, but Layla seemed to already know the important details.
“Perry has a kid?”
After seven years, it shouldn’t have come as a shock, but Toby had said something about thinking he wasn’t married. Meredith didn’t keep great tabs on the man, but she figured a wedding would be well known.
“Yeah, and a husband. Not many people know about the latter, but we’ve met the guy and it seems like the two of them are happy. I’m pretty sure Perry isn’t ready for that detail to be public, so the image he puts on for the public may say otherwise, but I can assure you that he’s married.”
People often talk about something they’ve heard making their head explode, but Meredith had never had it happen personally. Her whole life suddenly felt like a giant lie, even though the life she was thinking about had never happened. She needed some time to process things, and figure out exactly what her mom said meant for her future.