The Air He Breathes (Elements, #1)(8)

Mr. Henson owed the shop Needful Things in downtown Meadows Creek, and he was one of the weirdest people I’d never met. I only knew about his weirdness based on what others said about him.

The townspeople were some of the best at gossiping and living the small town lifestyle. People were always on the go, but no one ever really got anywhere.

I looked across the street and saw three people gossiping outside a house as they went to collect their mail. Two women power-walked past my house, and I listened to them talking about my return to town—they didn’t say hello to me or anything, but they spoke about me. Right around the corner came a father who was teaching his little girl to ride her bike for what appeared to be the first time without training wheels.

A smile crept across my face. It was all so stereotypical, the small town life. Everyone knew everyone’s business and it spread fast.

“Anyhow.” Kathy smiled, bringing me back to reality. “We brought some barbeque and things for dinner. Stocked up your fridge too so you wouldn’t have to worry about grocery shopping for a week or two. Plus, we already put the blankets on top of the roof for the fireworks, which should be starting right about…” The sky filled with blues and reds, igniting the world with color. “Now!”

I looked up at the rooftop to see Lincoln carrying Emma in his arms as they got comfortable and shouted ‘Ooo! Ahh!’ each time the night lit on fire.

“Come on, Mama!” Emma yelled, not taking her eyes away from the display of colors.

Kathy wrapped her arm around my waist and we walked toward the house. “After Emma goes to bed, I have a few bottles of wine with your name on them.”

“For me?” I asked.

She smiled. “For you. Welcome back home, Liz.”

Home.

I wondered when that sting would disappear.





Lincoln wanted to put Emma to bed, and when he seemed to be taking longer than normal, I went to check on them. Emma had a way of giving me a hard time each night when I put her to bed, and I was sure she was giving him the same issues. I tiptoed down the hallway and didn’t hear screaming, which was a good sign. Peeking into the room, I found the two spread out sound asleep in the full-sized bed, with Lincoln’s feet hanging over the end of the bed frame.

Kathy giggled, walking up behind me. “I don’t know who’s more excited to be reunited, Lincoln or Emma.” She walked us to the living room, where we sat in front of the two biggest wine bottles I’d ever seen.

“Are you trying to get me drunk?” I laughed.

She smirked. “If it makes you feel better, I might just have to.” Kathy and I had always been so close. After growing up with a mom who wasn’t the most stable mother, when I got together with Steven, meeting Kathy was such a breath of fresh air. She welcomed me in with arms wide open and never let me go. When she found out I was pregnant with Emma, she cried even more than I did.

“I feel awful that I kept them apart for so long,” I said, sipping at my glass of wine and staring down the hallway toward Emma’s room.

“Honey, your life was turned upside down. When tragedies happen and there are children involved, you don’t think, you just act. You do what you think is best—you go into survival mode. And you can’t blame yourself for that.”

“Yeah. But, I feel like I ran away for me, not for Emma. It was just too much for me to handle. Emma probably would’ve been better staying here. She missed it.” My eyes watered over. “And I should’ve visited you and Lincoln. I should’ve called more. I’m so sorry, Kathy.”

She leaned in toward me, resting her elbows against her kneecaps. “Now listen to me, darling. The time right now is 10:42 p.m., and right now, at 10:42 p.m., you stop blaming yourself. Right now is the moment you forgive yourself. Lincoln and I understood. We knew you needed space. Don’t feel as if you owe us an apology, because you don’t.”

I wiped away the few tears that slipped out from my eyes. “Stupid tears.” I laughed, embarrassed.

“You know what makes the tears stop?” she asked.

“What’s that?”

She poured me another big glass of wine. Smart woman.

We stayed up for hours chatting, and the more we drank, the more we laughed. I forgot how warming it felt to laugh. She asked about my mom, and I couldn’t help but wrinkle my nose. “She’s still lost, somehow walking in circles, making the same mistakes with the same types of people. I wonder if there’s a point where people can never be found anymore. I think she’s always going to be this way.”

“You love her?”

“Always. Even when I don’t like her.”

“Then don’t give up on her. Even if you need your space for a while. Love her and believe in her coming around from a distance.”

“How did you get so wise?” I asked. She smiled a wolfish grin and tipped her wine glass toward me, then poured herself another glass. Very smart woman. “Do you think you can watch Emma for me tomorrow? I’m going to go into town and look for some work, maybe see if Matty needs an extra hand or two at the café.”

“How about we keep her for the weekend? It could be great for you to have a few days to yourself. We can even start up our Friday night sleepovers again. Anyway, I don’t think Lincoln is planning on giving her up any time soon.”