Starting Over in Maple Bay by Brittney Joy
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Hazel didn’t want to talk to her ex-husband. She wanted to listen to Joyce tell another story about Jesse as a rambunctious little boy. She wanted to eat a sloppy joe and get to know the Weston family. She even had a strange urge to play kickball, though she’d never kicked a ball in her entire life. But Hazel and Grace had been in Maple Bay for nearly two weeks, and Hazel had yet to have had a conversation with Bill, other than texts.
“Hi,” Hazel answered Bill’s call and walked toward a tall oak tree.
“Hey,” he replied. “Sorry it took me so long to call you back. Work has been crazy.”
Bill always blamed his job for his lack of communication. Hazel knew Bill’s real estate business was demanding, but it wasn’t like he worked every minute of every day. Plus, his cell phone was practically glued to his hip. He could’ve easily gotten back to her after her first four calls. She figured his distraction had a lot more to do with Cynthia, the shiny-new toy he’d been dating for the past few months.
“Are you and Grace still out in the boondocks?” he asked.
“Maple Bay, Bill.” She rolled her eyes. Hazel had texted Frankie’s address to Bill the very first night she and Grace stayed in Maple Bay. He knew where she was.
“That’s right. Maple Bay. Cute. You’re coming home soon, right?” He asked her the question like she was on vacation.
Hazel hadn’t told Bill the whole story. She would’ve if he’d picked up the phone, but she wasn’t about to sum up her biological mother’s death and a pending inheritance in a text or two. She took a deep breath and hoped this conversation didn’t blow up in her face. She needed to get Bill on board with her plan if she was going to stay in Maple Bay until September. Hazel channeled her sweet voice, instead of the snappy version she wanted to use with Bill.
“A few weeks ago, I found out my biological mother passed away.”
There was silence that followed. If nothing else, Bill knew what that would mean to Hazel.
“I’m sorry to hear that.”
“Thank you,” she continued, wanting to get it all out. “She left me a piece of property. That’s why Grace and I came to Maple Bay. For the reading of her will.”
“Okay.” Bill sounded confused. “Like she left you her house?”
“Kind of.” Hazel paced under the shady oak tree. “I also found out I have a sister. A half-sister.”
“What? Wow.”
“It’s been an interesting few weeks,” Hazel replied. “There were actually two properties in Rose’s will. She left one property to me and one to my half-sister, Frankie. There was also a clause in her will. In order to inherit my property, I have to live here for the entire summer.” Hazel squeezed her eyes shut as she finished her sentence, afraid of what Bill might say next.
“You’re going to move there? For the summer?”
She rolled her teeth over her bottom lip. “I already did.”
“What?” Bill’s question was sharp. “You can’t just move my daughter wherever you want to.”
“Our daughter.” Hazel’s voice went raspy. “And I didn’t just take her. I tried calling you for days after I learned about the will and the clause. If you would’ve picked up or called me back, I could’ve told you exactly what was happening. Besides, you know she’s safe. She’s with me, Bill.”
Technically, Hazel and Bill had fifty-fifty custody of Grace, but Bill wasn’t always good with his fifty percent. On one hand, Hazel wanted Grace with her all the time. On the other hand, she wanted what was best for her daughter. She wished Bill would learn how to prioritize his life and not make work his only commitment.
“I thought you just took her on a little summer vacation,” Bill said. “Hazel, we have to make decisions concerning Grace together. You can’t just decide for me.”
Hazel about lost it. She gripped the phone tight, making sure she didn’t spit out the first response that came to her mind. She wanted to tell Bill that since she met him, in her first year of college, Hazel had stupidly made Bill a priority in every major decision in her life. When he proposed, Hazel dropped out of school, never finishing her degree. She wanted so badly to be a wife and a mother. It was all she ever really wanted—to have a family of her own—so she did everything she could to make Bill’s life easy and wonderful, forfeiting her own wants and needs. She thought that was what it meant to be a good wife, to make a happy family. It wasn’t until later in their marriage, when Bill began checking out, that Hazel realized she couldn’t make him feel a certain way about her or their family. It didn’t matter how clean the house was, what fancy recipe she made for dinner, or how perfect their child was. It wasn’t good enough for Bill. He was focused elsewhere—on a mistress.
“I’m not making decisions for you,” Hazel started. “I’m asking you to work with me. For one summer.” Hazel couldn’t lie to herself. In the past few weeks, some surprising thoughts had crept into her head. She’d found herself wondering what her life would be like if she kept the carriage house, if she and Grace permanently moved to Maple Bay. Hazel was enjoying getting to know her sister and nephews. She was proud of the work she’d completed so far on the carriage house. Grace was blooming around the horses, coming out of her shell. Not to mention, the kiss and conversation she’d shared with Jesse had sparked something inside Hazel she couldn’t ignore.
But now, talking with Bill, Hazel was whipped back to reality. She couldn’t move to Maple Bay permanently. Her child’s father lived in Haven Hills, and that was where Hazel needed to be, at least until Grace was grown. Hazel wouldn’t move four hours away from Haven Hills and miss out on time and experiences with her daughter. Even when Grace was with her father, Hazel still attended every cheer practice and school event. Plus, she needed to be close to Grace in case her daughter needed her. What if there was an emergency and it took Hazel four hours to get to her daughter? No. Hazel wouldn’t allow that.
Hazel’s mind rattled back to her original plan. “If I stay here through Labor Day, the property will be signed over to me and I can sell it.” She needed the money. Bill knew that.
“That’s fine.”
Hazel nearly tripped. “It’s fine?”
“It’s fine that you stay there for the summer,” Bill corrected her. “But Grace needs to be with me on my weeks. I’ll pick her up from your parents’ place Monday morning, like the custody papers say.”
“Monday morning? Like, tomorrow morning?” That was exactly what the custody papers said, but that hadn’t been the case since the divorce. Bill picked up Grace when it was convenient for him—if he wasn’t too busy with work or gallivanting about in his dating life. Now he wanted to follow the custody agreement?
“Cynthia and I have been dating for a couple months now and she’s only met Grace a few times. It would be nice if she could get to know her over the summer.”
Hazel’s heart squeezed like it was in a vice. She knew this was part of being divorced, part of co-parenting, that Grace would be introduced to new women in her father’s life. But Cynthia was the third girlfriend Bill had introduced to his daughter in the year since the divorce.
“Bill—” Hazel started.
“Cynthia is great with kids,” he said casually. “And she’ll watch Grace while I work.”
That brought a whole new level of anxiety to Hazel. Grace was shy. She was quiet and sensitive, and Hazel knew her daughter wouldn’t be comfortable hanging out all day with a woman she didn’t know. Grace’s sweet little heart was still healing from the divorce and she didn’t need to be babysat by her father’s twenty-something girlfriend. Especially if Bill could be distracted by a shiny new toy in a month or two. Grace needed to be here, with Hazel, having a carefree summer full of fun. She deserved that.
“It’s almost the end of June. I just need you to work with me for two months. Grace is having a great time here. There are horses for her to ride, a lake for her to swim, and I want her to get to know her aunt and her cousins.” Hazel was pouring out anything that might change Bill’s mind. She didn’t even have a car to drive back to the city. She had planned to use every cent from her car’s sale to pay for renovations and living expenses.
Bill sighed. “Two months is a long time.”
She knew she was asking a lot, but Hazel was trying to start a new life for her and Grace.
“Look,” Bill continued. “I’ve got to get going. I’ve got a showing in a few minutes. We can talk more about this in the morning, when I pick Grace up at your parents’.”
Hazel pushed away any fantasy she might’ve drummed up about starting fresh in Maple Bay, of owning and running a bed-and-breakfast, of raising Grace in this sweet small town. Hazel knew she couldn’t make that happen, but she hadn’t yet given up on staying in Maple Bay for the summer.
Pulling out her last bargaining chip, she said, “I’ll give you the listing.” Hazel knew Bill was in just as tough of a financial spot as she was. He was starting over as well, recovering from their shared debt and the divorce. Furthermore, the housing market in the Haven Hills had been tough in the past year.
“What are you talking about?”
“The property I’m inheriting,” Hazel continued. “It’s ten acres on a lake. The building is actually a beautiful historic carriage house and I’m fixing it up so it can be sold as an inn or even as a single residence. I think it will sell fast. If Grace and I can stay here for the summer, together, I’ll be able to put it on the market right after Labor Day. You can have the listing. And the commission.”
Bill’s silence told her she’d gotten his attention. Hazel heard a car door open and close.
Hazel tried to sweeten the pot, “And when we move back to Haven Hills, we can work out a schedule to make up for the weeks you gave up, if you’d like.”
Bill gave a deep sigh. “You said Grace is having a good time?”
“She is.” Hazel held her breath.
“I guess that’s okay then.” He sounded irritated. “As long as she’s having fun.”
Hazel closed her eyes, relieved. Bill said he was at his showing and needed to go. She hung up, put her phone back in her pocket, and tried to blow out all the frustrations she was feeling. When that didn’t work, she walked back toward the deck.
Jesse was standing in the same place, at the deck railing.
“Everything okay?” he asked, his brows pinched.
“Everything is fine.” Hazel pushed a smile onto her face. “I’m going to see if your mom needs any help in the kitchen.” Hazel walked into the house, wanting a spatula, spoon, or towel in her hand—something tangible to focus on, outside the whirlwind of emotions that had just shot through her.