As the Light Fades (ARC) Read online

  Matt leaned over his knees and took a deep breath. His mother had a way of getting right to the root of the matter and goring it out. “As I explained, I thought coming here would be good for Mia. Give her a fresh start.”

  “You gave us the impression you’d be there just for the summer.”

  “I decided to stay.”

  “Apparently. And have you visited your sister lately?”

  Matt sighed and wished this wasn’t so hard. “I went over a few weeks ago. She’s doing okay.”

  “I’ll never understand it.” Her voice got shrill and sang with stress. “Stealing from an old woman! It’s despicable.”

  “So you’ve said.” A million times. “Like I told you, when Rach and Joe split and she and Mia came back to Boston, I really thought she’d changed. It seemed like she’d cleaned herself up. She took some first aid courses, was talking about enrolling at a community college for nursing.” Matt watched as a few stars began to brighten the blackening sky. “Seemed like she’d stay clean this time.”

  “It always comes back to that, doesn’t it?” his mother asked quietly. “Is that why she stole that money? To buy drugs?”

  “I’m assuming. Hoping she’ll kick it for good this time. But once she gets out . . .”

  “You can’t save her, Matthew.”

  He closed his eyes against the pointed words. “I never said I could. Look, despite what you think, being here is better for Mia. She was getting into trouble back home and—”

  “So you’re saying she’s a problem child?”

  He clenched his jaw. “No, she’s not a problem child. She just has problems.”

  “And with all your parenting experience, you’re fully equipped to handle them.”

  Old anger tightened his chest. “And you wonder why we never talk.” Matt gripped the arm of the chair. “Oh, don’t let me interrupt. Please, Mother, tell me how disappointed you are that I’m thirty-three years old, still single, and don’t have the slightest intention of settling down and giving you grandchildren.” He wouldn’t bother adding the ‘why would I even want to give you grandchildren when you don’t even know the one you’ve got’ comment.

  “There’s no need to be snippy. How is Mia, really?”

  “Like you care?”

  “That’s not fair, Matthew. You know I try.”

  He snorted. “You try? Sure. You send money. But you wouldn’t recognize her if she passed you on the street. Probably wouldn’t recognize your own daughter anymore either.” Acid burned his stomach, and he quelled the urge to cut the conversation short and run to the bathroom.

  “I couldn’t go against your father’s wishes at the time. And Rachel didn’t want to see us.”

  “Can’t imagine why.”

  “As I’ve said, I don’t want to argue with you. We’ll talk more when we get there. You can be as nasty as you want.”

  “You’re serious about coming?” Panic rose. What was her motivation? A few possibilities raced through his mind, none of them good. One of them was sick. Or they were splitting up. Or . . . maybe they finally had had a change of heart. But he wasn’t about to drag Mia into this without finding out first. “Look, if it’s that important to you, I can come over to Boston and we can talk about introducing you to Mia. I can meet you for lunch. But you can’t just show up here.”

  “Of course we can. You’re worrying for nothing. I’ll email you our travel itinerary. I know that house has five bedrooms, but if it’s too much trouble for you, we can book a hotel room. But we are coming, and that’s all there is to it. I’ll see you on Friday, dear.” She clicked off.

  Matt gave a frustrated yell, dropped the phone onto his lap, and raked fingers through his hair. His heart beat so wildly he wondered if he might pass out. He took a few deep breaths and tried to calm down.

  Why, oh, why couldn’t he just have a normal family?

  “I can’t do this. This is too much.” Maybe God would do him a favor and she’d call back to say they weren’t coming after all.

  Miracles still happened. Once in a while, anyway.

  But . . . maybe things would be different this time. Matt knew better than to cling to false hope. He’d done that one too many times. Thinking his parents would ever change was about as futile as trying to convince Mia that there was nothing wrong with a nice juicy steak every so often.

  Mia.

  Matt groaned again. She said very little about her grandparents. Which wasn’t surprising, considering their rejection of her. Phyllis and Harrison Stone were a breed unto their own. He had no idea what Rachel might have told her daughter about their parents over the years, although he could imagine. And now, apparently, he’d be having that conversation with Mia.

  Why, why, why?

  Because you’re a putz, Stone. A big old pushover. Always trying to do the right thing. Always cleaning up other people’s messes. Helping them live their lives while yours passes you by.

  “Yeah, I know. I’m an idiot.” Maybe they should get a dog. Then at least he wouldn’t have to talk to himself. His cell rang again and Matt groaned aloud. That was it! “Oh, come on, Mother! Haven’t you done enough damage for one night?”

  “Mr. Stone?” A younger woman’s voice on the other end jolted him into a sitting position.

  He glanced at the screen. “Miss Carlisle.” He scrubbed his face. “Sorry about that. I thought you were my mother. No offense.”

  “Okay.” She cleared her throat. “Well, none taken.” There was a distinct pause, and he wondered if she might have deemed him a complete knucklehead and hung up. “Are you all right?” she finally asked.

  He emitted a short laugh, the tight band across his back easing a bit. “Talking to my mother ranks right up there with being forced to spend an afternoon in a shopping mall with my niece.”

  “Not a big shopper then?”

  “I’d rather have a root canal.”

  She laughed, and he heard dogs barking in the background. Although he’d been a kid the last time he’d been over there, he could picture the old Carlisle house with its many rooms and passages, and memories crept in unwanted. How sad that he’d spent his entire life wishing to be part of other peoples’ families.

  “It’s funny.” She gave a muted sigh. “Before I called you I was just thinking it’d be nice if my own mother was still here to talk to.”

  He flinched and rubbed his jaw. “Feel free to borrow mine anytime. Although I doubt she’d give the kind of motherly advice yours might have.”

  “Mine was hardly perfect. But I do miss her. Well, anyway . . .” She lapsed into silence again.

  Matt stared at the dark ocean and wondered how much he should be telling her. Especially if she was still contemplating moving in next door. “Aside from throwing my mother your way, is there anything else I can do for you, Miss Carlisle?”

  More laughter produced a grin from him. He really needed to get a life.

  “Actually, yes. I’m calling back about the coach house. Is this a bad time to talk?”

  “Uh, no. It’s great.” Matt felt like he was in free fall, no idea when the ground would rise up to meet him and send him flying. “You’re interested then?”

  “I am. If I can, I’d like to move in as soon as possible. Do you have a lease agreement drawn up? I’ll need to review it, and of course we will have to discuss the situation regarding your niece, as I’m still not sure about that request, and I’d really rather—”

  “Miss Carlisle?” A totally uncharacteristic chuckle snuck out of him. “Take a breath.”

  “Sorry.” Her low feminine laugh soothed him in a way he didn’t understand. Didn’t exactly appreciate either. “Perhaps we can meet tomorrow, at the gallery,” she said, more composed. “Will you be coming to pick Mia up when she’s through?”

  He blanked, then suddenly remembered their conversation with Evy McIntyre that afternoon. Mia would be helping at the gallery after school tomorrow. “Yes, right. Okay. Tomorrow it is.”

  They h
ung up, and he sat back with a satisfied smile. The day hadn’t been a total disaster after all. Now all he had to do was break the news to Mia that she was about to meet the grandparents who had banished her mother from their lives before his niece was born.

  six

  Liz sat at a desk behind the counter at the far end of the gallery on Tuesday afternoon, inputting figures into a spreadsheet. She checked the time again, and glanced at Evy a little warily. Mia Stone should have walked through the door at three-thirty on the dot. And now it was almost four. And the gallery had customers.

  Evy dealt with the mainland visitors smoothly, made two sales—sizeable ones—placed one painting on hold, and sent them all away happy and smiling.

  Liz saved the document she was working on and waited until the door clicked closed. “She didn’t call.”

  “Oh, I’m well aware.” Evy waved a manicured hand in her direction, not seeming the least bit bothered. “I didn’t expect her to. And the fact that she is not here tells me we’re going to have more on our hands than we bargained for.”

  Liz stared. “You still want her to work for you?”

  Evy gave a thin smile. “We had a deal. Our young friend may need a reminder that she is indeed in my debt. And should I decide to press charges . . . You’re the lawyer. What do you think I could do with destruction of property, severe emotional trauma?”

  Liz stifled a grin at Evy’s stricken expression. “I’m not sure she’d care. From what I’ve seen of the girl so far, I doubt Mia Stone cares much about anything, except maybe herself.”

  “Hmm. Sad, isn’t it?” Evy’s sigh was wistful.

  Liz felt the weight of her own words. Not so long ago, some could have said the same about her. She’d run as far from family as she could and built a life around the things that mattered to her. Things she’d convinced herself were far more important than the siblings she’d grown up with. Then her perfect world came crashing down, and she wasn’t sure what mattered anymore.

  “It’s quiet now,” Evy mused, picking up a roll of bubble wrap. “Why don’t you go take a walk, check out a few stores. If she’s in town, she won’t be that hard to find.”

  “Me?” Liz shook her head. “No, thanks.” An altercation with a surly teen was the last thing she needed today. But Evy raised a brow, and Liz knew she wouldn’t win this one.

  “Fine. I’ll go. But short of dragging her here, if she won’t come, I’m not sure what you think I can do.”

  “Oh, something tells me you can be quite persuasive when you need to be.” Evy’s tone held a hint of hesitation. “Don’t be too hard on her.”

  Liz pulled on her jacket. Who knew Evy McIntyre would be a pushover when it came to kids? She left the gallery with an unexpected smile on her face.

  Her first day at Timeless hadn’t been terrible. She enjoyed the pristine surroundings, even enjoyed interacting with a few customers. She imagined most visitors to the gallery would be tourists, and they would be few and far between in the coming weeks. She was already making a preliminary list of innovative ideas to keep the place busy during winter.

  She popped into a few of the stores, but no sign of Mia. She’d probably gone straight home and was curled in bed listening to music or watching Netflix, ignoring the world. As she walked toward the coffee shop she often saw kids congregating at after school, Liz caught sight of the girl on the bench on the opposite side of the road.

  Mia leaned over her knees, cell phone pressed to her ear, dark hair falling forward. Even from this distance Liz could see the bright pink stripes. Those definitely hadn’t been there yesterday.

  Liz crossed the cobblestoned road quickly, slowed her pace when she got close enough to hear the girl crying. She took a breath and waited. Mia dropped her phone, swore, picked it up off the ground, and glared at it.

  Liz approached the bench and sat on the end of it. “I assume that phone you were just using has a clock on it?”

  Mia snapped her head up, wiped her eyes, and sent Liz a look that could have scalded milk. “I know I’m late. Something came up.” She reached for the pink earbuds that sat around her neck and plugged them into her ears. Her ripped jeans, black boots, and baggy red-plaid flannel shirt were not exactly appropriate attire for the gallery.

  Liz sighed, her patience already frayed. She plucked one earbud from the girl’s ear and met the angry red-rimmed brown eyes flashing her way. “Look, Evy was expecting you, and you didn’t show. You’re getting a huge break, you know. Do you have any idea how much trouble you could be in right now? Driving without a license, destruction of property—oh, let’s not forget driving a stolen vehicle, even if it does belong to your uncle. I wouldn’t be surprised if all that fun landed you a little stint in a correction center someplace, should Mrs. McIntyre decide to press charges.”

  Mia stiffened, folded her arms, and stared straight ahead in stony silence. Her bottom lip quivered, and two tears slipped slowly down her cheeks. Liz blew air through pursed lips, battling defeat as she watched Mia battle emotion. Remorse pinched. Liz didn’t have the first clue about teenagers. Maybe threatening wasn’t the way to go.

  “Mia? Are you all right?”

  “Do I look all right?”

  “You want to talk about it?”

  Mia grabbed her backpack, fumbled through it, and pulled out a tissue. Blew her nose, got to her feet, and marched off in the direction of the gallery.

  Okay, then. Apparently not.

  Liz scrambled to her feet and followed the girl down the street.

  Evy greeted Mia and hustled her off to a back room to put her to work. For the next two hours, Liz monitored the girl as she swept furiously, put boxes up on shelves, and systematically completed all the chores on Evy’s long list.

  Evy used the rest of the time to go through locking up procedures with Liz, making sure she familiarized herself with the alarm system the combination to the safe, then ceremoniously presented her with her own set of keys.

  Liz eyed the keys dubiously. “I’m not sure I’m going to be working here that long.”

  Evy gave the throaty chuckle Liz was already getting used to. “As long as you are, I’d rather you had these.” She sent a pointed look toward the back room. “At the moment, I think it’s wise that we both know where things are, don’t you?”

  A smile tickled Liz’s lips. “So you’re not as trusting as I thought.”

  “Oh, I’m willing to give her my trust.” Evy lowered her voice. “But she will have to earn it. And she’s not off to the best start. Any idea why she was so upset?”

  Liz shook her head. “Not a clue. She wouldn’t talk to me.”

  “Not surprising. At that age, they don’t share much. Well, at least you got her here.”

  Liz tidied up the front desk while Evy retreated to her office to close out her files for the day. At five-thirty the front door buzzed, and Matthew Stone walked through it looking windblown and worried. He nodded her way and swept a gaze around the empty gallery, no doubt wondering what they’d done with his wayward niece.

  “She’s tied to a chair in the back room.”

  He whipped his head around, his eyes wide. “She’s where?”

  Liz laughed, but the haggard look he wore chased off humor. “I’m kidding. She’s finishing up in back there. You want me to get her for you?”

  He shrugged, raked fingers through messy hair. Hesitation hovered on his face, feet planted to the floor. His khaki pants and blue cotton shirt sported a few splotches of red paint. “Was she okay?” His voice held a slight tremor.

  Liz left the desk, stood a few feet away, and decided to be honest. “Well, she didn’t show up when she was supposed to. I went to look for her and found her on Main. She was clearly upset but wouldn’t talk to me. So to answer your question, no, I don’t think she is.”

  He sighed like he’d expected as much. “Her mother’s parole hearing was today.”

  Ah. That explained it. Liz offered what she hoped was a comforting smile. “I’m
so sorry. She was denied?”

  “No. Granted.” He set his jaw, his eyes stormy. “My buddy Pat called Mia when he couldn’t reach me. I was teaching an afterschool class, so I couldn’t take the call.” His stricken look said it all. “I wanted her to hear it from me.”

  “So she’s getting out. That’s good, isn’t it?”

  He scrubbed his jaw. “Mia’s relationship with her mother is complicated.”

  “I’m sorry.” Liz didn’t know what else to say. She knew all about complicated family relationships. She wished she hadn’t been so hard on the girl.

  “And on top of all that, my parents have decided to visit. They’ll be here on Friday.”

  “Is that what was going on when I called the other night and you thought it was your mother?”

  “Yep. That’s what was going on.”

  “You don’t sound happy about their visit.” Actually he sounded like he’d been sentenced to take his sister’s place in prison.

  “No?” Matthew gave a short laugh. “It’s a long and extremely screwed up story. My parents and I don’t get along. And they’ve never met Mia. So there’s that.”

  “They what?” Liz tried to hide her surprise, but the crooked smile he wore told her she hadn’t managed it.

  “Told you it was screwed up.”

  “Oh, boy.” Liz fiddled with the pearls around her neck. And she thought her family had issues. “You do have your hands full.”

  The door to the back room crashed open. “Finally! You were supposed to be here fifteen minutes ago.” Mia flounced into the main room of the gallery, backpack slung over one shoulder. “I did everything on the list.” She stared Liz down. “Where’s the old broad?”

  “Mia.” Her uncle growled a warning and cleared his throat.

  “What? I just wanted to tell her I was done. So we’re even.”

  “Uh . . . Mia?” Liz pushed hair behind her ears and narrowed her eyes. “That wasn’t the arrangement. You’re to come every day after school until Evy says otherwise. And she may need you on some Saturdays.”