One Last Promise (A Bedford Falls Novel Book 2) Read online

  Kelsey could rely on Nina and Brittany from Forever and Always to wait tables at The Witching Hour, but she needed a cook who knew her recipes. And no one knew them better than…her mom.

  * * *

  “Honey, what are you doing here?” asked Loretta Lawford as she opened the front door for Kelsey to step inside. “Is everything all right? Didn’t you have fun at the Dells?”

  Kelsey walked into her parent’s house. “Not really.” She didn’t want to be here, didn’t want to ask her mother what she came her to ask. “Things are really…not going well for me today.” Then an image of Damon popped into her mind. “Well, most things aren’t going well.”

  “Oh, I see a smile there,” her mother said, delivering one of her own. She linked her daughter’s arm with her own as she led Kelsey into the living room. “It must be that nice gentleman, Paul.”

  “Actually, no, Mom. Paul is not a ‘nice gentleman.’ To be completely honest, he’s an unbelievable jerk. Why am I underplaying things? Mom, he’s a total asshole.” She recoiled at the curse worse that escaped her mouth: why did she still feel like she’d get punished for swearing in her parent’s house? She’d long ago passed that stage. She regarded her father as a half-father, half-friend. She only wished she could be as forthcoming with her mother without feeling conscientious.

  “Come sit down,” her mother said. She led Kelsey to the brown leather loveseat a few feet away, patted the cushion to the right, and sat her down on the left cushion. “What happened?”

  Kelsey fell into the loveseat. For some reason that eluded her, she couldn’t say a word.

  Her mother sat down and faced her. “Tell me what’s wrong.”

  The gentle sound of her voice reminded her when she got into trouble in grade school for hitting a bully in the chin for trying to steal her small pouch of Fritos, or when, in eighth grade, her date for a school dance had stood her up because another girl he liked more wanted to go with him. Why hadn’t her mother used that same understanding tone over the past ten years? It wouldn’t have made her feel like someone who had used past secrets to score present success.

  “Paul turned out to be a giant fraud.”

  “No!”

  “He stole money from all of us. Then he stranded us at the Dells.”

  “Oh my God.” Her mother leaned closer and put an arm around Kelsey’s shoulder, drawing her close. “I’m so sorry, honey.” She held her tight.

  And Kelsey let herself be embraced by a woman she’d long thought had given up on her. A woman who had wanted more for her, a woman who expected better, a woman who had been let down. Even now, as Kelsey wanted to give in and release her worry and frustration, she couldn’t quite allow herself to relax in her mom’s grasp.

  Her mother kissed the crown of her head. “I love you, honey.”

  Tears welled in Kelsey’s eyes. How could she repeat her mother’s affections when their relationship had been fractured for so long? Her mom’s voice didn’t carry a note of hesitation, nor did she sound as if she regretted letting that comment slip. She said it with such ease, as if she said it each day. If she really meant it, wouldn’t she need to lead up to such a dramatic declaration?

  “And I always will. No matter what.”

  Skeptical, Kelsey drew back to check her mom’s expression.

  Her mother’s moist eyes looked fragile yet content, as if she’d waited too long to experience this moment. Seeing Kelsey’s incredulous expression, a nearly inaudible groan hit her vocal chords as she drew protective arms around her daughter again, pulling her into a tight embrace, reluctant to let the sensation slip away too soon.

  A gasp of grief escaped Kelsey. And she wrapped her arms around her mother. All of the exhaustion she’d experienced over the past few years burst forth. Other than her arms, which would never relinquish their death grip, every other part of Kelsey’s body grew limp. Feeling tears tip out of her eyes, she clung to her mother, wanting to believe that her mom still cared as much as she had way back when Kelsey had first tripped on the soccer field and scraped huge gashes in her knees, only to find her mother running onto the field with a clean dish rag and a bottle of alcohol to clean her wound. At the time, Kelsey could have cared less if the alcohol stung and made her cry out. What mattered was that her mother had been at her side within moments of her injury and whispered in her ear that it would “only hurt for a little while.”

  And she wanted that same guarantee now. That everything would work out in the end. That all of her time and energy and money hadn’t gone for naught. That she wouldn’t soon be living in a cardboard box on skid row. That no matter what mistakes she made or what she failed to accomplish, her mother would never stop loving her.

  “I’m sorry,” Kelsey said, having no idea what she meant by that remark except that it felt right. “I’m so sorry for everything.”

  “Me too, honey. I should have made more of an effort. But I felt like…you didn’t need me anymore.”

  “What?”

  “It felt like you deserted me.”

  “But that’s how I felt.” A tear slipped off her chin and plopped onto her mother’s shirt.

  “Would it surprise you that I felt the same way?”

  Kelsey searched mother’s eyes for insincerity but instead found genuine hurt feelings. “I would have never done that.”

  “Well, it seems we both gave up on each other. We gave up believing that we cared as much as we did. I was afraid that you didn’t care as much as I thought to guard my heart. But even then, my love for you never wavered. Not for a second. Oh, I might have been angry or frustrated because you’re so stubborn.”

  She conceded that point. “I get that from Dad.”

  “And obviously from me as well, considering the conversation we’re having. So promise me one thing: from here on out, if we have a misunderstanding, we’ll talk about it. If we’re angry with each other, we’ll cool off before talking about it.”

  “Promise.”

  An amused chuckle reverberated in her mother’s throat. “Oh, so many wasted years.”

  “So we’re good? We don’t need a sappy conversation where we—”

  Her mother laughed. “I think we just had it.”

  Kelsey nodded, but she didn’t dare bring up what she most wanted to ask, what she needed to ask.

  “There’s more, isn’t there? You don’t need to keep everything to yourself anymore, okay? I’m here if you need to talk.”

  “I need your help,” she said before giving any further thought to reconsidering pleading for assistance. “I really need your help.”

  “What is it?”

  Kelsey wiped the tears from her eyes and pulled away, so she could speak to her mother as an equal. But then, how could they be? Without her mother, Kelsey would never exist. And for that reason, even when she thought her mother had turned her back on her, Kelsey had always respected her. It took until this moment to realize that she had avoided this conversation because of that respect. She didn’t want to appear ungrateful for all the life lessons that made her stronger both mentally and emotionally. She didn’t want to appear weak in her mother’s eyes.

  “Tell me.”

  She took her time telling her mother about Paul’s deception so that she would get a firm understanding of his character. “Would you consider…being a cook at The Witching Hour until I can find some replacements?”

  Her mother’s smile became luminous. “I’d be honored.”

  “Really?”

  “They’re my recipes, aren’t they? Don’t you think I’ve wanted to show your customers how it’s done right?”

  “I thought you’d be mad that I…stole your recipes.” When her mother had stepped into The Witching Hour a little over a month ago, Kelsey had finally admitted that she’d resorted to thievery. In the back of her mind, she expected that doing so would bring them closer. From any other perspective, it surely sounded ridiculous. But as much as she dreaded hashing out their differences, Kelsey now realized
that a large part of her wanted open dialogue with her mother. And taking her most treasured possession, not to mention her most beloved accomplishment, would certainly do that. If that didn’t prompt her mother to come to her and address the issue between them, what would?

  But she’d also realized that removing the cookbook had served another purpose as well, one that wasn’t so self-serving. She had grown up listening to her mother give so many sermons about never relying on a man to make her happy that she took her advice and spent more time on her career than looking for a man to share her life with. While she thought that would have made her mother proud, she’d considered that perhaps her mom was jealous of her success. And that led to the other major reason why she took her mother’s cookbook.

  Kelsey said, “I wanted to use your recipes so you’d have proof.”

  Her mother shook her head, puzzled. “Proof of what?”

  “That you did something special. That you became successful beyond being a stay-at-home mother. I thought you just needed someone else show you the truth.”

  “I don’t understand.”

  “Do you remember coming to the restaurant last month? Do you remember what you saw?”

  “There was all that witch stuff around.”

  “Yes, but did you see the people?”

  “I saw over thirty people. That was pretty good, right? Not every business starts off with a bang.”

  Kelsey bit down on her tongue, irritated that her mother hadn’t grasped what she alluded to. “Yes, that’s not bad. But did you see their faces? Did you see what they were doing?”

  “Well, they were eating.”

  “That’s right, mom. They were eating. From recipes that you created. Those people might have stopped by because a friend or relative told them the ambiance was pretty cool. But no matter how much someone likes a restaurant’s environment, if the place doesn’t have good food, they won’t come back. Without your recipes, those people wouldn’t be there.”

  Her mother stared at Kelsey with a large lump in her throat. Tears shimmered in her eyes.

  “I always got the impression that you pushed me and Ashley so hard because you were a stay at home mom. And for the longest time, I always thought less of myself because I didn’t meet someone, get married, and have kids. I knew you wanted to be a grandmother, and I thought you were punishing me for not giving you grandkids.”

  “But you’re only twenty-six. You have plenty of time.”

  “Yeah, but when we talked, I felt like you considered me a failure for putting off…your biggest accomplishment – raising a family. And I always felt that you pushed us so hard because a part of you wanted to have a career in the traditional sense. So I took your cookbook to prove that you helped me become successful. And to show that you could have done it yourself if you’d really put your mind to it.”

  Tears tipped out of her mother’s eyes, but she made no attempt to clear away the moisture. She smiled. “Saying those words is the best gift anyone has ever given me. But I never wanted to open a restaurant. That’s your dream.” She titled her head skyward and closed her eyes, spilling more tears down her cheeks. “And I’m so proud of you. Did you even stop working long enough to think about what you’ve accomplished? Do you realize how rare and special you are?”

  To finally hear those words made Kelsey’s heart leap. She was so touched that she tried to express her gratitude, but the emotion in her chest made it difficult to speak even one word.

  “My dream,” her mother continued, “was raising three children. I did that. And I’m incredibly proud of you and Alex and Ashley.”

  Kelsey felt she needed to give her mother hope about re-uniting with Ashley. “Maybe she’ll come around. Maybe you two will have a conversation like we had and—”

  Her mother was quiet for a long time. “Maybe.” Her lips turned up in a smile for the briefest of moments. “That would be wonderful,” she said, almost inaudibly. “But she’s not here right now. And you have more pressing matters to attend to.” She took a deep breath, released it, and faced Kelsey with a playfully wicked smirk. “Now let’s go show that bastard Paul that he can’t keep a good woman down!”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

  “I heard you needed some help,” said a somewhat timid female voice.

  At first suspecting that her older sister, Ashley, had arrived, Kelsey double-checked the anxiety-ridden inflection of her tone in her mind, uncertain if she’d heard correctly. After all, even before she became a big-time movie star, Ashley always projected the utmost confidence. She turned around, shocked that her big sister stood behind her.

  Ashley wore a loose gray blouse and had slung a shiny charcoal-colored belt around a black skirt that hid the curves featured on so many tabloids. She’d applied a light shade of color to plump lips and had strewn her mass of ordinarily thick, wavy brown hair into a ponytail. She met Kelsey’s startled expression with a nervous one of her own and went in for a hug.

  Kelsey rushed her with an embrace, taking in the pleasant Victoria’s Secret Dream Angels perfume her sister probably never left home without. She’d always wanted a close relationship with her sister, a person she’d admired from afar for much too long – a peculiar circumstance given their blood ties. Growing up, Kelsey looked on in awe as her big sister developed into a beautiful young woman with so many girlfriends (and boyfriends) that she envied all of the attention lavished upon her. She’d often wondered if her sister made a pact with a witch or warlock to acquire an allure that drew everyone’s attention.

  Then again, Ashley had instilled her love of fantasy novels and horror films within Kelsey, which she’d translated into the building they now stood inside. In addition, Ashley’s love of 80s movies and music, inspired Kelsey’s creation of Forever and Always. As time passed, especially after Ashley became famous, Kelsey attributed her sister’s magnetic presence to an infectious smile, nonchalance about all things Hollywood—which gave many moviegoers the impression that she could have been their neighbor— and a fashionable yet affordable style that many women imitated.

  But those were the only memories Kelsey had from someone who should have given her guidance on friends, boys, and so many other topics that big sisters are expected to supply advice about that even though Kelsey couldn’t help but love her, she’d also saved a cavernous place in her heart where she stored just as much animosity for leaving her. Even after she obtained her MBA from the University of California, Berkley, Ashley never returned home, preferring to remain in Hollywood until she supported herself in the acting profession.

  And like Kelsey, she spent her every waking hour working, but unlike her little sister, Ashley had achieved her goals, commanding over $10 million a picture. With that fortune, it didn’t surprise Kelsey that her sister looked as if she hadn’t aged since they parted so long ago, and Kelsey got that same feeling in the pit of her stomach – the one where she couldn’t quite live up to her big sister’s talent and charisma. The inferiority complex made sense considering Ashley’s intelligence, beauty, and her ability to win over those she spoke with in only a few seconds. But Kelsey had come to terms with this second-rate status long ago and now just wanted to spend time with the one person she admired more than any other.

  In all that time apart, she figured they should have spoken by phone at least a few times a year, but with Ashley changing her number so frequently to retain her privacy, she settled for the occasional email.

  But something had drawn Ashley back home for the holidays, something beyond the long-held annual invitation during this time of year. And that secret gripped Kelsey’s mind the way a dog gnashed a bone between its teeth. Right now, however, she set aside that intrusive thought and focused on the concerns at hand.

  Kelsey ended their embrace with a smile. She tried to blink away the tears in her eyes. She failed. “You haven’t changed.”

  Ashley chuckled, releasing a bit of nervous energy. “You sure have. You’re not thirteen anymore.” A tentative smile ho
vered on her lips. “You’ve become a beautiful woman.” She gazed at the interior of The Witching Hour. “And this is your place?” She shook her head in wonder. “It’s awesome!”

  Kelsey second-guessed whether her sister had truly uttered those words, but seeing the way Ashley admired the building with a proud grin made the tears in Kelsey’s eyes slip out and roll across her smiling cheeks. She’d heard the same words from her parents and Alex, as well as friends, but to witness the person she most wanted to grow up to become say those same words felt special, magical.

  “Alex said something about your staff quitting without notice,” Ashley said. “I’d love to help…in the background somewhere, so I won’t be the center of attention.”

  Kelsey didn’t say a word. Instead, she hugged her sister again. She’d always wanted this type of relationship with Ashley, where they could talk and give advice and rely on each other. Before she met Marisa, Kelsey closed herself off to that possibility with friends, because if she couldn’t rely on her own sister in that capacity, how could she rely on a friend to withhold judgment and be there during the most trying times?

  Rather than get her hopes up, Kelsey reminded herself not to expect her sister to fulfill that role. After all, until this visit, Ashley had difficulty emailing – even on an occasional basis. Getting her hopes up might put too much emphasis on their relationship and everything Kelsey expected from it, which might convince Ashley to pull away again. So instead of making a big deal out of her sister’s return, she exited their embrace and tried to focus on the task at hand: finding a staff that would allow her to open up again tomorrow while interviewing applicants for all of the positions she needed to fill.

  “The kitchen is in great shape,” said their mother, who spotted Ashley from behind and stopped in her tracks a few feet away from them. Her determined expression took on a look of disbelief that translated into warmth moments later. “Ashley?”