Tyler’s face goes ashen as his mom steps closer. I notice that neither of them makes any move to hug the other.
“What are you doing here?” he asks.
“Everly invited me to her play, but I got held up at work.” Her gaze moves past him and takes in the house. “This is where she’s been staying?”
I see it from her perspective. The beer pong, the shots on the counter, these four big burly hockey guys. Right now, it doesn’t look like the homey environment that it is.
“Uhhh… yeah.” Tyler rubs at the back of his neck. “My apartment wasn’t big enough for the two of us.”
“Mom?” Everly’s voice snaps all our attention as she steps in through the front door.
Ty’s brows pinch together. “What are you doing back? Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. I just came back to grab my phone charger for the car.” Everly walks into the room and hugs her mom. It’s a quick hug without a lot of feeling behind it like you might expect from a daughter who hasn’t seen her mother in months, but her facial expression reads all excitement.
“I can’t believe you came!” Everly says. “I didn’t think you were going to make it.”
“You said it was important so here I am.”
Everly beams. “You can stay for the weekend, right? Tyler has a game tomorrow, and I can show you around town.”
She smiles stiffly. “Slow down. I just came to check in on you. Between your brother’s messages and the things you told me last night, it sounds like it might be time for you to come home, huh?”
“Home?” Tyler cuts in.
Her smile is tense. “Maybe we can talk in private.”
Tyler waves a hand toward the guys and introduces them. “Mom, these are my teammates and friends.” They step up to shake her hand, one by one. “Guys, this is my mom, Stephanie.”
“Nice to meet you,” Ash says. He looks at Tyler. “We’re gonna run to Jack’s for a bit. Holler if you need us.”
“Thanks,” Tyler says.
I wonder for a second if I should go with them, but Tyler rests a hand on my lower back and draws me closer. “And this is Piper, my girlfriend.”
“Nice to meet you,” I say, though I’m not sure that’s true. My feelings towards this woman aren’t anywhere near nice. I have such animosity towards this woman, but I don’t really know her, only what Tyler has told me. So, I suck it up and put a smile on my face as Tyler leads us into the living room.
Tyler and I sit on the couch; Everly and her mom take the love seat.
Their mom reaches out and runs her fingers through Everly’s hair. “You need a trim.”
Everly gathers her hair on the other side of her face. “I haven’t found a new stylist here yet.”
“I can take you to mine,” I offer.
“Thanks.” Everly gives me a grateful smile.
“Nonsense. Marianna has been cutting your hair since you were three years old. I’ll call her on our way back.”
Tyler stiffens beside me. “You can’t be serious?”
Stephanie sits tall. “Everly and I had a long talk last night. She filled me in on some of the things that have happened since she’s been here. Honestly, I’m surprised you haven’t sent her back yet. It’s clear that you’re in no position to take care of her. I mean, honestly, living with a bunch of hockey players?”
I can tell her words cut Tyler to the quick. It’s the very thing he worries about constantly. It’s impacted every decision he’s made since she arrived. And it pisses me off.
“Ty has been great, Mom,” Everly says.
“You said that on the phone, but I think we can all agree that this setup is less than ideal. He isn’t even here half the time.”
“I’m fine, Mom. Piper stays with me.”
I try to smile but I’m not sure I nail it.
Stephanie barely gives me a second glance before saying, “It’s time for you to come home.”
“She’s just starting to settle in here. She has friends and extracurricular activities.” His voice raises with each word. “She’s applying to colleges nearby.”
“College?” Her head whirls to her daughter. “You never had any interest in college. You hate school. You’re barely going to graduate high school.”
Everly shrinks beside her and twists her hands in her lap. “It’s not so bad. I was thinking about going to Whittaker.”
Sometimes I forget that Everly is so young. She’s so mature and confident in so many ways, but in minutes her mother has reduced her to a shadow of the young woman she is, and I’m struggling to stay silent beside Tyler.
“Let’s just focus on finishing high school for now. This summer maybe we can talk about taking classes part-time once you get a job. We’ll talk about it on the way home. Go grab your stuff, Ev.”
Everly gets to her feet reluctantly. Ty jumps up. “No.”
“This is crazy. The first month that she was here, you begged me to come get her and now you’re putting up a fight. Why?”
Everly’s eyes widen with hurt and betrayal with this new knowledge.
“Because she’s my sister. I’d do anything for her. Can you say the same?”
Stephanie’s mouth puckers. “Then you should be able to see that this is not the best place for her. I mean really, living with a bunch of older guys who are drinking and partying every night. I’m not even going to mention the incident with River that happened while you were supposed to be looking after her.”
Tyler is vibrating with anger and hurt. His hands ball into fists at his side. “Ev, can you give me and Mom a minute?”
“Go grab your stuff, honey. If we head out soon, we can still make it back tonight.”
“No, don’t pack anything,” Tyler snaps, then softens his tone when Everly shrinks even further. “I’ll be up in a minute.”
She rushes off like she’s happy to get away from us. Quietly, I follow her, but pause at the stairway when Tyler speaks again.
“Why are you doing this?” he asks.
“Because I am her mother and I say it’s time for her to come home.”
“She has less than two months until graduation. She can finish her senior year here.”
“I talked to the principal at her old school, and he said she can transfer back and still graduate on time.”
“And if she doesn’t want to do that?” Tyler’s voice has an edge that slices my heart.
It’s a beat before she responds. “Then you tell her it’s the only option.”
“You want me to kick out my own sister? No way. Everly is always welcome with me.”
“It’s what’s best for her,” she insists. “I’ll be waiting outside.”
“Don’t make her leave like this. At least let me talk to her. You owe me that.”
“Fine. I’m tired from the drive anyway. I will be back in the morning to get her. Please make sure she’s ready.” Stephanie comes out of the living room, gaze flitting over me on her way out.
I wait until she’s gone and rush back to the living room.
Tyler has his head in his hands.
I’m torn between wanting to console him and yell at her. Luckily, the guys come back in almost like they were watching and waiting so they could be here for Tyler and Everly, so I give them a small smile and slip out.
“Wait.” I jog down the driveway toward her.
I’m out of breath from nerves and exertion when I reach her car.
“Don’t make her leave. Not now when she’s just getting settled. I’ve watched her transform over these past months.”
“I appreciate your concern, but I think I know what’s best for my daughter.”
“Look, I don’t know you.”
“No, you don’t.” She turns to get in her car.
“But I do know your kids. Everly is smart and stubborn and weary of letting people in. When I first met her, she was so angry. She barely spoke and she lashed out. But now she’s become this amazing young woman. She hasn’t failed here, she’s blossomed.
“And it’s no coincidence that she did that here surrounded by people who love and support her. Each one of those guys inside would do anything for her. None more than Tyler. He is the best big brother. He has this huge heart and always puts everyone else’s needs before his own. He has sacrificed a lot for her and expected nothing in return. Do you know that the first thing he does after every game is call her to check in? Or that he took her on college tours? Or that he added a back seat to his precious car, so it’d be more family-friendly?”
Emotional laughter bubbles up in my chest and I let it free. I realize no matter what I say, if she hasn’t figured out by now how amazing of a son she raised, she may never. And because of that, and a million other reasons, I’m going to spend the rest of my life making sure I tell him.
“Don’t tear them apart,” I plead. “They need each other.”
“Tell Everly I’ll be back in the morning.”
She gets into her car without another word, and I walk back into the house. I left the door open as I ran out, and Tyler stands just inside. The look on his face is stricken.
“Did you hear all of that?”
“Yeah.” His voice is gruff.
“I’m sorry for meddling. I couldn’t help it.”
He yanks me to him and kisses me hard. “No one has ever stood up for me like that.”
Tears burn the back of my eyes because someone should have.
When he pulls back, he lets out a tired moan. “I need to check on Ev. Don’t go anywhere.”
“Go. I’ll be here.”
Always.
