A Summer of Discovery

Chapter Nineteen

Two weeks it had taken to get all the invites out in time. Most of our friends had replied the same day excited by the news. Family seemed to take longer to reply on both sides as we expected. Lucy's parents were away on a cruise and wouldn't make it to the party but they expected lots of pictures. We had kept it a small affair. Not all knew we were a couple or even gay. Aunt Caroline called wanting to know why I hadn't told her and Sidney and Marie had posted about it on their social media accounts. Marie's caption under a picture of me and Lucy taken from my account read "So my cousins a big lez. Hottest lesbian couple ever so can't complain". I didn't know whether to be happy or offended. The biggest joy was this morning at eleven .a.m. when my office phone had rung. I picked it up in my usual tone "Emery Randolph of Peach and Stone advertising".

"Hello dear it's Jenny Clayton" Came the sweet, familiar yet frail voice.

"Mrs Clayton oh my god you have no idea how happy I am to hear your voice, are you okay?" I asked standing now in shock behind my desk.

"Dear I'm so sorry I didn't send a card last Christmas and that I couldn't attend your dads wedding. I've been quite unwell recently." She said quietly.

I cleared the pile of RSVP's to one side with my hand and sat on the edge of the desk with my feet resting on my chair. The telephone cord was wrapped around my wrist as I picked the entire phone up and held it on my lap tightly like I was holding it to myself in a hug.

"I completely understand I was worried about you I didn't know if you were..." I paused

"If I had kicked the bucket" She replied laughing.

"Well yes. I didn't know if you had passed."

"No I'm still here dear. I'm still in the manor, only I'm here alone now, Elsa passed this past spring." She replied her voice faltering only slightly at the mention of her name.

I placed my hand on my forehead with a frown. I couldn't imagine the pain of her loss. "I'm sorry to hear that Jenny I know how much she meant to you" I finally responded.

"Yes dear she was everything. The manor is pretty lonely without her. I'm going to move into the nursing home next month actually. I just can't bare this big empty house. It's no longer a home it's just empty."

"I wish there was something I could do to help" I asked.

"Oh darling you're up in that beautiful city enjoying life there's nothing you can do for an old lady like me. Lilly has been a god send" She replied.

"Lilly Calvert" I asked questionably.

"Yes beautiful Lilly. Oh Emery without her the past two years we would have needed the home sooner, me and Elsa"

"Really" I asked.

"Oh yes dear she started coming when she returned three years ago. She brought those beautiful babies of hers along. Oh how Elsa loved that. We had always wanted a child. That Tegan she's a clever girl and such a gift to us."

"Tegan is a great kid" I replied.

"So yes she started coming regular and in the end she took over all the maintenance and cleaning of the manor that we just couldn't do anymore at our age.  She nursed Elsa for those last three months. She really cleaned us up beautifully. She helped us make our last years together happy ones"

I shifted on the desk unable to really understand why Lilly hadn't told me all of this.

"She never told me" I replied quietly.

"Oh she wouldn't she's not one for blowing her own trumpet. She wouldn't have wanted you to think she was telling you to win you back or anything"

"Win me back" I asked.