Love, Loss and Living

Family Chapter 24

One month later

Bette sat in bed staring at the ceiling, listening to the quiet. She had the house entirely to herself, because Angie had spent the night at Tina's. Angie had developed her own schedule which appeared to Bette as combining both homes into one. She would start her day at one home and end it at another. Guess that is how teenagers manage the homes of divorced parents, Bette had thought. Ever since the trip to New York, Angie seemed to be doing better. It appeared that Angie's worries had been addressed. Dr. Stewart had helped Angie with opening up about her worries to Bette and Tina.  Neither of them had realized the level of impact their problems had on Angie. Now that Angie had voice her worries, Bette and Tina had spent more time talking to Angie to sooth her concerns. Her academics were back on track and she did not play sick as often. It was good they caught this early, so it did not impact her grades. Most of the colleges Angie applied to were highly competitive East Coast schools and more in likely she would be accepted to one of them. Bette took a long deep breath at this thought, but she kept reminding herself of what Tina had said, "She is only leaving us physically, we will always have her in our hearts and minds." This was a nice thought, but Bette liked it better when her people were around her.  Whether she liked it or not, Angie was beginning to move into adulthood and that meant leaving home.

It was Sunday, so she was going to put that worry away until Monday. Tonight was family dinner night. It was Bette's turn to cook and she hadn't a thought as to what she would make. She slipped out of bed and headed down to the kitchen to start some coffee. The house was too quiet when Angie was not around.  The noise had become more comforting over the last couple years when Bette had been struggling with so many losses.  Hopefully, she won't have to deal with the loneliness brought on by the quiet if Tina moves in before Angie is off to college, she thought. Bette shook her head, it was too soon to be thinking about the changes to their living situation. 

Bette grabbed the bag of coffee and smiled. Angie had been taking on the responsibility of purchasing the coffee. She liked fancy brands, a taste she got from her other mother. A good French roast, black and Bette was good to go. She went into her office and turned on her laptop, hoping to sort through a few emails while the coffee was brewing. An email popped up from Peggy as she scrolled down the list. Her time in Paris for the most part was uneventful. Peggy quickly volunteered to help with the search for the owner's of Maxine's painting. She had jumped at the chance to work on the mystery of Maxine Porter. Bette got the sense that Peggy, although kept herself busy with many of her interests, was mentally not challenged. The search for information about Maxine would get her mind fired up and moving. Bette was grateful for the help being that Bette could not stay in Europe chasing after leads. She had a job to do back in Los Angeles running Peggy's foundation. Bette had just started getting back into things when she jumped on a plane following her love sick heart, Bette smiled at the memory of her recent visit to New York with her family. She quickly read the email that indicated that Peggy had found out that Maxine continued painting and was locally popular but she had never showed formally. Peggy had thought this was why Bette had not known about Maxine. Bette grinned as she stood up and grab some coffee before she headed upstairs. There are more paintings, she thought, so she could still be alive. Bette found herself surprisingly intrigued. What would her mother say if Bette walked back into her life?  She furrowed her brows, would her mother want Bette back in her life?  Bette chewed her bottom lip as she thought about the various scenarios that could occur if in fact her mother was still alive.  Bette pondered the situation with her mother the entire time she prepared herself for the day. She had again thought long and hard about pursuing her mother.  Is closure something she really needed to be able to be fully present and emotionally available to Tina?  Would it help her get past the mental block that was paralyzing her ability to be fully intimate with Tina?  The questions kept rolling over in her head.  The thought occurred to her that sometimes what we want and what we need are two different things.  Bette finally told herself to let go of the what ifs and put her attention on things she could control.  She had a family dinner to plan. Family dinners took on a whole different meaning, now that she and Tina were trying to reconcile.