Page 90 of Shelter
Flora’s eyes brightened. “Yes, indeed. I can’t believe you remembered that.”
I’d forgotten little about Elise. I never would have forgotten about her jewelry. It was her greatest love.
“She works in sales at Buttross Jewelers, but she’s also starting to design her own line there.”
I didn’t need Flora to know I’d already found this out on my own, but even as she spoke, a flame of pride lit in my chest, warming me as it grew.
“How long has she been there? Did she go to school?” I heard the excitement in my voice, the fast talking. Flora did not seem to notice. I could tell Ava did.
“Oh, she’s been there since right before she graduated, and yes, she went to UL.” Her eyes moved back to Ava again. “It was hard at first. She practically lived at ODS.”
“ODS?” I heard myself ask.
Flora’s brow arched severely. “Office of Disability Services. Her required English, history, and biology classes nearly did her in.” Then a smile softened her features. “But she made it through.”
I remembered the years she’d struggled in school. And the years Ava had helped her every single day. I brought my gaze to my sister’s. She was looking back at me. I couldn’t tell if she was thinking the same thing I was — how proud I was of them both. But hearing about Elise’s triumphs made me want to cheer.
Before I could tell Ava how I felt, Flora spoke up.
“She has you to thank, Ava Whitehurst,” Flora said, eyes blazing. “Before you started helping her, my Elise would have never thought college was possible.”
Ava shook her head, deflecting Flora’s praise. “All I did was help her focus and read to her when she struggled—”
Flora’s hand shot across the table and flattened over Ava’s. “Child, I watched you day in and day out, year in and year out.” Her voice was firm and silken at the same time. “You have to know what you gave to my girl. You gave her the world.”
For the second time that morning, my throat threatened to close on me.
Ava’s eyes flicked to mine. “It was all Cole’s idea,” she said, shaking her head again. “I can’t take all the credit.”
Flora’s free hand landed on my knee. “Well, then I have you both to thank, but Ava, love, an idea is nothing but nothing without action,” she said, that stern tone settling over our table. “You are the one who made the difference.”
I watched my sister give a grudging smile. “I’m happy I helped in some way.”
In that moment, I was so grateful to Flora for giving my sister something to be proud of. A contribution she could claim. And, somehow, the fact that she’d made such a difference for Elise humbled me.Iwanted to make a difference in Elise’s life.
I wanted tobein her life. It took seeing Flora and hearing about Elise to admit it to myself, but I’d missed Elise.
I’d missed her so damn much.
“Is she seeing anyone?” I blurted, the words escaping me before I knew I’d thought them.
Ava’s smile of pride broke into one of extreme amusement.
“Oh my Lord,” Flora said, rolling her eyes. “Heavens, no. That girl spends all her time working. If she’s not at the store, she’s sketching designs at home. She never does anything else. I tell you, it’s unhealthy for a young person.”
Ava, her eyes dancing, stared right at me. “I agree, Flora. So unhealthy.” Her mouth quirked in wicked delight. “Maybe we should do something about that.”
Flora’s brows lifted with excitement. “Oh, she would love to see y’all!”
My heart sped up at her words. Flora was wrong, but that didn’t stop me from pressing. “Really? It’s been so long. She probably forgot about us a long time ago.”
With speed that belied her age, Flora’s warm hands clutched mine. “No, indeed. She’d never forget the two of you.” She shook her head with insistence, her voice dropping. “After y’all moved away, I’ve never seen somebody cry so much.”
An invisible blade, sharp and hot, sunk into my chest. I pictured my Elise the day I’d left. Her look of devastation. I’d put it there, saying shit I should have kept trapped in my head. I had been too mired in my own misery to feel the shame of it then, but I felt it now. Back then, I’d thought leaving her alone was the best I could do for her. I knew I’d hurt her. But she’d cried? For us?
For me?
I remembered what it felt like to hold her in my arms. The rightness of it. The way it had opened me like a vault. My whole life had been about keeping my shit locked down tight. But Elise had known everything about everything. She’d broken my lock.
