Page 114 of Falling Like Snow

“Seems my future is all planned then: Find a sugar daddy, move into his house, and get a puppy.”

Mom gives me a soft smile. “As long as you’re safe and happy, that’s fine with me.” Then she clears her throat. “I just don’t want you being afraid of disappointing others. You’ve always been a people pleaser, and it’s always been at your own expense.”

“The thing is…,” I say, “I think I’m more afraid of leaving you alone than I am of disappointing you.”

She draws her eyebrows together. “What?”

I inhale deeply. “Over this past month, Asher and I have… well, been going through some stuff. And it’s made me realize that ever since Dad died, I’ve been afraid of losing the people I care about. Which made me realize that I don’t want to leave Bramble Falls and make you feel like you’re losing me. I don’t want you to be alone.”

“No,” Mom says, her posture straightening. “I want you to let go of that worry, okay? I will miss you and, yes, I will most likely cry. But I know I’m not losing you while you go out and find yourself and start a life of your own. I will never be alone here. This community is my family. And Annie is here.”

I nod, a weight lifting from my shoulders. “Okay.”

“Plus, I won’t have time to feel alone. You’ll be calling me every hour while you’re gone anyway. Because, let’s face it, you’ll miss me too much too.”

I roll my eyes, and she laughs.

“Now, I get that you’re afraid—of losing the people you love, of disappointing people, of leaving me alone. But it’s time to overcome those fears, to face them head on.”

“But how?”

“By focusing on your own happiness instead of worrying about what you think everyone else wants from you. By taking chances. By living how your dad would have wanted you to live.”

My chin quivers. “Okay. I’ll try.”

“That’s all I ask.” She sets her glass on the table and sinks back into the cushion. “So what do you want? What will make you happy if not running this charming town?”

“I don’t know. I’d love to see if I could make a living acting. I know Broadway is a pipe dream, but even if I could do off-Broadway productions—”

“It’s good to have big dreams,” Mom says, cutting me off. “Don’t tell yourself it’s not achievable. Don’t sell yourself short. Don’t self-reject.”

“Because I can have anything I want?”

“Exactly. It’s a mindset. Keeps you persevering, even when things feel impossible. And as a woman—and as an artist—you’ll find that things often feel impossible. But it’s crap. Got it? I didn’t become mayor of Bramble Falls by telling myself it was a pipe dream, by convincing myself there was no way I could beat Joe Bosley.”

“Who’s Joe Bosley?”

“The very attractive, charismatic man I had to beat for this position,” she says. “The election was heated. He moved away after he lost.”

“You crushed his dreams.”

“I sure did…”

“Meh, I’m sure he found a new dream,” I say reassuringly.

She winces. “Actually, Dorothy heard he died shortly after he left.”

I gasp. “How?”

Mom shrugs. “The cause was inconclusive.”

“So he died of a broken heart. You took his job and killed him!”

Mom solemnly grabs her champagne flute of sparkling grape juice from the table and holds it up. “To Joe. May he rest in peace.”

I laugh, clinking my flute against hers. “To Joe. May he govern the heavens.”

We both take a sip.