“They'll get used to it,” Zelda reassured her. “It's not easy for him either,” she said, referring to Charles. “You can tell he's never been around kids.” Maxine nodded. You couldn't have everything. And if he had children of his own, they might not have liked that either. This was simpler.
Maxine cooked dinner for the children that night, and everyone pushed their food around their plates. None of them could eat, including Maxine. She hated the look on their faces. Daphne looked as though someone had died.
“How can you do that, Mom? He's a creep.” It was a mean thing to say about him, and Sam intervened.
“No, he's not. He's nice to me. And he'd be nice to you, if you weren't so mean to him.” What he said was true, and she didn't say it, but Maxine agreed. “He's just not used to kids.” They all knew that was true.
“When he took me to the basketball game, he tried to tell me I should go to boarding school,” Jack said, with a worried look. “Are you going to send us now, Mom?”
“Of course not. Charles went to boarding school, and he loved it, so he thinks everyone should go. I'd never send you guys away.”
“That's what you say now,” Daphne commented. “Wait till you're married to him, and he makes you.”
“He's not going to ‘make' me send you away. You're my kids, not his.”
“That's not how he acts. He thinks he owns the world,” Daphne said, glaring at her mother.
“No, he doesn't.” Maxine stood up for him, but she was glad that her children were venting. At least it got everything out in the open between them. “He's used to running his own life, but he's not going to run yours. He wouldn't want to, and I won't let him.”
“He hates Dad,” Jack said matter-of-factly.
“I don't think that's true either. He may be jealous of him, but he doesn't hate him.”
“What do you think Dad will say?” Daphne asked with interest. “I'll bet he'll be sad if you get married, Mom.”
“I don't think so. He's got ten million girlfriends. Is he still with Arabella?” She hadn't heard anything about her recently.
“Yeah,” Daphne said, looking glum. “I just hope he doesn't marry her. That's all we need.” They all sounded as though something terrible had happened. This had certainly not been good news to them. She had expected it, but it was hard anyway. Only Sam seemed to think it was okay, but he liked Charles better than the others.
Charles called her after dinner to see how they were. He missed her, but it had been a relief to get home. The past week had been tough for all of them. First Sam's accident, and now this. And Maxine felt trapped in the middle.
“They're okay. They just need some time to get used to the idea,” she said sensibly.
“Like what? Twenty years?” He was very upset about it.
“No, they're kids. Give them a few weeks. They'll be dancing at our wedding like everyone else.”
“Have you told Blake?”
“No, I'll call him later. I wanted to tell the kids first. And I'm going to call my parents tomorrow. They will be thrilled!” Charles had met them once and liked them very much. He liked the idea of marrying into a family of physicians.
The children were lackluster for the rest of the evening. They stayed in their rooms and watched DVDs. Sam was sleeping in his own room again. And it was funny to think, as she lay in her bed that night, that in two months Charles would be living here. It was hard to imagine living with anyone again after all these years. And Sam was right, he wouldn't be able to sleep in her bed. She was going to miss it. In spite of the fact that she loved Charles, the good news had a downside for everyone, even her. Life worked that way. You traded some things for others. But it was hard to sell that to kids. And sometimes, even to herself.
She called Blake just after midnight, which was morning for him. He sounded busy and distracted, and she could hear machines and shouting in the distance. It was hard talking to him.
“Where are you? What are you doing?” she said loudly.
“I'm in the street, trying to help clear things. We airlifted in some bulldozers to help them. They're still digging people out. Max, there are kids walking around the streets here with nowhere to go. Whole families got wiped out, and children are still looking for their parents. There are injured people lying everywhere, because the hospitals are full. You can't imagine what it's like.”
“Yes, I can,” she said sadly. “I've gone to natural disaster scenes for work. There's nothing worse.”
“Maybe you should come over here and help. They need people to advise them what to do about the children, and how to handle things afterward. In fact, you're just what they need. Would you ever consider it?” he said, sounding pensive. His house was still standing, and he could have left, but he liked the country and the people so much and wanted to do all he could to help.
“I would, if someone hires me to. I can't just fly over there and start telling them what to do.”
“I could hire you.” He wanted to do whatever it took.
“Don't be silly. I'd do it for free for you. But I'd need to know what kind of advice they want from me. What I do is very specific. It's about managing the children's trauma, immediately, and long term. Let me know if there's anything I can do.”
“I will. How's Sam?”
“He's okay. He's doing pretty well on his crutches.” And then she remembered why she had called him. He had distracted her for a minute with his stories about the earthquake damage and the horror of orphaned children wandering the streets. “I have something to tell you,” she said solemnly.
“About Sam's accident?” He sounded worried. She had never heard him sound like this. For once, he was thinking about someone other than himself.
“No. About me. I'm getting married. To Charles West. We're getting married in August.” He was quiet for a minute.
“Are the kids upset?” He expected them to be.
“Yes.” She was honest with him. “They like things the way they are. They don't want anything to change.”
“That's understandable. They wouldn't like it if I got married either. I hope he's good to you, Max,” Blake said, sounding more serious than he had in years.
“He is.”
“Then congratulations.” He laughed then and sounded more like himself. “I guess I didn't expect it to happen so soon. But it'll be good for you, and the kids. They just don't know it yet. Listen, I'll call you when I can. I have to go now. There's too much going on here to talk for long. Take care of yourself and kiss the kids… and Max, congratulations again…” And before she could even thank him, he was gone. She hung up the phone, and went to bed. She was thinking about Blake in the devastation after the earthquake in Morocco and all he was doing to help orphans and wounded people, clear away rubble, and fly in medicines and food. For once, he was doing more than just putting his money to good use, he was rolling up his sleeves to do the work himself. It didn't sound like the Blake she knew, and she wondered if he was finally growing up. If so, it was long overdue.
Maxine called her parents in the morning, and finally someone was thrilled with the news. Her father said he was delighted and he liked him, and that Charles was just the kind of man he had hoped she would find and marry one day. And it pleased him that he was a physician too. He told her to congratulate Charles, and offered his best wishes to her, which was the proper way to do it. And then her mother got on the phone, and asked all about the wedding.
“Are the children excited?” she asked, as Maxine smiled and shook her head. They didn't get it.
“Not exactly, Mom. It's a big change for them.”
“He's a very nice man. I'm sure in the long run they'll be very glad you married him.”
“I hope so,” she said, sounding less sure than her mother.