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34. All A Test

34

ALL A TEST

" H ow was Aster doing?" Raine's mother asked her on Thursday night.

Her mother invited her for dinner, saying she knew it'd be hard for Raine to be alone knowing what Aster was going through that day.

She was grateful for that.

"He was quiet," she said. "I thought I could get more out of him, but I think I got enough."

"How much is enough?" her mother asked.

"Patty," her father said. "Don't pressure Raine. She'll tell us what she wants."

"It's fine, Dad," she said. "It's not like you didn't go running to Brooks and River wanting to round up the cavalry and take Colton down."

Her mother let out a snort, her father echoed it. "It wouldn't take much to bring him down. I could do it with age on my side and one hand tied behind my back. He's a wuss and always has been."

Raine giggled over that. "I'm not going to defend him because I agree. And compared to Aster, yes. Flick him away with my fingertip."

"That's the best attitude to have," her mother said. "Things are good with you and Aster now that your father opened his mouth after I told him not to?"

"I figured you wouldn't have told him to begin with," she said, lifting her eyebrow.

"It slipped," her mother said. "I regret that."

"I don't," her father said. "He broke my little girl's heart and I'm not going to tolerate that happening again. Maybe Brooks and I wanted to see how Aster would react to the news."

She ground her teeth. "This was all a test?"

"Yeah," her mother said, putting her hands on his hips. "Mike, what did you do?"

"Nothing," her father said. "I told Brooks and River."

"Knowing that Brooks would get the ball in motion," she said. "You guys all suck."

"They may suck," her mother said, "but you did admit that you almost needed it. That you finally came to terms on your own."

She sighed. "Yes. I mean I came to terms on it years ago. You know that. Everyone does."

"But it took you a long time," her mother said. "You had hoped he'd come back for a full year. I think you even marked your calendar. Don't think I didn't notice from when you broke up until you started to date again."

No one was supposed to realize that and she wasn't surprised her mother had.

"I was in mourning for a period of time," she argued. "I spent over six years of my life with him. The plans and dreams I had were gone."

"He was a dream crusher," her mother said. "We get it. But it was time for you to build those dreams again."

"I did and I have. But I've been more selective over the years. Maybe that was my problem and why I was single for so long."

"Not a problem if you're waiting for the right person and not someone to kill the time. Look at your brothers. They were your age, or older in Brooks's case. River a bit older than you too. No one says love has to happen when you're young," her mother said.

"It did for you two," she said.

Patty brought the pot of goulash to the table and she grabbed the bowls to put them out with the silverware.

"Times were different for us," her mother said. "Sometimes a young love is there and strong and you build on it. You need a common thread and we had one. But we struggled because we were so young."

Raine looked at her father to see if he'd argue. "Your mother is right. I love her as much today as I did back in high school, but we rushed to get married and start a family. We learned as we went. We tried to teach you kids our mistakes."

She didn't want to argue there were no mistakes.

"Everyone makes mistakes in life."

"They do," her mother said. "Come sit and eat, Mike."

"We didn't want our kids to struggle like we did," her father said, pulling a chair out and sitting at the same table as when she was a toddler.

"Everyone struggles too," she said. "It doesn't have to be financially, it could be emotionally. I feel that maybe money was the struggle, but you two worked it out. You stayed strong and you gave us so much more in exchange. So much more we could build on and grow. Even Brooks finally figured it out."

Her father nodded and filled his plate when they were all seated. Her mother's eyes got a little dewy.

"That is a very sweet thing to say," her mother said. "We did try."

"And you succeeded. Now it's time to let your kids take care of you."

"Don't even go there," her father said. "Life is much easier for us now. It really is. Just because we aren't out buying expensive cars or going on trips doesn't mean we aren't putting things away for the future."

This had never come up before.

"What's going on?" she asked.

Her mother smiled. "Your father and I live a very frugal life. We paid the house off last year."

She did know that and was so happy for them, but that didn't mean there weren't things that needed to be done in the house that cost a lot of money.

"Which is great," she said.

"We are investing money now. I've never had a retirement fund. When we retire, I'll only receive social security and it won't be much. Your father does have a retirement account from the marina and we are lucky that his employers set it up years ago and contribute to it annually, but they never had to."

She hadn't known that either.

One of the reasons she went into teaching wasn't for the money she'd make during her career, but the security when she retired with benefits and pension. Crazy, she knew, but again, it went back to planning her life out.

Not always in a good way for some.

"I'm so glad to hear you guys are doing that."

"We don't want our kids to care for us. So please, don't worry about us. Just because we've got more money and fewer expenses and mouths to feed doesn't mean we will be wasteful. We've known our children would get married at some point in their lives and have planned for our parts in it."

"You're not paying for my wedding," she said firmly.

Her mother grinned around a mouthful of food. "You're already thinking that way? Guess it is going well. And we got off track. I asked how Aster was today."

She'd talk about that because she didn't want to talk about wedding plans that she wasn't making.

Maybe she had a few moments where she thought of it, but nothing she'd voice to anyone.

Could be nothing more than everything going on with Brooks and Ivy's wedding and her thinking of things she'd like or do.

"He said that he and Carrington—that was the girl he saved—both testified. He wasn't asked a lot of questions from the defense. I get the feeling Carrington's testimony hit him hard. She is going through counseling and lives with bodyguards."

"That's sad," her mother said. "It's like her life has changed so much."

"Yes," she said. "But Aster also said that he has a feeling that they know who ordered the abduction. It was a comment that Carrington said to Aster and her father shushed her. So maybe it will end soon. But Tucker, Carrington's father, had asked if Aster could keep in touch with his daughter. That she needs that right now too. Carrington is living with a lot of guilt that Aster lost his military career."

"That's sweet in a way. And noble too," her mother said.

"I don't think Aster is the type to hold a grudge about that," her father said.

"No," she said. "He's told me more than once Zane gave him a dream job. He loves plants and flowers. He's been tending to them outside of Zane's cabin now. He has plants all over the house. He's got a great green thumb."

She'd never thought of it the way he'd explained, that having the plants when he was in the service was just a sign of life and that there was more out there than the battle they fought daily.

It just told her that he could see outside his bubble and maybe she couldn't. Or didn't do that great of a job with it.

"So he's done?" her mother asked. "He can leave tomorrow?"

"Yes. He's going to help Daphne finish packing, load everything up and leave tomorrow. They are going to find a hotel tomorrow night and get a few hours of sleep before they hit the road again. He said he's driving home Saturday and not stopping until he gets here."

"It will be a long trip but so worth it to get home and not drag it out in a hotel another night," her father said.

"That is what Aster said. Get it done and get home."

She hoped she got to see him on Sunday. She'd offer to help unpack. She knew Daphne was upset staying at Aster's, but it was only a month or so.

Aster had told her work had to be done in the cabin to get it up to speed as it'd been empty for months and no one had touched it in years other than repairs immediately needed.

Raine was hoping to spend some time with Daphne too and get closer to her. Maybe showing her the area.

It's not like Daphne would be working full time, but she would be spending time with Poppy and her family to get to know Holly and Tatum and getting the baby on a schedule that worked for everyone.

"It sounds like things are finally falling into place for everyone," her mother said. "Right?"

"Yes," she said. "Colton is out of my mind. He has been for years. Him moving back to the area means nothing. I'm sure he got the message when I shut the door in his face. Even if I was single I wouldn't take him back."

"That's my girl. Burn you once and that is it. I'm glad it was never put to the test back then," her father said.

She knew that if Colton had come back she might have forgiven him and it would have caused tension in the family, but it all worked out for the best.

Maybe she'd struggled financially over the years but nothing like her parents did and they got through.

She was in the best space in her mind. The best of her life right now.

She wasn't going to let a darn thing change that.

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