always were—making her cookies, married to her dad, and bending over backward to make life easy for her. It’s quite natural in one way, but it’s impractical for a girl who is growing into a woman. She can’t have her cake and eat it, too. Right?” Tippy’s eyes stayed on her, searching her emotions.
“Yeah, I get it, but she has a right to be angry about Clay.”
“Ellery doesn’t want Clay. So why can’t you have him? I think we know this is not about age but about competition.”
“If Ellery wanted Clay, she could have him.” Daphne ran her finger around the lip of the cup.
“No, I don’t think so. I think that’s part of it. He’s the only guy who ever dumped her.”
Daphne thought back to that time in her life. Rex had just bought a new building and made Pinnacle a multibranch company, and she’d started taking watercolor classes since Ellery no longer needed a ride to school. It had been the first step in her new career. Ellery had a habit of falling in and out of love with various boys at the time—the child had been in love with the concept of having a boyfriend. Clay Caldwell had been the one she’d chased . . . and then wept over.
“Maybe that’s true. I don’t know.” Daphne spread her hands wide and tried to wrap her brain around all Tippy had suggested. “But I don’t want Clay. He’s not the guy for me. I just had a lapse in judgment. I was upset, but the knock on the door snapped me back to reality and reminded me I don’t want a relationship based solely on sexual attraction. Of course, when Clay opened the door and Ellery stood there stunned, I just wanted to die. Good Lord, her face when she realized.”
“Again, that didn’t give her the right to run off like a spoiled child.”
Daphne pressed a hand against her chest. “Maybe not . . . or maybe so.”
“Honey, you spent a lot of money on this weekend celebration, not to mention time. And I believe her friends did, too. Running away because she couldn’t deal was a shitty move on Elle’s part. Doesn’t matter how upset she was with you.”
Daphne had to acknowledge that Tippy made some good points. She definitely wore blinders when it came to her daughter. What mother didn’t? But she also knew Ellery’s behavior was a result of not being able to cope with what life had thrown at her. Instead of bouncing when adversity hit, Ellery had shattered and still tried to pick up the pieces. Daphne hadn’t really known how to handle her daughter’s disappointment, either. She’d tried to help by giving her a job, buying things for her apartment, and bolstering Ellery’s ego every chance she got. She didn’t want her daughter to feel like a failure or to be unhappy. That’s what mothers did for their children. That was their job.
“I know you’re right, but I have to figure out a way to reach her. She’s so angry, and I suspect things aren’t good with Josh. And now with Rex not paying her bills . . .”
“I’ve loved Ellery for a long time, Daph. I know how wonderful she is, and I also know how difficult she can be. She’s always been worth the while, but some things she’s got to figure out by herself.”
“I know, but I also know that everyone needs support. That’s my job—to support her.”
“Actually, that’s not your job, honey,” Tippy said.
Daphne made a face.
“You know I’m right. If you make the way smooth, she’ll never learn how to navigate the rocks and potholes. You can’t fix the world for Ellery any more than your mother could have fixed it for you. We all learn to live with what life hands us, and if we’re brave enough, we learn how to fight what the world gives us and forge our own paths.”
“But she needs me,” Daphne said, sounding almost desperate. Didn’t Tippy Lou understand? Or maybe she couldn’t because she’d never had a child, didn’t know what ends of the earth a mother went to for her children. Daphne would sacrifice every bit of her own success to see her daughter happy.
Tippy tilted her head. “You remember when Ellery was in that LEGO phase?”
Where was Tippy Lou going this time? “Sure, I stepped on a million of those suckers that summer.”
“Elle always wanted those elaborate sets, remember? The big ones that cost an arm and a