of the oven door, was one of the blue-and-white-checked dishtowels Tanyalee had given Cheri as a wedding gift. Just as she had hoped, they were a perfect match to the kitchen curtains.
Tanyalee stood quietly with her handbag clutched in both hands, watching her sister pour iced tea from a pitcher into two glass jars filled with ice. Suddenly, she knew. She knew why being here had such an effect on her. It was like returning to the home she’d shared with her mama and daddy. It was as if she’d stepped back in time.
As Cheri turned around to offer her a jar, her face contorted with sympathy. “Oh, Tanyalee. Are you okay?”
“What? Gracious! Why would you ask me that?” Tanyalee absently touched her cheek, feeling hot tears. Of course she had not intended to step inside the house and immediately start blubbering! That was in no way a reflection of the resourcefulness and/or determination to be found in a Newberry woman’s blood. Oh, Lord-ee what a horrible way to begin …
“Let’s go back out onto the porch. It’s a lovely night.”
“Yes. Yes, it is.” Tanyalee couldn’t get out of that place fast enough, and took a huge gulp of evening air to clear her head. She had cried, of all things. When she saw how beautiful and warm Cheri and J.J. had made their home, she stood there and cried because everything about the place hinted at their love and devotion for each other and reflected the love her own parents had once had for her.
Those tears had come from loss and shame. That little family from the past was gone forever, and she’d lashed out at Cheri and J.J. simply because they made each other happy.
She had caused so much damage.
“Here. Have a seat.” Cheri nodded toward a rocker and handed Tanyalee her drink. When she took a long sip, it brought cool relief to her tight throat.
“I do apologize for my outburst,” Tanyalee managed.
Cheri plopped in her chair and turned slightly toward Tanyalee. She shook her head. “There’s no need to apologize.”
Just then, their eyes locked. There was no sound save for the crickets and loons. No one breathed until, a few seconds into the standoff, they burst into laughter. In unison.
And oh, how Tanyalee laughed!
“No need to apologize?” She managed to ask this between breaths, trying to get enough air to fuel her laughter.
Cheri laughed just as hard. At one point she was doubled over in the rocking chair. “I didn’t really just say that, did I?”
“Oh, my God!” Tanyalee had to put her glass jar on the porch floor because she was afraid she’d drop it. “Cheri, I have so many things to apologize to you for that I could be here till dawn if you let me.”
“I know. I told J.J. to sleep on his office sofa tonight because I had no idea how long this would take.”
Tanyalee felt her eyes widen. “You did?”
Cheri nodded, the laughter fading. “It’s good you’re here. I’m happy we’re finally talking.”
“I feel the same.”
Neither of them was laughing now, and the silence felt heavy and uncomfortable. Tanyalee knew she needed to start, but her thoughts were spinning and her brain was buzzing and not a single word was making it to her tongue.
Cheri saw her struggling, and stepped in. “I want you to know I admire your courage, Tanyalee. This can’t be easy.”
She shook her head sharply. “No, Cheri. I am not here fishing for compliments nor am I brave—I am here because I want to do what’s right. I want to release the two of us from all this hate and jealousy, and the only way to do it is to lay it all out in front of us, pick through it all, and decide what to do with each piece.”
She watched her sister close her eyes and lean back into the rocker with a sigh. “All right. Let’s do it, then.”
Tanyalee felt energized, and scooted to the edge of the rocker. “Now, my first question is, how should we organize this? Chronologically, starting from my birth? Or should I start with my most recent offense and move backward? Or would you rather I begin with the most heinous transgression and work my way to the smallest, or vice versa?”
Cheri opened one eye so she could peer at Tanyalee. “It doesn’t matter. Really.”
“All right.” Tanyalee used the toe of her sandal to push off and release the rocker, allowing the back-and-forth motion to give a rhythm to her