Mistletoe and Magic by Carolyn Hughey, Gina Ardito Page B

erupting in the pit of her stomach.
    “Jenny!” Dina scolded. “That’s not very nice.”
    “Go away,” she demanded. “I don’t want you in here.”
    “Fine.” Mallory said, the pained expression encompassing her face.
    “Why do you allow her to treat you like that?” Dina asked when they closed the door to Jenny’s bedroom.
    “She’s hurting.”
    “And you aren’t?” Edging their way down toward Lacey’s room, Mallory swallowed hard before entering. Lacey was sound asleep. She leaned down and kissed her cheek. Lacey stirred and turned over.
    “She played hard after school,” Dina said. “C’mon.” She reached for her arm. “Let’s go sit in the living room. I have a fresh pot of coffee waiting for us.”
    “Okay. That’s sounds like a good idea.”
    “You go sit and I’ll be right in.”
    Mallory sat down on the recliner and raised the leg rest. Her mind was racing with bittersweet memories of her day with AJ to a depressed world of sour remorse. She ultimately concluded all good things had to come to an end. There was no way she could ever bring AJ into her topsy-turvy world. It wouldn’t be fair to either of them because he deserved something better than inheriting a dysfunctional family. She wanted to believe that therapy would help Jenny in time, but seeing her aggressive behavior spiral out of control on a moment’s notice was too risky. Dina entered the room with a tray, her expression still and serious.
    She offered Mallory the coffee. She took the cup and set it down on the end table. “I also bought some cookies at Nardone’s Bakery that I thought the kids would enjoy. After what I just witnessed, we’re the kids tonight.” Dina sat down across from Mallory, her brows pulled together. “Talk to me. Tell me what’s going on.”
    Mallory blew out air in a quick whoosh. “I’ve been reluctant to talk to you about it because I don’t want you to judge Jenny.”
    “It’s hard not to when I see her acting so poorly.” She frowned. “Tell me how long you’ve been putting up with this?”
    “Ever since Mitch died. I told myself it was because she was having a hard time dealing with the loss and she’d get over it. Unfortunately, things haven’t gotten better, they’ve gotten worse. Much worse. That’s why I’ve sought therapy.”
    “It’s a good thing you did.” Dina’s face went sternly serious. “Mal, I’m so sorry you’re going through this alone. Please let me help you deal with this.” Mallory’s lips thinned. “What did Dr. Bean say? Did she give you any idea about how to deal with it?”
    “She spoke to each of us alone. I went first and filled in all the details of Mitch’s death, our marriage in general, and how he disassociated himself from us.”
    “I’ve never understood that.”
    Mallory sipped her coffee to moisten her dry mouth. “There is something I’ve never told you. Maybe it was because I was embarrassed, I don’t know. Mitch had a girlfriend,” she blurted out. Dina’s face hardened into a mask of stone. “She was a twenty-something biker chick.”
    “That bastard!” Dina exclaimed. “While you stayed home and supported the family, he was off running around with a biker chick every weekend?”
    “That was pretty much it. I had suspected he was cheating on me, but I told myself I was jealous because he was having fun and I wasn’t. She was the one who called to tell me what happened. She said they’d gone off to be alone.” Mallory swallowed hard. “When he’d taken the risky jump and fell, she panicked and by the time she got there, he was already dead. It seems the bike landed on top of him with the motor running. The weight of the bike crushed his chest.”
    Tears ran down Dina’s cheeks. She quickly rose from her chair and rushed over to Mallory, pulling her up into a tight hug. “Oh God.” Dina covered her face with her hands and looked at Mallory with disbelief. “I can’t believe what you’ve had to deal with,