There'd been a time in the not-so-distant past when their relationship had been strained. Justine had been seeing a much older man, and she'd felt defensive and angry at the world. Olivia had wanted so much more for her. She knew that, in some ways, Justine was still grieving over the death of her twin—Jordan had died in a tragic accident at the age of 13. But Justine had finally come to a more peaceful acceptance. Olivia felt that was because of Seth. In fact, everything had changed when Justine fell in love with Seth Gunderson.
"Where's Jack?" Justine asked, looking past Olivia.
"The office, where else?" Jack worked far too many hours, but nothing Olivia said convinced him to delegate some of his tasks. He was involved in every aspect of the newspaper and loved his job. Now that the Chronicle had gone to five editions a week, his hours were even worse than they'd been before their marriage. They'd argued about it repeatedly, but Olivia supposed she might as well get used to having a part-time husband. Jack had promised this wouldn't last much longer, but she suspected nothing was going to change until he retired. If then...
Justine seated her at a window table, then returned to the front of the restaurant and talked to one of the waitresses. It was still early in the evening and the restaurant was only about a third full. As soon as she had someone to cover for her, she walked back to Olivia's table.
"Got a moment?" she asked.
"Of course." Grace wouldn't arrive for at least ten minutes.
Her daughter pulled out the chair across from her. "How are things with Grandma?" she asked.
Olivia sighed and wondered how much of the story her daughter knew. Probably all of it. "We're talking again."
Justine smiled, obviously relieved. "Grandma's going to marry Ben, you know?"
Olivia was well aware of that. "She sent me a letter." It hurt that her own mother had written instead of telling her face-to-face. "I didn't mean to hurt her," she admitted. "Will and I had Ben investigated for her own protection, but our concern backfired."
"I know." At least Justine sounded sympathetic.
"Mom was upset about our lack of faith in her," Olivia said. She must have known instinctively how her mother would feel, because she'd found it necessary to hide their inquiries from Charlotte.
"What else did she say in her letter?"
"She said everyone deserves to be happy, regardless of age, and reminded me how pleased she was when I married Jack."
"She's right, you know," Justine murmured.
"Of course she is." Olivia had no disagreement with that. "She wants Will and me to treat Ben fairly and with respect. The same goes for his sons, of course." She frowned. "I don't think she's met them, though, at least not yet." With a quick shrug, she added, "Naturally I intend to respect Mom's wishes. It's been a bit difficult, thinking of my mother with another man, but it's her life and I want her to be happy."
Justine agreed. "I never said anything when you decided to marry Jack," her daughter said softly. "But deep down, I wanted you and Dad to get back together. I knew it would never work, but the little-girl part of me wanted my parents to love each other again."
Olivia was shocked to see tears in her daughter's eyes. Justine blinked furiously, as though embarrassed. "I still think about Jordan," she whispered.
"So do I."
Justine nodded. "Do you remember what day it is?"
Olivia realized with a jolt that she'd been so preoccupied with what was happening in her own life she'd let the date slip. On this day, August tenth, eighteen years ago, her son had drowned. Her entire life and those of her two surviving children had been divided by that date. The time before Jordan's death and the time after.
Wiping the tears from her face, Justine forced a smile. "I didn't mean to get all maudlin. Let's get back to Grandma, before we both dissolve."
Olivia agreed and swallowed past the lump in her throat. "I stopped at Mom's house earlier in the week and we hugged for the first time since she found out, and she forgave me. I'm sure she'll tell you herself, but they've set the date for their wedding."
Justine grinned sheepishly. "I know all about that. Grandma came in earlier today and booked the restaurant for the reception. She talked to Uncle Will, and he said he's coming out for the wedding."
Olivia was glad to know that, because she wanted to give Grace ample warning. When Will arrived, Olivia planned to have a long talk with her brother about his Internet relationship with her best friend. He'd taken advantage of Grace and betrayed his wife, Georgia. Olivia was furious whenever she thought about it.
"Hi, you two," Grace said, coming toward them. "Am I interrupting anything?"
"No, no," Justine said, rising gracefully from the chair. "I was keeping Mom company until you got here." She looked at Olivia, winked and was on her way.
Funny how just a few minutes with her daughter could mean so much. Olivia felt close to Justine and to her son James, too, and considered herself fortunate to have such wonderful children.
"Sorry I'm late," Grace said as she sat down across from Olivia. "It took forever to finish up at the library."
"Don't worry about it. Justine and I had a chance to talk and we don't get to do that nearly often enough."
"I know how she feels," Grace muttered. "You and I have barely any time together these days."
"I'm sorry," Olivia told her friend, and she was sincere. She had been neglecting their friendship, but was determined not to let that continue. "How's your week been?"
Grace shrugged noncommitally. "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. What about you?"
Olivia smiled. "The same. Jack and I are still adjusting to living together, which hasn't been as easy as I'd hoped, but you know most of that." She'd complained often enough during their aerobic workouts on Wednesday nights. "Mom and I are talking now and she's forgiven me. Oh, and before I forget, Will's coming out for the wedding."
Grace paled visibly but didn't comment.