Mama clomps over and plants herself squarely in front of the monitor, blocking everybody else’s view. We don’t say a word – we hardly even breathe – while she stands there nodding her head, the feather on her hat bobbing like a wild red bird learning how to fly.
“It is not,” she finally says. “That’s the umbilical cord.” She puts her hand on the screen, right over the tiny hand of the unborn baby Victoria. “Hey there,” she says. “Hey there, precious one.”
Then she turns to us, eyes snapping and hat askew. “That’s my granddaughter, you’re talking about. You’d better not let her hear you call her a boy or she’ll pitch a hissy fit.”
“Just like her grandmama,” I say.
“You’ve got that right,” Mama says, and then does a little hula inside her walker.
*
I’ve parked my car in one of the hospital’s handicapped slots, the permit I use because of Mama displayed on the dashboard.
“Maggie, where’s your car?” She comes to a halt in the parking lot. “Somebody stole it.”
“No, they didn’t, Mama. That’s my car.”
For once, she’s the one rendered speechless. She walks slowly around the Thunderbird, running her hands along its sleek, red sides, taking her handkerchief out of her purse and polishing the hood ornament. Claiming her dream.
Finally she says, “I’m glad I’m wearing my red hat. It matches.”
I help her into the passenger side, stow her walker in the trunk and then let the top down.
“Hang onto your hat, Mama.”
We glide out of the parking lot, and she waves at everybody she sees. Any minute I expect her to yell, Look at me! This is my daughter, she’s owns this car.
“Where’s your Jeep?”
“I kept it for hauling stuff like furniture and barnyard fertilizer. And for the times Jefferson wants to go on trips with us.” I turn south on Gloster, but I’m not heading toward Belle Gardens. “Do you feel like taking a spin, Mama?”
“If I felt any better I’d be turning cartwheels and shooting poots at the moon,” she says, and here’s what I’m thinking: the doctor said one to seven years, but with that kind of sass, I’m betting on seven.
I skirt around the city, backtrack and head downtown, driving slowly, up every major street and through the subdivisions too, because Mama’s still waving, and I want to make sure everybody in Tupelo sees her. When she spots the mayor coming out of City Hall, I swear she sends him the beauty-queen wave.
“Drive by Laura Kate’s,” Mama says. “I want to make sure she sees me in this car.”
As we leave the city, I notice that the countryside looks different with the top down, brighter somehow, the green of leaves and grass, the pink and yellow of roadside wildflowers more hopeful, more clearly defined.
“Maggie, can we go to New York in this car?”
“We’ll go next summer, Mama. We’ll buy red scarves that match and drive all the way with the top down.”
“If it doesn’t rain.”
“It won’t.”
And even if it does, I’ve learned how to open my umbrella in sudden showers, navigate through monsoons and wear hip waders in floods.
“It wouldn’t dare,” I add, a woman completely in charge. I picture the universe sitting up and taking notice.
- The End -
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Read More
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Thank you for reading this book! If you enjoyed Driving Me Crazy, you’ll love Stars to Lead Me Home, the story of three women, best friends and fellow teachers, who depend on each other to navigate the curves life throws at them. You’ll laugh and cry with these women, just as you did with Victoria Lucas and her daughters.
It’s no secret that I also write as Elaine Hussey. Don’t miss The Sweetest Hallelujah - a fan favorite - and my other Elaine books!
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FREE! I’m giving away the first book in three of my romantic comedy series:
The Dixie Virgin Chronicles: Belinda
Donovan’s Angel (Donovans of the Delta)
Can’t Stop Loving You (Forever Friends)
Enjoy my latest comedic cozy and some good eating, too! Elvis and the Rock-A-Hula Baby Capers (Southern Cousins Mystery w/bonus short story and cookbook).
Watch for my new cozy series this fall, Magnolia Wild, a Charmed Cat Mystery. It’s the perfect blend of mystery, romance and comedy!
Details on these and all my books are at www.peggywebb.com. Join me on Facebook and Twitter. Win giveaways at my blog at www.elainehussey.com.
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About Peggy Webb
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USA Today best-selling author, Peggy Webb, a Mississippian, has written more than 75 books. She writes romance, women’s fiction and the hilarious Southern Cousins cozy mystery series starring Elvis, the basset hound who thinks he’s the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll reincarnated. Her peers call her a “comic genius.” She also writes literary fiction and is a member of PEN under the name Elaine Hussey. Pat Conroy calls her literary work “astonishing.” This critically acclaimed author has won many awards, including a Romantic Times Pioneer Award for creating the sub-genre of romantic comedy. Her novel, Driving Me Crazy, was submitted for a Pulitzer, and several of her romances have been optioned for film.
Peggy is a member of Novelists, Inc., International Thriller Writers, and Romance Writers of America. Her award-winning books, Touched by Angels, A Prince for Jenny, the Donovans of the Delta series and her boxed sets have all been Kindle Top 10 bestsellers. Follow the author on her websites: www.peggywebb.com and www.elainehussey.com and on Facebook and Twitter.
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Other Books by Peggy Webb
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Classic Romance
Dark Fire
Touched by Angels (RT Reviewer’s Choice)
A Prince for Jenny, sequel to Touched by Angels
The Edge of Paradise
Duplicity (Rave review, RT Reviewer’s Choice)
Where Dolphins Go (RT Reviewer’s Choice, women’s fiction, optioned for film)
Night of the Dragon (time travel romance)
Christmas in Time (time travel, prequel to Only Yesterday)
Only Yesterday, (time travel, sequel to Christmas in Time)
Summer Jazz
Taming Maggie (#1 on romance bestseller list)
That Jones Girl (sequel to the Mississippi McGills series)
Indiscreet
Series
Donovan’s Angel (Paul Donovan’s story)
Sleepless Nights (Tanner Donovan’s story)
Hallie’s Destiny (award winning book, Hallie Donovan’s story)
Any Thursday (Hannah Donovan’s story)
Higher Than Eagles (Jacob Donovan’s story)
The Mississippi McGills Series (spin-off from Donovans of the Delta)
Valley of Fire (Rick McGill’s story)
Until Morning Comes (Jo Beth McGill and Colter Gray Wolf’s story)
Saturday Mornings (Andrew McGill’s story)
Forever Friends series
Can’t Stop Loving You (Book 1, Helen’s story)
Only His Touch (Kat’s story, Book 2)
Bringing Up Baxter (B. J.’s story, Book 3)
Angels on Zebras (Maxie’s story, Book 4)
The Dixie Virgin Chronicles
The Dixie Virgin Chronicles: Belinda
The Dixie Virgin Chronicles: Janet
The Dixie Virgin Chronicles: Molly
The Dixie Virgin Chronicles: Bea
The Dixie Virgin Chronicles: Clementine
The Dixie Virgin Chronicles: Joanna
The Dixie Virgin Chronicles: Catherine
Sunday Cove Series
Naughty and Nice
Birds of a Fea
ther
Disturbing the Peace
Romantic Suspense
Witch Dance
From A Distance
Boxed Sets
Donovans of the Delta
Finding Mr. Perfect
Finding Paradise
Time’s Embrace
Warrior’s Embrace
When I Found You
Southern Cousins Mysteries
Elvis and the Dearly Departed, 2008
Elvis and the Grateful Dead, 2009
Elvis and the Memphis Mambo Murders, 2010
Elvis and the Tropical Double Trouble, 2011
Elvis and the Blue Christmas Corpse, 2012
Jack Loves Callie Tender (series prequel and companion guide), 2013
Elvis and the Bridegroom Stiffs, 2014
Elvis and the Deadly Love Letters, a short story, 2014
Elvis and the Buried Brides, 2014
Elvis and the Rock-a-hula Baby Capers, 2015
Women’s Fiction/Literary Fiction
Driving Me Crazy, 2016
Stars to Lead Me Home: Love and Marriage, 2015
Her Secret Hero, March, 2014
The Language of Silence (Gallery, Simon & Schuster), July 30, 2014
The Tender Mercy of Roses (Gallery, Simon & Schuster), written as Anna Michaels
The Sweetest Hallelujah (MIRA), written as Elaine Hussey, July 30, 2013
The Oleander Sisters (MIRA), written as Elaine Hussey, July 30, 2014
Coming Soon!
Bluebird Flying Backward, Elaine Hussey
Watch www.peggywebb.com and www.elainehussey.com for details.