Blueberry Hill, #1

by Cynthia Luhrs

  She refrained from mentioning he probably didn’t care for small towns because he’d run through all the available women in a matter of months, and they’d all end up finding out about each other. Tara knew it was snarky, but she figured she was entitled to a bit of snark.

  The cottage was in her name alone, so it was protected anyway, thanks to Aunt Frida. She’d put the house in Tara’s name the year before Tara married Harry, somehow sensing Tara would have need of it some day. Or at least that’s what Tara chose to believe.

  Over the next week, she ran into friends from various committees she’d served on over the years. The people she and Harry used to call friends now only wanted to hear the sordid details of the scandal.

  The questions were all very polite, masked under the guise of caring, but Tara knew the truth. The women wanted to distance themselves from her. None of them had been genuine friends. They were nothing more than acquaintances. All these years, and Patty was the only one Tara could count on.

  People treated her differently now, talking to her as if she were a wild animal, unpredictable and likely to bite. They asked how she was holding up, pity in their eyes, but they didn’t really want to know.

  “I knocked, but when no one answered, I thought I might find you out here.”

  Patty dropped her purse onto a table and stretched out in the chaise lounge next to Tara.

  “I needed the sun and the breeze. The empty house feels claustrophobic.”

  Tara turned to her friend.

  “Don’t laugh. I know the house is huge, but it feels like the walls are closing in on me.”

  Patty rummaged in the oversized bag she carried everywhere.

  “I’m not laughing.”

  She slid a pair of red oversized sunglasses on her face and this time Patty smiled.

  “Want me to throw you a going away slash divorce party?”

  Tara shook her head.

  “I appreciate it, but no. I want to be left alone so I can figure out how to pick up the pieces and move on.”

  Most importantly, she had to figure out how she was going to make a living.

  Tara looked over her sunglasses at her friend. They’d spent countless hours out here by the pool, soaking up the sun, and talking about whatever was going on in their lives, the good, the bad, and the ugly.

  “I’m so sick of people asking me how I am in that fake cheery voice they use with little kids and old people.”

  “Like this?” Patty cleared her throat.

  “How are you holding up?” She opened her eyes wide and dramatically slapped a hand over her chest.

  “What have you been doing with yourself?”

  Patty rolled her eyes, getting into character.

  “Nice weather we’re having. Do you have a good lawyer? I have a real shark on retainer. I can give you his name.”

  Patty arched a brow.

  “Does that about sum it up?”

  “You sound just like all those women at Harry’s firm.”

  A ghost of a smile crept across her face.

  “Thank you for cheering me up.”

  Patty snorted into her glass of wine.

  “Those vapid women are afraid your divorce is contagious.”

  She lit a cigarette.

  “I know, I need to quit. I’m working on it.”

  “I didn’t say anything. Who am I to judge? My life is a mess.”

  Patty blew out a plume of smoke.

  “I hate that you’re leaving. Have you told the kids?”

  Tara turned over on her stomach to get a bit of sun on the back of her legs. She hadn’t been sleeping well, waking at four thirty every morning like clockwork. Tossing and turning.

  How did someone dismantle a life?

  “I’ll tell them this week. I needed time to make sure I wouldn’t trash their father or break down crying.”

  She tilted her head left and right, working out the kinks in her neck.

  “It’s time to get on with my life. For the past few weeks I’ve felt like I was lost, adrift in the ocean during a storm. When everyone you know is part of a couple, it’s hard being half. I’m exhausted from being angry and sad. The cottage will be good for me. Somewhere I can go to be alone, to work through the loss and figure out what’s next.”

  Tara took her sunglasses off to get a bit of sun on her face, savoring the warmth.

  “I went by the gym to cancel my membership and ran into Ken and Barb.”

  Tara’s voice rose.

  “Barb gripped her husband’s arm. Like she was afraid I might steal her husband.”

  Patty rolled her eyes.

  “You couldn’t pay me to steal Ken. He has the worst breath ever. Like something died in his mouth.”

  “I don’t think I’ve ever been close enough to notice.”

  A small laugh escaped. “Thank you for making me laugh. I needed that.”

  “That’s what friends are for, to make you laugh, and to bury the bodies under endangered plants so it’s a crime to dig them up.”

  They both laughed at the meme they’d seen on social media.

  Tara leaned up on her elbows to look at her friend. Patty had pulled up her shirt to get some sun on her stomach. As early as it was in the year, they both had nice tans.

  “It’s time to find out who Tara Bedford really is.”

  “Tara Bedford.”

  Patty dropped the cigarette into an almost empty bottle of water.

  “Haven’t heard that name since college. Much better than Tara Singleton.”

  Her dearest friend raised her glass.

  “To new beginnings.”

  Tara clinked her glass with Patty’s.

  “And second chances.”

  When Christina called to wish her mom a happy birthday, the call ended in an argument, as it usually did. Her mom had to ruin a friendly chat by asking about Enrique.

  She tried to explain to her mom how much Enrique worked. Running a nightclub took a tremendous amount of effort. Her boyfriend of three months, Enrique was determined that his nightclub would be the hot new place to see and be seen in Miami.

  With her honey blond hair and blue eyes, Enrique called her his curvy Barbie. She’d asked him to hire her as a server at his club, but he said he didn’t want her around all those men.

  So instead, she worked three jobs. Dog sitting, house sitting, and working part-time at the museum. At least she had plenty of time to work on her tan.

  The apartment complex where she lived had a large pool and two hot tubs. The residents were mostly people in their twenties, so there was always something fun happening. Everything from cocktail hours, to cook outs, to book clubs.

  With a groan, Christina sat up in bed, hot and sticky. The air conditioning had been on the fritz for the past several days. The manager ordered a replacement that was due to be installed tomorrow.

  She padded down the hall in a tee shirt and sleep shorts to the small kitchen for a glass of water. Unable to go back to sleep, Christina turned on her phone. It was five in the morning. Where was Enrique? He’d said he was coming over after work. This wasn’t the first time he’d failed to show up.

  Her finger hovered over his name on the screen of the phone. Sometimes he got angry if she called, accusing her of checking up on him. He was five years older than her, so worldly and good-looking. All those scantily clad model types that showed up at the club brought out the green-eyed monster in her.

  With a sigh, she put the phone away. Might as well swim a few laps and then go walk the dogs. She had a new client with three labs, one chocolate, one black, and one golden. They loved to run in and out of the waves. The beach halfway between her apartment and the client’s house allowed dogs on the beach. It just so happened she’d pass by Enrique’s condo if she took the long way around.

  After she walked the dogs, she’d stop in, bring him the coffee from that little place on the corner he liked so much. Then maybe they could talk about her moving in with him.

  It wa
s time for them to take the next step in their relationship. Christina wanted to keep moving forward, eventually getting married and having at least two kids, maybe three. If only Enrique would sell the club to his friend and open the restaurant, he’d always talked about, then she wouldn’t have to worry about all those beautiful women hitting on him all the time.

  At the end of the week, Tara met with the lawyer. After finding out Mandy spent time in her home, her bed, and used her everyday and wedding dishes, Tara didn’t want any of it.

  Harry’s lawyer drew up the agreement quickly and quietly. They sold most of the furnishings to help with her soon to be ex-husbands upcoming legal troubles.

  Tara kept the cottage and her personal effects. Some of the artwork was valuable. They would sell the paintings at auction, along with the home where she’d raised their children, built a life.

  When she’d packed up her cocktail dresses to donate to the local women’s shelter, Tara found a small notepad in the pocket of a long silk skirt. It was full of ideas for trips they’d planned to take once Harry retired.

  “Won’t be taking any of those trips now. I’ll be lucky if I can afford a meal out once a month.”

  She flipped through it one last time before tossing the notepad in the trash.

  A week before the divorce was final, men came and repossessed her car. It was beyond humiliating. The house seemed to hold its breath, waiting for new owners as Tara sat on a folding chair, looking around the place she once thought she’d live until she died.

  Harry had wanted to start a family as soon as they were married. He was making good money in finance and didn’t want Tara to work. Happy to be a mom, she’d gladly put her college degree away and got pregnant at twenty-three. She snorted. The same age as Mandy.

  As the children grew up, Tara went from being involved with the PTA and other functions at school, to serving on various committees and charities. Fat lot of good all that volunteering was going to do her now.

  She’d never had a paying job. Who on earth would hire a woman in her mid-fifties with no real world job experience?

  “Tara, wait.”

  Patty pulled up in front of the house as Tara was dragging her meager belongings out the front door. She’d planned to have a car take her to the train station to catch the train leaving at noon. It would take several changes and a few days to get to North Carolina, but then again it wasn’t like she was in a hurry.

  “What are you doing here? I thought you had pilates this morning?”

  Tara shaded her eyes as another vehicle pulled into the driveway.

  “Who’s that?”

  “The kids came with me.”

  Patty pulled her into a hug.

  “Surprise. Happy divorce present.”

  Her friend handed her a set of car keys.

  “It’s five years old, but the SUV runs great. I had it washed and detailed yesterday. Matt got a big bonus and wants one of those electric cars, so instead of selling it or trading it in, it’s all yours.”

  “A tote bag or a set of towels is a nice gift. I can’t accept a car.”

  Tara held the keys out to her friend, her vision blurring as she tried not to cry.

  Patty rolled her eyes.

  “It isn’t a car, it’s an SUV. Perfect for driving through the snowy mountains this winter, a cup of cocoa in the cup holder. Anyway, it’s all done. You just have to sign the paperwork.”

  Patty had super short auburn hair that showed off her high cheekbones. She was dressed for pilates in a bright purple outfit that matched her sneakers.

  “This is for you as well. A little something to get settled.”

  Tara took the envelope, saw the bills inside.

  “I can’t. It’s too much.”

  Patty closed Tara’s hands around the keys and envelope.

  “Nonsense. I’m your best friend, so I say you have to accept my gift.” She looked into Tara’s eyes.

  “Do you remember when we were in college and that woman helped me pay for school after my dad lost his job? She helped me when I needed it. Let me pay it forward.”

  Her friend hugged her again, so tight Tara could barely breathe.

  “One day you’ll be back on your feet and in the position to help someone. That’s all I ask. Well, that and I’m coming to visit. Soon as you’re settled in and ready for company.”

  Wiping tears from her face, relief flooded Tara’s veins.

  “I can never thank you enough for all this.”

  Patty bounced up and down on the balls of her feet.

  “Come on, let’s get your SUV loaded up so you can be on your way.” Patty and her sons carried Tara’s belongings to the SUV.

  Over the years, Tara had hidden money in an old camping backpack. Harry never knew she did it. She was embarrassed to admit the compulsion to anyone. Her mother had put aside money for emergencies or little luxuries when they were growing up, otherwise there wouldn’t have been money for birthdays or holidays. So from the day she’d gotten married, Tara had done the same thing.

  Every time she got cash from the bank or cashback at the grocery, Tara would throw a handful of cash into the backpack she had bought during a road trip out west a year after she’d gotten married.

  She and Patty thought it would be fun to take a girls’ trip and camp out in Sedona. Not fun at all. They lasted one night before checking into a hotel.

  As they were taking down the tent, two guys in their twenties had ambled by and said they were backpacking their way across the U.S. but they’d lost their tent and belongings in a storm. Tara and Patty gave them their stuff, all except the one backpack which they needed to carry their clothes to the hotel. The backpack had sat on the floor in the deepest recesses of the closet ever since.

  Thank goodness she had hidden the money because Harry would have spent it on his mistress or poor investments.

  It wasn’t until she’d stopped for the night at a hotel off the interstate that she’d realized the extent of the windfall.

  When Tara went to grab her travel bag, she had to move the backpack. It was heavy. Really heavy. The kids had loaded her things into the SUV so she hadn’t noticed the weight. She unzipped the bag, her mouth falling open as she took in the sight of all that cash.

  The door locked, and curtains drawn, Tara dumped the backpack onto the bed. After she counted it all, she called Patty.

  “I have to pay you for the car.”

  “Hello to you too. No, you don’t. It’s a gift.”

  Tara told her about hiding the money. How she’d grown up loved. Her parents never talked about money, not until her dad had passed away and Tara was getting married. Then her mom had confessed how she’d been able to save extra money. She’d never told Patty, afraid her friend would judge her for being odd.

  “So that’s why I have to pay you for the car. I can easily afford to.”

  “We don’t need the money. Matt makes plenty. Keep the SUV. Consider it a going away present.”

  Patty inhaled.

  “Harry would have spent every cent if he’d found your stash. That money is your new beginning, don’t waste any of it on me.”

  She laughed.

  “Now I don’t have to worry about you. Call me when you get to the cottage. Once you’re settled, I’m coming to visit.”

  Patty offered to skip the trip to the Bahamas with her family and help Tara get settled in, but she wouldn’t let her friend do it. She’d done too much already.

  “You better come visit. You know how I get around strangers. Have fun on your trip.”

  Tara’s voice broke.

  “Thank you. For standing by me, and for the car and the money.” One tiny sob escaped. “For everything.”

  There was almost two hundred thousand dollars in the backpack. She’d been hiding money away for over thirty years, a hundred here, a few hundred there, every week without fail, never checking how much, just adding to the rainy day fund.

  It wasn’t just raining; it was pouring
. Thanks to her mom’s quirk, Tara would be okay. More than okay. With the cottage and the unexpected windfall, she had plenty of time to figure out what to do with her life. Time to settle in at the cottage, find a job, and in time, to heal.

  A fresh start.

  Now she just had to call the kids and tell them the news.

  Chapter 4

  The next morning, after a complimentary motel breakfast of a bagel and banana, Tara stopped at a big box store on her way out of town. A small cooler, a bag of ice, soft drinks, snacks, fruit, and easy to eat foods like hummus and pita bread all went into the cart.

  Fast food made her feel queasy. There was something about the bun on the hamburgers that made her throat close up. With the provisions stowed in the cooler, she could stop at a rest area for lunch instead of trying to find fast food that didn’t smell revolting, like old grease.

  Whenever she stopped for the night, she could go out to eat or pick up a sandwich from whatever grocery store was near the motel. The grocery around the corner from her old house had the best subs. The roast beef with pepper jack cheese, spicy mustard, and horseradish was her favorite.

  Three hours of driving was about all Tara could stand before she had to stop so she could get out of the vehicle and walk around. She pulled into a rest area with picnic tables, and after using the facilities, walked around the buildings to work the kinks out of her back.

  It was warm with the sun shining on her face as she sat at one of the picnic tables. While she ate lunch, Tara watched people coming and going, wondering if they were on vacation, or if, like her, they were traveling to a new home?

  A puppy with enormous feet tripped and rolled in the grass, making her smile. He was light brown with floppy ears and a quizzical look on his face as he sniffed a butterfly, barking when it flew away.

  Once she was back on the highway, Tara put the windows up before calling her son, Evan.