Loving Mr. July

by Margaret Antone

  Cynthia stood, crossed to the window, and raised the creaky glass pane. She heard the unmistakable squawks of baby birds. Apparently the sparrow had a nest in the branches, and was willing to risk the cat in order to feed her babies. Cynthia rested her head against the glass. There was a lesson there, and this time she was going to listen to it.

  She crossed back over to the desk, where Sharon had scribbled a phone message on a scrap of paper. Marjorie, Kurt’s mother, had called again. She knew why. Both were on the Bocher Foundation auction committee, and she hadn’t exactly honored her duties there lately. Now apparently Marjorie had taken matters into her own hands. Cynthia had to show up for brunch

  ~ ~ ~

  A rush of cool air hit Cynthia when she opened the door to enter the lobby of the Hotel del Coronado. When Marjorie did brunch, she did it in style, Cynthia thought, as she peeked into the Crown Room to see if Marjorie had already been seated. It had been a while since she’d been to one of the famous Sunday brunches at ‘The Del,’ and certainly not since she’d learned to do portion control.

  A vision in front of her halted her mental calculation of the number of miles she would have to walk this afternoon in order to do justice to the brunch. She recognized the swing of silky brown hair and slender, athletic build—she’d seen it before while hiding in the bushes at Kurt’s house. The woman with her was also familiar to Cynthia. Before Cynthia could figure out how to leave without being seen, it was too late. Marjorie turned, saw her, and hailed her over to where they were standing in the serving lines.

  Cynthia took a deep breath and moved to join them. The girl next to her turned and Cynthia’s heart sank. The woman was stunning.

  “Cynthia!” Marjorie enveloped her in an effusive hug. “I’m so happy you could meet us here.” She set Cynthia back from her for a moment. “You’ve lost more weight.” She peered into Cynthia’s face. “You’re not turning anorexic or anything on us now, are you?”

  “No.” Cynthia laughed “And I think I have a ways to go before that would even be an issue.”

  “You look fantastic.” Marjorie patted her arm. “But I’m forgetting my manners.” She turned to include the beautiful woman next to her in the circle. “This is Holly, my niece. She’s offered to help with last minute needs at the foundation. Isn’t that lovely?” She beamed at the woman.

  “Your niece?” Cynthia knew she sounded a little strange. The curious look on Holly’s face confirmed it.

  “My sister was Holly’s mother.” Marjorie smiled at Holly, then turned back to Cynthia. “And even before my sister passed away, I always borrowed Holly as much as I could, surrounded by males as I was.”

  Cynthia watched the fond look pass between Holly and Marjorie. “So you’re Kurt’s cousin?” Her voice rose to a squeak by the end of the question.

  “And Blake’s.” Holly watched her with bright eyes.

  Cynthia had a feeling that she didn’t miss anything.

  “And she works as Kurt’s assistant.” Marjorie put in. “It was meant to be a summer assignment while she finished her law degree, but reasons unknown to me, she decided to stay on.”

  “Someone has to keep an eye on those two.” Holly gave a graceful shrug and grinned at her aunt.

  As a sick feeling came to her stomach, Cynthia couldn’t find words. She stared at Marjorie, watched her lips move, but it was as if she watched a movie without sound. When she swayed, Holly caught her elbow.

  “Are you okay?” A look of concern came to her face, and intensified when Cynthia could only shake her head.

  Marjorie, with her usual take-charge attitude, put her arm around Cynthia’s shoulder and propelled her to their table. She sat down next to her. Holly took the seat on the other side.

  “Are you lightheaded? Feel sick?” Marjorie put the back of her hand to Cynthia’s forehead.

  “Oh God, I’ve been such an idiot.” Cynthia almost couldn’t bear to look at Kurt’s mother. “And your son has every reason to hate me.”

  “Which son are we talking about, dear?” Marjorie lifted one aristocratic brow.

  Cynthia turned to Holly. “I saw you with him, you see. At his house. And I thought you were his girlfriend.”

  Holly looked over Cynthia’s head at Marjorie. “I think we’re talking Kurt, Auntie.”

  Cynthia nodded, as her eyes filled with tears. “It was after the appreciation dinner, and I’d spent the night…”

  She looked over at Marjorie. “Sorry.”

  Marjorie patted her arm, a slight smile coming to her face. “My sons have been adults for a while now, dear.”

  Cynthia gave her a watery smile and turned back to Holly. “The next day, I came back to cook him dinner. Only when I came around the corner, he was walking with a beautiful woman—”

  “—which would be me?” Holly put a hand to her chest in a dramatic gesture, the little grin on her face removing any hint of hubris.

  Cynthia nodded. “So I left—”

  “And you haven’t answered his calls or let him see you since.” Holly said the words in a matter of fact tone.

  When Holly caught the raised brow of her aunt, she shrugged. “I’m his assistant. I know things.”

  Cynthia nodded. “I’m an idiot.”

  Marjorie considered her for a moment. “What are your intentions toward my son?”

  Holly let out a peal of laughter.

  “It’s a valid question.” Marjorie’s face took on a look of mild reproach.

  Unabashed, Holly kept giggling. “Oh, Auntie Marj, you sound like the lord of the manor, protecting one of his daughters. Are you going to examine Cynthia’s hips next? Make sure she’s got good childbearing potential?”

  Marjorie’s lips twitched before she gave in to laughter too. “So I’m protective of my sons.”

  Holly giggled. “He’s a thirty-six-year-old man. Been out of the house for what, almost two decades now?”

  “Okay, okay.” Marjorie put up a hand to acknowledge the point. “But you’ve seen Kurt. He’s been miserable. As a mother you always want your children to be happy. Doesn’t matter how old they are, you still want to fix things.”

  “I love him,” Cynthia said, as soon as she could get a word in edgewise. She let out a ragged sigh. “But I’ve treated him so badly in the last month, he may never want to see me again.”

  “I want to be mad at you.” Holly’s amusement faded and a slight frown creased her brow. “Because I love Kurt like a brother, and you’ve made him miserable. On the other hand,” Holly said, her lips curving, “you’re the first person he’s ever had to work for. And in a way, it’s been sort of humorous to watch him being led on a merry dance.”

  Cynthia gazed at Holly, the despair she felt still making itself known in her tears. “I wasn’t playing him.”

  “Not intentionally, I know,” Holly said. “If you had, we wouldn’t be having this conversation.”

  “I never in a million years thought I had a chance with him.” Cynthia talked softly, staring straight ahead. “I’ve had a secret crush on him since Sharon met Blake. But why would a gorgeous man like him who could have anyone he wants be interested in an overweight basket case?”

  Marjorie lifted a hand to turn Cynthia’s face in her direction. “You’re far too hard on yourself, my dear. And anyway, looks fade. I’ve told my boys for years to have some fun, but when they finally pick someone to be a mother to their children, to choose wisely. And to be honest, I couldn’t think of someone I would be happier to welcome into the family than you.”

  At her words, Cynthia’s tears came even faster.

  Marjorie put an arm around Cynthia’s shoulder and gave her a quick hug.

  Cynthia looked from Marjorie to Holly. “I’m a mess, aren’t I?”

  “Yep,” Holly replied. An engaging grin passed over her face. “But nothing that the makeup store in my purse won’t fix. Can you hold our table for a bit, Auntie Marj, while I go work my magic?” She waved a hand in the general direction of Cynthia�
��s face.

  At Marjorie’s smiling nod, Holly led Cynthia to the bathroom. She wouldn’t let Cynthia look in the mirror. Making a paper towel damp, she wiped at Cynthia’s face, taking special care around her eyes. She grimaced. “I don’t have eye makeup remover, but we’ll see if we can’t make the smudges look like they were meant to be.”

  She whipped out a bottle of face makeup, and with gentle fingers, smoothed the liquid over Cynthia’s face. Next she brought out a tube of mascara. “Don’t worry, it’s new,” she told her before applying it to Cynthia’s lashes. A few brushes of eye shadow and a swipe of lipstick followed. After a few minutes, she turned Cynthia toward the mirrors. “Look.”

  Cynthia turned to take in her appearance. All traces of her tears were gone from her face. Holly had made up Cynthia’s eyes with more makeup than Cynthia had ever used, but had applied it so masterfully, the old makeup smudges really did look intentional.

  “Wow, you are good.”

  “Worked at the makeup counter in Nordstrom’s during college.” Holly handed Cynthia the tubes and bottles of makeup she’d used. “Here, they were all samples anyway.”

  Cynthia turned to Holly and gave her a quick hug, feeling tears well up again. “Thank you.”

  “No more crying.” Holly admonished as she hugged her back. “Don’t ruin my work.”

  Cynthia swallowed. “I’m trying.”

  “We need to get back to poor Auntie Marj. Hopefully the wait staff hasn’t booted her yet.” Holly touched up her own lipstick with a quick hand. “But before we do, I have to ask, do you want him back?”

  “Back? I barely had him. But yes, I’d do anything to undo the last few weeks.”

  “There’s still hope.” Holly hung her purse back over her shoulder. “And I can give you an inside track. So if you want my advice—”

  “—crawl? Beg? Plead?” Cynthia put her hands together in a prayer position and gave Holly a wide-eyed gaze.

  “It’s a start.” Holly chuckled. “Although if you give him that look, he’s going to wonder if you’re constipated.”

  Cynthia giggled.

  “Seriously, you hurt him. Big time. I mean, I was really hating the bitch that screwed him over. And I had no idea who she was.”

  Cynthia winced.

  “Sorry. But I was. I mean, he’s never, ever, acted like this. And he’s just gotten more and more morose.” She followed Cynthia into the hallway.

  “You have every reason to hate me. I’ve been a complete idiot.”

  “Yes you have.” Holly looked her straight in the eye. “And if Auntie Marj hadn’t raved about you, in nauseating detail…” Holly rolled her eyes and grimaced. “…before you came into the room today, I probably would have ripped into you.”

  Cynthia hung her head. “You still should.”

  Holly put a hand on Cynthia shoulder. “Nah, you’re beating yourself up enough for all of us. And I can tell you care about him.”

  Cynthia stopped her before they reached the dining room entrance. “I don’t just care about him, Holly. I’ve never felt like this about anyone in my life. The rollercoaster of emotion. The incredible highs you thought were just fantasy. And the lows that have you understanding why people want to kill themselves. I’ve never let myself get that close to anyone. Ever.”

  Holly regarded her for a moment. “I believe you.” She gave Cynthia another quick hug. “And you know the irony?”

  Cynthia lifted her brows in question.

  “The reason I was at Kurt’s that night when you saw us?” She paused and peered closely at Cynthia. “I was in the same boat as you are right now. I thought my life was ending because my boyfriend, who I am madly, totally in love with, appeared to have developed interest in someone else.”

  “Appeared to have?” Cynthia held the door of the dining room open for Holly.

  “Yeah.” Holly talked over her shoulder. “I saw him going into a jewelry store with a beautiful blond that I didn’t know.”

  “And jumped to conclusions like I did?”

  “Yep. I mean it didn’t help that I was majorly hormonal that week.” Holly grinned back at her. “But the reason he was going into the store?”

  “Buying something for you?” Cynthia took the easy guess.

  Holly held up her left hand, where a beautiful emerald, surrounded by diamonds, and all set in platinum, glistened on her ring finger. “My engagement ring.”

  “And it’s a beauty.” Cynthia held up her hand to admire the unusual ring choice. “Not a conventional sort, I take it?”

  “No. He is, but he knows that I’m not, thanks to meticulous research he did with my family.” She gazed at the ring with a satisfied smile on her face. “I don’t know how Kurt was able to keep quiet about it, I was such a blubbering wreck that night.”

  “So bottom line is, you were very recently a complete idiot too.” Cynthia spoke to her in the easy, blunt manner she usually reserved only for Sharon. The realization gave her pause, hoping she hadn’t offended, until Holly’s quick grin had her letting go of the momentary tension.

  “So I can hardly be a hypocrite, can I?” Holly’s lips curved up on one side. “And now we better go rescue Auntie Marj. Hopefully the table clearing police haven’t booted her yet.”

  Cynthia followed Holly feeling more peaceful than she had in weeks. She might have blown it with Kurt, true. But it wasn’t over until it was over, she reminded herself. And in the mean time, while she figured out how to show Kurt how she felt about him, she was going to enjoy the company of these two women.

  What could be better, she thought, as looked around the dining room with its warm wood coffered ceilings and crown chandeliers, than fabulous food in beautiful surroundings with good people? These two marvelous women felt like family already, and she decided to do everything she could to make that a reality.

  Chapter 20

  “Pretty fancy place for a meeting, Auntie,” Holly said, sipping a cup of coffee in between bites of what looked to Cynthia like a brick of chocolate and whip cream disguised as a pie.

  “Not every day my favorite niece gets engaged, you know.” Marjorie patted Holly’s arm.

  “I’m your only niece, Auntie.” Holly winked at Cynthia.

  “Details.” Marjorie circled her hand in the air. “Besides, I wanted to get to the bottom of my son’s love affair.”

  Cynthia, taking too big of a swallow of the very hot coffee, started coughing.

  Marjorie gave her an arch look. “I wasn’t born yesterday.” She straightened the silverware next to her plate. “Besides, I’ve seen the pictures.”

  “Patty’s pictures?” Cynthia’s voice came out in a squeak. “As in the calendar shots?”

  “Um hmm.” Marjorie lifted a profiterole to her lips.

  Cynthia put a hand up against one side of her face. “Before or after she Photoshopped?”

  Holly put down her coffee, studied her aunt’s face and then faced Cynthia. “Are we talking photos of Kurt here?”

  Cynthia felt the heat come to her face. She nodded.

  “Sounds like there’s a story?” Holly glanced back and forth between her aunt and Cynthia.

  “I think she should only see the ‘afters,’ don’t you?” Marjorie dapped at her face with her napkin.

  Cynthia put the other hand up to her face, covered her eyes. “I cannot believe I’m having this conversation with you.” She uncovered her eyes to see Marjorie trying to hold back a smile.

  “Don’t laugh. You’re his mother!”

  Marjorie let out a chuckle then.

  “Don’t mind her,” Holly told her, pulling Cynthia’s hands down from her face. “She may look prim and proper, but under those pearls and pleasant attitude is one serious joker.”

  “You’re taking away all my fun.” Marjorie added sugar to her coffee.

  “Don’t worry,” Marjorie said with a look at Cynthia. “Kurt was even more embarrassed when I talked to him about it. And he didn’t know I’d seen the ‘befores’ wh
en he covered his ears.”

  “Okay,” Holly said, digging into her chocolate bomb with a vengeance. “This is completely unfair. When do I get to see?”

  “And I told him I wanted to meet the woman who had made him look like that,” Marjorie continued as if Holly hadn’t spoken. “Because I had a feeling she was going to be my next daughter-in-law.”

  “What?” Holly stared at her aunt.

  “What?” Cynthia echoed. She felt a little dizzy.

  “Oh yes.” Marjorie nodded. She dug in her enormous purse and brought out her cell phone. “I’ll show you the proof, Holly.”

  “Oh. My. God.” Cynthia put her head in her hands. She muttered through her fingers. “Please don’t tell me you have the ‘befores.’”

  “I have everything, dear.” Marjorie jabbed at the screen with the tip of her pastel pink manicured index finger. “Ah, here we go.”

  Cynthia groaned.

  Holly almost grabbed the phone out of Marjorie’s hand. “Oh my. That’s quite an outfit. He sure doesn’t look too happy though, does he?”

  She swiped the phone to retrieve the next photo. “Wow, he’s got some serious abs going. If he wasn’t like my brother, I’d sure get hot and bothered.”

  Cynthia raised her head to watch the range of emotions cross Holly’s face. She could picture the photos Holly viewed without even looking at them just by watching her new friend’s face. She could tell when she passed the ones where Kurt had been laughing. And the ones where he had started to get irritated. Of course, she told herself, it wasn’t the fact that she’d looked at those photos almost every night for the last few weeks. No, that wasn’t it.

  After the final swipe, Holly gasped, put a hand to her mouth and gave a nervous giggle. She looked up at her aunt. “I see what you mean.”

  Holly turned to Cynthia. “You cannot mean to put this one in the calendar.”

  “I don’t have the final say, Patty does.” She held up a hand when Holly started to bristle. “But Patty wouldn’t do that to him either. She’s Photoshopped away the, um, evidence.”