Better With You

by Ellen Joy

  “I ordered everything.” Elizabeth wanted to be clear. “None of this is me. I have literally burned water.”

  “I’m sure you’re not that bad.”

  “I have none of the Williams’ culinary genes.”

  “I always wanted to cook, but my father made me work at his law firm, even in high school.” Adam took a sip of his coffee. “Did you work at your parents’ place?”

  “Everyone in my family worked there at some point.” All of her cousins and aunts and uncles had some job at the restaurant, or her uncles’ bakery. Along with friends, boyfriends, and neighbors. “No one was left out.”

  “Are you close with your whole family?”

  “As close as you can be without driving each other crazy.” Elizabeth leaned back and noticed Lucy listening as though she wanted to hear more.

  “How many are in your family?” Adam asked.

  “I have two brothers and a sister.”

  “I bet you loved having a sister,” Lucy mumbled.

  “I had to share a room, my brothers always invaded my privacy, and we fought constantly.” Elizabeth smiled at the thought of them. “But I loved it.”

  Lucy’s smile faded, and Elizabeth wondered if she had made her upset, until Lucy said, “I’d only want a sister, because the boys at school do not smell good.”

  Elizabeth laughed, and when she looked over at Adam, she realized he was staring at her. She blushed but kept her gaze on his — a secret conversation between the two of them. Adam sat comfortably around her small kitchen table in a T-shirt. He wore a pair of boots and his beard had grown out. No longer the stiff pretentious man she had met all those months ago.

  The dessert vanished quickly, and before Elizabeth knew it, she was leaning against the front door watching Lucy jump into the back seat of his truck.

  “I forgot something inside,” he said to Lucy as he closed the door. He ran back to the house.

  Elizabeth looked around the living room, as she said, “What did you forget?”

  He swept her inside and closed the door behind him.

  “This.” He grabbed her and dipped her into a kiss.

  Seventeen

  Soon, Elizabeth and Adam fell into a routine. She’d meet him and Lucy for breakfast at the bakery before work and go to the farm for dinner and games. Sometimes she’d invite them over or her place. As spring became warmer, the farm became more and more like a home to her. She felt comfortable walking in without knocking. Opening the fridge and grabbing something. Cooking side by side with Adam and helping Lucy with her homework.

  Everything seemed perfect.

  One night, after Lucy went to sleep, they sat on the porch swing. Adam swung the chair back and forth as she rested her head on his shoulder. The phone from inside rang, but Adam ignored it.

  “Let it go to voicemail,” he said, as she tried to get up for it.

  She laid her head back down, listening as his message came on.

  “Good evening, Adam,” a woman’s voice said on the machine. “I have some information I’d like to discuss with you when you have a chance. Give me a call.”

  Elizabeth tried not to overthink the woman’s voice, but the moment she spoke, Adam’s body tensed up underneath her, every muscle stiff. “Who was that?”

  “It’s the private investigator.”

  Questions filled her head. Adam hadn’t really talked about the private investigator and Elizabeth hadn’t asked. Adam never really talked about what happened before with Lucy. “Has she found Michelle?”

  He shook his head.

  “Does she have an idea where she might be?”

  “No, she hasn’t been able to track her down,” he said. He shifted his position a bit, still tense.

  “What are you going to do if you find her?” she asked.

  “Ask for Lucy for good.”

  “You should call the investigator back.” Elizabeth sat up. “It might be information to help find her.”

  “No, I can call her later,” he said, resting his arm on her shoulder, and pulling her back to him.

  “Are you okay?” she looked up to his eyes to see, but she couldn’t tell.

  He kissed her on the top of her head. “I’m fine.”

  But she could tell by the sound of his heart racing he wasn’t.

  HE DIDN’T KNOW WHY he lied. But before he could fix it, it was too late. The words came out.

  The truth was the investigator had found Michelle. She was staying in the city at one hotel after the next. The investigator had been doing some surveillance, so that Adam could stay two steps ahead of her. He didn’t want to be hit with any surprises when the time did come to make his offer.

  Maybe deep down what he was doing was wrong. He didn’t want to admit he’d had the private investigator follow Michelle’s movements, documenting everything, hoping she’d make a mistake so he could use it against her in court.

  “Does Lucy know she’s back?”

  “No.” He never wanted Lucy to know.

  He could tell Elizabeth was rolling the information over in her head, trying to navigate her way through the mess to understand.

  Would she understand? That everything he was doing was for Lucy?

  After Elizabeth left that night, he stayed up. Lucy had gone back to sleeping with the animals with Anastasia’s approximate due date coming soon. He had been sleeping well lately, which meant this insomnia had more to do with Michelle than anything else. He twisted his phone in his hand, trying to decide what to do.

  He pulled up the investigator’s number and dialed.

  “Adam,” she sounded as though she was sleeping.

  “Sorry, did I wake you?”

  “No, it’s not a problem,” she said. “I wanted to let you know I was able to connect with your client this afternoon.”

  “You met with Michelle?” His heart raced. “What did she say?”

  “She says she’s willing to talk.”

  “She’s willing to talk?” His throat immediately went dry. He didn’t want to talk. Talking meant she wanted something else, something more.

  “Did you show her my offer?”

  “She was very clear that she wouldn’t sign any papers unless she met with you. But, it looks as though she’s having financial troubles.”

  Sweat beaded against his forehead. Michelle wouldn’t want custody, would she?

  “Tell her I’ll match whatever she wants.” Then the Adam he thought had died over the winter came back. “Or I’ll submit a civil action against her, so that she can never see Lucy again.”

  ELIZABETH RAN INTO the local market to grab a few things before heading over to the farm for dinner. For over a week, they had seen each other every day, if not twice a day. She’d “stop in” to check on Anastasia and the others, but medically there was no need. He’d make her a cup of coffee and they’d walk around the farm. He’d tell her what he planned and she’d tell him what she would do.

  Tonight, Adam told her he had a surprise, and she couldn’t wait to get over there.

  As she searched aisle five for Lucy’s favorite snack, she turned and saw Dan standing right next to her.

  “Hey,” he said, stuffing one hand in his pocket as he held his basket in the other.

  Elizabeth looked around. Harbor Market was already starting to fill up with the summer tourists visiting the beach in the nice weather, but there was sure to be someone from Camden Cove in another aisle, listening in on their conversation.

  “Hey.” She’d keep it light, and hopefully Dan would follow suit.

  “I’m sorry about the other day,” he said. “It was none of my business and I shouldn’t have said a thing.”

  “I knew about the meeting,” Elizabeth said defensively, but knew Dan meant well.

  He nodded, biting his lower lip. Changing the subject, he said, “The festival went great again this year.”

  Elizabeth recognized his peace offering. “You know my mom loves to boss the town around.”

  Dan
smiled, but held up his basket. “Well, I better finish up here.”

  Elizabeth nodded, looking down at her own basket. “Good seeing you, Dan.”

  “Good seeing you, too, Elizabeth.”

  Whatever she had wanted suddenly seemed nonessential, and Elizabeth headed for the checkout. As she walked out to the parking lot, she watched Dan drive away and she wished him nothing but happiness.

  With the music turned up and the windows rolled down, Elizabeth sang at the top of her lungs as she drove to the farm. She belted out Beyonce’s lyrics as she followed the tree-lined roads. When she pulled up in her usual spot, she turned to grab the groceries, then stopped to look out at the house. Who would have thought, all those months ago, after losing the farm to Adam, that she’d be here with him?

  That’s when the creek of the screen door opened and Adam stepped out on the porch. He wore his faded jeans and button-up, no longer the city boy, but a man on a farm. He came toward her.

  “Where’s Lucy?” The farm seemed unusually quiet.

  “Well, that’s my first surprise. My parents took Lucy for the night.”

  “So, we’re alone?”

  Adam gave her a mischievous smile.

  “What’s the other surprise?”

  “If I tell you, then it wouldn’t be a surprise,” he said, grabbing her hand and tugging her toward the house. Elizabeth stopped him and kissed him longer this time.

  “What’s the surprise?” she asked again.

  He led her up the porch and opened the door. There on the kitchen table sat a picnic basket with a blanket underneath.

  “We’re going on a picnic?!” she asked him, not believing her eyes.

  “I found this great beach with Lucy, just a short walk up the path, at the north end.” He began to explain, but she knew exactly where it was. It was where she had seen him with Lucy, the evening of her failed picnic with Dan. The evening she had wished she had a family just like them.

  She wrapped her arms around him. “I can’t believe you made me a picnic.”

  The room spun around her. Just as she swooned further into his embrace, she heard a car door slam outside. Adam groaned and poked his head up while she caught her breath, looking out the window. A sports car sat in the driveway. Adam squinted to see the woman walking up to the house. Then his face turned white.

  “I’ll be right back.”

  “Who is it?”

  Adam walked up to the door. “It’s Lucy’s mother.”

  ADAM OPENED THE KITCHEN door just as Michelle stepped up to the door.

  “What are you doing here?”

  Michelle looked good, much better than in the days before she left them. She was still thin, but seemed healthy. “Where is she?!”

  “She’s not here.”

  “I want to see my daughter!” Michelle shook the paper he drew up at him. “You think you can buy my daughter? My daughter?”

  Adam glanced at Elizabeth and saw her standing, frozen, staring at the scene before her. She looked frightened and confused.

  “Michelle, you need to calm down.” He held out his hands.

  “Why, because you can’t look at the person you’re trying to screw?” Michelle threw the papers at him and stormed into the house. “She’s my daughter, Adam, not yours!”

  “A mother doesn’t leave her daughter without ever saying goodbye.” He could feel his blood begin to boil.

  “I was sick,” Michelle hissed at him. “You knew that, obviously, because you documented everything.”

  “I needed to protect Lucy.” Adam had prepared for this moment for years, thinking about what he would say to Michelle when she came back, but he held back. “I love that little girl and I want her safe.”

  Michelle’s eyes narrowed at his comment. “Don’t you see how much I loved her by the fact that I left her with you?”

  “You need to leave.”

  Tears flooded Michelle’s eyes. She covered her face with her hands. “How can you do this to me? How can you take my daughter away from me?”

  Elizabeth stood staring at the scene with wide eyes. Then she pulled out a chair and said, “Sit, please.”

  He gritted his teeth at Michelle’s overly dramatic behavior. Michelle delivered a star performance of playing victim.

  As Michelle blew her nose, Elizabeth grabbed her purse and put it on her shoulder. She stepped backwards toward the door.

  “Wait,” Adam said, seeing her reaching for the doorknob. “Elizabeth, please, don’t leave.”

  “I think you two need to talk,” she said, opening the door and stepping out before he had a chance to answer.

  He followed her out, shutting the door behind them. “Please, Elizabeth, don’t go. I don’t want to talk to her. I want you to stay. Please.” Elizabeth had no idea who Michelle was.

  “I should go.” She walked off the porch toward her truck.

  “Elizabeth, please, I’m sorry.” Adam put his hand on the door before she opened it. “I’m doing what’s best for Lucy.”

  “You lied to me.” Elizabeth barely looked at him before swinging the door away from his grip.

  “I didn’t mean to lie.”

  “Then why did you?” Her eyes cut through him.

  “I’m not sure.”

  She shook her head, getting into the truck. “Goodbye, Adam.”

  He stood outside the house long after Elizabeth drove away. Everything had been perfect, absolutely perfect. As he walked back to the house, Michelle stood in the kitchen window.

  What was he going to do now?

  Eighteen

  Adam made a pot of coffee. He hadn’t slept all night, trying several times to reach Elizabeth, to no avail. Her phone went directly to voicemail. He messed everything up.

  Just when he thought things couldn’t possibly get worse, he heard the sound of Michelle walking downstairs, echoing through the stairwell. His heart dropped. She was not the one he had thought would be coming down the staircase twenty-four hours ago.

  She walked into the kitchen in one of his old T-shirts. Her beauty was still there, but it no longer affected him like it had in the past. He had never hated a person more in his life. After running Elizabeth out of the house last night, she did exactly what he had guessed. She begged for his help, just like every other time. And now Elizabeth wouldn’t talk to him.

  “I didn’t realize living on a farm meant sleeping with the animals,” Michelle said. He could tell she was trying to lighten the mood, but it didn’t work.

  He handed her a mug and stepped away, looking out toward the barn. “Lucy’s horse is pregnant, and due any day. She’d kill me if I didn’t watch over her while she’s at my parents’ house.”

  Michelle made a face. “I’m sure your parents love to tell her all the stories about me.”

  “My parents are great with her,” Adam snapped back. “They don’t like talking about you, at all.”

  “So, are we going to talk about her?”

  “Lucy?” How much more did she want to drag this out? He had already given in to most of her demands.

  “Not Lucy. The woman who was here with you last night.” Michelle poured herself some coffee and sat down at the table.

  “Elizabeth?” He shook his head. “I don’t want to talk about her.”

  “Why not?” She shrugged. “I know you better than anyone else. I could help.”

  “If you want me to help you, then she’s off limits,” Adam warned her.

  “Ouch.” She held up her hands. Then her face changed. Looking into her mug, her voice barely audible, she asked, “Do you think she’ll recognize me?”

  “Lucy?”

  She nodded. Tears welled up in her eyes. “Do you think she still loves me after what I did?”

  Adam wanted to tell her no, but it would be a lie. Lucy hadn’t forgotten, and as with someone who had died, Michelle’s past sins had been mostly forgotten. Only Lucy’s nightmares reminded her of the bad times, but even those were distorted into fiction these days
.

  “She’ll be glad to see you.” Adam’s throat dried up, and he turned away as Pandora’s box opened. His one shot at happiness was now another thing of the past.

  The kitchen chair scraped against the floor and Adam heard Michelle’s footsteps approaching. She placed her hands on his waist and he immediately stepped out of her reach, pushing her hands away. He looked at her. He had not forgotten. Even after yesterday’s display of emotion, Michelle only wanted something from him. She leaned in to kiss him, but he walked away.

  “Wow, she really must be something.” Michelle leaned against the counter. “I guess in my head, I just never expected to see you with another woman. I know that’s silly, but I can’t imagine you with someone else.”

  “What do you expect, Michelle?” Adam fired back. “You left us.”

  “Yes, but this time, I know what I want.” She stepped closer to him and he moved back. “I want this.” She motioned her hands in the air. “I want you and me and Lucy to be a family. Together.”

  He huffed. Everything he had ever wished for all those nights suddenly felt like a nightmare. “I can’t go back and forget everything.”

  Her hands shook as she grabbed her mug. “I didn’t choose to be addicted.”

  “She still has nightmares.” He didn’t care if it hurt and he could tell it did, but he wanted her to hurt at this point. He couldn’t stomach the thought of what he had agreed to: letting her stay until she found a place.

  “I didn’t know what to do or who to go to, except for you.”

  Adam used to love the idea of being the one who came to Michelle’s rescue. Almost like a superhero, swooping in to save the day. But as he looked at her now, desperate and with the same misery following her, he felt nothing but used.

  “It will be different this time.”

  He wondered how long it would take before she took his offer. A few days? A week? Would she last a month? She looked better than she had in years, but he knew things with Michelle never appear as they seem. And before he gave her any more money, she had to give him Lucy for good.

  “You can stay until you find a place as long as you’re clean.”