by Autumn Skye
“Have you met someone?”
I poked my head into the cabin and glanced at Lily, still sleeping peacefully. Perhaps I was being a bit hypocritical. Lily had to be close to Katie’s age. On the other hand, I wasn’t married anymore. And if I’d done anything wrong-well-she didn’t look like a mistake. “Maybe I have.”
“Who is he?”
“I have a very busy day ahead of me. I have to go,” I said and hung up before he could reply.
It was the third time he’d called me in as many days. Jared didn’t like to lose. He wanted his house back, his money back, his respectable wife back. It wasn’t likely that Katie had the slightest notion how to host a dinner party for his clients. From what I’d seen of her, Katie knew how to shop, and that was about all there was to her if you didn’t count the fact that she had a killer, youthful body. When Jared had first started seeing her behind my back, divorce was the last thing on his mind. That had been my idea. He’d settled quickly, though, afraid of the dirty I had on him and what it could do to his reputation. I got the Corpus Christi mansion on Ocean Drive and two million cash. He liked to pretend I’d taken him to the cleaners, but it was really a drop in the bucket compared to all his remaining assets. He’d gotten off lucky because I wanted out more than I wanted to play vindictive wife, but to Jared, any loss was unacceptable. Now he wanted everything, including me back, and he was having a hard time with the word no. It wasn’t as if he had any sort of attachment to the house in Corpus. He preferred to spend his time in Houston, but in his mind, it was his house and I’d taken it from him. He wasn’t the type of man to let that slide. Jared didn’t get over things. He wasn’t capable of it. It was annoying and if I thought too hard about it, I supposed it was scary, too, how he’d cling to something that no longer existed before he’d admit defeat.
I wasn’t willing to put a lot of thought into anything that morning, however, aside from the girl sleeping in my bed. I wanted to know more about her. I wanted to know everything about her. She’d piqued my curiosity the second I’d noticed her watching me from her window. She was a beautiful creature, made even more lovely by the fact that she didn’t have a clue as to how beautiful she was. It took all my willpower not to crawl back into bed and take her again. Somehow, I had no reservations that she’d eagerly have me, but not right then. I hadn’t been lying about having a busy day planned. I wanted to show her the house. I was also starving.
“Lily, it’s time to wake up,” I said in a purposely soft tone when I stepped back into the cabin.
She moaned and stretched before opening her eyes.
“Breakfast in town, remember?”
“What time is it?”
“Late enough to call it brunch. If you want to shower you should hurry. Maybe just run next door and grab your bags. You can get ready here. I’ll make us some coffee for the road.”
“Coffee sounds great.”
“Get a move on then, lazy,” I teased.
She got up and stood naked, searching for her swim suit. She found the bottoms in the corner of the room and paced the floor until she came across the top.
“Why bother? We’re still the only ones on the lake,” I reminded her.
“I’m not quite the free spirit that you are. I’m not walking out there with nothing on. Besides, I’m proof that you could be wrong. Maybe we aren’t as alone as you think.”
“You’ve got me there,” I shrugged.
She left to get her belongings and I stepped into the shower, relishing the last hint of her perfume on my skin before I washed it away. She was sitting at the counter when I came out of the bathroom, sipping a mug of the coffee I’d brewed.
“I hope you don’t mind. I helped myself.”
“By all means, make yourself at home. Are you hungry?”
“Oh, yes,” she nodded.
“The diner in town has wonderful food. I’m in the mood for waffles. How about you?”
“Eggs and bacon.”
“Then we’ll go. We can take my car, but first I think I should have a cup of Joe before I get behind the steering wheel.”
Farah says there are some antique shops in town. Maybe we could browse around,” she suggested.
“I’d love to do a little shopping.”
She paused and then asked in a hushed voice that suggested she was about to broach an awkward subject. “Can I ask you something?”
“You can ask. I can’t guarantee a straight answer,” I joked.
She hesitated.
“Lily, I’m kidding. Ask me anything.”
“What are we doing here?”
“I’m not sure what you’re getting at.”
“Was last night-was that it?”
“It? You mean, will it happen again?”
She nodded, appearing relieved that I’d voiced her concern for her. “Is there some rule that says we have to figure that out this minute? We could take it easy and see what happens. I like you. I’ve pretty much moved you in here on a whim, so yeah, I like you a lot. You seem to think I’m okay, too, but I’m not sure what’s going to come of it just yet. Haven’t you ever just had fun and let things run their own course?”
“No, I’ve never done that, but I envy anyone who can.”
“Maybe you could give it a shot, because I promise you, Lily, we can have a lot of fun in two weeks’ time.”
“And after that?”
“That’s the part where we wait and see. Can you handle that?”
“I guess.”
She didn’t look so confident. In fact, she looked terrified, like not knowing precisely what tomorrow would bring had thrown her whole psyche into a tail spin. “Seriously, baby, you need to relax and enjoy the ride, but I can’t force you. You either want to let this play out or you don’t. I’m hoping you do.”
“I do,” she said. “It just makes me nervous that I don’t know what it is playing itself out.”
“Oh, Lily, that’s the point. Now we can sit here talking in circles, or we get out of this cabin and have a wonderful day together. I vote for the latter.”
“Me, too.”
“Then let’s go before you change your mind.”
We got into my SUV and headed into town. When we passed the manor, she twisted in her seat to stare at it until we traveled enough distance that it was out of sight.
“You really can’t wait to get inside, can you?”
“No.”
“I’m warning you. It needs a lot of work. I hope you won’t be disappointed.”
“I won’t be. It doesn’t matter. I love that house.”
“What is it that makes it so special?”
“I’ve wanted a house like that my whole life. I read too many Victorian novels, I guess. I grew up in a very nice home, but it was contemporary. My mother likes shiny new things. She doesn’t do classic unless retro is trending.”
“It’s a matter of taste. I love all things classic.”
We reached town in no time thanks to my reckless driving. Jared had always been so practical, so by the book. He couldn’t help himself, but he was an anal stick in the mud to put it mildly and now that he wasn’t the one paying my speeding tickets, which had resulted in more than one lecture, I occasionally enjoyed seeing what my SUV could do. I felt like a real bad girl when I pulled into the diner’s parking lot in record time.
Inside we grabbed a booth in the corner. The place was busy with the weekend rush, but the waitress managed to get us our coffee and menus without a long wait.
“See that dress shop across the street? Would you mind if we started our shopping spree there? I’m in the mood for a new dress and I saw one the other day that would look smashing on you.”
“Okay,” she said without much enthusiasm.
“You sound as though you do mind,” I observed aloud.
“I’m not one for shopping. That’s all.”
“Huh, that’s unusual. I don’t believe I’ve ever known another woman who doesn’t enjoy a shopping spree as much as I
do. Isn’t that how we girls bond?”
“I’d say we already did a lot of bonding, wouldn’t you?”
“I’ll give you that, but honestly, you don’t like to shop?”
“Not for clothes. My mother and sister are a different story.”
“You and your mother don’t have mother-daughter sprees?”
“Not since my sixteenth birthday,” she said.
“That’s odd. I still shop with my mother. Are the two of you not close?”
“I wasn’t the type of daughter she could show off to her friends, not like you. She would love you.”
“I don’t follow,” I said as she dumped a ridiculous amount of sugar into her coffee.
“One my sixteenth birthday my mother woke me up early that morning and said she wanted to take me shopping, just me and her. I was excited because my sister, Ann, usually came along and hogged up most of my mother’s attention. They’ve always had the same taste in everything, hair, nails and clothes. I don’t even do my nails half the time.”
“So, did you at least enjoy your birthday shopping with her?”
“It wasn’t much of a spree as it turned out. When we got into the store she marched me right by the clothes and straight to the skin care counter where she bought me hundreds of dollars’ worth of moisturizers and cleansers.”
“Moisturizer for a sixteen-year-old girl,” I giggled. “Your mother sounds lame, no offense.”
“I wasn’t thrilled with the gift, but I thanked her politely. She looked at me and said, ‘If you don’t care about your looks, you could at least take good care of your skin and age well.’”
“Your mother said that to you? That’s awful.”
“She prides herself on being bluntly truthful.”
“That wasn't truthful. It was just mean. She sounds like a bitch.”
“A little truthful maybe,” she mumbled. “I’m okay with it. We can’t all be gorgeous like you.”
“Hey, no, there’s no truth to that at all,” I said, placing a hand over hers. “You are extremely attractive. I should think it’s painfully clear by now that I can’t resist you.”
That was true. There was something about the girl. She had a lot of passion in her, but it seemed to wane, repress itself, when it wasn’t nurtured. I could see it trying now to come to the surface, waiting for me to rouse it out of its slumber. I wondered who had so oppressed her that she’d taken to reigning in her own nature. From what she’d just told me, her family was a good guess.
“Your mother sounds like a royal bitch,” I said again.
“I think she prefers royal queen, but yeah, you aren’t the first to say that. In all honestly, she didn’t mean any harm. I don’t spend enough time on my appearance. I’m lazy that way and it drives my mother crazy. She believes a direct line can be drawn between appearances and success and she wants me to have every advantage. She’s probably right.”
“For what it’s worth, she’s wrong. You’re a very beautiful young woman. If you’d just believe it, you’d probably have your pick of partners.”
“I wish I could be more like you, Danielle. You don’t seem to care what anyone thinks.”
“I used to, but then I realized most of the people I tried to impress were assholes, so I might as well be myself.”
“My mother is an asshole,” she blurted out and then clamped a hand over her mouth, incredulous that she’d spoken the words aloud.
I fell into a fit of laughter and nodded. “I don’t disagree from what you’ve told me.”
“Don’t get me wrong. I love her, but she’s a grade A asshole.”
“It’s good you realize that. It makes you less likely to turn into her someday.”
“I will never turn into my mother,” she said, the humor still thick in her voice.
“That’s what we all say, and then we do. I wouldn’t let her worry you, though. You’re already on your way to success. You’re starting your own advertising firm. That’s no small thing.”
An expression somewhere between doubt and guilt fell over her face.
“What’s wrong?”
“I hate to tell you this. It’s embarrassing,” she sighed.
“Look, whatever it is, you don’t have to be embarrassed with me.”
“You might not say that. You see, I lied.”
“About what?”
“I’m don’t an advertising agency. I work for one as a secretary. I made that story up to impress you. It was stupid. It’s just, you seem so out of my league. I thought you’d find my real job boring.”
“I see. Wow, that is stupid, but I forgive you. I was afraid you were going to tell me you were married or something.”
“Oh, no, I haven’t seen anyone in ages.”
“Good, is there anything else you want to get off your chest?”
“No, that’s it. I’m not a habitual liar.”
“Glad to hear it.”
“We’re okay then?”
“We’re fine,” I said. I thought her fib was kind of cute. I couldn’t remember the last time anyone felt the need to impress me.
We talked for another fifteen minutes before the waitress finally brought our order. Once we’d eaten, we headed over to the dress shop. I felt a little guilty at dragging her with me when she had so little interest in shopping for clothes. She was obviously only coming along to be polite, but I had that specific dress in mind that I knew would be perfect for her. I don’t know why it was so important to me that she have that dress other than I thought if she could see how pretty she was in it she might find a new perception of herself, see herself the way I did. I hardly knew the girl. It wasn’t like me to get too involved so fast, especially after having just gotten out of an ugly divorce that had made tabloids throughout the entire state of Texas. Nevertheless, there something appealing, tempting about her, something more than her petite frame that curved in all the right places. She had a softness I hadn’t encountered in anyone in a very long time. That is what I was most drawn to, her easy nature, her lack of agenda. Her biggest goal at the moment seemed to be as simple as a tour of my house.
Inside the shop, we browsed a while before I approached a rack of sundresses near the far wall. The white strapless dress was still there. It had ruffles dyed pink and ocean blue that flowed down to the ankle.
“Here it is. It would look gorgeous on you. Want to try it on?” I asked.
“I guess,” she said with little enthusiasm.
I could see her struggling to smile. Never had I met a woman so tortured by the thought of buying a new dress. God help her if I suggested finding a pair of matching shoes. “You really aren’t into this at all, are you?”
“It just feels like a waste of time. I’m not all that sociable. It isn’t likely I would ever go anywhere to wear that. It’s rather extravagant. Expensive, too. It’s probably not in my budget.”
“I’ll tell you what, Lily. You try it on and if you like it, I’ll buy it for you.”
“Oh, no, I can’t let you do that, Danielle.”
“We’re friends now, aren’t we?”
“Yes.”
“There you go. Friends give each other gifts.”
“But like I said, it would just hang in my closet.”
“No, it won’t. We’ll find a place for you to wear it,” I winked. “We’ll have a girl’s night out before you head home. I’m going stir crazy in that cabin. It’ll do us both good.”
“I guess I could try it on,” she consented in a voice that suggested she was only playing along for my sake.
She disappeared into the dressing room. While I was waiting for her to emerge my cell buzzed in my purse. I fished it out and glanced at the screen. Jared again. My dear ex hubby didn’t understand the meaning of divorce. It was rather pointless if you didn’t go your separate ways. I let the cell go to voice mail, determined not to let him ruin what was shaping up to be a lovely day. It was difficult trying to start a new life when people from your past kept trying to drag you back
kicking and screaming to your old one.
When Lily finally stepped out wearing the dress my breath caught in my throat. She looked just as gorgeous as I’d known she would.
“Oh, yes, you’re stunning,” I said.
“I wouldn’t go that far, but it is nice,” she said.
“Honey, I wouldn’t lie to you. This dress was made for you. We have to buy it.”
“I’m still not comfortable with that, Danielle. It’s too much.”
“Is it? Consider that I’m doing it for selfish reasons. I like the way it looks on you. It’s very pleasing to the eye.”
She blushed. I’d never seen anyone turn such a flawless shade of crimson. I couldn’t help but wonder if she was regretting our night together. Personally, I couldn’t wait to get her into my bed again, but were we on the same page?
“Are you okay, Lily?”
“Yeah, it’s just-you know.”
“I don’t. That’s why I’m asking.”
“I really do like this dress,” she said, dodging my probing by turning to the mirror on the wall and taking in her reflection as if it might have been someone else staring back at her.
“Then it’s yours. I’m buying it and that’s all there is to it.”
“I don’t want to take advantage of your good nature is all.”
“Trust me, I can afford to be taken advantage of,” I replied. “Besides, you’re going to earn it.”
“I am?”
“You’re going to give me your opinion on the house. It’s a big, dusty monster and I’m not entirely sure what to do with it, or even where to start. I could use some advice. I have to turn the property into something so magnificent I can convince a buyer they want to live in this spit and miss it town.”
“That shouldn’t be a problem. Lots of people like small towns. I do. I’d love to get out of Houston. The traffic is awful.”
“Ah, yes, the Houston traffic. Why do you stay if you don’t care for the city?”
“Work, mainly. What would I do in a town this size, bag groceries at the supermarket, or wait tables? There aren’t too many possibilities for a secretary here.”
“Then this is an opportunity to try on a new hat. For the next two weeks, you’re an interior designer. What do you say?”
