Someone Like You

by Victoria Bylin

But he wouldn’t do that to her.

  Would he?

  The grandfather clock gonged eight times. It was Max’s bedtime. He needed a bath and a story, a kiss good-night, and his favorite stuffed bear.

  Julia banged her fist on the doorjamb. “I can’t stand this.”

  Her mom stood behind her, silent, probably praying, until Hunter’s black Lexus swept around the corner. Julia jerked open the door but stopped on the edge of the concrete step. If she attacked Hunter, he’d lash back. Forcing cool air into her lungs, she unknotted her fists and choked back the sour taste of helpless fury.

  Hunter climbed out of the car, turned, and stared at her. He wasn’t very tall, but his posture exuded power. So did his expensive clothes, the razor cut of his light brown hair, and the intelligence gleaming in his green eyes. A long time ago those eyes had beguiled her; now they teased and toyed with her, with Max as the prize.

  Fuming, Julia waited while Hunter lifted Max out of the car, swung him in the air, and laughed when Max flung out his arms and made airplane noises. Joy, but at what cost? Hunter’s values were light years from hers. What would they do when Max was a teenager? What would Hunter teach him about girls, money, and cars? Unconsciously, she raised her hand to the base of her throat and pressed.

  “Mommy!” Max shouted. “We went to the zoo.”

  “That sounds fun.” Faking a smile, she lowered her hand and came down the steps. Hunter set Max on the ground and opened the trunk.

  Max charged up the walk and flung himself at her legs. “I saw the elephidents.”

  “Oh wow!”

  “And the hipp-motomoses.”

  Julia laughed, but it hurt. Max would talk about this trip for days, and she hadn’t been there.

  Ellen joined them. Grinning, she ruffled Max’s hair. “Hey, kiddo. Let’s go inside. Grammie wants to hear about the elephants.”

  Max turned toward Hunter, now approaching with a huge bag from the gift shop.

  Julia murmured her thanks to her mother, placed her hands on Max’s shoulders, and waited until he looked up. “It’s bedtime. Give Daddy a hug and go with Grammie.”

  “No!”

  Shocked, Julia drew back. She couldn’t possibly allow her son to behave that way. “Max. Look at me.”

  He lifted his chin, smirked, then looked pointedly at his feet—his father’s mini-me, ignoring her the way Hunter had ignored her texts and calls.

  Julia shifted her gaze to Hunter, saw a smirk, and knew he was inwardly laughing at her. Angry words boiled up in her throat, but she swallowed them. Instead she placed a finger on Max’s chin and tipped up his head. His eyes popped open, but he closed them again, squeezing the lids as tight as he could.

  Julia placed her hands on his shoulders, gently but with authority. “Max. Open your eyes.”

  Silence. Not even a twitch.

  “You have three seconds to open your eyes, or you’ll be in time-out tomorrow. No games. No toys.” She took a breath. “One. Two—”

  Hunter cut her off. “Come on, Julia. He’s just revved up. We had a great time. Don’t ruin it.”

  Just revved up? Hopped up on sugary soda and cotton candy was more like it. And revved up or not, she loved Max too much to let him turn into Hunter. She couldn’t discipline her son and cope with Hunter at the same time, especially with Hunter armed to the hilt with toys from the zoo, so she cut her losses.

  “We’ll talk later,” she told Max. “What did you like best?”

  “The gift shop.” He grabbed the bag and held it like a trophy.

  Hunter laughed, but Julia saw no humor at all. By indulging Max with several souvenirs instead of telling him to pick one, a rule they had agreed upon, Hunter had undercut her authority. His extravagance turned her into the bad guy, which was both unfair and wrong. The rules protected Max.

  Ellen took the shopping bag and reached for her grandson’s sticky hand. “Come on, kiddo. I bet we can find a book about elephants.”

  Max scooted happily toward Ellen, but he stopped midway and faced Hunter. “Daddy, can you stay?”

  “No, son.” Hunter dropped to a crouch, putting himself eye to eye with Max. “That’s your mom’s decision.”

  Max swiveled his head back to Julia and looked up, imploring her with his eyes to do the impossible. “Mommy, can Daddy stay with us?”

  Julia didn’t resent Max’s desire for a father, but she was furious at Hunter for using Max to manipulate her. Refusing to let even a flicker of ambivalence show, she shook her head. “No, Max. We’ve talked about this.”

  “But—” His bottom lip wobbled.

  Hunter pulled him into his arms. “Hey, Max, don’t cry. This is between Mommy and Daddy. I’ll see you in a few days. I promise.”

  The hug ended with Max sniffing back tears and Hunter giving him a pat on the shoulder.

  Ellen took Max into the house, leaving Julia alone with Hunter. If she took one false step, the fragile peace they maintained would disintegrate. But what did she do about his manipulation, the way he blamed her for their separation? If she fought too hard, they might end up in court with a judge deciding how to raise Max. She couldn’t allow that to happen, because a judge would see the good man Hunter reflected to the world, not the one who twisted truth to his own advantage. She couldn’t compete with Hunter’s income, polish, or charm. And without a successful business, she couldn’t provide for her son.

  God? Is this from you? Are you telling me to take that job with Zeke?

  Her eyes caught on the mulberry tree, and she recalled the day her father had cut it down to nothing but the trunk and the three main branches.

  “Daddy, it’s going to die.”

  “No, Princess. Just watch. A year from now it’ll have all new growth. In a few years, it’ll be stronger and prettier than ever.”

  That was her life—a tree hacked to three main branches—Max, her mother, her new faith. And like that tree, she was going to come back stronger. If Hunter didn’t approve of her decision to spend a month at Caliente Springs, so be it.

  Determined to hold her ground, she faced him. “We never finished talking about Max and school. I’m sorry about the other night, but it couldn’t be helped.”

  A smirk lifted his lips. “So what happened?”

  A goat ate my phone. I haven’t laughed so hard in ages! And then . . . Julia shoved the picture of Zeke’s shining eyes out of her mind. “My phone needed to be replaced. A trip to the Apple Store wasn’t on my schedule, plus I was in a meeting with a big account. You know how that is.”

  He preened with the ego stroke. “Yeah, I get it. But I needed to talk to you. One minute, that was all I needed. When you didn’t give me an answer, I confirmed the school meeting for Monday at nine.”

  “I’ll be there.” The one-sided decision was just like Hunter, but tonight Julia could use it for leverage when she brought up Caliente Springs.

  Hunter stuck out his hand. “Peace?”

  Julia stared down at his smooth fingers. The handshake was an old custom between them, the way they used to end silly quarrels. If she didn’t shake his hand, she’d look petty. If she did, he’d hold on a little too long. She flipped a mental coin and shook back.

  “Peace.”

  Hunter grinned. “You’re forgiven for the phone tag.”

  Julia lifted her chin. “So are you.”

  He laughed, not at the joke but at her. Every cell in her body rebelled, but she sealed her lips. This wasn’t the first time she’d taken a mental punch from Hunter, and it wouldn’t be the last. She was in his good graces, so she took advantage.

  “I have some news.”

  “Oh, yeah?”

  “I’m coordinating a wedding near San Luis Obispo. Have you heard of Caliente Springs?”

  “It’s a nice place. Old. But it used to be classy.”

  “I’m going to be working there for a few weeks. I thought I’d make it a vacation for Max and my mom.” She saw no reason to mention Zeke.

  “Nice.�
�� Hunter sounded pleased, even impressed. “I hope you have a good time.”

  “We will. About your weekends—”

  “Don’t worry about next Saturday.” He shoved his hands in his pockets. “Jeff Donahue is in town. We’re getting together for drinks. I’ll come up to Caliente Springs the Saturday after that. The three of us can spend a weekend together.”

  No, a thousand times no. A family-style weekend with Hunter was out of the question. It sent the wrong message to Max, and she especially didn’t want Hunter treading on Zeke’s territory. “That won’t work. I’ll meet you in Santa Barbara. We can trade him off there.”

  His full lips pulled into a mocking smile. “So you’re willing to meet me halfway after all.”

  “Hunter—”

  He held up one hand. “I know. You think it’s over between us. But Julia, it’s not. You still love me. I know you do. Let’s run off to Vegas and find one of those wedding chapels. Don’t you think we owe it to Max?”

  Julia owed her son the best life she could give him, and a loveless marriage struck her as the wrong place to start. With her throat tight, she glanced at the full moon shining through the tree branches. If she didn’t get Max to bed soon, he’d be cranky for church.

  Schooling her features, she looked back at Hunter. “I have things to do. I’ll see you Monday.”

  “All right. I give up, but just for tonight.” After a seductive look, one she didn’t return, he climbed into the Lexus and drove off.

  Julia went inside and headed for the bathroom. Max was still in the tub, kicking his feet and making motorboat sounds, while her mother used a cup to rinse baby shampoo from his spiky hair.

  “I’m going to take the job,” Julia said.

  Ellen paused with the cup in the air. “That’s great. When do we leave?”

  “How about Monday afternoon?”

  “Perfect.”

  “Good. If you’re okay with Max, I’ll call Zeke now.”

  When Ellen nodded, Julia went to her room, closed the door, and took her phone out of her pocket.

  eight

  Zeke thoroughly enjoyed Saturday nights at Caliente Springs. Green spotlights lit up the junipers and palms visible through the lobby’s glass walls, piano music spilled out of a dark lounge, and though the crowd at the steakhouse wasn’t as big as he wanted it to be, an air of contentment mixed with the aroma of good food as he walked down the main aisle.

  He didn’t need to be here tonight, but he enjoyed greeting guests as they dined, especially when he ran into frequent visitors like the Davidsons, a couple in their mid-forties who visited the resort every few months.

  Zeke approached their table with a smile. “Tim, Lacie, how are you?”

  “Excellent.” Tim extended his hand and they shook.

  Lacie piped up. “We’re celebrating our tenth anniversary.”

  “That’s great. Congratulations.” One bucket of champagne, coming right up.

  Caliente Springs had money trouble, but being cheap wasn’t in Zeke’s nature. Like his dad used to say, “Give and give big, son. You’ll never regret it.” That was one of things about his dad that Zeke admired.

  He chatted with the Davidsons for another minute, then left when the waiter arrived with a sizzling chateaubriand. After a word to the maître d’ about the champagne, he visited a few more tables, checked with the night desk manager, then went home.

  It was a little before nine o’clock when he pulled into his driveway, opened the big garage door, and saw the boxes from his parents’ storage unit—the two from Berkeley bearing his own scrawl and the fifteen others numbered in his father’s precise printing.

  No one would ever mix up a “1” with a “7” when Reverend Jacob Monroe was in charge. Most people scribbled words like Kitchen or Linens on dented cardboard, but Jacob Monroe’s boxes were clean except for the number. Knowing his dad, Zeke expected to find an inventory list in Box No. 1. For the second time in an hour, he heard his father’s voice. “You better get moving, son. Those boxes won’t unpack themselves.”

  No, they wouldn’t.

  A vibration from his phone yanked Zeke back to the present. On Saturday night, a call usually meant a problem with a troublesome guest. He raised the phone, expecting to see the security department number, but the caller ID showed Julia Dare.

  He accepted the call fast. “Hey. What’s up?”

  Her voice fractured into disjointed syllables.

  “Hold on, okay?” He climbed out of the SUV and walked down the driveway with the hope of finding a stronger signal.

  “Zeke? Are you there?”

  “Yes. I’m here.”

  A coyote howled in the distance. Another one joined in the song, then another. The notes blended into a lonesome chorus that echoed with beauty, longing, and all the tones in between.

  The soft intake of Julia’s breath wafted into his ear. “That’s incredible. Where are you?”

  “At home.”

  “It sounds like the coyotes are in your front yard.”

  “They’re closer than I’d like. With the drought, they’re looking for food near the resort.”

  “That’s scary.”

  “Only if you’re Ladybug. She better be nice to Chet, or she’ll end up like that goat in Jurassic Park.”

  “That’s awful!”

  “Don’t worry. I’m Ladybug’s guardian angel.”

  “Guardian angel, huh?”

  Zeke flinched. “Bad word choice. I traded my halo for that MBA.”

  A thoughtful silence told him she was getting ready to ask what he meant. He didn’t want to explain his fall from grace, especially to Jules, who had known him in the days when he believed he could stand up to giants. Now he’d do well to save a rickety old resort from bankruptcy.

  Hoping she was about to take the job, he squeezed the phone. “So you called . . .”

  “Yes, but before we talk business, I want to thank you for the autograph. My mom loved it.”

  “Glad to do it.”

  “And second”—she paused for two beats of his heart—“I’d be delighted to plan Tiffany’s wedding as well as fill in for Irene.”

  He let out the breath he’d been holding. “That’s great. It’ll be nice to see Ellen again and to meet Max. When can you start?”

  “I’d like to drive up Monday afternoon and start work on Tuesday.”

  “Could you make a three o’clock meeting on Monday with Tiff and Ginger?” He’d scheduled it when he called the bride on Friday morning.

  “Maybe. But it’ll be tight. I can’t leave here until at least eleven o’clock. Plus we’ll be traveling with a four-year-old. That means stopping a few times.”

  “I don’t want you to rush.” Ginger was a stickler for punctuality. If Julia arrived late, she’d torpedo herself. “I’ll push the meeting back to four.”

  “That would be better. Where should I meet you?”

  “Go to the concierge desk. Javier will take you to the cottage, then he’ll bring you to the conference room.”

  “That sounds good.”

  Better than good. With Jules in the picture, Zeke could roll off some of the load, but he also needed to prepare her. “I don’t want to prejudice you, but Ginger can be demanding.”

  “No problem,” she assured him. “Part of my job is negotiating between family members, suppliers, and anyone else who’s involved. Emotions can run high during the planning phase. Think of me as a go-between.”

  “Thanks, I will.”

  “Let’s get started,” she said. “If you give me Tiff’s number, I’ll call her tomorrow.”

  “Hold on.” He pulled up the number in his phone and read off the digits.

  “Got it. What’s the groom’s name?”

  “Derek Wilkins.”

  “Is that D-e-r-e-k, or Derrick like an oil derrick? Or something entirely different?”

  Zeke mentally applauded her attention to detail. “D-e-r-e-k. And Wilkins is standard.”

  T
hey ran through a few more details, with Julia quizzing him and Zeke telling her all about Caliente Springs as a wedding venue. Just like at St. John’s, they traded ideas with ease.

  Before Zeke realized it, they were talking about the kids who had gathered for basketball at St. John’s, including a twelve-year-old prankster who poured a tube of glitter on the visor of Zeke’s truck. Julia had been riding with him when they both noticed flecks of silver and gold on the dashboard. When he lowered the visor, the pixie dust blew everywhere—his hair, his face, all over the truck.

  “Do you remember the glitter episode?” he asked.

  Laughter bubbled out of her. “I’ll never forget it. You should have seen your face.”

  He and his truck had sparkled for weeks, and he’d been dubbed “Glitter Man” by the kids and the staff.

  Such good times, at least when he didn’t think about the kids who ended up in trouble in spite of his effort to reach them. Or about the guilt that came from sleeping with Julia.

  He wasn’t the first man to fall in that way and he wouldn’t be the last, but he had expected more from himself, and he was sure God did too. As for his earthly father, Zeke hadn’t mentioned Julia to his parents even once. A lie of omission, but when he went back to Chile after Berkeley, he just couldn’t do it. For the three months he’d stayed with them before returning to the U.S. for grad school, he’d lived a lie. Finally, unable to stand himself, he told his father he didn’t want to be a preacher anymore. That quarrel still rang in his ears.

  Julia’s laughter over the glitter incident faded, leaving them in silence until a coyote repeated its lonesome song.

  “Zeke?”

  “Yeah?”

  “This might be terribly presumptuous of me, but I’ll feel better if I just come out and say it.”

  “Sure. What is it?” He paced along the driveway, his leather soles slapping against the concrete.

  “We had some great times and you’re as wonderful as I remember, but . . . well, I’m not interested in dating right now. I’m focusing solely on my business and being a good mom to Max.”

  She was smart to draw lines. The way people at CS gossiped, Zeke needed to draw lines too. “We’re in complete agreement here. Friends only. Thanks for being up front.”