by Susan Schild
“Are you Linny?” the woman asked in a gravelly voice, as she gave Linny an undisguised once-over.
Her heart racing, Linny instinctively knew this rough girl could only be trouble. She crossed her arms. “I am.”
But the woman just arched her brow. “You were Buck’s wife?”
Irritation now trumped her dread. “Correct. And you are?”
“Kandace Lane,” she said, and put a hand on her hip. “My friends call me Kandi.”
CHAPTER 11
Trouble
Holy moly. Hot, bitter anger rose in her throat. This was Kandi. Miss Surfside Inn. Buck’s last fling. The blood drained from Linny’s face and she felt a burn of outrage. For a while she’d been crazy about Buck, but instead of her, he chose Kandis and Tutus. What was wrong with her? Trying to slow her breathing, she took in Kandi’s three inches of cleavage, pillowy lips, and tousled just-got-out-of-bed hairdo. She had her sexiness on display, while Linny kept things more buttoned up, at least in public. Buck must have thought she was a frump. In a shaking voice, she asked, “What do you want?”
“I want what’s owed me,” she announced, lifting her chin.
What fresh trouble was Buck sending her now? Crossing her arms, Linny tried to sound calmer than she felt. “What would that be?”
“Money.” She shot Linny a defiant look, but her eyes wavered, and her voice became plaintive. “Buck said he’d take care of me.”
Linny sighed. “Funny. He told me that, too.”
The redhead glanced at the trailer and back at Linny, a flicker of doubt crossing her face. “How come you were married to a high roller like Buck, and you’re living here?”
“That’s the million dollar question.” Despite her clothes and makeup, the girl was not much older than Dare. Linny could only imagine the rocky road the girl had traveled to be that age and be so hard looking. Her voice softened. “Buck was broke.”
Her eyes narrowed. “I don’t believe you. He gave me money, and he co-signed the note on my car.” She shook her head stubbornly. “I want what’s due me.”
Mr. Big Spender, who’d left her broke, had given this woman money. Heat flooded to Linny’s face. She held up both of her hands. “I can give you the credit card bills he left me.”
The redhead’s face closed, and her voice was hard and mean. “We were looking to buy a condo at the beach. He was going to divorce you. He’d talked to lawyers.”
Linny’s face flamed and she hated Buck even more for plotting their divorce—and discussing it with Kandi—while Linny fatuously thought she and Buck were starting over. Pulling her shoulders back, Linny said coolly, “You’ll need to go. I have nothing for you.”
The redhead hissed, “He wanted me, not you, and he owes me.” Eyes blazing, she scrabbled in her purse, and tossed a business card at Linny. “My lawyer will be calling you.” Flouncing back to the wenchmobile, she floored it down the driveway.
Linny woke the next morning with a headache, feeling parched. Rubbing her eyes, she regretted swilling down those other glasses of wine last night. Good thing she wasn’t a big drinker, because she wasn’t very good at it. She’d accomplished her mission, though—to obliterate all thought. She groaned. Had Buck really intended to leave her for Kandi?
Washing down two Aleve, she chugged a glass of water, poured a mug of coffee, and shuffled out to the front porch. Although Linny’s eyes were not fully open, she watched Roy tear around the yard, and roll languidly in a spot of grass. She cracked a smile and shook her head, envying his carefree existence. Between meeting Kandi and fretting about Austin and whether or not she’d get the Badin contract, she was driving herself crazy. Rubbing her forehead, she willed the pills to dissolve faster.
Last night, she’d tried unsuccessfully to reach both Kate and Mary Catherine.
She tried to remember how many messages she’d left for Diamond. Good grief. It wasn’t as if her attorney was on call for nerve-jangled clients at eight at night.
Dare would be reporting to work soon and she’d team up with him today. She needed the distraction. Maybe she’d pull out the old Life of Gratitude and Joy cards. She’d cut back on her Indigo habit, and judging from her Mixmaster of a stomach, maybe it was time to pick it back up.
After a shower she threw on shorts and a T-shirt and read this morning’s inspirational words. She needed to Dance one step at a time, Let the universe lead, and Stay positive to attract opportunity. Squeezing her eyes shut, Linny concentrated, took deep breaths and felt . . . nothing. She rolled her shoulders. Yup. Just as tense as they were a few minutes ago. Linny blew out a sigh. She’d had a big falling out with faith after Andy died, but if she was going to manage this revving chainsaw of anxiety today, she needed any help she could get. Squinting her eyes shut again, she sent up a quick prayer to whoever was listening. ‘I could use help here. I’m going to really try to trust the universe with all my worries, and believe better days are coming. I need guidance, and peace, and a sense that I’m not carrying these burdens all by myself.’
Just as she sent up her request, the phone rang. Startled, she saw Diamond’s number and snatched up the phone. Linny was so relieved to hear from her lawyer, she gushed, “Sorry I left all those messages last night.”
“Oh, don’t be silly. That’s why I’m here,” the attorney fluted.
Linny heard what sounded like the splash and roar of rushing water, and hesitated. “Where exactly is here?”
“Beside a cool, rushing waterfall at The Homestead in Virginia. It’s sublime. The heat in Raleigh was just taking the starch out of me. The mountain air is reviving my body and restoring my soul.” She sighed dramatically. “This morning, I’ve got a geothermal mineral bath and the river reflexology bed. It’s going to be a hectic day.”
“I can imagine.” Linny smirked. With her unabashed self-indulgence and apparent lack of work ethic, Diamond was crazy, but she was growing on her. Linny just hoped she had crackerjack underlings, because she never seemed to work.
“How can I help you, puddin’?” Diamond asked.
“I had a visit from a woman named Kandi . . .” Linny began, her chest tightening.
“Oooh. I love that name.” She sighed wistfully. “I wish my parents had named me that—or Tawnee or Desiree. Just calls to mind. . . . grrrr . . . bad girl.”
“She is a bad girl,” Linny clarified, the blood pounding in her ears as she recounted the story. “She says Buck co-signed on her car, and she wants money.”
“Oh, she’s an entrepreneur,” the lawyer enthused, but her voice took on a steely edge. “Just send Kandi Girl and her lawyer buddy to me. We’ll handle it, just like we’re handling everything else. Try not to worry. It gives you wrinkles.”
Hearing a sucking intake of breath over the phone, Linny asked innocently, “So they let you smoke at the spa, Diamond?”
Blowing out noisily, her lawyer’s voice was petulant. “Not really. I’m crouched in the bushes behind the men’s pool cabana. Trés undignified.”
Linny chuckled, her stomach calming. Diamond was on the job, or as close to the job as she usually got.
Shortly after she hung up, Kate called and Linny filled her in on the latest news.
Kate huffed indignantly, and made comments like, “Of all the nerve,” and “She didn’t!” and “Diamond will take care of that trashy little girl.”
Buoyed by her sister’s support, Linny felt lighter and smiled as she shifted gears. “Listen, Mama wants to throw you a baby shower two Saturdays from now.”
“Oh. Lord.” Kate groaned. “Ribbons, poems, and stupid girl games, right?” Then dread filled her voice as she got the whole picture. “Oh no. She wants to have the party at her house? The Health Department will close her down.”
“I talked her into a better option,” Linny assured her. “She’s going to host a pig picking in her backyard for you and Jerry. She keeps calling it a baby barbecue.”
Kate chuckled, but still sounded worried. “But what about fixing the me
al, and guests needing to use the bathroom?”
“She’s agreed to get it catered. We’ll have the whole meal brought in—from hush puppies to banana pudding. No one needs to go into the house. We can even rent a fancy portable potty.”
“Wow. That could work.” Kate sounded relieved. “Promise to tell everybody no gifts. I don’t want all that fuss. I just want it to be casual.”
“I will,” Linny assured her.
Kate lowered her voice. “Can Mama afford to throw us a pig picking? She’s so tight-lipped about her money . . .”
“You won’t believe what she told me.” Linny recounted what she had learned at the cafeteria about Mama’s net worth.
Kate whistled, then was silent for a moment, taking it in. “You’re right, I can’t believe it, and I can’t believe she didn’t tell us. When I’ve tried to talk with her about money, and does she have enough for the future, she bites my head off.” She paused. “So why did she tell you, and not me, too?”
Linny thought about it. “I think she was trying to teach me about taking responsibility for my financial life, and not allowing any man to take care of the money like I did with Buck.”
“But Daddy was good with money,” Kate countered, sounding plaintive.
“She says he wasn’t.” Linny said.
“Maybe that’s why she gets so snappy when she talks about Daddy,” Kate mused. “Hold on a sec. Jerry’s trying to tell me something.” She came back on the line. “He says Lester’s has the best barbecue in town, and the most reasonable prices.”
Linny smiled, knowing Lester would be a standout. Jerry took his barbecue seriously; he even scribbled notes as he watched the grill-off shows on the cooking channel and tried out new, tangy sauces when he cooked out. “Will you two work on a guest list?”
“Sure. We’ll get it to you tomorrow. Can I can bring anything?” Kate asked.
“Nope. It’s your party. You just need to show up,” Linny said.
“Lovely. All these great perks I get for the universe finally letting me get pregnant.” Kate gave a happy sigh. “What else is new?”
Linny filled her in on her work leads.
“Tell me you’re not considering Austin,” Kate said in a small, taut voice.
Flinching when she heard her sister’s desolate tone, Linny said what she’d said to Mary Catherine. “It’s not even an official offer.” But she felt a pang of loneliness at the thought of leaving her family. She was starting to hope the job didn’t materialize.
“I’m going to do a meditation about you not getting the offer,” Kate said flatly. After a silent moment, she asked in a too casual tone, “Any word from Craig Lyman?”
“He called yesterday,” she said vaguely. What she didn’t say was that she’d seen his name and let it roll to voice mail. “I don’t know . . . ,” she hedged.
Her sister sounded serious. “Well, he’s a nice man. You could marry him and live right here in North Carolina. He’s probably got some baggage now because he’s trying to get his life sorted out after a divorce, but I hope you give him a chance,” Kate said pointedly. “Good thing you don’t have baggage.”
Linny rubbed her forehead with the heel of her hand and said lightly, “I don’t know what you mean.” Despite Kate’s slightly premature wedding planning, she probably did need to give him another chance, spark or no spark. Hearing the rattle of a truck, Linny looked out the window. “I need to run. Dare’s here.”
After working side by side with Dare all morning, Linny glanced at the drywall and gave him a smile. “You do know what you’re doing.”
Dare colored, and gave her a nod of thanks. Wearing tattered Bermuda shorts and canvas deck shoes with fraying holes over each big toe, today his look was more tourist-who’d-survived-the-tsunami than pirate. He looked off into the distance and said in a thoughtful tone, “Dude?”
Linny’s mouth turned up. “Yes?”
“Why does the flooring have to be vinyl?”
“Because we can’t find gold leaf at two dollars a square foot?” Linny shook her head at Mr. Silver Spoon.
He scratched his stubbly chin. “Dad and I went to Habitat ReStore last weekend, and they had amazing old hardwoods from houses they’d demo’d, and they were cheap.”
Linny started to dismiss him, but hesitated when she saw interested animation replace his usual expression of studied boredom. She remembered the warmth and richness of the wood floors in her and Andy’s old house. Hand on her hip, she asked warily, “How cheap?”
Later that morning, they trundled down the driveway, the loaded-down truck swinging on shocks that probably needed replacing. Linny glanced over at the young man and smiled. She was enjoying spending time with him.
Linny got out and stood behind the truck, and directed Dare as he backed up to get as close as possible to the front door. As he unloaded wood and laid it up in the spare bedroom to acclimate, Linny made the three peanut butter and jelly sandwiches she’d promised him, and poured him a glass of milk. According to the boy, he was close to expiring from hunger.
Flipping on her laptop, Linny’s pulse quickened when she saw the email from Sasha’s boss at Badin. She held her breath and her finger trembled on the mouse as she opened it. It read:
Linny,
Your proposal was interesting, but by the time I’d received it, I’d already made the decision to go with another vendor.
Linny’s heart sank, and she rubbed her face with her hands. She knew better than to prematurely count chickens, but she was still so disappointed. Those were her people—the smart but sometimes socially inept engineering types. She could have done such a good job with them. Ready to delete the depressing note, she hurriedly skimmed the rest of it, expecting the usual cordial closing. Blinking, she had to read the rest of the note twice before it sank in.
I would like to talk with you about possibly providing management and leadership training for our mid-level folks this winter. Would you please make a note to call and set up a meeting with me after September 1? We’ll know more about the budget then.
Faye Simpson
Linny rested her chin in her hand and absentmindedly patted the decoy on her desk. Slowly, she felt a glimmer of hopeful possibility. Sasha said Faye was a straight shooter, a no-nonsense woman—the type who probably wouldn’t have mentioned the job if she’d not been serious in considering Linny. Raking her fingers through her hair, she mulled it over. She had to be a glass-half-full gal if she was going to be in business for herself. Staying positive would attract opportunity, she reminded herself. Sitting up straighter, she wrote an upbeat reply to the note, and put a reminder on September first in her Outlook calendar. She gave a little nod. She’d be calling Ms. Faye Simpson on that date.
“That was the last bundle,” Dare called, dusting off his hands. He raised a questioning brow. “Any word on the gig you wanted?”
“I didn’t get it,” she sighed, but gave a determined smile. “But they want to talk to me about another piece of work in September.”
“Very cool.” He nodded, as he stepped to the kitchen counter and polished off a sandwich in three bites. As he reached for another, he mumbled, “I do cray-cray social media.”
Linny gazed at him. “Cray-cray?”
“Crazy good,” he said slowly, like he was talking to a deaf grandmother. “I can amplify you, hook you up on all the B2B marketing tools—LinkedIn, Twitter, Vine, Snapchat, Swarm, Google Plus. Whatever. I get mega engagement. Just did it for Mom’s firm, and they’re drawing crowds.”
Linny shook her head admiringly and broke into a grin. “Dare, you are a man of many talents.”
He grinned back at her, and ducked his head. “Can you make me another sandwich?”
Late that afternoon, she left the young man to his measuring and muffled oaths, and spruced up for Roy’s follow-up appointment at the vet’s. When she had called Red Oak clinic to schedule Roy’s follow-up appointment Ruthie had checked the book, and said, “Dr. Jack can see you any day but
Tuesday—that’s his surgery day.”
“Darn it. That’s the only day that will work for me this week,” Linny lied, and Ruthie scheduled her to see another vet.
She didn’t need to be in close proximity to Jack. He was busy, busy, busy with his hot young girlfriend. He probably viewed Linny as a doddering senior citizen. Sucking in her stomach, she glanced in the mirror, but she still had a pooch. No amount of core strengthening was going to give her the board-flat stomach of that girl-child. A rearview glance confirmed that despite her recent forty-minute cheek-clenching walk with Mary Catherine, her bottom was still flat. She blew back her bangs, slung her purse over her shoulder, and corralled Roy.
At the desk, Ruthie gave her a bright smile. “How are you and how is young Roy?”
“We’re both well. No more cake stealing, and he’s stopped trying to eat rocks,” Linny said as the puppy nibbled at her hoop earrings.
“Good decision, Roy.” She reached over the counter and scratched the puppy behind his silky ears. “Our new vet is top notch.” Slipping off half-glasses emblazoned with red fire hydrants, she said in a confidential whisper, “She’s smart—just graduated from vet school at Emory, at the top of her class.”
Nodding, Linny sat and tried to read, but soon gave up, concentrating instead on keeping Roy from trying to kiss a Corgi whose peevish-looking owner kept shooting her dirty looks.
“Dr. Nelson will see you now,” Ruthie called to her, gesturing to the slim woman in the white jacket who stood at the door to the examining room.
Linny stared. Good grief. Dr. Nelson was the woman she’d seen running with Jack—the nymphet with the shapely calves and bouncy ponytail. Pretending to straighten out a kink in Roy’s harness, Linny slowed her breathing and tried to collect herself. How could a man as smart as Jack think it was a good idea to date an employee?
