by Andrea Hurst
Wine in hand, Lily wandered off and found an empty, overstuffed chair in a quiet alcove by a window. From this comfortable position she could people watch and still be part of the party. No sooner had she sat down than a man with a long silver ponytail and wearing a faded leather jacket sat in the empty seat beside her. “Hi, pretty lady, I’m Tom. Are you new here?”
Inwardly she groaned. “Yes, I am.”
“Do you know the artist?” he asked.
Lily looked over the crowd to Ian, who was now talking to Kyla. “A little bit. Actually, we only met recently.”
Tom continued. “He’s quite well-known, done shows in New York and Europe, too. In fact, we’ve shown at a few of the same galleries.”
“Really,” she answered without interest. “What type of artist are you?”
“A potter,” he said. He pointed toward the entrance. “You see that large planter over there with the bonsai tree in it? The one with the spikes and opalescent glaze. That’s one of mine.”
Lily eyed the pot, definitely not her style. She smiled politely. “I’ve never seen anything quite like it before.”
“I know, my style is very distinct. If you would like to see more, I have my own studio up-island, and I would be glad to give you a private showing anytime.”
“Well, thank you, Tom” she said as she reluctantly gave up her place of refuge. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
Tom rose to follow her. “Here, let me give you my card.”
Lily pocketed the card and headed toward the ladies’ room. He hadn’t even asked her name; at least that was a break. Before she reached the door, she caught a glimpse of Ian walking into the back room of the studio with his arm around Kyla. The door shut and the two of them disappeared. What was that about? she wondered. Just how many women is he interested in? The word “womanizer” crossed her mind, and she dismissed it, along with her interest in him, as she moved to the sanctity of the women’s restroom.
“Lily?” Her name was being called from outside the stall.
“Jude? How did you know it was me?”
“No one has boots like that on this island,” Jude yelled out over the sound of the toilet flushing. “I saw our resident Don Juan Tom talking to you earlier. I almost came to your rescue.”
Lily groaned. “Thanks for the thought. I made a quick exit into here. I think I’m about ready to go home.”
“How about one more glass of wine, Lily? The night is still young.”
“Ok, but just one, and then let’s find Kyla and call it a night. This art scene reminds me too much of Los Angeles, and Ian seems to be quite busy and involved.”
Jude laughed. “You could say that.”
Kyla reappeared from her private meeting with Ian looking a bit flushed in the face. As Kyla joined them for another glass of wine at the bar, Lily felt her hackles rise. “Looks like people are starting to head home, it’s almost eleven. What do you think, ladies?”
“I’m ready,” volunteered Lily.
“Okay, let’s get our coats,” Jude said, standing a bit unsteadily.
Ian met them at the door. “Thanks again for coming. I’m sorry I didn’t have more time to chat with you all.”
“Was the show successful?” asked Jude.
“We did pretty well. A few pieces sold and I made some good contacts for future commissions.”
Lily placed her hand on the door, pulled, and started outside. “Someone’s in a hurry to leave,” whispered Jude as she followed close behind.
“Drive carefully, ladies,” Ian called after them.
“Hold up, Lily,” Jude said, catching up to her with Kyla in tow. She threw an arm around Lily. “So, my coconspirators in crime and wine, how about we take this party down the street to my house for the night, have a girls’ all-nighter at my place?”
Lily considered the offer. She wouldn’t have to drive, and she wouldn’t have to ask Jude, who’d had several glasses of wine, to drive her home down a dark island road. Plus, she’d have good company for the night in Jude. Kyla, she wasn’t sure about. Still, a no-brainer decision for sure. “Sounds good to me. Are you in, Kyla?”
Kyla hesitated. “C’mon, Kyla,” urged Jude. “Let your hair down, have a little fun and girl bonding time.”
“Okay, but only if you’ll make your Mexican coffee drink for us.”
“Deal,” Jude agreed.
The threesome strolled arm-in-arm down Front Street. At Cedar Street they walked the few blocks back to the café. “Look at the stunning scarf in Cousin’s Boutique,” Lily said as she leaned in close to peer through the storefront window. “I love hand-woven chenille. I’ll bet it costs a fortune.”
“Come on, Lily,” Jude said, scooting her along. “It’s too cold out here for window shopping. We can come back tomorrow and check it out then.” They approached the wooden steps alongside the back of the building that led up to Jude’s apartment above the café. “Careful on the stairs. They get slippery with the frost.”
Jude fumbled with her keys, her unsteady hand making it difficult to get the key into the lock of her front door. “Almost!” she giggled drunkenly as she bent to pick up the keys that had slid out of her hand.
Lily bent over to help retrieve them, banging her head into Jude’s. “Ouch!” she cried, rubbing her forehead. “I guess sometimes two heads are not better than one.”
Kyla groaned. “All right, ladies. Let me handle this. After all, I only had two glasses of wine and you two had…I don’t know how many.” Kyla confiscated the keys from Jude, unlocked the door, turned on a few Tiffany lamps, and led the way into the expansive living room. She immediately claimed Jude’s burgundy velvet antique fainting couch and made herself comfortable.
Lily slipped off her boots and left them at the front door. The polished wooden floors and the lush oriental rugs felt luxurious against her bare feet. She walked across the parquet wood floor to gaze out the oversized picture window that seemed to be floating on air above the water. “What an amazing view you have, Jude. There are so many stars out. If I lived here, I would never leave this window.”
“It is hard sometimes. It’s an even better view up here than from the café. You can see the Cascade peaks on a clear day. I was sold on this place the minute I walked into this room.”
Lily followed Jude into the kitchen and watched as she began the process of making Mexican coffee. Jude added cocoa powder, a pinch of cinnamon and nutmeg, then retrieved the Kahlua bottle from the wet bar. “The coffee will be ready in a few,” Jude said.
Lily inhaled the aromatic smell of fresh brewing coffee. “May I see the rest of your place, Jude?”
“Sure, I’ll give you the grand tour.”
Jude led Lily down the hall and into one of bedrooms. “Here’s the master suite,” Jude said as she flipped on an overhead chandelier.
“Looks like a true boudoir where secret trysts are enjoyed.”
“Right,” Jude sighed. “The procession of gentlemen coming to my door is never ending.”
Lily ran her hand over the satin duvet cover and fingered the delicate lace pillows on the bed. “These are gorgeous. When I think of my flannel sheets and bulky down comforter in its woolen duvet, I feel like a tom-boy next to you.”
Jude draped an arm over Lily’s shoulder. “If Prince Charming shows up at your door, or for that matter a hot one night stand-in prince, my boudoir is at your disposal.”
Kyla called from the living room, “Are you two coming back out here to keep me company before I fall asleep? I thought we were having a party.”
“Hold your horses, Kyla,” Jude said as she returned and pulled some tall mugs down from the kitchen shelf. She poured generous amounts of Kahlua in each cup, topped it off with spiced coffee, then plopped a mound of whipped cream and a dusting of Dutch chocolate before handing them to her guests.
Lily curled up in a well-cushioned wicker rocker next to the couch and sipped her Mexican coffee. “Ian is quite a talented artist. I was very impressed by h
is work tonight,” she said.
“Are you sure you mean his work and not his bod!”
“Jude, I didn’t say that, I didn’t mean, I mean…”
Jude laughed. “Girl, it’s all right, you didn’t have to say it, your eyes never left him.”
“Was I that obvious?”
Kyla sat up and leaned in closer to Lily. “To us women who don’t miss much, yes, it was obvious. But to Ian, I doubt it.”
Lily squirmed in her seat. “I’m not really looking for love right now; I mean, I’m not even divorced yet.”
“So what?” Jude said taking a big gulp of her drink. “When did that ever stop true love?”
Lily turned to Kyla. “You seem to know him pretty well. He appears to like you.”
“We’re just friends, nothing more,” Kyla said.
Jude stood up and changed the subject. “So, does anyone have any juicy town gossip? Or shall we start the party with some true confessions.”
“I vote for true confessions, but only if you go first, Jude,” Kyla answered.
“Okay, okay, I do have a secret to share. You know how my cook, Karen, is pregnant and about to go on permanent leave? Well, I’ve been thinking about bringing on a more ‘gourmet’ chef. Someone to jazz things up a bit. And I think I may have found someone.”
“And…” Kyla prodded.
“Well, he’s smokin’ hot, a little mysterious, and single.”
“But can he cook?” asked Lily, grinning.
Kyla laughed, “Possibly that doesn’t matter!”
Lily blushed, “Oh right, right.”
“Not so fast, you two. It happens he’s Cordon Bleu trained and apprenticed at a three-star Michelin restaurant in Spain. And he’s currently the executive chef at the Grand Hotel in Seattle.”
“So why would he want to come here to such an isolated place like Madrona Island?” Kyla asked. “Your café, as wonderful as it is, is not exactly an upwardly mobile career move for a guy like him.”
Jude sighed. “That’s the question I’m trying to get answered before I make up my mind to hire him and tell Karen. He says he just wants a change. Maybe you could do a tea leaf reading for me, Kyla, help me figure this out?”
“You do tea leaf readings?” Lily asked with surprise.
“For some people I do. I would do it for you if you wanted one.”
Jude clapped her hands. “Yes, Lily, you have to try one.”
Lily paused. “I’ll think about it. You know, possibly the chef just wants a change of scenery, a fresh start somewhere new…like me.”
Both women stared intently at Lily, waiting for her to reveal more. Lily warmed her hands on the porcelain mug. “As you know, Jude, I left my marriage to Brad. I guess you could call him an arrogant, overbearing, self-centered jerk.”
“That’s letting it all out, Lily,” Jude said, nodding her head in approval.
Lily paused and smiled. It was nice to have girlfriends she could talk to and not have to always be the “nice girl,” overwhelmed by Brad telling her day and night what to do, what to wear, what to say, how to act. She continued, “Unfortunately, Brad doesn’t like to lose his possessions, and I was his prized possession–he’s making it extremely difficult for me to negotiate a divorce and a fair settlement.”
Kyla leveled her green-eyed gaze on Lily, then spoke softly. “Is he threatening you?”
“Not exactly, not yet, anyway. Just lying, withholding money, manipulating everything to try to force me to come back.”
“That’s more than enough threat.” Jude shook her head sadly.
“Stay true to yourself, Lily,” Kyla said. “True freedom always has a price, but it is so worth it.”
Lily looked into Kyla’s piercing green eyes. Shadows of grief played along the dark-rimmed edges, and it occurred to her that the cost of Kyla’s own freedom, whatever that was, still weighed heavily upon her. Lily’s heart went out to her. She wished this woman would open up to her, just a little more.
Jude went to get the coffee pot. “Okay, let’s lighten up, ladies. Ex-husbands and their wonderful attributes and charades can be quite amusing viewed from a distance.”
She refilled their cups with coffee and Kahlua, then relaxed into the plush sofa. “Take my ex. He marries me, promises eternal love, then, when our daughter is just three years old, he freaks out and starts whining about wanting his freedom. And you know how I found out he meant what he said…in the headlines of our local newspaper!”
“What, you’re kidding!” chimed Lily and Kyla.
“No, ‘Mr. I–want-out’ was cheating on me with the young and gorgeous wife of our neighbor. The two lovebirds took our boat out in the lake, got drunk, got in an accident, and almost killed someone.”
“That’s how you found out? How humiliating!” said Lily. “At least I found out in the privacy of my own home when I found over a hundred racy text messages on my husband’s phone to a gorgeous blonde. Pictures too!”
Jude raised an eyebrow. “Not too discreet, that soon-to-be-ex of yours.” She continued, “Well, I divorced mine, and he took off with the neighbor’s wife to who knows where and never paid a dime of child support. But I got him good.”
A sly grin crossed Kyla’s face. “Tell us more.”
“I went to court and put a lien on his assets for the child support. Quite a bundle had accumulated over the years, and when his last living relative, his mother, passed away, his inheritance was attached. It was a tidy sum, just enough to send my daughter, Lindsay, to college.”
“Wow,” Lily said. “Where’s your daughter now?”
“She’s finishing up her business degree at Duke. I’m very proud of her.”
Jude and Lily turned their attention to Kyla. “Your turn,” they said in unison.
Kyla’s eyes darted around the room nervously, resting on the front door then back again to the floor beneath her. “I guess it’s not too hard to guess from my looks, but my mother and grandmother were both Irish. They were gypsies, of sorts, and healers. The authentic kind from a long family line.”
“Really!” they both said.
“When I was growing up, we had medicinal herbs growing in our backyard, from lavender to garlic. The windowsills were filled with mint and sage in rainbow colors. People would line up at our door to wait for an appointment to get help with their various ills–arthritis, indigestion, impotence, insomnia–there wasn’t much my family didn’t have a natural remedy for.”
“And now you own Tea & Comfort. It’s perfect,” said Lily. “Turning your heritage into a successful business.”
Kyla looked at Lily. “I do love my work now, but in high school I was so embarrassed by my family that I never brought anyone home. I was always alone and wanted to escape to a different world, one where I would fit in.”
Jude prodded, “So, what did you do before you came to the island?”
Kyla took a deep breath; her eyes distant, obviously filled with a memory somewhere far away. “Suffice to say, it was the complete opposite of my life now, but that’s a long story I’ll save for another night.”
“Oh, c’mon,” said Jude. “I always tell you everything.”
“That’s just your way, Jude, not mine.”
Kyla folded her arms across her chest and leaned back. She was finished talking.
Jude broke the silence. “Are you ladies ready for sleep, or would you prefer a quick batch of fudge brownies?”
“Brownies!” Lily said, rising from her chair. “I’ll even help make them. Where’s the flour and …?”
“Whoa,” said Jude. “I have a box of brownie mix that I throw a few eggs and water into and we’ll have some chewy treats in no time.”
“I can see this is going to be an all-nighter.” Lily followed Jude into the kitchen; she didn’t feel much like sleeping anyway.
Chapter Eighteen
Ian looked out the back door window and craned his head to see if Lily’s car was coming down her drive yet. Where the heck was she
? It was almost eleven o’clock in the morning. Obviously, she had not come home last night. Flashes of a car accident set his heart racing. Not another Denise. His breath came faster, and he needed to sit down. A warm hand took his arm and guided him to the couch.
“I know what you’re thinking son, and I’m sure she’s fine.” His grandfather guided him to a chair and took a seat across from him at the kitchen table. “She probably stayed in town with Jude. Good idea, too, with all the wine drinking going on at those openings.”
Ian looked into his grandfather’s eyes and felt a calmness settling in. “You’re right, we would have heard if anything went wrong. I just don’t like her not coming home or calling…” He stopped himself abruptly, amazed by what he had just said. She didn’t owe him a call. She really didn’t owe him anything at all. And yet he already felt so attached. Ian pushed himself from the chair and started for the door. “You’re right, Gramps, thanks for the reminder. I think I’ll go out to the studio and get some painting done.”
“Hold on, Ian. How about we talk a bit, have some coffee?”
“You always could see right through me. Am I that obvious?”
Ian held fast at the door. He wanted to run out to the old barn that held his studio, bury himself in his work, drown out the feelings that fought to resurface from the depths where he had banished them after his wife’s death. John laughed. “I’m afraid when it comes to women, the men in this family fall pretty hard, once they finally fall. And Lily is the kind of woman who comes along very rarely.”
Ian started a fresh pot of coffee, then joined his grandfather in the den. “The timing is just so bad. She’s not even divorced yet. I don’t want to scare her off.” Ian remembered the look in Lily’s eyes when he’d moved in for a kiss. It looked a lot like terror. That soon-to-be-ex-husband of hers must have really caused some damage.
John nodded his head in agreement. “Sometimes you just have to stand firm with your feelings, be patient, and let the tide turn toward you. Fear can be contagious, you know.”
