All the Right Mistakes

by Laura Jamison

  “Hope,” he said.

  “Hope Adams West,” she reminded him.

  “Well, at least Hope was Mildred’s middle name,” he joked. “Hey, we should turn back soon if we are going to make dinner.”

  “I guess,” said Martha, “but can we just walk until we can see the tower a little closer?”

  “Okay,” Robert agreed. “Remind me, where did you make reservations?”

  “That place at the top of the Pompidou. I thought the boys would find the whole ‘inside out’ thing fun. I also wouldn’t mind seeing their modern art collection.”

  “That sounds good. I’m a little nervous to tell them about Hope.”

  “Me, too, but I think they will be excited.”

  “I bet your friends are excited for you.”

  “I haven’t really had time to talk much to them,” replied Martha. She hadn’t told Robert the whole sordid tale of Heather. She just didn’t want to get into all the drama with him.

  “I’m sure when she’s here, you won’t be able to beat them off,” said Robert pleasantly.

  “I’m sure you’re right,” said Martha, but of course she wasn’t sure at all.

  She and Carmen still talked, of course; their bond would not be ruined by Heather, but after what happened, their conversations had been much less frequent and strained. And Carmen was busy. She had her new man, Paul, for one. And she was going to school. Also, Carmen and Elizabeth seemed to be spending more time together now, and Martha studiously avoided any interaction where there was any chance of Sara or Elizabeth being around, including Carmen’s big holiday party. And just like that she felt a familiar pain in her chest. She missed her friends. She had been wrong. They were family.

  SARA

  They had arrived at Disney World on Saturday, and it was their third day in the parks. The younger kids had wanted to return to the Magic Kingdom over the strong objection of Tommy, who wanted to get over to Hollywood Studios for the new Star Wars attractions. Sara had decided to let the little ones win, so they were now standing in line at the Dumbo ride. Emma was practically buzzing with excitement.

  Sara had a love-hate relationship with Disney World. This was their fourth time since starting their family over ten years ago. It was hard not to admire the incredible amount of effort and creativity Disney put into making the spot the happiest place on Earth. On the other hand, keeping six people happy and on track in a place like Disney was next to impossible. She was pretty sure that if she took just one child at a time for an individualized Disney experience, it would indeed be pure magic.

  For now, though, she had a teen staring down at his phone in annoyance, a little one almost asleep in his stroller, and a husband who looked like he would rather be anywhere but in line next to the flying elephants. Sara decided that they should return to the Poly after the ride for pool time and a nap for Mikey. That would make everyone happy, even if it was a bit on the chilly side to be swimming.

  “This is the last time,” said Scott softly in her ear, in a slightly menacing tone.

  “Yes, it probably is,” Sara quietly scolded him, “so let’s enjoy it and have a magical day.”

  Scott rolled his eyes in reply.

  She hated to think Scott might be right. Even though these trips were exhausting, she intended to make the most of it because she didn’t know if she would be able to interest him in coming back. Not that she wasn’t giving it her all. In the past, they had stayed off-property to do the trip more cheaply. This time, Sara was making the big bucks and feeling guilty that she had been spending so much time away from the family. The net result of all of this was that they were staying in one of the luxury lagoon villas for a full week of high-end togetherness.

  As the line wound back and forth endlessly (they had blown their FastPasses earlier in the day), Sara decided to join her oldest and pulled out her own device.

  She scrolled through her messages and saw that she had received an e-mail from her old boss earlier that morning.

  She opened the e-mail.

  Sara,

  I’ve heard from our COO how successful you are in the new position. I’m not surprised, of course. I knew you had it in you.

  Right, thought Sara, that’s why you put me on the fast track, buddy.

  It seems to me that you have gotten everything set for them over there. I haven’t told John yet, but I want you back. Like yesterday. It’s a mess without you, and I can’t keep up. You’re an attorney, and you should be in legal. I’m sure your boss can find another ops guy to replace you. Also, I’ve had to fire the attorney we brought in to take over for you. That man asked me about thirty questions a day. I couldn’t get a damn thing done.

  This e-mail’s getting good, she thought.

  On to brass tacks. I can’t pay you what they are paying you. Legal doesn’t have the budget of ops. But I think I can do 1.3 times your old salary. Let me know if you are interested.

  Wow. This was incredibly validating, but she wasn’t sure she wanted to go back. She was kind of a rock star now, and it actually felt really good (just like Heather said it would). She didn’t want to divert back to the mommy track just yet. But then she looked down at Nathan’s slim little arm that had been put in a cast when she was in India, and she felt a pang of regret. The cast was gone, but the memory would linger.

  She would talk about it with Scott tonight. Tommy had agreed to oversee a movie pizza party in their villa while Scott and Sara had a date night. Maybe having a teen wasn’t so bad after all.

  HEATHER

  From Heather Hall’s Twitter

  Heather Hall @therealheatherhall · March 29

  The truest wisdom is a resolute determination #favoritequotes #Frenchwisdom #napoleonbonaparte

  ← Reply Retweet ♥ Favorite ··· More

  ELIZABETH

  Elizabeth was back at her desk bright and early on Wednesday.

  Unlike Martha and Sara, she had wanted to keep things simple for spring break. And, truth be told, she didn’t want the headache associated with a longer vacation. She and William were planning to head up to one of the big indoor water park resorts in the Wisconsin Dells tomorrow for a long weekend before school started again next week. It wasn’t Florida, but the snowy wilderness was equally enjoyable in Elizabeth’s opinion. And who didn’t get excited about the world’s longest indoor water slide?

  Her phone rang and she answered, seeing it was her husband.

  “Hey, honey,” she said.

  “Did you book the regular cabin or the one with the theater room?” asked William.

  “Theater room,” replied Elizabeth.

  “Awesome, because George and I agreed that we need to watch all the Star Wars episodes in order. But do we start with four or one? We can’t decide.”

  “Uh-huh.” Elizabeth laughed. “I’m sure George is an expert on that. Look, I have to run. I’m trying to wrap things up here, and I promise I’ll help you pack when I get home. But I’ve got to tell you, George told me last night that he was really interested in watching Steel Magnolias.”

  “Maybe we put George to bed and watch something else,” teased William.

  “I’m at work, babe,” Elizabeth said, but she couldn’t help smiling.

  Elizabeth sighed as she turned back to her desk. She really wasn’t in the mood to get started on her actual work, so she decided to try to warm up her brain by reading the business journal.

  She grabbed the paper and started on the top of A1. The lead story read, “Department of Labor and EEOC Open Joint Investigation into FLASH’s Labor Practices.” Not great, thought Elizabeth, remembering the comment Heather had made about labor issues when they had talked in Colorado.

  Everyone on the planet knew that FLASH had gradually been working toward faster and faster delivery. They were famous for it. According to the news article, the speedy delivery FLASH promised wasn’t just costing its customers. It employees paid the price, too, in exhaustion and stress. The article painted a pretty dismal picture
of their workplace. The paper reported that the DOL and EEOC were launching companion probes into the company’s hiring practices and their compliance with a multitude of labor laws, particularly wage and hour laws.

  Elizabeth actually laughed out loud at one of the quotes the paper had gotten from an anonymous FLASH employee who alleged that he had “epic burnout” and that when he asked for some flexibility he was told to work “the one hundred hours of his choice” during the week. That’s a familiar sentiment, she thought.

  Not great for Heather, though. Whatever, I’m sure she will have a plan for that too.

  Out of curiosity, she checked the stock price and noted that FLASH had taken a 15 percent hit already. Ouch. Elizabeth remembered Heather telling her and the other girls a few years ago that she would never sell her shares in FLASH because it was “a rocket ship” and she wasn’t going to bail “before they got to the moon.” Elizabeth hoped she had gotten smart and diversified.

  Elizabeth would never have wished this on Heather, but at the same time, she felt a quiet satisfaction knowing that Heather was getting at least a little bit of her karmic due.

  After finishing the last piece of her work, Elizabeth sighed with satisfaction and got ready to check off the last item on her to-do list. It was a good one, and she had been saving it as her reward for finishing the long day of work.

  CARMEN

  Carmen was sitting on one of the hotel’s beautiful decks enjoying the ocean when the phone rang.

  “Hey, Elizabeth,” she answered.

  “Hi, Carmen,” Elizabeth replied. “How’s the trip?”

  “It’s gorgeous out here.”

  “And Paul?”

  “Also gorgeous.” Carmen giggled.

  “I’m calling with some good news,” said Elizabeth.

  “Good, because I could use some.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “Nothing, really. It’s just that Paul asked me to marry him, and I said no, and now it’s like it didn’t even happen.”

  “What? Start over. Why did you say no?”

  “I need to be by myself for a while, Elizabeth. I don’t even know who I am yet.”

  “I understand,” said Elizabeth quietly. “I’m sorry.”

  “Don’t be sorry. It’s not sad. It’s not like he dumped me or anything. I just need some time to sort things out. You know, I have so many ideas for our business. I’ve been reading all about law-firm management. Timekeeping, billing, compensation methods . . .”

  “Stop!” Elizabeth laughed. “We have plenty of time to figure this out, and I’m thinking that we shouldn’t really get going until January anyway.”

  “Oh, why is that?” asked Carmen. “You don’t think I’ll be ready?”

  “No, it’s not you,” Elizabeth assured her. “That’s my happy news. Carmen, we’re having a baby.”

  Carmen starting whooping into the phone, and a couple a few tables over looked at her in concern.

  “Sorry, but my friend is having my baby,” she explained. “I mean, her baby. Never mind.”

  She said back in the phone, “Are you sure you’ll be ready by January to launch?”

  “Oh yeah, I’ve got you in my corner, so I know it will get done,” replied Elizabeth. “Hey, I’ve got to go. I promised William I would get home and help him pack.”

  “Don’t go down any waterslides,” admonished Carmen.

  “Okay, Mom,” replied Elizabeth.

  Carmen smiled as she pressed “end” and relaxed back into her chair. She was going to stop worrying. She had a great guy, and, married or not, she was going to stand on her own two feet.

  MARTHA

  The boys had taken the news remarkably well. It never failed to amaze her how resilient and open children were—they had so much more to teach their parents than their parents had to teach them.

  They had gotten a rare, sunny day for March, and they decided to spend it at Versailles. Martha had hired a private guide, and so far, he had been worth every penny.

  The guide had held the boys’ attention through room after room of the country palace, regaling them with stories of its famous royal inhabitants. Just when their attention had started to wane, the guide announced that they were ready for their tour of the gardens. Minutes before they began that part of the tour, the fountains turned on. The vast expanse of symmetrical rows of hedges and trees were now punctuated by dancing water. It was one of those magical moments that no one had anticipated. The boys cheered with glee as the guide announced, “The fountains will be on for only one hour. Let’s see how many we can find!”

  As they jogged through the seemingly endless maze that encompassed the two-thousand-acre spread, their guide shouted out the name of every hidden garden, fountain, and statue. At the end of the hour, they had slowed their pace and were at the last of the fountains they would see for the day.

  It was the Fountain of Flora, an allegory of spring. The fountain features the goddess Flora sitting among her cherubs, all sculpted in gold.

  While the guide detailed the history of the fountain, Martha saw that Jack was standing quietly to the side looking closely at one of the cherubs. Martha walked over to stand beside him.

  “Mommy, do you think that is what Lucy looks like now?”

  Martha’s breath caught in her throat.

  “Yes, I think so, honey. But probably more beautiful, though, don’t you think?”

  “If she’s really an angel now, she will watch over Hope until she can come for her surgery, right, Mommy?”

  “Of course she will, honey.”

  “What if Hope dies too?”

  He had verbalized the thought that had taken up permanent residence in the darkest corner of her heart.

  “That might happen, Jack. Hope’s heart needs repair, and sometimes the repair doesn’t work. Your daddy is going to make sure she has the best surgeons in the country working on her, I can promise you that. But only God can decide the outcome.” Carmen would be so proud of me, she thought wryly.

  “So God wanted Lucy to come be with him?” Jack asked.

  “Yes, he did. And when it’s our turn, we’ll meet her again,” said Martha.

  “Cool! I’m going to tell her all about these gardens. They’re wicked awesome!” And with that, Jack ran over and started a game of tag with his brother.

  Martha chuckled as she watched Jack sprint away. “Wicked awesome”?—he must have picked that up from a phone call with his cousins in Boston.

  Yes, thought Martha again, the kids are okay.

  SARA

  Sara and Scott had chosen to go to one of the few adults-only restaurants in the resort.

  Sara was zipping up her little black dress in the villa. She hadn’t dressed for dinner in ages. She was pleased to notice that her go-to dress was substantially looser than it had been the last time she wore it. She might have actually lost some of the baby weight that had been dogging her for the last several years. She had been so busy that she hadn’t even noticed.

  “Ready to go, hon?” Scott asked as he poked his head into the bathroom. “Hey, hot mama! You’re looking great.”

  “Thanks,” said Sara, genuinely pleased and making a note to get her skinny jeans out of storage when they got home.

  After a less-than-romantic monorail excursion with sweaty families slumped over strollers, Sara and Scott were seated at a corner table in the quiet and softly lit restaurant.

  “God, the silence is blissful, isn’t it?” said Scott with a happy sigh.

  “C’mon, it hasn’t been that bad!” Sara laughed.

  “Speak for yourself,” replied Scott, but this time with a smile.

  I was right, Sara thought. This vacation was just what the doctor ordered.

  “I got an amusing e-mail today,” she said to Scott as their first course arrived.

  “Oh, yeah, what was that?”

  “My old boss wants me back. He apparently can’t live without me.”

  “Huh. What did you say?�
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  “Well, I haven’t said anything yet. But I’m not going to take the bait. He said he could only pay me at 1.3 times my old salary. I mean, please. I’m not giving up the money I’m making now.”

  “Sara,” said Scott quietly, “I think we should seriously discuss his offer.”

  “Why?” Sara asked. “We need the bigger salary. Case closed.”

  “No, it’s not case closed. In case you haven’t noticed, the last six months have been really hard for me. I’ve been trying to get my consulting business going while keeping up with your crazy demands in that stupid task tracker.”

  “What are you talking about? You don’t have to get up and go to work every day. And the baby goes to day care. Seriously, what’s the problem?”

  “Sara, even with the kids at school and day care, I can’t keep up. I have three projects I’m working on, but I barely have a five-hour stretch to devote to them because I have to pick the older kids up at three and then go back and forth to the day care. Then I have to make dinner, do dishes, and put everyone to bed. And that’s on an easy day where there are no sports practices, no laundry, no volunteering at the school, no puking, and no random drama. So when I refuse to polish the silver, that’s why. I have dreams, too, you know. I want to have a successful business. Something that belongs to me and that I control. I’m happy to help at home, but not at the rate I’m going now.”

  After an uncomfortable silence, Scott continued, “Sara, when you were in your old job, we split the burden. Life was busy, but I didn’t feel like I was drowning.”

  “You know why that was, Scott? It was because I was the one doing the drowning, and you were the one shining at work. And now you know what it feels like,” she argued back. “Maybe this is my turn to be the star at work.”

  Several beats passed between them.

  “Sara, look, I know I should have been doing more in the past. I get it now. I hate that stupid tracker, but it did make me understand how much you quietly got done before. But I also think you were doing a bunch of stuff that is unnecessary. And I do plenty that’s not on your list. There is a middle ground here where we both share the work—the important work, not the stupid stuff like polishing silver—so that we can both be professionally successful and have time for the kids too. People do it all the time.”