Spring Fever Page 5

  “You know she could be busy with the company, or her kids, or preparing food for more than half a dozen people.”

  That elicited a small smile from Callie. “Everyone knows that even when it’s technically me in charge, it’s still you who did all the work.”

  “Not all of it. You paid for the fancy salmon and champagne.”

  Callie turned to her, leaning into her embrace. “I know a lot happened in this year, and we won’t always have the time, but this is important. I want to celebrate each day with you.”

  “I know. I want that too.”

  It bewildered her to think about how awful some people could be, how miserable to make it their life’s achievement to destroy other people’s happiness—even a child’s. Rebecca had made her own mistakes, but for those people, she had neither patience nor respect. The doorbell interrupted her musings. “’I’ll go. You just have to open the champagne.”

  Callie shook her head, laughing. “I can’t believe you guys have been doing this for years, drinking on a Saturday morning.”

  “As you said, there’s always something to celebrate.”

  Rebecca went to open the door to Francine and Roz, who chatted about the impending opening day of Roz’s café. Delia waved from across the street where she was about to lock her front door.

  It was nice to have a full house again, now that most of the drama lay behind them—the house sale, and Betty’s wavering stance on a lesbian writer in the neighborhood. It didn’t matter how many reproachful looks Father Reynolds would cast her in church. These women were on her side…and Callie’s. Knowing she could rely on them made Rebecca’s life a lot easier.

  The last car to arrive was a white Pontiac—the other new woman. She waited for Betty to exit on the passenger side. She wore a long dress, her sandy-blonde hair going to her shoulders.

  “Why don’t you go in,” Rebecca said. “You know the way.”

  Roz held up the box she was carrying. “I hope I brought enough. This is the last time you all get them for free.”

  Rebecca waited until Betty and her new friend had arrived, and Betty introduced them. “Rebecca, meet Andy. Her husband and Charles are working together.”

  “Nice to meet you.” Rebecca shook the woman’s hand. Andy gave her a bright smile. “Welcome to the inner circle. I’m sure Betty told you all about the initiation rituals.”

  Andy’s eyes went wide for a moment. “Rebecca has her own sense of humor,” Betty said. “You gotta love it.”

  Inside, she introduced Andy to the other women. Most of them knew Delia, who had lived in Rebecca’s old home for a few months now. They were reluctant to let new people into their group, mostly because they still missed Maria so badly. Craig’s wife had died in a car accident last November. She’d held them together through many a crisis and difference of opinion.

  If they had learned anything, it was the lesson that life was too short not to value friendship—the old ones, and the new ones.

  “Betty, I wanted to thank you again for that fabulous dinner,” Andy said. “Eric and I both loved it. We had a great time.”

  “I’m glad,” Betty murmured, embarrassed.

  “Especially since I knew I was coming here. It was good to meet most of you before.” She laughed a little. “Groups like this have always made me a little nervous, even the nice ones.”

  Rebecca wondered why Andy was making such a big deal out of it. She didn’t expect Betty to invite her and Callie over every single time, especially when the occasion was related to Charles’s work.

  “It was just for the married folks,” Roz attempted to help her out. “I wasn’t invited either.”

  Betty’s face reddened. “You said you were busy with…”

  “I was. It’s fine,” Roz assured her.

  “I wanted to call you.” Betty turned to Rebecca. “Charles had already invited David, so—they’re still friends.”

  “I see. I can imagine how that would be awkward. Don’t worry about it, Betty.”

  Andy had followed the conversation with interest. “It was the same for me when I first separated from my husband—an impossible situation for my friends. I am so grateful we made it through all of that.”

  “Well, I for one don’t care about awkward,” Roz said. “When we open up in two weeks, I want you to bring everyone—ex, current, your neighbor’s kids, whoever you can grab. Jamie and I need this to be a success. We’re in it with everything we own.”

  Rebecca caught Callie’s thoughtful look as she studied the women’s interactions, making her smile. Even though Callie tended to deny it, she was surely tempted to file away certain moments for future reference in one of her novels.

  “We’ll be there,” Rebecca promised. “I also left a flyer with the girls in Marin County.”

  “That’s awesome, thank you. How is that going?” Roz asked, curious. “You haven’t told us a lot about it yet.”

  That’s because I didn’t plan to… “Good, I guess.” Rebecca had decided very early that she didn’t want to bring the conversation from Marin County to this group, mostly because it concerned other people whose only safe place was there—like Sara and Cathy. Mona was the most relaxed person Rebecca had ever met, and she probably couldn’t care less. Still…

  She was saved by the return of her daughters, who carried a couple of bags each. Rebecca guessed clothes for Dina, books for Maggie. They had their priorities straight, no doubt about it.

  Dina stopped to say hi while Maggie fled the scene immediately. Rebecca got up to join her older daughter in the kitchen. “Everything okay?”

  Dina shrugged. “She was fine until now. Maggie’s just shy, especially since…you know.”

  “Yeah. Did you meet anyone in town?”

  “Anyone who?” Dina regarded her intently before she stole a shrimp from one of the plates. “Relax, Mom. Maggie knows the person who told her all this crap is a joke. People might be a bit backwards here, but they don’t bother us. In fact, I think some of them are jealous of you. Anyway, Maggie just wants a moment with her books, without being bothered by adults. You know she always hides when you have people over.”

  “That’s right. Everything okay over at your place?”

  “Why are you asking?”

  Rebecca wasn’t sure either, but it still struck her as curious that David had left Barney with them. It might be for Maggie. At least their four-legged house guest adjusted to the new surroundings without further marking of the territory.

  “I don’t know…don’t get me wrong. I’m sure Susan is all right.”

  Like before, when the subject had come up, Dina avoided her gaze, fueling Rebecca’s suspicion. She sighed, looking up before she spoke. “Susan’s gone.”

  “Gone how?” Rebecca asked, confused.

  “What do you think? She went to visit her parents a couple of weeks before Maggie came, but it’s pretty obvious she’s not coming back. I don’t blame her.”

  “Why do you say that?”

  “She was all right. Is…I mean, we’re still friends on Facebook. She maybe got the feeling Dad wasn’t really into it. It’s complicated.”

  “Oh.” Rebecca was aware she should say a lot more than that. She could perhaps assure her daughter that she wasn’t expected to solve or even help solve all those adult conflicts. She could see now why David was so on edge, but there was no excuse taking it out on Callie.

  “I guess we’re supposed to keep Barney?”

  “I’m sure Maggie would be happy about that.”

  “I’m sure that’s one way to say you’re not really into walking him…”

  Dina giggled. “Go check on your guests, Mom. I’ll take these in the meantime.” She snatched a couple of cupcakes for her and Maggie, and she left before Rebecca could come up with an answer.

  She decided to follow her daughter’s advice—maybe the conversation had shifted to less awkward subjects in the meantime. Rebecca didn’t know how to feel about the fact that David and Susan had sep
arated, or Dina’s suggestion that he was never really into it. The phone rang, so she had to put these considerations aside. When she picked up, there was a moment of silence on the other end of the line.

  “I’m not sure if I have the right number. Is Callie there? This is Beth Murphy.”

  Oh boy. “Give me a moment. I’ll get her,” —and you better be nice to her.

  As much as Rebecca sympathized with the woman, from what she knew about her, she would not tolerate any more uninvited judgment…from anyone.

  * * * *

  “Callie? It’s for you.”

  Rebecca’s serious expression made it clear this was the phone call she’d obsessed about all week. Callie jumped to her feet, feeling wobbly, which had nothing to do with the glass of champagne she’d had.

  “It’ll be fine. She sounded nice,” Rebecca whispered as she passed her by, kissing her on the cheek. It was funny how this small display of affection could still bring all conversation in the room to a halt.

  The women’s voices faded into the background as Callie picked up the phone. “Hello?” This was the moment of truth. Her memory transported her right back into the high school classroom, the knot in her stomach and her rapid heartbeat the same as they had been back then. Damn those memories.

  “Hey,” the woman on the other end of the line said. “Melanie said you called. I’m sorry I didn’t get back to you until now, but I decided to go on a little trip. Callie, huh? You changed your name. Sounds hip.” She didn’t sound at all like the shy, sad girl Callie remembered.

  “Well…thank you,” she said and then nothing else.

  Beth waited. Callie grappled for something, anything to say as the moment turned awkward, bordering on embarrassing.

  “Look…I don’t know how to say this. I know it’s been a long time, and you probably barely remember me, but I wanted to apologize. I’m so sorry,” Callie blurted out, already feeling stupid. She resisted the urge to hang up, barely.

  “Wow.”

  “I shouldn’t have called. I’m sorry.”

  “Callie, wait! Of course I remember you.”

  Not in a good way, I’m sure.

  “I’m not sure how I can help you though.”

  Callie was painfully aware of how silly this whole setup was, bothering Beth with her own insecurities, because Nicole had threatened her; however, this was about more than that, wasn’t it?

  “I need to say this. I should have done this so much earlier, but whenever I think about that time, I can barely stand myself.”

  “Welcome to the club,” Beth said dryly.

  “I should have done something, anything…talked to an adult. I wanted you to know I’m aware I screwed this up.”

  “Whoa, wait a minute. You’re not thinking…”

  Callie’s silence was all the answer Beth needed. “Okay, listen for a moment. I’m not sure what to tell you. I prefer not to think about all of this too much these days, but I guess I appreciate that you care. About half of the class asked to be friends on Facebook, but no one had the guts to say anything about that time, which is fine with me too. For what it’s worth, I don’t think there’s anything you could have done.”

  “I wish I had tried. I was so afraid that—”

  “Oh, I know, and I don’t blame you. It’s funny, though, how that works. You’ve got to do something drastic before people realize they’re trampling on you, and sometimes, even that doesn’t work. Anyway…”

  “Thank you for listening.”

  “Hey, no problem, but I’ve got to go now. When you have time, why don’t you come by some time? We could have a coffee. Melanie would be thrilled too.” Beth laughed. “She’s been talking about little else since you called.”

  “Sure, I’d love to.”

  “Good. Let me know when you have time.”

  It was with mixed feelings that Callie hung up. Had this been too easy? Probably. She shook her head. Looking back at the past year, something should at least be this easy.

  Nicole was gone. She’d paid her dues. Thinking of her ex-girlfriend made Callie wonder if there was ever a moment when Nicole could have had the chance to talk to Maggie. Take a deep breath, Callie. At this point, she was probably overestimating Nicole’s Machiavellian skills.

  “How did it go?”

  Callie jumped at the sound of Rebecca’s voice behind her.

  “Okay, I guess. She didn’t seem to be mad at me.”

  She welcomed the embrace anyway, almost forgetting they still had guests to entertain.

  Chapter Four

  The weekend passed without incident, but come Monday, Maggie refused to go to her book club. She’d been in this group from her first year of elementary school and had never missed a meeting, except a couple of times when she was sick. Maggie loved the group. She’d returned after her abduction. Craig had shown up at the club meeting and pretended he’d drive her home. Not even the horror—driving around in a snowstorm with her, firing a gun in a hotel room, and scaring the hell out of everybody—had kept her away.

  Rebecca was certain he had answers for them, but at the moment, she was faced with a more urgent dilemma. Maggie had been through so much in her young life. She didn’t want to put any more pressure on her, but she needed to know who was causing her this much pain.

  She knew the parents of the seven girls and two boys who attended regularly. None of them had treated her any differently after the turbulent events in the past months—not that she could tell. Anyway, what kind of parent would use a child instead of saying whatever they felt was necessary to her face?

  “How about I call Amber and we all stay home tonight?”

  “You don’t have to,” Callie said. “We could rent a movie. We’ll find something to pass the time.”

  Maggie looked relieved. Not leaving her alone for a minute certainly wouldn’t help the case. Rebecca longed for those past times when her girls would tell her everything. Then again, had they ever? She ignored the mild flare of panic. “I probably should go. There’s some work I have to show Amber. Maybe I can steal away a little sooner.”

  “We’ll be fine, Mom. Go have your girls’ night out. Tsk,” Dina said. “On a school night.”

  “Funny.”

  Even Maggie laughed, and that convinced Rebecca they’d manage without her for a few hours. Callie made it through the conversation that had burdened her for so long. Later this week, Rebecca would make her visit to Craig and get as much information out of him as possible. They’d go from there.

  * * * *

  “Rebecca! I’m so glad to see you!”

  Almost at the front door, Rebecca stopped so Andy could catch up with her. She understood Andy was trying to make friends in the new town but was surprised to see her here in Marin County, at Amber Cole’s house of all places.

  “Thanks,” Andy said breathlessly. “I didn’t want to be late, so I sat in the car for almost half an hour, waiting for someone to go in with me. This is why I hate moving—it comes with a lot of firsts.”

  “Well, I think you’re almost done with those.” Rebecca made small talk, still not understanding. Andy had mentioned her husband before. Were they about to split? Not that it was any of her business, but she assumed she’d find out.

  “Thank God. You have all been in Autumn Leaves for a long time, Betty told me. I hope Eric and I are done with roaming around the country.”

  Rebecca wasn’t sure what to say to that, if anything, but she didn’t have to as Amber opened the door to them.

  “Good evening. Come on in! I’m glad you’re here. I was afraid I’d have to cancel on you, but finally, Sara and Mona are here. Cathy had to work, and the rest of us are still enjoying Spring Break. Andy, I see you’ve already met Rebecca. Welcome.”

  “Oh, yes. We know each other. I’m thrilled to be here.”

  Rebecca didn’t feel the need to correct her for insinuating that they had met more than once before. Making friends in a new town could be stressful, and she had more urgent
matters on her mind.

  If Amber thought it was okay for Andy to be here, it probably was.

  * * * *

  It hadn’t been that long ago when Rebecca was the one to introduce herself in the middle of the school year. They were about twelve. A couple of them didn’t return, others weren’t present at the moment. Andy was confronted with a smaller group tonight, though Rebecca still hadn’t figured out what the woman was doing here in the first place. Andy was married. Then again, Rebecca was once too. Things didn’t always happen in a neat order.

  “Thanks for having me tonight,” Andy began. “I asked my minister about volunteer work, and he recommended this group to me, so…I’m looking forward to getting to know all of you.”

  Confused, the group turned to look at her, frowning as they tried to understand the reason for her presence.

  “Father Reynolds?”

  It wasn’t until Andy confirmed it that Rebecca realized she’d said his name out loud. Wasn’t he done pulling strings behind the scenes?

  “That is…a bit odd.” Amber’s assessment was diplomatic. “Did he tell you what exactly this group is about? We talked about doing a fund-raiser at some point, but at the moment, this is mostly about conversation and a safe space.”

  “Oh, yes. I know. This is why I’m here too. I know you’re all trying…and I want to share my own experience. I once thought there was no way out of this but I found it. I’m happily married now.”

  “Oh boy,” Mona said. Sara muttered, “Congratulations.” She added another word that Rebecca didn’t understand. She had her suspicions though.

  She also understood the connection between Andy and Father Reynolds, who favored a cure for something that wasn’t an illness in the first place. He’d tried to convince Rebecca that she should go into therapy, without success. It seemed he had found someone more willing in Andy.

  “I want to be very clear on this, Andy,” Amber said into the tense silence. “We don’t turn anyone away. Everyone is welcome to share their story, wherever it may lead in the end. We’re all different, and that’s okay. What’s required here is that all of us respect these differences.”