by Robyn Carr
“I have a few minutes to talk,” he said. “What brings you to Half Moon Bay?”
She smiled. “I grew up here. My sister still lives in the house we grew up in. I’ve been gone about twenty years.”
He leaned a hip on one of two desks in the front of the office. “Almost exactly as long as I’ve been here. Where have you been working?”
She opened her briefcase and pulled out a copy of her résumé. “Over twenty years with the same software manufacturer in San Jose, corporate law, some of that time as general counsel. Given the size of the company and number of employees, I handled some human resources issues. I’m recently divorced, and now that I don’t have to concern myself with supporting a nonworking spouse, I’m looking for a slower pace. I have two daughters, sixteen and seventeen. They both drive. I resigned from Sharper Dynamic.”
His eyes lit up. “There’s been talk of a takeover,” he said.
“Actually, there’s a merger,” she said. “There will be some reshuffling internally. It was an ideal time to move on.”
“I have a lot of questions for you,” he said. “You will undoubtedly have some for me. Why don’t we meet tomorrow, if you’re free. My afternoon looks good. Two o’clock?”
“Excellent. I can’t wait.”
Chapter Ten
The month of June became a month of huge changes for both Adele and Justine. Justine took an associate’s position in the law office of Sam Gillespie just a few blocks from Adele’s house. Justine explained to Addie that Sam wanted to wind down his hours a bit. He’d gotten three kids through college, he was in his late fifties and his wife, Maddy, was a professor at Berkeley. He had no plans to retire, but he and Maddy wanted to travel a little more, spend some time with their kids and two grandchildren and spend less time in the office.
“Sam said he’d begun to despair of ever finding a mature, experienced attorney interested in such a small storefront legal firm. The term experienced should be used loosely. I don’t have much by way of small town lawyering, but Sam said he looks forward to showing me the ropes.”
Justine was commuting from San Jose because the girls were there. She was spending her days in Half Moon Bay while Adele was at the college working. Sometimes they’d have an early dinner together. Justine was getting settled into the neighborhood law office. and she was still staying at her friend Jean’s house in San Jose when it was Scott’s night with the girls.
After working in Half Moon Bay for two weeks, she texted Scott.
Sharper Dynamic downsized again and I left the company. I’ve accepted a position at the law office of Sam Gillespie in Half Moon Bay. I will be commuting to work from San Jose and keeping close tabs on the girls as usual. There’s no need to change our schedule.
Amber and Olivia shared a car, and there were times they drove down to Half Moon Bay to have dinner with Adele and Justine. In all the years they’d all lived in this close proximity, they’d never had so much togetherness or such fun.
Adele couldn’t help but notice that Justine was changing; she had always been confident but now she was also calm and self-assured. It was just a slight change. She was a friendlier, happier person.
“Is it possible you weren’t entirely happy with Scott?” Adele asked her while they were preparing dinner one night. “Because you’re more fun now. You seem better than ever.”
“I was happy,” Justine said. “I loved Scott. But there was a lot of pressure. I had a serious job and a husband and two busy girls to think about. I was keeping a lot of balls in the air, constantly afraid to drop the glass ball, never knowing which one it was. Scott wasn’t under any pressure. I think the girls have experienced real stress and pressure for the first time with our divorce. They’ve had a few meltdowns but they’re doing so well. Don’t you think?”
“You’re all doing well,” Addie said. “There’s one thing. The girls don’t seem that interested in their dad these days. They hardly talk about him.”
“He comes with baggage now,” Justine said. “He’s been pressuring them to meet the girlfriend. He asks them every week. And since they won’t do it, he’s spending more time away from home, away from the girls. I can’t believe I’m saying this but mark my words—he’s going to give up his daughters. I’ve noticed that he doesn’t get home to the girls as he should. He misses dinner with them most nights, gets home late, leaves early. That’s why I’m staying close. I check in with them constantly. If Scott isn’t going to be home for dinner, I bring them something or take them out. I’ve stocked the freezer with easy microwavable meals.”
“Isn’t he hanging out with them on the weekends?” Adele asked.
“They took a long bike ride together three weeks ago or so, but I haven’t heard of anything else. He says he’s working. You’ll never guess where...”
“I know where,” Addie said. “The kayak shack. I see his car there almost every day. I walk a little out of my way to check because I just can’t stand it. I can’t believe he can abandon his family like he has.” She snapped her fingers. “So fast, so easy.”
“It hasn’t been easy in my heart,” Justine said. “But the last couple of weeks have been great. Sam Gillespie’s practice is like the fantasy I’ve been having for about ten years. In fact, the whole town is like a fantasy. Of course I didn’t appreciate it when I was young, but after twenty years in Silicon Valley, this is paradise. Have you noticed that no one honks at a stoplight? The only people I see rushing are young mothers trying to get their kids to school on time. It took one week for everyone in the market and on most of Main Street to know me by name. When I start living in the area, after the girls are gone and the house can be sold, I’m going to spend a lot more time walking that beach.”
“You know there’s a guest room here. No bed or dresser yet, but we could take care of that,” Addie said.
“For now I like being either with the girls or only a couple of blocks away,” Justine said.
“I can understand that,” Addie said. “And...we’ve never lived together.”
“Maybe we never will,” Justine said.
“I hope we do,” Adele said. “I hope we at least have sleepovers.”
It had been a long time since all the bedrooms in Adele’s house had been used. When Justine went to college, she commuted at first. When she left home, she took her bedroom furniture with her mother’s blessing—it was pretty old, after all. Adele’s mother’s furniture, by the end, had been functional hospital furniture. It was gone within days of her passing.
Adele started looking online for bedroom furniture and within two weeks had found a bed and dresser at a very reasonable price. She went and looked at it, bought it and had it delivered. Two days after showing it to her sister, Justine decided to spend the night. “Just this one night,” she said. “I don’t want to get in your way.”
“You’re not in the way, Justine. You help a lot.”
It was true. Justine was a neat freak and tidied up constantly. She loved to go to the market and get fresh food—much fresher and better quality than the chain supermarket she’d been using for years. And Justine’s new job was so close. By July Justine had settled into one of the upstairs bedrooms with the used bedroom furniture and new mattress that Adele had purchased.
Half Moon Bay had a fantastic beach, and Scott had proven himself to be very inadequate about spending time with his daughters. He was working! Thank God they weren’t young and could take pretty good care of themselves. The combination of Scott’s delinquency and the draw of the beach saw Adele’s nieces coming to Half Moon Bay when their summer job schedules allowed. At first they came for the day and stayed for dinner, then they brought blow-up mattresses with sheets and blankets from home and duffels holding their clothes and stayed overnight. July saw the three of them, Justine, Amber and Olivia, at Adele’s more often than in San Jose. Instead of Justine going to San Jose to spend nights with
her daughters, they were coming to her. They tried to arrange their work schedules for the same days and would drive back to San Jose together, returning to Half Moon Bay at the end of the day.
Scott was relieved of his parenting duties by his daughters who would rather be with their mother and aunt.
Finally in August, Olivia ran into Scott at a beach bar. She was getting herself a drink while he was ordering a couple of sandwiches. She looked around carefully before she said, “Hey, Dad.”
He started. “Olivia! What are you doing here?”
“I’ve been reading on the beach the last couple of hours and now I’m walking back to Aunt Addie’s house.”
“Why didn’t you tell me you’d be in town?” he asked.
She shrugged. “Because you said you were busy working at your girlfriend’s business.”
“You can come by! See the place! Meet her!”
“We talked about this,” she said. “I don’t really feel like meeting her.”
“Why the hell are you girls being like this? It’s wrong! The divorce has been final at least a couple of months! She’s a part of my life now. That’s how it is!”
“Fine,” Olivia said. “See you in San Jose, maybe. Be sure to let us know when you’ll be visiting.”
She turned and walked away.
“Olivia!”
She turned back.
“You have to treat me and Cat with respect!” he said.
“I’m respectful,” Olivia said. “She might be part of your life, but she isn’t going to be part of mine.” She turned to go again.
“Look, there are changes,” he said. “We’re all going to have to get used to the changes!”
“Maybe we will,” she said. “Two months isn’t enough time for me. Let’s talk about it in a year or two.”
“Did your mother tell you to say that?”
“Oh heck no,” she said. “My counselor asked me how I felt about meeting your girlfriend. I told her how I feel and she said I should be honest with you. Maybe I’ll be willing to meet the woman you left our family for in a couple of years. Maybe in ten years. Maybe never. Didn’t you ever think that in leaving your family, there might be consequences? Like—we might not be happy about it?”
“But don’t you want me to be happy?”
“Is that just a guy thing? That your happiness is more important than anyone else’s happiness? Because you being happy seems to have caused a whole bunch of people to be unhappy. Doesn’t that bother you?”
“Of course!” he said. “What I want is for us all to be happy! If you would just make an effort—”
Again she shrugged. “And if you had made an effort...”
“But I wasn’t happy! I’ve been unhappy for years!”
“Really? What was that Christmas Eve toast you made? I am the luckiest man alive with the three most wonderful, beautiful women... Oh gee, did you mean four? Listen, Daddy, we’re onto you. You’re telling yourself a story that makes it seem like you had nothing to do with this mess, but the truth is, you created it. Any time you want to be my dad, let me know. But I’m not interested in your girlfriend.”
“I shouldn’t have to choose between you!”
“Sounds like you already did.” Tears sparkled in Olivia’s eyes. “When you’re telling your story about how unhappy you’ve been, though no one knew it, you should remember you left us. You’re making a new life. You’re making all new rules and changing what family means. We’re just trying to cope. And understand.”
She walked away from the beach bar and charged up the hill from the beach, her bag slung over one shoulder and her smoothie in her hand, tears running down her cheeks. She loved her daddy so much; there had been so many beautiful memories. He had been a constant in her life, always there, always on duty. And her mom, so beautiful and strong, picking up where Daddy left off. She had grown up thinking she had the most awesome parents in the world. She had her fun and playful dad; her dedicated and completely committed mom.
And then one day, with no warning at all, he was done. He had his eye on a better life. A new life. With a new woman, leaving their mother so broken and thin, dark circles under her eyes. Olivia just wanted her family back.
“Oh-oh,” a voice said. “You could use someone to walk you home.”
Olivia looked up, way up, into the warm brown eyes of a young man. She’d seen him around, on the beach playing volleyball with friends, hanging out near the beach bar. “I...we... I don’t know you.”
“Yet. But we’ve seen each other. At least I’ve seen you. And I think you saw me see you. I’m Jared. Jared Morrison. And you’re...?”
“Olivia. Livvie for short. Livvie Somersby. I actually live in San Jose but my mom and aunt are here, so I’m spending a lot of the summer in Half Moon Bay.”
“San Jose isn’t that far. On a good day I can get there in twenty minutes.”
She laughed in spite of herself. “Is that a day when your car can go a hundred miles an hour?”
“See, I made you happy already. Why don’t you come down to the beach after dinner, like around seven, and play some volleyball?”
“I should see what my sister is doing. I should see if my mom and aunt need any help with anything.”
“You can bring your sister. Is she the one I usually see you with? Brown hair?”
Olivia nodded. “She’s a senior.”
“Most everyone around here works a lot so we’re not on the beach that much in the daytime, but there are a lot of us at night. Come down. I’ll introduce you to a few of my friends. If you’re gonna hang around Half Moon Bay, you might as well know people. Right?”
“That would be nice.”
“We’ve got at least another month of late sunsets.”
“Are you a senior?” she asked.
“I graduated last spring. Now I’m working at the lodge on the bay, and I’ll be taking some classes at the community college.”
“Which one? My aunt works at Banyon.”
“I’ll be at San Mateo, starting in about three weeks.” He laughed. “We don’t have much time, Livvie. Will you come down tonight?”
“I think so,” she said, smiling in spite of herself.
* * *
Justine had emailed Scott a copy of her pay stub and no check for the month of June. Her itemized statement had been prepared by Sam’s accountant; it showed her billable hours, her deductions and her pay for the part of the month she had worked. It was practically nothing. Scott called and asked her what was up with that. “I’ve barely started here,” she said. “It will take a while to build a clientele.”
“Didn’t you at least get a severance package from Sharper Dynamic?”
“No, I’m afraid not. I resigned rather than accept a big salary cut.”
“Great,” he said, disgruntled. And he hung up.
July hadn’t been much better, but then not only did she not have a large number of clients, it also took a while to complete legal work and do the billing.
“A lawyer can usually expect it to be at least ninety days between legal work and payment. The billing alone takes a good month, and that’s after the work is done,” she explained to Scott.
Toward the end of August, Justine was in her office when the office manager, Charlene, asked her if she had time to see a Mr. Scott Somersby. Charlene was frowning.
“Sure,” Justine said.
Scott stood in her office door. This place suited her fine, but it was nothing like the office she’d left behind in Silicon Valley. Her office at Sharper Dynamic was intimidating and designed to be. This office was quaint and more welcoming.
“Hi, Scott. What are you doing here? You can just email or text me if you have a question.”
“The question is what the hell is up with your pay?”
“Well, as I’ve explained, my tenu
re is brand-new. I serve as an associate and need a lot of consultation with Mr. Gillespie to be sure I’m operating according to his established practices, and I don’t have many clients. But I’m sure it will grow. Given time.”
“I don’t have that much time,” he said. “I’m short of funds.”
“I gave you a very generous settlement,” she said. “You’re usually very good with money.”
“I still am, but I invested it and my cash flow is limited. I was counting on the monthly income. My money is not liquid.”
“Ah. I’m afraid I can’t help you there.” She squinted at him. “What’s that mark on your eyebrow? Looks like you’re imitating Jason Momoa.”
“Work injury. I was whacked by a kayak I was trying to hang up. We’re going to have to do something about the money.”
“Aren’t you making money at your new job? You are getting paid, aren’t you?”
“Of course! Look, we’re going to have to do something—refinance the house or get an equity line of credit or something. Either that or cut the child support.”
“Hmm. You should have a healthy bank account, Scott. Do you mind if I ask what you decided to invest in?”
“Yes, I mind!” he barked. “That’s not your concern! It’s enough that you realize I’m a little tight and having trouble with expenses and half the mortgage. Unless you start paying support, I’m not going to be able to pay the bills!”
“You’re going to have to leave now, Scott,” she said calmly. “I’ll call you after work to discuss this, but we can’t do it now. This is a law office, and the only people allowed outbursts in here are disgruntled clients. I’ll call you this evening.”
“Fine,” he said, clearly rattled.
Justine watched him go. She walked out into the reception area to note that he had driven from the kayak shack to her office.