In Every Cloud

by Tina Michele

  The waiter arrived with two glasses of wine and set them on the table. “I went ahead and ordered you a glass after you messaged and said you were running late. I hope you don’t mind.”

  Bree didn’t mind. As a matter of fact, she was surprised that Marion even remembered what type of wine she liked. “You remembered.”

  Marion’s eyes sparkled, and she flashed a suave smile, “How could I ever forget anything about you? You know, I’ve thought about you every day, Bree.”

  The words made Bree’s stomach turn over. She thought about me every day but never once in over two years reached out? “Oh.”

  “Have you thought about me?”

  Bree couldn’t believe she had asked such a ridiculous question. Marion knew Bree well enough to know that she had thought about her every day since she left. Why did she need to hear her say it? She wouldn’t tell Marion that it was no less than every hour of every day that she was on her mind. That was until Carson came into her life. Bree answered honestly. “I used to.”

  “Ouch. Used to?”

  Bree took a long sip of her wine. “Yes. It was too hard to keep living that way. I had to start thinking about myself and moving on with my life. I had to learn who I was on my own.”

  “So you moved here and forgot about me, then.”

  Bree felt the storm as it built inside her. “I moved here because you left me. I waited for you, Marion. But then I couldn’t do it anymore.”

  “I know. And I don’t know why it’s taken me until now to realize what I wanted. I guess I was lost.”

  “And what do you want?”

  “I would think it was obvious.”

  Bree wanted her to say it. She wanted Marion to say that she wanted her, that she needed her. “It’s not.”

  “I’m here because I want you to come home.”

  Bree’s heart raced. “Come home?”

  “Yes. I miss you, and I want us to be together again. We can work together just like we used to. Remember how great that was? We can buy a house outside the city. I don’t want to be alone anymore. It can be the two of us, just like it used to be.”

  Bree grabbed her glass of wine and gulped it down. She could not believe what she heard. It was the very thing that she’d wanted to hear for two long years, but something was wrong. I’m losing my damn mind. What’s wrong with me? Bree stared into her empty glass.

  Marion waved her hand in front of Bree’s face. “Bree, sweetheart. Did you hear me?”

  Bree blinked and looked up. “Will you excuse me? I need to use the restroom.” Bree got up from the table and headed straight for the bathroom. She hoped there would be someone in there willing to slap her awake or check her for stroke symptoms.

  She paced in the bathroom. “What the hell is happening? This is everything I’ve ever hoped for. Why am I not throwing myself at her crying with overwhelming happiness?”

  Bree sat on the edge of the small bench near the door. She closed her eyes and put her face into her hands. Why wasn’t she saying yes? Bree’s phone chimed, and she dug it from her purse.

  Hi, babe. Just checking on you. I hope you’re feeling better. xoxo -C.

  That was why. Bree didn’t want to lie to Carson, but she had to respond. Much better now. Talk to you soon. xoxo -B Bree slipped her phone back into her purse and headed back to the table.

  “I wasn’t sure if you were coming back. I take it as a very good sign that you did, though.” Marion reached for Bree’s hand, but Bree pulled back.

  “I wish I could say the same.”

  *

  Jim and Barbara laughed and flirted over their dinner until she squinted at a familiar figure across the room. Jim followed Barbara’s gaze. His eyes widened with surprise when he saw Bree, but his heart seized in his chest when he saw who she sat down with. “Son of a bitch.”

  “What? Who is that?”

  “That…that is the woman who destroyed the only family I have left in the world. Bree’s ex, Marion.” Jim’s ears burned, and he clenched his teeth in seething anger.

  “Um. Does Carson know she’s here?”

  “I doubt it. I didn’t even know it.” Jim’s heart twisted at the thought that Bree had kept this from him and lied to Carson.

  “Okay. Well, what do you think she’s doing here?” Barbara reached across the table and stroked Jim’s arm.

  “Nothing good. Of that I’m certain.” Jim didn’t know why Marion was there. He had no doubt that whatever her reason was, it was based in selfishness and nothing good would come from it.

  “Was it that bad? How it ended?”

  Jim remembered every last detail of the day Bree called to tell him Marion had left her. He recalled how difficult it was to understand a single word Bree had said through all of the hysterical sobs. His heart ached at the pain in her voice. “Bree wanted a family and Marion wanted success. Even after five years, Marion wasn’t ready to settle down. Marion had started to act distant and secretive, so Bree began to suspect she was having an affair. So one day, shortly after their fifth anniversary, Marion came home late and Bree asked if she was seeing someone else. Instead of answering the question, Marion told Bree that she’d taken a position at a museum out in California. Within two weeks, she’d packed her things and was gone. She never once asked Bree to go.”

  Barbara’s eyes filled with tears, and she held her hand over her mouth.

  “Bree promised she’d wait as long as she had to. She came into her own during that time and became very self-sufficient. Yet, even with all the learning and distractions, it was all just too much for her. She couldn’t shake all the memories and the constant waiting. So after two years of me asking her to come home and start fresh, she finally did. And now…she’s here to fuck it all up.”

  “Aw, sweetheart. You don’t know that. Bree is so strong now. Plus, she’s in love with Carson.”

  “Oh, Carson. This will break her heart.” Jim’s temper flared. Marion had devastated Bree, and now she was going to do it to Carson. He couldn’t sit back any longer. He pushed away from the table, and before Barbara could stop him, he stormed over to the table where Bree and Marion sat.

  Jim stopped next to the table, and Bree looked up at him in horror. “Uncle Jim! I can explain.”

  *

  “Hey there, Jim. How’s it going?” Marion lifted her glass of wine in greeting.

  Jim turned his back on her and directed his attention on Bree.

  “We need to talk. Now.”

  Bree couldn’t believe that out of every single restaurant in the entire city, she’d chosen the same one he had. It couldn’t have been worse unless Carson had been with him. Her stomach knotted at the possibility and she stood. Bree looked around behind him as she prayed not to see Carson standing there. She sighed with the slightest bit of relief.

  “No. She’s not with me, if that was who you were looking for.”

  “She?” Marion peeked around from behind Bree. “She who?”

  Jim glowered at Marion. “That is none of your business.”

  “Oh, I think it is my bu—”

  “Enough, both of you.” Bree held her hands up between them. “It isn’t any of your business,” she said to Marion. “We can go outside and discuss this.” Bree grabbed Jim by the arm and walked him out to the terrace.

  Once they were outside, Jim didn’t waste any time before he fired his questions. “Bree, what the hell are you doing? What is Marion doing here?”

  “Uncle Jim. Wait. Before you start slamming me with questions, let me explain.”

  Jim crossed his arms. “Fine. Go.”

  Bree rubbed her face and took a deep breath. She explained to him how Marion had showed up unannounced that morning and that she’d agreed to dinner to talk about things.

  “Does Carson know she’s here?”

  “No. Nobody knows. Well, nobody knew. I know how it looks, really.” Bree clasped her hands together over her chest. “I do. But what else was I supposed to do? She just showed up.” Bree f
lailed her arms in frustration.

  “So, what does she want?”

  Bree sat on the low brick wall and put her face into her hands. “She wants me to come home. Well, not home. She wants me to go to San Diego.” She looked up at Jim and watched the recognition sweep across his face.

  “I wish I could say that it surprises me.”

  “Me, too.” Bree doubted that Marion had thought twice about Bree’s new life once she’d decided she wanted Bree back. It had always been that way. Even her decision to leave had been made without any consideration of how it would affect Bree. To say that Marion was motivated in life by complete selfishness was an understatement. The day Marion had left was as abrupt and unexpected as the day she’d returned, and the details held little personal sentiment or emotion.

  “What did you tell her?”

  Bree stood and looked at Jim. “Nothing. I even sat in the bathroom and questioned myself about it. This is what I’ve been waiting for, isn’t it?”

  “Yes. But when we stop wishing for the past and we open our hearts to the possibilities of a future, things happen that make us forget why we’d been waiting.”

  “And now she’s back.”

  “Yes. But is that what you still want? What about your home and work and Carson? What are you going to tell her?”

  “I don’t know, Uncle Jim. I don’t even know what to tell myself, or Marion.”

  “The truth, kiddo. You and Carson deserve the truth. Marion deserves nothing.”

  “I know. But what do I say? Oh, right.” Bree waved her arms around with embellished indifference. “Hey, babe. So listen, Marion is back. We went to dinner, and she wants me to move to California with her. But don’t worry, because I haven’t decided what I’m doing yet.”

  “Bree, look at me. Carson is smart and kind. She knows your past, she knows what you’ve been through, and she isn’t Marion. She doesn’t deserve to be lied to and hurt the way that you were. And between you and me, I think you’ve already decided what you’re going to do.” Jim grabbed Bree’s hands and squeezed them.

  He was right; in her heart, she knew. “But is it the right decision?”

  “I can tell you what I think, but you’re the only one that knows the answer, sweetheart.” Jim kissed her on the forehead. It was something he and Carson both did to make her feel better. As always, it worked. “Now, I better get back in there before Barbara decides to leave me here.”

  “Yeah, right.” Bree knew that would never happen. Those two were made for each other, and now that Barbara had him, she wouldn’t go anywhere without him.

  Bree and Jim said their good-byes and returned to their own tables. Bree sat across from Marion and studied her. She looked good. If nothing else, she had taken great care of herself. “What are you really doing here, Marion?”

  “I told you. I missed you. I want to be with you.”

  “That’s it? You woke up yesterday and you suddenly missed me? It’s been two and a half years, Marion.” Bree needed more.

  “Sort of. The last few months I’ve thought a lot about being alone, and I asked myself if there was one person I would bring here with me, who would it be? And of course, I thought of you. I knew you moved back here and didn’t have any real ties. We have a few openings at the gallery, and I thought that if you came home to me and took a position, my life would be back to normal, just like it was in Boston.”

  Bree looked at Marion as if she had three heads. “You left me in Boston, Marion. You walked away from everything we built together and took a job on the other side of the country. Without me.” Bree’s ears burned. “Tell me this, were you cheating on me when you left?”

  “What? Why would you ask that?” Marion shifted in her chair.

  “Oh my God, you were. And you went to California with her, didn’t you? What happened, Marion? Did she leave you? Or wait…You left her heartbroken in California waiting for you to come back?” Bree stood up from the table. “I can’t believe you.” Bree sat back down and lowered her voice. “No, I can. Because that’s what you did to me. You left me alone and devastated to suffocate under the memories of our life together. And then you come here and offer me our life back because you figure I don’t have anything better in mine?”

  “Well, do you?” Marion leaned back in her seat and crossed her arms.

  Bree stood up again. “Yes, I do. I have my family and my job, and I have Carson. This is my home now.” She did have Carson, and Carson had her.

  Marion stood and grabbed Bree’s elbow. She pulled her close. “You’re a silly little tour guide wasting your talent, intelligence, and education. I don’t know or give a shit who this Carson is, but you don’t need her because I’m here now. I’m your home, Bree.”

  Bree jerked her arm from Marion’s grip. “I can’t just pack up and leave the people I love as easily as you’re able to. Good-bye, Marion.” Bree picked up her purse and turned to leave.

  “Wait. So is that a yes or no?”

  Bree looked back and rolled her eyes before she turned away from Marion and left her standing alone at the table. She passed Barbara and Jim on her way out. She didn’t stop, only forced a smile and left the restaurant.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Jim grabbed the mail from the interoffice box and flipped through the envelopes. He was headed to Carson’s office, so he checked her mail slip and picked out the large FedEx package addressed to her. She had just taken off her gloves when he entered and set the large envelope on her desk. “For you.”

  Jim had no idea what it was although he’d read the label before he handed it over. He was curious to know what came addressed from the Dayton Art Institute in Ohio.

  “Dayton?” Carson asked as she flipped the envelope around in her hands. She ripped open the seal and pulled out a thick folder.

  “What is that?” Jim looked over her shoulder and picked up the empty envelope she’d set on the table. He repeated her earlier question. “Dayton?”

  “Yeah,” she responded as she opened the folder. “Oh.”

  “Oh what? What is it?” He peered over at the letter Carson read to herself. “Director of Preservation? Wow.”

  “It seems that I’m being recruited for a director position at the Dayton Art Institute. They want me to come out and meet with the board of directors in a couple weeks to see if I’d be interested in the job.” Carson read the letter with a small hint of excitement. “Wow.”

  “That’s amazing. I didn’t even know you were interested in Dayton.”

  “I’m not. I mean, I wasn’t. I’m not even sure how they got my name. This is wild.” Carson set the envelope and its contents on her desk and stared at it.

  “Wild indeed.” Jim picked up the material and flipped through the pages. “What are you going to do? When do they want you?”

  “I have no freaking idea. It says in a couple of weeks. So I don’t have to decide right now. Besides, I don’t even know if I want to move to Ohio.”

  “Right. Wow.” Jim was dumbstruck.

  “No kidding,” Carson said. “Me, a director. It’s unreal. It’s not like I’ve never imagined myself as one. Hell, six months ago it was the only thing on my mind. I guess after thirteen years I just never expected it to be anywhere other than here at the Estate.” Carson took the packet back from Jim and fingered the pages.

  “This is an extraordinary opportunity. I’m sure they will allow you to think about it longer than two seconds. It’s an enormous decision. Life changing.” And Jim was concerned that it wasn’t only Carson’s life that it would change.

  “It is. But you’re right. I don’t have to decide in two seconds. Although what would it hurt to go check it out? It’s a free trip to Dayton and a little time off. I can’t just turn them down without even hearing what they have to offer me.” Carson smacked the papers in her hand and grinned.

  Jim was discontented by the situation. It would have been out of character for her not to be intrigued by such an extraordinary opportunity. And alth
ough she was comfortable at the Biltmore, she had always kept herself very open when it came to her future. But he couldn’t help but feel uneasy by the uncertainty of the prospect. It wasn’t the offer that concerned him but the aftermath it could create, not only for him but more importantly for Bree. He was torn between supporting Carson and protecting Bree. “I know that you can’t just let something like this pass you by. But please, just let Bree know.”

  “It’s just an interview. There’s nothing to tell her. If anything comes from the meeting I will certainly discuss it with her. But at this point it seems a little premature. No? Things are going great right here. Why would I want to change that?”

  “Car, listen to me. I’m not telling you what to do. You are free to make your own decisions, but please don’t keep her in the dark. I can’t tell you how happy I am for you, and for Bree. And while I don’t want this to be something you miss out on and end up regretting down the line, I also don’t want you to break her heart in the process.” The idea of watching Bree lose another person she loved twisted his heart. He squeezed her shoulder.

  Carson looked at the envelope in front of her and then into his eyes. “Relax. It’s just an interview, Jim.”

  “Just tell her. For me.” He purposely avoided explaining his reasons to Carson as he had no intention of using guilt to discourage her from making her own decisions. After Jim left, he stopped in the hallway and stared back at the door. He prayed that Carson would do the right thing for both of his precious girls.

  Chapter Twenty

  Carson showed Kelli around to the back of the house where everyone had gathered on the porch. She spotted Jim at the grill and raised her eyebrows in silent question. She didn’t even have to speak, and he responded, “In the kitchen.” She hadn’t seen Bree in several days, and it was wearing on her ability to focus.

  Carson slipped into the house through the dining room. She stopped and leaned against the jamb of the doorway of the kitchen and took the opportunity to rake her eyes over Bree. She might have been the most beautiful woman Carson had ever known. Carson loved nothing more than to gaze at her when she didn’t know it. She watched as Bree stacked way too much onto the tray that she prepared to carry outside. With Bree’s track record of mishaps, Carson knew that both she and the tray would never make it to the patio in one piece. She still adored the determined look on Bree’s face as she lifted the tray and turned on her heel toward the doorway.