Family Dynamics: Pam of Babylon Book #5

by Suzanne Jenkins

  “Take your turn before you lose it,” she’d admonish. Lisa and Brent would beam, proud of their beautiful mother and father and the life they’d made for their children. Brent was so regretful that he’d unloaded all the nitpicky garbage about Marie and Jack on his mother. His mother listened to what he had to say, took it to heart, and was devastated. Until she validated him, he wasn’t even sure his suspicions were true. How much can a child’s memory be trusted? Brent decided it’s why parents have to be careful about what they say and do in front of small children. The boogeyman may be there, whispering lies.

  It was good to be back in New York. The cab driver drove like a maniac and pulled up in front of the beach house less than an hour later. There was a strange Porsche in the driveway. Uh-oh, Brent thought. He didn’t know what kind of car Dave drove and was mildly surprised to see the expensive model. Maybe he’d underestimated him. Dave was a dud, but Brent and Lisa decided it may have been because they were comparing him to the only man they had ever seen their mother with—their father. Brent gave money to the driver, and as he pulled his bag out of the car, his cell phone rang. It was his sister.

  “You’ll never guess where I am,” he said instead of saying hello.

  “Bangladesh,” Lisa said. “Don’t tell me you’re home.”

  “As a matter of fact—”

  “Well, get your car keys and get out of there. Mom has a new BF, and if I were you, I wouldn’t interrupt her.”

  Brent was at a loss. “What should I do? I don’t have my house keys,” he whined, annoyed.

  “Go in through the garage. There’s a door key under that big rock by the bird feeder,” she said. As soon as the words were out of her mouth, the door opened, and Pam waved to him.

  “She’s at the door,” he said. “Let me call you back.” Brent hung up the phone and starting walking up the walkway. Pam rushed down to meet him, making amends for the way she had greeted her daughter earlier. She was laughing out loud.

  “Are you in cahoots with your sister?” she asked, hugging him. “Honestly, she just left here not two hours ago.”

  “Mother, I am so sorry for popping in on you like this,” Brent said. And then he noticed his mother was in the front yard in a bathing suit cover up, suntan lotion on her face, and her hair up in a spiky ponytail. When his father was alive, this casual appearance would have never left her bathroom. “Just in from the beach? Is that Dave’s car?”

  Pam explained about Lisa and Ryan, about Dan and Jeff Babcock.

  “Come in and meet Dan,” she said. Brent told her about Julie and pulled out the engagement ring, and then, surprisingly and lovingly, she began to cry.

  “Oh, what a day,” Pam said. “A wedding! It’s the only happy thing we’ve had in a while, don’t you think?” They embraced. “Let’s go in the house and you can meet Dan and then get your shower. You’re going to see Julie tonight, correct?” They continued their conversation as they walked the path to the house. Brent saw Dan, a strikingly handsome man, not much older than forty, he guessed, walking in from the veranda. Jeff Babcock was behind him. Pam introduced everyone and then excused herself to change.

  Dan and Brent hit it off. And Brent was so relieved that his mother found someone other than the bland Dave. He didn’t get the vibe that his mother was serious about this guy, but it was OK, because he was obviously smitten with her. It was almost embarrassing. A moment of concern that Dan might use her for money surfaced, but Brent ignored the feeling. She was an adult. She survived the death of his father and the betrayal that followed; she’d be OK. He excused himself to get ready for his trip to see Julie.

  After everyone left, Pam and Dan sat side-by-side on the veranda. She was going to ask him if they should stay in for dinner when the phone rang.

  “I think I’ll let the machine pick up,” she said. “Everyone I care about is accounted for.” But the words were no sooner out of her mouth that she heard Bernice’s shrill yelling into the phone. As she ran to answer it, the only words she could make out were “terrible accident.” Bernice hung up before Pam could pick up. She immediately called the direct line into the ladies’ room. Bernice told her the news, Pam hardly able to believe it.

  “How do we know for sure it’s our Steve?” she asked, immediately regretting it as Bernice began a tirade.

  “Call the police! Your mother is beside herself about Miranda. What will happen to her?” Bernice started crying, so rather than question her any further, Pam promised to find out what she could and call back. She hung the phone up and turned to Dan.

  “It appears that my mother-in-law heard a newscast that my sister’s boyfriend was killed Friday night after he dropped my niece off at Sandra’s house. I need to contact her because she’s expecting him to come back eventually. How do I find out if it was really him?” Pam sat on a stool at her kitchen counter with her head in her hand. She knew it was irrational to worry about taking care of Miranda when they weren’t sure Steve was killed. Dan came to her and hugged her.

  “Relax if you can, and I’ll see what I can find out,” he said. Pam nodded her head, thinking How can peace be so elusive? While Dan went back to the veranda to make his calls, Pam struggled between feeling guilty about not wanting to start over with a baby and fantasizing about what it might be like to raise another child without Jack’s influence. In a few minutes, Dan came back looking grim.

  “It was your Steve Marks, living in your house in the Village. A friend is going to look for a will, but if there isn’t one, the baby would be your mother’s responsibility. It would be up to her to designate who the caregiver would be.” Pam put her head down on her arms, attempting to control the emotion she was feeling. She’d barely tolerated Steve. But his absence would change so much.

  “I guess I need to go back into the city. Sandra needs to be told. Out of respect for her, my mother probably should have some input,” Pam explained. “This is not how I wanted to spend my weekend. Run! I’ve got too much baggage and am too selfish to get involved with.”

  “Yeah, well, let me be the judge of that, OK? It’s too late to do anything now. I’ll take you in the morning.” He absentmindedly rubbed her back, thinking about what lay ahead of them. “Hey! I just had an idea. Let’s go out. I know just the place that will get your mind off all this sadness.”

  Pam was usually in bed by ten, but not on this night. Thanks to her attorney, she discovered she loved midnight bowling.

  Chapter 30

  Lisa navigated the streets of Mount Holly. She couldn’t get over how quaint it was.

  “Oh, my God! A Friends Meeting House in the center of town. Look at the library! And that old prison,” she exclaimed, each block exposing more and more of the city’s historic charm. “And a synagogue?”

  “Turn here,” Ryan directed. “My house is down on the right.” Lisa drove slowly along, amazed at the mixture of architecture: First Colonial, then Victorian, then post-war. The contrasts were making her dizzy. “Here it is.” Lisa looked up at the little colonial house, white painted wood with dark green shutters that really closed, a perfectly groomed lawn, and flower boxes already planted with early summer annuals, red geraniums, and variegated ivy.

  “What a cute place!” she said as she stopped the car right in front. Ryan looked at her with suspicion. When the cab had pulled up to her family’s beachfront property, he almost peed on himself. She never came across as being a spoiled rich girl, but after an hour with her mother, he could see that was exactly what she was. How had he missed it? “How many kids in your family?” she asked, astonished that an entire group of people could live in such a dollhouse.

  “Five. Why?” He asked.

  “It’s so little,” she answered. “I mean not little bad. Little cozy.”

  “There’s a difference?” he asked sarcastically. She grabbed his hand and laughed.

  “Oh, don’t take offense. I love it! I could be happy living here,” she said. They walked up to the front door. His mother was also unprepa
red for a visit from her son. She would be unable to hide her dismay. Ryan tried the door, and it was unlocked.

  “Mom, surprise!” he said, opening it. Gladys Ford walked out of her kitchen, wiping her hands on a paper towel just as Ryan and Lisa walked through the door. She was not happy.

  “Why are you home?” she asked. “And how’d you get here?” Ryan went to her and tried to embrace her, but a limp pat on the back was all he was getting until some explanations were forthcoming.

  “Mom, this is Lisa. She offered to pay my airfare, so here we are! I missed everyone,” he lied. “And I could use a break.”

  “Oh no, no, no!” she exclaimed. “You are not spending the summer here lazing around while everyone else works.”

  “I didn’t say I was going to be here all summer,” he said defensively. He looked at Lisa, embarrassed. Lisa stuck her hand out to Mrs. Ford.

  “Your house is wonderful!” she said. “I love this town.” Ryan thought she might be laying it on a little thick. The Village of Babylon was quaint, too. Gladys looked back at Ryan.

  “Ed’s here,” she whispered.

  “For dinner?” Ryan asked innocently.

  “No! Not for dinner,” she said quietly. It was clear to Ryan he wasn’t going to get any questions answered; his mother was suddenly flustered, her face red, eyes glassy. Something was going on! She turned her back on the couple without explanation and retreated to the kitchen. Ryan shrugged his shoulders.

  “Let me get my suitcase,” he said. Lisa followed him out to the car, confused. Was he seriously going to send her away?

  “I’m coming, too. Correct? You’re not suggesting I drive another four hours back to my mother’s,” she said. Lisa was learning quickly how fast human nature could change; back at her mother’s she felt differently about Ryan, and now he was definitely behaving differently toward her.

  “You saw the reception I got. Something’s going on in there, and I don’t think it’s wise for a stranger to be in the house while it unfolds,” he said as he tugged at his suitcase. Lisa was about to slap his face for calling her a stranger when their names were called. In unison, they turned heads back to the house, and Lisa saw a gorgeous man standing on the porch in shorts and a T-shirt.

  “You’re not leaving without saying goodbye, are you?” Ed, the former priest asked. He was sincere, too. Lisa thought Over my dead body am I leaving now. She turned and walked back to the house as Ed walked down the path to meet her. Sticking her hand out to him, she smiled her most beatific smile.

  “I’m Lisa,” she said. “We were just getting our suitcases.” Ed grasped her hand. He seemed unable to remember what he was going to say, but he was smiling.

  “Um, hello! I’m Ed, Ryan’s brother,” he said. Ryan got his suitcase out of the trunk and dragged it up to the house, ignoring his brother and girlfriend. It was obvious they were enjoying the encounter. Ed put his hand on her back and walked back to the car with her. “I’ll help you get your suitcase.” They began talking as if old friends.

  “Where are you from?” he asked. She told him about Babylon, about her and Ryan surprising her mother and then finding that she had a guest, and that Ryan didn’t want to stay there after all, so she left with him.

  “Now it looks like he might not want me to stay here,” Lisa confessed. “It’s a long way back to Babylon.”

  “No, you’ll stay here,” Ed said. “Don’t worry about a thing.” Lisa looked up at the house, and Mrs. Ford was standing in the door, not happy.

  “Ed, I’ve already explained to Ryan’s friend that she and Ryan can’t stay.”

  Ed paused. “Mother, that’s ridiculous. Lisa drove four hours to bring Ryan home. We’re not making her turn around and drive another four,” he said, with that hand on her back again, leading her up the steps into the house. After he took his hand down, she could feel the heat of his hand linger on her back. She smiled again, deciding the safest thing was to keep smiling and keep her mouth shut. It appeared that Ed was going to take care of everything. Ryan had disappeared up the narrow staircase leading to the second floor. “She can have my room, and I’ll bunk with Ryan.” Mrs. Ford was pissed, but she’d never contradicted Ed before and wasn’t about to start now.

  “Follow me,” he said. Lisa went up the stairs behind him, reaching the second floor, and then up another, narrower staircase to the third floor. It was stifling. He went to the window and switched on a small air-conditioning unit. Lisa looked around the room, at its Spartan furniture and lack of clutter. His bed was made with white sheets pulled tight. She sat on the edge of the bed, not sure what to do next. Her stomach growled, and Ed heard it. She put her hand over her midsection.

  “Oops!” she said, embarrassed.

  “I’ll get you a snack,” he said. “Do you want to stay up here? Or should we take a walk?” She said she’d wait for him and maybe later, after she rested a while, she’d walk. “Put your feet up.” He came over to her and slipped off her shoes, and then gently helped her put her legs up on the bed. She could feel the electricity of his touch travel up the backs of her legs. She wished she’d shaved that morning. But he didn’t seem to mind.

  She must have fallen asleep because when he came back with a plate of cheese and crackers and a glass of lemonade, she was unsure where she was for just a second.

  “Oh! I must be more tired than I thought. That looks good,” she said.

  “My mother’s contrite for being so inhospitable. I’m to tell you dinner is in half an hour. Ryan is sleeping like a baby. Life is back to normal,” he said. “Except I’m here, and I’m not supposed to be.” She took a bite of cracker and cheese.

  “Why can’t you be here?” she asked.

  “Did Ryan tell you about me?” Ed asked, and when Lisa shook her head, he continued lightheartedly. “I used to be my parents’ pride and joy—Ed, the priest. It’s the highest calling an Irish Catholic couple can have, to give birth to a boy who will become a priest. I can say that I was raised to go to seminary. Don’t get me wrong, I love God with all my heart. I loved seminary. But two years cloistered in that lifestyle—no way.

  “So I left in May. My father won’t speak to me,” he said more seriously. “My mother only just started acknowledging me last week. So! It’s been very peaceful! I have to find a job so I can move out; they need their house back instead of having their adult son home ‘lazing around’ as my mother likes to say. That’s the story of my life.” He smiled at her, clearly at peace with his decision. She was aware of an exchange of energy between them. The hair on her arms rose up and pointed toward his body. He took her hand. At first, he held it lightly, but then he began to circle the palm of her right hand with his fingers, very absentmindedly, as he spoke to her. He asked her what she wanted from life, if she would ever want to marry and have a family. Everything she formerly thought about her future was abandoned at that moment. She said she wanted a passionate relationship with a man who was in love with her. Loyalty was foremost; she explained to this complete stranger about her father and the effect it had on her. Without meaning to, and because she’d never engaged in passionate kissing before, she stretched her head up to him and kissed him on the lips. He put his hand on the back of her head and kissed her back. After a bit, Lisa put her arms around him and held him. She could feel his body shaking slightly next to her, and she realized he was crying. It was so unexpected and so sad. He was as disappointed in himself as everyone else was. She was the only person who was glad he was free.

  Julie stood at the window, waiting for Brent’s car to pull up. She saw his car, watched him get out, his lanky frame thinner than she remembered from the last visit, and then ran to greet him. He put his bag down, and they embraced in the hallway.

  “I’m so glad to see you!” she said, near tears. He kissed her.

  “Let’s get inside,” he said. “We have a lot to do in two days.” He’d have to get back to Pasadena to work on Monday morning. Not wanting to waste any time, he immediately got down
on his knee and proposed. Julie burst into tears, happy about the ring, not thinking it was too small at all. Of course, she said yes.

  “Let’s do it in the fall,” he said. “I don’t want to wait until next year, and three months should be enough time for us to figure out how to get all your stuff out to California. We can drive my car out. Your lease is up in October, correct?” She nodded her head, thinking, Whatever you want, my love.

  “So all you’ll need to do is give your notice at work.” She was more than happy to let him handle it; he seemed to have all the logistics worked out.

  “I can’t wait to tell my mother!” she said. He smiled at her, telling her how excited Pam was, happy her son found a woman to love. He sat on her couch, suddenly tired. The trip across the country and the mad rush up to White Plains were exhausting. “Oh, you poor thing.” She slipped his shoes off for him and helped him put his feet up on her couch, mirroring what Ed had done for Lisa minutes before. Brent closed his eyes.

  “Just let me rest for a second,” he mumbled, and as soon as Julie shut the drapes in her living room against the failing light, Brent fell asleep. He woke up at eleven, starving; he got up from the couch and stretched, then went into the kitchen to find something to eat. She’d gotten a pizza, leaving it out for him. It was still warm. He got a couple of slices and grabbed a soda out of the fridge. The news would’ve just started, so he flipped the TV on and sat back on the couch to watch while he ate. Julie came out of her room, yawning.

  “Did I wake you?” he asked, apologetic.

  “Don’t worry about it. I can sleep after you leave.” She cuddled up next to him while he ate, happy as could be. She’d gotten her way and planned to show him later how grateful she was.

  Chapter 31

  Pam didn’t sleep well. Worries about baby Miranda overshadowed the fun she’d had with Dan at the bowling alley. Several people recognized them from around town, and the couple ended up being quite a novelty. Both ultra-competitive, they battled out game after game until the place closed at two in the morning. Then the mistake—going to the local diner and getting burgers. Pam wolfed hers down, and then suffered for it, eating antacid tablets every hour. Finally falling asleep at four, she had vivid dreams about her children, angry with her for unspoken deeds, and then Jack, coming in to make love after being gone all week. She decided the dreams were more about her need for sex than missing Jack; because he was the only man she had known, of course he’d be the one in her dreams. Hopefully, that problem would be resolved soon if she and Dan could have a moment of undisturbed time together.