"I wish we could move away from here, across the country, or to another country entirely. We need to put distance between her and me. It would be easier for me and I know Mom would never leave her country clubs and social circles."
Josh's eyebrows rose at Jenny's easy acceptance of a complete break from her mother. "It might be possible. I have sent a lot of resumes to west coast locations."
* * *
Denise was giving her daughter the silent treatment, which was a typical behavior for her. If her daughter did not comply with her demands, she shut her out. She neither called nor appeared on their doorstep for a week. She had no idea how much Josh and Jenny enjoyed the peace. They were at last concentrating on their relationship. They had set their goals and were determinedly following through with their plans. They dreaded the moment Denise would reappear, yet they knew she would eventually.
A For Sale sign sat on their front lawn. They spent late evenings packing, deciding what was necessary for basic living and what could go in storage. It was unbelievable how much extraneous stuff children seemed to require, which was shortly afterward mere clutter.
* * *
"What have you done?" Denise demanded sharply, bursting through the front door.
"Did you forget how to knock, Denise?" Josh asked pointedly.
She ignored him as usual turning to her daughter. "Why have you put this house up for sale?"
"Because we can't afford it," Jenny said, barely looking up from a box she busily filled with books.
"You can't sell this house!" Denise exclaimed. "I won't allow it!'
"It has nothing to do with you, it's none of your business," Josh said. "Regardless of what you may believe, you have no legal connection to this property. The mortgage is in our name, not yours, and we have decided to sell."
"I most definitely do have some say in this," Denise exclaimed. "I gave you the down payment for it!"
"We know," Jenny said taking a deep breath. "You have reminded us of your gift nearly every day for the last five years." She walked to the fireplace mantle to pick up an envelope and hand it to her mother. "We do thank you, but we are returning your gift."
Denise opened the envelope and was furious at what she found. "Where did you get this kind of money? I don't want this back. I gave this to you to put a decent roof over your head!"
"You will take it back, though," Josh informed her firmly. "We are cutting the strings, Denise. We are no longer under any obligation to you. Things are going to be different from now on. If you want something, you will have to buy it yourself, as we will not."
"You ungrateful bastard," Denise exclaimed. "I was helping you and my daughter. I got you out of the roach-infested apartment you lived in before!"
"Actually, it was no such thing, it was a very comfortable rental," Josh said interrupting her arguments. "Denise, take the check, cash it, do whatever you want with it, but don't come back to us expecting any more. We are paying off our debts, including many purchases we can attribute directly to you. We don't owe you a thing."
"Jennifer! Are you going to let him speak to me like that?" Denise demanded.
"Yes," Jenny said, not much over a whisper. "I am tired of it, Mom. Tired of your constant criticism and interference. You called Josh's father! What business was it of yours to call Henry?"
"Someone had to do something," Denise exclaimed, looking at Josh in fury. "He is taking you into the gutter! Maureen Pugh called me. She said Josh is suing her husband's company. How do you think this makes me look? I have social obligations to these people."
Jenny sadly contemplated her mother who was in full rant mode. She saw a grown woman throwing a temper tantrum as if she were a two-year-old. "Obviously, your social status means more to you than my husband's mistreatment. Josh has every right to protect his property. You, on the other hand, had no right to interfere and call Henry."
"It wasn't your business," Josh interjected firmly. "We are busy, Denise. Close the door on your way out. Oh, and the next time, show some manners before entering our home!"
Denise looked from her daughter to her son-in-law in fury. She spun around and marched out the door slamming it in her wake.
Josh went to his wife, pulled her in close, and rocked her. "Step one, accomplished."
Jenny leaned into his embrace. "We are well beyond step one. Josh, are we hypocrites? We are returning what my mother gave us, but we accepted money from your parents."
"The difference is, Jen, my parents helped every one of their children, and what they gift, they rarely mention again. My father may ask, 'Have you straightened out your little problem, son,' but that would be the end of it. He would never ask me exactly how I spent the money. He would never imply we owed him anything.
"Your mother doesn't give anything without taking more in return… she takes and takes, and takes. The toll it has taken on your self-esteem and confidence has been devastating. I want my old Jenny back. I want my girl brimming with enthusiasm and excited about taking on new projects. I don't say this to be cruel, but your mother sucks the life out of you. I have never heard her give you a compliment. She finds fault with everything you do, with everything anyone does."
Jenny nodded knowing it was the truth. "Are all the bills paid, now?"
Josh nodded. "Yes."
"What will we do, where will we go? We may have to leave soon. The realtor called this morning to say the couple who viewed the house yesterday seems very interested. She expects an offer from them any day."
"We will basically be starting over. Property values have dropped so much, the best we can expect is to break even," Josh said. "I know I resented this place and took out my resentment on you. At the same time, there are parts of the house I will genuinely miss."
"Mostly your office, the library, and the backyard," Jenny said smiling.
"True," he admitted. "Don't forget the barbecue and the garage when I still had my toys. Meanwhile, I have no job. The only offers I've received so far are from corporations wanting to land a known talent at a bargain price. It might be time to go into business for myself since I am tired of being a pawn in someone else's game. I have other ideas floating around, too, but first I need to see what happens with Tyrell's efforts. Don't worry, Jen. At the worst, we will rent a place to live for a while, we were happy in apartments before. Where we live doesn't matter. As long as we keep fighting for us, we have all we need."
* * *
Josh reviewed the bank account he had set up to pay off their credit accounts. He had already been aware of most of their debt, but there had still been a few surprises. He had not known about the local store accounts until Jenny showed him the bills. There was one significant jewelry store bill he knew was not Jenny's purchase. Ultimately, he still was responsible for it even if the account was in Jenny's name.
Yes, it made him angry, but he had to let it go. If he expected Jenny to accept changes in their lives, he had to let go of his resentments too. The bill was paid, it was over, and unless Jenny did it again, he had to let it go. It was in the past.
Henry Grayson had been thorough. He had given them enough money to pay off their debts and to live comfortably for a while even if Josh could not find a new job right away. Josh had kept two of the cards open with reasonable credit limits, in case of an emergency. He had also purchased better health insurance as it was important for them and their children, especially now.
Josh had done one more thing on the advice of his brother. He had rented a post office box and requested a change of address to it for their mail. Paying off and closing all their accounts was an invitation to a constant barrage of new credit card offers. He did not want Jenny or Denise tempted by zero balances.
Surprisingly, Jenny had not asked for specifics about what Henry Grayson had given his son. She had promised to let Josh control their finances and she was living up to her end of the bargain. It was a welcomed relief. They hadn't had any arguments in several weeks and their relationship was improving every day.
* * *
Jenny tasted the chili she was making in a crock-pot, adding the crock-pot to a list posted on the refrigerator of things she wanted to be kept out of storage, and then she returned to packing. As she wrapped wine glasses, she wondered why they even had them. Neither she nor Josh drank anything stronger than coffee. He was convinced alcoholism ran in his biological family and it never settled well on her stomach. Whenever they entertained, it was kid friendly. Yet, she had complete sets of twelve each of four different types of wine glasses, very expensive wine glasses.
She studied the box for a long time, and then regarded the stack of boxes along the wall. She wrote 'Fragile/Wineglasses' on all four sides of the box, and then added something else for the first time. Instead of noting 'move, store, or give away,' she wrote 'auction/sale.' She rechecked the contents of other boxes, shifted a few things around, and changed the previous designations on several more boxes to 'auction/sale.'
"Something smells good," exclaimed Josh, sniffing as he came into the kitchen and lifted the lid from the pot. He turned and saw the new label on the box she was marking. "What's this?"
"We won't have room for all this. Honestly, I don't know why we even have half of it, we certainly don't use it. I have filled every space in this house with useless things that are pretty, but we don't use. If we are starting over, why should we drag it all with us?"
Jenny found herself kissed thoroughly, the kind of kiss usually leading to the bedroom.
"Thank you," said Josh. "The real estate agent called, she is coming after dinner with a contract. The people interested in the house have brought their offer up to our asking price. We definitely will break even, which was all we could hope for in this market. At least it won't be a financial drain on us anymore."
Jenny went to a kitchen drawer and pulled out a pack of 3 x 5 index cards. She handed Josh a permanent marker and a roll of tape. "Let's go through the house and decide what goes with us, what goes to storage, and what we might never have space for again. We have a new word in our vocabulary. It's downsizing."
Josh seemed surprised but nodded in agreement. "We can start in our bedroom. The first thing to go is the Titanic-sized bed!"
What followed was a spontaneous romp through the house with little disagreement between them about what pieces were for sale or auction. Their bed, along with the gigantic chests and high boys in the master suite, were the first pieces tagged to sell since they were too large to fit in any average-sized bedroom. Instead, they decided to keep a set of marble-topped guestroom furniture with a cozy queen-sized bed for their use. They tagged the entire contents of another spare bedroom for sale, as well as the shelving and large toy boxes in the playroom. Neither of them thought they would be living any time soon in a place large enough for a separate children's playroom. However, Jenny insisted everything in Josh's office be put into storage. He loved his office and never had a single complaint about how she had decorated it for him. Downstairs, they regretfully tagged the library furnishings for auction. It was a room loved by both of them, yet, how long would it be before they could afford a dedicated library again. They decided to keep the books. You could never go wrong keeping beloved books. They were brutal in some rooms, deciding to sell off everything. In other rooms, they decided to keep bits and pieces.
When their realtor came over with the contract for their signatures, she noticed the sale/auction tags. Upon receiving and explanation, she asked if the purchasers could tour the house again to see if they wanted to purchase any furnishings on a separate bill of sale. She knew the couple were returning from a lengthy stay in Europe and needed to furnish the entire house from the ground up. It made sense to Jenny and Josh to sell to the new owners rather than paying to move the furniture to an auction house, not to mention the commission they would have to pay.
The realtor called the buyers, who rushed over immediately. They made offers on most of the furniture marked for sale, in addition to several pieces not originally marked for auction, but which Josh and Jenny decided to sell to them. It was quite a list. It was a daunting prospect to realize that a great deal of what they had worked so hard to acquire would now belong to someone else. Still, when they signed the bills of sale, neither of them hesitated.
Josh returned from escorting their agent to the door for the second time in the day to find Jenny standing in the middle of the living room looking a bit distraught. "Are you okay?"
Jenny wistfully looked around the room, at the curving stairs and stone fireplace. She nodded, "I'm all right. I was saying goodbye."
Chapter 3
Josh was reading online documents sent to him by Brice Haroldson; the prospectus was interesting, and their business plan was solid. He wished he had the money to invest. Often, the best time to start a new company was when bigger companies experienced financial difficulties and were downsizing or closing.
He could not help regretting he was in no position to think about investing in the business as a full partner. The idea of working for his friends was a bitter pill to swallow, although they had offered it as an alternative to a partnership since they did want him a part of the new endeavor. They even sweetened the offer with an increased salary incentive to make it worth moving across the country. A personal bonus was the opportunity to work with men he genuinely liked and respected. Unfortunately, his friends were still eight months out from their planned launch of the new company.
Emmie sat in his lap as he worked, exactly as she had ever since she was a tiny tot. He had tried to establish the same habit with Adam, but his boy was far more rambunctious, all he wanted was to bang on the keyboard and tear into everything within his reach. Jenny had taken their little Rambo with her today to do the grocery shopping.
Emmie had had a few more screaming fits. They quickly realized her screaming only happened when Josh left the house without explaining to her he would be back. They soon learned he had to talk with Emmie first if he were going to be away from the house for an extended period. When he did so, she didn't panic and scream hysterically. So, Josh talked with her or took her with him. They didn't need a doctor to tell them their separation had traumatized their precious daughter. On their last visit with the psychologist, Dr. Strickland said there was an improvement in Emmie's behavior. She believed Emmie recognized her mother and father were getting along better.
Josh and Jenny were also going to marriage counseling sessions with Gene Lincoln's minister, as his friend had suggested. Pastor Daily encouraged them to forgive their past faults and move forward with a renewed commitment to making their marriage work. It was exactly what Josh and Jenny had already agreed to do, so they readily embraced the pastor's ideas. Pastor Daily also suggested Josh try working off his anger and frustration with exercise. Since Josh's anger was more of a direct result of interactions with his mother-in-law rather than his wife, he was not getting much exercise.
A dramatic and welcome side effect of cutting off Denise's access to their credit lines was she was around them a lot less. When she did come to the house, she continued being condescending and critical. Twice now, Josh had felt compelled to ask her to leave. He did not have a problem evicting Denise from their home, but such actions upset Jenny.
* * *
When the front doorbell rang, Josh gave Emmie a piggyback ride to the door.
"Mr. Grayson?" a man asked as he stood on the threshold.
Josh braced himself. He was expecting a subpoena from his old company demanding he turn over the Richfield Towers plans until the courts could decide their ownership. He set Emmie down on her feet and answered warily, "Yes."
"My name is Thomas Mitchim and I am an attorney. I represent…."
"Mr. Mitchim, stop right there, you need to speak to my attorney, Tyrell Grayson. Anything to do with the litigation must go through him."
"I am sure it does, but I am not here about your litigation with Pugh and Barkley," Mr. Mitchim said.
"Oh, I apologize," said Josh. "Their attorney
s have been trying to contact me directly rather than through my lawyer."
"Tyrell Grayson's reputation precedes him. I would probably want to avoid him, too," Mr. Mitchim said with a hint of a smile. "However, what I need to discuss with you, Mr. Grayson, is something I assume will be good news. I am, in fact, here to represent you."
Josh frowned, "In what way?"
"I don't mean to be forward or rude, but could we take this inside?" Mr. Mitchim asked as he took a deep breath and pointed down to his foot encased in a cast.
"I'm sorry, of course," said Josh politely stepping back out of the way. Mr. Mitchim moved past him, limping and leaning heavily on a cane. He went straight to the closest chair where he immediately sat down. Belatedly, Josh realized it might have been a ploy to gain entry. "This better not be a trick to serve me with papers or something."
"I can assure you it is not, and I do apologize for any misunderstanding," Mr. Mitchim said. "I probably should have called ahead, but this accident has already delayed me quite a bit."
Josh glanced at the man's cast, again.
Mr. Mitchim grimaced, "It is not life threatening or limb threatening, but I will not be skiing this season. I stepped out my back door and tripped over a paving block. There are three broken bones in my foot and two broken toes. I can honestly tell you I will be a lot more sympathetic the next time I see someone in a cast.
"For the record, are you Joshua Nathaniel Taylor Grayson?"
"I am, except I dropped the Taylor name years ago. I took the Grayson name when I was sixteen," Josh agreed. He pulled out his wallet to show his driver's license.
"That is not necessary. If I were not already one-hundred percent sure of your identity, I would not have knocked on your door. You are the grandson of Harold Nathaniel Bentley?"
"I wouldn't have any idea." Josh shook his head. "The only thing I know about my birth family is my mother's name, Charlotte Taylor. My birth certificate says father 'unknown.' My mother abandoned me when I was six years old. I barely have any memory of her, and I have not heard from her since then. If this is some sort of plea to reunite with her, you can forget it. I am not interested."
Broken Vows (Domestic Discipline Romance) Page 5