Kelly's Rules

by Barbara Miller

  He tried to remember why he married her and it felt all blurry and guilt ridden like a nightmare that haunts you without your knowing why. He’d been drunk. Actually he’d passed out at her place, something he’d never done before or since.

  It was the Christmas after he’d started working for her father. She’d invited him with other people but it hadn’t been a party thrown by her father, just Brenda. When he woke they were in bed together. She laughed it off but a few weeks later informed him that she was pregnant. Of course he did the right thing. At the time it seemed like the only thing to do. Even at this great distance of time he didn’t see that he had any choice other than being fired. He thought he could raise another man’s son and make Paul his own. Thank God Jason came along to make it all worthwhile.

  Looking back was pointless. Looking ahead was getting more difficult. He was going to have to focus on the coming school year. He had prepared his syllabus and had his lessons outlined. He’d just have to keep ahead of the students. That’s what he had to focus on, something harmless like students or a fishpond with no fish or water plants yet. Kelly would bring her magic touch to it. He’d miss that.

  * * * * *

  Kelly finished printing the paperwork and put the sales agreement in a folder, knowing any delay could well mean Quinn would really lose the house, but she didn’t like it. In spite of her talking upbeat, he was giving up. She could tell. Sure, some things were going wrong, but that was no reason to give up. Where was his fighting spirit? Of course he’d been married to a selfish person a long time. Maybe that fight had all been extinguished. She called Quinn and told him the appointment was for eleven and he said he’d be there in a few minutes.

  As she got into the SUV with Quinn and Jason for the short drive, she kept thinking this wasn’t right. The only way she could help him was to hold onto the house for him, but buying it would probably mean the end of their relationship. Relationship? What had they shared but a few kisses, a lot of hard work and friendship? Of course there was that promise to spend the rest of their lives together once he got his freedom. When you thought about it, that was a lot. What they had not shared was betrayal and that’s what made Quinn different.

  He didn’t like depending on her, but he was doing it anyway for Jason’s sake. She could promise him all the good faith she wanted, but she had a feeling he was expecting her to betray him. It made her sad and angry. But there was nothing she could do about it now but buy his house and wait until it was safe to return it to him.

  The process took less time than she expected. It wasn’t complicated like a closing with lawyers and a real estate agent. Kelly had mastered all that law and could handle it herself. She gave Quinn a check and took care of all the transfer fees and taxes. The notary pocketed her fee and glanced impassively at Quinn, who had changed into clean clothes for the occasion, and at Kelly who had not. Jason breathed a sigh of relief.

  Brenda would probably concoct some story that explained their behavior, like Quinn putting his lover’s name on the house to shield it in a divorce action. Well that was true, except for the lover part of it.

  When they filed out to the car, Jason was the one to speak first. “At least we’re safe now. Mom can’t get her hands on the house.”

  “That’s right,” Quinn said.

  “Maybe we should celebrate, go out to lunch,” Jason suggested.

  “I’m a little tired,” Quinn replied.

  No one suggested going back to work on the house. Kelly didn’t want to because it would seem like she was taking possession of it. Quinn clearly did not feel like it. And Jason was justifiably hungry.

  “Maybe Bea—Mom is making lunch for us at home.”

  When they got to Kelly’s, her mother wasn’t there and neither was the Jeep. That worried Kelly a little but not as much as Quinn’s defeated look. It didn’t matter that no food was ready, since Quinn went to the summer house anyway. Kelly made salads and sandwiches for her and Jason. She knew what to do when a child sulked but not how to handle an adult man. Yet if she approached him she might make the situation worse.

  When you didn’t know what to do sometimes the hardest job was waiting. Isn’t that what Elizabeth Bennet had to do in Pride and Prejudice? Wait. But Regency England moved at a slower pace and lent itself to waiting. Kelly was used to action. And this wouldn’t be a matter of waiting a day or so. This could take months or half a year. Could she stand to be without Quinn’s warmth for that long?

  “I’d better get back up to the house,” Jason said as he let the screen door swing shut behind him.

  “Good idea. It’s only safe legally speaking. Someone could still burn it down.”

  “I kind of like staying there. Besides, I want to check on the floor, maybe touch it up if we missed any spots.”

  “Open the windows. The floor is mostly dry, but you don’t want to breathe anything volatile.”

  Jason turned to go but stopped and looked back at her. “Will it really be Dad’s someday?”

  Kelly walked to the door. “I guarantee it.”

  “But Dad’s so low. I can sense it. I’m just afraid he’ll fall out of love with the house, fall out of love with you.” Jason flushed when he said this, but he had nailed the problem.

  Kelly bit her lip. “So am I, but it’s our job to make sure that doesn’t happen. You deal with keeping his house obsession going and I’ll try to hang onto what Quinn and I have, though I’m not exactly sure what that is.”

  Jason grinned. “Deal.”

  After Jason left, her place was so quiet it gave her the creeps. And where was her mother? She’d been doing so well. Had she reverted to her former self and hared off to Pittsburgh to party?

  With that thought Kelly launched herself toward the answering machine. The light was blinking. She was just about to hit the button when the phone exploded in a ring.

  “Hello? Hello?”

  “It’s me,” Bea complained. “Didn’t you get my message?”

  “No, where are you?”

  “At the supermarket. Your Jeep is flooded or something. At least that’s what the guy with the melons said.”

  Kelly blew out a sigh of relief. “You mean the store on Market Street? I can be there in ten minutes.”

  “Take your time. It’s not like I bought ice cream. Damn freezer is still full of that.”

  Kelly locked up with a lighter heart. At least she had her mom back—sort of. She jogged to the supermarket, her favorite way of getting there. It surprised her that she was more relieved to hear from her mother than to know where her vehicle was. Kelly had pictured Bea in a ditch somewhere.

  She suspected she knew what was wrong. When she opened the hood, she thought she could smell gasoline. Bea looked at the engine like it was some horrible betrayer. “You haven’t driven much since the 1980s when you used to have to pump the gas pedal before starting the car.”

  “So what’s the problem? I pumped it at the house and it started.”

  “It was cold and started in spite of you pumping it. Because you did it after the engine had been running it’s flooded. So new rule, never pump the gas before starting a car. They made all that automatic.”

  “Okay, okay. Somebody should have let me in on that little secret. So what do we do now?”

  “If you haven’t tried to start it in the last ten minutes, it might be okay now. Foot off the gas and just turn the key.”

  Bea got back in. “This feels weird.”

  To Kelly’s relief the Beast did start. Kelly opened the driver’s door and her mother said, “I’ll drive.”

  “Okay, but only if you buckle your seatbelt.”

  Her mother buckled up with her help.

  “Don’t worry. I can still see to drive.”

  “What do you mean? Do you need glasses?”

  Kelly was sure her mom did not have a license but decided against making an issue of it. Bea turned right out of the lot instead of left.

  “That way’s home.”

&nb
sp; “I just want to check something out.”

  Since she was within the speed limit, Kelly held her peace and Bea made her way west on the highway. She looked confused then and turned into an abandoned biker joint.

  “I thought this was Kelly’s Bar.”

  “It was up until a decade ago. It closed up after the flood. Someone else opened it for a while, but it’s been closed a couple of years.”

  “I have a lot of memories of this place.”

  “So have I.” Kelly thought about the nights she had slept in a booth while her mom waited tables. She’d done her homework, had a hamburger her mom had made in the kitchen, then had watched sports on TV ’til she fell asleep. She always tried to stay awake until two when the place closed but never made it. She’d grown up at Kelly’s and could almost hear the old juke box playing.

  “I feel bad you spent so much time here as a kid.”

  “At least you didn’t dump me on an unreliable sitter.”

  “Couldn’t afford one.”

  They started laughing at the same time.

  “Well, Mom, we didn’t do so badly for ourselves.” She reached over and hugged her.

  Bea gave a crooked smile. “Still, I own to some regrets.”

  “About my father? Forget him.”

  “Having made so many mistakes in the past, I don’t want to make any more.”

  Kelly stared at Bea. “Mom, what are you planning?”

  “Just thinking about the future.”

  “Are we talking about me?”

  “No.”

  “So what mistake could you possibly make now?”

  “I’d like to get married finally.”

  “Who are we talking about?”

  “I can’t tell you.”

  Kelly smirked. “What happened to our new era of trust and understanding?”

  Bea started the Jeep again, remembering this time not to pump the gas, and it hummed to life. “I’m new at this. Give me a break. If I remember right the back way is shorter.”

  “Yeah.” Kelly breathed a sigh of relief as her mother pulled onto the little traveled lane that ran alongside the creek. It was a pretty drive at any time of year but especially nice with the trees in full leaf shading the road. The sun-dappled surface of the creek that ran alongside flicked in and out of her vision as Bea handled the curves in the lane with competence if not precision. Fortunately there was no opposing traffic that needed space.

  “Where’s Quinn?” Bea asked.

  “The summer house.”

  “Odd for you to knock off for an afternoon. You’ve both been so driven.”

  “We’re getting close to finished on the house, what needs to be done for now.” Kelly felt herself clutching the sissy bar on the last turn.

  “I bought a ham. Once we get dinner ready, invite him over.”

  “I don’t think Quinn is hungry.”

  He mother looked at her suspiciously. “You have a fight?”

  “No, he sold me his house.”

  “Oh, that explains it.” Bea’s gaze shifted back to the road.

  Kelly turned to her. “It does?”

  “He lost his machismo. He’ll never go to bed with you until he has his house back, his cave. He’s a man of principle.”

  “I don’t want him to go to bed with me,” Kelly lied.

  “Then you’re nuts.”

  “Well, not until his divorce is final…and he asks me to marry him…and we actually do get married…”

  Bea shook her head. “Picky, picky, picky.”

  “I just wish he’d speak to me.”

  “Don’t push him. Maybe his divorce will come through sooner than you thought.” Bea smiled and that made Kelly nervous. “I sure hope—” A jolt rocked the vehicle and Kelly grabbed the wheel to get the Jeep back on the road. She tried to see who hit them in the mirror, then it struck again and they went off the berm. Bea shrieked as they rolled over. The spinning seemed to take forever and groceries flew all over the place, pummeling them. Kelly tried to hold her mom and keep her from falling. But like a turtle, the Jeep righted itself in the creek bed.

  “Mom, are you okay?” Kelly asked as she wrestled with her seatbelt.

  “Idiots! Wait ’til I give them a piece of my mind.”

  “Mom, they didn’t wait around for that.”

  “Are you sure? Who would leave after causing such an accident?”

  Kelly didn’t think it was an accident but kept that to herself. Mom didn’t need any more worries.

  Kelly got her belt lose, stepped out into a foot of water and came around to help her mother out.

  “Wait, these are new shoes.” Bea grabbed her shoes in one hand and reached for her tote with the other.

  “Leave it. I can get that later.”

  “I need this tonight. Has my medicine in it.”

  Kelly steadied her and got her to shore, then pulled out her cell phone.

  “Don’t you dare call Earl. He’ll lecture me, maybe even arrest me.”

  “We do have to report it but I don’t know whose jurisdiction this is. I’ll call 9-1-1. Should I ask for an ambulance?”

  “Of course not.” Bea was sitting on the bank drying her feet on the towel Kelly kept on the seat.

  Kelly reported the collision, said there were no injuries and promised they would wait. She turned to assess Bea’s condition and found her leafing through a magazine.

  “Actually, Mom, I don’t think we need a tow. I’m going to try to start the Beast. If I can, I’ll drive it up this shallow bank and get onto the lane the fishermen take to get up onto the road. Then I’ll turn around and come pick you up. Don’t pass out on me or anything.”

  “I’m fine; do your thing.”

  Kelly chuckled as the jeep started without a whimper. It waddled through the shallow water and she made it to the access road. Her mom had always been pretty unflappable. Now Kelly was glad for their tough life. It meant attempted murder wasn’t such a big deal.

  While they waited for the police, she called Quinn to tell him dinner might be late, but there was no answer. She left a message.

  * * * * *

  Quinn had watched Kelly sprint out of the house more than two hours ago. He’d almost run after her, but if she wanted his help, she would have asked for it. He’d occupied himself by packing his belongings. But now he was getting uneasy. He got his keys to go look for her. About everything that could go wrong had. If something happened to Kelly, he just couldn’t deal with that. Maybe staying away from her was the safest option but it was driving him crazy.

  As he got to his vehicle, he saw the Jeep coming. It was muddy and dented but otherwise seemed okay. Kelly pulled in and stopped by the deck. She was followed by Earl in his police car with Kelly’s mom in the front seat. Well, okay. If she was in the front seat she probably wasn’t under arrest.

  Quinn helped Bea out and Kelly began unloading groceries. The chief escorted Bea up the few steps to the deck and Quinn looked a question at him.

  “Accident,” Earl said. “You sure you don’t want to be checked at the hospital?” Earl asked Bea.

  “I was wearing my seatbelt. I’m fine, angry but fine.”

  “Okay, I have to get on this though I have my deputy looking already. So, Kelly, you didn’t see the other vehicle at all?”

  “What?” Quinn said.

  Kelly’s glance switched from Earl to Quinn to Earl. “There was no time to look.”

  “What happened?” Quinn demanded.

  Earl turned to him. “Someone ran them off the road.”

  Earl flipped his little notebook shut and Quinn wondered if most of the pages didn’t have to do with Kelly and Sue and him.

  “In the Jeep?” Quinn squeaked.

  Bea grinned from the deck. “Actually it was kind of exciting.”

  Quinn sat down. “I just can’t believe Brenda would have the nerve.”

  “Or expertise,” Kelly said. “It wouldn’t make any sense.”

  Earl groaned. “
You know your license was suspended years ago.”

  “I could have applied for a new one. I just didn’t need it until now. Kelly, help me put these groceries away and I’ll make some coffee.”

  Kelly closed her gaping mouth and looked at Earl, who grinned.

  “Will wonders never cease,” Earl said. “Bea acting motherly.”

  Quinn knew that wasn’t why Kelly was gaping.

  Kelly shrugged. “She had a recent rampant attack of motherhood. I almost like her.”

  Earl stuffed his notebook in his bulging shirt pocket. “She does have the charm of always surprising me.” He left them and they could hear him on his cell as he started up the drive.

  Bea stomped in the screen door and Quinn could hear the water running. He saw Kelly smile as she shook her head.

  “You know I think I always loved her somewhere in the dark deep recesses of my heart. She just drives me crazy.”

  “And now?” Quinn followed her in to study her, trying to assess how rattled she was. Bea had started coffee but then left the room.

  Kelly sat at the table with a sigh. “She still drives me crazy, but she’s sweeter about it. Seriously, Quinn. I don’t want anything to happen to Mom.”

  “If it does it could be my fault. And I don’t want anything to happen to you.”

  “How could it be your fault?”

  “I’ve made a terrible mistake putting you on the front lines of my problem life like this.”

  “I put myself there and I’m a champion of free will.”

  “Why didn’t you call me?” He took a step toward her and she tilted her head in puzzlement.

  “I guess I’m just used to dialing 9-1-1 for accidents and emergencies. Though I do have Earl’s private number since I seem to have so many emergencies.”

  “You would have called me if Jason had been in the car with you.”

  “Of course. I did call you after we got the Jeep out of the creek, but you didn’t answer.”

  “I must have my phone off. Don’t you understand you don’t have to be alone with all this?”

  “Old habits.” She went for mugs and handed him one. “I’m not used to being rescued. Give me a break.”