A Life Less Ordinary

by Bernadine, Victoria

  Damn it.

  He liked her – and she was, really, completely clueless when it came to other people, especially men.

  He sighed. He’d never forgive himself if something happened to her. He couldn’t, in good conscience, let her travel alone.

  Damn it.

  * * * * *

  Day 123

  “You’re what?” TJ croaked incredulously.

  “I’ve rented a car,” Zeke repeated patiently, “and I’m going to follow her.”

  “How are you going to keep track of her?” Leah asked, equally incredulous.

  “I’ll...figure that out when I get to it. I know her current itinerary, thanks to Rebecca, so I’ll be able to at least follow at a distance.”

  “Isn’t this a little...stalkerish?” Leah asked carefully.

  “It’s only stalkerish if I’m...” he hesitated. “Okay. Maybe a little. But I’m doing it more for her own protection than anything else. I mean, she’s clueless! A babe in the woods! Even Rebecca admitted Manny would be bringing home every stray she found between now and the end of her trip. What if she finally runs into one who isn’t all that nice?”

  “Is that the only reason?” TJ asked skeptically.

  Zeke paused. “What other reason could there be?”

  TJ took a breath, choked on it, and began to cough, a harsh, dry, wracking sound. He gratefully accepted Leah’s offer of water, and said, “To get her to accept your apology.”

  “I’m not going to apologize!”

  “Uh – yeah. Okay.”

  “Do you have any idea how many times I’ve already apologized to that woman?” Zeke snapped.

  “About half a dozen,” Leah said brightly.

  “That all?” TJ asked.

  “Hey!” Zeke protested, then shook his head. “It doesn’t matter – I’m not following her in order to apologize. I just don’t want anything to happen to the little idiot.”

  Leah and TJ exchanged glances and raised eyebrows over the speakerphone.

  “I think Manny’s pretty used to taking care of herself, Zeke,” Leah said, then grinned as TJ rolled his eyes and shook his head.

  “Oh, God – if you can call what she does taking care of herself!” Zeke paused. “Okay, okay – you’re right – there’s another reason why I’m following her.”

  “I knew it!” Leah crowed.

  “I don’t want to fly home on the same plane as Daisy and Rebecca, or have them hunt me down if anything happens to Manny after we part company.”

  “I have got to meet these women,” Leah said. “They sound like my kind of people.”

  “Oh, God,” Zeke groaned, “don’t go bonding with them! You’re the reason I’m in this mess in the first place! Shit. I’m sorry, Leah. I didn’t mean that the way it sounded.”

  Leah blinked. “I think that’s the first time you apologized about something you said without somebody pointing out you’d just said something that hurt someone’s feelings.”

  Zeke frowned. “I...think I got all that...but what’s your point?”

  “Go. Follow Manny. Call us for bail money when she has you arrested. She’s been...really good for you, you know.”

  Zeke hesitated, then said softly, “I know.”

  ~~~~~

  Manny stood with Rebecca and Daisy in the parking lot beside their rented car.

  “Drive carefully,” she told them, hugging each in turn, “and call as soon as you get home.”

  “We will,” Daisy assured her. “You drive carefully, too. I’ll expect a call every night. Maybe every afternoon, too. Possibly even every morning.”

  Manny laughed. “Don’t worry, Daisy. I’ll be fine.”

  “I know. But call me anyway.”

  “All right.” She turned to Rebecca, who seemed to be watching, with a slight smile, something behind Manny. Manny frowned and turned to look behind her. She didn’t see anything unusual and turned back to Rebecca, her frown deepening.

  “Are you okay?” Manny asked.

  Rebecca blinked and refocused on her. “I’m more than okay,” she said. “Never mind,” she added quickly and Manny closed her mouth with an audible snap. “Come on, Daisy. We better get going.”

  Daisy hugged Manny tightly. “We’ll talk later tonight, okay?”

  “You bet,” Manny said.

  Manny hugged Rebecca just as tightly, and Rebecca murmured into Manny’s ear, “You should read the blogs, and then talk to Zeke.”

  Manny pulled away with a scowl. “What for?”

  Rebecca grinned. “Trust me,” she said, then hugged Manny again.

  ~~~~~

  “What was that all about?” Daisy demanded as they pulled out of the parking lot.

  Rebecca nodded towards a car, parked on a side street with Zeke behind the wheel. “I don’t think he’s going to let her go alone if he can help it.”

  Daisy snorted. “More fodder for his blog?”

  Rebecca slid a glance at Daisy. “I think you need to read his stuff, too,” she said, and refused to say any more on the subject.

  * * * * *

  Day 125

  It was late by the time Rebecca got home, and the next morning was rushed as she slept in and had to hurry Tris out the door to catch the school bus. It wasn’t until supper that night – their designated portion of the day to spend together without any other distractions – that Rebecca had a chance to really sit down and talk with her.

  Tris rather disconsolately picked at her food and asked without any real interest, “So, Manny’s out of jail?”

  Rebecca nodded as she covertly watched her. “Yeah. A good story for the grand-nephews and nieces someday.”

  “Yeah?” Tris said bitterly. “Well, I had a long talk with Jakob and Janika while you were gone.”

  Rebecca nodded carefully. “Okay. What about?”

  Tris slammed down her fork. “You have to pay them to spend time with me! If you have to pay somebody, then pay a stranger, not people I thought were my friends!” she yelled before she burst into tears and bolted from table.

  ~~~~~

  Rebecca lightly tapped on Tris’ door and was answered with a muffled and tearful, “Go away!”

  She sighed and opened the door.

  “No, I don’t think so,” she said gently as she walked in.

  Tris huddled on the bed in a ball, her back stubbornly turned to Rebecca. Rebecca sat down, but made no move to touch her granddaughter.

  “We need to talk,” Rebecca said firmly.

  Tris snorted.

  Rebecca said, “I’m not going to apologize for hiring Jakob and Janika to look after you when I’m not around. I hired them because they’re your friends. In fact, they volunteered; I made them take the money.”

  Tris hunched her shoulders a little higher.

  “Tris, they would have done it for nothing,” Rebecca continued, “but they were sacrificing their own free time. Besides, if you guys wanted to go to the movies, or...or...or wherever it is kids go to have fun, then they needed money to pay for that.”

  She paused. “I’m sorry you feel your friendship is somehow...diminished because they were paid. It’s not, you know. They’re still your friends. They’ll always be your friends.” She paused again, frowning. “I told you about all this – that they would get paid for looking after you. Did you forget?”

  Tris shrugged slightly.

  “What happened while I was gone?”

  Tris mumbled something.

  Rebecca frowned. “Sorry?”

  “He won’t wait for me.”

  Rebecca leaned back, her eyes wide with surprise. She hesitated, then, “I’m sorry,” she said sadly.

  “Why won’t he wait?” Tris asked plaintively.

  Rebecca said, gently serious, “Because you’re only ten years old.”

  “Almost eleven!”

  Rebecca smiled a fleeting smile. “Yes, almost eleven. Tris – honey – you’re still a child, and you have a lot of living to do before you’re ready for
any boy. Don’t rush it. It’ll happen – maybe it’ll be Jakob – maybe it won’t. But you don’t need to be in any hurry.”

  Tris rolled over and stared at Rebecca with a pout and tear-reddened eyes. “It’s never happened for Manny. It’s never happened for you. What if no boy ever wants me, either? I mean, no one wants me now, not you, not Jakob, not Gran and Pappy, not even Mom and Dad.”

  “Oh, Tris,” Rebecca sighed sadly, “you’re far too young to be concerned about this -”

  Tris abruptly sat up. “I love him! Why won’t he love me?”

  “Because you’re still just a child – but you won’t be one forever. Your future is vast and full of possibilities. And someday, when you’re a little older, we’ll talk about Manny and her choices, and we’ll talk about me and mine. For now...”

  “For now?”

  “For now, you have enough to deal with – including your broken heart. I can’t help you with that, except to tell you...it will get better. Really. It will.”

  Tris stared at her hands, tightly clutching the blanket. “I told him I loved him,” she mumbled.

  “And I’ll bet he was flattered, right?”

  Tris shrugged. “So he said...”

  “Then believe him,” Rebecca said simply. “And you should be proud of yourself. It takes a lot of guts to tell somebody you love them.”

  “Did you ever love somebody?”

  “Of course,” Rebecca shrugged with a small smile. “I love you.”

  Tris rolled her eyes. “I meant a boy.”

  Rebecca laughed. “Oh, yes. A couple of them even. And those are stories for when you’re much older!”

  She awkwardly patted Tris’ leg. “Now. I can’t do anything about Jakob. But I can do something about your parents. And it’s past time I did.”

  ~~~~~

  “Now what?” Jackson asked, his voice warm and concerned on the other end of the phone.

  “Now I need to put Tris first. And...”

  “And?”

  “It’s time to stop being understanding. Jaime needs to come back to her daughter, or...”

  “Or?”

  “Or she gives Tris to me. Legally, I mean. Tris needs a home; she needs to feel secure. Although God knows I obviously screwed up one child; I’m not sure I should try again.”

  There was a long pause, then Jackson said, “You mean my kids too, don’t you?”

  Rebecca’s mouth opened and closed as she struggled to find something to say.

  “I was afraid of that,” Jackson said finally. “Rebecca, you don’t have to do this alone this time. I want you to meet my kids and I want to meet Tris -”

  “I never allow my lovers to meet my family,” Rebecca blurted.

  “Why not?” he demanded harshly.

  Rebecca blinked in surprise. It was, she thought, the first time Jackson had pushed her; the first time he actually seemed...angry at her desire to keep him at arms’ length from her family.

  “Why do you want me to meet your kids so badly?” she shot back.

  “Because they’re a part of my life. They’re a part of me!”

  “I’ve never tried to interfere with that!”

  “But you’ve never wanted to be a part of it, either! Why?”

  “Because kids shouldn’t be hurt by their parents’ mistakes!” she snapped.

  “I’m a mistake?” he demanded hoarsely.

  Rebecca sighed and wearily rubbed her forehead. “No, I don’t think you’re a mistake,” she said quietly. “We’re having fun, Jackson. I enjoy your company and I know you enjoy mine. But that’s all we’re doing – that’s all we can ever do. I don’t want your kids to get to know me and then...” she bit her lip, then continued quickly, “and then, when we’re no longer dating, they’re left wondering why I’m no longer coming around. And that’s assuming they even like me in the first place!” She vigorously shook her head. “It’s better to keep your sex life away from your kids.”

  “I told you I love you,” he said softly, and Rebecca imagined how his dark eyes would be huge in his face, serious and sad. “You’re more than just my sex life.”

  “It’s not going to work, Jackson. I can’t – I can’t risk hurting your kids or Tris. I’m sorry,” Rebecca whispered.

  “Me too,” Jackson managed, his voice thick with emotion as he ended the call.

  Rebecca held the phone against her chest and struggled to hold back her tears.

  * * * * *

  Day 126

  Daisy sighed as she disconnected from the call with Rebecca. She was more sorry than she could say that Rebecca had decided to end things with Jackson. They’d seemed to be truly happy, and Daisy thought Rebecca honestly loved him. But like many things in Rebecca’s life, she wasn’t about to listen to any advice about that decision – not even from Daisy or Manny.

  Daisy shook her head and glanced at the clock. She frowned when she saw lunch was almost over and Max still hadn’t returned to the office. He hadn’t been in all day, in fact. She mentally ran through everything he was supposed to be doing the night before and that morning, and relaxed slightly when she realized there was nothing on that list that should cause him to end up in the hospital or at the police station.

  Max gave her a lot of freedom to manage her day, but she’d wanted to let him know she’d be gone for most of the afternoon, first to meet with her lawyer and then to meet with her bank manager. She didn’t want to do either of those things but she was discovering that dissolving a marriage was complicated, no matter how simple the settlement or how amicably the people involved were behaving.

  At least the house was paid for, she thought thankfully as she sent Max an e-mail explaining her absence, then stuck a post-it note to his computer screen for good measure.

  She put the sign in the window telling people to call or drop by the next day, closed the door with a sad sigh and headed to her first appointment.

  ~~~~~

  Daisy slammed into the house, her face flushed a deep, dark red. Jakob and Janika both turned to stare, their eyes wide as they took in the look on her face.

  “Mom! What happened?” Jakob said, heaving himself up from the couch and limping towards her.

  Daisy closed her eyes and took a deep, calming breath. She realized her hands were clenched into tight fists and she forced them to relax. She opened her eyes and smiled at her kids.

  “Nothing you need to be worried about,” she assured them, “but I need to talk to your father as soon as I possibly can.” She glanced at the clock. “He’ll be here to pick you up any minute now. Could you please tell him I need to talk to him before you guys go?”

  “It’s never good when she refers to Dad as ‘our father’,” Janika muttered to Jakob.

  “True,” he agreed.

  Daisy reluctantly smiled, but “I need to talk to him alone,” was all she said, before she headed down the hall to her bedroom.

  She tried calling Rebecca but there was no answer. She tried Manny next, but there was no answer there, either. She sighed, then dialled a third time to check in with Max.

  “Three strikes and you’re out,” Daisy muttered crossly as her call went to his voice mail. She huffed as she tossed the phone on the bed.

  There was a knock and Hub poked his head around the bedroom door.

  “The kids said you wanted to see me,” he said.

  She bared her teeth in a caricature of her normal smile. “That’s a bit too generous,” she said, “but I want to talk to you, that’s for damn sure. Get in here.”

  Hub came into the room, closing the door behind him, an annoyed frown on his face.

  Daisy stood and faced him, her hands planted firmly on her hips.

  “I had a very interesting meeting with our bank manager today,” she said coldly.

  Hub’s frown deepened. “So?”

  “So? So! So there’s no fucking money in our accounts! What did you do with it?”

  Hub paled. “What do you mean there’s no fucking money in
our accounts?” he demanded.

  “I mean,” she hissed, “they’re empty! All of them! Zeroed out! Not a penny to be seen! What did you do? Did you move everything to a – a – an account in the Caymans or something?”

  “Jesus, Daisy -” Hub muttered, sinking down on the bed, his face grey, “I didn’t do anything with the money – I swear!”

  She scowled furiously at him. “Then what the hell happened?”

  He dazedly shook his head. “I don’t -” Suddenly his head snapped up and he glared at her. “Wait a minute – how do I know you haven’t taken the money to pay off gambling debts?”

  Daisy gaped at him, then burst into bitter laughter. “I don’t gamble that much! And I sure as hell wouldn’t lose over six hundred thousand dollars in one shot! And no, I don’t owe money to the mob, nor were they the ones who really broke Jakob’s leg! God, Hub – give your head a shake!”

  “Well, if you didn’t take it, and I didn’t take it -” Hub snapped.

  They stared at each other, eyes huge.

  “Then somebody stole it,” Daisy said flatly. She shook her head and scrabbled her cell phone out from the blankets.

  “Who are you calling?” Hub asked.

  Daisy laughed a short, sharp, almost hysterical laugh. “Who do you think? The police first, then my lawyer, then I’m going to call Max. Again. And I’m going to keep calling him until he picks up his fucking phone!”

  “Max?” Hub asked sharply. “What for?”

  Daisy rolled her eyes and shook her head. “He’s a private eye – why do you think?”

  ~~~~~

  Rebecca stared in horrified disbelief as Daisy finished speaking.

  “Sweet Jesus,” she murmured, then she shook her head and said, “We need something stronger than tea.”

  Daisy huffed a watery chuckle. “That – would be good.”

  Rebecca bustled to the wet bar and came back with a bottle of tequila and a couple of shot glasses. Neither woman said another word until they’d each tossed back two shots in rapid succession.