“Okay, Mina, you win. I’ll tell the director that you’re available on a very limited basis until the final week before performance. By then, you should have your lesson plans in and your classroom set up. If you have trouble with that, let me know and I will find someone to help you with those. But whatever it takes, on opening night, you’re going to be on that stage. You owe it to me and I put my neck on the line.”
“David, please don’t use that attitude with me. It just doesn’t sit well. We can’t be friends if you’re going to threaten me.”
“I’m not threatening you,” he told me clearly. “I’m promising you.” At that point, he must’ve realized his harsh tone because his voice changed and became softer. “Never mind me, Mina, I’m used to dealing in a business man’s world and you’re not. I know you won’t let me down, you wouldn’t think of it. Would you?”
I decided to adjourn the entire conversation, so I said, “David you need to let me go now. I’ll be late for work. Have a great day.” I disconnected and sneaked a look at the clock. I was already late, so I ran home, grabbed my beach bag and flew back out the door. Luckily, the weather was great, and the sky filled with a cool mist. No one was interested in swimming, so I sat in one of the nearby covered picnic areas and watched the beach from there.
I replayed David’s conversation in my mind, trying to give him the benefit of the doubt. He had been demanding, perhaps even threatening, but I had to remember that it was David speaking. He was always on the offensive. He expected trouble before it came. Looking at it from that perspective, it was possible to consider that maybe he was a bit intimidated by me. That made me feel better, so I focused on the antics of two little girls with pails whom I overheard saying they were going to dig to China.
I heard my name called and looked over my shoulder to see Marcy dragging Jude by the hand through the damp sand toward me. Spinning around on the picnic bench, I stood and called out to them. “What are you two doing here? It’s a lousy day for the beach.”
“Oh, we’re not here for the beach, silly. We are here for you,” Marcy burst out as they reach the picnic area.
Jude was brushing the damp sand from her legs. “See? This is why I never like to come to the beach. You come home all covered up with sand like a crab.”
“We don’t have crabs on Lake Michigan, silly,” I laughed at her. “So, what has you so excited as to brave the elements to see me?”
“We tried calling your cell, but it kept going to voicemail.”
I shrugged. “You know the signal is lousy on this side of the main dune. So, what’s up?” I was anxious for a little good news to erase my troubled thoughts. I was about to find out they were bringing me anything but good news.
They looked at one another and Marcy went first. “What’s this we hear that they’re reopening the playhouse and that the female lead is none other than you?”
The Bretherton PR representative had been busy it seemed. “It wasn’t my idea.”
“How could it not be your idea? Every girl in town would like to have that role.” Jude’s face showed her amazement and was almost disgusted by my lack of excitement.
“Then let any other girl have the role, I don’t care. I’m just doing it as a favor to David.”
The two looked at one another and repeated my words very slowly. “A favor for David?” They said with some incredulity. “He’s the richest guy in town. Are you dating him?”
“No. And let me make that an emphatic no, I’m not dating him. David has a pretty high opinion of himself and likes to start rumors about things aren’t always true, but just happen to make him look good.”
“And you’re one of those rumors?”
I shrugged. “I’m not dating him. He made a nice gesture by sending me some flowers unexpectedly and I thanked him by taking him out for a very short dinner downtown. That’s it. He might’ve gotten the wrong idea, but I can’t help that because I made it very clear.”
“But why wouldn’t you want to date him?” Judith just didn’t seem to get it.
“In the first place, I’m not interested in him. He’s got a huge ego and there’s no room in there for anyone else. Secondly, he’s my boss, he’s on the school board. One wrong step, an ended relationship and boom! I have no job. You know how it is around here. No one wants to make an enemy out of a Bretherton. It’s just not smart.
“Believe me, there are plenty who would trade places with you. It could be a lot worse. You could be the love subject of Ernie the drunk.” Jude had the most interesting way of putting things.
“Do me a favor you two and keep this thing quiet, will you? You know how this town is. They get a little bit of gossip between their teeth and go wild with it. I don’t want it getting around that I’m dating him, because I’m not dating him. I’m perfectly fine on my own. Can you do that for me?” I could see Jude was disappointed and Marcy was flabbergasted but both of them agreed with a nod of their heads. “So, that’s all you two came down here for?”
They nodded in unison. Marcy rebounded first.
“Nobody’s going to come down here swimming, it’s too cold and nasty. Why don’t you put up the no lifeguard sign and come shopping with us? There’s a new little boutique on Stringer Street. I hear they’ve got some cute dresses for fall. Maybe you could find something you can wear for work?”
I agreed and ran up the flag that indicated there was no lifeguard on duty for swimming. I also ran up the red flag for undertows—the locals understood, but the tourists generally ignored it. They were at their own peril. There were signs posted all over the place.
The three of us ran over the sand, pushing each other down and Jude’s face turned more and more angry. “Stop it!” she shouted.
“Oh, don’t be such a baby. It’s just sand. It brushes off.”
“Yeah, all over the carpeting in my car.”
I sighed with exasperation. “Let me run home and change clothes. Why don’t you two follow me?”
We rendezvoused at my cottage and as I changed and combed my hair, the girls were chattering in the living room. I heard David’s name come up more than once and knew better than to think that they were going to be able to let it go so easily. After all, they were best friends with the object of the gossip, so it was certain that people would ask them what they knew. I only hoped they would remember what they promised me and downplayed rather than set fire to it. It was probably better that this happened in the summer when all the tourists had everyone occupied. But then the school season was about to start and if there was a rumor mill in town, the school was the source.
We found the new boutique and as promised, there were some super cute dresses. I found myself sorting through the racks and wishing I had somewhere romantic to wear some of the outfits. My summer tan was at its best and there was one mint green off-shoulder dress that had been moved to the sale rack. That made it almost in my price range. I tried it on and walked out of the fitting room. “Oh my God, Mina. That’s definitely you. You have to buy it.” Marcy’s encouragement felt great, but I really didn’t see any point in buying something that would only hang in my closet. I felt a pang as I imagined what Brice would say if he saw me in it. That made me feel even more depressed, so I quickly took it off and shook my head as I hung it back on the rack.
“Not for me, I’m afraid,” I said, and Marcy’s mouth opened to say something, but she must’ve thought better of it. I was glad. I wasn’t in any mood to hear about men from her.
Jude bought a pair of jeans and other than that, we left the store money intact. We drove down by the beach and weather conditions hadn’t improved, so I was off for the rest of the day. We decided to go back to my place, and on the way, we stopped at the bakery and picked up three, very fattening cream puffs filled with chocolate and strawberries.
I turned on the coffee pot and soon the three of us sat side-by-side on the sofa, hugging our coffee and eyeballing the pastries. “Think we should eat them?” Marcy asked, hoping no one woul
d object.
Jude nodded. “I think we deserve them. After all, we were good at the boutique. We earned a little treat.”
We nodded simultaneously and picked up our forks. “Wait! Let’s make this a real party.” I leaped up from the sofa and rummaged through my closet until I found what I was looking for. I walked back into the living room, my Ouija board in hand. “Remember when we used to play with this at pajama parties?”
Jude shook her head. “That thing is evil,” she shuddered.
Marcy shook her head and reached for the board. “No, it’s not, silly. You’ve been listening to rumors again. It’s just a game.”
Jude shook her head. “I don’t know about that. I heard one woman at the store saying that her daughter played it with some friends and two of the girls turned up pregnant a week later.”
I laughed aloud. “I don’t think playing the Ouija board was what got them pregnant, Jude.”
“I know that, silly. It’s just that those things open portals to evil.”
Marcy clucked her tongue. “Getting pregnant is hardly evil. It might be stupid under the wrong circumstances, but if you asked me, there’s nothing I’d like more than to have a little baby.”
The two of us stared at her. She quickly added, “If I had a husband, I mean.”
“Do you really think it’s necessary to have a husband to have a baby nowadays?” This came from Jude and the two of us looked at her in surprise. Of the three of us, she was always the most conservative. Her parents had brought her up strictly Baptist.
“It helps,” Marcy said rationally. “Raising a baby isn’t easy and having a partner to help just makes sense. Being a single parent isn’t any fun.”
I studied her from the corner of my eye, wondering what was prompting her remarks. As far as I knew, Marcy wasn’t dating anyone, so she couldn’t be speaking from a personal perspective. It gave me food for thought, however. I wanted a home, husband, and the baby, in that order. I was one-third of the way there, but items two and three looked a long way off.
“Question, Mina. If David asked you to marry him, would you?” Marcy seemed very curious.
“No, I wouldn’t marry him. I’m not in love with him, in fact, I’m not even sure I like him at all. What would make you ask such a thing?”
She sniffed, throwing one shoulder to block my view. “Just maybe not everyone shares your opinion.”
That was when it dawned on me. “Marcy, are you telling us that you are interested in David Bretherton?” I tried to keep the amazement out of my tone.
“And what if I am? You don’t seem to mind if you lose him.”
I took a deep breath. “First of all, David isn’t mine to lose. He’s just a guy we went to school with, that’s it. His family has money and influence and a fair amount of control over my job. That’s a scary thing for me. I don’t want to get any closer to him because I can’t afford to lose my income. But, Marcy, if you’re interested in him, all means, go after him.” I wanted to say that he could do a lot worse, but there was no polite way to say that Marcy was too good for him without her getting defensive, so I kept my thoughts to myself. Jude, on the other hand, wasn’t so cautious.
“Marcy? Are you sure you want to do that? He’s like, really out there, weird.”
“Oh no, Jude, that’s not nice. You probably don’t know him at all and if Marcy likes him, that’s her business. We might not like who you end up with but will never tell you.”
I had set up the Ouija board but each of us had a fork in hand and were nibbling in our pastries. “Okay, I’ll go first, who’s going to go with me?”
Jude shook her head, her eyes huge. “No, not me.”
“Oh, you big baby, here, I’ll do it,” Marcy chided her. I think she was a little stunned by Jude’s remark and I really didn’t blame her.
We balanced our fingertips on the plastic message indicator. Marcy gave me a hard look, cocking her head and said, “Don’t cheat now.”
“Why would I do that? It just makes it a waste of time.”
“Okay, but I’m just saying…”
“So, what’s the first thing we’re going to ask?” I wanted to know.
Jude, despite her reluctance to join in, was sitting forward on the sofa, her eyes bright with anticipation. “Ask it if I’m going to have a boyfriend in the next six months.”
Marcy’s and my eyes met in humor and I shrugged. “Ouija, is Jude going to have a boyfriend in the next six months?”
All six eyes were locked onto the indicator as it slowly slid toward the word yes.
“Oh, goody! I was hoping it would say that. I’m so tired of being alone. Ask it who he’ll be.”
Marcy rolled her eyes. “Gosh, June, for someone who was freaked out by this, you sure are getting into the spirit of things.”
“Just ask it.”
Marcy gave in. “Ouija, who will be Jude’s boyfriend?”
The indicator began to move and even though I knew I wasn’t pushing it, I wasn’t entirely sure about Marcy. It moved slowly across the alphabet and spelled out the word STRANGER.
“I wonder what that means?” Jude wanted to know.
“My guess would be that it’s someone you don’t know. What you think, Mina? How do you interpret STRANGER?”
“Stop it, Marcy don’t pick on her. Okay, it’s my turn. Ouija, will Marcy and David be an item within the next six months?”
I felt Marcy’s fingers jerk as she pulled it toward the YES corner. Just to confound her, I pushed as well, but towards the NO. “Stop it, Mina,” she grumbled. “I can feel you pushing it.” Jude laughed and settled back on the sofa, finishing off her creampuff.
“You guys go ahead and play. I’m just going to sit here and eat.”
“Okay, Ms. smarty-pants, how about this? Ouija, will Mina get married within the next year?”
Without hesitation or any pressure from Marcy’s fingers, the indicator flew across the board to the YES corner. It was so unexpected and sudden for both Marcy and me, that we pulled our hands back as though we had been burned.
“Wow, I wonder who you’re marrying?” Marcy wondered aloud.
“He’s probably another stranger,” Jude threw in and we all laughed.
“Well, I don’t know about the two of you, but I’m going to finish my creampuff,” I said. After that, I’m swearing off sweets. I have to get ready for that wedding dress, you know,” I joked. We laughed, and it wasn’t long thereafter when the girls decided they needed to go home. I walked them to the door and we hugged. I checked the weather one last time and took advantage of the lull to lie down on my bed and take a nap.
Chapter 12
Brice
Todd had called and asked me to meet him north of the pier in the area I was interested in buying. We stood in the parking lot of an old shoe factory and looked out over the water.
“It’s yours now,” he said. It was a quiet announcement with a huge import.
“You pulled it off?”
He nodded.
I was thrilled and for the first time since I’d won that money, I felt truly excited about it. It was the first phase of making my dream come true.
“When do we close?”
“Well, it will be a month or so. Lots of players involved here, you know.”
“I get that.” I pivoted on the pavement and looked back over the land, imagining the buildings gone and the horizon empty again. It would be great to start again from a clean palette. Start interviewing builders,” I ordered him.
“Already started, but I’m keeping your name out of it, as asked. It’s all going through your holding corporation.”
“Good. I don’t want that detail coming out anytime soon.”
“You still haven’t told your folks?”
I shook my head. “Nope. It would be too tempting for them to brag a little and that would muck up my plans. I might tell my sister, just so someone in the family knows. In case something happens to me, you know.”
“What
’s going to happen? You’re like the golden boy.”
“Don’t tempt fate, Todd. I don’t get everything I want, you know.”
“Oh? Like what haven’t you gotten.”
Mina’s beautiful contours rose before me, but I said nothing. I missed her so badly and thought that strange since we’d actually spent very little time together since we’d both come back to town.
He picked up on my expression. “Who is she?”
“Who?” I played it cool.
“The girl you’re thinking of? I know you well enough to see someone has you wrapped around her little finger. I haven’t seen you with anyone—someone I know?”
“Nope. Anyway, that’s my private life and I’d like to keep it that way. So, let’s go back to my apartment and start sketching out some plans for development. You’re going to need to get an architect involved. I have a certain plan in mind but don’t know anything about making it happen. That’s where you come in. Can you handle it?”
“Of course. I’ll follow you.”
Back at my apartment, I spread out some sheets of computer paper and taped them together lightly. “Okay, now here in the center of the development, I want a community center. Call it the town center, if you want.”
“Are you planning to make this a town, separate from Bretherton?”
“Not planning on it, but if the town council gives me any problems, I’ll request a zoning change and do it. I have no problem with that.”
Todd’s face grew serious. I don’t think he realized how driven I was. He didn’t know about Mina, or he would have understood, and maybe been somewhat concerned. “Go on,” he said, motioning to the papers.
“Okay, so in the community center will be a cafeteria where residents can come and eat—and I mean healthy food that tastes decent. I want a full kitchen and I’ll hire chefs. No vending machine or commodities crap.”
“Woah! Who’s going to pay for all that?”
I gave him a meaningful look and he nodded, growing more solemn with every detail I gave him. “Now, at the back of this building, I want a clinic. Nothing big or too fancy. Just equipped with the basics for something like a walk-in clinic, but I want the ability to administer chemo and perform dialysis. Those are things people shouldn’t have to travel far to get. I looked at Todd, but his gaze was intent on the representational rectangles I was drawing, his mind absorbing the scope of my dream.
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