A Better Next

by Maren Cooper

  Jess closed the car hatch and headed back toward the house with the envelope as a VW Bug with floral decals on both side doors pulled alongside her car in the driveway. A young woman moved smoothly out of the car and extended an arm.

  “Hi, I’m Melody Barnes. You must be Jess,” she said in such a well-modulated, sweet voice that Jess wondered if her parents had waited until she could talk before they’d named her. Not only that, but Jess couldn’t stop looking at her hair, and then, when she was over the shock of seeing a bright purple stripe of short hair cut on a diagonal on one side of Melody’s head, she couldn’t stop looking at Melody’s clothes. She was dressed in a bright pink camisole nearly covered by a black silk blouse, and a rainbow-checkerboard short skirt with purple leggings and matching bright orange clown shoes.

  Before Jess could respond, Melody quickly went on, “You probably think I’m kinda freaky. But I just got off work at the puppet theater, and this is how we were dressed for the finale. I wanted to keep this appointment and didn’t have time to go home and change into other duds. Sorry to surprise you.”

  Jess realized she must have been standing there with her mouth open to have received such an explanation, so she quickly responded, “I’m happy to meet you, Melody. Claire is so excited that you’ll be helping her out. Come on in.”

  Jess peeked into the nursery and found Claire awake and nursing PJ. She greeted Melody with a huge belly laugh, which threw poor little PJ off the breast, and then they all started to laugh, except for PJ, who whimpered a bit until he was repositioned.

  “Melody’s a playwright for a puppet theater, and she sometimes works as a puppeteer. I know we talked about her as an artsy type who was looking for steady work, but maybe we never really got into much detail about her. Given that I’m such a right-brain, focused person, I wanted PJ to have a presence from another sphere with him in his early developmental stages. And, as you can see, I believe Melody will add a lot of color to his life!”

  “I’ve worked as a nanny off and on for four years,” Melody said. “Babies are my specialty. He’s adorable. Can I stay a bit and hold him when you’re done nursing?” she asked.

  Claire walked Melody to the door and found Jess checking the giveaway stack in the porch. “I see you’ve been busy.”

  “I have. I went through that big storage box from the lake and sorted stuff. Do you have any interest in any of those books? No big deal if you don’t.”

  Claire smiled. “If I ever have time to read again, you mean? What’s that?” She pointed to the envelope. “Are you getting stir crazy?”

  “I’m not sure what it is, but they tracked me down from the office. Guess they miss me.” Jess raised her eyebrows, tore open the envelope, and scanned the contents. “Unbelievable.” She sat down and read more closely.

  “What?”

  “It’s a contract offer from Dick for that project he wants me to do. I more or less told him off when he asked me about it.” Jess paused and looked up at Claire. “And not only does he want me to do it, but the terms are open. He wants me to name my price.”

  “Wonderful! Another reason to party. We’re celebrating your last night sleeping over with takeout. I just ordered pizza; it should be here in fifteen minutes.”

  Just then, PJ’s cry alerted them. Claire was halfway to the bedroom when the crying stopped. She returned, happy for a few extra minutes of freedom.

  Diane arrived before the food. She carried a bottle of wine into the den and presented it to Jess with a flourish and a warm squeeze. “It’s time to recognize another new beginning. For Jess, the divorce is final. Ready to move on to the next chapter?”

  The doorbell rang, pulling Jess out of her momentary lapse. “Wow, it’s hard to believe this one’s really over.”

  Diane went to the kitchen for a corkscrew and glasses, and Claire answered the door for the delivery guy and then called out to Diane, “Hey, a glass for me, too! I’m more than ready to have my first wine after childbirth!”

  Jess exhaled deeply and let her mind unwind. Between PJ’s birth and getting him and Claire settled at home, she hadn’t had much time to think about the true end of the marriage. How did anyone really celebrate the end of a marriage, anyway? The papers were finally signed, so the deed was done. At best, it was bittersweet.

  The marriage had ended long ago for Arthur. She found it ironic that he could leave his family as easily as he had because he knew how strong she was. She had developed that strength early in life to help her survive the melodramatic failure of her parents’ marriage and their inability to shield her.

  “You didn’t tell me it was final,” Claire said. “When? And, more important, how are you feeling?” Claire carted the pizza box to the dining room table, and Diane reappeared with tableware.

  “The news from my attorney came in while you were still in the hospital. Arthur finally let go of the air miles.” Jess paused. “More easily than I expected, actually. And that was the last issue.”

  “OK, that’s the ‘when.’ But how are you feeling?” The question stopped time, like suspended animation in a movie. Diane was poised to pop the cork from the wine bottle, and Claire was just about to sit. They waited.

  “Relieved, but sad, too,” Jess started slowly. “Not sure how I’ll feel about it next week or next month. It’s somewhat anticlimactic right now, yet still a bit raw,” she finished with a trembling lip.

  Claire and Diane both started toward her, but Jess headed them off. “But right now, I’m very excited about having my first taste of wine in a week.” She picked up her glass and held it toward Diane. “Pop that cork, please!”

  Over dinner, Jess told them that Tom and Beth were going to Portland for Thanksgiving. “I know it’s what Arthur wants. The kids are hesitant to go, but they did agree. And I’m not going to make it hard for them, any of them.” She looked up at her friends and found the support she needed.

  “But they’ll be here for three full weeks over winter break at Christmas. Yay!” Jess cheered. Claire and Diane joined in. “Claire, is there any chance you would consider having the christening when they’re home?”

  “What a brilliant idea! Yes, let’s do that.”

  “They’re both so excited to meet PJ!”

  As Jess was drifting off to sleep during her last night in Claire’s guest room, she was pleased that she had kept her cool when she had shared the news that the kids wouldn’t be with her for Thanksgiving. Just as well that there had been so much activity. It kept her mind occupied. Her last thought was of the envelope sitting atop her suitcase.

  Chapter 29

  “This is amazing.” Dan whistled as he finished reading through the short contract from Dick and looked up at Jess, who was enjoying her breakfast while awaiting his reaction. They had agreed to meet at their local diner, Peter’s, on Jess’s first morning back, as she had no groceries in her house.

  “Isn’t it? Am I missing anything? I read it as a full engagement offer with terms to be defined at my pleasure. Right?”

  “Yes, that’s my read. And it’s consistent with what he told me when he couldn’t get to you last week. This guy is clearly intent on having you act as his agent in all things related to this new clinic-acquisition strategy. Pretty incredible.”

  Jess pushed her plate away and took a minute to register her first day back after a week of life-altering events: the birth of PJ, the official end of her marriage, and then this totally unexpected new opportunity with Midwest Health.

  “By the way, I hope you didn’t mind that we had it sent out to Claire’s house. Dick was pretty insistent on getting it to you ASAP, and”—Dan grinned—“I guessed you might appreciate the special attention, especially coming from him.”

  Jess chuckled. “Life is crazy, isn’t it? I had written this off, you know. No way I thought he’d be man enough to allow me to call him on his behavior and then turn around and make an offer like this.”

  “Well, are you going to do it? This is the man who required you
to promise to keep your husband in town in return for staying in your job on the merger team.”

  “Same man, yes. But, as you remember, I didn’t play his game then, and now I get to set the rules in a new game. Of course, we are going to do it! I’m not going to pass this up. This is a chance to take Midwest Health to a new level, to strengthen the combined system. Absolutely!”

  Dan laughed. “Ms. Lawson, I daresay you sound quite excited about this. I wasn’t sure you’d go for it.”

  Jess laughed with him, then got serious. “I’ll be watching this very carefully. My terms will include an opt out at the slightest concern on my part. But the chance to make this system stronger is too tempting for me not to take the risk.”

  “Sounds like the right way to approach this, Jess. What would you like from me?”

  “I’m going to take today to draft my proposal. I’d like to go over it with you tomorrow so we can consider what staffing and resources we need and get the right legal protection in line. Then we’ll meet with Dick later this week and tie it down. I’d appreciate it if you could be at that meeting.”

  “An extra set of eyes and ears?”

  “Yup, you got it.”

  After their lunch, Jess anticipated that Dick would be a bit wary of how she would handle the meeting to formalize their agreement, so she changed things up. He had never seen her as her most charming self.

  “Dick, I’m so excited about working on this project.” She reached out a hand in greeting and smiled warmly. “Dan has graciously served as a second pair of eyes for me and reviewed my proposal, and I asked him to be here to make sure you know how seriously we take this opportunity.” She read Dick’s obvious surprise at Dan’s presence as confirmation that he was aware Dan was there as a witness, not a coach.

  Dick nodded at Dan, then zeroed in on Jess. “Jess, I’m thrilled we’ve been able to reach an understanding of how to approach taking Midwest to the next level.” He led them to the furniture grouping at the end of his office suite.

  After some gratuitous discussion about the artwork on the walls, Jess pulled a folder from her briefcase. “I know your attorney has reviewed and signed off on the papers, so here are the three sets of originals, with objectives and timelines, for your signature.”

  Dick took the papers and scanned them quickly. “Of course.” He retrieved a pen from his suit pocket, then handed the signed papers to Jess, who looked him straight in the eye and said, “Thanks for the work, Dick. I look forward to a strong partnership.” To herself, she said, And if you blow it, you’ll hear about it and I’ll walk . . . But I hope you don’t.

  “As do I, Jess.” Dick grinned at her. “Strong personalities make the best partnerships. Glad we got there.”

  The meeting over and the papers signed, Dan and Jess agreed on the team from the firm, and she chose Cindy to be her lead legal advisor.

  The following week, Jess took Cindy with her to the first meeting with Midwest Health’s outreach staff to get the ball rolling.

  “It’s good to see you again.” Jess offered her hand to Sam Hirsch, the medical director, as she and Cindy entered the conference room at Midwest Health’s medical staff executive offices. Sam was an old hand in academic circles at the U. He had played the role of kindly uncle to many fast-trackers over the years. Jess remembered Arthur confiding in her that Sam had taken him aside and counseled him to control his temper a time or two. She wondered now if he had ever counseled Arthur on managing his personal life.

  “And you, Jess. Great to have you back, helping us out with this new venture.” Sam winked at her and shook her hand. She noted the portraits of previous deans hanging in a row on the conference room walls. How little had changed here in the many months since her last meeting at the medical school—and how much had changed in her own life.

  Roy and Matthew, the outreach staff members whom Midwest Health had provided to support Jess, stood and shook hands with her and Cindy and introduced themselves. Roy was a tall, wiry lad wearing a brown suit and a purple tie. Matthew had somewhat shaggy blond hair and wore rumpled chinos and a blue blazer. Their backpacks were stowed on a chair in the corner. They appeared to have a combined age of fifty. Jess wondered whether these two pups, who looked to be fresh from business school, knew what this business was about. It was up to her to decide whether to use them or bring resources from her own firm for this phase of analysis.

  Sam left the room to ask Gloria, his assistant, to send in coffee while they all took seats around the conference table.

  “Ms. Lawson, Ms. Newton, I’m going to show you a map of the medical practices that currently refer patients to Midwest Health, and then Matt will walk you through our prospect list, also mapped.” Roy pointed to their individual packets and the PowerPoint presentation he was starting. Jess noticed that his hands were a little shaky as he began, but he spoke with growing confidence as they moved through the material.

  “Roy, I see you’ve graphed the number of patients referred over the past three years from each of these medical practices. But have you accounted for demographic changes in each of these geographic areas as well?”

  “Yes, ma’am. If you take a look at Table Five in your materials, you can see how we controlled for the population shifts.” Roy spoke quickly and glanced at Matthew to comment.

  “A very good question, Ms. Lawson. We know that these areas are shifting quite a bit. If we move to the prospective maps, you’ll see how we anticipate marketing opportunities for the new, combined Midwest Health.” Matthew shot out of his chair and used his laser pointer to indicate the data Jess had asked about. “If we’re able to successfully market to the first of the practices noted here, we project a worst-case scenario of two hundred new patients.”

  They spent the next hour discussing the data; both the quality and the presentation of the analysis were spot-on. After a quick break and private conversation with Cindy, Jess said, “Let’s see what you have on the university side. Are the data as specific?”

  Roy and Matthew seemed to deflate. They looked at each other, then at Sam, who turned to Jess.

  “Nothing?” Jess thought this must a joke, but the blank stares told her otherwise. “Really?”

  “Really,” Sam finally said. “There’s nothing, and we’ve looked. Each department of the medical school has its own way of keeping track of referrals, but there’s no central repository. No data set has ever been attempted.”

  “Hmm . . . interesting,” Jess said. “But not the end of the world. That’s where we need to start. Roy and Matthew, your first task will be to come up with a plan to get this information from each department and put it in some usable form. Sam, I know I can count on you for this.”

  “Yes, whatever you need.” Sam seemed pleased. Jess knew that he had Dick’s direction to support her with all the resources at his disposal, including political influence with the medical-school departments.

  “Great. We can’t prioritize until we have that information. Roy and Matthew, I’d like to hear how you intend to proceed, and how long it will take, by Friday. That gives you two days. Does that work?”

  At this request, Roy and Matthew puffed up considerably and smiled broadly as they replied jointly, “Yes, Friday works.”

  “And, guys, you can call us Jess and Cindy, not Ms. or ma’am, OK?” Now that the boys knew they were still in the running to support her project, Jess was certain she would get what she needed by Friday.

  When Sam walked them out of the conference room and into the anteroom, his administrative assistant, Gloria, was in a heated telephone conversation with someone.

  “No, that will not do,” she said. “This arrangement has been in place for the last five years, and you can’t just cancel our reservation. We have a deposit down.”

  “Oh, poor Gloria. She’s having problems with the golf course venue for the annual medical staff tournament,” Sam explained. “Event management is no fun, let me tell you. Doctors are fussy about their events and not easy to please
.” He shrugged.

  Jess listened as Gloria was pushing her argument, and something clicked into place. “So, your office handles these events?”

  “Yes, we do.”

  Jess made a mental note to ask Gloria who had won the silent auction bid on her lake house two Augusts ago.

  November was nearly over. Thanksgiving came. Diane’s parents invited Claire and PJ, along with Jess, to join them for the holiday, which turned out to be the best possible distraction. This was the first holiday she wouldn’t spend with her children. If she hadn’t had the trip to Goodrich on the docket, or the opportunity to spend Claire and PJ’s first family Thanksgiving with them, she knew she would have spent the day going through photo albums of her own family holidays past, imagining what they would be doing if this were a normal holiday, before the divorce. She missed her kids and her past. She wasn’t sure what a new normal was yet.

  Fortunately, there was one child in the mix today. It was PJ’s first big trip, and he cooperated beautifully, taking some of the pressure off George, who was still getting to know Diane’s parents. On the car ride back, Claire shyly asked Jess, “Can I adopt them as honorary grandparents?”

  “They’re wonderful people, aren’t they?” Jess thought back to the many hours she had spent in refuge at Diane’s house while growing up. “I suspect they would love that. Diane and George may not have children, and it’s obvious that her parents were delighted with PJ. Maybe you should feel it out with Diane, and then invite them to the christening next month.”

  “That’s a really good idea. I suppose I should get that planning started. So far, I have my church date set.”

  “Oh, and the christening gown. Beth and Tom agree with me that we would like you to use the same gown that they each wore. It’s a family treasure, and beautifully hand-embroidered. And we’d like PJ to be an honorary family member.” Jess had been watching Claire from the driver’s seat and saw her dab at the tears trickling down her face.