Decidedly Married. Carole Page Gift
no, a grease monkey! Julie murmured a vague reply but silently chalked up one more reason she wished Michael hadn’t given Katie a car on her sixteenth birthday. He was always spoiling her, showering her with everything her heart desired. She was his beautiful little princess who could do no wrong Why couldn’t he see that he was spoiling her, giving her too much too soon? Why did Julie always have to be the “bad guy,” pulling back the reins on Katie’s freedom?
“I’m ready!” It was Katie’s voice. She came striding down the stairs toward the foyer in a sleeveless denim top with a short plaid skirt. “Is this better, Mom?” she asked, twirling in a breezy pirouette that showed off her willowy body and long, shapely legs.
“The outfit is fine,” said Julie begrudgingly, “but I didn’t give you permission to spend the entire evening out with—with Jesse. We’ll have dinner first—”
“But it’s church, Mom. Pastor Russell is always telling us to invite people to church.”
“I don’t think he had dating in mind, Katie.”
“Please, Mom! We’ll get something to eat at a fast-food place and then go directly to church.”
Julie wanted to say no, but then she would have to contend with an angry, insufferable daughter all evening. And besides, Katie and the boy wouldn’t be alone; they’d be spending the evening with the youth group.
But another realization cast the deciding vote in Katie’s favor. Julie would need her privacy tonight, of all nights! Somehow she had to find the courage to face Michael and confront him about this mystery woman who wrote him on blue, perfumed stationery about a secret tryst, and signed it, “Love, Beth.”
Seeing the pout forming again on Katie’s lips, Julie said at last, “Go on, Katie. You and Jesse go get something to eat and go to church. But I want you home right after the meeting, you hear?”
“Thanks, Mom! You’re the greatest!”
But as the door slammed shut, Julie wondered if the few hours Katie was gone would give her enough time with Michael. What dark, ugly truths might she unearth with her probing? Had she already lost her happy home and just hadn’t realized it? Equally disturbing, what would her daughter find when she returned home tonight? Would Katie find her parents at war with each other, their marriage in shambles?
Michael phoned shortly after Katie left the house with Jesse. Julie was in the kitchen warming up a can of chicken noodle soup. She hated the stuff, except when she was sick. Grabbing the wall phone before its second ring, she spattered hot broth on her hand and uttered an exclamation of pain and frustration. But into the mouthpiece she delivered a surprisingly controlled and pleasant “Hello.”
When she realized it was Michael, her heart started pounding in a way it hadn’t since they were dating. Her reaction startled her. It was as if their relationship had already undergone a profound change since their parting this morning, all because of a note she had found from someone named Beth.
“Listen, Jewel, I’m glad you’re home already. I’m going to be tied up tonight, so don’t hold dinner, okay?”
Michael sounded distracted, harried, almost the detached, self-conscious tone people reserved for answering machines. “I’ll get home as soon as I can.”
“What is it?” she asked thickly. “A client?”
“Yeah,” he said without missing a beat. “We’re closing a deal and you know the mountains of paperwork involved. It’s a headache, but what can I say?”
“’We’?” Julie repeated. “You said ‘we’re closing a deal’?” Usually Michael would just say, I’m closing a deal.
“You know how it goes, Julie,” Michael replied. “Another Realtor brought in a client for a house our office listed. We do this all the time and share the commission, you know that”
“Yes, of course,” Julie conceded, feeling a trifle foolish. “Do you want me to keep something warm on the stove for you?” The rest of a can of soup? she thought bitterly.
“No, that’s not necessary, hon. I’ll grab a bite somewhere.” His tone softened into the gentle, tender baritone that had made her heart do flipflops all those years ago. “How’s Katie?”
“She went with a friend to youth group.” No sense in telling him yet about the long-haired boy with the ring in his ear.
“By the way, sweetheart, you sound awful. Looks like that cold you were fighting got a real foothold.”
“Yeah, it did. I stayed home from work today and played couch potato.”
“Good You can’t be too careful with all the weird viruses going around these days. Better doctor yourself with that smelly stuff and get to bed early. Don’t wait up for me, okay? Just take care of yourself, and I promise I’ll try not to wake you when I come in.”
“You think you’ll be that late?” Julie asked, feeling suddenly close to tears. She was always a sucker for Michael’s sweet talk. He could charm fuzz off a fly. Why did he have to use those concerned, heart-melting tones when she was all set to be infuriated with him?
“Are you okay, Jewel?” he asked. “You sound…funny—and I’m not talking about the cold now. Is something wrong?”
“What could be wrong?” she murmured without conviction. “I guess it’s just—misery loves company, you know?”
“Look, I’ll try to make a short evening of it, but I can’t promise anything.”
“Michael?” she ventured. “I was just wondering—who’s the other Realtor you’re working with?—on this deal, I mean.”
“Nobody you’d know, sweetheart.”
“Humor me, Michael. I’m curious. Which office is he from?”
“She’s with Consolidated Realtors in Huntington Beach. They’re in the book. Now I’ve really got to go, hon.”
“What’s her name, Michael?”
“Who?”
“The Realtor. In case I need to reach you.”
“Are you feeling that bad, Jewel?”
“No, it’s just—I assume you’re meeting at her office, so I’d like to know who she is.”
“Yeah, sure. Fine.” Michael sounded annoyed. “Her name is Beth. Beth Chamberlin.”
Julie felt as if someone had walloped her in the pit of her stomach. For an instant she couldn’t catch her breath. She held the receiver away from her ear, but she could still hear Michael saying, “Did you hear me, Jewel? Julie, are you there?”
“Yes, Michael,” she murmured, her voice catching. “I’m sorry. I’m feeling worse. I’ve got to go.”
“Listen, take care of yourself, sweetheart,” he said again, as if she were the only woman on his mind or in his heart. “I’ll see you soon. Sleep tight.”
Without another word she dropped the receiver back into its cradle, stumbled into the living room and curled up on the sofa. She felt stunned, baffled, wounded, betrayed. Beth was more than a name in a note. She was real, a real person, someone who was meeting with Michael this very evening. “Michael, sorry about last night. How about tonight? My place. Love, Beth.” That wasn’t the note of a colleague planning the closure of a deal; it was a woman planning an intimate tryst with a man she loved.
“What kind of a fool do you think I am, Michael?” Julie rubbed her temples. Her dull headache was quickly turning into throbbing, viselike pain. No matter how