“Rule 12: Jealousy is not love; it’s possession. Don’t give up your free will for a man.” — SMFA
Quinn got two useful calls the previous evening, one to say his front end had been repaired but the body work would have to wait. The other was from the college president asking him to a meeting with him, the dean and the department chair.
The next morning Quinn left Kelly a message, put on his best suit and walked over to get his vehicle. At nine that morning he was sitting in Dr. Gavin’s office having coffee with him and Dean Merrick. Ellis was late so they discussed economics, teaching techniques and any other topic the president could think of while they waited for Keith Ellis to show. And he did not.
Dr. Gavin checked with his secretary one more time before he shrugged and apologized.
Quinn smiled. “Maybe Professor Ellis didn’t get the message.”
“I spoke to his wife myself,” Gavin said. “She promised she’d give him the message.”
“I’m so glad we got a chance to talk,” Quinn said as he stood. “You have my number in case you need to reach me. I’ll be working on my house and my lesson plans. I know I’m going to enjoy my first term here.”
Dean Merrick shook hands with him. “Hope you get moved in before term starts.”
“We’re making progress every day.”
“I hear your son will be starting here this fall,” Dr. Gavin said.
“Yes, he’s looking forward to it. Going into business.”
“Good,” Gavin said. “Bring him by sometime.”
“I’d like to meet him as well.” Merrick walked out with Quinn.
Gavin and Merrick seemed like the sort of men he’d enjoy working for. It could all be so perfect, he thought as he drove back to town. Or it could all fall to pieces. Of all the things that had gone wrong, Ellis’ behavior was the most inexplicable. Why would someone he didn’t even know try to destroy him?
* * * * *
Kelly had Jason help her with the plaster work and he seemed to have a talent for keeping the patches even. Only one of the upstairs bedrooms was very bad, and even that just needed to be patched. They worked their way down and were finishing up the details in the hallway when Quinn finally showed.
“How goes it? It smells nice in here.” He looked around at the white spots of fresh plaster.
Kelly came off the ladder to check the hydrometer. “The humidity is still at sixty percent but that’s better than it was before. Mold can’t grow at fifty percent.”
“How’d it go, Dad?”
“Well, it looks like I still have a job. Ellis isn’t taking calls and can’t be found. In fact I heard the president’s secretary say he ditched a curriculum meeting today, so neither the president nor dean is very happy with him. They think my credentials are fine.”
Kelly nodded. “Then I guess he’s got some explaining to do. What a coward, to think he could scare you away, then dodge the consequences.”
Quinn sat on the windowsill then stood up to check for plaster dust, but his suit was unmarked. “What I can’t figure out is why?”
”Some men—people don’t need motivation for bad behavior.” A knock on the kitchen door made them all turn and stare. Kelly recognized Tennant’s silhouette, tall and gaunt. “Your first real caller.” She went to the kitchen and flung the door open. “Come on in.”
“Hi, all. We’ll have to be introduced later. I’m tailing someone, so I’ll just drop these and run. Call me tonight, Kelly.”
As always the energetic Tennant was in a hurry, but he was smooth about it. He was out the door before Jason had time to do more than look puzzled.
“Was that your PI?” Quinn asked.
“It’s a small town, but sometimes the press of work is too much for him. Jason, can you finish cleaning up while I show these photos to your dad?”
“Okay, private conference. I’m not dense.”
“Just don’t want to shock your innocent eyes,” she said.
They left Jason chuckling in the hall while Kelly spread out the photos on the kitchen counter. Kelly had to admit that even she was shocked by them.
Quinn tapped one of them. “That’s Brenda and Paul, but who’s the other guy?”
“Tennant will find out. Does it matter?”
Quinn blew out a slow breath. “Not really. There have been so many.” He was holding one of the pictures, studying the face.
“But you waited a long time to make the break.” Kelly washed her hands.
“You have a right to know. You’ve risked so much for me and given me far too much leeway. Remember I said I would have had to leave the firm even if Brenda and I had not split?”
“Yeah, but I guess I wasn’t paying much attention.” What more could possibly go wrong for Quinn?
He rested his shapely buns against the oak radiator cover and folded his arms. “I had to quit because Brenda’s father couldn’t fire me. They can’t fire whistleblowers, not without worse repercussions than the rest of the investigation will bring.”
“Oh, I see, financial irregularities. Have you escaped unbesmirtched?”
“Yes, because I reported them to the SEC as soon as I found out about it, then I resigned. I’m not on the board of directors. He can try to retire before the shit hits the fan, but he should have been overseeing this and he wasn’t. In fact he carefully kept me away from the issue the whole time I worked there.”
“In a way you’re lucky he never trusted you enough to make you a VP or something. Or to put it another way, he knew you were too upright to put up with his sleight of hand, so he kept you at a safe level.”
“Small blessings. I was in auditing not investments. Still, when the story breaks, I’ll have to testify.”
“Not to put too fine a point on it, Quinn, but when were you going to tell the dean that you will end up in court?” Kelly knew that was what bothered him now.
“I didn’t think I’d have to, that I’d be working there a year or so before it came to court. There’s an investigation to get through first, then the lawyers talk.”
“But if someone breaks the story early. Someone like Brenda…”
“Why would she? It’s her own father’s neck.”
“Has she ever been considerate of him before?” Kelly was feeling antsy, like she wanted Quinn to handle this now before the worst happened.
“She’s considerate of the money he gives her.”
“But is she rational enough to add that all up?”
He stared at Kelly and slowly shook his head. “I don’t know.”
Jason poked his head into the room. “Are you two finished keeping secrets? I’m getting hungry.”
“You need to hear this from me as well, Jason. The reason I left your grandpa’s firm is they were trampling all over the new accounting laws, and I…”
“You went to the police, of course.”
“Well, the proper authorities.”
“So why is that news?”
Kelly smiled. “The point is we hope it doesn’t get to be news.”
“Oh, it could mess up your new job.”
“I don’t know.” Quinn turned to her. “What would you do?”
“Hah, you’re asking your contractor about accounting policy. You are in trouble.”
Quinn laughed. “No, I’m asking my very good friend about ethics. I feel you have a great deal of experience in that realm.”
“I’d level with the dean.”
He nodded.
“You want more than a three-year contract. You want a long-term relationship. That is built on trust. If you tell them everything up front, they may decide to ride it out with you. After all, publicity isn’t always bad. Maybe you’ll be sort of like a hero for doing the right thing.”
“Or they may use it as an excuse to break my contract.”
“Either way it puts you in control. If they know about it from your lips, no one can use it against you.”
Quinn glanced at Jason.
“Dad, you have to tell the truth. If I don’t get to go to school this fall, I have a feeling I’ll be learning just as much helping you and Kelly.”
“Okay, I should have realized you two would be in accord on this. So what do we have planned for dinner tonight?”
“I happen to have loaded the Crockpot with what I hope will be an appetizing meal by now,” Kelly said, “but I’ve been wrong before.”
“You always plan ahead, don’t you?”
“At least as far as the next meal.”
* * * * *
They drove home and the smell from the kitchen exceeded expectations. They decided to eat on the picnic table because food always tastes better outside. The pork roast, potatoes and carrots settled well on their stomachs. Kelly was just meditating on what would be best for dessert when the slam of car doors, many car doors, announced company. Nicky and Daf launched themselves into the yard, each carrying a gallon tub of ice cream. Sue followed up with the cake and Devin and Ray bore a cooler between them.
“Hey, it looks like a party. I know you didn’t get the house finished.”
Sue grinned. “No, silly, it’s your birthday.”
“What?” Kelly almost dropped the plates she was carrying.
“The tenth of August, right?”
Kelly nodded numbly. “Gads, I’m another year older. And I was trying so hard to forget.”
Sue made introductions while Jason went for matches. Before Kelly knew it she was wearing a silly party hat and being sung to.
“You need help with the candles, Aunt Kelly?” Daf asked.
“Yeah, you two better help me blow out this forest fire before the wax gets all over the frosting.”
She could feel herself soaring into sugar shock from the whipped cream, sugar and cherry vanilla combo. Wow, Sue had bought her favorite flavor. How could a chocolate fanatic and a cherry vanilla person have gotten to be such close friends?
High caloric intake was quickly followed by a game of wiffle ball. A cab arrived in the middle of the festivities and dropped Bea at the curb. She looked a little uncertain, and a lot depressed, so Kelly went to pay the cabbie, which she thought must be the difficulty. But he left, so Kelly picked up her tote.
“You’re just in time for birthday cake.”
“Whose birthday is it?”
“Mine.” Kelly cast her a sideways look, waiting for a reaction.
Bea looked a little concerned over that.
“At least this is the birthday I always celebrated. Isn’t it the right one?”
To Kelly’s surprise tears rolled out of Bea’s eyes.
“Yes. This is your first birthday party. I never managed it before.”
“It’s okay…Mom.”
“Don’t call me—well, maybe just this once.”
“Come and have cake. We’ll talk later. You’re safe. Nothing else matters.”
To Kelly’s surprise Bea volunteered to ref the game and she was good. At least no one argued with her. It was almost dark by the time everyone flopped on the picnic table and pulled sodas out of the cooler.
“So you found paint?” Kelly asked Sue.
“Actually we’re doing wallpaper in the hall and living/dining room.” Sue showed her samples and Kelly could see this meant a lot to her, taking possession of her house. But this time Sue was doing it for herself. There was no sleazy boyfriend insisting he liked blue. This was what she wanted. Sue had finally gained her independence. And here Kelly was wanting Quinn and willing to give hers up. But she had a feeling joining with Quinn would not amount to a loss of identity. She’d still be herself, he’d be him. But they’d be a couple besides that, just as they’d be a family with Jason.
“These are great. Quinn, you might want one like this for your dining room.”
“I guess I have to do something. Patching the cracks in the plaster sort of reminded me the wallpaper is ruined.”
“You bought the old Barkley House,” Ray said. “Boy I would love to decorate that place.”
Quinn smiled. “Talk to my general contractor.”
Kelly put up her hands. “Hey, I can wield a paintbrush, but I do not touch wallpaper. It requires a degree of patience I do not have.”
“I’d be willing to do it for cost of materials if you’d let me show it.”
“Wow,” Quinn said. “I couldn’t let you do that. Your time is worth a lot. Let me get settled, make sure I have a job and we’ll talk.”
“Sure, here’s my card.”
Jason had lit a fire in the yard pit and broken out the marshmallows when another car pulled up. It gleamed red in the streetlight.
“Brenda,” Quinn whispered. “How does she know where you live?”
Kelly leaned toward him. “I live in a fish bowl. She could have asked anyone in town.”
“Jason, want to say hi to your mom?”
“Ah, I’m kinda busy with something really important.” He held up a flaming marshmallow.
Quinn walked toward the white-shorted and tank-topped figure. Her arms and face were so tan they didn’t stand out except for the slash of red lipstick that must have been her mouth and the five dark claws Kelly could see on her skin as she crossed her arms. Kelly shivered.
“Did I look like that?” Sue asked.
Kelly snorted. “No, I could still recognize you under the war paint, but you did scare me a little.”
“I sort of scared myself from time to time over the last few years. What’s the big deal about having a man? Friends are more important.”
“Right. Who wants to be that vulnerable?”
Even though Kelly was trying not to listen, she was picking up a word now and then, mostly silence from Quinn and “Why can’t we…” from Brenda. The man had nearly infinite patience. Clearly Brenda still wanted him back.
Neither of them had made reference to the pending financial scandal at his old company. That was good. Eventually Brenda wept and left. Crying was better than anger, right?
Quinn came walking back. “I better get up to the house. She’s in the weepy stage, which usually precedes the ‘I’m going to do something desperate’ stage.”
“Be careful,” Kelly said.
Quinn nodded. “Thanks. And it might be a good idea to make sure this house is never unguarded since she knows where it is now.”
“Bea’s back. No problem. And Quinn?”
“Yes?”
“I fixed your hot water tank. The water may be rusty, but it should be hot.”
“You’re an angel.”
“No, but you’re better off with a plumber.”
“Never have I had such respect for the practical skills.”
About then she remembered she had promised to have a heart to heart with her mother. Yeah, right. How was that going to work out? Jason yawned his way to the summer house and the company went home leaving half a birthday cake on the kitchen table. Kelly thought she could see a string of ants making a beeline for the leg.
Bea was sitting on the other side of the cake eating the frosting off with a spoon.
“Want some real food?”Kelly asked.
“No. I saw him.”
“Him who?”
“Your father.”
“You’re sure?”
“Yes, he’s hard to forget.”
“Why did you want to talk to him after all these years?”
“I wanted—I don’t know—I guess I wanted to see if he was like I remembered.”
“And he was?” Kelly grabbed another spoon and started on the icing on the other side. She got an instant sugar jolt to the brain, but it wasn’t so bad this time.
“He stiffed me for the drinks.”
Kelly leaned back and laughed. “That happens to me all the time. At least I know I’m your daughter.”
“You-you seem different somehow, not so outraged at me.”
“Bea, I have come to realize that the past is the past. Yeah, I missed a few things by not having a dad, but look at what I learned.”
“I never gave you anything you should have had.”
“I’ve been thinking about that. Remember when we were in the cottage by the creek? All the furniture we had was a bed and a rocking chair. But I sure looked forward to that rocking every night. No TV or radio, just you singing. But it’s the best memory I have from that time.”
“It was hard to sing. I was so sad and desperate all the time.”
“You never let it show.”
“I couldn’t, could I? I had to make you think I could take care of you even if it was all a sham.”
Kelly put the spoon down and reached across to cup her mother’s cheek. “You have been a lot of things, Bea, but never a sham.”
Bea sucked in a breath. “I decided to quit smoking.”
“Well…good.”
“I mean it this time.”
“I’m happy for you, Mom–oops, it slipped out again.”
“Well, it’s okay if you call me that when we’re alone, but watch it when we have company.”
“We? Then you’re going to stay this time?”
“Not if you don’t want me.”
“Mom, I want you to stay.”
She really started crying then but swatted Kelly away when she tried to hug her. “Okay, I won’t get mushy, but I have to make some coffee to cut this frosting. You want some?”
“Only if it’s decaf.”
“Whoa, another new leaf.”
“Well, I have trouble sleeping now that I don’t drink.”
“Mom, I’m not even going to know you soon.” Kelly hopped up to get the coffee started.
“They say it’s never too late to change.”
“I truly believe that. What are you changing into?”
“A grandmother, I hope. When are you going to sleep with Quinn?”
“Ha, not ’til his divorce is final and I marry him.”
“Yes, I guess that’s best, though I think he’s more reliable than most men I’ve known.”
“He’s more reliable than most men, period. I used to have all these rules about men, but what I found out is that they don’t apply to all of them, only the worse of them.”
“And that women can be just as bad.” Bea hung her head.
“The only woman I know in that category is his almost ex-wife, Brenda, so don’t feel bad about your life.” Kelly was desperate to make her mother feel happy, to lift her out of the despondency that must have caused some of her bad habits anyway.
“I wasted a lot of time looking for a man who doesn’t really exist. Your father was a one-night stand and now that he knows he has a grown daughter he doesn’t even care.”
“You told him?”
“Yes, and he thought I was shaking him down.”
Kelly nodded her head. “Too late for child support.”
“He thought I wanted him to pay me not to say anything about you.”
“Oh, not good.” She got mugs from the cupboard, trying to think what to say.
“And I didn’t like it. You’re not a dirty little secret. You’re the one thing in my life that I’m proud of.” Bea looked militant.
Kelly reached down and hugged her mom. “So all these years, all those weekend trips. You were looking for my dad for me.”
“Yes, what a crappy waste of time.”
“No, what a sweet thing to do. But you don’t have to anymore.” It was amazing how the past became crystal clear when you actually sat down and talked about it.
“Let’s have that coffee before we both start bawling.”
As they sat quietly and enjoyed their release from the sugar binge, Kelly wished she had tried to understand her mother sooner, or hadn’t been so hard on her. It turned out Sue had been right. They’d just needed to drop their guards and really talk. She wondered how many parents and children never discussed things as adults.