My Funny Valentine, page 8
Steve promptly opened her car door. “I’m going to buy you a magnetic key attachment for keeping a spare key under your bumper so this doesn’t happen again.”
“You are?”
“Yes. Otherwise, I’ll worry about you.”
No one had ever worried about her, except her immediate family. Whatever situation arose, she handled. Broken water pipes, lost checks, a leaky roof—nothing had ever defeated her. Not even Jack had been able to break her spirit, but one kind smile from Steve Creighton and she was a jumble of emotions. She blinked back tears and made a mess of thanking him, rushing her words so that they tumbled over one another.
“Dianne?”
She stopped and bit her lower lip. “Yes?”
“Either we go to the restaurant now and talk, or I’m going to kiss you right here in this parking lot.”
Despite everything, she managed to smile. “It wouldn’t be the first time.”
“No, but I doubt I’d be content with one kiss.”
She lowered her lashes, thinking she probably wouldn’t be, either. “I’ll meet you at Walker’s.”
He followed her across town, which took less than five minutes, and pulled into the empty parking space next to hers. Once inside the restaurant, they were seated immediately by a window overlooking Sinclair Inlet.
Dianne had just picked up her menu when Steve said, “I’d like to tell you a story.”
“Okay,” she said, puzzled. She put the menu aside. Deciding what to eat took second place to listening to Steve.
“It’s about a woman who first attracted the attention of a particular man at the community center about two months ago.”
Dianne took a sip of water, her eyes meeting his above the glass, her heart thumping loudly in her ears. “Yes…”
“This lady was oblivious to certain facts.”
“Such as?” Dianne prompted.
“First of all, she didn’t seem to have a clue how attractive she was or how much this guy admired her. He did everything but stand on his head to get her attention, but nothing worked.”
“What exactly did he try?”
“Working out at the same hours she did, pumping iron—and looking exceptionally good in his T-shirt and shorts.”
“Why didn’t this man say something to…this woman?”
Steve chuckled. “Well, you see, he was accustomed to women giving him plenty of attention. So this particular woman dented his pride by ignoring him; then she made him downright angry. Finally it occurred to him that she wasn’t purposely ignoring him—she simply wasn’t aware of him.”
“It seems to me this man is rather arrogant.”
“I couldn’t agree with you more.”
“You couldn’t?” Dianne was surprised.
“That was when he decided there were plenty of fish in the sea, and he didn’t need a pretty divorcée with two children—he’d asked around about her, so he knew a few details like that.”
Dianne smoothed the pink linen napkin across her lap. “What happened next?”
“He was sitting in his office one evening. The day had been busy, and one of his men had phoned in sick, so he’d been out on the road all afternoon. He was ready to go home and take a hot shower, but just about then the phone rang. One of the night crew answered it, and it was the auto club. Apparently some lady had locked her keys in her car at the community center and needed someone to come rescue her.”
“So you, I mean this man, volunteered?”
“That he did, never dreaming she’d practically throw herself in his arms. And not because he’d unlocked her car, either, but because she was desperate for someone to take her to the Valentine’s dinner.”
“That part about her falling in your arms is a slight exaggeration,” Dianne felt obliged to tell him.
“Maybe so, but it was the first time a woman had ever offered to pay him to take her out. Which was the most ironic part of this entire tale. For weeks he’d been trying to gain this woman’s attention, practically killing himself to impress her with the amount of weight he was lifting. It seemed every woman in town was impressed except the one who mattered.”
“Did you ever stop to think that was the very reason he found her so attractive? If she ignored him, then he must have considered her a challenge.”
“Yes, he thought about that a lot. But after he met her and kissed her, he realized that his instincts had been right from the first. He was going to fall in love with this woman.”
“He was?” Dianne’s voice was little more than a hoarse whisper.
“That’s the second part of the story.”
“The second part?” Dianne was growing confused.
“The happily-ever-after part.”
Dianne used her napkin to wipe away the tears, which had suddenly welled up in her eyes again. “He can’t possibly know that.”
Steve smiled then, that wonderful carefree, vagabond smile of his, the smile that never failed to lift her heart. “Wrong. He’s known it for a long time. All he needs to do now is convince her.”
Sniffing, Dianne said, “I have the strangest sensation that this woman has trouble recognizing a prince when she sees one. For a good part of her life, she was satisfied with keeping a frog happy.”
“And now?”
“And now she’s…Now I’m ready to discover what happily ever after is all about.”
About the Author
DEBBIE MACOMBER, the author of A Walk Along the Beach, Window on the Bay, Cottage by the Sea, Any Dream Will Do, If Not for You, and the Rose Harbor Inn series, is a leading voice in women’s fiction. Thirteen of her novels have reached #1 on the New York Times bestseller lists, and five of her beloved Christmas novels have been hit movies on the Hallmark Channel, including Mrs. Miracle and Mr. Miracle. Hallmark Channel also produced the original series Debbie Macomber’s Cedar Cove, based on Macomber’s Cedar Cove books. She is also the author of the cookbook Debbie Macomber’s Table. There are more than 200 million copies of her books in print worldwide.
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After divorce shatters her family, one woman’s struggle to pick up the pieces finally leads to a new beginning—but is the past truly behind her? #1 New York Times bestselling author Debbie Macomber explores the powerful intersections of love and family in this poignant novel.
It’s Better This Way
Continue reading for a special sneak peek.
Available soon from Ballantine Books
Prologue
Julia Jones sat at her desk, the divorce papers in front of her, shouting at her to pick up the pen, sign her name, and put an end to this insanity once and for all. Her heart ached, and she held her breath to the point that her lungs felt as if they would explode. Reaching for the pen, her hand trembled with the weight of what she was about to do. Closing her eyes, she set the pen back on the desktop.
She’d fought so hard to save her marriage. She loved Eddie. There’d never been anyone but her husband. When he tearfully admitted he’d fallen out of love with her, she intuitively knew he’d become involved with someone else, although he adamantly denied it. She could understand if another woman had fallen in love with her husband; Julia loved him, too. Even at fifty-three, Eddie was handsome, athletic, and charismatic.
Unwilling to give up on her thirty-one-year marriage, she pleaded with him to try counseling. To his credit, Eddie agreed, although reluctantly. However, after only five sessions, he said it would do no good. He admitted to the affair with a woman named Laura, someone he’d met on the golf course. He no longer wanted to make his marriage work. He wanted out to start a new life with this other woman.
Still, Julia was unwilling to give up. She was determined. Dedicated to her husband and her marriage. Even after Eddie quit counseling, she continued, seeking ways to build a bridge that would bring her husband back.
Back to their family.
Back to the good life they had created together.
Back to her.
They were a team. Or had been. Julia had shared nearly every important life experience with Eddie. Marriage. Children. The death of her father. Triumphs. Discouragements. He’d been her soulmate.
Julia met Eddie in college. They were young and in love, full of ambition, all set to make their mark in the world. They married, encouraged, and supported each other as they pursued their individual careers. Eddie became a professional golfer, and when his career faded, he became a country club pro and later opened his own shop.
Julia had graduated with a degree in interior design. Her own business had become a success, and she was a sought-after designer, working with contractors from across the state. After marrying and investing their talent and time in building their careers, they’d waited ten years to start their family. Julia was thirty-two before she had Hillary and Marie a year later. Eddie loved his daughters. They were the pride of his life.
Even now, Julia didn’t know how this affair had happened. She’d been completely blindsided. She’d assumed they were happy. They’d been together all these years and were at the point when they were about to enjoy the fruits of their labors. Their nest was empty. Both girls were in college, Hillary was about to graduate, and Marie was a year behind her. The two shared an apartment near the University of Washington, where they attended classes. Hillary was studying to be a physical therapist and played tennis for the college team, just as Julia had while in school. Marie planned to be a respiratory therapist.
Even knowing her husband was involved in an affair, Julia had stubbornly held on to her marriage. Eddie was her best friend. He’d wept with her when her father passed, had been a good father and partner, cheering her successes and comforting her when she faced disappointments. They had been a team, each celebrating the other. They had a good life together, and she wasn’t willing to flush it all away.
Julia missed her father terribly. Dad would have been stunned and disappointed in Eddie. Countless times over the years, when life had thrown her an unexpected curve, he’d tell her: It’s better this way. He’d said it so often that before he died, his mother threatened to have it printed on his tombstone.
She’d been six when she first remembered him saying it. She’d been invited to her best friend’s birthday party, but had gotten the flu the night before, and couldn’t go. Disappointed, she’d wept in her daddy’s arms, and he’d comforted her by telling her it was better this way. She hadn’t believed him until the following Sunday, when she was feeling better and Heather brought her a piece of her special birthday cake. Later, her dad drove her and Heather to the circus, and they’d had a wonderful time. It had been better than sharing her best friend with everyone in her first-grade class.
Again and again over the years, when Julia had suffered disappointments—a prom date who disappeared in the middle of the dance, a missed business flight to New York—she would be naturally frustrated and upset, until she remembered her father’s words of wisdom.
Right then, with her marriage at stake, it didn’t feel like anything would ever be better again.
Hoping Eddie would come to his senses, Julia begged him to wait six months, praying with all her might that he would change his mind about this divorce. They would find their way through this. Start again. Forgive each other.
All she wanted was those six months, convinced he would come to his senses.
Eddie hesitantly agreed, although he made sure she was fully aware that this was his time limit. After six months, she would willingly sign the divorce papers. With a wounded heart, she promised to abide by his stipulation.
At Eddie’s insistence, they spoke with an attorney. Everything would be ready for when the time came. The settlement agreement had been amicably set in place. He kept his business and she kept hers. She promised, at the end of those six months, that they would put the house on the market. Julia would sell her dream home, the very one she had lovingly decorated. They would evenly split the profits. Of the furnishings, there were only a few pieces Eddie wanted.
Four months into the six-month waiting period, things had gotten ugly. It seemed Eddie’s lover had grown impatient and wanted matters resolved so they could move on together. She was eager for them to put down roots.
When Julia held firm to their six-month agreement, Laura got involved, forwarding Julia photo upon photo of her and Eddie together, dining out. Selfies on the golf course. Even one of them in bed together. As best she could, Julia ignored the pictures, refusing to take the bait.
When she refused to respond, Laura tried another tactic and sent her ugly text messages, reminding Julia that Eddie no longer loved her and wanted out of the marriage.
You are only delaying the inevitable.
You are being so selfish and mean-spirited.
Why are you beating a dead horse?
You’re a jealous witch.
For a couple weeks, Julia resisted, until she couldn’t take it any longer. Before she could stop herself, she responded with an ugly message of her own, letting Laura know exactly what she thought of her in words that made her blush now. She hated herself for lowering to Laura’s level. She regretted every word of those texts, furious with herself. She wasn’t that woman.
At that point, Hillary had gotten involved. Julia had never meant for her daughter to see those texts. When she did, Hillary had gone ballistic. Both their daughters were already furious with their father, and this behavior from Laura didn’t help.
Without Julia knowing what she had planned, Hillary confronted Eddie and Laura at Lake Sammamish on a family outing and called her every ugly name in the book. Using the same language Julia had used earlier. Not willing to tolerate Hillary and Marie’s outrage, Laura’s two sons verbally confronted the girls, and a shouting match ensued. Like a California wildfire, the situation had exploded, as both families attacked each other. Eddie got involved, demanding that his daughters respect his future wife. In the heat of the moment, he said words he would live to regret. If Hillary and Marie couldn’t accept Laura, then they could no longer be part of his life.
Unsure what to do, Julia once again consulted the counselor, seeking his advice. She could identify with her daughters’ outrage. She’d been angry, too, going through well-documented stages of grief, only in this instance the loss was the demise of her marriage.
Sitting in the counselor’s office, wringing her hands with a damp tissue, Julia explained what had happened.
“I’m so sorry, Julia.” His expression was full of sympathy. “I know how badly you wanted to make your marriage work.”
“I never meant for matters to get so nasty.”
“I know.”
“Should I sign the divorce papers?” she asked, praying he would give her the direction she needed.
He was silent for several moments and seemed to carefully consider his response. “I can’t tell you what to do. I will say this, though: Love that isn’t faithful has little value. It really isn’t love at all.”
With a heavy heart, Julia left the appointment, knowing what needed to be done.
She had put up the good fight. The time had come for her to lay down her sword and accept defeat. Eddie was never coming back. This was the end. It was time to let go.
Let go of her husband.
Let go of her marriage.
Let go of her dreams for their future together.
Tears streamed down her cheeks as she stared at the document in front of her, the words blurred through the moisture that clouded her eyes.
With her heart in her throat, she reached for the pen a second time and signed her name.
As she did, she told herself: It’s better this way.
Debbie Macomber, My Funny Valentine
