Thirty-Seven
VICTORIA’s [POV]
When I went down for breakfast the morning after I’d found Cassandra in my son’s room, Cook’s first words were, “What happened last night?”
“Good morning, Gregory.”
He raised an eyebrow and said, “Good morning Miss Victoria. What happened last night?”
“What makes you think something happened?”
“Um… the new security all over the grounds… the locksmith at the front door.”
“The locksmith is here already? Wow that was fast.”
“Victoria!”
“I’m sorry. I was about to go to sleep last night when I heard a noise. When I got up to investigate, I found Cassandra in my son’s room.”
“Oh no! What happened? Is the baby okay?”
“He’s fine. She was just acting really strangely at first… then she got angry which was at least easier for me to recognize. She was just rattling on about how Alex was going to take her back and take the baby from me. I threw her out and then I called Alex. He got busy sending over security and getting the locks changed right away. He’s amazing.”
He smiled at that and then he furrowed his brows and said, “I always thought that something wasn’t right with that woman. That’s just… frightening.”
“Yeah, tell me about it. Can I eat now?”
“Oh jeez! I’m sorry. I was so caught up in your story.” He had put the lid back on my breakfast when he was trying to get me to tell him what happened last night.
He pulled it off now and I saw that it was a ham and cheese quiche, it was my favorite thing for breakfast.
“Mm! Thank you so much!”
He laughed, “You’re welcome. Here you go.”
“Are you going to join me?”
“I thought you’d never ask,” he said, pulling out a chair. He sat down with a piece of the quiche and poured himself a cup of coffee from the carafe.
“Hey Cook, can I ask you a personal question?”
“Shoot!”
“Why aren’t you married?”
He chuckled and said, “I’ve been there since I was young. I married a beautiful girl who was also smart and talented… she was a painter. I was in awe of her.
It lasted two years and we both had to admit that we were more in love with the idea of each other than the reality. I haven’t felt much like going down that path again… yet. I never say never though.”
“So you date?”
“What’s this all about? You’re not trying to set me up with Cassandra to get rid of her, are you? Because there aren’t many women I’ve ever felt like throttling… but that one…”
I laughed. “You’ll have to beat me to it,” I said. “No… it’s just that I have this friend….”
He pulled his brows together and I could tell that he was trying not to make a face as he said, “Is it your mother? She’s a very attractive lady but…”
“Oh no, definitely not. I like you. I’d never do that to you!”
He laughed at that. “Okay… so now I’m listening. Who is this friend?”
“Her name is Liz and she’s just an amazing person. She’s pretty and she’s funny and smart and she works hard… she attracts idiots like flies though.”
“What makes you think I’m any better than those idiots she attracts?”
“I’ve known you for a while now. I think if you were an idiot, I would have sensed it by now.”
Smiling he said, “Well, thank you for that. I might be willing to meet this friend of yours. Maybe we could start small and we could all have coffee one day.”
“That would be great! Thanks!”
“Sure. How does your friend feel about the homeless?”
“I’m not sure if she has an opinion about them or not. She hasn’t shared that part of herself with me.”
“Okay… I’ll ask her when I meet her. You know, my homeless shelter is important to me. I’ve dated a few women who had a problem with it. It seems women don’t approve of me putting my own money into the place.”
“Oh well, Liz isn’t like that. She doesn’t care about money. She’s very self-sufficient and she’s no gold digger.”
“Good then, we’ll set up a coffee date.”
The next few days passed uneventfully. I began looking online at classes and thinking about returning to school in the fall. I hope things work out for Alex; I pray for it. I love him with my whole heart.
But I had to look at the future differently now that I was a mother. First, if things didn’t work out, I didn’t intend to live off of my son’s child support because his father happens to be rich, and second, if we did work out, I didn’t intend to be another Cassie who completely depended on my husband for support.
I had dreams before I met Alex and before I had Michael… I still have dreams and I still intended to pursue them.
I found a program for Physician Assistants in Santa Barbara. That wasn’t too far away; it was a drivable distance for two days a week, which would be the only times I’d have to go. I printed out the application for it and I was filling it out when Alex surprised me and walked into the room. I had no idea he was coming back today.
“Alex!” I jumped up from the desk and threw my arms around him. He caught me around the waist and hugged me into him. “I didn’t know you’d be home today.”
He pulled back and grinned at me. “I wanted to surprise you. I’m so happy to be home. I missed you.”
I hugged him again. “I missed you like crazy!”
He brought his lips to mine and kissed me. I felt that tickle deep in my core that was reserved just for him. When he pulled back he said, “I missed the little man like crazy too.”
“He missed you too,” I said.
He laughed. “How do you know? Did he tell you?”Contentt bel0ngs to N0ve/lDrâ/ma.O(r)g!
“Of course he did. He talks to me with his eyes.”
He laughed again. “Where is he, in his crib?”
“No, you will be proud of me, I hope. I asked Karen to take him out for a walk. She’s taking him for a walk in his stroller through the gardens while I do some research on the Physician’s Assistant programs around here.”
“Good for you, you’re taking time for yourself. You’re thinking of going back to school?” Alex and I sat down on the couch and I poured him a cup of tea from the pot the housekeeper had just brought in.
“I am,” I said. “It was always my plan. I just had to take care of the more important things first.” Meaning Michael of course.
“So did you find a program that you’d like to apply to?”
“I did, UC Santa Barbara has a great one.”
He made a face. “Santa Barbara is quite a drive if you’re planning on doing it every day. I think that would be too much, don’t you?”
“I do if it was every day. This program is designed for people with busy lives. It’s only two days a week… it just takes a bit longer to complete than the other one.”
“Oh… okay…” He didn’t look happy.
“Is this a problem, Alex?”
“No, of course not. I think I told you that the first day we were together I didn’t expect you to be a maid your whole life, I also don’t expect you to be my paid mistress. You are too smart for either of those roles, Vicki. I want you to have a life that’s fulfilling and I intend to do whatever I can to make sure of that. It will just be tough on you with the baby. We need to get busy hiring that nanny. Did Karen mention if she had any interviews set up yet?”
I nodded, I’d given in to the idea but I still only wanted one part-time. “She has three coming in this afternoon. It’s another reason I’m so glad you’re home. I think this is something we should both be a part of.”
“Good, okay… one more thing?”
“What?”
“Would you think me too controlling if I hired a second driver to take you to and from Santa Barbara when school begins?”