Dreams of Perfection (Dreams Come True) (18 page)

Chapter 35

“There’s my girl.”

Josh froze, as he watched Blake gather Darcy in his arms and bury his face in her hair, before pulling back to plant a searing kiss on her lips.

She might as well have flung a dagger at his heart. The crushing jealousy at her warm ‘welcome home’ made Josh stagger back a step.

But what did he expect when Blake returned? That Darcy would realize she didn’t have feelings for him? That she would break it off with him? Blake may come from
Fantasyland
, but Josh didn’t. 

After they finally broke their liplock, Blake said something to Darcy that made her blush, and then, holding her hand in his, he and Darcy walked over to him.

Blake extended his right hand. “Congratulations, Josh. You must be gratified by your accomplishment.”

Josh didn’t want to take his hand, but in fairness to Blake, he had no idea the turmoil his mysterious existence created for Josh. “Thanks.”    

“Our Darcy’s very thoughtful to throw you a party.” Blake wrapped his arm around Darcy’s waist and pulled her close, before planting a kiss on the top of her head.

Josh’s hands curled into fists.
She’s not
our
Darcy. Clearly, she’s
your
Darcy.
“Yeah.”

Darcy wouldn’t look at him, suddenly finding the foyer rug fascinating, as the color rose in her cheeks. He had to get away before he did something that would embarrass them both. 

“Speaking of the party, thanks. I really appreciate it. My mother is pretty wiped out—jet lag—and the party’s winding down, so I’m going to take her home.” When did he turn into such a liar? Last time he saw his mom she was shaking her groove thing with one of the firm’s slightly inebriated senior associates.  

“Sure. I hope you both had a good time.”

“Goes without saying. I can come by tomorrow after I take Mom to the airport and help clean up.”

Darcy waved him away. “Don’t be silly. The caterers will handle most of the clean-up, and Millie and I can handle the rest.”

Josh hesitated, then leaned over and kissed her cheek before snapping back like he’d been stung. He said his good nights and went to round up his mother.

Late afternoon sun
glinted off the water of the Hudson River, as pleasure boats and sailboats gave way to ferries transporting tourists to Ellis Island. Josh had achieved his goal. A partnership and a corner office with a view of the Hudson.

The offices were dark and silent on a Sunday afternoon, especially on the partners’ floor. Any junior associates who’d come into work that day were two floors below.

As he unpacked boxes of files and placed them in the drawers of his new desk, Josh wondered why, if this was what he’d wanted for so long now, he felt restless. Was it the bitterness of Darcy’s rejection that dispelled the sweet taste of success or was it truly dissatisfaction with his job?

Over the past few months, he’d been mediating disputes for clients of the legal aid organization, and he’d enjoyed it. He had a knack for it, too. Maybe in all those years attempting to mediate disputes between his parents, he’d learned a thing or two. One thing he’d learned from his recent mediation experience, he liked mending fences better than he liked tearing them down.

But the firm had trained him to litigate, and he was damn good at that too. It’s what he’d dreamed of since before entering law school. He’d devoured courtroom dramas like
Law and Order
,
The Practice
, and reruns of
L.A. Law
.

He’d always felt he’d been born to litigate, to seek justice for his clients. His style didn’t tend toward the slick, smooth-talking Arnie Becker of
L.A. Law
. He simply wore his opponents down, backing them into corners with motions hearings, like a chess master wearing down his opponents.   

Tossing aside the empty box, he reached for another one filled with office supplies and began sorting and placing them in drawers and cabinets. His secretary had offered to set up his office, but he preferred to do it himself. Right now it gave him something to do while he sorted out his thoughts.

He’d brought his mother by to see the new office earlier, on their way to the airport. Having her here for this celebration meant a lot to him. She’d sacrificed so much. She deserved to see the results of all those years of making do with less.

When he’d brought her into his new office, she just stood quietly, looking around, then turned to him, her eyes bright with unshed tears and said, “I never thought I could be more proud of you than the day you graduated from law school, but I was wrong.”

He couldn’t help it, he’d gotten choked up at his mother’s words. Sighing, he opened another box, this one filled with his diplomas and his bar admission certificates for the entire tri-state area. Against the wall stood a couple of framed prints that Darcy had helped him pick out when he’d decorated his first office.

Dragging his fingers through his hair, he looked around the box-cluttered office. He could really use her help now. She had an eye for what should go where. He’d just have to do the best he could with what little skill he had. 

Moving on to a box of weighty law books, he hoped that one day soon he and Darcy could mend their fences, and put all this discomfort and self-consciousness behind them. But he knew, even once mended, those fences would never be the same.

A blank computer screen glared at Darcy,
mocking her, daring her to type something, anything. She glared right back, willing it to display words that formed sentences that in turn, created paragraphs, producing pages, and eventually a completed manuscript. No luck. Fifteen thousand words behind and not a thought in her head.

Dominic had morphed from an alpha-male stunt man with a dark past, to Blake’s polished sophistication, to Josh’s boy-next-door charm. As if that wasn’t bad enough, she’d been halfway through a love scene before she realized she’d written a hot door-sex scene.

She lowered her head and gently banged her forehead on the desk in frustration. In the immortal words of Rose Castorini, her life was
going down the toilet
.

She’d had sex with her best friend, cheated on her perfect boyfriend, then fallen in love with said best friend; her novel was destined for the Great Recycle Bin in the Sky; and Dr. Perfect had lost his luster.

When Blake came home, she’d been so certain the planets would realign and life would get back to normal—if having a fictional character who comes to life as your boyfriend was considered normal. But that was before her emotional epiphany. Now, she felt restless and cross.

Blake handled her mood swings with the same aplomb with which he handled reattaching severed limbs, which only frustrated her more. She wanted him to react, to show anger or confusion or something besides superb composure.

Josh would have given her a metaphorical slap on the back of the head by now and told her to get over herself.

“Darcy, I’ve got those edits you requested,” Millie said as she entered the room, a pen stuck behind her ear, carrying pages of Darcy’s dreadful manuscript. “Great sex scene. Who doesn’t love Suspended Congress?”

Darcy’s brows winged up in surprise at Millie’s reference to the
Kama Sutra
.

“I’ve corrected some of your word usages,” Millie said, then she released a gusty sigh. “But the problems with it go much deeper than just words. You’ve got real issues with your character development, especially your hero. He’s either bipolar or has multiple personality disorder—or maybe he has a secret twin.”

“I know, I know.” She rose to pace the room. “I’m blocked. For the first time in my career I’m completely and totally blocked. Look at that thing.” She jabbed her finger at the blank computer screen as if she were pointing to a freak of nature. “It just sits there, taunting me.”

“The best way to tackle a problem is to divide it up into manageable pieces and take them one piece at a time. Once you’ve corrected the problems, the rest will follow.”

Millie handed Darcy the manuscript. “With that in mind, I made a list of the inconsistencies and color-coded them on the manuscript. I suggest you take them one at a time and either make your hero an alpha or a beta.”

Darcy reluctantly took the marked-up pages from Millie. “Writing is not a checklist to be ticked off one item at a time,” she said, indignant. “It’s a creative process born in the imagination, crafted with love and artistry.”

“And how’s that working for you this time around? I’ll bring up a pot of tea. You’re going to need it.”   

Groaning, Darcy sat back down at her desk, fingers poised over the keys and waited. And waited. Nothing. She stuck her tongue out at the screen in contempt before propping her chin in her hand. So much for love and artistry.

Outside her window, the dove’s nest sat empty, their offspring having long since fledged the nest. Yet, she was no closer to happily-ever-after now than she’d been before—in either her manuscript or her life.

Chapter 36

Elated, Josh’s feet barely touched the ground as he strode down the sidewalk to Kelly’s house, whistling a cheerful tune. This kind of news required face-to-face interaction. He bet on her being home since Daniel’s school day was over. The Friday before a holiday weekend, what better day to give good news?

He knocked on the front door, tapping his foot to a lively internal beat, waiting for Kelly to open it.

“Josh.

Without saying a word, he grabbed her up and swung her around in a circle.

“Josh! What are you doing? Have you lost your—” Her eyes opened wide. “You did it didn’t you? You closed the deal on the house!”

“Signed, sealed, and delivered.” He released her before handing her a packet of papers. “You no longer have the foreclosure ax hanging over your head. You have payments you can afford, at a reasonable interest rate. Your closing date is in two weeks.”

“Thank you, thank you, thank you!” She kissed him on each cheek and then the mouth, laughing and crying at the same time. “I’ll never be able to thank you enough, even if I live to be a hundred years old!”

Josh’s spirit soared at the heartfelt gratitude. “It was my pleasure. Just seeing you so happy and relieved is thanks enough.”

“Oh my goodness! I have to tell Daniel!” She turned to enter the house, then grabbed Josh’s wrist and pulled him along. “Come on!”

Once inside the house, she shouted up the stairs, “Daniel! Come here.”

Daniel poked his head around the corner. “What’d I do?”

“Nothing,” she laughed, bouncing up and down like an excited child.

Daniel plodded down the stairs. “‘Sup, Josh?”

Josh just rocked back on his heels and smiled.

Daniel looked between his mom and Josh. “Have you been sneaking into the liquor cabinet like Grandpa Rudy?”

Kelly grasped Daniel’s hands, her eyes bright with tears and excitement. “We’re home, Daniel!”

Perplexed, Daniel threw up his hands. “Of course we’re home. Where else would we be?”

Kelly giggled. “No, we don’t have to worry about losing our house anymore. Josh fixed everything!”

Understanding dawned on Daniel’s face as he glanced at Josh. “No kidding? You did it?”

Josh nodded.

“That’s epic, dude!” Daniel raised his hand for a high five.

Instead of returning the high-five, Josh grabbed Daniel into a bear hug, slapping him on the back. Daniel hesitated a moment before hugging him back, but when he did, Josh saw the look on Kelly’s face as she raised her hand to her mouth and smiled.

“What do you say about going out to celebrate?” Josh asked as Daniel recovered his teenage composure. “Dinner and ice cream on me!”

“Sweet!” Daniel said, already headed out the door.

You said it, kid.

Kelly placed a hand on Josh’s arm. “Daniel has really come out of his shell. Helping you with the little league baseball team, making good grades in school, even trying out for his school’s basketball team.”

“And his chess skills are coming along too. Won’t be long before he beats me.” Josh rocked back on his heels.

“It’s all your doing. I owe you so much.”

Josh looked down at his feet a moment, before gazing into Kelly’s watery eyes. “I get far more than I give.”

Summer ended on a qui
et rainy note with a simple Butler family dinner
sans
Anne’s husband, Matt. The two were still separated, leaving Darcy to wonder if they would ever patch up their differences.

Darcy set the table as Josh bounced a fussy Olivia on his hip, trying in vain to get a smile out of her. He was so good with the kids, never losing his patience, even when the toddler displayed a trait she’d inherited from her mother—contrariness. 

Speaking of contrariness, Anne and her mother argued in the kitchen over whether to make balsamic or mustard vinaigrette dressing for the salad, until Josh suggested they make both.

Her father stood out in the summer kitchen firing up the grill for fish as the rain fell in a light mist beyond the cover of the porch. Brandon and David supervised Will and Sam as they played
Super Mario Galaxy 2
on the Wii.

Most people wished for sun on Labor Day, but Darcy was content with the rain. It lent a cozy feel to the gathering and encouraged closer familial interaction. She and Josh had finally reached some sort of unspoken accord with one another. Neither of them brought up the incident, and they went about their business as friends, both to Darcy’s relief and dismay. Josh hadn’t given any sign that he might have feelings for her beyond those of a friend.

Yankee games were still a regular outing for them, as was the batting cage, but they were both careful not to touch one another. She missed the easy affection between them, but she supposed it was for the best.

Even if Blake weren’t in the picture—and currently he wasn’t, since he’d left for Tasmania several days ago—the whole friends with benefits arrangement rarely worked out, and she didn’t think she could handle having sex with Josh knowing she loved him and he didn’t reciprocate those feelings.

She had just put the finishing touches on the table setting when she heard the front door slam.

“Where is she?” Matt asked, his coal-black hair glistening with raindrops.

Darcy stood mute, then pointed toward the kitchen before following her brother-in-law in the same direction. Josh, Brandon, and David fell into line behind them.

Matt planted his feet in front of Anne. “I want to come home.”

Anne faced off, hands on her hips, and fire in her eyes. “And I want a body like Heidi Klum, but we can’t always have what we want.” She went back to her salad dressing, whisking it with a vengeance.

Her father drifted in from the porch, apparently having heard the commotion.

“You never want to have sex anymore,” Matt blurted out.

Her father groaned and exited stage left, while Brandon snickered.

“All right. Time to go.” Darcy turned to the rest of her family, trying to herd them out of the kitchen. Like her father, she sure didn’t want to hear a discussion of Anne and Matt’s sex life, or lack thereof. “Josh, you coming?”

“Because I’m exhausted all the time,” Anne replied. “Maybe if you helped around the house more I wouldn’t be so tired.”

“I’m working seventy to eighty hours a week trying to grow my construction business!” Matt replied.

“Yeah? Well, I have a business to grow, too. Then I come home and work some more.”

“Okay, maybe we can find some common ground here,” Josh interjected.

“Butt out, Perry Mason,” Matt said.

“Hey, Bob the Builder!” Darcy poked Matt in the arm. “Who are you calling Perry Mason?” 

“Darcy, it’s okay,” Josh cajoled.

“No. No, it’s not okay. Nobody calls you a name and gets away with it,” she said, indignant.

“I don’t mind being called Perry Mason. It’s kind of flattering, actually.”

He grinned as Darcy rolled her eyes.

Matt ignored the exchange.

“You take me for granted,” Anne said.

“What? I— What’s that supposed to mean?” Matt spluttered.

“Exactly what I said. I buy the groceries, I cook the meals, I do the laundry, take the girls to their doctor’s appointments, dance lessons, piano lessons, and I don’t get one word of gratitude. It’s as if it’s expected!”

“I don’t expect all that!”

“Well, I don’t see you offering to do any of it! If I didn’t do it, it wouldn’t get done.”

“Look, guys, I think there’s a solution to this. Don’t throw away ten years of marriage over something that can be easily fixed.”

Anne and Matt glared at Josh.

“It sounds like the two of you need to clear the air, then take a step back and analyze the issues. That’s what you both do at work, right? You analyze problems and solve them.”

“Yeah,” Matt muttered.

“Okay,” Anne said.

“Great. So, Anne, you feel like you’re underappreciated. Am I right?”

“
Un
appreciated,” Anne corrected. “The applicable prefix is ‘un’.”

“Okay. And Matt, you feel like you’re, um, lonely.”

“Damn, right.”

“Now we’re getting somewhere. Let’s sit down and work this through.”

Darcy watched in stunned silence as her often intractable sister followed Josh and Matt into the living room.

Her father reappeared. “What’s going on?”

“Josh is playing marriage counselor.”

“Better that than sex therapist,” her father mumbled as he returned to the grill.

Josh wiped his hands on the dishtowel after loading the dirty d
ishes into the dishwasher. The satisfaction he’d felt over resolving Kelly’s mortgage problem settled over him again when he thought about Anne and Matt.

The Butler’s dinner had waited over an hour while Anne and Matt hashed out their issues. After tears and angry outbursts, accusations and pent-up frustrations, it had all boiled down to complacency. They’d both become so busy with their daily lives—work, kids, chores, errands—that they’d forgotten to take time for themselves.

After divvying up the chores to take some of the burden off Anne, Josh had suggested they do one nice thing a day for each other—and schedule a date night each week. And Matt promised to take care of the kids one night each week so Anne could have some downtime.

And Vanessa and Jeff had been more than willing to keep their granddaughters one night a week to give Anne and Matt some alone time. 

Josh had quietly suggested to Vanessa that she take the girls that night since Matt and Anne could barely keep their hands off each other during dinner. They left shortly after dinner, skipping out on dessert.

At least someone’s love life had hope.