Broken Vows (Domestic Discipline Romance) (11 page)

"Three years ago," Mila answered. "He was a Marine. He shipped out for his second tour five months ago. I got pregnant the night before he left. A month later, he was KIA and they shipped his body home for burial.

"We were already having problems before he left for his last tour. Marine tours are generally for seven months, but they extended his first tour to nearly fourteen months, so he was credited for a double tour. When he returned stateside, he was an entirely different person. It was as if all his good characteristics had disappeared and all his bad ones had magnified. He was drinking hard and getting into so many fights, he lost his rank. He was angry about the demotion; he was angry about so many things. He didn't have to go back. He could have requested a deferment since he had already pulled a double tour. We argued on it. I didn't want him to go. I wanted him to stay and get treatment since he was obviously suffering from PTSD, but he left anyway." She looked down at the finger where she had worn a wedding band.

"I don't wear my wedding band. If he had lived, I would have divorced him. I probably should wear it, but I can't feel guilty about the way I feel. It's the truth.

Jenny squeezed her sister's hand. "You have no reason to feel guilty. If he changed, if he was no longer the man you married, it was your decision to make."

Chapter 5

Jenny made her final check on the children before crossing the little hall and going into their bedroom. It was a small room as were most of them, not a third of the space of their master bedroom at their previous house, but it was comfortable. She leaned over her husband and kissed him.

Josh put down the book he was reading. "What was that for?"

"For not being Bruce Weymister," Jenny said smiling.

At his confused look, she explained while snuggling into him. "I left home and got away from all those ridiculous expectations. I broke away from the endless cycle of guilt they laid on us. I knew they had trained us to behave and act like perfect little robots. Why did I fall back into her trap?"

"She is your mother, and she implanted her little
time bombs
in your head. She is a master at making people feel they are failing her. In truth, she is the failure. She views love as manipulation, control, and material wealth." He reached over, pulled a book out from a stack by his bedside nightstand, and handed it to her.

Jenny read the title aloud,
Living and Coping with Passive Aggressive Behavior
.

"It is classic Denise," Josh said. "I found it in a clearance rack outside the Book Nook in town. I haven't had time to read the entire thing, but what I have read is a perfect match for her behavior. The author calls it sugarcoated hostility, sullenness, pettiness, and bitterness. He lists almost every one of her personality traits and behaviors. The author explains how people like your mother build an ideal of their perfect life. When life doesn't meet those expectations, they strike out at everyone around them instead of changing their outlook to something more realistic. Denise is an angry, dysfunctional person. I would feel sorry for her, except she tried to destroy us."

"I will read it." Taking the book, she tossed it carelessly onto the floor and clarified, "Later."

"Good idea." Josh gave his own book a toos. He had better things to do with his hands.

* * *

"Jenny!" Josh exclaimed, poking his head into the office where she was taping wallpaper samples she had printed off the computer to the existing walls. "You have to leave," he ordered.

"Why?" Jenny asked, as he pushed her out the door and dropped a yellow construction hat on her head.

"This is the most dangerous part of the reconstruction we will do," Josh said, pointing out the window where a crane lifted a steel beam. "We already have the supporting beams in place. Once we secure this cross beam to the upright beams, we can remove the rest of this load-bearing wall. If the place is going to cave in, it will be during this process. Hurry, go out the back."

"I don't like this," Jenny complained. "If I am in danger, so are you!"

"I know what to look out for, you don't," Josh said, taking her by the arm. "Out! The crew knows what they are doing." He looked over his shoulder to make sure no one could see them, gave her a kiss on the cheek, and a playful smack on her bottom. "Out, woman, out!"

Jenny went around to the side of the house where she could watch the activity. Mila stood at the back edge of the yard with Adam in her arms as she held Emmie's hand. She had an engineering background and she was interested in what was happening. Jenny took possession of her children and gave the hard hat to her sister.

"Thanks," Mila smiled, running across the yard and disappearing into the house.

Josh would let Mila stick around for demolition work, but not her. He said Mila would at least know when to duck or run. They were already into September, Josh's goal was to have all the structural work completed before the snows began. In the San Juan Mountains, they could start as early as October. They would have the winter months to work on the inside. They had completed nearly all the plumbing work and installed new heating and air-conditioning units. They were the big-ticket items Josh wanted to replace before starting interior renovations.

Jenny watched her husband through a wide opening in the house where the crew had removed windows. Josh was talking to the superintendent, pointing to this and that. She knew the general concept of what they were doing. Josh and his structural engineers had been over the house a dozen times strategizing.

Mila was helping with the mechanical changes. She had researched and selected the replacement furnace and air-conditioning units. Later, she would be involved in the mechanics of the moving walls and draperies, along with several other items slated for updating or replacement. They were turning this into a family project and all of them were enjoying the process.

Josh was in his element and she knew he had made the right decision for their family. He was happier now than he had been in the past six years. For the last several weeks, stress had seemed to melt off him. He was happy and enjoying what he was doing.

So was she. To her surprise, they received a second shipment of personal belongings. This shipment had more of the kid's things, as well as the entire contents of her art room. Josh had asked her, how could she create new textile art for the house if all her equipment, fabrics, and yarn were in storage. He unpacked a few of her boxes with her and took several finished art pieces to their little guesthouse where he proudly hung them on the walls.

It had been almost a rebirth for Jenny.

She had closed the door on her art several years ago. She told herself it was because she didn't have time, but it wasn't the real truth. She had lost her need to create during the constant backlash of criticism from Denise. Denise saw no value in 'handmade' anything unless the artist was the current pet of her society circle, when their pieces became the chic thing to own. The exclusivity of a high price tag was more valuable in her world of elitism than the simple joy of art.

Josh was ensconced in the enormous office with his computers and various printers, all connected to the latest satellite service. He surprised Jenny by turning a large room across from his office into a studio for her. With Mila available to watch the children for several hours a day, Jenny was already in the preliminary design stages of several large pieces for the walls in the main house.

He surprised her again one day when he set up easels on the enclosed back porch of their little guesthouse. As far as she knew, he had not painted in years, now he had already begun work on a painting of their incredible view. Jenny herself had not touched a brush to canvas for years, but watching Josh's painting come to life made her buried desire to create rise. It was true she was busy, but now she had help with Emmie and Adam. The help was not only from Mila but also from a new psychologist in Durango. Dr. Sommers was working with both Emmie and them. Their daughter's speech was returning albeit in one-word increments.

Jenny smiled as she watched Josh. They had stepped back into a simpler life. They did not have the high-powered jobs they thought they needed and had desired for so many years. They also did not have bosses and the stress associated with such jobs. She no longer had the constant negativity from her mother. Perhaps Josh felt some stress from his mysterious boss, but the man kept a low profile. If there was any negative feedback, she had not heard about it.

They were
living
now, not just existing, or surviving. Living, not arguing, and enjoying their lives and their children, and each other. Some people would say they had dropped out or given up. If so, they were not missing their old lives.

"You have the misty-eyed look of a woman in love," Mila said startling Jenny out of her reflections.

Jenny smiled. "I was thinking how right this move has been for us, for all of us. Josh is happier than he has been since he took his first job in Manhattan."

Mila nodded. "I didn't know him well then, I was a kid and the two of you weren't around much. I always liked him though. He is a down-to-earth kind of guy. I like living here, too. I think after the baby comes, I might look for something in this area for myself."

"There is no hurry," Jenny exclaimed.

"Good, because I am not in a hurry," Mila admitted. "I want to relax and stay healthy for this baby. I'm not planning on looking for a job for at least six months after it comes. I have John's life insurance and our savings to keep us. I don't make impulsive decisions."

"Josh says this renovation will take the better part of a year, maybe more. I hope so, I love it here."

Mila nodded and rubbed her growing bump. "I know you do, but you are not living in the
granny
house. I asked Josh if I could start working in my place. I have to get rid of the old bric-a-brac, it's driving me crazy."

"What did he say?"

"He must have called his boss. He told me a little while ago, and I quote, 'Have at it. Box it for donations or toss it in the dumpster'. I can buy my own furniture or clear it through him to be paid for as part of the renovations."

"Let's get boxes from the garage and start packing," Jenny exclaimed. "Most of the stuff in your place can go straight to the landfill.

"Josh and I are going into town this evening to drop off the stuffed animal heads from the main house. They give me the heebie-jeebies. Josh called the Moose Lodge in town, the man who runs the place jumped at the chance to get them. Come with us tonight. Apparently, they have a restaurant where we were offered dinner in exchange for the heads."

"It sounds good," Mila agreed and she hugged her sister. "I'll spring for ice cream on the way home."

* * *

"This place reminds me of a lot of bars I have been in around the country," Mila said. She was
looking around, taking in the dark wood-paneled room with its wooden tables and chairs, and the wagon-wheel light fixtures hanging over their heads.

"It looks as if nothing has been changed since the 1960s. I hope the food is better than the décor," Jenny agreed.

"There are families eating here, so it can't be too bad," Josh said, looking around. "I was told the food was 'hearty,' whatever that means."

"It means that it runs to beef, elk, and venison. A lot of steaks, burgers, stews, and mashed potatoes, not to mention a legendary macaroni and cheese," Blake Parker said, stepping over to their table. "If you want lighter fare, you have to go to the College Drive Café. I hear they have vegetarian food. The locals mostly stick with the diners."

Josh stood to shake the man's hand and offered him a chair.

"Have you joined the Moose Club?" Blake asked.

"No, we donated some mounted animal heads and dinner was offered as a payment."

"I wish you had said something to me about wanting to get rid of them."

"Sorry. We wanted them gone quickly. I called the Lodge and the guy on the phone said he would take them."

Blake laughed. "I'll bet. That was probably Pete Dickerson. He has wanted that moose head for years. He was a friend of old Mr. Bentley, although
friend
might be an exaggeration. I'm not sure the old man had any real friends. I did work for him once in a while, but it was hard to deal with him. Mostly, he let his housekeeper lead him around and tell him what to do. I heard you are doing a lot of work to the house."

"Would you happen to know who built the library and did the iron work?" Josh asked.

"No, I only did a few side jobs in the main house. I was in the housekeeper's house a couple of times. That's it. The old man kept to himself. Rumors floated around for years about him."

"What kind of rumors," Mila asked.

Blake shrugged. "There were stories about him being rich, hiding money, hiding collections of antiques and valuables."

Jenny laughed, "We haven't found anything of value so far. It looks as if it were furnished with castoffs from the Salvation Army or yard sales."

"You ain't horning in on this free meal, Blake," an elderly man said coming to the table. "If you order, you pay. If you folks want drinks, go to the bar and tell Dale what you want. Today's meals are on the board over there. I'll be back in a minute to take your orders."

"Pete," Blake said stopping the old man. "Would you know who built the library and did the iron work in the Bentley house?"

Pete thoughtfully squinted and nodded. "Yeah, man name of Carlo Vitti or Valle, something like that, did the iron work back about twenty years ago when old Nate finally moved here permanent. I think the guy still lives over in Dove Creek, if he ain't dead. I haven't seen him 'round in years. His son still works in the business, Rick Garbin at The Iron Grill carries some of his stuff. He could give you a number." Pete looked at Blake with a scowl and then turned his attention back to Josh. "George Carter did the carpentry work, you won't find much better."

"Thank you," Josh said jotting down the names as the man walked away.

"That would be Nick Vitti for the iron work," Blake said. "He is a gifted tradesman. You should stay away from the Carters, though. George turned the business over to his son who does shoddy work. Well, I will let you folks get on with your dinner, nice to see you, again."

Pete came back, took their orders, and returned fewer than five minutes later to deliver heaping plates.

"Mr. Dickerson, do you know much about the local businesses," Josh asked.