Mending Fences

It hadn’t always been like this. When she and Derek had met in college, she’d admired his drive and ambition. They’d spent long hours talking about his goal of owning his own company someday, not just some little mom-and-pop business, but a corporation. Her parents had been impressed with his single-minded determination, as well.

“He’ll go places,” her father had told her when she’d announced their engagement. “He’ll be a good provider.”

And he had been. He was vice president of sales at a multinational corporation based in Coral Gables. Their home off Old Cutler Road was in a neighborhood known for its lush landscaping, architectural diversity, upper-income families and good schools. She and their kids wanted for nothing.

If she longed for the kind of conversations they used to have or for the passion they’d once shared, maybe she was expecting too much. Maybe this was the way things were supposed to be after twelve years of marriage.

Then she thought of the affection still evident in her parents’ marriage after more than thirty years and knew she was wrong. She and Derek were missing the best years of their lives. They were occasional roommates, not partners.

“Let’s go out to dinner tonight,” she suggested impulsively, draping her arms around his neck from behind and leaning down to press a kiss to his cheek. He smelled faintly of his favorite musky aftershave. “Just you and me. I’ll see if the kids can stay with the Carters.”

“I’m beat,” he said, linking his fingers through hers. “I don’t feel like going out. Invite the Carters over for a barbecue instead. We’ll throw some steaks or some salmon on the grill, hot dogs for the kids. It doesn’t have to be a big deal.”

Emily barely managed to contain a sigh. It wasn’t the evening she had had in mind, but it was a concession, especially since she knew Derek wasn’t all that crazy about Ken Carter. Truthfully, she wasn’t either. She didn’t like the way he put down his wife at every turn, mocking her devotion to him and the kids and their home, a devotion he himself demanded. She and Derek had discussed their mutual dislike of the man, but agreed to put it aside in the interest of neighborly harmony. Still, more and more they were keeping the contact to a minimum. She had her friendship with Marcie and the kids had their bonds, but recently the families maintained a more careful distance.

Sometimes she worried that Marcie was aware of how she and Derek felt, but it was the one subject they’d never discussed. She figured if Marcie had found some way to tolerate her husband’s demeaning behavior then it wasn’t Emily’s place to criticize him, any more than it was her place to question Marcie’s decision to build her entire life around her family, rather than building a separate identity of her own.

“If you’re so tired, are you sure you’re up to dealing with Ken tonight?” she asked Derek point-blank. He usually had little patience with him when he was in a great mood.

“I’ll just let him talk and tune him out,” Derek said. “Ken gives speeches. He doesn’t have conversations. That pretty much takes the pressure off me.”

She grinned at him. “Sometimes I wonder how Marcie can stand the man, but she seems blind to his faults.”

“Or maybe she’s learned to tune him out, too,” Derek suggested, a twinkle in his eye.

Emily chuckled. “You are so bad.”

“But you love me, anyway, right?” he said, turning to meet her gaze.

“Yeah, I do,” she said. Lost in the depths of his eyes, for a moment she remembered all the reasons why…his wicked sense of humor, the way he could make her feel with just a glance, the solidity of his devotion. “I really do. That’s why I wanted to spend the evening out with you.”

“Another time, I promise. When I get back from this next trip, things should slow down.”

She accepted the promise, because she had no choice. “I’ll hold you to that.”

“Go call the Carters, then, but tell them we’ll need to make it an early evening, okay?”

“Sure,” she agreed, feigning enthusiasm. “I’ll see if they can come at six. Do you want time for a shower or should I just let you know when they get here?”

“I’ll run up in a little while and grab a shower and be down in time to start the grill,” he promised. “Then you can sit back and relax.”

Emily thought of the trip to the market she needed to make to pull off this impromptu gathering, the preparations required to stock the patio bar and have everything ready for the grill. She wasn’t Marcie, who could entertain at the drop of a hat. In her case, relaxation didn’t enter into it.

At least, though, she could look forward to some adult conversation, even if it wouldn’t necessarily be with her husband.

Marcie was on edge, though she couldn’t have said why. She was as comfortable at Emily’s as she was in her own house. Tonight, though, there was some kind of tension in the air that seemed worse than usual. Ken was trying too hard, as always, and Derek seemed to have less patience with him than ever. She’d even caught Emily rolling her eyes once behind Ken’s back. She’d almost called her on it, but she hadn’t wanted to start a discussion that might cause a real rift in their friendship.

There were times when she felt almost as competitive with Emily as Ken obviously did with Derek, and she felt petty for feeling that way. Despite everything Marcie did to create the perfect home, it was evident that her own kids preferred being over here. They didn’t seem to notice the clutter or care that the meals were more often takeout than homemade.

Right now they were all in the pool, shrieking at the top of their lungs as they played some silly game they’d devised, mainly to torture the girls as near as she could tell. Ken had told them to pipe down twice now, but Derek and Emily seemed oblivious to the noise. She figured the shouts would last another two minutes before Ken blew a gasket and ordered Evan and Caitlyn out of the water and spoiled things for everyone.

In an attempt to avert a scene, she stood up and walked over to the pool. “Evan, Caitlyn, you heard your father,” she said quietly. “Settle down.”

“We’re just having fun, Mom,” Caitlyn said, wiping her wet hair out of her face and looking up.

“You can have fun quietly,” Marcie said.

Evan scowled up at her. “Who put you in charge?” he asked belligerently. “We’re in Mr. and Mrs. D’s pool.”

Behind her, Marcie heard a chair scrape back. She froze, terrified that Ken was about to cause exactly the kind of commotion she’d been hoping to avoid. Instead, though, it was Emily who came up and slipped an arm through hers.

“Evan, that’s no way to speak to your mother,” Emily scolded gently. “And the decibel level is getting pretty loud. Maybe you guys should take a break and go inside for a while. We picked up a bunch of movies earlier today. Josh, why don’t you make some popcorn?”

“Sure, Mom,” he said with easygoing acceptance. He immediately climbed out of the pool and wrapped himself in a towel. “Come on, Evan, I got that action movie we missed.”

Evan gave Marcie one last scowl, but he followed Josh inside.

“Thanks,” Marcie said, when the kids were gone. “I don’t know why he listens to you but ignores everything I say.”

“Most kids would rather obey any other adult than their own parents,” Emily said. “I see it at school all the time. They’ll be sullen and unresponsive with their mom or dad, then turn right around and be sunny and polite to me.”

Marcie hesitated, then asked, “Evan’s never sassed you, has he?”

“Never,” Emily said.

“If he ever does, I want you to send him straight home. Don’t tolerate it, okay?”

“I will, but it’s never been a problem. I swear it. You’re a good mom, Marcie. Don’t ever question that. And both your kids are terrific.”

Marcie forced a grin. “Do you think if kids are this much trouble now, we’ll survive their teenage years?”

“Of course, we will. We’ll still be bigger and stronger—for a while anyway—and we’ll gang up on ’em,” Emily assured her. “Come on. Let’s go inside and put together that strawberry shortcake you brought over. My mouth’s been watering since you got here. I love strawberry season, don’t you?”

Marcie finally relaxed. “I drove down to the fields to get these. They were huge and sweet as candy.” She leaned in and confided, “I had a fresh strawberry shake while I was there.”

Emily laughed. “If you’re going to make that drive then you have to have a shake. It’s a rule. Maybe we can take the kids down to the Everglades next weekend and go for a hike on one of the trails. We can stop for a shake on the way back.”

“A hike?” Marcie asked warily. “Won’t there be bugs?”

“Not this time of year. Just alligators,” Emily teased, trying and failing to hide a grin.

“Is that supposed to reassure me?”

“Come on,” Emily said. “The boys will love it.”

“And the rest of us?” Marcie asked, still skeptical.

“Will survive by thinking about the strawberry shake we’ll have afterward.”