TRULY (inspired by Persuasion) chapter fourteen: "More Advice"

Chapter Fourteen

More Advice

There was something about my Godmother. Though she could be snobbish, she’d always believed in me, always been a friend to me. My Godmother thought I was worth the very best. Suddenly, I was having some issues with the bad advice I’d received years ago even though it had originated from the desire to do good… Confessions of a Post-teenage Hermit

      Eleanor was standing at the foot of Elizabeth’s bed, just as she used to do when I came home from school to an empty house after my Mom had gone to the East Coast.  

     “It’s the new tenants at the Beach House. I’m worried.”

     “Oh, I’m sure the house is in good hands, Jane. You’ll be able to have it back some day. You know I offered to give your father some money but he refuses to take it. I’m offering you the same, Jane. I would never see you want for anything. It could be a loan, but I’d rather it be a gift.”

     I dried my eyes.

    “Thank you Eleanor, I know. But we could never accept it. My father got us into this and I’m trying to get us out. On paper, we’ve lost almost everything … except this… mansion. We’re in so much debt. I’ve been going over the family accounts with our financial advisors. My sisters and father are about to get a wake-up call especially in relation to their unlimited credit cards.” 

    Eleanor paused a moment.

    “But that’s not why you are crying, is it, Jane?”

    I shook my head. Eleanor knew me far too well.

    “No,” I said.

    “Why are you upset, dear?”

    “The new tenant of Kellynch is Ben Wentworth’s sister.” 

     “The Ben Wentworth? The boy you were almost engaged to?”

     “Yes… the one I was advised not to marry…”

     “Oh Jane, you can’t blame your father for this…”

     “If I remember correctly, he had some backing from you and Liz.”

     “Jane, as your Godmother, being here for you whilst your mother was absent, I would not have been doing my job if I hadn’t advised you to break off that relationship…”

     “As I recall, both you and dad didn’t think he was good enough for me to hang with, let alone marry and… you were both so wrong.” 

     Tears were welling up in my eyes again by then. Though I didn’t want to hurt Eleanor it was obvious I’d carried these emotions for a long time. I was ready to burst at the seams. Since I rarely displayed my feelings or any anger towards my family, Eleanor looked shocked.

    “Oh Jane … in case you hadn’t noticed people who join the military are sent to war. He wanted to be a fighter pilot, if I recall correctly. The fact that he’s invented some computer programme, that’s just a fluke. I believed, I thought, you were not of the personality that could cope with waiting and hoping that a boy would show up for you again after months or years of active duty… His now being wealthy – well, that is just money and lack of it was never the problem from my perspective. I’m so sorry if you misread me.”

    “I would have waited. He graduated as an officer in the Air Force. He starts pilot training after summer. It’s all he’s ever wanted to be. He did everything he said he would do. And look,” I pointed to the newspaper; “he has thrived and survived and graduated top of his class at the academy. Meanwhile I’ve grown pale and washed up and… unwanted.”

    “Oh Jane, that’s not true. You are still as understated and beautiful as you ever were. Sure, you don’t appear in fashion magazines like your sister, but outer beauty fades and is nothing to envy. You are only young. Don’t be silly. Besides, did he ever write? Did he even call you?”

    “No,” I said, “but we did not part… well.” I added, embarrassed to be making something out of what was clearly, nothing.

    “Then how much could this teenage passion have actually meant to him? To encourage you to become engaged to a boy who was going away to train for years in a job where he may see active duty would have been wrong. You would have been throwing yourself away, waiting for him to return…”

    “But I waited for him to return anyway, and now he is here and he’s perfect and… both you and dad said he’d never amount to anything.”

    “But that is surely not the reason you rejected him…”

    “I allowed myself to be persuaded and ever since I made that decision, I have lived to regret it. I have never met any man his equal. It’s true I pushed and he… left but I didn’t think my hesitation would be irrevocable. I didn’t realize he would turn away from me so suddenly and cut off all contact.”

     Eleanor handed me a tissue. I wiped my tears again and sniffed.

     “Anyway, he’s probably married now or engaged. They mostly marry young in his family, also in this family,” I rolled my eyes. “They marry young in the armed forces too and any sane girl would be proud to be an officer’s wife.”

     “Oh Jane, you are the most level-headed girl I know.”

      My Godmother was trying to make me feel better. It was almost working. The feeling of sadness and regret had seeped into my bones. It had nothing to do with Ben’s job, but his success in his chosen career just proved how wrong the people who supposedly loved me were.

     How could I tell Eleanor about my current existence; that when I went to check my new schedule at The Beach Shack, I’d overheard the former Socials (who still met up every week and were now married mothers), gossiping about me.

     “Oh, you know Jane Elliot was once part of our group. She used to hang with that hot pilot guy in the newspaper, Ben Wentworth. Jane was once a cheerleader and her sister was the head of the Socials that year… remember?

   “Oh yeah, I remember. She let him slip through her fingers, though.”

   “I heard he dumped her for someone better looking.”

   “Or was that Serena?” 

   “Yes, Serena Collins. You know, she works as an International Flight Attendant, Who would have thought? She had zero ambition at school, still, waitress in the sky, whatever.

    Anyway, poor Jane, now she has no boyfriend, no prospects and she works in childcare when she’s not waitressing, while we go out for manicures and facials,” Someone sniggered.

     I pretended I couldn’t hear them as I waited casually for my latte but the whole point of their conversation was that I could.

     I turned around as I waited and one of them waved at me.

     I picked up my latte and left.

     That was just my recent humiliation.

     My Godmother had been sitting in silence as I relayed the story. 

    “Well, Jane, those people are small minded and you can always come work with me, you wouldn’t even have to see them.”

     “That’s not the point, Eleanor. I like where I work but if that is what those people, my old school friends, are saying about me, imagine what Ben would think.”

      “I’m not sure, Jane, but I know men aren’t as interested in marital status as women,” Eleanor couldn’t resist this quip. My Godmother picked up my cell and skimmed the headlines as I sat up and smoothed my clothes.

     “I hear you, Eleanor, but he was perfect,” was all I could say.

     Eleanor was silent for a moment. When tears welled up in my eyes again, Eleanor hugged me.

    “Oh Jane, no one is perfect.”

    “He was perfect for me. I know that now,” I sobbed.

     “Oh Jane,” my Godmother tried to console me. “You know of all of your sisters you are the one with the gentle heart and the sweet disposition… and so intelligent and pretty on the outside as well. I just know the perfect man is out there for you.”

    “Yes and his name is Ben.”

    “Jane, in this day and age, you just have to get back out there.”

    At this point, my pale, unsmiling face mocked me from the mirror on the dressing table.

    “I’ve been out there,” I said. “And the real world of dating - it kind of sucks…”

    “You just haven’t met the right man, Jane.”

     By then I’d turned off. I knew my Godmother loved me as I loved her, but I didn’t want to hear another cliché uttered from her lips. I knew she was trying to be helpful. Just like she’d once tried to be helpful before. Now, all I wanted was silence and no reason to ever see Ben again. In a large city like Los Angeles that was highly possible. Wentworth, however, was a tiny seaside town, and it was less likely. Besides, I’d promised Sarah I’d attend the beach bonfire.

    “Jane, cheer up. Guess what? I brought an apple pie. Martha made it.” Eleanor said, luring me to the kitchen with her smile. “You’ve become so thin, Jane, we need to fatten you up.”

    Martha was Eleanor’s housekeeper. If Martha made it, I knew I should have a reason to put a smile on my face, so I did. I knew I was way too old to be feeling sorry for myself or the past. But I wondered. If hesitating in relation to Ben, rejecting him for all intents and purposes, hadn’t been a mistake, wouldn’t someone else have come into my life by now?

      I washed up in the downstairs bathroom and put on some lipstick at Eleanor’s urging. I felt like a little girl again in my father’s house, trying desperately and perhaps hopelessly to impress. It was time for me to stand on my own two feet. Perhaps the financial crisis wasn’t the worst thing that could happen to my family. I dared not say it out loud, but I didn’t get much chance, in any case. Elizabeth and my father gossiped about all the social columns and how they “wouldn’t be seen with so and so for love nor money.” And on and on they went. Work was as good as any excuse, to leave. I grabbed my car keys, said goodbye to everyone and closed the door behind me as I left my father’s house. 

TRULY by Summer Day (inspired by Persuasion) chapter Fifteen: "Tall, Handsome, not a stranger"

Chapter Fifteen

Tall, Handsome, not a Stranger

I knew it was ridiculous, but I persisted in thinking about him. I thought of him on my way to The Beach Shack. I thought of him standing behind the counter. The thought of attending the bonfire party I’d been invited to with my family made my stomach churn. I kept re-reading the newspaper article and wondering, as I worked the morning shift serving coffee, if he’d changed…  Confessions of a Post-teenage Hermit

    My cousin, Keira, had been trying to be an AMW (Actress, Model, Whatever) for about six years now. Keira assured me she was going to do an internet search on Ben after she’d refined her own dating profile.

    Pls don’t, I texted from behind the counter after I’d started to unwrap one of the fortune cookies on a glass jar on the counter. Do not need any more info!

     I glanced at the cookie message: Invitations to socialize are sure to be fun. Accept them! Wow, that’s original, I thought.

     My cell buzzed with Keira’s text, Guess what – he’s not married.

    I know. He has a girlfriend - went to school with her.

    Friend or foe?

    Foe.  I checked.

    Oh, was all I texted, though inside I was elated that he wasn’t married. Of course, if you truly love someone, you are supposed to be happy for their happiness. It doesn’t really work that way though.

      I wiped the counter bench and took in the amazing view of the beach.

      I couldn’t believe how differently I now felt, in comparison to the way I’d been persuaded to feel when I was younger. Now, I’d never listen to anyone. I’d follow my heart without question. My Godmother was right about one thing, though. I needed to get over it. Start hanging with someone else. Start dating again.

     I’d read somewhere that a writer has two choices: to obtain the perfection of a story or the perfection of a life. Neither was possible, of course, but obviously I’d chosen the former, since my life was clearly lacking in love, social connections and job satisfaction, according to everyone else. Besides, I wrote in my blog and I’m not sure I’d define myself as ‘a writer’ because of that. I wasn’t happy, it’s true, but happiness was a choice and I resolved myself to a kind of contentment. Combining working and blogging would not be a wasted summer.

   Working at The Beach Shack was almost as good as summering in Wentworth; and summering in Wentworth was almost as good as living here. Far from the hustle and smog of Los Angeles, the small community had become my own over the commute of recent years.

   Mornings at the café went quickly; there were all the usual joggers and housewives with children and pets. We had a lovely little porch outside where the animals were served treats. This pleased the owners almost as much as the pets. Sometimes parents I knew from school would come in. My students mostly said “hi” and looked excited to see me. Occasionally, they brought me cute little drawings they’d done that I could post on the wall behind the counter dedicated to “Miss Elliot.” These children were also staying here for their summer vacation.  We had that in common, for sure. Other people, like the girls I’d gone to school with, came and went with their families. I did my best to tune out when they smiled to my face and made casually cruel remarks behind my back.

   The former Socials from my junior year, were the only people I wasn’t particularly happy to see. They’d all married young, like Melissa, and moved to Wentworth with their husbands. Their husbands generally worked in Los Angeles during the week which left these ‘ladies’ to lunch together (generally at The Beach Shack – just my luck.)

    On Monday morning, after a hectic weekend, they’d come in for their mother’s meeting and to make pointed comments within earshot of me about “women who’d been left on the shelf.” I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. I knew for a fact that at least two of the women who pitied unmarried “college drop outs” (like me), had husbands who were being investigated for financial crime and spousal abuse. The husbands of two of the other women regularly came into the café with their girlfriends in the evening when they knew their wives were at home.  

     Most women stayed in abusive relationships for the love of their children or money, or to “keep the family unit together;” but I had to wonder at the hypocrisy that surrounded my peers.  What had happened to their dreams? I knew women were now being encouraged to get their men to “put a ring on it” earlier but the pressure to be part of a couple at any price was verging on ridiculous.  There seemed to be no dignity in being alone in the eyes of the selfish people I met, yet I wondered how much self-respect people like Dana (ex-Social and former friend of Serena’s until Serena stole her twelfth grade boyfriend) really had. Dana’s husband regularly appeared in the Wentworth gossip columns on the arms of other women.

    It was mid-morning and after serving three breakfasts, I was revising a new blog post behind the counter when I looked up to hear my name being called.

   “Jane! Jane!”

    My younger cousins, Lia and Hailee, who were both in their first year at Fashion College, were dressed to the nines in head-to-toe designer clothing. It’s true that they were trust fund bunnies but they also had good value systems and very sensible parents and it was impossible to resent them.

     “Jane, when do you have your break?”

     “Soon.”

     Lia and Hailee both stood in the morning sun looking like they’d just returned from a week in Hawaii (they had). I was used to them interrupting my work days, and glad of it since they were both fun. At eighteen and nineteen, they had none of my hesitation towards the adult human race in general.

    “Oh Jane,” Lia said in a loud voice. So loud in fact that the entire ex-Social mother’s group looked up. “We’ve just been walking Georgie along the beach – he’s outside…” Georgie was their Rottweiler, the opposite of his breed’s reputation, a fierce protector but also a kitty cat with the ladies. His greatest trick was carrying   tennis balls in his mouth – or trying to.   

    “I’ll get him a drink,” Hailee interrupted.

    “Anyway, we practically ran into the guy on the front page of the paper this morning. Ben Wentworth… He’s really hot,” Lia added.

     “It says he went to Hallowed Halls School so we figure you must know him…”

      At this point the mothers’ group swung around in their chairs almost simultaneously. I was pretty sure Dana hadn’t forgotten, but I didn’t want to make a big thing of it.

    “Sure.”

    “Oh, Jane you never told us that.”

    “I knew him way back, you were both still in grade school...We were friends, it was nothing.”

    “Well, he’s staying at the beach house. We saw him out walking with his nephew this morning, along the beach. We got talking and told him about this place so you should expect him to come by.”

     My cheeks went red. I was ashamed that I’d even considered the prospect that after all these years a connection still existed. I even seemed pathetic to myself.

    “He’s not married,” Hailee added mischievously.*

    “Certainly a step up from high school boys,” Lia added enthusiastically.

    “And you know how cute he is,” Hailee added as she came back to sit in front of the counter.

     It was obvious my efforts to avoid him were going to be in vain.  He seemed to be staying in Wentworth and according to Lia, who knew everything about our small community, was now a minor celebrity.

   “Anyway, I got talking to his sister at the store and she mentioned that she’d invited us, the whole family, including you, Jane, to her bonfire party tonight. Apparently the decorations and catering are going to be quite extravagant because it’s also a party to celebrate her brother’s graduation from Officer Training School.”

    At this point, Tom Winchester entered the coffee shop. He looked like he’d been out for an early morning swim. He also looked hungry.

    “I gotta go,” I whispered to Hailee, reminded of the fortune cookie.

TRULY by Summer Day (inspired by Persuasion) chapter Sixteen: "Man in the cafe"

Chapter Sixteen

Man in the Café

I picked up another fortune cookie from the pile in a bowl on the countertop. This is what it said: A tall handsome newcomer with links to the past is a sure thing. I’d earmarked Tom Winchester for Liz and had resolved to play matchmaker. They shared the same good looks, the same questionable values - they were, without a doubt, a perfect match… Confessions of a Post-teenage Hermit

     After they left the room I went over to the new guy only to see up close, that it was Tom Winchester, who’d briefly dated Liz at school and still held a torch for her if his occasional emails and conversations with me were anything to go by.

    “Good morning, Tom,” I said in my happy waitress way.

    He looked up at me and smiled. His looks had improved along with his personality over the years.

    “Hi Jane,” he replied, “I’d like coffee please and… an egg-white omelette, oh and maybe you could tell me the rules on how to get your sister Liz to become exclusive.”

    Obnoxious. Whatever.

    When I took him over his plate, he explained he was helping a friend, a director at one of the studios, who was scouting for locations nearby. He asked me about the properties that dotted the coast. His friend needed to hire one, if possible, to shoot some location scenes.  

  “As you know, I grew up here,” I said. “And this promenade is the best stretch of real estate in the area,” I said wistfully. I had a sneaking suspicion he hadn’t heard about the family finances. 

   “I have no idea why you work here, Jane. I’m sure your dad could have found you somewhere better. By the way, do you think Liz would know any good real estate agents in the area?”

   “Well… actually, Liz finds properties for friends…”

   He looked at me closely.

   “Do you think I would qualify?” Tom had been in New York working as a stockbroker. I knew this because he’d always stayed in touch with both Liz and me. He’d told me on more than one occasion he was “so into” my sister. Too much information, Tom, but he wouldn’t stop talking about her until I’d agreed to help them get together.

     It was obvious how much he liked her.

   “Okay,” he replied. “Please ask Liz to call my office since I’ve tried to get her card before and she wouldn’t give it to me.”

    I was kind of floored. 

    “Uh… okay,” I smiled.

    “Actually, Jane, I was hoping you’d help play matchmaker.”

    “I said I would and I meant it, Tom. You and Liz are made for each other.”

     He smiled. I wanted to add… that’s if you like vipers, ‘cos I was pretty sure Liz had had Tom’s measure since high school. But then Liz always said, “Like attracts like.”

     Me? I’d always had this rule not to chase boys but it seemed all the social laws had changed in my absence from the dating game. I smiled and pocketed his card. I had an idea a surface friendship with Tom might actually prove useful in some way. He wasn’t my type but let’s face it, his obsession with finance would make him perfect for Liz and she could show him as many properties as he wanted.

     I heard my cousins tittering as they came out of the bathroom where they’d changed from swimsuits into street clothes.

      As I showed my cousins the door and promised to meet them for lunch and to go to the bonfire party (I couldn’t believe I was considering this but it was better than putting off the inevitable), they too left an invitation for me on the counter and added smiley faces.

   “Look at all the new talent in town this summer,” Lia whispered.

   I looked at her and paused.

   “He’s interested in Liz.”

   “Did he go to the same high school as you and Ben Wentworth?”

   “Hailee, you gotta stop mentioning Ben. I haven’t seen him in six years. It is highly unlikely he even remembers me, but, yes, Tom did go to the same high school; and you’re right, I can’t spend my life avoiding Ben. He’s on my turf now.”

   “Oh, Jane, everyone remembers you… you’re special.”

   I shrugged. Today I felt plain, bland and not very special. It was moments like this with my adorable cousins that were gold, and kept me in Wentworth where I belonged.

   “Lia’s right,” Hailee added, “You are especially smart and very pretty… and kind inside which is the most important thing of all. See you at eight tonight, Jane.”

    “Okay.”

    I smiled at my younger cousins. I’d spent years babysitting them and our bond was close and true. They waved girlishly as they left the café and I wondered if I’d ever feel as light and happy as them again. Probably not, but then maybe I wasn’t meant to. Maybe I’d grown up, a lot.

TRULY by Summer Day (inspired by Persuasion) chapter Seventeen: "That Night"

Chapter Seventeen

That Night

As I drove over to my sister Melissa’s house after work, I was filled with anticipation for the evening. It would be better to meet him again, on my terms, than to face him unexpectedly…

Confessions of a Post-teenage Hermit

    When I arrived at Melissa’s house in Venice Beach, Melissa’s husband, Fred, greeted me warmly.

    He came outside to help me move the last of my boxes out of the trunk of my car. They’d been there for a day now and Melissa had promised to store them since my closet at Dad’s was overflowing.

    Fred was an average looking guy with an easy going personality and, I’ll admit it, a kind heart. His family were loaded so he’d managed to avoid Dad’s wrath, but beyond the family money, Fred was a normal and hardworking guy.  Melissa admitted that everything “average” about him (apart from his earnings as director of a Gaming Startup), made things easier for her. His personal traits (humbleness and a lack of vanity) allowed Missy to act superior in every way.

    In fact, I’d seen Melissa boss poor Fred around in a way that made me look away. He seemed to be under her spell, and worked every extra hour to please her. Nothing was too much trouble, though Melissa was never anything more than ungrateful. I wasn’t surprised they were having problems. Ordering him to help me out, when he would have no doubt offered anyway, had less to do with helping me than once again asserting her authority.

    “That’s the last of the boxes, Jane,” Fred said as he wiped his hands on his pockets after loading them into the store room at the back of the garage.

    Fred had always had a soft spot for me, going so far as to ask me out before he had ever shown interest in Melissa. We’d gone out once, but instantly, we both knew we’d make better friends. My Godmother had been accurate in her assessment on that occasion stating, “two natures as easy going as yours and Fred’s would be a pathway to a bad match.” Eleanor then encouraged me to introduce Fred to Melissa, which I was pleased to do.  It was ironic, of course, that instead of thanking me for finding her the man she would marry, she now looked down on me for having no one of my own; and she always seemed nervous about leaving the two of us alone together; as if anything would happen; ever.

   “Melissa just has her nose out of joint because Fred liked you first,” Eleanor assured me. I wasn’t so sure.

    “At least Fred’s sincere,” Melissa said. “I think he might just be the right man for me…” Melissa had commented at the time, “I’ve always thought you needed someone dashing and handsome, Jane, like a character from one of those stupid novels you read.” 

     Melissa was in love with love; Melissa was ready to have children and Melissa thought Fred would make a good husband. Dad gave them his blessing, as if they needed it. Although Fred appeared both average and a little dull, his family were fiercely connected to one of the richest and most powerful in Beverly Hills. In other words, both he and Elizabeth approved of my sister’s match. 

    Missy had reached the conclusion that Fred was perfect for her only one week before the scheduled wedding. During the rehearsal, Elizabeth, who was quite cynical about marriage kept Tom at a distance (even though he’d been interested in her since high school) but I remember seeing them holding hands and talking in a corner when everyone else was dancing. Elizabeth had been complaining to me that we stood out that day in our relatively unfashionable dresses, “like the unpicked fruit on the cherry tree.” I laughed, but it was true. Liz was still mortified that Melissa had insisted on putting us in what she described as, “bridesmaid’s dresses designed to make us look like the ugly stepsisters.”

    “Never mind Liz,” I agreed. “It’s Melissa’s questionable right as the bride to ensure she looks better than everyone else.”

    Liz refused to pose for the photographs until I persuaded her that it was Missy’s big day and there was no point in ruining it. My sisters clashed with each other even more than they did with me.

    That night, Fred had taken my belongings and locked them in Missy’s storage cabinet with his usual good grace.

    “You know you can always come and stay with us… anytime. Not just for the week,” Fred said. “You are a sister to me, Jane. We’d love to have you.”

    “Thanks Fred,” I smiled.

     I was glad I’d decided to attend the bonfire party with my family. In a way I’d save face with Ben, show him the past meant nothing to me, either. It wouldn’t be easy to avoid running into him at some point in Wentworth if he was staying all summer. Better to be the one controlling the conditions under which we met.

    I sat on the couch as Liz complained about her life while her toddler kept trying to chew her designer shoe. Earlier that morning, my father had tried to convince me to “give up the waitress job” and go to work with Elizabeth. “When the finances are free from the sale, you could enrol in night school… get an education.”

     That was how I learnt what I’d already suspected. After summer, they intended to sell Kellynch. The Crofts would move out and the high season would be over. A sale after the immediate cash of high season, would be the answer to everyone’s problems – except mine.

    “I already have part of a college education father,” I reminded him, in a rare moment of speaking up for myself, “and I got good grades, remember?”

    I had spoken back to Dad as a child and been greeted by the back of his hand on one occasion, but time heals most things, except that I knew his nature and it hadn’t changed.

    As my sister got up to dress for the party, she pulled the shoe off my nephew, Max, a little too fast and he started crying, toppling over in an instant onto his child sized truck which ran over his foot. Melissa was hushing him as she re-applied her lipstick and ran to get her coat.

    As she cleaned the child up in the bathroom and re-applied her lipstick she called out to me, “You know he’s with someone, don’t you?”

    “Who?”

    “That guy you used to like, the one who rented Kellynch along with his sister; Ben Wentworth.”

    “I didn’t know his name was on the lease.”

    “Oh, it was, he enquired about the place in the first instance, as it turns out.”

    “Great,” I replied, meaning not so great.

     “Of course, we didn’t even remember who he was, he’s changed a lot. He had a girlfriend with him. At first I didn’t recognise her then it turns out she used to go to school with us. I could barely remember her or Ben for that matter but they both remembered you and Liz. Anyway, now Serena works for a big international airline.”

   “Wow,” I said.

   “Really? Is that all you have to say?”  Melissa was concerned she hadn’t had the emotional response she expected from me.

    By then, I was in the process of leaving, to go outside and wait for my cousins who were due to arrive at any moment. I’d shut the door quietly behind me. Of course I was upset but it was inevitable he’d be with someone. Men like Ben would not need to be alone for long, but Serena Collins? Had he lost his mind? 

    Whilst Fred waited patiently outside, he’d allowed the other twin to climb the tree that overlooked the front porch. The child was actually climbing down the trunk as his foot became stuck. Then, as Harry moved to his father’s arms, he fell on his head and scraped both his face and knee in the short fall to the ground.

    I cradled Harry as he screamed all the way home from the paediatricians who pronounced him fine except for a slight shock. Melissa was told to “keep a close eye on him all night.”

    The party wasn’t due to start until nine and Melissa had a miserable look on her face as we arrived back in Venice Beach and settled Max and Harry in bed. She was still dressed in her finest designer clothes and ready to party.

    “Melissa darling,” Fred said, “we should stay with him.”

    “Both of us? Stay home?” Melissa asked incredulously after checking little Harry’s head and noting that he slept soundly.

    Melissa spoke softly as she shut the door to the nursery. “Are you kidding, Fred? I’ve been at home all day – you try it. I cannot believe you were stupid enough not to keep a proper eye on the children…” 

     “But Missy, I’ve cancelled the babysitter and you gave the nanny the night off.”

     My sister’s voice was ringing in my ears… and an image of Ben’s face was etched in my mind. Perhaps it was just an excuse to avoid him, I’m not really sure, but suddenly I had an idea.

   “It’s alright Missy, I’ll stay with the boys tonight. I have your contact details.”

    “Oh, no, Jane …” my brother-in-law said. “We would never impose on you…”

     “Oh, Jane loves children. It’s no imposition, Fred. Jane has far better childcare qualifications than any babysitter. Are you sure, Jane?” Melissa asked.

    “Yes,” I replied. “You go, Melissa, It’ll be fine.”

     “Well, you have the most experience at looking after children really, of anyone. I’m sure the twins are safer in your care. I feel almost useless in this situation and probably would be better off out of it,” Melissa added.  

     After they’d left, I sat on the sofa and turned on the television.

     I’d avoided almost every social occasion in recent years. There was always a good reason, and this one was the best. The truth was, I never thought I’d see Ben again. And now, I didn’t want to.

     I got off the couch and turned up the baby monitor as I made myself some hot chocolate. A part of me was overwhelmed by my sister’s self-centredness (but I was used to it). Always, as the girl without a boyfriend, I was left out, devalued and discarded socially and by my family. But secretly, I was glad about tonight. If I had any say in the matter, I’d never have to see Ben Wentworth again. 

TRULY by Summer Day (inspired by Persuasion) chapter: Eighteen "Surprise"

Chapter Eighteen

Surprise

I’d fallen asleep on the couch in the twins’ room, convincing myself I’d missed nothing…  Confessions of a Post-teenage Hermit

     The next day at work, I was writing on the countertop before the morning rush hour began when the door to the café swung open. Light beamed upon me as Lia and Hailee walked in with the sun.

    “We missed you so much last night, Jane,” Hailee said, “we brought the party here this morning.”

    The sun was in my eyes, but two older guys, handsome and tall stood behind my cousins in the morning light. The darker haired man was Harley Wentworth. From a distance both of the brothers looked similar. Harley smiled and walked right over.

     “I told him it was you. Jane Elliot?”

     I nodded.

    “We missed you last night.  Ben and I graduated Officer Training School together.” 

    “Congratulations,” I said, feeling extremely stupid, as if I didn’t already know.

     Ben hovered in the background in beach clothes and dark sunglasses, looking singularly unimpressed. I shuddered inside behind the counter but kept up my tepid smile. It was early and no other customers had arrived.

    “We’ll have a table overlooking the ocean,” Lia said. 

    “Okay.”

    “And you must sit and have breakfast with us, Jane.”

    “I… cant.”

    I looked around. Keira wouldn’t be here for another half hour, but there were only two customers.

    “I… sort of have to work,” I said. Ben was busily texting someone as I led the group to the best table, the one with a panoramic view of the ocean.

    “Congratulations on graduating,” I said to Ben.

    “Well, I always said I would,” he said dismissively, as if it was no big deal to have been accepted into flight training.

     Deep down, I felt as if Ben must have tagged along with Harley merely to witness my humiliation as a college drop out with a minimum wage job. 

    As I handed out the menus, my cousins were full of garrulous chatter about their fashion design course.  Ben and I did not speak a word. He just checked his cell and listened as Harley and my cousins talked.

    The Wentworths and my cousins had obviously become friendly during the bonfire party and they insisted on me joining them for coffee during my break. They ordered every kind of breakfast on the menu keeping the cook busy, but I just sat between Lia and Hailee as I ate some toast. There was really nowhere for me to escape to, unless I quit my job and why do that when Ben had already humiliated me? The damage was done. So what if he’d shown up and acted like he barely knew me. This whole embarrassing situation was so typical of my life.

    “It’s such a pity you couldn’t come last night, Jane.” Hailee said as she finished her orange juice.

    “Honestly, if I had a sister like Melissa, I don’t know what I’d do,” Lia added.

    “Me either,” Ben agreed sarcastically as he finished his coffee.

    “You can talk, not only is Sarah the most glamorous actress but your sister gives the most fantastic housewarming parties, Ben.”

     “Thank you,” he said, quietly.

     Ben’s blonde hair and blue eyes shone in the morning sun, making him look like the older brother to my cousins who were also fair headed and continued to chatter about making him a man model in one of their fashion shows. It was then that he started to laugh and ordered another coffee for everyone.

    “I’m not surprised you’re taken, Ben,” Hailee said garrulously. “Your job sounds so exciting. You and Harley should totally hang with me and Lia while you’re in town. We know all the best clubs.”

    Hailee obviously didn’t know anything about Ben and me, which was probably a blessing.

    “I’m sorry to disappoint you guys, but the only person who ever managed to talk me into clubbing is on her way to Singapore as we speak. Serena’s pretty forgiving even though distance makes it difficult to maintain a relationship.”

   “Guess you just have to find the right person to make it work,” I interrupted.

   “What sort of qualities do you look for in a girlfriend?” Hailee asked mischievously.

    It was pretty obvious his words were loaded as he paused, then spoke again.

    “My only requirement in a girlfriend is a woman who knows her own mind. A girl who’s easily swayed by friends or family is not the right person for me. I can’t be bothered dealing with someone who is timid and won’t speak out or stand up for themselves. It’s just too much trouble to be worth the effort in the long run.”

   Hailee nodded, no one had ever accused her of being timid, that’s for sure.

   “Oh, come on Ben, you would never have to make an effort to get a date,” Lia added, smiling at me. I really should have mentioned Ben to my cousins. This whole embarrassing scenario could have been diffused before it started.

    I jumped up as a customer walked in, a good excuse to leave the table. At the same moment Lia reached over to get some bread, knocking the coffee pot into my lap. Thankfully, the liquid had cooled somewhat.

    “Oh, Jane. I’m so sorry.”

    “It’s nothing, Lia,” I said, quickly. I got up to get a cloth from the kitchen and when I returned Ben had left.

    My cousins came back later to take me to lunch.

    Hailee was sitting at the table, texting, loyally waiting for me. I’d dried my jeans off as much as possible, earlier, under the hand dryer. Keira had long since arrived and the entire café was humming along as if nothing had changed except a song. Keira raised her eyebrows when she heard the brothers had visited. There was no obvious rift in the seams of the structure holding the foundations of the building together, like there was inside me.

    “Wow, I told you he’s Mr Handsome. What did you think?” Hailee grinned as she looked over at me. Keira was busy serving a customer. After my shift was officially over, my cousins and I had planned to meet up with my sisters.

    “Oh, you mean Ben?”

    “Of course,” Hailee replied.

    “He’s cute,” I said quietly.

    “I didn’t know you knew him?”

    “I did,” I replied as I gathered my belongings and swung my sweater over my shoulders, hesitant to tell Hailee anything that might end up on the web the next day.

    A sea breeze came in through the window as I reached over and pulled the shutters. So far, it had been a cooler summer than usual.

   “You know, at first I thought he was one of the nicest guys I’d ever met but he wasn’t very nice about you just a minute ago.”

  ‘Really?” I asked, unsurprised.

  Hailee swung her sandaled feet off the chair and stood up in one long sweep. She fluffed her summer dress and pinched her cheeks and reapplied her gloss as she spoke.

     “Do you know what he said after you left, Jane?”

     “I’m not sure I want to,” I answered under my breath, but Hailee was like a train, she’d never stop moving forward unless she was forced to.

    He said, “I can’t believe it’s been just a few years since I last saw Jane. We went to school together, you know. She is so different I’d have hardly recognised her.”

     I went white and picked up my purse. It was obvious Ben hadn’t meant “different” in a good way. His observation wasn’t a compliment. I walked outside to get some fresh sea air with my cousins. I’d been desperate for a deep breath for at least ten minutes.

    Hailee was by my side instantly.

    “Oh, Jane. What did I say?”

    “Nothing Hailee, I just need to breathe after being inside all morning.”

   “Oh, well, I’m not sure how close he is to that flight attendant, Serena. She was on her way to Singapore.  So, not too close. Hey, Harley just texted. He invited us all to go sailing and you’re coming too…”

    I was fairly sure this would be a bad idea.

   “That’s probably not going to happen, Hailee. Ben and I were together a long time ago but we’re not friends anymore.”

    “Well, he must be back here for a reason, Jane. I think he’s returned home to see you,” Lia chimed in.

    “Really? He must have been wildly impressed,” I joked, “Next time, warn me when he’s coming.”

    “Oh Jane, I can see why you must have liked him,” Lia added.

    “Mmm,” I replied.

    “If anything he must have grown better looking with the years,” Hailee said in her dreamy way.

    I smiled. I’d forgotten how it felt to be a teenager. As I gazed towards the beach, I noticed a set of keys lying on the boardwalk. Harley must have dropped them when he left. My cell buzzed. It was Sarah asking if I could drop by and try the piano now that it had been tuned. Okay, I texted. I’d drop the keys off as well. There was no getting out of this, besides, I liked Sarah. Once upon a time, we might even have been sisters.