A Life Less Ordinary (4 page)

“Of
course I’m not perfect,” Rebecca said, doing her best to keep her tone
neutral.  “Of course I was angry – who wouldn’t be?” 

She
swallowed, her throat clicking.  Then she thought,
no
.  Jaime was an
adult; had been for a very long time now, and a mother herself since the age of
twenty.  Jaime wanted to know how Rebecca had felt; perhaps it was time to tell
her.  To
truly
tell her.

“
Your father got me
pregnant then buggered off for parts unknown the day after I told him,” she
said slowly.  “His parents refused to believe he was responsible.  My parents
disowned me.  If it hadn’t been for the Mankowskis, I would have had to have
you on some street corner in that shitty little town!  As it was, I was a wreck
for the first year – more! - of your life.  I – I did lots of things I’m not
proud of – lots of things that still make me ashamed when I think about them. 
I did my best to hurt the only people in my life who had proven they loved and
accepted and believed in me no matter how much I fucked up.

“I’m
talking about the Mankowskis, of course.  Mrs. Mankowski tried to talk sense
into me – and I said things to her and Mr. Mankowski that I’ll regret until the
day I die.  Everyone but them thought I was white trash – and trust me, I did
my damnedest to live down to expectations!  Everyone but the Mankowskis thought
I would end up with a houseful of brats, all with different fathers, living on
welfare, and drinking and whoring myself into an early grave.  And looking
back, that’s exactly what would have happened if I’d continued the way I was
going.

“
But the Mankowskis not
only gave me a home – they also gave me tough love.  You were about a year,
year-and-a-half when they sat me down and laid out my options.”

“
Options?” Jaime asked
faintly, her eyes wide.

“
They offered to support
me if I wanted to go to school.  They’d help me out if I wanted to get a job. 
They even -” she clamped her mouth shut, blinking back tears.  She took a small
sip of hot tea as she struggled to compose herself.

“
They even...?” Jaime
prompted.

“
They offered to adopt
you if I thought that was what was best.  The only thing they
wouldn’t
do was let me continue to throw away my life and yours – for nothing.  They
warned me they’d try to take custody of you if I continued the way I was
going. 

“
At first I was
furiously angry and I felt horribly, horribly betrayed – again.  But once I calmed
down – and, yes, sobered up – I took a cold, hard look at myself, realized they
were right.  I cleaned up my act, enrolled in the same university as Daisy, and
life was beginning to – to turn right side up again.”

“
And then they died,”
Jaime said flatly.

“
Yes.  And then they
died, and it was my turn to be the strong one, to help Daisy and Manny work
through their grief and come out the other side.”

Rebecca
barked out a harsh, bitter laugh, a tinge of hysteria in the sound.  “
Perfect
? 
Hell
, no, I’m not perfect!  And if I’ve never said a word against your
father in your hearing that doesn’t mean I haven’t said plenty out of it.  But
no.  I don’t hate him.  Hate implies I give a damn about him.  I don’t.  I’m
indifferent.  I’ve made a good life for us in spite of him and what he did.

“If
you want to find him – then find him.  I hope he’s grown into a decent man –
for
your
sake.”

“I
want to hear
his
side of the story,” Jaime said stubbornly and Rebecca
wondered what, exactly, Jaime hoped to hear him say. 

She
took a sip of tea, her eyes steady on her daughter’s face.  She carefully set
her cup on the table.

“Then
I hope you find him.”

* * * * *

The
coffee shop wasn’t very busy.   Only a couple of tables were occupied, with
several more people standing in line.  Manny sat rather nervously at her table
sipping her third vanilla latte and wondering if she was as crazy as Rebecca
and Daisy claimed.  This would be her fourth interview today of a potential
travelling companion and she hoped this guy would be more of a possibility than
the other three she’d already met.  Oh, they all seemed nice enough, but Olive
had been jittery and they’d quickly realized their personalities would never
mesh well enough to travel together for six months.  Isaac had had a predatory,
speculative gleam in his eyes as he looked her over – and she hadn’t needed
Harvey to tell her to stay as far away from
him
as possible.

Darius
was very sweet and charming, just eighteen, but he couldn’t pay his own way,
and Manny wasn’t about to support him for six months.  He’d shrugged and
accepted her decision with an adorable smile and she offered to call Daisy’s
boss, Max, to see if he had any work that Darius could do.  Darius had thanked
her and even paid for their lattes, and they’d chatted for a good forty-five
minutes before he’d finally gone on his way.  Yes, he would have been a good
choice – and she might change her mind if she didn’t find anyone before she
left in two weeks.

You
can always go by yourself.

I
know.  But it would be more fun with someone else.

You’ll
have me.

Manny
glanced at Harvey sitting in the chair across from her.  He was dressed
casually in jeans and a button down shirt open at the throat to show the strong
lines of his neck and chest.

You’re
not real.

Harvey
winked at her. 
Just checking.

She
shook her head and Harvey blinked out of existence as the door opened and a
darkly handsome man walked in.  He paused in the doorway and removed his
sunglasses as he glanced around the small room.  Securely hidden in her corner,
Manny considered him.

Tall;
over six feet.  Dark.  Handsome, with large, dark eyes and full pouty lips. 
His black, tousled hair and dark stubble on his face gave him a sexy, scruffy
appearance.  He was slim, with broad shoulders, narrow hips and long legs
encased in jeans.

I’ll
bet he has a great ass.

I’ll
bet you’re right.

He’s
like a younger version of me.

Manny
blinked at the man standing in the doorway and realized Harvey was right.  Oh,
they didn’t exactly look alike, but they had similar colouring, and a similar
underlying confidence and arrogance in their stance.  Probably something
natural when you’re that naturally gorgeous, Manny thought ruefully, or, in
Harvey’s case, that
unnaturally
perfect.

I’d
almost be jealous...if I was real.

But
you’re not – and he’s quite something.  I wonder who he’s here to me...eeet.

Her
internal dialogue trailed off as the stranger’s gaze met hers.  He gave a half
smile and headed towards her.

Shit.
  Manny could feel her
eyes getting bigger as he came closer.  She fought the urge to look behind her
– but only succeeded because she knew she was sitting in the corner with her
back against the wall.

This
could be interesting.

Shit
!

She
looked up and up as the stranger stopped at her table.

“Manny?”
he asked.

And
an accent!  Now I
really am jealous.

Why
the hell did I wear these sweats and this sweatshirt?  Why didn’t I check my
hair before he arrived?  Why didn’t I at least try to look presentable for
these things?

Because
you’re getting rid of all your boring work clothes, you haven’t bought casual
clothes in ten years, and your hair hasn’t been out of that bun since the year
2000?

Oh. 
Right.

Manny
pulled herself together.  She gave him a half-smile of her own and stood. 
“Yes.  Manny Mankowski.”  She held out her hand.  “You must be Zeke.”

Zeke
nodded and shook her hand.  His grip was warm and firm and lasted exactly long
enough to be polite without being too friendly before he released her hand.

Obviously
not love at first sight.

Shut
up.

“Did
you want to get a coffee or anything?” she asked, getting herself under
control.  She was forty-five years old, for God’s sake, and he wasn’t the first
handsome man she’d met up close and personal. 

He
is
the first one you’ve met outside of a work context in over fifteen
years.

Please
shut up.

“No,
no thanks,” he said.

They
sat down, and Manny nervously played with her latte while they assessed each
other.

“Manny
Mankowski?” he finally said, breaking the awkward silence.  “Your parents ran
out of ideas, did they?”

Manny
huffed a short laugh.  “It’s a nickname.  My real name is Rose.”  She made a
rueful, self-deprecating face.  “It doesn’t suit me.”

They
lapsed into another awkward silence.

This
bodes well,
Harvey said, watching with avid interest.

“So...,”
Zeke said, gesturing helplessly, “how does this work?”

“Well,
we just...talk.  See if we have anything in common; see if we can decide if we
could spend six months travelling together.  So far, nobody else has worked
out.”

“Yeah? 
Have you had many people answer your ad?”

“A
lot, actually, but counting you, I’ve only met with four of them.  Most of the
people who responded were obviously nut jobs, another pool of them just wanted
to wish me luck and tell me how much they wished they had the courage to do
what I’m doing.  Almost everyone else backed out when I insisted they would be
paying their own way.  So, the only ones I’ve actually met at least told me
they were willing to pay their own way and confirmed it when we met.  Well,
except Darius, but he was so sweet I didn’t have the heart to be annoyed with
him.  Anyway, obviously most people get turned off when I remind them I won’t
be supporting them for six months.”

“No
free ride then, I take it.”

“Is
there ever a free ride?”

“I
guess not.”

“So
what is it?”

“What?”

“Money
problems or women problems?  Or – I’m sorry, I shouldn’t assume – maybe it’s
men problems?”

I’ll
break down in tears if he’s gay.

I’ll
join you.

Zeke
blinked at her in surprise.  “None of the above.  And if you’re asking if I’m
gay, the answer’s no.”

There
really is a God – and He apparently loves you.

“I
wasn’t asking – I just didn’t want to presume.”

“Hmmm. 
So, tell me about yourself.”

“I
thought the ad was pretty self-explanatory.”

“If
you’re this talkative all the time, it could be a very long six months.”

“I’m
sorry.  I’m...to be honest, I’m a little nervous.  I never thought anybody
would answer the ad.  I mean, not to actually meet with me, and here you’re
number four.”

Zeke
gave her a polite smile.  “So, tell me about yourself.”

Manny
sighed.  “I’m forty-five and trying to put some spark back into my life.  I’ve
spent the last fifteen years being defined by my job – so much so I’ve lost
sight of who I am without it.  I don’t know if this road trip will help me
rediscover myself, but I think I’ll enjoy giving it a try.  Now, tell me about
your
self.”

“I’m
thirty-five.  I’m a freelance multimedia developer and can basically work from
anywhere.  I’m originally from New Zealand -”

“I
was trying to place the accent.”

“Yes. 
Anyway, I’m originally from New Zealand and even though I’ve seen a lot of this
continent, I wouldn’t mind seeing more of it.  This seemed like it could be
fun.”

“I
think so, too.”  She paused and considered him thoughtfully.  “I’m guessing
it’s women problems.”

Zeke
heaved an exasperated sigh.  “I’m guessing
your
reasons are women
problems, too,” he said.

Ooooh. 
Ouch,
Harvey winced.

Manny
blinked at Zeke, brows raised. 

“Wow,”
she said.  “Okay.  Well, if you’re this forthcoming all the time, this could be
a long six months.”

“I’m
sorry,” Zeke said, “but I don’t think my reasons for answering your ad are all
that important.”

Manny
frowned.  “Except we’re both thinking about leaving town with a total
stranger.  Even though we can both leave at any point – one reason for having
your own money – you don’t want to have a miserable time, even if it’s only for
a few days.”