Mindset (12 page)

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“Hi, Josh.  How’s it going?”

“Hello, ladies.  Thanks for stopping by.  Eva, do you want to come back to my office?  I have an update for you, and I thought you might like some privacy.”

“I don’t mind if Callie comes back, if you don’t.  She’s up on everything we’ve done so far.”

“I don’t mind, if you don’t.   Come on back.”

“Ok, let me fill you in on our progress.  I have officially filed a petition of restraint against your husband and his brother.  As of today, he cannot come within 100 feet of your person for any reason.  I’ve begun work on the petition for divorce, but that takes a little bit longer, as I have to include different documentation along with getting through some minor red tape to ensure that all court proceedings go through Texas courts, and to make sure that you will not have to go to New York or speak to your husband in person for any reason.  I don’t anticipate any problems there, since you are not pursuing any kind of financial settlement, although before I file, I wanted to make sure that you haven’t changed your mind about that, Eva.  I can get you a nice chunk of change if you’ll just give me the go ahead.”

“No thank you, Josh.  My mind is made up.  I don’t want anything, financial or otherwise, from James except a divorce.  Thanks, anyway.”

“I figured you’d say that, which brings me to our last piece of business, and yes, I have saved the best for last.  I spoke to my friend the jeweler, and he’s appraised your rings at a cool $238, 500.  Not only that, but he’s offered to buy them, if you’re ready to sell.”

“Damn, Evita.  That ought to get you started on whatever path you choose to take.”  Callie smiled her encouragement.

“You know, part of me doesn’t want to take it.  Part of me wants to either send it back to him or throw it as far as I can in the middle of the desert.  But, the more sensible part of me knows that it’ll go a long way towards starting a new life.  That, combined with the fact that I wouldn’t need to worry about finances if I hadn’t turned over my bank accounts and given up my career before we’d even gotten married, is allowing me to set aside my pride for my better judgment.  I was such an idiot.  Anyway, that’s all water under the bridge now.  Please tell your friend that I accept his offer, Josh.  And thanks again for handling it for me.”

“My pleasure, Eva.  I’ll keep you posted on everything, and I’ll arrange to have a cashier’s check made in your name for the sale of the ring.  What else can I do for you?”

“Well, since you asked, I’m in the market to buy a vehicle, and being a typical girl, I don’t know the first thing about it.  Do you have any advice?”

“As a matter of fact, I have a friend who sells all kinds of cars in Las Cruces, about an hour’s drive away in New Mexico.  If you’re not doing anything this weekend, I’d be happy to take you to look around.  Do you know what you want yet?”

“Actually, I do.  I want a pick-up truck.  I think it’ll go really well with my new jeans.  I want it to be full-sized, have a side step, and if possible, I’d like it to be red.  I’ve always wanted a truck, and since I plan to make Texas my new home, I think it’s a good choice.  What do you think?”

Josh looked at her and gave her a slow, sexy smile.  “I’ve always thought chicks who drove trucks were so cool.  My buddy sells Chevy’s.  Will that work for you?  And for the record, I don’t think there’s anything typical about you.”

“I know the perfect place for lunch.  It’s called the Magic Pan, and it’s right across from the hair place.  It’s the perfect place for a girls’ lunch.  Soups, sandwiches, and a really unique flavor.  Here we are.”

“Sounds good to me, I’m starving.  Don’t forget to bring your notebook in, so we can start planning.  I’m not sure what we’re going to write down, but if nothing else, brainstorming ideas on paper is a good way to get started.  I’m a list person.”

“You’re a crazy person, but I like you anyway.”

“Birds of a feather and all that…”

The friends were giggling like school girls as they headed towards the restaurant.  “Wow, looks busy.”  They gave the hostess their names and started looking at the various antiques on sale in the lobby.

“Callie?  Callie Dubeck?  Is that you?”

“Trish!  What a nice surprise!  I haven’t seen you in years!  How are you?”

“Doing just fine.  When did you get back in town?  How long will you be here?” 

“I got back a couple weeks ago, and I plan on staying.  I thought you’d moved to Dallas.  Oh hey, let me introduce you to my friend, Eva.  Eva, meet Trish.  We went to school together before I moved to New York.”

“I also moved back to town about a year ago, and it looks like I’ll be staying, too, at least for awhile.  I haven’t really made any long range plans yet, but my family’s here, so it seemed like a good place to start.”

“Well, great!  Are you here with Pete and the kids, or did you steal away for some quiet time?  Trish has the cutest kids you’ve ever seen, Eva.  Blond hair and big, blue eyes, just like their mama.  How are they?”

Trish glanced away and then looked back at her friend.  “Trevor and Alexa are with my mom right now.  I guess you haven’t heard, Callie.  Pete died right after the holidays the year before last.  That’s why I’ve moved back here to be with family.”

“Oh my God, Trish, I’m so sorry.  No, I hadn’t heard.  Callie’s name was called, letting her know that her table was ready.  “Look, if you’re here alone, why don’t you join us for lunch?”

“I don’t want to intrude.”

“You won’t be intruding, at all,” Eva assured her.  “Besides, I’m in the market for new friends.  Please join us.”

“Well, ok, if you’re sure you don’t mind.  That would be nice.”

“Absolutely sure,” Callie stated.  “So, are you still teaching?”

“Yes, although I moved back here after the school year started, so I wasn’t able to find a position.  I guess I’ll go back to it after the summer, although I can’t say I’m looking forward to it.  With all this high stakes testing in our education system, teaching just isn’t much fun anymore.  It’s all drill and kill and no creativity.  I got my Master’s degree as a reading specialist thinking I could really make a difference, but it’s all about the test now.  Ever since the ‘No Child Left Behind’ act passed, everything is test driven.  That’s all they want you to teach, and I just don’t believe in it.  It’s a disservice to the kids.”

“Wow, I can see you feel very strongly about this.  So, if you don’t want to teach, what do you want to do?  Seems like a shame to have two degrees in education and never get to use them.”

“Oh, I still like education.  It’s just public education I’m tired of.  If I was rich, I’d start my own business and open up ‘The Literacy Center of El Paso’.  It’s my dream.  I would help kids who have trouble reading and for the kids who don’t have trouble reading, I’d show them how much fun it can be.  I’ve got it all figured out.  The only thing is, although I know reading, I don’t really know anything about owning my own business, not to mention, I don’t have any money to finance it.  I have a goal, I just lack a plan, but I’m working on it.  And someday, I’m going to make it happen.”

“Well, at least you know what you want to do.  Callie and I came to lunch today to try to figure out what we want to do.  I don’t have a clue.  And I don’t have any credentials, either, except modeling, and I doubt that’s going to take me very far.  At least Callie has a college education.”

“Yeah, but I’ve never used it, and the only work experience I have is the same as yours.  What about getting a business loan, Trish?  Have you thought about that?”

“Sure, but my credit is shot, I’m embarrassed to say.  Pete…suffice it to say, he made some bad investments, and I had to declare bankruptcy before I left Dallas.”

“Hmmm.  How much money do you figure it would take to start a Literacy Center, Trish?”

“A lot more than I’ll have in the foreseeable future.  I figure I’d need about two hundred thousand to get started and keep it running for a year, and that’s including salaries, equipment, materials, and rent, assuming it’s not high end property.”

“Hmmm.  Sounds like you’ve given this a lot of thought, Trish.  Did you ever work out a business plan?”

“Not really.  I don’t really know much about that part of it, other than you need it to get a loan.  Since I’m not anywhere close to that step yet, I haven’t gotten that far.”

“Hmmm.”  Callie glanced over at Eva, then back at Trish.  “Here’s what I’m thinking.  I have a degree in Business but no business idea.  You have a business idea without the knowledge or means to get it going.  What if we collaborated?”

Trish looked hopeful for a few minutes, then shook her head.  “Even if we put our two heads together here, we’d still need to find the money.  I’m broke, and unless you have a spare couple hundred grand lying around, we still aren’t viable.”

Callie smiled slyly.  “It just so happens I have some money put away for just such a venture.  I’ve been looking for something to get involved in, where I can not only put my education into practice, but also do something that makes a difference that gives back to the community.  Sounds like your idea fits my criteria.  I’m willing to take a chance if you are.  We could be the new dynamic duo.  What do you think?”

“Wait a minute, girls,” Eva interrupted.  What would you think about making your duet a trio?  I don’t know anything about teaching reading or starting a business, but I do have some money I would consider investing.  And I’m willing to help in whatever way I can.  I’ve certainly got the time.”

“Are you two really serious?  You’d be willing to invest your money in my idea?”

Eva and Callie looked at each other and then at Trish and answered with a resounding “Yes!” at the same time.

“This is so exciting!  Okay, so we’ll meet tomorrow at the ranch and start making plans, agreed?  You remember where the ranch is, right Trish?”

“Sure I do.  I spent many an evening daydreaming about boys with you there.  Is your grandfather still living there?”

“He sure is.  He’ll be happy to see you.  He asks about you from time to time.  How nice that you remember him.”

“Callie, how could anyone forget your granddad?  He always made everyone feel right at home.  He always fed us, too, whether we were hungry or not.  Whether it was fruit or pastries or barbeque, you knew you were eating something good at Mr. and Mrs. Scanlan’s.  Is he still like that?”

“He still wants to feed everyone, but now Eva has taken over the kitchen, which he loves.  You know how Granddad loves to eat, but he’s really enjoying the break, and if anything, he’s eating better than before.”

“He’s really just being nice and trying to make me feel like I belong and like I’m useful.  He’s such a nice man,” Eva added.

“You do belong, and you are useful, Evita.  We better go, or we’ll be late for our hair appointments.  See you tomorrow, bright and early, Trish.”

“Okay partners.  I’ll see you tomorrow.  And…thanks.  I can’t tell you how great this is for me.  It’s given me something to be excited about, to put my energy into, and I haven’t had that in a long time.  I actually have something to look forward to.  Thanks a lot.”  She embraced each of them, and they went their separate ways, Trish to her car to go home and check on her children, and Eva and Callie to walk across the street to the Hair Affair.