Rebound (2 page)

Katrine moved out of the big house shortly after David filed for divorce. She had to get out of there. That was the home where Teddy took his first steps and where she and David would make love after a long day. That was the home where she felt safe. That was the home where they were a family. But that picture of domestic bliss no longer existed. It evaporated along with her marriage. 

Poof....

They put the house on the market and split the profits. Her new condo and most of the furniture was purchased with her share. But David was still supporting her. She didn’t make any money of her own, and that bothered her. Katrine felt like she had been bought off in a way. Some women would be okay with that, but she was not one of those women. Right now she needed his money to survive, but she hoped to change that soon. 

“Hey, I forgot to tell you, I have an interview.”

“That’s awesome Trine! Where? What kind of position?” 

 “Joanna’s husband set it up for me. His associate, who runs one of the biggest companies in the country, will be in the area for a business deal and he needs an executive assistant. It pays well, but it sounds pretty demanding, a beck and call type of gig. Not my cup of tea for long term, but it’s only for a few months. And David’s folks have asked Teddy to join them at the beach house for the summer. So I wouldn’t have to worry about leaving him with someone. What ten year old boy wouldn’t want to spend the summer at the beach?” 

“That sounds great sis, I’m sure you’ll get the job.” 

But, she didn’t stop there. That would have been too easy.

“You know, it’s soooo nice that you have to go back to work, while your shit head ex-husband is screwing some young slut with a big rack.” They actually didn’t know how old she was exactly or how big her boobs were. Teddy had not offered many details and Katrine didn’t want any. They were just thinking worst case scenario. It just was just one of those things women did.

“Mads, really. Let it go! I appreciate the anger though.” Katrine was grinning at her sister’s outburst and gave her a hug. 

“Okay, on to bigger and better. I am so tired of talking about this crap. Blah, blah blah, wah, wah,wah! Enough is enough!”  

Katrine poured them each another glass of red wine and they walked into the living room.

“So what are we watching tonight?” Katrine asked.

Maddie just grinned. 

“Oh god, not again! Don’t you ever get tired of those stupid movies?” 

“No, I don’t. I love him! Yes, he may have some pigmentation issues, but I would do him in a heartbeat, well, if he had one,” Maddie said, wiggling her eye brows...

Katrine huffed and plopped down onto the couch.

“Jeeze Maddie, aren’t we a little old for these movies? And more importantly doesn’t it bother you that the vampire always falls for the one-dimensional virgin? I mean, what does a teenage girl have to offer someone who has been on the planet for two hundred years? Frankly, it is a bit perverted when you think about it.” 

She took a sip and continued, “Why not pick a more mature woman, with life experience? That’s all I’m saying.”

“Yes, life experience, and crows feet, and baggage, and stretch marks, and a vagina that has been ravaged by childbirth,” Maddie sardonically added.

“Hey! DO NOT speak for my vagina. And you are just a few years younger than me, so mind your own crow’s feet sister!”  

Thirty-five isn’t old anyway, damn it! 

Thirty-five is the new 21. 

That must make 21 the new fetus...

She did have some gray hairs now, but that was between Katrine and her hair stylist.

“You look great, Trine. You workout, eat healthy, and all of that other crap.”

“We weren’t all blessed with legs that go to our armpits, Mads. I was definitely dealt the Frodo genes. I have to work twice as hard as you tall people.” 

Katrine sighed and pulled her legs onto the couch, “Okay Madeline, put one in. They are mildly entertaining. But for gods sake, not the first one! That one is horrible!”

“Thou doth protest too much, sis. I know you secretly love these movies and have read the books too. Not to mention your shelves are lined with an assortment of vampire porn.” Maddie joked, shaking her head then taking a large drink of her wine.

“I prefer the term undead erotica, thank you very much. Besides, I needed something to get me going. Mr. “I’ve got ten minutes before surgery” wasn’t very inspiring. But honestly, I should really stay away from those types of books now that my bedroom sees less action than a Tibetan monastery.” 

“That, my dear sister… is why God invented the vibrator.” Maddie said with a straight face. Katrine laughed so abruptly that she almost shot wine out of her nose. She coughed and pushed Maddie in the shoulder.

“Just start the movie.”

Chapter 2

That third glass of wine was not a good idea. So what did that make the fourth glass? Just plain idiotic… Katrine attempted to pry her eyes open, but decided to bury her head under the pillow instead. Her bedroom was bright in the morning, and usually she loved it. But not today. Today she wanted to go the way of Nosferatu and get into a nice dark coffin. 

Okay, no more vampire movies for a while.

 But, she didn’t have the time to lay in bed and fully grasp the severity of her wine head. Teddy was coming home today. She needed to motivate.

 “A run, that’s what I need. I need to sweat this out of my body!”

During a Texas summer she had to run before nine a.m, if she had any hopes of lasting more than fifteen minutes. After that it got so hot, it felt like her skin was going to melt off of her body. Much like that guy in the first
Indiana Jones
movie. Her window of opportunity was closing rapidly so she needed to get out of bed. But the soft sheets felt so nice. She snuggled back into her pillow. She
so
did not want to be vertical right now. 

She finally slid out of bed and swayed a little on her way into the bathroom. 

Whoa there cowgirl, walk much? 

First order of business, remove the fur coat from my tongue. 

She washed her face and brushed, feeling a little revived. Katrine got dressed and almost fell over when she attempted to put on her shorts. 

 Balance is a little off. Hopefully I won’t run into a bush.

Water, she needed water. Katrine made her way into the kitchen. She was feeling better now that she was wearing her running shoes. Somehow they gave her a sense of purpose.

“What are you doing? Are you really going for a run? You are f-ing nuts sis.” Maddie drew out each word as she shuffled into the kitchen. Maddie had some serious bed head working, and her eye makeup from last night was making a repeat appearance. 

“I need coffee and a greasy breakfast, like now! I will exercise vicariously through you this time,” she said, then started rifling through the cabinets.

“How is that different then any other time?” Katrine said with a smile. 

“Ok, you work on your grease while I go for a quick run. Teddy is coming home in a few hours.”

“Oh yay! I hate when he isn’t here when I come over. I need to get my nephew snuggle fix. By the way, mom called. She made it sound like you haven’t spoken in a while,” Maddie said.

“I just spoke to her yesterday!” Katrine rolled her eyes. “She wants to come for a visit, but I just don’t think I’m up for that yet. I want to keep the unsolicited advice sessions long distance for a bit longer. As long as she is in Santa Fe, I can escape with a touch of a button.” 

“I hear ya.”

“Okay, I’m going to head out. Get the coffee goin’ sis! I will be back in a little bit”. 

Katrine grabbed her iPod and threw on a hat. She started the ritual scroll through her music library.

The Cure, nah. The Killers, maybe later. Radiohead, always. 

‘Weird Fishes’ was booming in her ears, a light breeze hitting her face. This was just what she needed. With her favorite tunes in her ear, clear blue sky above her, she felt one with the road.  It was the best time for true introspection. 

Now that the divorce is final…

No! You do not get to occupy my running diatribe today, David!
 

Today she was going to think about her upcoming interview. She was more than a little nervous at the prospect of joining the work force again. She had heard her share of horror stories about moms who had made the attempt to re-enter the corporate world. “I see here that you were a top ad exec when you last worked, buuuuut  you haven’t worked in over a decade. So you should probably pursue…” insert any position well beneath deserved pay grade and education level. Katrine hadn’t held a paying job since before her pregnancy, so she needed experience that packed a punch. 

If she landed the position to assist Mr. Abbot, she could consider her resume punched. Abbot was the “A” in AG Industries, one of the largest fortune 500 companies in the country. She didn’t know much about him, but what was there to know? 

She figured he was your typical wealthy, no nonsense, workaholic businessman. She had met enough of those old stodgy types at the countless fundraisers she had to attend with her ex. If she got the position, she hoped that he would entrust her with more responsibilities once she proved herself competent. The more diversified her duties where, the better.

Working for AG Industries would be a major plus when she was applying to grad schools as well. Going back for her MBA, now that would be interesting. What would it be like going back to work after all of these years? Would she be any good? Would she meet interesting people? Would she like her boss? Most importantly, did she have enough clothes? 

No never enough. Definitely need to go out and buy a business wardrobe to go along with high profile new job.

Katrine took a long warm shower after her run and sat down to have  breakfast with her sister. Maddie had eggs, bacon, and french toast on her plate. Katrine had egg whites and whole grain toast, no butter. 

Maddie’s looked way better. 

They were sitting at the kitchen table drinking coffee, when they heard the front door open.

“Mom, I’m home. Where are you?” 

Katrine jumped up and ran into the living room to see her handsome boy standing with his navy blue overnight bag in his hand. He was wearing his favorite red t-shirt and worn khaki shorts. One of his sneakers was untied and his hair was sticking up in the back. Hygiene was obviously a low priority this weekend. She would probably need some HAZMAT gear to put his underwear in the laundry bin. She launched herself at him and smothered him with kisses and a huge hug, the kind that are reserved just for your kids.

“Oh Teddy, I’ve missed you!” Katrine gushed. That was one of the hardest things about the divorce, not seeing Teddy everyday.

“I missed you too mom. And please remember, it’s Ted now. I am way too grown up for nicknames.” 

Katrine couldn’t help but smile. He was so adorable. She would suffer a thousand heartaches to have her son in her life, and that just about summed it up.

“So, did you enjoy your weekend at your dad’s?”

“Yah, it was a lot of fun. We caught a baseball game yesterday and saw a movie on Friday night.... Don’t you want to know if
she
was there?” 

“No, I do not.  As long as
she
is nice to you, that is all I care about. She
was
nice to you, right?”.

“Yes, she was fine... Mom, I won’t like her if don’t want me to.” He paused for a moment, “I’m on your side and I think what dad did was crappy. Who could be better than you? I just don’t get it.”

Oh my god, could he be any sweeter?
 

Her heart was breaking for him.

“Sweetie, you do what feels right. I want you to be happy and to feel comfortable at your dad’s. I just want to make sure
you
are okay. Don’t worry about me. I will be just fine.”

“Hey Mom, I kind of believed you that time,” he said and hugged her with all of his might. And that was pretty tight. He was just about to pass her in height. Teddy got his golden brown eyes and olive complexion from his mom and his blond hair from his dad. He was already a looker. Soon he would be a total heartbreaker. But she had a few more years until puberty hit, and she was in no hurry.

“Where is Aunt Maddie? I thought she was going to be here too”.

“Here I am Teddy Bear!” Maddie crooned as she came into the living room.

“So she can call you Teddy Bear, but I have to call you Ted? That so isn’t fair!” Katrine said with her best pout.

“Sorry Trine. I get special privileges for being his favorite aunt.” 

“You’re his only aunt.” 

“Technicalities dear sister, technicalities.” 

Katrine just shook her head as they made their way into the kitchen. Teddy got a glass of water and sat down at the table.  He filled his aunt in on his weekend.

Later that night Katrine and Teddy sat on the couch, after a nice dinner together. They watched a movie until they were both ready to turn in for the night. “So
Ted,
” Katrine emphasized the name, “what do you think about spending the summer with your grandparents?” She continued before he could protest, “I know what your thinking, but don’t worry about leaving me behind. I’m going to be very busy. I have an interview tomorrow and I am confident that I will get the job. It will be very time consuming, so I wouldn’t be around much anyway. By the time you get back to start school, I should be finished. It works out perfectly.” She paused and gave him a snuggle. 

“I will miss you every minute, but you need to enjoy your summer. You’ve had a hard time too, so you deserve it! I mean, when you think about it you are a pretty lucky kid.”

Teddy crinkled his brows. 

“I promise, I will be just fine. You are not supposed to worry about me. You are supposed to enjoy life. I have the rest covered. But I do appreciate that you worry about me. It just proves how wonderful and loving you are.” 

She tucked him into bed later that night and gave him one last hug and kiss. She was going to miss him so much! Her heart was already feeling heavy. Teddy had his final week of school and Katrine had her interview in the morning. She needed to get a good night’s sleep.