tore apart the lying witnesses, attacked the defense’s case with ferocity, nailed my opening and closing arguments, and won the case. It was a high-profile case.
“I headed back to my office and was stopped three times by women who wanted to know where I’d bought my clothes and the handbag I’d made out of leather and lace. I had an epiphany and I quit my job fifteen minutes later. I left with a check and decided that part of my life was over.”
“That was it?”
“That was it. It took a day in court with pink lace and satin trim.”
“That’s brave. I admire you. You were taking a new direction, didn’t know where it would lead, but it had to be better than what you were living with.”
“Exactly.” Man, he was so smart. “Sometimes ya gotta walk ...”
“And the walk may have no clear path ...”
“But you have to get on it anyhow.” We understood each other.
“Then what happened?”
Oh, those green eyes. I could feel the lust coming at me again, darn it.
I cleared my throat. “On my way out of the law firm, Grayson came tearing after me. He yelled, ‘What the hell did you do? What happened? Have you lost your friggin’ mind, June? Do you expect me to support you? Do you expect to sit around and eat chocolate all day while you sew your white-trash Halloween outfits? I’m not giving you a dime of my money, now get back in there and tell them you made a mistake, because you have, June, you have!’ ”
“ ‘No,’ I said to him. ‘I have not made a mistake.’
“ ‘You quit your job!’ He’s screaming at me now. ‘Why? What are you thinking? Are you thinking? And why are you dressed in pink ? You didn’t wear that to court, did you? You’re an attorney, not a pink cake!’
“And I said, ‘I’m quitting a lot of things. The job was first, you’re second, and now I’m quitting this city.’ And I did.”
Reece abruptly stood up, his face flushed, and started pacing the deck.
“What’s wrong?” I asked, alarmed.
He couldn’t even speak for a minute. “I believe,” he bit out, still stalking around, “that even though you don’t hate your soon-to-be-ex-husband, I do. I can’t believe he said that to you.”
I about cried right there, his anger was so touching. Reece ranted for a few minutes, protective, furious, and when he settled down, we talked for another forty-five minutes. I was as honest as I could be. I told him how afterward I went to visit my parents for a week.
“I walked through their fields and down to the river. I took off my shoes. I went barefoot. I rode their horses and petted their cats and dogs with strange names like Christmas Wreath and Mr. Scoot and Admiral Crow.
“I stared out their windows and watched sunrises and sunsets on their porch, something I hadn’t paid attention to in years. I wouldn’t have even sworn that we still had sunrises and sunsets anymore. I watched leaves flutter through the fields. I watched flowers unfold. I studied a blue heron and blue jays. I listened to the river bubble and sat in absolute silence. At first the silence was so noisy I couldn’t concentrate, but then I breathed the silence in, so I could figure my way out of the disaster of my own making.
“My parents asked me to come and work for the family company, but I declined, with a hug, because I wanted to sew wedding dresses and build my own company. They understood, and we spent hours working together, planning my business, discussing designs, drawing, coloring, penciling ... my hands shaking, shock slowly leaving my body to be replaced by this light of hope I hadn’t felt in years.”
The kite flyers were out and I envied them their playtime. “I came to the beach and rented my house because I am passionate about the Oregon coast. I can think here, be here. Most days I’ll put my rocking chair right next to my French doors, cover myself with my crazy quilt, and sew. I’m as happy as I’ve ever been when I do that.”
“What else makes you
“I headed back to my office and was stopped three times by women who wanted to know where I’d bought my clothes and the handbag I’d made out of leather and lace. I had an epiphany and I quit my job fifteen minutes later. I left with a check and decided that part of my life was over.”
“That was it?”
“That was it. It took a day in court with pink lace and satin trim.”
“That’s brave. I admire you. You were taking a new direction, didn’t know where it would lead, but it had to be better than what you were living with.”
“Exactly.” Man, he was so smart. “Sometimes ya gotta walk ...”
“And the walk may have no clear path ...”
“But you have to get on it anyhow.” We understood each other.
“Then what happened?”
Oh, those green eyes. I could feel the lust coming at me again, darn it.
I cleared my throat. “On my way out of the law firm, Grayson came tearing after me. He yelled, ‘What the hell did you do? What happened? Have you lost your friggin’ mind, June? Do you expect me to support you? Do you expect to sit around and eat chocolate all day while you sew your white-trash Halloween outfits? I’m not giving you a dime of my money, now get back in there and tell them you made a mistake, because you have, June, you have!’ ”
“ ‘No,’ I said to him. ‘I have not made a mistake.’
“ ‘You quit your job!’ He’s screaming at me now. ‘Why? What are you thinking? Are you thinking? And why are you dressed in pink ? You didn’t wear that to court, did you? You’re an attorney, not a pink cake!’
“And I said, ‘I’m quitting a lot of things. The job was first, you’re second, and now I’m quitting this city.’ And I did.”
Reece abruptly stood up, his face flushed, and started pacing the deck.
“What’s wrong?” I asked, alarmed.
He couldn’t even speak for a minute. “I believe,” he bit out, still stalking around, “that even though you don’t hate your soon-to-be-ex-husband, I do. I can’t believe he said that to you.”
I about cried right there, his anger was so touching. Reece ranted for a few minutes, protective, furious, and when he settled down, we talked for another forty-five minutes. I was as honest as I could be. I told him how afterward I went to visit my parents for a week.
“I walked through their fields and down to the river. I took off my shoes. I went barefoot. I rode their horses and petted their cats and dogs with strange names like Christmas Wreath and Mr. Scoot and Admiral Crow.
“I stared out their windows and watched sunrises and sunsets on their porch, something I hadn’t paid attention to in years. I wouldn’t have even sworn that we still had sunrises and sunsets anymore. I watched leaves flutter through the fields. I watched flowers unfold. I studied a blue heron and blue jays. I listened to the river bubble and sat in absolute silence. At first the silence was so noisy I couldn’t concentrate, but then I breathed the silence in, so I could figure my way out of the disaster of my own making.
“My parents asked me to come and work for the family company, but I declined, with a hug, because I wanted to sew wedding dresses and build my own company. They understood, and we spent hours working together, planning my business, discussing designs, drawing, coloring, penciling ... my hands shaking, shock slowly leaving my body to be replaced by this light of hope I hadn’t felt in years.”
The kite flyers were out and I envied them their playtime. “I came to the beach and rented my house because I am passionate about the Oregon coast. I can think here, be here. Most days I’ll put my rocking chair right next to my French doors, cover myself with my crazy quilt, and sew. I’m as happy as I’ve ever been when I do that.”
“What else makes you
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