Feels Like Family(2)
She had professional success, she had money in the bank—quite a lot of it, in fact—and she had a lovely home in Serenity she rarely had time to enjoy. She had good friends, but the family she’d once envisioned for herself had never materialized. Instead she played doting surrogate aunt to Maddie’s children—Tyler, Kyle, Katie and Jessica Lynn—and to Dana Sue’s daughter, Annie.
It was her own fault, she knew. She’d always been too driven, too dedicated to the clients depending on her to take the time for the kind of serious dating that might actually lead to a relationship and marriage. And as the divorces had piled up in her caseload, she’d grown less and less enchanted with the idea of risking her own heart, especially on something that came with no guarantees.
When she reached her office, a small cottage on a side street near downtown Serenity, her secretary handed her a thick stack of message slips and nodded toward her office.
Barb Dixon was almost sixty and unapologetically gray-haired, and she’d come to work for Helen the day she’d opened the office. A widow who’d raised three sons on her own and gotten all of them through college, Barb was endlessly patient and compassionate with the clients and fiercely loyal to Helen. She also felt it was her right and duty to take Helen to task from time to time, which made her one of the few people on earth who dared.
“Your two o’clock’s been waiting in your office for an hour,” she chided. “Your three o’clock will be here any second.”
Helen glanced over Barb’s shoulder at the calendar the woman maintained with careful detail, instinctively knowing when to allow extra time for a client and when to keep the appointment to a fifteen-minute session that wouldn’t try Helen’s patience.
“Karen Ames?” Helen questioned. “She works for Dana Sue at Sullivan’s. What’s she doing here?”
“She didn’t tell me, just said it was urgent she speak with you. You had a cancellation for this afternoon, so I called her yesterday and confirmed her for that slot. If you can keep it short, maybe you can catch up a little.”
“Okay, then, let me get started. Apologize to Mrs. Hendricks when she gets here. Give her a cup of tea and some of those cookies from Sullivan’s. She’ll say she’s on a diet, but I know better. I caught her diving into a strawberry sundae at Wharton’s the other day.”
Barb nodded. “Done.”
Helen stepped into her office, with its antique furniture and pale peach walls. Karen was seated on the edge of a guest chair, nervously biting her nails. Her blond hair pulled back into a ponytail that emphasized her fragile cheekbones and large blue eyes. She didn’t look much older than a teenager, though she was, in fact, in her late twenties with two very young children at home.
“I’m so sorry I kept you waiting, Karen,” Helen said. “My court case didn’t start on time and then it took longer than I anticipated to agree on a new hearing date.”
“It’s okay,” Karen said. “I appreciate you seeing me at all.”
“What can I do for you?”
“I think Dana Sue’s going to fire me,” Karen blurted, her expression tearful. “I don’t know what to do, Ms. Decatur. I have two kids. My ex-husband hasn’t paid child support in a year. If I lose this job, we could wind up on the streets. The landlord’s already threatening to evict us.”
Helen’s heart went out to the pale, obviously frazzled young woman seated across from her. There was little question that Karen was at the end of her rope.
“You know Dana Sue and I are friends, as well as partners in The Corner Spa,” Helen said. “Why did you come to me? I can’t represent you, but I’d be happy to recommend someone who could.”
“No, please,” Karen protested. “I guess I was just hoping you could give me some advice because the two of you are friends. I know I’ve bailed out on her way too often lately, but it’s only because of the kids. It’s been one thing after another with them—measles and then their babysitter quitting. I’m a mom first. I have to be. I’m all they have.”
“Of course they’re your first priority,” Helen said, even though to her increasing regret she’d never experienced the need to juggle kids and a career.
“The thought of being homeless with two kids scares me to death.”
“We’re not going to let that happen,” Helen said decisively. “Have you sat down with Dana Sue and explained about your ex and the threats of eviction?”
Karen shook her head. “I’m too embarrassed. I think it’s unprofessional to bring my financial problems into the workplace, so I haven’t talked to her or Erik about this. When I call to say I can’t come in, I tell them the truth, but hearing about one problem after another involving the kids has to be getting old by now. I made a commitment to be there, and Dana Sue has every right to expect me to honor that commitment.”