Running Wilde (The Winnie Wilde Series Book 1)

RUNNING WILDE

A Winnie Wilde Novella

Book One

Meg Chambers

CHAPTER ONE

The heavy crystal glass shattered, raining shards down onto the shrubbery. They glimmered in the moonlight like sequins sewn into the bushes. Winnie stared at them, pleased with her aim and her action. It was her declaration of independence; a warning shot signaling change. Footsteps, fast and urgent, headed her way but she didn’t move an inch from her poolside lounge chair.

“What happened?” asked her daughter when she came to a skidding stop beside the chair.

“My drink slipped,” Winnie answered calmly, staring at the dark stain on the light colored side of the garage where the glass of scotch had found its mark. An outside light spotlighted the mark, enhancing it, applauding the accuracy.

Tiffany Crenshaw moved so that she was in her mother’s line of vision and placed her hands on her slim hips. “Have you lost your mind, Mom?” The question wasn’t sarcastic, but said with great concern.

“On the contrary, sweetie,” Winnie said, smiling up into her daughter’s lovely young face. “For the first time in almost thirty years, I think I’ve found it.”

“What’s going on?” asked Chet Crenshaw, Winnie’s son. He’d arrived poolside with his three-year-old daughter, Emily, in his arms. With him was Mark Sullivan, Tiffany’s fiancé.

“Mom threw her drink at the garage,” Tiffany reported.

“You always were a tattletale, Tiff,” Winnie said to her daughter, only half-jesting.

“No she didn’t,” Chet said to his sister in disbelief as if their mother wasn’t there.

“Oh yes, I did,” Winnie said, clearing up any confusion. She turned her head up and gave each of her children a wide smile and a wink. “Stick around, kids, there’s more to come.”

“Mom, are you drunk?” Tiffany asked, her voice hard with disapproval.

Chet put Emily down on the ground. “Go inside and help Mommy,” he told her.

Instead, the child made a beeline for Winnie and started climbing into her lap. “I want Gramma.”

Winnie sat up and hugged Emily to her tightly. She buried her face in the child’s fine hair and took a deep breath. It smelled like baby shampoo. She could never hug Emily without smelling her hair. She’d done the same to her own children when they were little. “Go inside, Emily, like your daddy told you,” Winnie told the child after releasing her. “It’s chilly out here. I’ll be along soon to play.” She kissed Emily on her forehead and deposited her back on the ground.

Once Emily had disappeared into the house, Winnie settled back comfortably on the lounge and pulled her navy blue cardigan tightly around her. “Mark, be a dear and get me another drink.”

“Sure, Eleanor,” Mark said, eager to please his future mother-in-law. “What were you drinking?”

“Scotch on the rocks,” she told him, “and don’t skimp on the booze. It is my birthday, after all. And please don’t call me Eleanor any longer. My name is Winnie, short for Winifred.”

“Winnie?” Tiffany asked in another wave of surprise. “But you hate your first name.”

“No, dear, your father hated my first name, especially the nickname of Winnie. He said it made me sound like a horse. He’s the one who insisted I use my middle name of Eleanor. He said Edward and Eleanor sounded better together.” With a wave of her hand and a smile, she sent Mark off for the drink.

Tiffany called after Mark, “Bring it in a plastic cup.”

“Now that your father and I are finally divorced,” Winnie said after shooting her daughter a frown, “I’ve taken back my maiden name. I am Winifred Eleanor Wilde again. Winnie or Win for short, like I was before your father came into my life.”

Tiffany and her brother exchanged glances, then Tiffany said, “You did it officially, Mom, or you’re thinking about it?”

“It’s a done deal,” Winnie confirmed happily. “It was my fiftieth birthday present to myself. It became official three weeks ago, but I wanted to wait until my birthday to tell you.”

Chet shrugged and sat down in a patio chair next to his mother. “Lots of women take back their maiden names after a divorce, and I kind of like
Winnie
. It sounds young and snappy.” He grinned at his mother. “But we can still call you Mom, right?”

Winnie reached over and patted her son’s knee. “Of course. That’s one name I’ll never tire of, that and Gramma.”

After taking a deep breath, Winnie continued with her announcements, “There’s more.” She indicated for Tiffany to take another patio chair, which she did. “I’m selling the house,” Winnie told them, “so if you kids want anything from it, get it while you can. It goes on the market in a few weeks, as soon as I get a few things fixed and painted.”

“The house?” Tiffany asked, in shock again. “But we grew up here.”

“Yes,” Winnie said in a softer voice, seeing her daughter was upset by the news, “but you’ve moved away, as you should, and it’s too big for just me.”

“Where are you going to go, Mom?” Chet asked. “Are you thinking of buying a condo by the beach, or something like that?”

Winnie shook her head and accepted the drink Mark delivered to her. It was in a plastic cup. She held it up to him and scowled. “Really, Mark? Like I’m five instead of fifty?” Mark looked sheepish and quickly moved to Tiffany’s side.

Winnie took a drink, savoring the smoky sharpness of the alcohol. “Maybe later I’ll find another place, but I’ve decided to travel for a while,” she told them after swallowing. “I don’t know for how long, but I’ve always wanted to see the country.”

“Country as in cows and chickens and Garth Brooks?” Chet asked with a short laugh.

“No,” Winnie explained. “Country as in this country – the United States. I’ve always wanted to see more of it, but except for going to Hawaii once in a while, your father wasn’t interested.”

“But you and Dad travelled a lot,” Tiffany protested.

“Yes, but only to Hawaii and Europe,” Winnie clarified. “I want to see this country. I’m packing the car and hitting the road. Think of it as part of my bucket list.”

“Bucket list?” Tiffany looked frightened now. Mark put a hand on her shoulder in comfort. “Are you sick, Mom?” Tiffany asked. “Is that what this is all about?”

Winnie swung her legs over the side of the lounge and sat up. “No, not at all,” she said with a laugh. “In fact, I just had a complete physical and the doctor said I’m not only healthy but have the body of a much younger woman.” She paused and took another sip of her drink. “I just want to travel for a bit and think about my future. Financially I’m secured enough, especially if I sell the house. I would like to find some sort of job or career eventually, although right now I don’t know what.”

“Don’t you like working in Kathy’s office?” Chet asked.

Kathy was Winnie’s best friend and an attorney. In the two years since Winnie’s marriage collapsed, Kathy had hired Winnie whenever she needed extra help at her firm or to fill in while people were on vacation. It wasn’t because Winnie needed the money, but to get her out of the house and help fight her depression over the divorce. Even without legal support experience, Winnie had proven to be a quick learner and very good at whatever tasks she was given. “I have enjoyed that,” Winnie told them, “but it’s only temporary and sporadic. But it showed me how much I enjoy working with other people. I’ve spent the last twenty-eight years being Mrs. Edward Crenshaw. Thirty if you count the years your father and I dated before getting married. I have a useless degree in English Literature and have never worked a day in my life except for some part-time waitressing jobs in college and the part-time work with Kathy. It’s time I found my niche. I’ve been taking a few classes here and there over the past couple of years.”

“I didn’t know that, Mom,” said Chet with interest. “Why didn’t you tell us?”

Winnie shrugged. “It didn’t seem important and there was so much drama with the breakup between your father and me. At first the classes were something to pass the time. Now I take them with more purpose.”

“What kind of classes?” Tiffany asked.

“Stuff like yoga and writing and even some classes on running a small business. I like the writing the best. I recently finished a fiction class at UCLA with an instructor named Ann Marie Hattersley, a friend of Kathy’s. Ann Marie said I have a lot of potential and has been quite encouraging. Same with the yoga instructor. In fact, she’s invited me to learn more about becoming an instructor myself.”

“You are in great shape, Mom,” Tiffany told her mother with admiration. “I could see you teaching yoga more than writing. I mean, what would you write about?”

Winnie shrugged. “Not sure yet, but I do enjoy it. I’ve wanted to be a writer ever since grade school, but dropped the idea after meeting your father.” She paused and smiled to herself. “Maybe I should do both.”

“Was being married to Dad and being a homemaker all that bad?” asked Chet. He cast an eye toward the kitchen window where he could see his own wife, Amanda, chatting happily to Emily while finishing cleaning up after his mother’s birthday dinner.

“No, honey,” Winnie quickly assured him. She followed Chet’s gaze. “Being your mother and raising you and Tiffany was the best thing I’ve ever done and will ever do.” She leaned forward and said in a low voice, but not so low that Tiffany and Mark couldn’t hear, “But don’t you dare take Amanda for granted. And remember that she’s an individual, not just an extension of you and Emily.” She glanced up at Mark and Tiffany. “And that’s goes for the two of you. Marriage doesn’t mean you stop being yourself. I did and now it’s time to find Winnie Wilde again.”

“I still don’t understand why you have to leave to do that,” Tiffany whined. “Why not go to a spa, or get a new wardrobe? You could even cut your hair and color it. You’d look great if you went back to your natural color.”

“This is my natural color now.” Winnie ran a hand through her silver locks. When her husband left her for a younger woman, she’d stopped coloring her hair and had cut it short. The deed had been done out of depression and anger, but as the dye grew out, it was replaced by a shiny silver instead of the yellow tinged gray she had expected. She’d fallen in love with her new look and had let her thick curly hair grow until it was now just above her shoulders. “I wouldn’t dream of going back to coloring my hair, Tiff,” Winnie declared with confidence. “I love it like this.”

“But Mom,” Tiffany began. She spoke to her mother as if reasoning with a child, which made Winnie wince like she’d bitten into something sour. “If you color your hair, you’ll look younger. You’re only fifty, far too young for all that gray. And you have such a nice figure. I’ll bet if you dye your hair and update your wardrobe, you’ll have handsome, successful men lining up to date you.”

“The wardrobe I agree with,” Winnie told her daughter. “I’ve already done some shopping for my trip.” She took another drink. “But I’m not looking to replace your father. I want to be on my own for a while.”

“But you’ve been on your own for two years, Mom,” Chet pointed out.

Winnie shook her head in disagreement. “No, I haven’t. I’ve been in a holding pattern. Not quite married, not quite divorced. Now that everything is settled, it’s time for me to head in a new direction.” She glanced over at Chet. He looked so much like his father with his sandy hair and boyish good looks, but there was also kindness in his dark eyes, something Edward never had.

“By the way,” Winnie said, “while I’m gone, Kathy will be handling my business affairs, including the sale of the house if it doesn’t sell before I leave.”

“Did I just hear my name?” a husky woman’s voice called out. They turned to see Kathleen Lovelace coming out of the house toward them wearing a dark blue pantsuit and white silk blouse. She was a tall woman, solid as an oak, with erect posture and shoulder length dark red hair.

Winnie put her drink down on a small table by the lounge and stood up to greet her friend. “I’m so glad you made it, Kathy.”

They hugged and Kathy pecked Winnie on the cheek. “Happy birthday, pal!” She handed Winnie a gift wrapped in silver paper. “Open this when you’re alone,” she whispered to Winnie.

Kathy looked to the others and greeted them with a wide smile. “I also brought the cake, as promised.”

“Did you put this stupid idea into Mom’s head?” Tiffany asked, getting to her feet and crossing her arms. “It sounds like one of your girl-power plans. Dad always said you were a bad influence on Mom.”

“Tiffany!” Winnie snapped at her daughter. “Be nice. Kathy is not only my best friend, she’s my guest tonight. And if anyone was a bad influence on me, it was your father. He stripped me of my identity, and like a meek little mouse, I let him. That shit ends now, right this minute.”

“Mom!” Tiffany gasped. “You never swear. What’s gotten into you?”

“Independence, Tiff,” Winnie answered. “I should have been swearing for the past thirty years, but like my real name, your father wouldn’t allow it, except from himself.”

“I guess it’s safe to say you’ve told them your plans?” Kathy asked.

Winnie calmed down. “Yes, I’ve told them.”

“It’s a dumb idea, Mom,” Tiffany insisted. “You’re not going anywhere.”

At that moment, Winnie saw Edward plain as day in her daughter. Like her brother, she had her father’s coloring, but she’d also inherited his small, brown disapproving eyes, along with his haughty nature and sense of entitlement. Chet was more easygoing, like her. He could also do a great imitation of his father, but it didn’t come as naturally to him as it did to his sister.