Melt Like Butter Read online

  Melt Like Butter

  Daisy May

  Melt Like Butter

  Published by Daisy May

  Copyright © 2019 Daisy May

  All Rights Reserved

  May not be copied or distributed without prior written permission.

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  ONE – TYLER

  A red-brick house sat at the end of a quiet street. Its windows were shuttered, its lawn unkempt, its porch blanketed in fallen leaves. There was a car in the driveway, though, and as I approached the door, I could hear the sound of a TV blaring inside.

  This was the last known address of my biological mother.

  I steeled myself and knocked on the door. I’d been waiting for this moment for the past twenty-three years. I was finally going to look into the eyes of the woman who’d birthed me.

  Finally going to get what I deserved from her.

  A moment went by, and the TV’s blare extinguished. Laney Jefferson wasn’t expecting me. She had to be wondering who would be knocking on her door at eight in the evening. This was going to be a big – and not necessarily pleasant – surprise.

  The door swung open, and I scanned the woman up and down. Grey hair, blue eyes. A sweatshirt over mom jeans – how ironic.

  She had more wrinkles than I’d expected. She was only supposed to be thirty-nine. Life must not have treated her right. I couldn’t say I was sorry.

  Funny that all this time, it’d felt like she was a million miles away. All these years I’d been thinking about her, I’d never guessed she’d be on the other side of Harrotsford. An easy twenty-minute drive to find the woman who brought me onto this planet.

  “Hi,” she said, visibly confused. “Are you delivering something?”

  “No.” Unless you count the news that I’m back in your life, Laney.

  “Charity? I donate online.”

  “Not that, either.”

  She could keep guessing all day, for all I cared. The truth would occur to her soon enough – she couldn’t have forgotten how she gave birth to me and discarded me like a used napkin. Some part of her must’ve been waiting for me all these years, just like I’d been waiting for her.

  “Are you lost?” she asked. “Do you need help? You’re welcome to use my phone.”

  “Sure, I’ll come in.”

  She blinked, then nodded. I looked around the house I should’ve grown up in as she led me inside. The place was small, but comfortable. The walls could use a fresh coat of paint, and the furniture needed to be dusted. Photos on the walls showed Laney with a man and two kids at various stages in their lives. It seemed that I had siblings.

  “Here’s the phone,” she said in the living room. “Use it for as long as you need. I’ll be over here.”

  “The thing is…” I settled onto a well-loved armchair. “I’m not actually here for the phone.”

  Her eyes flickered with worry. Who was this stranger she’d so trustingly let into her home? Luckily, I wasn’t going to hurt her – except maybe emotionally.

  “My name is Tyler Bernhardt,” I said, reaching toward her. “Does that sound familiar to you?”

  Tentatively, she shook my hand. She was still standing, glancing back toward the front door every few seconds as if she wanted to run for it. “I don’t believe so. Look, I don’t have much money. No valuables. I don’t know why you chose me.”

  “I’m not here to rob you,” I said, half-amused and half-offended. “I came here to find my mother.”

  She squinted at me, processing this information. “Your…?”

  “My mother,” I said. “You.”

  Slowly, she eased herself onto the chair next to mine. Her joints seemed to be creaky – I’d have to remember that for when I was older. It could be genetic.

  She turned the chair to face me and put her arms on the armrests with the serious look of a psychologist. “What makes you think I’m your mother, Tyler?”

  “The fact that you gave birth to me.”

  She raised an eyebrow. “See, there’s the problem. See those two on the wall?” She pointed at school pictures of a girl and a boy in their mid-teens. “I gave birth to them, and no one else. I think I would remember otherwise.”

  For the first time since I’d gotten here, I felt my certainty waver. “You’re not Laney Jefferson?”

  “No, I’m Celeste Knutford. Nice to meet you.” She made no move to shake my hand again.

  “But…” My head spun. This was the address I’d found online. Everything had lined up with my biological mother’s information. There’d been no doubt she lived here.

  “Laney was the last tenant here,” Celeste said. “I met her briefly as I was moving in. Nice lady – although…” She didn’t finish her sentence.

  “Where can I find her?” I asked, leaping up from my chair. “Do you have any contact information?”

  “No. Maybe my landlord would have it. I don’t know, though. She seemed…”

  I didn’t care where she was going with that. “How can I get in touch with your landlord?”

  “I’ll write down his number.” She got up, then gave me a wry glance. “You’re sure you’re not going to rob me?”

  “A hundred percent.”

  She went off to another room, and I splayed back on the couch, my heart beating dully between my ribs. I’d built this moment up to such massive proportions, and now I was coming back down to earth.

  It’d been silly of me to not consider that Laney might’ve moved. Of course she wouldn’t stay in the same place forever. This wasn’t the end of my search. It was only a setback.

  “Here you go.” Celeste came back into the room and handed me a scrap of paper. “That’s my landlord. Call him anytime. He’s great about responding.”

  “Could I call him now?”

  “Sure.” She half-smiled. “So you do need to use my phone after all.”

  “No, no. I have my own.” I patted my pocket. “Thank you, though. I appreciate it.”

  Her eyebrows rose. “No problem. Good luck, Tyler.” She walked me to the front entrance. “Drop by again sometime, if you like. I’m interested in how things go with your search – and forgive me if I’m wrong, but you seem like you could use someone to talk to.”

  I chuckled. I could use a mansion, a Porsche, and a sailboat, too. I’d gone twenty-three years without any of those luxuries.

  “That’s nice of you,” I said. “Goodbye, Celeste.”

  TWO – ANDY

  “This man came into your house and claimed you were his mother?” I asked incredulously. “Oh, no. Oh, hell no.”

  “He wasn’t trying to intimidate me or anything.” Mom’s voice was calm and confident over the phone. “He was a lost little boy looking for his mom.”

  “I don’t like this at all.” With my free hand, I shook out the pants I was going to wear to work. “This sounds like some kind of scam. Are you sure he didn’t ask you for money?”

  “He didn’t ask me for anything,” Mom said. “He was looking for someone else. I gave him as much information as I could, and then he left. I was the one who suggested keeping in touch, and from the looks of it, he wasn’t keen on it.”

  I put her on speakerphone and pulled on the pants. “I bet you anything he’ll be back. Things like this don’t just happen, Mom. What are the chances that someone looking for his biological mother showed up at your door? This person probably sought you out specifically. Figured out you were a lonely older woman living alone, and thought you’d be an easy target. Now you’re walking straight into his trap.”

  “And he just happened to have the name of the previous tenant?” Mom asked. “If he was a scam artist, wouldn’t he have come up with
a better story?” She scoffed. “I invited him into my home. Even left him alone in the living room. He had plenty of time to steal from me if money was what he wanted – and anyway, I don’t have any for him to take.”

  I buttoned down a crisp white shirt. “I don’t trust this person. Why don’t I come over after work? We can talk about it some more.”

  “I have plans tonight. And you don’t need to be concerned. If this man contacts me again, which I don’t think he will, I’m not going to give him anything other than a listening ear. I wasn’t born yesterday, regardless of what you seem to think.”

  “I’d just be more comfortable… I’ll come over after your plans. We can invite Jeremy.” My brother. “We’ll have dessert. Make it a nice night.”

  “Surely your little intervention can wait until Friday,” Mom said dryly. “I think I can manage to stop myself from giving away my retirement savings until then.”

  I sighed. “All right. Friday.”

  The three of us had dinner every Friday night, and I tried to touch base with Mom every morning as well. We’d all gotten closer a few years ago, after my dad passed away. Sometimes the frequent contact felt like a lot, but other times, things like this happened. I wanted to know about shady strangers knocking on Mom’s door sooner rather than later.

  “I’ll talk to you tomorrow, then,” she said. “Work hard today.”

  “Of course. And you, too.”

  “Of course. Like I do every day.”

  We said goodbye this way every day, and like always, there was a small smile on my face as we hung up.

  *

  Work kept me busy enough to not worry too much about Mom. I’d been assigned to go through a telecom company’s financial records, and the project was going to take every moment of my time for weeks. I needed to put my all into the work. I’d been with my firm for almost four years, and I was hoping to get promoted to senior accountant soon.

  Still, Mom was on my mind as soon as I left the office. I gave Jeremy a call to fill him in, talking to him hands-free as I drove home. He wasn’t too concerned, even going as far as to say I was being paranoid. I got him to at least agree we should monitor the situation.

  After only a few minutes, he said he had to go.

  “What’s going on?” I asked. “Hot date tonight?”

  “Yes,” he said, although I’d been asking out of sarcasm.

  “Really? Tuesday night dates are a thing now?”

  “Sure. I get as horny on Tuesdays as I do any other night.”

  “TMI, little bro.”

  He guffawed. “For real, any night is a date night if you’re still making up your mind about the chick,” he said. “Friday and Saturday nights are prime time slots. I save those for the nines and tens.”

  I rolled my eyes as I merged off the freeway. “People are more than numbers, Jer.”

  “How would you know? How long’s it been since you went on a date, again?”

  Too long. “Leave me alone. I’d rather be single than a player like you.”

  “And you’re going to stay that way, with that attitude. You could at least go out to a gay bar or something. You’re not that bad-looking. There must be some guys who are into your vibe.”

  How had this phone call turned into him lecturing me about my love life – again? “I’ll start dating again when I’m good and ready,” I said. “When it’s the right time, a man will come into my life.” I was only twenty-six. There was no big rush.

  “Good luck with that,” Jeremy said.

  I flicked on the turn signal. I was in front of my apartment complex. “Either way, I’ll get in a relationship before you do.”

  “You assume that’s my goal.”

  I rolled my eyes. “I’m about to park underground. Talk to you later.”

  “Bye, Andy. And hey, if you spent a little more time worrying about your own life, maybe you’d be able to relax about Mom’s.”

  The phone signal went out, cutting off all the choice words I had for him.

  I parked the car, shaking my head. He’d get a piece of my mind on Friday.

  THREE – TYLER

  The landlord wasn’t picking up his phone. I’d called about twenty times over the past few days, and I could rattle his voicemail greeting off by heart. Hey, this is Lucas Hedson. I’m not available to take your call at the moment, but leave me a message and I’ll get back to you as soon as possible.

  I’d left several messages informing him I needed – urgently – to speak to him, and he had yet to get back to me. Either he was ignoring my calls, or the old lady in my mother’s house had given me the wrong information.

  Either way, if that lead wasn’t working out for me, I had no choice but to try the last one again. My funds were only going to go so far. I’d chosen the cheapest motel I could find, but it was still fifty-nine dollars a night. I needed to find Laney Jefferson, and fast.

  So it came to pass that on Friday night, I pulled up a second time in the driveway I’d thought I’d never see again. It was odd. Even knowing my mother wasn’t here, I still had a sense of “what if” in this place. She had lived here, and if things had been different, I would’ve been here with her.

  I imagined myself as a child, running through the uncut grass, throwing handfuls into the air as I yelled for Laney to watch me. Or as a teen, I would’ve sat on this porch, sipping contraband vodka and sullenly texting my friends.

  Pushing the mental images away, I knocked on the door.

  Celeste looked unsurprised to see me. In fact, she beamed as he recognized me. “Tyler, I hoped you might come back,” she said. “I was just having dinner with my kids. Would you like to join us?”

  I gave her a hard stare. Why was she being so nice to me? She didn’t know me. I had no connection to her.

  A “no” was on the tip of my tongue, but then my stomach grumbled. “Fine,” I said, thinking of the dwindling stack of cash in my backpack at the motel. “If you insist.”

  The house smelled like kung pao chicken. “We’re having take-out,” Celeste explained as we headed into the kitchen. “Nothing fancy, I’m afraid, but there’s plenty of it.”

  Two guys around my age were already at the table, and they gaped at me as I pulled out a chair. The first guy wore a hoodie, his hair buzzed on one side. I dismissed him as a typical bro – boring and lacking intelligence.

  The second guy, though? He would’ve been sexy if his nose hadn’t been so far in the air. It was partly his expression, but the snobbiness seemed to be built right into his features. He wore a black blazer and gray slacks, his short hair neatly gelled back. He looked awfully formal for a casual dinner with his family.

  “Tyler, this is Andy and Jeremy,” Celeste said. “Guys, this is Tyler.”

  “Nice to meet you.” I forced a smile.

  Andy gave me a look of absolute disdain. “I told you, Mom.”

  He didn’t elaborate on what exactly he’d told Celeste.

  “It’s fine,” Celeste said, setting out a plate and cutlery for me. “Please, Tyler, help yourself.” She shot another glance at her son. “Tyler needs someone to talk to, and I’m not one to turn away those in need.”

  Andy harrumphed and rearranged himself in his seat. The expression on his face told me he was saving his comments for later.

  Well, that was his own business. There was free food here, and I intended to eat. I heaped up my plate with fried rice, egg rolls, and spicy chicken until all three of them were staring at me. Even then, I added another spoonful of chow mein. Celeste had told me to help myself, after all.

  “I’m not actually here for someone to talk to,” I said, stabbing as much food as I could with the fork. “I haven’t been able to get through to your landlord. I was wondering if you had another way to reach him.” I crammed the food into my mouth, and the sweet and sour flavors were so overpowering that I almost forget to listen to Celeste’s answer.

  “I haven’t spoken to him in a while, now that I think about it,” she said.
“He did mention something… oh, he’s on vacation! That was it.”

  I choked on my food and coughed. “Do you know when he’ll be back?”

  “Why exactly do you need to get in touch with Lucas, again?” Andy stared at me suspiciously.

  I gave him a hard look back. “I’m trying to find my biological mother. She used to live here, in this house.” If that didn’t shut him up, I didn’t know what would.

  “Mom’s been here for over a year,” he said combatively. “Why would you come here looking for your mother?”

  My hackles went up. “I don’t know if you’ve ever had to look for a biological parent,” I said, my voice dripping with sarcasm. “They don’t tend to leave you their cell phone number so you can call them up. Finding them can take years, or even a lifetime.”

  “Then maybe your mother doesn’t want to be found.” He picked up an egg roll with long, nimble fingers.

  I couldn’t stand this guy already. “It doesn’t really matter if she does or doesn’t. I’m going to find her.”

  “Why did you pick now to look for your mom?” Jeremy asked, his cheery curiosity breaking some of the tension. “Have you been looking for her all this time, or is this a recent undertaking?”

  I took another bite. Jeremy had become my favorite member of this family for the moment, but I was still going to shovel this food down until I could get away from all of them. “I’ve been looking on and off since I found out I was adopted. Something came up, so I started looking again, and I found this address, which was more information than I ever had before. If all goes well, your landlord will be able to point me toward where she is now.”

  “What came up?” Andy asked.

  At the same time, Celeste said, “Do you not get along with your adoptive family?”

  I took a sip of water. Clearly nosiness ran in this family. Did these people not know how to mind their own business? “I’d rather not talk about it,” I said.

  “Of course,” Celeste said. “I’m sure it can be painful.”