The Sound of Serendipity

by Cynthia A. Rodriguez

“This isn’t exactly me, Holly.”

  He shakes his head.

  “It is. Just with a little glitter and…stuff.”

  “Did I hear you hitting on the makeup artist earlier?” I ask as I grab my faux fur coat.

  “No comment,” he says, but I know what I heard. He helps me into my coat without another word.

  I grab my mask and we head down to the limousine waiting for us. Tonight I know what it feels like to be someone people want to look at. From the lobby to the limo, I can feel eyes on us, and the attention makes me want to duck my head but I don’t. I stand up tall with my arm in Hollis’. He looks amazing in his tux and his hair combed over to the side. Once we’re in the vehicle, I glance down at the mask. Its champagne color matches my gown perfectly, and I love the attention to detail. The center is the butterfly’s body and the rest, its wings. I glance up at Holly, who’s donned his mask. It isn’t fancy, just a white one that reminds me of The Phantom of the Opera. I start to hum “Think of Me,” to which Hollis joins in, singing horribly. By the time we’re through, the driver is peeking back at us from the rearview mirror through the open partition.

  “Sorry,” I say through my laughter.

  “I’m not,” Hollis shouts over to him and I laugh again.

  We’re almost at Kingsley when I think about how much and how little Holly and I have in common.

  “You must be used to this,” I tell him and he shrugs.

  “As used to it as you are, I guess. Probably more than you, actually.” He doesn’t act like it, but Hollis is from an old and extremely wealthy family. His father managed to invest the family’s money wisely and tripled their worth. The Winthrop name is tied to more things than I even know these days, and being a Winthrop affords Hollis a certain lifestyle. As long as Hollis maintains a full-time job and stays out of trouble, his family is happy to keep him happy.

  The limo stops and I reach for the door handle but he stops me.

  “Let me escort you in, at least.” His voice is soft and serious.

  “Okay,” I tell him and he gets out first then holds the door for me. There is, of course, a red carpet, and I’m happy to lean on Hollis as the lights flash. They call me by name, and I remember that I’m someone to a few of these people. As far as I know, the media thinks of me as the next in line, the quiet stern woman who will take over after the old man croaks.

  Looking around, I wonder if Maddox is already here. Did he bring someone with him? He typically goes to events stag so why would that change? Not to mention, we’re together now. I glance at Holly’s masked face and hope that it doesn’t bother Maddox, my walking in with him.

  At the entrance, and with Holly’s help, I place the mask over my face.

  With my mask in place, I look around Kingsley Records’ ballroom. It’s strange how these masks disguise people, making them look foreign until closer inspection. But to closely inspect all of these people?

  Hollis has no problem, though. He weaves us through the crowd and there’s that feeling again. The one where the world is slowing and I have to stop. Hollis slips from my grip. I turn and the beautiful man standing just behind me doesn’t waste a moment grabbing the now-empty hand.

  It’s like he knows. He knows that we don’t have a choice but to hold onto one another.

  “Emerson,” he whispers before brushing his thumb over my jaw. How does he know it’s me? Same way I know it’s him. I look at those brown eyes and smile. His mask is black and simple, but it would take a minute for others to realize who he is.

  “Can I kiss you in front of everyone now?” he asks, but he’s already close enough to do it.

  I look around and then back at him.

  “Hollis knows what I’m wearing,” I start, but he tugs me to him and his hand slides to my neck. When he presses his lips to mine, I immediately open up to him. I can’t help it.

  “You’re so beautiful,” he says, his lips still light on mine. I’m the one to break our connection. I wipe at the gloss on his lips and check to see if anyone noticed. Hollis is long gone and I can’t tell who we’re surrounded by, but everyone seems to be having a great time. The dance floor is filled with people and when a slower song starts to play, Maddox leads me toward it without a word.

  “Shouldn’t you ask a lady to dance?” I ask him with a smirk.

  “Only if one isn’t certain the lady wants to. If that kiss tells me anything, it’s that you’re looking forward to being in my arms for the next three minutes.”

  “Three minutes? Surely you last longer.”

  He laughs loudly and pulls me into his arms, not too much space between us but enough that we look appropriate.

  “Blame it on my enthusiasm.”

  He knows how to dance, keeping me in time with the music and leading me with a firm yet gentle hand.

  “What don’t you know how to do?” I ask him as I look up at him.

  “I don’t know how to stop whatever this is from happening.”

  My steps falter.

  “Is that what you want?”

  He holds me tighter.

  “I’m not saying it the right way. I’m trying to tell you I’m powerless to you. The only thing that’s ever made me feel this way is music.” He pulls me closer and he’s looking behind me and I behind him, my chin nearly at his shoulder.

  “I know what you mean,” I tell him as the song ends. We separate and I look around.

  “Emerson,” I hear Hollis call out from nearby. “Mr. Kingsley is looking for you.”

  “Time to get to work,” I mutter to Maddox, whose grin is quick and sharp. He lets me go. Everything but my hand. “I’ll talk to you later.”

  Hollis grabs my other hand and I fight the impulse to let go and run back to Maddox. To run out of this place and find our next best night of our lives. But I see my father from here and I know better.

  Immediately, I’m swept up into hugs and handshakes. Some even kiss my cheek and tell me how beautiful I look, to which I reply with a compliment in turn. I can feel my years of schooling kicking in. My back is straight, my words are right, and I gesture in a way that exudes confidence. Inside, I’m dying to find Maddox and leave.

  I grab Hollis’ wrist and check the time.

  “Only eleven?”

  “Yup,” he says as he finishes his drink.

  “I remember when these things used to be fun.”

  “Yeah. Before people saw you as the incoming boss. Want another?”

  I look at the empty glass in my hand. Before I can answer, Maddox walks up to us, two drinks in hand.

  “Gin and tonic?” Hollis asks.

  “Lucky guess,” Maddox supplies.

  I smile as I take the glass and sip it. My father has gone off with some of Kingsley’s board members. As Hollis ambles toward the bar, I feel Maddox’s hand on the small of my back.

  “We have to be more discreet,” I whisper, smiling at the people who smile at us.

  “We’re wearing masks, Emerson,” he says, an edge in his voice.

  “This is what I want.” I’m not looking at him, my eyes still on the crowd.

  He nods and takes a step from me. When someone walks up to us, I have a hard time placing her until she speaks.

  “Good evening, Ms. Kingsley.” She turns to Maddox. “Nice mask, Maddox.”

  While they talk, I’m acutely aware of every time she touches him. I have conversations where I nod and smile and offer words here and there, but I’m counting every touch and it infuriates me. The moment my current conversation ends, I interrupt them.

  “Can I borrow you for a second, Mr. Bailey?” I say, offering Felicia a smile. She smiles and steps back as we head away from her.

  Once we’re far enough away from the party, I whirl around, finger already in the air, pointed at him.

  “What was that? You two are ridiculously inappropriate.”

  He slaps his hand against the wall before facing me again.

  “That’s bullshit and you know it, Emerson.”


  “No. Standing next to you while you guys flirt is.”

  “She wouldn’t flirt with me if you didn’t want to pretend that we’re nothing.”

  “Why can’t you just understand my—”

  “I do understand. I just hate it.”

  I take a deep breath and step away from him. All I want to do is yank my mask from my face and somehow prove to him that I’m not ashamed of him. That that isn’t what this is about, but all I can do is offer my words.

  “Maddox. This isn’t about you.”

  He turns away from me and I follow him so I’m still in his line of vision. I reach up and run my hands over his cheeks and then I pull him down to kiss him. After a moment, his arms band around me, lifting me to him. My heels have left the ground and it’s so perfect because I feel like I’m flying in his arms.

  When he sets me back down, I kiss his neck and smile against his pulse.

  “One day everyone will know. And by then you’ll be sick of me,” I tell him jokingly.

  “Probably,” he says, his scowl still on his face. He pokes at the diamond on my ear. “Not your usual choice.”

  I shake my head and he sighs. Does he know that I’m not actually myself right now? The mask I’m wearing is more than literal. The diamonds, the gown, the people…these things don’t mean nearly as much as being myself when I’m with him.

  “All this time, you’ve had the world in the palm of your hands. And I’ve had nearly nothing. I’ve had to work at it.” His breath brushes against my face as we stand there, away from the people celebrating. “What can I give a girl like that?”

  “You’re wrong,” I start. “I haven’t had the world. I’ve seen so much of it. but I’ve never had it.” He’s looking at me in that way that makes my face hot. I’m happy the mask covers the tops of my cheeks. “But when we’re like this, I feel like I might.” I shiver as he runs his hands over my bare back. “I can’t wait for this party to be over.”

  “Try to have fun,” he tells me, and I look around before kissing him one more time.

  “I’ll try to leave soon. You up for another best night of our lives?”

  He grins and rubs the back of his neck and I’m smitten. “Of course.”

  I have a lightness in my steps when I head back inside. I look behind me through the crowd to see Maddox enter after me. He looks at me and even though people are talking and dancing between us, I feel connected.

  “There you are,” my father says and the moment is gone.

  “Here I am,” I tell him as he leans down to kiss my cheek. I hug him tightly for a second, happy to see him looking so happy.

  “You look great. They did a good job.” I nod and steal a look at his watch.

  “Any issue with me leaving?”

  I hate that I’m asking him and I hate that there’s a pinch of disapproval in his eyes, making his brows come together and his lips purse.

  “So soon?”

  “Dad, I’ve been here for hours. I’ve spoken to everyone I’m required to.”

  He adjusts his mask and reaches for my hand.

  “Dance with me. Then you can go.”

  The thought of sharing the next few minutes with him makes me hopeful. I haven’t spent this much time with him since I started working on Asa’s album. Since he effectively crushed my dreams.

  My dad isn’t as smooth as Maddox is on the dance floor, but he has a steady way about him. As we rock back and forth, we’re quiet. I can remember seeing him dance this way with my mother. The first few holiday parties weren’t as big. Once they started getting bigger, she started getting sicker. In a way, it felt like my father paid for his success with my mother’s life. The more Kingsley Records grew, the more her life dwindled.

  It was the day my father signed one of Kingsley’s biggest artists to date that she finally let go. He flew in for her funeral, and he was gone before they finished covering the earth back up.

  I always felt like my dad avoided feeling as much as he could. He was ridiculously passionate about music, and I know he loved my mother. I know he loves me. But I think he’s afraid to erupt. Even as we dance silently, he looks uncomfortable.

  “So, how’re you?” I ask. His eyes flicker down toward the ground before looking back up at me.

  “Remembering how old I am,” he answers with a smile that appears and disappears quickly.

  “Nothing wrong with that.” It’s more than mom got. I want to ask him if he’s lonely and if he’s okay. If there’s any way I can love him and defy him. But as much as I hate the mask and the charade, I’m lucky. I think of Maddox who had to work so hard to get where I am and I can’t throw this away. I can’t take this for granted.

  The song ends and we separate.

  “See you at the office Monday?” He pulls at his bowtie, but his other hand holds mine tight.

  “Yes. Oh, and thank you for taking some of my meetings.”

  He nods and kisses my cheek again and then someone calls his name and I’m alone on the dance floor.

  I turn round and round until I spot him, standing in the corner looking right at me, and I’m filled with a romantic feeling. The feeling of taking off my mask and my heels and immersing myself deeply in my infatuation.

  I lift my skirt and rush toward him. He holds out his hand and I grab it before heading toward the door. I can hear him laughing behind me, and I know we’re not being discreet but I don’t care. In this moment, I can’t seem to care. I’m impatient as we wait for our coats and the moment they’re handed to us, I’m flying outside. The flurries of snow cling to my bare skin and Maddox remedies that, pulling my coat over my nearly naked shoulders. He turns me and buttons the buttons. The red carpet has been rolled up, the photographers have gone home. It’s just us here.

  “Can you feel the world slowing down?” I whisper, not worried about whether he’ll understand.

  “Slowing down?” He peers down at me. “It stopped.”

  I look around and there are hardly any people out. The cabs come few and far between, and I feel like I can inhale deeply and freely. So I do. He pushes his thumbs under my mask and lifts it from my face.

  “Done hiding, sweet Emerson?”

  He gets it. He more than gets it and I can’t not hold onto him. I can’t deny myself the pleasure of it. He presses his mouth to the top of my head.

  “Anyone could see us,” he says.

  “Where should we go?”

  “What do you feel like doing?”

  I look around and grab my mask from his hands. He still has his on, and I push it up over his eyes. I feel like…letting my body go.

  “What time is it?”

  He has to look over my shoulder at his wristwatch and when he tells me it’s only eleven thirty, I grab his hand and we take off. It’s only a few blocks, but I want to have plenty of time. After a few minutes, I’m forced to slow. My feet hate me when we get inside the park. He had to know that this was where I was headed.

  “Everything all right?” I look over at his pink cheeks, and I feel the way my heart races. Sometime on the way here, he took his mask off of his head and I watch as he dangles it easily in his hand as we now walk.

  “It’s fine,” I answer, my words breathless and my heart still pounding.

  “Impressive. I’ve never seen a woman run in heels.”

  “You’ve never seen a woman like me,” I tell him and immediately I look away because I’ve seen this man with many different women, and I don’t let it bother me because I can’t judge someone I didn’t know. All that matters is what has happened since we got together. But to know so many women and then to know me, am I really all that special?

  As we near the destination, I hear him say, “Abso-fucking-lutely.”

  “Yeah?” I ask.

  He nods. “Yeah.”

  I can hear metal on ice as a few people glide along. It’s quiet and I’m surprised it isn’t busy this close to Christmas. I walk toward the entrance and make it clear that this is what I want
to do, my eyes gauging Maddox’s reaction.

  He looks out on the ice and his mouth is a little open. There’s a hint of a smile, and he watches some people whiz by while others take their time.

  “Ah,” he starts. “Someone feels like flying.”

  “Do you know how?”

  He shakes his head. There’s almost a boyish embarrassment to it. I want to kiss it away, but I don’t because I get to be the one to teach Maddox. I look at him and smile and I want to teach him because from this day forward, when he sees a rink, he’ll think of me. The one he shared his first dance on the ice with. No matter how this ends, I’ll own this moment in his memories.

  “Want to learn?”

  “I don’t know….” He’s still looking at the people skating, and I notice the way his hands swing.

  “You gave me a lesson in letting go. Now it’s my turn.”

  We walk to the skate rental and I sit down to put on the skates. Maddox sits beside me to do the same, and I smile at him once I’ve finished lacing mine up.

  “I just can’t understand how you expect me to balance myself on these thin pieces of metal,” he says after he’s done.

  “I’ll show you.” I laugh as he gets up and nearly falls over. Once his bottom is safely planted on the bench, I get up and grab his hands. “Just do what I do. Once we get out there, don’t be afraid to hold onto the rail or tell me if you’re uncomfortable, okay?”

  Maddox is right back on his feet and I lead him to the ice. Though he looks unsure, after holding onto the rail, he starts to slide away from it.

  “If you want to stop, turn your right foot in. Not too fast. You’re doing gr—” He leans back a little and falls on his bottom. We’re both laughing as I skate over to make sure he’s okay.

  “My pride’s a little wounded but I’m good,” he says, still sitting on the ice. “Show me what you can do.” He gestures toward the rest of the rink and I take off without second thought. My dad signed me up for extracurricular activities to get my mind away from the grief of my mother passing. Karate was terrible, and while the piano lessons were great, I wanted something physical to get me out there. I didn’t like sports too much but when I started ice skating, it was perfect. To this day, I’m a jack of all trades due to my father’s diligence.