By the time they arrive at the airport, Celeste’s stomach is all in knots with the anxiety that Stephen can’t wait to get rid of her. All she wants of him is for him to pull up to the curb and she will grab her stuff as quickly as possible and be out of his hair.
Feeling a tad rebuffed, she thinks, he doesn’t even need to stop, just slow down, and out she will roll, suitcases and all.
Stephen pulls into the airport and navigates the vehicle to the designated parking area for departures. After helping Celeste from the vehicle, Stephen retrieves Celeste’s bags from the SUV. After setting the alarm, he takes Celeste’s rolling suitcase into one hand while reaching for her with the other.
As Stephen walks hand in hand with Celeste, many thoughts race through his mind. He is frowning, uncertain how to broach the topic that has been on his mind since they left the mall an hour ago. Stephen ushers her to a couple of seats near the corner where they will be afforded a little privacy. In truth he is more afraid that Celeste will reject him. The thought donned on him that perhaps she hasn’t enjoyed her weekend with him as well as he has.
Currently, he is faced with two options, bare his desire and ask his question or chicken out and risk their relationship to the wind, which would mean casting himself into the shadows of her life unsure when he would see her light.
“There’s something important I need to say before you get on that plane,” Stephen begins.
Though she is feeling a sense of dread overwhelm her causing a massive lump of nervousness to well in her throat, Celeste forces herself to say, “Yes?”
“I’ve really enjoyed getting to know you this weekend, but I’m afraid...”
“That’s OK. You don’t have to say anything,” Celeste interrupts him, placing a hand against his cheek, “I long ago stopped believing in happily ever after,” she was going to say.
But Stephen presses on, placing his hand over hers that she had placed against his jaw, “No, but I do. As confident as I might appear I still need occasional reassurance.” He pauses to bring their hands together between them. He looks down to where they are holding hands and sees how they fit comfortably, together.
“I haven’t asked anyone this since high school, and I wasn’t much good at it back then either,” he confesses. “I want us to be exclusive. Go steady. You my woman, and I your man. I still have a tour to finish, but I promise that I won’t be a neglectful boyfriend,” he rushes on.
Celeste is stunned. Here, she was thinking that he was going to say that although they had fun together, they just weren’t going to work out. It takes a second for her to get her mind around what he is saying. He wants exclusivity.
The thought of Stephen wanting to commit himself to her even in this small way brings a smile to her face. “Yes,” she answers him and untwines her hand from his to tug him into her arms and place a kiss against his mouth.
Stephen wraps her in his embrace. He’s happier than he has been in a long while. This happiness he feels comes from knowing Celeste and having the comfort in knowing that she must feel something for him even though she hasn’t said as much. Why else would she return his kiss and want to be his woman?
Through his happiness he hears the call for Celeste to board her plane. “Listen, you have my cell number which you can reach me on anytime. Also, I will have my road manager e-mail you our itinerary so that you will know where I am. Give me your email address.” He adds it to her contact information in his cell phone
“I’m going to miss you, but I promise not to give you enough time to miss me that much. Although, I at least hope that you will miss me a little.”
“Of course I’ll miss you,” Celeste responds.
“Call me when you get home, so I know you’ve made it safely,” Stephen requests.
“I will.”
Stephen places a soft kiss on her lips and then urges her towards the ticket counter to check in for her flight.
Celeste is completely surprised. Out of nowhere had come his question. Over the weekend, she had come to know a few things about Stephen that gave her the confidence to know that he can be trusted. Life for Celeste was turning out to be full of surprises, and Celeste likes it.
She is just retrieving her ID and e-ticket from her purse as Jenny comes to stand next to her. One look at Jenny and Celeste can tell that Jenny has been crying. “What’s the matter?” Celeste questions.
“Mario makes me sick. Ooh, I could just kick him as hard as I can in the shin and not feel one ounce of remorse.”
Celeste is taken aback at the vehemence of Jenny’s words. The other couple had appeared to be having a marvelous time this weekend. “What happened?”
“He said that he wants us to ‘see other people.’ Can you believe that?”
“You mean he actually said those words?”
“Well not exactly those words, but I can read between the lines. That’s what he meant all right.”
“What exactly did he say, Jenny?”
“He said that he could understand if I wouldn’t be waiting for him when he’s done with this tour. ‘Eight months are a long time and all,’ Jenny says with a scowl on her face in mockery of Mario. “That he’ll call me in February when they’re done and maybe we can hook up then.”
“Well that doesn’t exactly mean what you said it meant.”
“Yes it does, Celeste. Just like one plus two is three. If he will be understanding of me seeing other people then obviously he wants me to be understanding of him seeing other people as well. Duh!”
“Oh. I can see how you came to that conclusion. But still, I’ll make some inquires of my own to set the record straight,” Celeste responds in an attempt to de-ruffle Jenny’s feathers.
Just then Jenny takes a long look at Celeste and sees happiness she has never seen there before in the depths of her eyes. “What are you so happy about?”
Not wanting to rub Jenny’s face in the new relationship that she and Stephen are embarking on, Celeste says, “Nothing.”
“I don’t buy it. Spill it, Celeste.”
“I wasn’t going to say anything when you told me why you were so upset, but… Stephen wants me to be his steady.”
“NOway! He asked you?”
“Yeah.”
“When?” Jenny questions.
“When he brought me to the airport.”
“Well at least something good came out of this weekend,” Jenny says before getting her ID and e-ticket out of her purse. “But don’t you dare ask him any questions regarding Mario and myself. I do not want either of them thinking that I am desperate. If Mario wants to play the field then so be it. But I’ll be darned if I’m waiting around for him.”
Celeste knows that this is not the time nor the place to try and persuade Jenny to think further before making any rash decisions, so she keeps quiet as they wait in line, slowly edging their way to the ticket counter. The silence is tense as they leave the ticket counter and make their way to and through TSA checkpoints.
The flight is an uneventful one in which they actually arrive at their destination ahead of schedule. The limo that awaits them quickly whisks the ladies off to their respective homes. Celeste is dropped off first.
When Celeste enters her house, Thomas is overjoyed to see her and comes running to greet her. Celeste settles into the familiarity of her surroundings and goes about feeding Thomas and herself dinner before unpacking and getting ready for work the following day.
Celeste suddenly remembers that she was supposed to call Stephen when she returned home. She goes to her desk telephone and dials his number. He answers just after the second ring.
“Hello, Celeste.”
“I just wanted you to know that I’m home safely.” “Good. I’m on my way to the airport now. We’re
heading to Washington where we have two stops. You should have the itinerary tomorrow.”
“OK.”
“Good night, Babe. Sleep well. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”
As Celeste hangs up
the phone, she is surprised by the excitement and flutters in her stomach.
Before settling herself under her covers she takes time out to talk with the Lord, enjoying her time spent with Him.
The sun is shining brightly outside her bedroom window, and the birds are chirping cheerfully as she gets ready to take Thomas on his walk before heading in to work. Having been gone for the weekend, Celeste is reticent to leave her furry buddy Thomas. Her heart is saddened as he gives her puppy eyes as she leaves and makes her way to the garage. “We’ll go for an extra-long walk this evening,” Celeste promises Thomas.
It is a little after 11 am and Celeste is at her desk focusing on the preliminary pictures which might make good locations for the newest project she is working on when Jayla enters with a smirk on her face. “What’s up?” Celeste asks Jayla.
“You tell me,” she places her hand on her hips while tapping her toes. If it weren’t for the smile playing at her lips, Celeste might have cause to think that something was wrong. “There’s a call for you on line one.”
“Who is it?”
“Someone named Stephen Haule. Ring any bells?” Celeste blushes to the roots of her hair and begins to
reach for the phone receiver.
“Uh huh,” quips Jayla. “Lunch today is on me, and I
want details.” With that, she turns on her heals and exits
Celeste’s office leaving her to take Stephen’s call in
private.
“Hi there. How are you?” Celeste says upon putting the
receiver to her ear.
“I am great. I just got some extremely exciting news.
I’ve been having a real estate agent that is remarkably
familiar with the record industry and the needs of artists,
looking for a studio for me to purchase. She just called me
to say that a new property has come on the market that she
thinks I might be interested in. Since I can’t get away right
now she is going to forward me all the info so I can see if it
looks like a genuine find before I make the effort to juggle
a visit into my schedule.”
“Well that’s great. I know how exited you were when
talking about your new label. Where’s the studio at?” “It’s in southern California. She told me the name of the
city, but I can’t remember it off hand.”
“Wow. You’d be close to me.”
“Yeah,” but I plan on being close to you whether I buy that studio or not but Stephen doesn’t give voice to the remainder of his thoughts. “I hope you’re having a good day at work.”
“I am. Although probably not as exciting as yours.” “My day is going well, except that I miss you.” “I miss you too,” the words, truer than she wished they
were, were spoken and heard before she knew what was happening.
“I’ll talk to you later. Bye,” he says before disconnecting the call. Stephen had been looking for a studio since making the decision to start his own record label and out of nowhere, he now finds one which his real estate agent assures him will fit his needs perfectly. Thank you, Lord. Stephen can vividly recall the sermon that his Pastor had given right before he went on tour. It was based on the set of scripture Proverbs 3:5 and 6 that says, “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean not to thine own understanding; in all of thine ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct thy path.”
Stephen remembers having that set of scripture take on a different meaning as the illustration was given that God would not lead us around an obstacle course, but that He would stretch our path before us, and all we would have to do would be to walk straight. And that is exactly how Stephen feels, that he is walking straight and achieving all the goals that God has placed upon his heart to achieve.
The rest of Celeste’s day goes by productively although she struggles with concentrating courtesy of Stephen. Her head is in the clouds at Stephen sharing such important news with her soon after hearing it.
Celeste doesn’t think that Stephen’s choice on whether he purchases that studio or not has anything to do with its proximity to her, but she is delighted at the thought of having him put down roots so near to her.
Jayla comes into Celeste’s office almost immediately after the call has ended. “I’m hungry. Can we go to lunch early?”
Celeste looks at her watch and finds it not too early at all to break for lunch. She also knows that it’s probably not food that Jayla is so hungry for, but information.
They take the brief walk to Celeste’s favorite restaurant, are seated immediately, and place their drink orders. On the heels of the waitress leaving, Jayla begins the round of questioning, “First off, was that the Stephen Haule, as in Stephen Haule from Class One?”
“Yes.”
“Did you meet him at that concert you went to?” “Yes.”
“Why am I just now hearing that you met him?” “The truth is that I never thought anything would come
of it.”
“And now?”
“Now...” Celeste pauses not sure if she has the courage
to admit the truth that she feels in her heart out loud. “I find myself hoping something good will come of it.” “Details.”
“To make a long story short, the night I met him, I was asking him about his plans for the future and such when I asked him did he want to get married. He said he had not imagined me asking him, but since I had put the offer on the table… he accepted.
“I of course, thought he was trying some kind of hook line on me, but I played along for a while until I thought he was taking it too far in talking about taking me home to meet his mother and all. So, when I told him as much, he assured me that he meant every word, and I could try him if I didn’t think he was serious.
“I got all upset because naturally I didn’t believe him. After I had gone home that night he got my number from Jenny and called me.”
Over their meals, Celeste shares the story of her decision to go to Vegas and how well the trip went. When the waitress is removing their dishes, she is just about wrapping up.
“So, are you going to be seeing him again?”
“I think so, considering he wants us to see each other exclusively.”
“Wow. That sure is fast. Not that fast is bad. Just not usual for you.”
“I know. I just feel right about it somehow. There’s no other way to explain it.”
“Good for you, Celeste. I was beginning to lose hope for a minute, beginning to think that you were destined for spinster hood,” Jenny laughs and jokes.
On their walk back to the changes topics and the ladies everything from music, to television and movies. After arriving back at their respective desks, Celeste finds her mind again drifting to what is developing between her and Stephen.
Celeste is not thinking of long term, but instead is just enjoying each day as it passes. She isn’t allowing her mind to focus on the dream she had in which her and Stephen got married. When she is with Stephen, she feels as if all is right, that there might be a possibility for them to share something special.
However, away from him, she is haunted by the experiences of her mother. Celeste has nothing but fond memories of her home life before the discovery of her dad’s affair. She can vividly remember the family picnics that they would share, the many trips to amusement parks and movies, all the school events that her parents would attend office, the conversation discuss a little bit of and sit together in the audience, smiling at her and offering her encouragement.
With the revelation of her father’s betrayal, all that had stopped. Dad no longer attended school functions. Celeste’s mother and father couldn’t even stand being in the same room together.
With things in her home changing as dramatically and swiftly as they did, Celeste walked uneasily, never knowing when the ground would shift beneath her feet, or when the rock she was standing on would be transformed in the blink of an eye to a mu
dslide, and she would find herself falling and unable to stop.
Her mind, filled with so many questions, began to wind into a tight coil of confusion until Celeste began to feel an oncoming headache.
Celeste closes her eyes and lays her head against the head rest of her luxurious leather desk chair hoping to calm herself and stop the headache before the throbbing broke out into full blown pounding.
Chapter Thirteen
Over the next few weeks, Celeste has grown quite comfortable with her nightly calls from Stephen. She no longer pauses before picking up her ringing telephone during the evening, knowing that it will be him on the other end of the connection.
The ease with which they share the activities of their day as well as what was going on in their respective careers surprises her. Celeste finds herself growing comfortable at offering her opinions when Stephen asks for advice on the record label he is starting. She had felt at ease offering strategic and sound business advice when they were in Vegas, but that had been from a completely platonic standpoint. Now, it is on more of a personal level.
The first time he had asked for her opinion under the guise of their new found monogamous commitment to one another, she had confessed that she was not extremely knowledgeable about the record industry other that what it would take to promote a new artist and keep them in the spotlight. Celeste had suggested that he might want to seek a professional’s advice.
Stephen’s comment had been, “I want your opinion.” Their blossoming relationship was based on respect, caring, trust, and their individual firm foundation in Christ.
Celeste enjoys discussing her workday with Stephen knowing that his asking is not out of a sense of duty, but because he wants to know if she is happy.
Never had she felt so comfortable with sharing herself with a man. Not even her ex-fiancé. Although she and Tyrone spent quite a considerable amount of time talking, it was mostly spent with Tyrone doing the talking and Celeste doing the listening. Tyrone had not cared what was going on in Celeste’s career, as was evident when she would share what happened during the workday and he would brush her off by saying, “Let me tell you about my day.”
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