“Hi, Mandy. What a lovely ballerina outfit. I'm so glad you wore blue. Now we match.”
Grace didn't say a word about the floppy hat Mandy wore. It wouldn't hurt to leave it on and it would be better if Mandy decided to take it off herself.
“Hank, please comes in,” she smiled. “See, I remembered my manners this time.”
“Aren't you nervous, Miss Grace?”
Grace stooped down to Mandy's level, shaking her head.
“No, because you've been here before and now that I know you, I'm happy to see you,” Grace replied simply.
“Mandy,” Hank asked his daughter, “is it okay if I leave you here?”
“Hank, it's only going to be for half an hour. I don't want to tire Mandy out on her first day. Why don't you go downstairs to the restaurant. Mom and Dad would love to meet you and I can bring Mandy down when we're done.”
“Sounds good.” Hank turned back to Mandy. “How's that sound, honey?”
Hank was pretty anxious to leave. The sight of Grace in a leotard and tights, even with the filmy short skirt, left little to the imagination. His heart was pounding, his palms were sweaty and his throat was dry. He'd fallen hard for her the other night, but this sudden desire for her threatened his sanity.
“Hank?” Grace asked. “Are you alright? You look a little flushed.”
She laid her cool palm on his hot forehead and he went rigid, trying not to give in to his need for her touch.
“Fine, just the heat. I think I'll run downstairs and see if I can scrounge a beer off your folks.” He bent down to Mandy, giving her a quick kiss, and all but ran down the stairs.
“Okay,” Grace breathed, “that was a little … abrupt.”
Mandy couldn't understand why her father was acting so strangely or why Miss Grace was staring after him. She was just anxious to try out her new slippers and see how her skirt twirled around.
“Can I have my ballet lesson, now, Miss Grace?”
“Of course, come with me to my studio.”
“You have a real studio?” Then Mandy saw the room with the barre and mirrors and a big screen TV. “You do have a real studio,” she breathed.
“Pretty awesome, huh?”
Mandy went to the center of the room, staring in the mirror. She went up on her toes and attempted to twirl but landed on her rear. Her hat went flying onto the wood floor and Grace rushed to retrieve it for her.
“That hat looks like it's a little loose. Would you like a scarf to tie it on?”
Mandy was about to say yes, please, but she liked that Miss Grace wasn't going to try to take her hat away from her. Besides, Miss Grace wasn't wearing a hat, and she wanted to look just like her new teacher.
“No, I don't think I need it.”
Grace's heart leaped at the child's response. Another step taken.
“Why don't you put it on the bench over there and then we'll get started.” Again Grace gave her a choice. She wanted this to be all Mandy's doing.
Mandy reluctantly put the hat down but Grace saw her pull herself up and knew this small battle had been won.
They went to the barre and Grace showed Mandy some simple warm-up exercises. Then she showed her the five positions with her feet and then combined them with the hand and arm positions. Mandy picked up the movements quickly and it looked like she had a good turn-out and a good arch. Grace would teach her for now, but her goal was to get the girl ready for real ballet classes.
The half an hour went quickly … too quickly as far as Mandy was concerned. She was disappointed when Grace called a halt.
Grace took Mandy into the bathroom and gave her a wet towelette to wipe her face and neck. It warmed her heart when Mandy followed her movements exactly.
“Let's go down and get some lemonade and then you can show your Dad everything you've learned.”
Mandy immediately shrunk into herself at the suggestion. She wasn't going to walk into a restaurant full of people that would laugh at her.
Grace knelt down and took Mandy's hands in her’s.
“Honey, the restaurant is closed today. Some of the chefs are testing recipes for the cookbook, but they're in the kitchen. The only people there are my mother and father. I promise you, they are very nice people.”
Mandy's chin began to quiver and she gripped Grace's hand tight.
“You don't have to go if you don't want to. I can call your Dad from here and he can come up and get us.”
“Will you hold my hand?”
“Of course I will, sweetheart,” Grace assured her, “and I won't let go.”
“Okay.”
“Okay,” Grace nodded happily. “Give me a minute to change and we'll be off. I'm pretty thirsty, too.”
Grace changed into a blue linen wrap-around dress she'd borrowed from her mother. She didn't want to go to Carrie's in one of her old granny outfits. A quick brush to her hair, a dab of lip gloss, and she was ready to go.
Grace wasn't worried about her parents and Mandy. They'd had plenty of experience dealing with their own daughter’s extreme shyness.
She rapped on the glass and she could hear her mother's heels tapping across the cherry wood floor. As the sounds got closer, Mandy gripped her hand even tighter.
“Miss Grace,” she whispered, “I forgot my hat!”
“That's okay, sweetheart. We'll get it later.”
Then Evie was opening the door and it was too late to explain why she had to have her hat.
“Come in, come in,” Evie invited. “And who is this pretty ballerina?”
This lady must be Miss Grace's Mom and she had the same beautiful smile. She was tall, too, but now she was stooping down just like Miss Grace did and holding out her hand to shake.
She looked up at Miss Grace who was smiling encouragingly at her. Then she looked back at the lady kneeling down in front of her. They looked so much alike, and if she could trust Miss Grace, maybe she could trust her Mom.
Tears sprang into Grace's eyes as Mandy put her hand trustingly into Evie's. Now she knew how her parents felt as she'd begun her own journey into the real world. It was pretty heady stuff.
Evie kept Mandy's hand and turned to walk into the restaurant, keeping up a steady stream of chatter.
“I met your Dad. He's a very nice man and he spent the whole time talking about you. I know he can't wait to hear all about your ballet lesson. He's in the lounge with Grace's Dad.”
Mandy had forgotten about Miss Grace's father. She wasn't sure about meeting another person. She felt sort of shaky inside like she did every day when she had to walk into school. But Miss Grace held onto her hand as she had promised and Mrs. Coulter was still talking and then they were there.
As soon as they walked into the lounge, Mandy saw her Dad's eyes go straight to Miss Grace. He jumped up from his stool and it fell over with a bang. Miss Grace had seen him look at her, too, and she was all pink again.
But funniest of all were Mr. & Mrs. Coulter. She had her hand over her mouth, trying not to laugh, and he had the biggest smile on his face. They looked at each other and finally burst out laughing. Mandy didn't know why they were laughing, but her Dad did look pretty funny with his mouth open, trying to pick up the stool and look at Miss Grace at the same time.
Mandy began to giggle at the silly way all the grown-ups were acting.
“You look funny, Daddy,” she giggled.
“I guess I do, sweetheart.” He tried to laugh but it stuck in his throat. And he'd turned beet red, embarrassed at his clumsy behavior in front of the woman he loved and her parents. Hank had no problem admitting to himself that he was in love with Grace Coulter. He had a generous, open heart and wasn't afraid of his feelings.
“Hank, someday remind me to tell you the story of how I met my wife,” Keith said, slapping Hank on the shoulder.
Hank wondered if Keith had met Evie falling off a bar stool, but he doubted it. For now, his shy daughter was laughing and holding onto Grace and Evie's hands for dear life. It was amazing ho
w she'd taken to these two women right off. Now to see if she'd do the same with Keith.
“Mandy, say hello to Mr. Coulter,” he said.
Her eyes still sparkling with laughter, Mandy said hello without thinking.
“Did you enjoy your ballet lesson, Mandy?” Keith asked.
Mandy nodded at Keith, her courage beginning to flag.
“I'll bet your Dad would love to see what you've learned. I've never seen my daughter dance and it's made me very unhappy.”
“Why didn't you go to any of Miss Grace's recitals?” Mandy asked, wide-eyed.
“Miss Grace didn't go to recitals. She learned all by herself and never let us see her dance.” Keith shook his head sadly. “You won't treat your Dad like that, will you?”
Mandy looked up at Miss Grace, a frown marring her pretty face.
“Why did you do that, Miss Grace?” Mandy asked, puzzled.
Grace stooped down to face Mandy to try to explain.
“Remember when you came to my apartment the other night and I was so nervous?” At Mandy's nod, she continued. “Well, I wasn't just nervous. I was really scared.”
“Why?” Mandy asked bluntly.
“Because I was afraid of people. I've always been afraid of people and what they would think of me and how I looked. But I didn't realize until just a little while ago that there are people who love me and that those people would think I was beautiful even if I was as ugly as sin.”
“But you are beautiful,” Mandy protested.
“Did anyone ever tell you the story of the ugly duckling?” Grace smiled.
“You mean about the duck who grew to be a beautiful swan?” Mandy asked.
“Yes, and swans are graceful and proud, too. But that's all a swan needs to be. People are different. If you are a good person inside, then people will love you and you'll be beautiful to them no matter what.”
Mandy thought about what Miss Grace had said. She thought about it very hard while all the grown-ups stood around waiting for her to think. And when she was finished thinking, she threw herself into Miss Grace's arms.
“I love you, Miss Grace, and I think you're about the most beautiful person I've ever known.”
Grace stood up, bringing Mandy with her, though her knees were shaking. She held the little girl to her, feeling the warmth of love and need for the first time in her life. Her parents had tried to give that to her, but she'd never let them in. It had taken a seven year old girl to blast away that final coating of armor Grace had worn for so long.
Hank wanted nothing more than to hold them both in his arms, but Keith held him back.
“Let them have their moment. You'll get your turn,” he assured Hank.
Grace was reluctant to set Mandy down, but she knew she couldn't smother the girl with her own needs. Hank had needs, too, and she wanted to be the one to give the man she was now able to love this precious gift.
Grace carried Mandy over to her father who was waiting to take her in his arms. His daughter grabbed him around the neck with one arm but kept her other arm firmly around Grace, forcing him to hold them both. Not that he minded. Not at all. This was what he'd been wanting since Mandy had opened her heart to Grace at their dinner.
Grace had never felt like this before. The warmth of the child, the strength of the man. It was everything she'd never dared hope for; everything she'd pretended she didn't want.
Two nights later, Hank and Grace were having dinner at Coulter's. Mandy was with her Auntie Carrie so they could spend time alone. Grace hoped this would be the first of many dinners and that Hank would gradually come to love her the same way her parents had come to love each other over that summer. But Hank was nervous and distracted and hardly ate anything at all. He’d dropped his fork, his napkin, knocked over his water and did little more than push his food around the plate.
I was plenty nervous at Carrie’s last Sunday, Grace thought, but even I wasn’t this bad.
When it was time for dessert, he cleared his throat several times before taking her hand.
“Grace, do you remember what Mandy said to you last Sunday?”
“Um, about what?” she asked, her eyes on their joined hands.
“When she said, I love you, Miss Grace, and I think you're about the most beautiful person I've ever known.”
“How could I forget?” Grace replied. Hank was caressing the back of her hand with his thumb and she was beginning to feel a little dizzy.
He lifted her chin with his free hand, forcing her to look at him.
“I love you, Miss Grace, and I think you're about the most beautiful person I've ever known,” he whispered.
Grace was finding it very hard to breathe, and before she knew what he was doing, he was down on one knee. He had a black velvet box in his hand and was opening it to reveal an antique diamond ring that she found out later belonged to his grandmother.
“I'm a simple kind of guy, Gracie, and I'm not much good with fancy words, but I love you and I want to marry you.”
Grace couldn't say a word. She couldn't breathe, either. This was all too much, too fast.
“Please say yes quickly,” he begged, “because my leg is cramping up.”
Grace had to laugh at the comical expression on his face and all she could do was nod. Hank jumped up (he didn't really have a cramp after all) and pulled her out of her chair to hold her at last in his arms.
Dimly, Grace became aware of the patrons in the restaurant cheering and clapping. Then they were being hugged and kissed, and Mandy was running out of the lounge where she’d been hiding. Carrie and her family, Grace's parents and Rosalie and Michael; even Rosalie's Gran was there.
Keith was pouring champagne and calling for quiet so Hank could say something.
“Friends and family. Thank you for being here at one of the most important and happiest moments of my life. Now, if I may, I would like to kiss my fiancé for the first time, but definitely not the last.”
“Daddy, look, Mommy's turning pink again!” Mandy pointed out.
“Better get used to it, honey, cuz I'm going to be kissing Mommy a lot!”
EPILOGUE
It had been a year since Grace had first stepped on Hank's bus and so many things had happened. The cookbook, which they called A Slice of Life, was a huge success thanks to Grace's blogging. Coulter's had even become a trending topic at one point and Grace had been invited to appear on several talk shows including the biggest one of them all. She didn't think she'd progressed far enough to appear on TV or ever would. Her outgoing parents were glad to appear in her stead. Not to mention she was hugely pregnant with her and Hank's first child.
They were married three months after Mandy's first ballet lesson. The reception was held at Coulter's, of course, and many of Hank's passengers were among the guests. Mr. Roberts and Mrs. Haverty were there and he even consented to a waltz despite his bad leg. Mrs. Haverty was pink with pleasure that he had gone to so much trouble to dance with her and she fussed over him for the rest of the evening.
Mandy was their flower girl and she was thrilled with her pretty dress (blue, of course) and the basket full of pink and white rose petals to throw on the carpet in front of the bride. She was even more thrilled that she was going to be a big sister. But best of all was that her new Mom had taken her to a special doctor that said there were new treatments to fix her scars.
But the really, really best thing of all was when she and Mommy put on their matching blue tutus and danced for the whole family, even Grandma and Grandpa Coulter who had never seen Mommy dance before. Everybody cried and laughed and clapped and said they'd never seen two more beautiful swans.
Read Rosalie’s story in A Slice of Life Christmas available now.
CONTACT
Thank you for reading A Slice of Life. I hope you enjoyed it. If so, I would appreciate it if you would post a review on the website where you purchased this novella.
Please visit my website at www.jobreepublishing.com to find other works I have w
ritten. You will also find my contact information there.
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Margaret Lake
COPYRIGHT
Copyright 2012; Margaret Lake, Jobree Publishing, all rights reserved. This book may not be reproduced in any form, in whole or in part (beyond that copying permitted by U.S. Copyright Law, Section 107, “fair use” in teaching or research. Section 108, certain library copying, or in published media by reviewers in limited excerpt), without written permission.
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