Tall Tales and Wedding Veils

by Jane Graves

  And then she’d told him she loved him. How pitiful was that? She was going to feel foolish about that for the rest of her life.

  “You should have seen Jason one night when we went to the symphony,” Regina said, huffing with irritation. “They made an announcement that everyone was supposed to turn off their cell phones. He got up every fifteen minutes to see if he had a voice mail. I swear he could be standing in front of the president of the freakin’ United States, and if that thing rang, he’d say, ‘Mr. President? Could you hold that thought?’ ”

  As Regina prattled on, her words slid right past Heather. All she could think about was Tony. She would have expected him to run far and fast once it was clear the wedding wasn’t taking place. Instead, here he was, insinuating himself right into the middle of the chaos. Was he trying to drive her crazy?

  Regina went on to cite approximately sixteen ways Jason had irritated her with his electronic device, and she was still going at it a few minutes later when Tony pulled into the parking lot at McCaffrey’s. As they went inside, Heather couldn’t resist scooping up the train of Regina’s dress so it wouldn’t drag across the parking lot.

  Inside the bar, it was a usual lazy Sunday afternoon, with a few guys at the bar and a couple of tables occupied. The Rangers game was playing on the TVs. Regina slid onto a barstool. Lisa walked up, eyeing her with surprise, then looked at Tony. “Can’t wait to hear the story behind this.”

  “Martini,” Regina said. “On second thought, make that two.”

  Heather sat on a barstool around the corner of the bar from Regina, and Tony took one next to Heather. Regina looked up at the boar’s head on the wall above the bar, narrowing her eyes. “You know, that thing is kinda growing on me. Want a real conversation piece?” She ripped the veil off her head and set it on the bar beside her. “Stick that on it.”

  Heather turned to Tony and whispered, “Now she’s really losing it.”

  “I’m not losing anything,” Regina said. “In fact, I’ve never felt so clearheaded in my life.”

  When Lisa brought their drinks, Regina picked up both of her martinis with a flourish. “Here’s to women, because all men are pigs. Present company excluded. You got one of the good ones, Heather. Hang on to him.”

  As Regina took a sip from each glass, Heather thought, I only wish I could.

  “I wasted three years of my life on Jason,” Regina said. “I gotta make up for lost time.” She scanned the room and zeroed in on a guy at the end of the bar. “There. Heather, what do you think about that guy down there? The blond?”

  “That’s Andy. He’s a player. He’ll pick you up, have his way with you, then dump you.”

  Regina grinned. “That’s perfect.”

  “I thought all men were pigs.”

  “They are. But what am I supposed to do? Become a lesbian?”

  She scrambled off the barstool and picked up both martinis.

  “Come on, Regina,” Heather said. “You’re not actually going to hit on a guy half an hour after calling off your wedding, are you?”

  “Are you kidding?” Regina said. “I look fabulous in white. Why not take advantage of it?”

  She kicked her train out of the way and headed down the bar. Andy pulled out a barstool for her and gave her a big smile. Bridal gown notwithstanding, the man wasn’t blind. Even half-drunk, Regina was still a knockout.

  “We probably shouldn’t let her drink so much,” Tony said, “but as long as she’s smiling and not crying, let’s go with it for a while. Besides, it’ll give me a chance to talk to you.”

  Heather’s heart skipped. “What about?”

  “Just come with me.”

  Tony took Heather’s arm and helped her off the barstool. “Lisa,” he said, “we’ll be in my office. If the bride tries to leave, step on her train.”

  “Will do,” Lisa said.

  They went into Tony’s office. He closed the door, and they sat down on the sofa. Heather didn’t have a clue what he was up to. Why had he intervened in this situation when he’d made it clear last night that he no longer wanted anything to do with her?

  “First of all,” he said, reaching for something from his breast pocket, “it’s official.” He held up two envelopes. “We have his and hers annulment papers. They came yesterday.”

  “So we’re no longer married?”

  “We’re no longer married.”

  So there it was. In black and white. Why he was pouring salt in the wound, she didn’t know. Couldn’t he have just dropped them in the mail?

  “Second of all,” Tony said, “about last night—”

  “I don’t want to talk about that.”

  “No, we’re going to talk about it.”

  “Tony—”

  “I just want to tell you how sorry I am. I’m sorry for every stupid thing that came out of my mouth. I behaved like an idiot, and I should be shot for it.”

  Heather couldn’t believe it. He was apologizing?

  Wait a minute. Of course he was. Tony wanted everybody to be happy, no matter what the circumstances were. Well, her being happy with this situation was never going to happen, but she could certainly be adult about it.

  “It’s okay,” she said.

  “No, it’s not okay. The things I said to you were not okay.”

  “You just had a rough night.”

  “Will you stop being so damned understanding? I don’t deserve it. The things I said to you—”

  She held up her palm. “Tony, if you don’t stop apologizing, I’m going to feel compelled to start in again with my own apologies about the invitation, and we’re going to be apologizing from now till doomsday.” She sighed. “Can we both just forgive and forget?”

  Tony smiled. “Yeah. We can do that.”

  “Thank God,” Heather said. “I just don’t want there to be hard feelings between us, you know?”

  “I know. I don’t, either.”

  “All I really want now is for us to be able to part as friends.”

  “Friends?” Tony’s smile vanished. “No. We won’t be able to be friends.”

  Heather’s heart fell through the floor. “What happened to all that forgiving and forgetting?”

  “We are forgiving and forgetting. But the friends thing—that’s not going to happen.”

  “Why not? Because we were once married? Divorced people can stay friendly. They do it every day.”

  “But it isn’t going to be long before some really smart guy grabs you and marries you, and before you know it, you’ll be celebrating your fiftieth wedding anniversary with him. Somewhere in the middle of all that, you’ll forget about me.”

  “Don’t worry,” she said glumly. “I won’t be getting married anytime soon.”

  “Oh, yes, you will. Look what you have going for you. You have a good job. A smart mouth. Great hair. A work ethic that puts an entire congregation of Protestants to shame. Organizational skills out the wazoo. And sweetheart, the minute you show up in a man’s bed naked, he won’t let you go. Once he’s got you, do you think he’s going to take kindly to you being friends with your ex-husband? The answer is no.”

  “Well, he’ll have to. He’ll just have to understand that even though you and I got a divorce, we’re still friends.”

  Tony shook his head sadly. “Sorry, Heather. It doesn’t work that way. When you have an ex-husband who’s as handsome and charming as I am, the poor guy will feel threatened every day of his life.”

  Heather looked at him dumbly. “Do you ever turn off the ego? Or is it like Niagara Falls, where you couldn’t stop it if you wanted to?”

  “So,” Tony said, reaching into his pocket, “I decided that if your possessive new husband wouldn’t let me be your friend”—he held out a small black box—“I’d have to become your possessive new husband.”

  He flipped the box open, and when Heather saw what it contained, she just about fell off the sofa.

  The most beautiful wedding ring she’d ever seen.

 
Chapter 26

  For several seconds, Heather’s mind went blank. She couldn’t think. She couldn’t speak. Tony’s words were gibberish in her mind. She just sat there looking at the ring, trying to connect all the dots and jump-start her brain. This couldn’t mean what she thought it meant. He must have misspoken. She must have misheard.

  She took a slow, controlled breath, then turned her gaze from the gorgeous ring to Tony’s gorgeous face. Her eyes filled with tears. She wasn’t a crier. She’d never been a crier. But she sure was turning into one now.

  “The day my mother died,” Tony said quietly, “she took off her ring and gave it to me. She told me that someday I’d fall in love with a girl, and when I did, I was supposed to give it to her. You’re the one, Heather. The one she told me about.”

  All Heather could do was look at it, then look at Tony, then look back at the ring, as if she was afraid one or the other or both were going to disappear in a cloud of her own wishful thinking.

  “But I don’t understand,” she said. “Just last night you said . . .” She shook her head in confusion. “What changed?”

  “I wasn’t kidding about another guy swooping in and marrying you. And when I thought about that happening . . . well, I just didn’t think it was fair.”

  “What?”

  “I’m the one who got you to let down your hair. I’m the one who showed you how Debbie does Dallas. I’m the one who taught you about furry purple handcuffs and told you dirty fairy tales. I’m the one who turned you into a sex maniac. So why should some other guy get to take advantage of that?”

  That was so Tony that Heather couldn’t help smiling, even as she wiped away tears.

  “But in the end,” Tony said, “it wasn’t what I did for you.” He paused, his smile fading. “It was what you’ve done for me.” He took her hands and held them tightly. “I need you, Heather. I need somebody who’ll keep me grounded. Who’ll be there for me today and tomorrow and forever. I need that feeling you give me that I’ve finally come home.” He traced his fingertips along her cheek. “When you said you loved me, did you mean it?”

  “Yes. Every word.”

  “Then what’s your answer? Will you marry me?”

  “Yes,” she said. “Oh, yes.” She wound her arms around his neck, and then there weren’t just a few tears but a deluge of them. And when he slipped the ring onto her finger, she held it up, staring at it with wonder. “I don’t believe it. It fits.”

  “Of course it does. It’s fate. I’m a big believer in that, you know.”

  Tony hugged her again, this time whispering in her ear, “There’s something I still don’t understand. Maybe I never will.”

  “What’s that?”

  He pulled away and searched her face as if he’d find the answer there, only to come up short. He shook his head with genuine confusion.

  “What does a woman like you see in a guy like me?”

  Heather just sat there, stunned. She could never have imagined that question coming from a man who was at the top of every woman’s dream list. But the truth was, she wasn’t in love with the man he showed everybody else. She was in love with the man he’d shown her.

  “I didn’t even realize what I was missing in life until you came along,” she told him. “I’m a different person when I’m with you. And I like her a whole lot better.”

  “We’re good together,” he said. “That’s why we need to stay together.”

  As he leaned in to kiss her again, there was a sudden knock at the door. “Tony! Heather!”

  Tony rose and opened the door.

  “You’d better get out here,” Lisa said. “The crazy bride is leaving.”

  Tony and Heather came out of the office in time to see Regina weaving drunkenly toward the door, Andy’s arm wrapped around her shoulders. She waved at them. “Tony! Heather! This guy here and I are leaving. Thanks a bunch for the ride from the church. I’ll see you . . . whenever.”

  Andy had a big, goofy smile on his face, as if he’d just struck gold. As they were walking out the door, Tony caught up with him and grabbed his arm.

  “Hold on, sport. You’re not going anywhere.”

  “Tony!” Andy whispered. “Will you cut it out? This one’s too good to be true. She’s drunk and on the rebound!”

  “This one is my wife’s cousin.”

  Andy let go of Regina as if she’d suddenly caught fire, holding up his palms. “Whoa. Hey, man. Didn’t mean to mess with your family.”

  “Tell you what, Andy. From now on around here, let’s make the drunk ones on the rebound off-limits, okay?”

  “Uh . . . yeah. Sure.”

  “Why don’t you head on home for today? That’ll give you a chance to review the new rule before I see you back in here tomorrow.”

  Andy nodded. “Okay, man. Whatever you say.”

  As he walked out the door, Tony helped Heather prop Regina on a barstool. Heather looked over the bar to see a certain boar wearing a wedding veil, and she had to admit it was one hell of a fashion statement.

  “Hey!” Regina said, looking around. “Wait a minute! Where’s that guy? We were going to . . .” She stopped and looked at Heather. “What were we going to do?”

  “Have a cup of coffee,” Heather said.

  “Oh, yeah.” Regina put her elbow on the bar and rested her chin in her hand, looking as if she was about to drop off to sleep, only to catch sight of Heather’s ring and sit bolt upright.

  “Oh, my God!” she said, grabbing Heather’s hand. “That ring is gorgeous!”

  Flashing a beautiful diamond ring was like waving smelling salts under Regina’s nose. Then she looked at Heather’s face. “Eww. Your mascara is running.”

  Heather didn’t think now would be the time to mention that Regina looked like a raccoon herself. And suddenly she had a queasy look on her face, as if the gin that had gone down might be getting ready to come back up.

  “I think we’d better skip the coffee and get her home,” Tony said.

  “I think I’d better get her to the bathroom first. She’s looking a little green.”

  Tony grabbed Heather and gave her a kiss and a smile. “Don’t be gone long, now.”

  Heather smiled. She’d be counting the seconds.

  Twenty minutes later, Tony pulled up in front of Regina’s apartment. Heather had called Uncle Gene to tell him they were bringing her home, and by the time she got out of the car and walked Regina to her front door, he and Aunt Bev had arrived. Bev still looked as if she wanted to kill somebody, but since she wasn’t saying much, it appeared that Gene still held the reins he’d yanked out of her hands. Heather felt confident that Regina was going to be okay. Or, at least, she would be once she got over the monumental hangover she was going to have in the morning.

  As Heather got back into the car, Tony was flipping his cell phone shut. “We need to head back to the bar.”

  “What’s up?”

  “You know that pipe in the kitchen? It really did burst this time.”

  “Oh, great. Did they get the water shut off?”

  “Yeah. But Chuck says there’s a hell of a mess.”

  “Thank God this happened on a Sunday night instead of a Saturday night.”

  “No kidding.”

  “So we have to switch into crisis mode dressed like Ken and Barbie?”

  “I’m afraid so.”

  “Fine with me. I never liked this dress, anyway.”

  Ten minutes later, they pulled into the parking lot at McCaffrey’s. When Heather saw the new sign, she had a thought that warmed her all the way to her bones. Pretty soon the name up there wasn’t going to be just Tony’s. It was going to be hers, too.

  But right now, they had a crisis to avert.

  They hopped out of the car and hurried inside. But as Heather was making a beeline for the kitchen, Tony grabbed her arm and pulled her back around.

  “Hold on, Heather. There’s somebody I want you to meet.”

  “What?”

 
Just then, a man and a woman rose from their barstools and walked over, stopping in front of them. The woman had short, dark hair and lines around her eyes and mouth that said she was used to smiling. The man was tall and strikingly handsome, with thick salt-and-pepper hair.

  “Heather,” Tony said, “this is my father. Don McCaffrey.”

  Heather froze, sure she must have heard Tony wrong. “Your father?”

  “Yes.”

  For the count of five, she couldn’t breathe. She just stood there in complete astonishment, feeling as if her heart had stopped beating altogether. Tony’s father?

  “But I don’t understand,” she said, looking back and forth between them. “How . . . ?”

  “It’s a long story. But I think . . .” Slowly Tony faced his father, a wave of emotion passing over his face that seemed to sweep away the bitterness he’d held on to all these years. “I think everything’s going to be okay now.”

  The men gave each other a meaningful look, and in that moment, Heather knew that something wonderful had happened. After all these years, somehow, some way, they’d come to some kind of understanding. A feeling of pure joy welled up inside her until she was sure she’d burst with it. She reached out to shake Don’s hand.

  “It’s so nice to meet you,” she said. “I’m Heather. Tony’s wife.”

  Don looked at Tony with surprise, then turned back to Heather with a warm smile. “I have a daughter-in-law?”

  “Yes,” Tony said. “And I have a stepmother.” He looked at the woman beside his father. “You must be Rachel.”

  Now it was Heather’s turn to be surprised. “Stepmother? I didn’t know—”

  “I just found out myself a few hours ago,” Tony said.

  Tony reached out to shake Rachel’s hand, but Rachel was a little more gregarious than Don and pulled him in for a hug. “I am so glad to finally meet you,” she said, and then Heather heard her whisper, “You have no idea how much your father was hoping you’d call.”

  Heather glanced at Don. His eyes had begun to glisten, and when he looked away for a moment to collect himself, she felt her own eyes start to tear up.