by Irene Bolton
“Well... is violation of professional ethics a good enough reason? And you are also shamelessly good at kissing. So, you understand, I have no choice…”
This half-joking conversation did not reassure me at all. And, as if understanding this, Stan changed his tone, "I think Alain will manage to do it. They seemed to get along. And you will be there too of course”
"And what will be my role?” I asked in a hoarse voice.
I felt very uncomfortable. It was as if the pillows and blankets that had just been so soft, had suddenly turned into hard stone.
Stan hugged me tight and looked into my eyes, "The role of my love. Will it suit you?"
And immediately the world softened once more, and with it the bed in which I was lying. The hands and arms that embraced me were also soft, yet secure. I could not move as he was holding me too tightly.
There was only one problem...
“I will miss Karina…” I said sadly.
“Oh no, you won’t. She will not allow this. There will be enough of her energy for all of us.”
I laughed. That was true! But that was not what I had meant.
“Yes, but I mean, after. When she leaves.”
Stan propped up on his elbow.
"She will not leave. She is staying.”
***
I had never asked Stan about Karina’s mother. I thought it would be awkward. If he wanted to, he would tell me. All I knew about her was that she was very beautiful. And, perhaps, too fond of experimenting with her face. But what I did not know was that I had seen her face on the screen more than once. Stan’s former wife was an actress. And she had been offered the role of a lifetime. The filming was to take an extended amount of time.
So, his sudden ‘business trip’ had not been a business trip at all. He had left to negotiate everything with his ex-spouse. And they had come to an agreement.
The sleepless night had left some traces on my face. I had dark circles under my eyes but a lot of happiness in them.
I walked into Karina's room, feeling nervous. How would she perceive this drastic change in her life? And how would she feel about the fact that Alain was now her nanny, and I was just Alex?
“Good morning!” I said cheerfully.
Karina was sitting on her bed, looking gloomily at me. She was a small copy of Stan, only with braids.
Deja vu... It was like she was the one interviewing me now, in place of her father. The room and everything else were different, but the piercing gaze of a pair of dark eyes was almost the same.
"Hello,” she said in a mature voice. “I'm staying with you, here."
“Are you glad? Or not?” I asked cautiously.
Karina shrugged her shoulders.
“I don’t know... But John is not at all pleased.” She kicked a chair beside her with her toe. "I'm a very bad girl, right?" She muttered, without looking up.
“Why?” I was confused.
"Nobody needs me anymore. Mom gave me to dad, because she does not want to live with me. And you do not want to be my nanny, so now I have Alain…” Her eyes were wet and unhappy, her chin quivered.
I sat next to her and grabbed her in a very tight hug.
“On the contrary!” I said, burying my nose in her black hair. What should I say to her? “We all need you. And we all love you. You spent so much time with your mother, now your dad wants to live with you as well. He feels sad without you. And I need you and I will always be here. And John needs you and the kitten too. By the way, did you come up with a name?”
"Yes …” She threw back her head and looked at me slyly. “I'll call it Alex.”
"Wait... what?” I was shocked. “Change your mind immediately!"
"Well…” She nodded gravely. Then she sighed and looked at me with her black eyes. “I have an important matter to discuss with you. Promise that you will do everything that you can.”
“Of course!” I responded without a beat.
"You and my dad are getting married, aren’t you?"
I was taken aback. I was not ready for such a question. I had not thought about it yet. We did not really know each other. Marriage was a serious step. And he had not proposed to me. In actual fact, Stan had only seduced me, taken advantage of his official position, and then dismissed me. What a disgrace!
But that could not be said to a six-year-old girl!
"Well…” I tried to come up with an answer. “We haven’t really decided that yet."
But it seemed that Karina did not need an answer. She waved her hand,
"Of course you will, as if you have a choice!" She said it with such confidence that I realized, I really had no choice.
"Well, then... When you get married, please persuade my father to buy me a pony..."
Epilogue
Before going out to the garden, I glanced at myself in the mirror once more. I had the chance to confirm everything one more time: it was not all a dream, and it was really me, who was in a luxurious bridal dress with an incredibly long and beautiful veil.
I had wanted to dress modestly, but it was extremely difficult to do so, if while you were preparing for a wedding, a six-year-old girl who adored fairies and princesses was helping you. Therefore, we had had to compromise, and now I resembled something in between Belle and Jane Eyre, who was going to marry her Mr. Rochester.
“Alex! Come on, everyone is waiting!” Somebody knocked at the door persistently, and a second later a small white ball rushed into the room. Karina started running around the room, nattering in a quick voice,
"It's sooo beautiful out there, everything is in white, as if it has snowed, and my dad is as beautiful as the Beast... well, when he has already ceased to be the Beast. Eh, they will die of jealousy when they see us. We are such beauties, aren’t we?”
"You look great," I smiled at the energized girl
She really looked like a porcelain doll. She had a beautiful dress, carefully curled hair, and a small white veil – she looked magical.
The little beauty took hold of the edge of my veil and ordered,
“Well, we are ready, let’s go get married.”
And we went. A few guests had already taken their seats. I saw how all the people turned and looked in our direction. My hands trembled, and my heart was somewhere in the pit of my stomach. I took a deep breath and looked into the distance. There he was, waiting for me.
Karina was right, Stan looked like a real prince. In a dark, strict suit, which perfectly fit his figure, he looked like a fairytale character. Even the pallor of his face did not spoil the impression. I looked him directly in the eyes. They were burning like two stars, telling me that this was my life now. And I took a step forward, towards my happiness.
Honestly, I could not hear anything of what the clergy was saying. Her words sounded in my head as a low buzz. I returned to my conscious mind only when I heard Stan's voice,
“Yes, I do.”
It was the right timing, because the next question was addressed to me,
“Alexandra, do you agree to become Stan's wife?”
"Yes, I do," I answered, frightened at how quiet my voice sounded.
"I now declare you husband and wife." Stan turned to me, and in but a second, I felt the taste of his lips on mine. They felt… better than anything in the world. My head spun, and I probably would have crashed to the ground if his two strong hands were not holding my waist.
"I love you, my wife," Stan whispered in my ear.
"And I love you, my husband," I answered.
“Hornaday!” I heard somebody nearby say. A small hurricane was already flying toward us. “Daddy, Alex, you two are so beautiful! I'm so glad!”
I bent down to hug the girl, and she grabbed my neck and whispered,
"You remember your promise, don’t you?"
"Everything is under control," I assured her, and she kissed me perhaps a thousand times.
The celebration was great. The weather seemed to understand, and despite the fact that it was the last
week of August, it was warm and sunny. I was really glad that Stan had agreed not to arrange a lavish wedding, limiting the number of guests to close relative and friends. We did not want to go to a restaurant or hire a venue. What for? The most beautiful place on earth was on our beautiful lawn in our back garden.
The garden looked like a fairy forest. Tables covered with snow-white tablecloths stood on the green lawn, the trees were decorated with fairy lights, and in between were placed fairy figures. They looked to be spying, as they peered out from behind the tree trunks.
I also was not ready to take a taxi to the airport. No, there was nothing dearer than our sweet home. However, we had already promised Karina a whole bunch of adventures on a distant tropical island. Our honeymoon would not be so pleasant without this super energized girl.
***
"You look like you are up to something," Karina looked from Stan to me, putting her fork aside. The food on the plane was delicious. “Better tell me, or…”
She wrinkled her tanned nose, thinking what to do to discover our dark secrets. We each took a deep breath and exchanged a quick glance.
"You tell her," I mouthed, and when he nodded, I lowered my eyes to the plate, eyeing its contents as if it was the most interesting thing in the world.
We had really done something. Something we were afraid to admit to Karina. But it was impossible to hide it from her. The girl had already felt that something peculiar was happening and, of course, she would net let us go without revelation. Neither swimming in the warm ocean, nor long walks through the rainforest or excursions had offered sufficient distraction; she was still alert and noticed everything that was happening.
"So, tell me, or will I have to torture you?"
"Ok-ok, we will," I sighed. It seemed as if my blood had frozen in my veins, and my head was spinning. I hadn’t even been so nervous when I was telling Stan the news.
I nudged my husband's foot under the table. He realized that he had no choice and sighed heavily.
"Listen, Karina," he began, slowly choosing the words. “How would you feel if you were to have a little brother or sister?”
The girl wrinkled her nose and thought about it.
“Actually, I was hoping to get a pony," she said at last. "Although… if it were a sister, I could dress her up in all sorts of beautiful dresses, and play with her, and we could go to Chinese classes together. Yes, probably, a sister would be even better than a kitten.”
She looked at Stan with suspicion. Did she understand?
"Well, congratulations, you'll have good company soon," he said. “Alex and I called the storks and asked them to bring us another baby.”
Karina looked at me.
"Does he still not know where children come from?" She asked. "The baby is already in your stomach, right?"
"Yes," I nodded. "I think you'll get along very well. Dad and I will play with you both, we will walk together in the park...”
I had been very worried that Karina would take this news badly. The girl was used to being the center of attention, and it was unlikely that she would want to share the spotlight with anybody else. But judging by the way she threw her hands about my neck without even listening to my words, everything would be fine. At least, until the baby grew up. Because then, we would have two little devils.
“You are the best!” exclaimed Karina and squeezed me with a force that could hardly come from a little girl. I felt so happy that I felt tears in my eyes. Karina was hugging me close, Stan was nearby. I felt so happy.
The tears were of happiness, but I still felt awkward. It was no doubt a result of all the hormones, but when Stan wrapped his big strong hands around me and Karina, I did not miss the opportunity to hide my face in his chest. He was hugging us close as if protecting us from the whole world.
***
We returned home when it was already nearing the beginning of the school year. And there was still so much to do! Although the new uniform was already hanging in the closet, and the rucksack found its honorable place in the nursery, I was still fretting around. What if something was missing?
We left the island without regret. On the contrary, I was even happy. Together Karina and I jumped impatiently into the back seat of the car, burning with the desire to see our house as fast as possible. The car, slow, very slow, drove carefully into the yard and stopped at the porch.
“Yoho! We have returned!” Cried Karina, jumping out of the car. “Now, what has changed here without me?"
She rushed to the porch cheerfully, grabbed the door handle and suddenly stopped, as if she had been turned into a stone figure. Soon she moved again, dark forces could not do anything to her.
“What is it?” The girl slowly turned to us. Even in spite of her new golden tan, it was noticeable how pale her face had gone. "Did you hear that?"
I froze, trying to catch the sound that had alerted her. And I heard it. It was quiet but long neighing.
I looked at Stan. He was smiling cunningly, trying not to look into our eyes.
“Dad?!”
“Stan?!”
We both stared at him, demanding an explanation. But Karina did not have enough patience to wait for an answer. Waving to us, she rushed to the backyard, where our new pet was seemingly waiting.
Stan and I did not hesitate in following her. We however failed to catch up with the fast girl. By the time we rounded the corner of the house, she was already stretching out her arms, ready to hug the pony that stood by the fence. He looked at her with his huge brown eyes and nonplussed, began to study the girl. He had probably never seen such a small and noisy creature.
"He is handsome! Honestly, the most beautiful pony in the world!” Karina shouted happily, skipping around her new friend.
I looked inquiringly at Stan. Maybe he would explain when and how he had managed to do it?
"I had to take you away so that the workers could build a spacious stall," he shrugged. "At least for three animals.”
“For three animals?” I looked at him, astonished.
"Of course," Stan said calmly. "I think the younger ones will not want to lag behind their sister."
“Younger ones? Plural?” This man did not cease to surprise me.
“Of course,” he looked so sure of himself. “We are not going to stop, right?”
And he hugged me and kissed me lovingly. I could feel that this kiss promised countless sleepless nights. Nights where a man and a woman united. After such nights, a stork arrived in the house and brought a large crying bundle in its beak.
