by Renee Porter
My mother squeezed my hand as we became second in line. I breathed out hard to ward away the emotion bubbling from inside. “Do you really think that she doesn’t have the same insecurities? You both love each other, B. You waited ten years to be together and I doubt that Maddie is going to want to let go of that.” Another squeeze, “You either.” My mother gave me a warm smile and I in turn gave her one back, along with a tight hug. The limo pulled up as I saw flashing lights already streaming through the tinted glass.
“So, are you ready?” I opened my mouth to respond as my phone buzzed in my hand.
I’m not nervous. I get to go home to you tonight. I’ve already won.
I read the text one more time and smiled at my mother. “Let’s go.”
***
The audience quieted as the two announcers took the stage. I looked over to my mother with worried eyes but she didn’t glance back. Her eyes were glued to the podium but she looked calm and collected. How I had wished to be able to pull that look off at a moment like this.
When I had first stepped out of the limo the bright lights flashed like a thousand supernovae bursting at once. It took me a moment to remember to smile from the shock of it all but my mother’s hand on my arm ushering me forward was enough to knock me out of my daze. I stepped along the colored path as interviewers called my name and asked me who I was wearing. I said my comments that I had memorized in my head and took a countless amount of pictures. By the time that I had reached the middle of the carpet, I felt like my head was going to split from the flashing lights behind my eyelids.
“Beatrice! Can we get a picture of you and Madeline Fields?” At Maddie’s name my head whipped forward to the photographer in front of me. He pointed to his right and I looked to my left to find one of the most stunning sights I had ever seen. Maddie was smiling widely as she spoke to an interviewer, her stance poised as if she was royalty. Her hair fell in loose waves over naked shoulders and her strapless gown flowed as easily as the words I heard coming from her lips. I was in awe and as she finished her interview and was ushered by a member of the Academy staff. Her eyes locked on mine and a slow, sensual smile graced her lips.
She didn’t remove her gaze from mine as she bent down slightly to hear what the employee was stating to her. She nodded her head as she made her way to me and finally, the distance between us was gone.
Cameras flashed fervently but I could have sworn time stood still. She leaned in as I felt her hand at my waist, a gesture that was friendly but made my skin shiver just the same.
“Wow,” was all she said to me. Her eyes were knowing and I forced my cheeks not to flare. “You ready to take some pictures, Ms. Montgomery?” She chuckled at my wordless response and turned, her hand lightly resting on my back like the good friends the media knew we were. Our names were being screamed from left and right and I didn’t know where to look. Well, that wasn’t the truth, I knew exactly where I wanted to look, but I don’t think my lurid gazes were appropriate for this occasion. We stepped together down the carpet as my mother and Josh walked behind us. At times, Maddie would catch my eyes and turn from the photographers so only I could see her admirable stare and I forced myself not to respond in kind. She was teasing me and although I secretly liked it, if she kept it up, the photographers would have gotten more than they ever asked for.
We finally made it to the end of the carpet as we were ushered towards our seats. Maddie was closer up front and where she and Josh turned right, my mother and I turned left. I managed to get one last look at her looking at me and a small wink was all that I could give her for support.
But now, as I sit here, listening to the announcers say names of the women nominated for Best Actress, I couldn’t help but wish that I had turned right with Maddie. I wanted to be the one she turned to and kissed when they said her name. I wanted to be the one that the cameras panned to when she gave her thanks to her friends and family. But I would have to wait on those wants for now. Because the announcer was saying who won for Best Actress and my girlfriend was walking up on stage to accept her award.
The crowd was deafening as Maddie took the stage. I looked over to my mother who was whistling and clapping loudly and when she met my eyes I couldn’t stop the tears if I wanted to. I knew in this moment that whatever happened in the future would happen. There was no stopping time to make sure life was perfect. The only thing that I could do was to make sure that Maddie was there with me every step of the way.
“Wow,” Maddie said as she finally reached the podium. She blew out a deep breath as she shook her head smiling. The crowd died down as she took a deep breath in. “First of all, I would like to thank the Academy…I think that’s how you start these things.” The audience chuckled as the camera panned to a few celebrities laughing. “I had a whole list of things I wanted to say and people to thank,” she held out a folded up paper in her hand, “but I figured everything is better coming from the heart.” She paused placing the paper down and facing the audience. “Really, I can’t believe that I’m up here right now, especially being nominated with so many beautiful and talented women. We all deserve this and I honestly mean that,” she held up the award she was grasping in her hand as the crowd applauded and whistled. “I’d like to thank the whole production team at Sony that helped make this movie. Bob Stillings, thank you for directing and allowing me to portray this incredibly beautiful and broken character. To my costars, I wouldn’t be up here if you hadn’t given me such amazing talent to work with.” She smiled as her lip twitched. The crowd was silent. “And of course, I have to thank my mother and father, who I know are looking down on me right now. They instilled so much love for this business inside of me and I thank them every day for that.” Again the crowd clapped as Maddie seemed to search the audience. She raised her hand to shield her eyes from the bright light and finally her eyes locked with mine. She lowered her hand as her eyes started to tear, staying with me with every word she said next. “And of course I have to thank B Montgomery. If you hadn’t written these amazing stories none of this would be possible.” She took a deep breath as she finally broke her gaze from mine and looked out across the crowd.
“I told a young author once that everyone wants what they can’t have.” My heart started to beat wildly as I felt the eyes from the audience dance upon my back. “I’ve wanted this for so long and now I know I can have it.” She gripped the award tightly as she looked down on it. Her eyes raised again as she pointed her eyes toward me. My breathing stopped as her mouth opened. “But even though being up here feels like a dream come true, I would have given it all up just to be with you, B.” She smiled shyly as the crowd started to murmur. “You’re my star and I love you. Even if I didn’t win tonight I’d still consider myself lucky because I have you by my side. Thank you!” Maddie held up the award as she turned from the stage. The crowd was more deafening as I wiped tears from eyes. I was still in utter shock that the words had come from her mouth and I watched on the large screen as the cameras panned to celebrities whispering and laughing and smiling, and then to me. I looked a mess, with my makeup smeared and my eyes red. But I also looked happy. Ecstatically so. And that, I thought, was all that mattered.
Chapter 21
“Ms. Montgomery! Ms. Montgomery!” I turned as my name sounded over the roar of people leaving. My eyes met with a small woman who held a small electronic device in her hand and a small speaker in her ear. She pushed through the crowd as she smiled brightly.
“Ms. Montgomery,” she huffed as she took a breath. It was obvious that she had been rushing to get to find me.
“Yes?” I asked inquisitively. I tried to keep the hurriedness out of my voice. The last thing I wanted to do was an interview right now and the first being to find the woman who had literally poured her heart out on the stage for me. I had tried to catch Maddie but it was nearly impossible. She had been whisked out of the auditorium so she could appear on the Late Night Oscar’s show that happened every year.
�
�You’re being requested to join the winners at the after show.” She broke eye contact with me as she pushed the earpiece further in her ear trying to hear something on the other side. She said something briefly back and then turned her attention back. “Sorry about that, it’s been hectic.”
“You’re telling me,” I quipped back as she laughed.
“I bet. Look, I know you probably want to get out of here, but I’ve been tasked to convince you to come.” I raised my eyebrows at the girl, impressed by her confidence.
“Tasked by whom?” I asked with frustration. My mother nudged me to be nice and I forced myself not to roll my eyes. The petite woman smiled and tilted her head.
“By Ms. Fields. She says she won’t show unless you’re there and we need her to show. You know?” I nodded my head because I did know. Maddie’s acceptance speech would surely be talked about for the next few weeks and she will definitely be questioned about it tonight on the Late Show. And even though I knew what this meant, the prospect of seeing Maddie sooner than later was more than enough for me to agree.
“Sure, can my mother come too?” I pointed behind me as the petite woman nodded her head. “Of course, that was Ms. Fields stipulation as well. Now, if you’ll both follow me?” The woman turned without us being able to respond and I looked over to my mother with an amused glare.
“That girl of yours is up to something.” My mother said as we followed the young woman through the auditorium to a back door.
“Yes, I’m sure she is. But after what she did on stage, I think I owe her one, don’t you?” My mother smiled as she wrapped her arm around my shoulder.
“Didn’t I tell you not to worry?”
I huffed loudly as a chuckle resounded from my mouth. “Don’t you know you’re always right?”
***
“Mrs. Montgomery, if you’ll come this way Brian will give you a seat in the audience. Ms. Montgomery, Ms. Fields would like to see you right away.” I nodded my head as I watched my mother wave goodbye and leave with a handsome young looking man. I smiled as my feet took me closer to the backstage area of the Late Show. A hallway lined with doors emerged as we stepped hurriedly through it. Finally we stopped in front of a plain white door and Melissa, the young woman, finally took a breath.
“Thank you for being so understanding about all of this.” I tilted my head and smiled.
“If it’s one thing you should know about Maddie it’s that you should never keep her waiting.” I winked at the girl as the door opened. Maddie leaned against the door jam, her mouth widening with a smile.
“I heard that,” she turned to Melissa and thanked her and before I knew it I was grabbed by the wrist and led inside the room. If it had been any other time and if I had been with anyone else in this room I would have remarked on the gold statue sitting on the small vanity but it wasn’t just any other time and I wasn’t with just any other person.
Before I could even whisper a hello, I felt Maddie’s lips on my own and just when I was sure that I would pass out from the immediate feeling of breathlessness, she pulled back and gave me a hesitant smile.
“Are you okay?” She whispered. I responded with a tilt of my head as I stared into her green eyes. A million of images of Maddie flashed in my mind. The young broken girl on the porch, the girl whose heart shattered as I told her to leave, the same girl who came back ten years later and still took my breath away, the same woman who was standing right before me, telling the world that she was in love with me. “B? I know I should have told you but it really was spur of the moment. I just needed everyone to know that it was you that really got me here, you know? And I didn’t want to pretend anymore because this is the realest thing I’ve ever known and…”
I placed my finger on her lips to stop her rambling and smiled slowly. I felt her lips turn upwards as I removed my finger and placed my mouth on hers. I didn’t know what to say because I didn’t have the words to express just how much she meant to me, but I could tell that my actions landed where words couldn’t. Maddie moaned into the kiss as I deepened it, trying to pull her into me as if she couldn’t be close enough. I finally pulled away as I breathed in deeply. She placed her forehead on mine and we both laughed at the craziness of the night.
“You sure do know how to get everyone’s attention, don’t you?” She pursed her lips as she moved her head away to look at me. The love in her eyes was so pure that I had to hold onto her tighter so that my knees wouldn’t buckle.
“So I take it you’re okay with me outing us to everyone?” I shook my head as I started to chuckle.
“Did you want me here so that you would have some support through all the questions that you’re going to be asked tonight?” Her eyes sparkled as her lips widened with that smile. The smile that was meant only for me. The smile that I would see for as long as she would have me.
“Oh yes, I’m going to need all the support I could get.” There was a knock on the door and Maddie held up a finger asking me to wait. She opened the door as production assistant told her she would be on in three minutes. Maddie nodded as she left the door open and turned to me. “And you know, since you’re already here, you might as well be by my side when I go out there.” She smirked as I lowered my gaze on her.
“You know, if I didn’t love you so much, you’d be in a lot of trouble right now.” She shrugged her shoulder as she held out her hand.
“So what do you say we give the people something to talk about?” I regarded her for a moment and then just shook my head. Yeah, like I said before. I’d follow her wherever she would go. I took Maddie’s hand and we walked out together, side by side.
Epilogue
“Do you think this dress makes me look fat?” I looked up at Maddie who stood in front of the full length mirror in my old bedroom. I rolled my eyes as I placed a diamond earring in my lobe.
“Sweetie, you don’t look fat. You’re pregnant. There is a difference.” I walked over to her as I slid my arms through her own from behind. My hands landed on her protruding belly as I placed a warm kiss on her neck. I saw Maddie smile through the mirror as she tilted her head to allow me more access. I ran my hands over her stomach as a warmth settled inside of me.
“We really don’t have time for this,” her breath came out in short spurts as I ran my tongue up the length of her neck. I took her ear lobe between my teeth and lightly bit the nub before removing my lips from her body all together. She whimpered at the loss of contact but I smiled warmly as I placed my head on her shoulder.
“You’re right, we don’t have time now. But tonight, all bets are off.” I removed my arms from her as I turned, looking at the clock and then craning my head outside of the window to the backyard.
“It’s piling up out there.” I felt Maddie at my back as she looked over my shoulder. I could hear her smile over her chuckle as she eyed Vanessa chasing Star who ran from her, holding a small bouquet in her mouth. “Are you ready for this?” I turned towards Maddie and had to admit that she still took my breath away. She glowed with the skin of an expectant mother and I breathed in deeply as I locked my hand with hers. I immediately felt the cool metal of her wedding ring and I smiled at the memory of putting it on her finger. Here I was standing in front of my wife, who held our growing baby in her body, and I felt like life couldn’t get any better.
“I’m ready,” I finally said. Maddie smiled as she placed a chaste kiss on my mouth.
“Good, because if I don’t sit down soon, my feet are going to swell and I’m never going to get these shoes off.” I chuckled as I followed Maddie out of my old bedroom and down the hall to my mother’s room. We knocked lightly at first and then stuck our heads in. The room was bustling with people and photographers and as we stepped fully into the room I caught my mother’s eyes in the vanity mirror. She smiled widely as Liz placed the small veil in her hair and finally she turned to me. I heard Maddie take a deep breath in and I did the same. My mother looked beautiful, stunning, happy.
“Hey, mama, yo
u almost ready?”
My mother breathed out deeply. “Beyond ready, sweetie. How is my grandbaby doing in there?” My mother regarded Maddie as she finally stood and took the steps toward my wife.
“She’s good, Mom. Kicking like crazy, though. I think she wants to join in on the fun,” Maddie said. Her smile widened as she felt another kick and my mother’s eyes sparkled with happiness as she placed her hand on Maddie’s stomach to feel the little one’s excitement.
“I remember when B would do that. Sometimes she would knock the wind out of me.” I rolled my eyes as both of the women I loved laughed at my expense.
“She’s still a kicker,” Maddie replied. I nudged my Maddie lightly with my elbow as I turned to my mother who was still chuckling.
“Ready to head down? Jason is waiting.” I wiggled my eyebrows as my mother’s lips curved upward. The love that shone in her eyes was more than enough for me to know that she had finally found someone to spend the rest of her life with. Jason had been so understanding at first, knowing that my mother was hesitant to date again. But his advances and constant romantic gestures had finally worn her down. She had confided in me that she felt like she was cheating on my dad; that she wasn’t sure if she was meant to ever love another man. But I told her that love held no boundaries and that dad would have wanted her to be happy.
