“Ladies and gentlemen, tonight is like no other. We are here not only as guests, but as witnesses to a fantastic, once-in-a-lifetime event. May I present to you the woman of the hour, on the occasion of her twenty-first birthday, Miss Meredith Fletcher!”
All of a sudden, the spotlight swung around toward the end of the red carpet, and there in its glow was Meridee, perched upon a Persian cot held up by four shirtless men of pure muscle who were squeezed into tight Wranglers and cowboy boots.
Meridee had a drink with an umbrella in one hand and a fan in the other. She waved and blew kisses at the crowd. She had even hired a photographer.
The DJ started the song “It’s Raining Men,” and it could probably be heard for miles. Everyone along the velvet ropes was toasting her and laughing. And Meridee just kept waving to her adoring public and blowing kisses.
Kitty came over and stood next to me as she cried and laughed at the same time.
“God, I love that old woman,” she said. “My birthday’s next month, remember? There’s still time to throw me a shindig like this.”
“I thought you wanted a classier affair at the Cypress Inn,” I reminded her.
“I do, but I just love the idea of being the center of attention with all these gorgeous men and their washboard abs. Delicious!” She was smiling and picturing herself in the middle of it all.
As the buff men carried Meridee up the red carpet to her premier, the crowd followed her to the dance floor where the party took off. Meridee was at the center table wearing a tiara and signing autographs. Everyone was laughing and the Buff Boys were waiting on her like boy toys.
Harry was working the room like it was a political fundraiser. He split his time between glancing at me and smiling at Dallas. I think he was just watching me to see if I was looking at him and not Sonny. I was looking at Sonny.
As I glanced in a mirror to check that my makeup was still in place, my eyes caught the reflection of a man in silver, wire-framed glasses just behind me. I formed my mouth to scream when he caught me and pressed his index finger to his lips. “Shhhh,” he insisted, shaking his head. “No.”
It was Lewis.
My stomach had dropped. I turned to look at Vivi, then darted my eyes quickly back at Lewis. He was gone. The spot where he stood held other faces. Bodies moving about. Was he really ever there? My cell phone buzzed with a text. It read: TAKE VIVI OUTSIDE. I did not even think. I immediately leaned into Vivi and said over the loud music, “Hey, I need some air. Come outside with me a sec.”
“Oh, Blake, the party is just starting! Really?”
“Vivi Ann McFadden, if I have to carry you on my back, you are going out now!”
“Okay! My God! You must be ’bout to suffocate! I’m comin’, I’m comin’.”
We followed the red carpet outside. Little trees had been set all around the parking lot covered in little white lights. In the now darkened lot, the lights cast an amber glow.
“It’s so pretty, isn’t it?” she said.
“Yeah,” I answered, barely paying attention, looking for Lewis. My breath had not come back from thinking I had seen him. Okay, Lewis, I thought, where the hell are you?
Just then I saw him. He was larger than life after all this time. He was in perfect blue jeans and a whiter-than-white starched oxford shirt, untucked—a gentler, more relaxed version of his older brother. He was behind one of the lighted trees.
Lewis walked over to me, quietly gesturing for me to be silent. He moved up behind Vivi, who was staring up at the bright moon and wispy clouds. I smiled and stepped back and we traded places. Her back was to him and so I knew he hadn’t yet seen the telltale roundness that was starting to show under her clingy pantsuit. They were both about to give each other the shock of a lifetime. I realized in that flash of a second that I was going to get to witness this unbelievable moment firsthand. I had front-row tickets to the event of the year!
Lewis moved right up to Vivi. Then, pushing gently, he pressed his mouth to her ear from behind.
“Hey, Red,” he whispered.
Vivi turned around and for one moment she was speechless.
Lewis saw her belly as she faced him and was also silent.
It took about three full seconds before both of them began hollering, “Oh, my God! Oh, my good God in heaven!” simultaneously.
All the screaming was followed by a huge embrace. Then more oh-my-Gods and then another long embrace.
“You!” she said.
“Yes! You?” he said back to her, looking at her belly.
“Us! Ours!” she exclaimed, laughing and crying at the same time.
“Well, my God!” she said. They held each other tightly, talking in one-word sentences.
I felt so lucky as I watched them bubbling over with emotion and couldn’t help a few tears of my own.
“Come over here, Blake. Can you freakin’ believe this shit?”
Lewis was laughing and crying, too.
“No, I can’t,” I said, wiping tears and walking over to them. “Now, Lewis!” I said, grabbing him and hugging him tight. “What the hell!”
“I know, Blake. I am so sorry.”
God, I had to admit, it was really good hearing that deep voice. I breathed for the first time in minutes.
Lewis was home. It was all gonna be okay.
“What in the hell has been going on? Where have you been?” Vivi said.
“I’m so sorry, baby,” he said to Vivi as he hugged me. “I didn’t know what else to do. I was gonna tell you that day at the Fountain Mist. That’s what I met you there to do. But I lost all train of thought just knowing I was gonna see you. You make me so crazy. So then I thought I would tell you afterward. But then I realized that if you knew everything, Harry would browbeat you till you told him. I thought he’d use Blake against you and I just couldn’t put you in that position. The more I thought about it the more I…”
Vivi put her finger to his lips. “Shh,” she said. “It’s okay. You’re here now. I already cussed your name and had several hissy fits. Blake and Meridee helped me see why there was no other way. I know you did what you thought you had to at the time. Just don’t you ever freakin’ do it again!”
“I’m so sorry,” he said. “I will make it up to you. I promise you. I have a big surprise for you, Vivi.” He was holding her face in his hands.
“I think I had one for you, too,” she said, laughing.
“You sure did! I’m gonna tell you my secret, baby, and you’ll see there really may be such a thing as Happily Ever After.”
“What?” Vivi asked, her face growing more curious.
Just as he began to speak, Meridee appeared at the front door of the bar.
“Hey,” she yelled, “get over here and give your partner a hug. This is my damn party, after all.”
Lewis walked over to her at a clip and enveloped her in a bear hug that lifted her off the ground.
“You get her all put to bed?” Meridee asked.
Clearly she knew more than we did.
“And tucked in with a kiss.” He winked at her.
“Good for you, honey! Now, let’s go spread the news.” With that, Meridee held Lewis’s hand and reached back for Vivi with the other hand. “Here we go,” she announced.
“I guess we’ll all find out together,” I said, looking at Vivi with a shrug.
We headed inside the Bayou. The music hit us as we walked inside. People were everywhere and the drinks were flowin
g. Sonny was standing at the door. I slipped my hand into his. He looked over and his eyes caught Lewis.
“Oh, my God!” he said. “Finally. This should be good. We’re gonna get our answers.”
“Yes,” I said. “I think right now.”
Meridee took the mic from the DJ and interrupted the music and dancing. She tapped the microphone and it made the usual popping noises.
“Excuse this interruption of your fabulous time, but the Disco Queen has a very important announcement. Y’all please make room for the media.”
Dallas made her way to the front, her camera crew following her. Meridee was always for the underdog and no one could argue that Dallas and Lewis weren’t the underdogs. While I still just hated her on so many levels, I was starting to see Dallas through Meridee’s eyes. Scrappy, trying to better herself. I still knew I would never be friends with her.
That’s what Lewis was doing, too. Trying to be better. Meridee was just drawn to dedicated people like them. She knew she could help them. And that made her happy. That was at the core of who Meridee was, a helper, a problem solver. Kitty was like that, too, to a point. And so was I. I had to help Vivi. And she had to help me. I smiled and realized that it wasn’t really our attitude that defined us, but our love and dedication to each other—that’s what made us real Sassy Belles.
Lewis was behind Meridee, with Vivi holding on to him for dear life, as though she’d never let him out of her sight ever again.
Meridee began. “Do I have your undivided attention? I’d like to introduce someone to you. Y’all have known him for years, but not in this capacity. I’d like to introduce to you the new owner and CEO of WCTR, Tuscaloosa’s brand-new radio station, the Crimson Tide Roll. Everyone, please give a warm welcome to Lewis Heart, the brand-new 50,000-watt Voice of the Crimson Tide. All Tide, All The Time.”
Gasps, oh-my-Gods and applause and mumbling filled the entire bar.
“Yes,” little Meridee interrupted. “A shock, I know. WCTR’s virgin broadcast will premier just in time as the Tide kicks off their season. Lewis, take the floor, baby.” She handed the mic to Lewis and silence quickly muffled the room.
“Hi, y’all,” he said. “I guess you’ve been wondering where I’ve been. Well, I have been a little busy.”
Everyone laughed.
“I know, it wasn’t right of me to take off without a word of warning. But I had to handle this with no interference so we could hit the broadcast in time for the Tide’s kickoff. And I couldn’t have done it without the help of my partner here.” Lewis draped his arm over Meridee’s shoulder.
Everyone gasped again. Meridee spoke into the mic, grabbing it from Lewis. “Yes! I damn well helped him. It’s my birthday present to myself!” Then she handed the mic back to Lewis.
“I have always, for as long as I can remember, dreamed of owning my own radio station. This time, with Miss Meridee by my side, it will be a huge success. I want to say a very public thank-you to Miss Meridee, especially for believing in me when no one else would. Thank you for seeing my dream and knowing it could be a reality. For knowing it could be successful. We are partners for life on this. The station is going to be located in a place near and dear to our hearts right in the center of town so everyone can come and visit and take tours. Did anyone see this morning’s paper? Well, I am very proud to announce I am the new owner of the Brooks Mansion.”
Spontaneous applause broke out at this amazing announcement.
“Oh, my Lord have mercy!” Vivi said.
“Lewis is wonderful! You were right all along. Oh, my God, I could kiss him,” I said to her.
“I have always wanted to make everyone proud and give back to the city and its citizens who have done so much for me,” Lewis continued. “Y’all stood behind me no matter what—and you kicked up a search when you thought I was missing—and this makes me very proud. The mansion is being restored and will be ready by the end of summer, just in time for kickoff.”
More applause broke out and whistles and everyone was chanting Crimson Tide cheers.
Then he turned to Sonny and continued. “To the police and the citizens of Tuscaloosa, I am prepared to pay any fines or answer any charges for faking my disappearance. But it’s the only way this station could ever become a reality, and I wanted to give it to the city I love and the team that I adore.”
Lewis was emotional and there wasn’t a dry eye in the room. It was what he’d always dreamed of, to do something wonderful, respectable. To be better than Harry. He had outdone himself and had come up the hero for all of us, saving the beloved old mansion and giving us all a radio station to be proud of. He wanted people to know his heart. And now they did. Lewis showed an integrity and a substance that only Vivi could see before. Well, Vivi and of course, Meridee. He was really something unexpected. I was so proud of him and for him. He turned to Vivi next.
“To Vivi Ann McFadden, I love you. I always have. I’m sorry for all the incredible hell I put you through.”
“I understand completely now,” Vivi answered and tiptoed up to kiss his cheek.
Lewis looked down at her. “I wanted to save this for later, but now really is the best moment.” Lewis dropped to one knee and pulled out a sparkling square-cut diamond in an antique silver filigreed setting.
“Vivi Ann McFadden, I have loved you for as long as I can remember. You make me happy like no one else ever has. You are the spice in my life, all my fun and my whole heart. I want to share my life with you forever. Please do me the honor of sharing my life with me. It will be all the gift I will ever need. I love you and will always love you—till I am done in this life and then forever after that. Will you marry me?” Lewis was smiling that dimpled grin and his eyes were misty as he looked softly at Vivi.
“I absolutely will! Yes! Yes! Yes!” Vivi squealed.
Sonny squeezed me into him. It was such a beautiful, happy, romantic moment. Vivi had found the perfect man for her, and I knew Sonny was the man I wanted. I had wanted him for as long as I could remember.
Vivi thinks I saved her but actually I think she saved me. I really had been saved by a belle. A belle named Vivi. And my cop? I guess Harry had always been right. He always said I should have just married my cop. I smiled to myself at the thought. I had changed so much in a month’s time—or maybe I had just simply come back home. Vivi was a new woman herself, a mother- and wife-to-be. She was calmer, maybe even a tad less needy. Being pregnant was already bringing out the best in her. It was the Vivi I had always known was there. And it was so good to see her like this.
Lewis rose and held Vivi’s face and kissed her long and soft and sweetly in front of everyone—including the media, who went wild snapping pictures and rolling tape. Dallas stood front and center with her film crew getting footage for the ten o’clock news.
Mic in hand, she gave one of her trademark smiles to the camera as she announced, “The town of Tuscaloosa has three whole months before the kickoff of the new season, and it looks like the Voice of the Crimson Tide has a busy summer ahead.”
* * * * *
Acknowledgments
I am so grateful to:
My fairy godmother and beloved agent, Elizabeth Pomada, for believing in me and always saying the right thing, my favorite of which is, “Don’t worry, Beth. Just write.” Much more than my agent, you are also one of my dearest friends.
Everyone at Larsen-Pomada Literary Agents: Michael Larsen, you are the best coach! Clare Cavanaugh, for provi
ding me a gentle crash course on writing.
My family at Harlequin MIRA: the design team of Michael Rehder and Quinn Banting, for making my cover sexy, fun and oh-so-Southern. Sheree Yoon, Melanie Dulose, I am so lucky to have you both in my corner. Michelle Venditti, for fantastic ideas and for being the binding that keeps us all on the same page. My editor, Valerie Gray, for believing in me and helping my story blossom like a magnolia. Underneath, I am sure you’re wearing a cape. You are my superhero.
My mother, Betty, an original Sassy Belle, for being the most stubborn person I know and never letting me quit—pushing me over the finish line.
Brooks, my son, for giving me constant love and support and a shoulder to cry on (which I did a lot), for your patience and for helping me make my computer work when I was ready to toss it. I love you more than life itself. You are forever my sweetheart and the center of my universe.
Ted, my husband, best friend and source of the passionate love scene. You are the most patient soul on the planet. You always make it all better.
My brother, Bruce. I am so lucky to have a former tackle-football player running block for me. My stepfather, Richard, for supporting me unconditionally. My in-laws, Dr. Margaret Bosse and Dr. Richard Ishler, Dr. Ann Ishler and Dr. Richard Bosse, for all of the encouragement.
My Sassy Belle sisters, Lynn Watts Zegarelli, Susan Sexton DePappa and Joyce Albright. For providing me with so much laughter and “bless her heart” moments. Joyce, for the suitcase full of green tomatoes you brought with you to L.A.! Susan, for providing the margarita slumber parties every time I was home. Lynn, for all the best ideas and for reading the book as many times as I did. Full of Southern sass, a part of each of you lives on these pages.
The Sassy Belles Page 26
