She smiles at my remark, “Aww Olivia, I know you’re his best friend, besides Tommy. I guess if you feel that way, that’s good enough for me.”
“Just hang in there. At least you’ve got school to keep you busy, and pass the time while they’re gone.” I pat her arm. “Oh did I tell you Ash is taking me to Paris?” I ask, with a happy face.
Her mouth drops open, “Uh, no ma’am, you did not…. Paris is the best! Have you ever been before?”
“I’ve never been outside the United States of America. Can you believe it?” I hold my arms up and snicker.
Her eyes light up, “You’re gonna love it. I’ve been several times with my folks. Lots of good food and shopping….it’s beautiful.”
Of course she’s been to Paris. Everyone has it seems, except me.
Kyra puts her elbow on the table, and rests her cheek on it. “Olivia? Can I tell you something?”
I look at her surprised, “Of course you can, Kyra. You can talk to me about anything.”
She nervously twirls her hair, “Well, it’s not about the wedding or anything. It’s actually kinda personal, and I’m kind of embarrassed to tell you, but…”
I take her hand across the table and lean in. “Don’t be embarrassed. You can talk to me about anything, Kyra, you know that.”
“Todd was the first guy I ever slept with; I mean, I was a virgin. I’d never had sex before, but it just felt so right to be with him.” She looks a bit apprehensive, as she waits for my response.
I raise my eyebrow, “And any regrets?”
“No. Not now, but at first I thought I’d made the biggest mistake of my life. I mean right after it happened, he was really angry with himself. He actually knocked a hole in my wall with his hand, and I think he was upset that I didn’t tell him before things got too far along.”
I shake my head, astonished. Todd didn’t tell me any of this, and I’m perplexed. She looks out the window, as she stirs her coffee, and the sound of the metal spoon going around and around in the glass cup, resonates in my head. Her thoughts come back to the table, as she resumes. “He kind of put the blame on me, and I actually thought after he left that night, I’d never see him again. It was awful, and I was so scared. He told me I should have told him, and not put him in that situation.” At this point, the woman in me has to interject. “Wait - he said you shouldn’t have put him in that situation?” I laugh, “Excuse me, but I thought it took two to tango.” I know Todd is my best friend, and I believe the story as he told it, but it’s so like a man to pass the blame. Kyra rubs her eyes and looks at me. “I was so hurt, because when he left, he didn’t say anything. I’d fallen asleep, and when I woke up he was gone; no note, no kiss my ass, nothing.” She waves her hands in a dismissive manner, “It’s like he waited until I fell asleep, so he could leave and not have to talk to me. I kept asking myself what I did wrong, and why he would just leave. I thought for sure he’d call me, but he didn’t.” She starts tearing napkins into little shapes and lining them up on the table, almost with an obsessive compulsive trait. She brings the pile of torn napkins into a circle, almost reeling them in. I wonder, as I watch her, if she doesn’t have some OCD tendencies. She exhales and turns her head to the side, popping her neck. “Days went by and I felt like the biggest fool in the world. I waited and waited for him to call, but he didn’t.” Shaking her head with a sad look on her face, she puts her head on the table. “I’d never been hurt like that—never. I couldn’t even go to class.” A tear falls from her eye and she quickly wipes it, as if she doesn’t want to display any emotion.
At this point, I contemplate telling her the side of the story from Todd’s perspective, but I opt to just listen and not betray the confidence he placed in me. Instead, I offer her my take on the situation as an outsider.
I touch her hand across the table, and give her a womanly look of solidarity, “Kyra, sometimes…” I take a deep breath and exhale, “A lot of times actually, men do crazy stupid things, not realizing how bad they hurt the ones they love the most. My guess is that he was scared, and felt bad for taking your virginity.” I fidget with my earring “Let’s face it; the girls he’s been with are far from pure, I’d safely venture to say. He finally met you, and I think with them leaving to go out on tour, it just got to him. Maybe he thought he didn’t have anything to offer you, in the way of commitment. I’d give him the benefit of the doubt. Just my gut feeling.”
She tilts her head back and puts her hand behind her neck, looking up at the ceiling and chuckles, “It’s weird, because one night, a few days after it happened, he just out of the blue called and said we needed to talk. It scared the crap out of me, because I just knew he was going to tell me that we shouldn’t see each other anymore, and that it had been fun.” She looks at me curiously, “I’m not boring you with this, am I?”
I look at her with a baffled look on my face, as I order us another coffee. “Absolutely not! I love hearing about the two of you. I know you’ve had some rough patches in the road, but I think it’s all been worth it. I haven’t seen Todd this happy in a long time. Listen to me rambling.” I laugh, “Finish your story. I want to hear.”
Her face is beaming, as she finishes the story of her fairytale man. “He came over and we talked. It was so emotional, Olivia; we were both crying like babies. He told me that he was scared, and that hurting me was not what he set out to do. We sat up all night talking, and he said he felt so bad for hurting me, and if he could take it all back, he would, because I didn’t deserve to be treated like that.” She has tears in her eyes, as she looks down at the table. “Whew! I didn’t mean to get emotional. Sorry about that.” She wipes her nose and sniffles. “He told me that he’s never felt feelings he feels for me before.” She puts her hands up to her mouth. “You know he wrote a song about it, don’t you?” I pretend not to know, “Seriously?”
She shakes her head, and with a smile proudly reveals, “Fairy Tale Man is about us.”
“I love that song, and I’ll have to admit, I was curious about the meaning of it.” I tell her.
“I feel so much better getting this off my chest Olivia, you have no idea. I haven’t told anyone, not even Emily. It’s kind of embarrassing.”
I know exactly how she feels, which is probably why I never told anyone about my first time. Hearing this from Kyra’s point of view, reassures me that Todd and Kyra care deeply for each other.
“Kyra, I’m so glad you shared that with me. I know that’s a hard subject to talk about, and I’m happy you feel comfortable talking to me. I think you’ve made Todd realize a lot of things; namely that life is not about casual sex, and that finding the right person can turn your life around. You’ve done that for him, you know.”
“Aww, thanks Olivia. That means so much. I really care for him, and I think I may be falling in love with him.”
“Well, here’s to happy days ahead for Todd and Kyra.” I say, as we clink our coffee cups.
The next week is full for me. I’ll be getting my passport, meeting with the caterer, the florist, and I desperately need to find my dress for the wedding. The RSVPs are coming in, and it seems everyone has responded they will attend. I’m so excited and can’t wait for May 4th to get here. Tommy and the guys have been fitted for what they’ll be wearing. The dresses Kyra and Lainey will wear have come in, and are safely hanging in the closet with Emily’s. Tommy has asked a friend of his, Smash, who is a professional deejay and sound engineer, to play the music for the ceremony and reception. He and Emily have given him their music list, and even asked Ash what we would like played for cocktail hour, while they are taking pictures. Emily has opted not to do the first look photos, and I’m so glad. The real beauty of a wedding ceremony is watching the face of the groom beholding his bride, walking down the aisle, not having seen her beforehand.
***
Ash and I have chosen big band music for the cocktail hour; Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Tony Bennett, and Michael Buble, to name a few. The rehearsal dinner
will be held at our house, since the actual rehearsal will be here, and Reba told us that her gift to Tommy and Emily was to do the food for the rehearsal dinner. She and her friends will cook and serve everyone, and although Ash told her he wanted to cater it, she insisted on single handedly taking this on. I have no doubt this will be a fantastically delicious affair. She’s also offered to work the day of the wedding, but Ash told her he insists she come as a guest, and he will not tolerate the idea of her working during the wedding, and that she will sit with us on the family row. She cried when we told her, “Mr. Harper, Miss Olivia I would be honored to sit with you. Tommy has always been special to me, you know, and I love him as I love my own.”
The night of the surprise shower is here. Emily and Tommy come to the house to ride with us to Ellen’s, thinking we are just going for dinner. As we pull up in Ellen’s driveway, Emily sees all the cars. “Why are all these cars here?” Once we get to the door, they realize it’s a shower for them.
“Are you kidding me? This is awesome.” Tommy yells.
There are beautifully wrapped gifts on a large table in the living room. Ellen has certainly outdone herself. There are wine bottles on each table, and the label on each bottle is a picture of Tommy and Emily, along with the date of the wedding. She’s had koozies made for everyone that are brown, with the same font in Emily’s invitation. They read ‘Shower them with Love’ on one side and the other side, inside a heart, ‘Tommy and Emily.’
Before we eat, Ellen makes sure everyone’s glass is full and she proposes a toast.
“To Tommy and Emily. You two are too darned cute, and we love you so much. We all extend our best wishes to you for lots of love, happiness, and lots of little babies one day.”
Tommy smiles, “No babies just yet, thank you very much. All in good time, though. Thanks everyone. This is awesome. Aunt Ellen, you’re the best.”
Todd stands up, looking surprised, “So wait... she’s NOT pregnant? Shit! I thought that’s what the fucking rush was all about.” Todd laughs, as Kyra playfully puts her hand over his mouth and everyone joins in the laughter.
Mariah finds her way over to me. “Olivia, can I talk to you for a minute?”
“Sure thing. What’s up?”
“Well, Glenn finally called me back and we’re meeting for lunch on Wednesday. I think he may come to the wedding. I’m not 100% sure yet, and he said that if he did come, he wants it to be a surprise.”
Oh, do you think that’s a good idea? I’m not sure Mariah. Emily will already be emotional; do you think that will send her over the edge?”
“Well, Glenn said that as much as he surprised her by exiting her life, he wants to surprise her by coming back into her life. The more I thought about it, it’s not such a bad idea. Glen is a very complex man, Olivia. He has his reasons, and I think we should just let him go with it.”
I’m not sure it’s a good idea, but if that’s the only way we can get him to participate, we have to go with it. I just hope their lunch goes well, and that he’ll finally commit.
Tommy and Emily have gotten such nice gifts at the shower, and we take them back to our house. Todd is letting Tommy and Emily move into Grammy’s old house, and said Emily could fix it up however she wants to. She was worried about where she would live, once they go on tour, so it’s the perfect solution, plus it’s close to us.
Mariah tells me that her and Glen’s lunch is a success. He will be at the wedding, but left explicit instructions that his arrival should be a surprise. I’ve arranged for a car to pick him up from his hotel, and he has agreed. He is firm that this is how he wants it, so at the risk of him not being here, Mariah and I have agreed to keep his secret. I just hope Emily is happy to see him, and that everything works out. Mariah was unsuccessful in locating Hannah, and I’m so sorry we couldn’t do better.
May 3rd is finally here; rehearsal day. Since Emily and I have last minute errands to run, Tommy volunteers to pick Lainey and Kellan up at the airport, and bring them back to the house to get ready.
Reba and her friends have been here since the crack of dawn cooking nonstop, preparing an exquisite dinner. The menu for tonight is beef tenderloin, rosemary roasted new potatoes, roasted artichoke bottoms, and a mixed green salad with orange, pomegranate seeds and goat cheese. Reba’s best friend is a pastry chef, and she has made a scrumptious dessert, along with cookies shaped like a guitar with a T & E on them. Ash has gone into the wine cellar and brought out some fabulous wines for us, along with several bottles of champagne.
Before everyone gets here, Ash and I go into our room to get dressed. He does that ‘come on sexy’ wink at me. “Liv, let’s sneak into our love room for a quickie.”
“Ash, I’d love to, but we gotta hurry.” I laugh.
Once safe and secure in our secret room, we quickly ditch our clothes and indulge in a passionate private moment. He sinks into me and I’m more than ready to accept him eagerly and wanting, with every thrust. He sends me over the edge, and I just wish we could lay here, with him inside me forever.
“Woman, you have no idea how I’ve been fantasizing about this all day. God, you feel so damn good. This is just a sampling of what I’m going to give you later tonight.”
Once we’ve finished making love, we hop in the shower and get ready to meet our guests. Tommy and Emily go up to get ready, once Lainey and Kel arrive. They’ve gotten a room in town, even though we offered them to stay with us. “Mom!” Lainey exclaims, when she walks through the door.
Even though it has only been a few weeks since I last saw her, she is now 7 months pregnant and looks splendid. Pregnancy becomes her and the full round belly bursting with life, just melts my heart.
“Lainey, you look…” I start to cry and she gives me a huge hug.
“Mom, don’t get all emotional. We’ll have enough of that tomorrow, and you know we’ll all be bawling our eyes out. Save some tears for that.”
Ash and Kel go into the bar to talk and pour themselves a drink, and Tommy comes down to join them once he’s dressed.
“So, getting nervous Tommy?” Kellan asks.
“Not just yet. I don’t think it’s fully sunk in, but tomorrow I’ll probably be totally worthless. Any words of wisdom, Kel?”
“Haha. I was a friggin basket case myself. Poor Lainey was a wreck, and I thought she was gonna pull a runaway bride on me. Nope, no words of wisdom from me, sorry to say.”
I take Lainey upstairs to where Emily is getting ready. We softly knock on her door.
“Em? Can we come in?” Lainey asks.
“Of course. I’m almost ready. I can’t zip this darn dress though. Can you help me please? Sorry, but I’m getting nervous.” She’s in her darling little black dress with strappy sandals, and her hair falls loose and wavy on her petite shoulders. She has very little makeup on, but looks dazzling. Sitting on the vanity bench, she applies a soft coral lip gloss, and all we can do when we see her is smile.
Lainey and I both bend down, give her a hug, and marvel over her radiant glow.
“Aww, I remember how I felt the night before Kel and I got married. I was a blubbering idiot, wasn’t I Mom? I cried from the time we were at rehearsal, straight through the night. I couldn’t stop, and Kel kept thinking it was because I was having second thoughts. I was just hormonal, because I’d gotten my period the day before, and I always get weepy during that time. Think about how fun my honeymoon was!” I have to laugh at that one. Poor Lainey was so upset. I told her she and Kel just had to wait a few days to have their wedding night fun.
About that time, Tommy knocks on the door. “Em? You dressed babe? Am I interrupting anything?”
“No, not at all. Come on in. We’re just chit chatting.”
Lainey and I turn to leave, as Tommy enters the room, “You don’t have to go. I just wanted to give Emily a little something before everyone gets here. I want you to see too.”
He’s holding a little black box, tied with a pretty coral ribbon, which he proudly presents to E
mily.
“Here Em, it’s just a little something for you to wear tonight. I love you babe.”
Curiously, she takes the box and gives him a hug, as she opens it. Inside, is a beautiful strand of delicate pearls.
“Oh my God! Tommy these are gorgeous. I’ve never had real pearls. Thank you so much.” She says, as she gets teary eyed.
“Pearls signify purity and harmony. You’re pure, beautiful, and you’re my harmony, Em.”
As he puts them on her neck, he tenderly kisses her and clears his throat, as he unknowingly becomes emotional.
“Ah hum. So, didn’t mean to interrupt you ladies, just wanted to give my future wife a little gift. See you in a bit. I’m going to have a drink with Dad and Kel.” With that, he’s gone and we’re left speechless.
“Wow! What a guy.” Lainey says, “He’s made me cry, thank you very much. I said I was NOT going to cry tonight.”
“See, it’s contagious. You’ve got me crying now.” I say.
Emily laughs through her tears, “Yeah, he’s pretty special, isn’t he? I can’t believe that tomorrow this prince charming will be my husband. How lucky I am. Olivia, I’m so thankful you hooked us up. I know that’s why you invited him over the night I came to decorate, and you can’t deny it. You’re the best matchmaker ever, and now you’re gonna be my mother-in-law.”
“Busted am I?” I laugh. “But it did work out exactly the way I planned it, Emily. I knew all along it would.”
“Well hell, then let’s go get a glass of wine. I’m ready. We’ve got some rehearsing to do. I’ve got my little black dress on and my beautiful pearls.” Emily gets up, and we follow her downstairs.
Todd and Kyra arrive shortly after we get downstairs, and they look blissful themselves.
Little by little, everyone arrives and Reba has delicious appetizers out for us, along with cocktails. She and her crew have made this an exquisite affair. The weather has cooperated, and we move outdoors to get organized. Angelica takes charge and makes sure everyone is where he or she needs to be. Scott, Tommy and Emily are in the study. I see their heads bowed through the window, and assume Scott is having prayer with them. Tommy is holding Emily’s hand and Scott has his hands on each of their heads. Not wanting to intrude by gawking at the window, I walk over to where Ash and the guys are standing. Mariah and Gary have arrived, as have Ellen, David, Melissa, and Trey.
Out of The Box Regifted Page 17
