"Between those damned diaries and other molehills which are turning my life into an un-scalable mountain, I am troubled," she said, emptying a cup of brown liquid down the drain.
"Diaries?"
"Yes, I write everything down. I always have, and I wrote down every ugly day of my childhood, which are in my diaries. Diaries which are now in my garage." She told him.
"I take it, the dairies being in the garage and not the house means you have yet to read them," he said softly.
"Pip said I would be a fool to open the journals and my emotional well up to fill the reservoir of my mind spring with dark memories," she said. "Oh yeah, I found out that Michael took me to some kind of hypnotist to suppress a great deal of the content in those books."
Scott remained calm as he listened to everything she said and did not say in those two sentences. Pip could be deep in her allegories on life, but more importantly, Zelda wanted him to address the issue, but not yet. Between her baggage and his own, he was really trying to determine how to smooth out all the rough edges to give them a good life. A life without secrets.
"What did your Dad say about it, considering he is in the dairies as well?" Scott asked.
"I didn't mention the books to him because I just realized three weeks ago that he was my biological father, which is what caused me to pass out at work," she said shrugging her shoulders and feeling stupid in the same motion. "That day you got the weird feeling was nothing in comparison to the weird feeling I got when I added two and two."
Scott held three red cups in his hand, pouring the liquid into the sink, before adding the cups to the recyclables. "All of these years, Zelda, it is difficult to believe you couldn't see the resemblance."
"The hardest thing to see is often what is right in front of your face," she told him.
"I don't know. Most of the time when we think we want to know the truth, when in actuality, we really don't. It is almost like a feeling of empowerment. Your mind begins to negotiate with your logic that this bad thing has happened, but I am going to make lemon martinis out of these old lemons. It’s almost like giving yourself permission to shut it all out. You know, like I can get buzzed while I close out the ugly," he said softly, keeping his voice to a whisper.
"Ugly feels like it is trying to strangle the fuck out of me."
"I hope that doesn’t happen, since that would dampen our next two days," Scott said, laughing.
"It won't matter. That gnarled up chicken foot my Grandma used on your forehead is probably going to zap all the fuck out of you, too," she said, laughing.
The fire pit burned low as Michael added a few bits of paper to it as well as the cardboard containers which had held the beer, since they would not fit in the recycle bins. The burning fire gave Scott an idea.
"Zelda, since we are all here, maybe, and this is just a suggestion, go in there and bring out the diaries. Pick three of the prettiest covers and keep those only. The rest, burn in this fire pit, like closing out the old life, preparing for a new one. Tomorrow we can go and buy a few new leather-bound journals for you to chronicle your new journey," Scott said with a meager smile.
"You don't want me to open those boxes either, do you?"
"That is your call, but dredging up all that old dirt could destroy you. Suspecting, I guess, your stepfather was a bastard is one thing, knowing and remembering he was a bastard is another. In my head, I have always been made to believe that when and if the dog is sleeping on the porch, leave it alone," Scott said.
"Maybe you are right," she said, looking towards the rear of the garage. "Come help me."
Hand in hand, they walked into the garage, locating the boxes, the one which had gotten wet now growing a green ominous mold. Leaving the garage, she carried one box and Scott the others as they returned to the back yard.
"Hey everyone, come over here," Zelda called. "I have decided what to do with these diaries."
"Yay, you are going to burn them!" Pip said.
"No, not all of them," she said.
"I am going to pick three, maybe four, to keep and burn the remainder," she said. Opening the boxes slowly, she touched each notebook, pad, and hardbound journal, until she spotted a pink one that she remembered.
"I gave you that one, Zelda, for your tenth birthday," Wilke said.
"Okay, this one goes into my keep pile," she said. A pretty blue one with delicate flowers and beading caught her eye.
"I gave that one to you for your 12th birthday,” Michael said.
"Keeping that one as well," she said.
The last one, Pip selected, a hard-bound journal adorned with red and blue hearts. “I like this one. It’s covered in hearts, which may mean it is about love or something sweet,” she said.
Michael added more fuel to the flames, bringing the simmering embers to a full fire as Zelda, Wilke, Pip, and Scott ripped away the coils on the notebooks, allowing Zelda to add each piece to the fire. When all but the three journals burned like feathery paper nightmares, Scott suggested she say a few words.
“Well, I’m not sure what to say in this situation other than ‘goodbye,’” she said to the now dying fire.
“Good riddance,” Michael chimed in.
“May the darkness never visit your doorstep again,” Pip added.
“A farewell to nightmares which haunt our daydreams,” Chandler said.
Everyone looked at Wilke, who shrugged his shoulders.
Scott’s arm went around her shoulder. He placed a kiss on her temple. “We will create new memories, Zelda, which you can record to share with our children.”
“And my little red-headed children too,” Michael said as everyone stared at him. “What? I’m going to Cincinnati and meet her folks, then I’m coming to Vegas with a big ass ring, and Pip, I’m going to make you mine.”
“I’m already yours, Michael,” she said, rubbing his arm.
Michael’s eyebrows went up. “On that note, good people, we will say goodnight. Pip, I think my back is a tad bit sweaty and in need of you giving it a good washing.”
She giggled, following him in the house, whispering she was going to wash his front too.
“I can’t get used to that,” Scott frowned, his attention turning to Wilke. “Sir, it was a pleasure to meet you. I am here until Wednesday, so hopefully, we can spend a bit of time together.”
“Yeah, I’d like that,” Wilke said. “Goodnight you two.”
“Goodnight, Papa Bear,” she said, giving him a brief hug. Wilke teared up a little at the affection.
“It’s good to see you happy, Zelda,” he told her.
“I am finally getting clear of all of it,” she told him. “Thank you for looking out for me.”
“You’re my baby. It’s what I’m supposed to do,” he said, waving as he walked across the yard. Zelda’s attention was on Wilke, Scott’s on the fire pit.
“Do we need to put water or dirt on this fire?” Scott asked.
“No, just turn off the gas,” he said.
“He added fuel to a gas burning pit! What in the hell?”
“He added fuel to the paper so it would burn through and through. You need to add some fuel to all of this so I can burn hot for you all night,” she said.
“I need a cookie,” he said.
“Excuse me?”
“My blood sugar is dropping. I need a cookie,” he repeated.
“I am offering you a night of all this sexy, and you want a cookie?”
“Yep. I’m going to eat my damned cookie then I will...you know,” he said, wagging his eyebrows. “Zelda, I am going to have a lifetime of all that sexy, but those cookies will get stale.”
“As long as you and I don’t, everything will be fine,” she said.
“You and I, my spectacular lady, will be more than fine. We are in love, moving forward, and once you meet my insane family, I think we will be ready to set a date to make us man and wife,” he said.
“But first there is Vegas. I have to get through two months of th
at nonsense,” she said.
“Then my parents,” he said. “...which is a whole different load of nonsense and puppetry.”
“Scott, my life has changed so much since meeting you, I am just overwhelmed with all sorts of emotions,” she said.
“Together, we will sort it all out,” he said.
“Right now, I want to sort out my pillow, after, if I may quote Pip, I get me some...,” he put his hand over her lips.
“Nope. Don’t quote Pip ever! Let’s go get showered and get to bed,” he said, placing her hand in his.
“I love you, Scott,” she said leaning into his shoulder.
“I love you more, Zelda soon-to-be Berger,” he said.
“No. No and no. I am keeping my maiden name. I am not going to be known as Zelda Berger. It sounds like a hamburger special at a greasy dive in Waco,” she said, frowning.
“Maybe we can compromise and hyphenate it but that is going to be a very long name,” he laughed.
“Ooh, you said long,” she laughed, winking at him.
“Your mind is always in the gutter,” he told her.
“Only when it comes to you, Scott Berger,” she said. The night ended quietly with a spectacular woman in his arms, love in his heart and tons of random thoughts in his head. Four or five months from now he and Zelda would look back on all of it as part of the journey. A trip to finding happiness they both deserved, but neither ever felt worthy to possess.
The diaries represented more to Zelda than the chronicling of a childhood of mistreatment. Those journals represented a truth. Scott had his own truths to share with her, but now wasn’t the moment. In Las Vegas, he would take the time to get deeper into his past, the woman, or number three in his life, whom he never discussed. If my marriage to Zelda is going to last, I have to tell her about Carla. I never talk about Carla, not even to Chandler.
I want a life with this woman.
My spectacular woman.
My freaky ass Zelda.
“I love you,” he whispered in the dark to her sound asleep form. Zelda snuggled closer to him, draping a slender leg over his very hairy one. “Our kids are going to be adorable.”
Across the kitchen in the Fitzsimmons home, a very sated Pip snuggled against her new beau, a man who’d declared he planned to marry her, but had yet to declare his love. As amazing as he was in bed, she wasn’t certain he was ready to commit his heart to a relationship with her. Undoubtedly, he would give her a good life, but was he willing to be emotionally available to her and the red headed children he suddenly wanted to have. It was all too convenient.
She felt she’d been convenient for him.
He sure as hell had been convenient for her.
Maybe if I just go to Vegas before he meets my Mama. Oh Lord, he wants to meet my Mama. That is not going to go over well. She shifted in the bed, started to sweat at the idea.
“Pip,” Michael whispered in her ear.
“Yes Micheal,” she replied, her fingers touching his stomach.
“I’m yours,” he said, holding her close to him.
“What?”
“I don’t know how you managed to walk through that door, rob me of my desire to ever look at another woman and steal my heart all while making the best lemon cake I’ve ever had in my life. Persephone, I don’t need anyone to take care of me, I can take care of myself. However, you have pointed out what is missing in my life. The idea of having children never entered my head, but the sheer thought of you being their mother, I want to have a houseful. Marry me, Pip. Make me whole,” he said.
“Michael, I don’t know what to say,” she said. “This is all going kind of fast if you ask me. It’s only been three weeks.”
“...And I knew after three days that I loved you. I have never felt for any woman like I feel for you. Tell me what you need Persephone. Tell me what you want,” Michael said for her.
“To be loved and respected,” she whispered. “Michael, I also want the fairy tale. All of my life I have been the odd duck, the last playmate picked on the playground. It would be nice for once in my life to feel like a first choice.”
“I can do that,” he told her. “That I can do. Will you have me as your man, husband, lover, and the father of our red headed children?”
“Technically, with your coloring and my red hair, our kids will have hazel eyes and dirty blond hair...,” she said.
“Shut up and kiss me,” Michael said making loud smacking sounds with their mouths. “Our babies are going to be smart too. Smarter than those hairy, bucked toothed babies of Zelda and Scott’s.”
“This isn’t a competition Michael,” Pip cautioned.
“Yes, I know, but our kids at least will be born cute,” he said laughing. He giggled unmanly like to himself waiting for sleep to claim him as the thoughts of adorable little kids running around the house took over. The idea of cookouts on the patio with his nieces and nephews playing with his own kids made him snuggle even closer to Pip.
Wholly Moses! I’m in love.
What the hell did I just say?
“Go to sleep Michael, you think too much,” Pip said snuggling closer to her new man that she knew, her mother was going to immediately dislike. It didn’t matter. He loved her and she love Michael Fitzsimmons. Zelda was her new best friend and her family now included Scott Berger and a black British butler. Life, was getting really interesting.
- Fin -
Late October. No preorders on this one.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
As an award-winning, best-selling Amazon author, Olivia loves a good laugh coupled with some steam, mixed in with a man and woman finding their way past the words of “I love you.” An author of contemporary romances, she writes heartwarming stories of blossoming relationships about couples not only falling in love but building a life after the hot sex scene.
When Olivia is not writing, she enjoys quilting, playing Scrabble online against other word lovers and spending time with her family. She is an avid world traveler who writes many of the locations into her stories. Most of the time she can be found sitting quietly with pen and paper plotting more adventures in love.
Olivia lives in Hephzibah, Georgia with her husband, son, grandson and snotty evil cat, Katness Evermean.
Learn more about her books, upcoming releases and join her bibliophile nation at www.ogaines.com
Subscribe to her email list at http://eepurl.com/OulYf
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Did you love A Saucy Sunday? Then you should read A Frickin' Fantastic Friday by Olivia Gaines!
Zelda and Scott are at it again. Comne joint he love fest with Scott and Zelda.
Read more at Olivia Gaines’s site.
A Saucy Sunday (The Zelda Diaries Book 4) Page 10
