From This Moment

by Sean D. Young

  “No, she just said dress up and prepare to have a good time.”

  Jonathan took the coat from her. “Well, let me help you with that and we can get this party started.”

  * * *

  There were lots of cars lining the driveway and parked on the street at Rose and Marc’s house.

  Ivy pointed. “My mom and dad are here.”

  “I see Uncle Isaiah’s car here, too,” Jonathan said.

  Jonathan found a parking space along the curb in front of Violet’s late model Lexus.

  They got out of the car and walked the short distance to the house. As they went up the sidewalk to the front door, Ivy noticed that Rose had found a way to redecorate the outside of the house with lights that illuminated the pathway. She always loved the way Rose added her personal touch to her home.

  Jonathan rang the bell. When Marc opened the door Ivy thought he gave her a funny look when they exchanged hellos. She shrugged it off as her imagination and promised herself that she wouldn’t be paranoid. This party wasn’t for her, it was for Rose.

  Rose and Marc had lived in the home for two years. Each and every time Ivy visited her sister, she saw something different. When they walked into the living room, she noticed that Rose had placed four gorgeous new paintings on the wall. Ivy was admiring them when Rose came over to her.

  “Girl, you know you sharp,” Rose said to Ivy before giving Jonathan a hug.

  “Look at you, you are simply glowing,” Ivy said, pulling her sister to her.

  Rose stepped back and curtsied. “Why, thank you so much ma’am,” she said playfully, turning so Ivy could see the red loose-fitting jacket dress with print duster trimmed in white satin. She stuck her leg out so that Ivy could see the slits on the sides.

  Ivy looked up again at the paintings. “Where did you get these? I love the abstract shapes.”

  “Would you believe I found them at an estate sale?”

  “Really?”

  “Yeah, and we paid about twenty dollars apiece for them,” Rose said, walking away, and then stopping right in front of the threshold of the door.

  “Everybody’s in the family room,” Rose announced.

  Ivy and Jonathan walked into the spacious room. Her parents and the Damons were sitting on the large leather pit-style set listening to music. There was a big-screen television, entertainment center and lots of family photos on the wall.

  “Hey, everybody,” she said, waving her hand. Jonathan walked in behind her and did the same. He walked over to properly greet his aunt and uncle while Ivy went to speak to her parents. She was surprised to see her mother holding a wine glass.

  “Mom, what are you drinking?” Ivy asked, giving her a hug.

  After squeezing her daughter, Louvenia handed Ivy the glass. “Moscato, I think,” she said with uncertainty. “Lili gave that to me. She knows I don’t drink, but she said that Rosie wanted everyone to have a glass.”

  “Oh,” Ivy said. She moved around to the other side to place a kiss on her father’s cheek. “Hey, Daddy.”

  “How’s my baby girl?”

  “Good.” She patted her mother’s knee. “You guys look nice in your matching red outfits.”

  Andrew glanced over at Louvenia. “Your mother made me wear this. You know I hate red.”

  Louvenia turned up her nose and shook her head at her husband’s statement.

  “Where are Lili and Violet?” Ivy asked.

  Andrew Hart crossed his legs at the ankle. “They are helping Marc in the kitchen.”

  Ivy went over to speak to the Damons, and then she left to look for her sisters.

  Walking through the dining room area, she stopped to inspect the beautiful table settings. A crinkled silk cloth covered the formal dining room table which seated eight with matching chair covers. It was adorned with one continuous centerpiece of garden and spray roses, kaleidoscope phalaenopsis orchids and sweet pea. Another smaller table had been decorated in the same manner.

  Ivy could do nothing but smile. She walked to the kitchen where she found Violet.

  “Wow, this is going to be some kind of party,” Ivy said to Violet as she ladled the soup into the dish.

  “It smells good in here.” She walked closer to Violet. “You better be careful not to ruin your outfit.” Ivy pulled the apron her sister wore up further around her neck and retied it so it would cover her entire front.

  “Thanks, Vee. I’m trying not to just sit down and serve myself some of this soup.”

  Ivy peeked into the pot that was on the stove. “It looks like clam chowder.”

  “It is, and mmmm, it smells so good.”

  “You need any help?”

  Violet looked around. “No, I don’t think so, Marc only asked me to put the soup in the tureen, and he’ll take care of the rest.”

  Ivy scanned the kitchen. “Where is Lili?”

  “She’ll be back, she said that the cake got messed up or something and she didn’t bring any of her supplies.”

  “That girl.” Ivy shook her head. “Well, if you don’t need any help, I’m going back to the family room.”

  Violet picked up a clean towel and wiped her hands off. Placing the ladle inside the bowl, she put the lid on it. “I’m going with you,” she said, removing the apron and laying it on the back of the chair.

  “Where’s Jonathan?” Violet asked.

  “He’s around here somewhere. When I left, he was talking to his aunt and uncle,” Ivy replied as they approached the room.

  “Is the food ready yet?” Andrew asked.

  “Not just yet, Daddy,” Ivy answered. She sat down on the other side of her parents on the couch.

  “It should be in a minute, though,” Violet said.

  They waited for the host and hostess to come into the room.

  * * *

  Finally, Rose and Marc both entered the room together. Rose stepped forward and addressed everyone. Marc came to stand next to her, and then pulled her to his side.

  “Marc and I asked you all to come over this evening because we have something to tell you.”

  Everyone sat straight up in their seats.

  Rose looked up at Marc, tears brimming in her eyes. Marc bent to kiss her, before Andrew yelled out, “Will you tell us already?”

  Isaiah said, “Don’t keep us in suspense.”

  “We’re having a baby,” Marc said quickly.

  Excitement filled the room as the grandparents-to-be surrounded the happy couple. Ivy didn’t know why her heart sank. It definitely wasn’t because she was jealous of Rose. She understood how badly Rose wanted to be a mother, and this news was her dream come true.

  Until recently, she never even thought about being a mother. She’d left all those thoughts behind after her accident. It only occurred to Ivy at that moment: maybe she couldn’t have any children.

  Jonathan came over to her. “Baby, why don’t we go out on the deck for a minute?” He held out his hand to her.

  Ivy looked up at him and placed her hand in his. The concern he showed for her was one of the reasons she loved him. As they passed Marc and Rose, Ivy stopped.

  Her eyes widened when she hugged her sister and Rose whispered, “You told me to stop worrying, and I did.”

  When she said those words, tears spilled down Ivy’s cheeks. She was truly happy for Rose.

  They hugged again and Ivy could see Rose’s tears. Ivy retreated and said, “I’m going to be Auntie Vee.” She smiled and waited for Jonathan to give them his congratulations.

  * * *

  Ivy and Jonathan walked through the dining area into the kitchen. They walked to the back, he slid the door open enough for them to step out on the deck.

  “It’s chilly out here,” Ivy said, rubbing her arms.

  Jonathan invited her into his open arms. “Come here, baby.” He held her close to him, whispering, “We’ll go back inside in a minute. I saw the sad expression on your face when Rose made her announcement and thought maybe you needed some air.” He releas
ed her.

  Looking into her eyes he asked, “You want to be a mother, too, don’t you?”

  “I hadn’t thought about being a mom in a very long time. I’m not sure what triggered it, but lately . . .” Her voice trailed off.

  Jonathan lifted her chin, so that he could look into her eyes. “It’s okay to say it, baby.”

  Tears brimming, she finally said, “I want to be a mommy.”

  Jonathan hugged her again. “I know you do, and you will.”

  Curving his arm around her shoulders, he held her to his side. “Come on, let’s get inside. I don’t want you to catch a cold.”

  They walked back inside to join the rest of the family in the celebration.

  * * *

  “Where did you guys slip off to?” Violet asked Ivy when she and Jonathan returned.

  “I just needed to get some air, and Jonathan went with me.”

  Jonathan touched her elbow. “Baby, I’m going to help Marc out in the kitchen.”

  Ivy nodded.

  Violet responded by raising her eyebrow. Ivy ignored the look and asked, “Where’s Lili?”

  Violet shrugged.

  Ivy checked her watch. “She’s been gone a long time.”

  “Knowing Lili, she might have remade the cake or something,” Violet said.

  Rose came over to where they were standing. “Aww, mommy,” Violet said, reaching for Rose.

  “How are you feeling?” Ivy asked, rubbing Rose’s back as she and Violet hugged each other.

  “I feel great today, but I felt tired all the time for the last two weeks. I thought it was because we had been so busy, but when I got up the other morning and the room was spinning like I’d just got off a Ferris wheel, I started paying more attention. I went to the doctor, took a blood test and they told me that I was pregnant.” Rose could barely get it out without crying.

  Ivy hugged her. “I’m so happy for you. You’re going to make a great mom.”

  “Where is Lili?” their mother asked.

  “That seems to be the question of the hour,” Violet said.

  “We need to eat soon, because you know how your father is when he’s really hungry.”

  “Come on, let’s eat,” Rose said, walking toward the doorway. “We don’t have to wait for Lili, she’ll get something when she comes in,” Rose said.

  Everyone followed her to the dining room.

  * * *

  Jonathan entered the kitchen, where Marc was working to get the food on the platters.

  “Man, have you ever seen Aunt Rachel cry like that before?” Jonathan asked.

  “No, and it looked like Unc shed a few of his own.”

  Jonathan’s eyes got big. “He’d never admit to it.”

  “For sho,” Marc commented as he put the rice pilaf on a long white dish.

  Jonathan grabbed a set of oven mitts and removed the steaks from the broiler. He placed the tray on the stove so the meat could sit and the juices redistribute themselves. “Are you excited about the baby?” he asked his brother.

  Marc stopped what he was doing. “Man, I feel like I’m ten feet tall. I really can’t explain how I feel about it. You’ll understand once you and Ivy have kids.”

  “Maybe, I don’t know. She got really emotional about the baby announcement, so I took her out on the deck and we talked for a bit.”

  Marc was ready to take his plate out of the room. “So it looks like the marriage is working out for you two?”

  Jonathan beamed with pride. “We are solid. I told her that we would be fine.”

  “You really do love her. I can see it now. The way your eyes sparkle when you talk about her. How the tone of your voice changes when you say her name.”

  Marc raised his hand. “Many blessings to y’all, man.” They slapped each other a high five.

  Jonathan picked up his platter and Marc lifted his from the table. Neither of them saw Lili when she came in through the side door of the kitchen. She’d heard their whole conversation.

  * * *

  “Well, it’s about time you came back,” Rose told Lili when she walked into the dining room.

  Lili waved. “Evening, everybody.”

  Leaning over, Lili whispered in Rose’s ear. “Come upstairs with me. I need to tell you something.”

  Rose looked puzzled. “What is it?”

  “Just come upstairs.”

  “But we’re getting ready to eat and I’m already nauseous.”

  “It won’t take long, I promise.”

  Rose watched as her guests took their seats at the table to enjoy the feast that Marc had prepared. They dined on crab cakes and scallops for the hors d’oeuvres, then clam chowder. He served a gourmet meal of delicious steak and tender salmon while she and Lili were in her bedroom upstairs.

  Chapter 24

  As soon as they entered her bedroom, Rose closed the door and turned to Lili. “What have you done?” she whispered.

  Lili frowned. “Me? What have I done? Not a thing, it’s your other sister.”

  It was Rose’s turn to frown. “Stop it, Lili.”

  “No, really, Vee is the one who’s in the hot seat this time.”

  “Vee? What did she do?”

  Lili put her hands on her hips and sashayed over to the dresser and stared at herself in the mirror.

  “Spill it, Lili. I know you didn’t bring me up here to play a game of dress-up. So tell me what you were told or what you heard. I know it was either one or the two.”

  “Vee got married.”

  Rose squinted, trying to process the information she’d just been given. “Wherever you heard that, it can’t be right. Don’t you think we would have known if she’d gotten married?” Rose started walking back and forth in front of the door. “Who would she get married to? She just started dating Jonathan.”

  Rose stared at Lili, who stood silently.

  Slowly, Rose said, “Jonathan?”

  Lili nodded slowly.

  Rose moved purposefully over to Lili and grabbed her arm. “Let’s go,” she said, anger in her tone, as she dragged her sister out of the room.

  “Where are we going?” Lili asked, struggling to remove herself from her sister’s grip.

  “You’ll see in a minute.” They walked swiftly down the stairs, and as soon as they walked into the dining room, Rose pushed Lili in front of her.“I want you to tell them what you just told me.”

  Lili stepped back, but Rose just pushed her forward again.

  Louvenia glared at both her daughters before saying, “Will one of you please tell us so that we can eat? We have been waiting long enough; the food is going to get cold.”

  Lili stared at Ivy, her face turned up. Then she looked at Jonathan before glancing at her parents.

  Hunching her shoulders, she said, “We’ve got something else to celebrate.”

  Louvenia fell back against her chair. “Please don’t tell me you’re pregnant, too.”

  Lili waved her right hand vigorously. “No, no, nothing like that, Mother.” She glanced at every person sitting at the table one by one. “You could congratulate me, though.”

  “Baby girl, you are stalling,” Andrew said, pointing his fork at her.

  Lili turned to Rose and said, “Okay, congratulations to me, I’m going to be an aunt and I found out I got a new brother-in-law, all in the same day.”

  Ivy scowled. Throwing her napkin on the floor, she pushed her chair back in a hurry and yanked her arm back when Jonathan tried to stop her.

  She walked directly over to Lili. “Who told you?” Her nostrils flared. “I have told you that your mouth is going to get you into trouble one day. Well, today is the day.”

  Jonathan jumped up from his seat as their parents looked on in amazement. Once again Ivy snatched her hand back when he tried to catch her hand. “I want to explain what happened,” he said.

  Louvenia stood to her feet. “Somebody better explain, and quick.”

  Ivy’s anger was apparent. She turned to Jonathan and
yelled, “You had no right to tell my business. I wanted to tell my parents, and you took away that right.” Jonathan reached out to her and she turned her back.

  Marc got up from his seat and went to her. “Ivy, don’t blame Jonathan, it was my fault. Lili must have been in the kitchen listening to our conversation earlier.”

  Ivy twisted her head to the side, but her back stayed to Jonathan. “I don’t care if it was your fault. He had to be the one to tell you.”

  Marc looked down at his hands. “He didn’t actually tell me, Ivy. I guessed.”

  She turned to face him. “He didn’t deny it. Did he?”

  “No, he didn’t, but he was defending you, and I guess it just slipped out.”

  Jonathan hadn’t moved from where he was standing. He attempted one last time to reach out to Ivy. This time he touched her shoulder. “Can we talk about this in private?”

  Ivy rolled her eyes and turned to face him. “In private? For what? All you’re going to do is put our business out on the streets anyway. What good would it do if we were in a room all by ourselves?”

  Silently, Ivy walked from the room and got her coat. Once she was at the door, she remembered she came with Jonathan. She walked back in the room and beckoned for Violet.

  “Will you take me home? I forgot I didn’t drive my car.”

  Jonathan stepped over to her. “I’ll take you home. We can talk on the way.”

  Ivy threw her left hand in his face. “I’m done talking to you.” She looked at her sister for an answer.

  Violet got up from her chair and retrieved her coat.

  Rose went to Marc and asked, “How long have you known Vee and Jonathan were married?”

  “Not long.”

  “And you didn’t tell me?”

  Marc pulled Rose into his arms and kissed her. “We’ll talk about this later. Right now I need to see about my brother.”

  * * *

  On the way to Ivy’s condo, the only voice that could be heard was the disc jockey on the smooth jazz radio station.

  Violet glanced over at Ivy. “Vee, you can’t really get mad at him. You told me.”

  Ivy jerked her head in her sister’s direction. “That was different, it was my right.”

  “It’s his marriage, too, so he has equal rights.”