SHIPS CompanionSHIP, FriendSHIP, RelationSHIP

by K'Anne Meinel

  Neither Joan nor Grace mentioned that Joan’s memory had returned yet. Instead they invited the couple to dinner with them. Joan, knowing her son as well as she did, knew something was on his mind. They spoke of neutral subjects, a habit everyone had gotten into so as not to leave Joan out of conversations over the past few months. Kim talked about her clinic, something Joan and Grace both were interested in. She’d had to hire several additional doctors, nurses, and techs. Joan made a mental note to be sure she had the funds for her own lab available but said nothing.

  Dinner over they all pitched in and cleared the table, putting their used dishes in the dishwasher. In no time it was cleared away and they were sitting, chatting in the sunken living room drinking wine. Joan got up to let out D.O.G. and watched him from the deck as he went about his business. Joan was enjoying the moonlight and the quiet night sounds, drinking her wine when Bryan joined her.

  “Mom?”

  Turning towards him she smiled. Her tall handsome son. Something had been on his mind for awhile she could tell. She’d be patient though and wait for him to tell her.

  “Mom, I have something I’ve been wanting to discuss with you for awhile.” He looked down at the dog sniffing around at the weeds. “I wanted to wait until, well you know, until you got your memory back, but I don’t want to wait anymore, that may not happen.” He looked embarrassed at this lack of faith in his opinion. He’d waited for months for her to get back to ‘normal’. In Kim’s opinion it may never happen and he’d resigned himself to it.

  “Don’t put things on hold for me” she said alarmed. She went to tell him she’d gotten her memory back but he interrupted.

  “I want to marry Kim” he said quickly before he changed his mind to tell her.

  Not really surprised but very pleased she smiled up at him and gathered him into her arms. She hadn’t been a touchy person since the hospital. She’d been so distant to everyone, holding them at arms length. Not allowing physical contact had been a defense mechanism and very effective. Bryan was surprised and pleased to find his mother hugging him after all this time. He craved knowing his old mom but Kim assured him the new one was just as knowable. Holding him brought back memories of her baby. Her baby was going to get married. Where had all the time gone? Giving him a bear hug as of old, he looked at her suspiciously. The new Joan didn’t hug, didn’t touch. The old one did and he looked at her for a moment and with her grin realized what had happened.

  “Mom?”

  “Yes?” she answered all innocently.

  “Do you have something to tell me?” His tone matched her joking one.

  “Hmmm, maybe.” Her smile though told him everything.

  Just then D.O.G. returned from his nightly run. The three of them returned to the living room.

  Grace and Kim were having a ‘shop’ talk. They looked up and Grace could tell by Joan’s anticipatory smile that Bryan knew.

  Joan glanced at Kim’s ring finger but didn’t see a ring on it. Bryan saw her look and looked at her alarmed, shaking his head. She raised her eyebrow in question to Bryan and he knew his old Mom was back, it said a lot but without words. Frowning, he shook his head and then leaned it to the side to indicate The Ring sketch framed and hung over the fireplace. Frowning in return she looked at him in question. She headed for the kitchen where they could talk and he followed.

  “You haven’t asked?” was her first question to him.

  “No, but we’ve discussed it. I told you I wanted to wait until...” he drifted quiet, uncomfortable.

  “What about the Ring?” she asked.

  “Well, I want to design one for her but I don’t know where to begin. I thought that was so romantic what you did for Grace.” He felt like a little boy again in front of his mother. “I don’t want to wait months though for them to make it.”

  Thinking a moment she studied him, then “well, what do you want it to look like then?”

  “That’s part of the problem, I don’t know” he felt very foolish now. He knew he wanted Kim in his life forever but couldn’t decide on what he wanted the ring to look like.

  Rolling her eyes at her son’s foolishness she answered “well, why don’t you come by tomorrow and perhaps we can sketch it out together?”

  Relief shown in his eyes. His mother was BACK. She had an answer to something that meant a lot to him. He was certain of Kim’s answer but wanted the symbol to be very special. Giving her a quick hug they went back to the living room together.

  Grace and Kim were still chatting but Kim looked up puzzled at the two of them as they sat down. Giving Bryan a ‘what’ kind of look. Joan sat there laughing silently at his being uncomfortable. Grace gave her a look too in question.

  “So, Kim, you were right” Joan began.

  Alarmed, Bryan tried to get her attention.

  Kim looked at her with questions in her eyes “which time?” she asked.

  Smiling a sideways sort of smile Joan answered “that if I relaxed and let time heal me, things would come back to me.”

  “Your getting your memories back?” Kim answered excitedly. Joan could see the relief in Bryan’s demeanor out of the corner of her eye.

  “All of them” Joan answered.

  “Really, when did this happen?”

  “In the last couple of days.”

  Kim looked at her speculatively for a moment. She was genuinely happy for this woman. In the months that she had come to know Bryan’s mom, she had come to care for her. In the months since the accident though she’d become a real friend. She was concerned though at the abruptiveness of the return of her memory. “How did it happen? What triggered it?” she asked.

  Not about to tell them that making love to Grace had really triggered things, Joan almost choked to suppress her laughter. Grace’s eyes almost bugged out of her head thinking that Joan would do it just for the shock value alone. “Oh, I had a few blinding flashes that led up to it. Then believe it or not the other night...” she trailed off realizing that Grace was about to burst. She couldn’t hold back her laughter for a second. To the listeners of her tale she sounded mad for a moment before she continued “I cracked my neck the other night and it really hurt bad, the worst blinding flash happened then. I realized I could remember things again. The headaches I’ve been having too are gone” she finished. She smiled at Grace over what she thought would be said to have triggered her memory.

  Grace shook her head at Joan’s teasing. She grinned in response as well. She’d thought for a moment there that Joan was going to tell them. They had been so discreet over the years it had become second nature to both of them.

  “You should stop in at the hospital and have the neurology department run some tests to make sure things are okay” Kim told her seriously. Not understanding the laughter or the looks Grace and Joan were exchanging. She figured it must be because of their joy at the return of the memories.

  “What so they can tell me if I have half a brain?” asked Joan in a mocking voice, still amused.

  “Exactly” said Grace and Bryan at the same moment. They exchanged looks and joined in the laughter this generated.

  Kim and Grace continued to try to convince Joan to get a check up and by the end of the evening had her pretty well convinced to see someone later that week. Bryan and Kim left together and Bryan whispered to his mother ‘tomorrow’ as he gave her a hug goodbye.

  Joan couldn’t wait to tell Grace the news and they discussed the couple until they went to bed that evening.

  Joan was already changed into a nightgown and in bed as she watched Grace get ready for bed. She watched as Grace brushed her teeth, and her hair, not with the same brush of course. Grace washed her face with water and smoothed lotion on it and rubbed the same lotion into her hands. Rubbing the excess up her arms, she cleaned the sink, turned out the lights in the bathroom and looked up to realize Joan was watching her every move. Walking towards the bed she said “what?”

  Shaking her head in response, Joan pulled the bedcl
othes down for Grace to get in. When Grace was settled in and had turned out the light on her side of the bed, the only light that shown was the one on Joan’s side of the bed at her back. Joan still continued to watch Grace. Grace returned the steady, intense look for awhile and as she began to feel uncomfortable Joan reached out to caress her face. Her fingertips went along the jaw line. Her eyes focused on where her hand touched. She gently caressed along under her ear, the edge of her neckline, her shoulder, her collarbone, to return to her jawline. Grace turned and gently kissed her fingertips. Joan pulled her hand back and continued to watch Grace. Finally Grace could wait no more and asked “what are you thinking?”

  Smiling gently Joan looked at her with heavy eyelids. She told her how grateful she was to have Grace in her life. How much crapola Grace had put up with over the years. How much she truly loved her.

  Grace felt touched to the bottom of her heart. She told Joan how honored she was to share her life. How lost she had felt without her. That good or bad, she loved this woman to the bottom of her heart.

  Embracing, they cuddled and went to sleep.

  ~ CHAPTER 40 ~

  Bryan and Joan worked together on a ring that symbolized his love for Kim. He loved the ring that Joan had given Grace but would not of course duplicate it. She asked him what felt like a million questions about Kim’s likes and dislikes to get a feel for what would be a good ring to create. He rejected several designs. Finally, one day he took her to Kim’s apartment while she was at work and let his mother walk around. He and Kim spent a lot of time here and he had a key so he felt at ease. Joan didn’t rifle through anything but the hangings on the wall and the feel for the place gave her some idea of the woman that her son was in love with. She was surprised to find that Kim was an outdoorsy type of person. She hadn’t felt that before. Using this she designed a sketch that showed flowing water to a gem. Bryan loved the design. The flowing water encircled the finger but flowed until stopped with the gem or started again on the other side. He chose a blood red ruby for that gem. It was Kim’s birthstone and he had it cut into an oval. The jewelers in Wausau promised the design in a month.

  Joan couldn’t keep it secret from Craig and Adam about her memories returning and with that in mind within a few days she showed up in both their offices to let them know. Craig was thrilled for her and immediately tried to get down to business. Several items needed her attention but she managed to hold him off until she was finished with Bryan’s design.

  Adam was equally thrilled with her returning to normal. He had news for her. Gwen was pregnant again. He was to be a father for the second time. Realizing that they had known for awhile, Joan was grateful that he had finally told her but annoyed that he had waited too. Admonishing him for the delay she also told him to lay off as Gwen needed a longer time between babies. It was fine for him, but Gwen’s body needed years to recover from one baby to the next. He’d better pay more attention she felt. Enough of the lecture sank in that Adam was more solicitous to his wife during the rest of her pregnancy and after as well. He didn’t want to lose Gwen. They wanted a large family, but not at the price it could exact. He even went with her to the doctor’s office to inquire after his wives health. The doctor agreed that perhaps their next one should be a few years after this one. Adam took this all to heart, treating Gwen as though she were a queen. Gwen on the other hand was getting sick of the treatment and finally blew up at him to get him to return to ‘normal.’ It would take awhile but he was careful of her all the same.

  Joan and Grace heard personally from Lieutenant Gillespie that no charges would be filed against Joan for defending herself against Beth. Beth was not competent to stand trial and would be in a long term health care facility the rest of her life. Her family had considered filing charges and bringing a lawsuit against Joan but the their lawyer in talking with Joans lawyer decided to convince them otherwise. The police were on Joans side and with the money that would be thrown in defense of Joan, there would be no winning of such a case. It was a pretty clear case of self defense.

  Bryan took Joan and Grace with him when he picked up the ring. Grace had seen the sketches but the reality of it was incredible. The flowing water appeared to flow right into the ruby or from which took ones breath away. She told Bryan if Kim didn’t love it, she’d take it anyday. Joan looked at her in surprise but Grace just winked at her.

  Bryan had made reservations at Anson’s for the two of them. Grace had made sure Kim had a suitable dress to wear. Kim wasn’t one to worry about clothes for the most part but Grace said Anson’s was a pretty fancy place and if Bryan was going to take her out for a night on the town, she should feel up to it. Kim never suspected. Bryan had taken her many places over the months that they were together. They spent half their time at his place and the other half at hers. They were practically living together anyway. He had helped her to buy several outfits that she asked him to so she fit in with his crowd and family. He was just as content though in jeans and a T-shirt as he was in an Armani suit. You would never know his family had money. He never flaunted it, except for the BMW. He never made her uncomfortable about her not having money either. Although Bryan was several years younger than Kim, he acted and treated her so very well it was soon forgotten. Kim knew she loved this man.

  Anson’s was nestled along the river. It had a long banquet hall that faced the river and when not used for a banquet would often be rented out for weddings, parties, or whatever. Bryan and Kim were seated in a corner near one of the fireplaces. Their white linen covered table had a beautiful candle on it lighting their faces. Long rows of windows gave the diners fantastic views of the lawns leading down to the river bank. Boats would dock on the river and people walk up to dine at Anson’s. A nice wine accompanied their meal. Kim was feeling so sexy in the dress she had chosen with Grace. Bryan looked elegant in a suit from London. His tie was just so on his neck. The matching handkerchief peeking from his pocket.

  They brought out strawberries and real whipped cream for desert. A nice champagne was poured. Kim and Bryan never ran out of conversation the entire evening. She noticed though how quiet he got as the champagne was poured. She always watched things he did so that she didn’t make social blunders. Since he didn’t drink the champagne, she didn’t touch hers either. They finished the strawberries and cream. Whipping his face he carefully refolded his napkin and the waiter took away their dishes and cleared the table except for the champagne. While Kim was looking out the window at the sunset, Bryan slipped the ring box to her side of the table and waited for her to notice it. Turning back from the view she looked into his intense expression. Funny how his eyes were exactly like his mothers, she thought, not in color but in shape. It took her several moments to realize his eyes were boring into hers for a reason. He reached out and held his hand out to her. She put hers in his as she noticed the ring box. Her eyes opened wide staring at it. Looking up at him in alarm she noticed his eyes twinkling. The little smile on his handsome face reminded her of his mother too. The little smile widened as he asked “Kim, would you do me the honor of becoming my wife and living and loving with me forever?”

  Kim was floored. They had spoken once or twice about the eventual possibility but she hadn’t expected it now. It had been months since they last spoke of it. She knew with the upheaval in his life concerning his mother he’d been worried and wouldn’t commit to anything then. Now in the last month or so things had returned to a somewhat normal state. All this flashed through her mind and she stared at him in shock. She realized she’d been somewhat obtuse. Looking down at the box and then back into his beautiful green eyes, her own began to tear as she nodded dumbly. He quickly fell to his knees to wrap his arms around her as she began to silently cry delighted tears. She fought the tears but she was so happy. This beautiful, sophisticated man made her so happy. That he wanted her in his life forever meant so much to her. Choking back the sobs that wished to escape she sought to kiss him. Bryan returned the kiss wholeheartedly. Finally,
she got control of the tears and looked down at the box again. Bryan flicked it open to reveal the ring. She was astounded. She’d never seen something like this in her life. Bryan explained the symbolism of it and she saw it even before he finished telling her. He asked her if she liked it. She did, she really, truly did, it was so beautiful and made for her by this wonderful man. What woman in her right mind would say no to such a ring? The water in gold looked so real in it’s own way. She loved rubies, always wanted one but could never afford one. She finally looked up into his beautiful eyes, gulped, and said “yes, Bryan, I’ll marry you.” With that she flung her arms around his neck.

  Bryan was thrilled with her reactions. She looked so vulnerable with the tears in her eyes. The ring was beautiful and he was so happy she liked it. This beautiful intelligent woman loved him and wanted to marry him. He hugged her back, hard. After a minute though he set her back looking into her face to see how happy she was, and she WAS happy he could see. He took the ring out of the box and took her left hand. He gently placed it on the third finger looking into her face as he pushed it on the finger to it’s base. She looked up and kissed him.

  Other diners began to clap. They both looked up embarrassed and flushed. Bryan returned to his seat from his kneeling position. He didn’t release her hand. They drank their champagne to each other in salute.

  ~ CHAPTER 41 ~

  Allan was thrilled to hear from Joan. He immediately set about the release of her first book. She finished up her second one, reviewing all the notes she had taken. She hesitated to put in the notes about GRACE but felt since Grace already knew about it that it wouldn’t harm anyone. She even began painting again. The horror that she felt during her amnesia she poured out into several paintings. They came out quite scary, haunting, mystical. It was enough, it was a catharsis to her. She closed that chapter in her life and moved on from it.