by Leslie Pike
Both boys are holding their breath because the silence I make them endure is deafening.
“Ladies and gentlemen, The Other Side!”
The Principal’s announcement is drowned out by the seventh, eighth, and ninth grades' applause and whistles. There are even a few screams from the girls. The boys are celebrities for the night. They’re the twenty-twenties version of my youth’s boy bands.
Hunter takes his place in front of the microphone with Bing on bass to his left. The new keyboard player joins in. Trevor sets the beat on the drums. Boom! The song begins. “Smells Like Teen Spirit” by Nirvana lifts the room.
I know this was my suggestion, and it makes me happy. It’s perfect for getting a crowd of teenagers in the mood to celebrate their puberty. When Hunter steps up and begins to sing, more than a few girls scream. But he only has eyes for Beth, with the long blonde hair, who has not stopped staring at him. This encourages the boy greatly. He’s losing whatever nerves he had by the minute.
Bing begins his bass solo, and it looks like he’s done it for years. He’s Keith Richards in his fantasy. Hopefully, always without the bad behaviors. In the front row, Frankie rocks out with a red, smashed, fan-shaped flower pinned on her dress. I wonder if she knows the story behind it?
Maxen and I stand on the sidelines, watching as the boys step into young adulthood. I take out my cell and record the moment for Kim. A feeling of sadness washes over me as I realize it’s these kinds of things that Maxen will miss.
He needs to bond with Bing on a day to day level. But if patience is required, I will pay that price. I guess time will figure out how it happens. Bing likes being around Maxen and, even more important than that, respects him. That can’t be manufactured. The dream rests in my mind all the time. I think of what could be. Father, mother, son. That’s what I hope for.
But can that happen if he doesn’t live the small moments? The struggles and the triumphs. How will it come to be if Bing can’t get to really know him and make up his own mind? And how can we become really intimate emotionally without everyday contact?
That’s how it’s built. Not by random weekends spent in bed making up for lost time. That would be a false telling of our stories. We need to see each other in all our moods. Sometimes only our best selves show up on the phone, and then we are judged by that person alone.
We need to see the selfish parts, the bored moods, the mad for no reason days. Those are as invaluable as the rest of us because they are authentic too. But parts are not as good as the whole. I believe we could become something great if only we could know it all.
As the song ends and applause begins, he takes my hand. The Other Side changes the mood. The latest John Legend love song suits their talents. Partners are chosen or requested. Some girls dance with each other.
“I don’t care if the kids think we’re sabotaging their fun. Let’s dance,” Maxen says.
The mellow music and meaningful lyrics set a mood. I heard Hunter sing this a few times at practice, and both times his voice cracked at the top of the high note. But tonight, he sounds really good, and so what if there’s a croak or two?
Maxen glides along smoothly. The scent of his skin and the breath on my neck makes me never want the song to end. In this moment, everything falls into place. As the truth comes into focus, there’s no room for doubt. It’s clearer than anything I’ve known before. He and I. That is the only thing that makes sense.
“I don’t remember what life was like before you,” I say.
As the first of my tears fall, he takes a kiss.
“You won’t have to try.”
The trail of tears comes to a halt—my shaking lip stills.
“What are you saying?”
“Who would I be without you, Dominique? Why would I even be interested in finding out? Up on the mountain today, it came to me. This is where I belong. Not in California. Not anywhere without you.”
“What about the great opportunity you’d be passing up?”
“All I can think of is what I’d be gaining. You and Bing.”
There’s a moment of shock. Then happiness jumps up and pushes it away, and all I can feel is love.
“You’re staying? You’re really staying?”
“I’m staying. Well, after I pack up and take care of my business. Give me a few weeks.”
He takes another kiss.
“What about your house? We need to talk with Bing. And your family. What are you going to say?”
He stops the conversation made of words, with one made of emotion. He takes and gives a kiss, and in it, I find forever.
Epilogue
Maxen
Two years later
I remove the ring from my pocket for one more look. God, here we are. Finally. Thankfully. In a lifetime of decisions, this is my best one. By far. When I met Dominique, I met my real self. Returning to Tennessee, becoming part of Mayson Construction, and having a family are all things I never saw coming. Sometimes a man’s greatest blessings come out of thin air, falling like gentle rain from heaven.
It’s exciting to know it’s happening tonight. The butterflies in my stomach will not be still. And I’m second-guessing myself. But overall, I think she’s going to be happy with how it goes down. Please, God.
I’m counting on Dominique’s fierce competitiveness. Many times we’ve been neck and neck, down to the wire, competing against each other. Scrabble, Monopoly, Pictionary, or Poker, take your pick. There is no doubt when she’s in the game, it’s going to be a war.
It’s one of the things I learned as we got to really know each other. These past couple of years have schooled me on many things, both serious and fun. Playing is as important to the woman as work. When games are involved, my soft, sweet, feminine Dominique turns into Roseanne Barr on steroids. I’ll use that to my advantage tonight.
If I have planned things right, she’ll walk right into the trap. She’ll participate in it and be the loudest voice. There were many pieces to this puzzle and people to recruit. I wanted our families to be part of the special night. Choosing to do it on Christmas Eve worked for lots of reasons.
First off, it won’t look suspicious that our families are together. In some form anyway. Mom and Dad, and Dominique’s parents, and her sister, Sabine, will represent via Zoom. That is if the technology gods work with me. But it’s for sure the weak link in my plan.
My brothers John and Evan, and Dominique’s brother Lucien, traveled here under the guise of the holiday. Kim and Hunter are here too. Christmas hides all our secrets. With all these players, I cross fingers there’s no glitches. July, Wes, their children. Asher and November. We are fourteen in all, not counting Baby Becca or the Zoom audience. Leaving McFly and Cali out of the mix is not acceptable. Bing was the one who thought of including them in our scheme.
I decided to stage it here so she would be distracted. Preparing for our celebration has taken almost all her attention for weeks. But I’m afraid. She has that “thing,” that woman’s intuition. There is a good chance I could be busted by my expressions alone.
“Bing! Where’s your mother?” I say in a hushed tone.
He eyes me at his bedroom door.
“Downstairs with your brothers. Wes and July just got here too,” he says.
Over the last year, his voice has settled into this new lower range.
“Yeah, I hear the kids.”
He tucks in the new shirt and turns to show me the whole look.
“Looks good. How about me?” I ask, opening my arms.
A crooked smile appears. Sixteen looks good on Bing. I see the man about to emerge.
“You look good. Nervous?”
I’ve been that way all week, as tonight got closer.
“I’m okay. Maybe a little,” I say, underplaying my panic.
But Bing knows me by now. We have become close. Closer than either of us thought possible in just two years. We talk about it every now and then, both acknowledging the twist in our lives. It helped tha
t he has practically no memories of his father. It helped that the relationship between his mother and me is based on mutual respect. But most of all, it’s because of what he and I feel toward each other. It’s genuine and solid.
I’m not Bing’s father. Never will be in the usual sense. But the place I take is fatherly. I’ll always protect and support him. We have each other’s back. Far more than a friend, our relationship is rooted in love—me for him, him for me. Our mutual love for Dominique has created an unbreakable bond. It’s impressive.
“Did you get the dog’s sweaters ready? Are they hidden somewhere your mother can’t find them?”
“They’re in the bottom drawer in the office. She’s not going there.”
“Good thinking. Let’s go down and get this party started.”
As he passes in front of me and heads for the stairs, he turns and says in low tones, “Good luck.”
Our holiday table looks like a snapshot of Christmas circa anytime anywhere in America. The dinner is cleared, and only dessert plates, with remnants of apple pie made from scratch, remain. We are a holiday crew, made of happy faces, good conversations, and children eager to get to more fun.
Hopefully, July has followed my instructions to make sure the kids don’t spill the beans.
They had to be in on it because it would seem strange to exclude such important people in our lives. Age doesn’t factor into us enjoying their company at all. By the looks on James and Dean’s faces, they think they’re cleverly hiding what they know is going to happen. They keep looking at me and then Dominique. Shit. I better do it now.
‘My God, that’s it! I’m stuffed!” Wes says. “Here, take Becca,” he says, passing her to July.
Bing returns from his fake bathroom visit and retakes his seat. Hopefully, he got the real job done, dressing the dogs.
I catch his eye and his nod. Oh hell, here we go. Standing, I get everyone’s attention.
“Okay, it’s game time!”
The guests respond appropriately with clapping and whistles.
“Oh, yes! Should we play Pictionary?” Dominique says. “Or maybe we could do karaoke!”
“Yeah! Let’s do that one!” Dean says, disregarding what he knows is about to happen.
July sends a wordless warning with one pointed look at her son. If I had to interpret, I’d say it meant ‘shut the fuck up.’ He quickly does that and looks away.
“Bing, get the Zoom calls going, please.”
He gets up and sets up his iPad facing the table.
“Who’s going to be on Zoom? Your parents?” Dominique asks.
“And yours!” I say, trying to sound natural about the whole thing.
“What? I’m so excited!”
“I thought it would be nice to include our entire families in at least one game. I had to come up with something everyone could participate in,” I lie.
The faces appear. First, my parents, and then after a few beats, Sabine and her mom and dad.
Dominique gets up and goes to the screen, throwing a kiss to her family and then mine.
“Hello everybody! Oh, I’m so happy Maxen thought of this. I miss you all!”
The entire table exchanges their holiday hellos. It seems like it’s taking so fucking long, but it's my nerves doing the thinking.
“I have a new game!” I say, interrupting the greetings. “And the winner gets a big prize!”
The only genuinely innocent person takes the bait.
“Oh, yay!” Dominque says, clapping. “Honey! You are so much fun! You bought a prize? So cool!”
The rest of the guests respond with what they consider appropriate expressions. Some are better at it than others. My brothers and Dominique’s are underplaying their enthusiasm. Wes and July are a little too excited. James and Dean are elbowing each other. I’m surrounded by actors of different calibers playing their parts.
“I came up with it, so I’m not going to be guessing.”
“What? Want to play something else?” July says her first line perfectly.
“No, no. Next round, someone else can come up with the clues.”
Dominique’s eyes light up. “Clues?”
Opening the buffet’s drawer, I take out the stack of cards with letters on them.
“Okay, can the Zoom contingency see?”
All five voices answer, yes.
“All right. Here we go. Each family will hold up a word I’ve written on these cards. They are clues. If you can figure out how they connect, you’ll figure out the prize. First one who says the correct answer is the winner. Does everyone understand?”
Of course, they do, all except Dominique, who looks a little surprised it’s so clear to the rest of us.
“Wait!” she says. “We are all going to call out our guesses at once?”
“Yeah. It’s going to be fun,” I answer. “Now, don’t turn your cards over until I say go.”
Moving around the table, I pass the words to the designated person I’ve already chosen in each family.
“Lucien, you’re representing the Grant family. Here you go. Kim, you represent our group. Asher, here’s your family’s.”
“This is so exciting!” July says, momentarily revealing her true feelings.
Quickly she regroups and adds a fake clarification. “I love games!”
Dominique looks at her like she’s from outer space. “Since when? That’s the first I hear about it!” She laughs.
“Okay, reveal your words!” I say like I’m parting the Red Sea.
Of course, I am counting on them to guess wrong. They have rehearsed their ridiculous guesses just to spark Dominique’s skills. If she does not figure out it’s an anagram right off the bat, I will have succeeded. But not even she can do that without the two letters I’m leaving out.
The cards go up, above the heads of the person who holds them. Eyes dart from RARE to MUM to WILY.
“What in the hell?” Wes delivers his line.
“Wait! Give me a moment!”
“Is it something to do with a steak?” Hunter says, on cue.
James and Dean start laughing.
“No. I think rare stands for uncommon. Am I right?” Dominique says, looking my way.
“Maybe.” Oh, my girl is smart.
Then the onslaught of ridiculous guesses spills out. They are shouted from the Zoom screen to the table, from the kids to the grandparents.
“What’s wrong with you people?” Dominique says, laughing till she cries.
We are all laughing, including me. But only Dominique stays focused on the game. Suddenly she crosses her arms and leans back.
“It’s a bottle of Mumm champagne, so rare it was hard to track down. And you are the wily one for thinking of it! Boom! That’s it, right?”
Our eyes meet, and I smile.
“I win!!!!! Hahaha! Whoop, whoop!” she calls, standing with hands in the air.
The table gets silent, but the energy everywhere is loud.
“Not quite, babe.”
She sits back down and makes a fake pout.
“I may have left out two letters to this anagram.”
“Anagram? You didn’t say it was an anagram!”
That gets her attention and everyone else’s. A light begins to dawn on her face.
“Bing, bring in the canine representatives, please,” I say with false seriousness.
There’s so much joy in the room, on the iPad screen, in everyone’s hearts.
Bing rushes to the office where Cali and McFly have been sequestered and returns with the sweater-wearing hounds. Cali has a big L on her back, and McFly has the O.
“Now rearrange the letters, love. And I’ll give you your prize.”
For a few moments, you can hear a pin drop as Dominique scans the letters. We hold our breaths, waiting for the question to rise in her mind. The final piece of the puzzle remains. I pick up the lone card left face down on the table and lift it above my head. It’s a question mark.
Dominique’s eye
s fill with tears. “Will…you…marry…me?”
“I will,” I say.
Walking to her, I see the rise and fall of her breathing as it quickens. I take the ring from my pocket and slip it on her finger.
The explosion of sound and emotion whips around the room. It springs from parents and siblings, children and friends. Even the barking dogs know something wonderful just happened. They chase each other in a frenzy of excitement.
And as for Dominique and me, we come together in an embrace. “You know from here on out, I can say you proposed to me,” I crow.
She kisses my words away, and a new kind of love arises that I have never felt before. Until now.
Also by Leslie Pike
The Paradise Series
The Trouble With Eden
Wild In Paradise
The Road To Paradise
Love In Italy
The Adventure
The Art Of Love
Swift Series
The Curve
The Closer
The Cannon
The Swift Collection
Santini Series
Destiny Laughs
Destiny Plays
Destiny Shines
Destiny Dawns
Standalones (for now)
The Beach In Winter
7 Miles High
Royal Pain (Cocky Hero Club)
About the Author
USA Today Best selling author, Leslie Pike, has loved expressing herself through written word since she was a child. The first romance “book” she wrote was at ten years old. The scene, a blond surfer. The ending, happily forever after.
Leslie’s passion for film and screenwriting eventually led her to Texas for eight years, writing for a prime time CBS series. She has traveled the world as part of film crews from Africa to Israel , New York to San Francisco. Now she finds her creative adventures taking place in her home, in Southern California, writing Contemporary Romance.
