Central Park Rendezvous

by Kim Vogel Sawyer

  “That sounds like him—before my mother died. Since then, I think he’s struggled. He won’t talk to me much about it.” Jamie clutched Gail’s hand. “But if he saw you, knew you still cared for him, I think his hope would be restored.” She touched the pendant. “He never married, you know. All through the years he kept searching for this. For you. Now he’s closing the shop and says it’s time to move on, but I know his heart is broken.”

  Despite the pleading in Jamie’s eyes, Gail shook her head. She remembered the day in Alan’s shop when she said good-bye, thinking Troy was her future. Alan hadn’t come after her. He’d let her go. He’d given her a second chance though… but she couldn’t imagine, after all he’d lost, that Alan would give her a third. He’d allowed her to make her own choice. She owed him the same respect.

  “I’m sorry, Jamie. I think it’s better to let the past be and let your uncle move on. He deserves that much.”

  Snow crunched under Gail’s feet on the sidewalk. Christmas tree lights glowing in storefront windows cast a wash of colors onto the snow-blanketed sidewalk like paint on a canvas.

  Some of the people she passed were already dressed in formal attire on their way to various New Year’s Eve parties. She could only imagine how crowded Times Square was already.

  Gail stopped just short of Alan’s shop then braved a few steps closer. The sign on the door said CLOSED. She shivered against the cold and pulled the lapels of her coat up around her neck. A peek in the window revealed only empty shelves and tables, but a light glowed from the back room.

  She went to the door, all the while watching for him to come out of the back room. What was she doing here? Hadn’t she told Jamie that she should let Alan move on? But she had to know… had to make sure he was okay. Finding out about his close call with cancer had rocked her world more than she imagined. If she could have been there for him through all that…

  Before she realized what she was doing, her hand was on the doorknob. It turned freely. She hedged the door open just a few inches then stopped. Her heart pounded in her chest so loud she thought surely he would hear it. Once she stepped in that door there was no turning back.

  She took a deep breath and pushed the door open. The overhead bells tinkled just like she remembered. She caught a slight whiff of the cologne she remembered Alan wearing. A slew of memories flooded in and pricked her eyes with threatening tears.

  Shuffling came from the back. A voice hollered out, “Sorry, we’re closed.”

  His voice. Gail closed her eyes. Why had she come? She turned around and ran out the door.

  Chapter 11

  Alan stacked another box, adding to the pile waiting by the back door. He’d rented a small truck to haul the rest to the storage room he’d leased. Most of his inventory had been sold to other dealers, but what remained, what he couldn’t part with, would stay in storage until he decided what to do with it.

  The front door bells jangled. Didn’t the person realize there was nothing to buy? He left the back room but only caught the back of a figure in a mint-green mid-length jacket as she rushed past the main window.

  He returned to the back room. Empty shelves stared back at him. Even his desk was empty, except for one thing. The small salt dish he’d kept on his desk through the years as a reminder of Gail. He picked it up. Jiggled it in his palm then set it in the last open box next to the faded Polaroid of Gail and Tara. Time to let go.

  The bells rang again. The bells hadn’t worked for weeks, then suddenly they work today? He headed to the front part of the store.

  “Uncle Alan?”

  “Right here, Jamie-girl.”

  She pointed to the door. “You fixed the bells?”

  “No, they just started working today.”

  Her cheeks were bright pink from the cold, and she seemed distracted. Jamie went to the window and looked out the direction he’d seen the unknown figure just pass. When she turned around, a frown puckered her lips. “Did someone just come in the store?”

  “Yeah, I think so. I was in the back and hollered out that we’re closed.” Alan laughed and gestured toward the empty shelves. “I think it’s pretty obvious—”

  “Let’s go for a walk. Right now.”

  He dropped his hand to his side. Why was she so anxious? “Okay, just let me get my jacket.”

  “Hurry.”

  “Okay, okay. He grabbed his coat draped over the counter and shrugged into it. Jamie stood in the open doorway waving him along.

  “Good grief. What are you so worked up about?”

  “I need to show you something.”

  He locked the door and quickened his steps to catch up with her. The girl went back and forth between a fast-paced walk to a light jog. Her long hair swung back and forth with her hurried steps.

  “Jamie, wait up. I thought you wanted to walk together.” For a moment he lost sight of her in the pedestrian traffic. More people than usual for any night but tonight. New Year’s Eve. He’d totally forgotten what day it was. Poor Jamie… she should be out celebrating with friends. Not babysitting her uncle.

  He recognized Bow Bridge ahead. Jamie stopped at the bottom then turned around. She made eye contact with him and waved frantically again.

  Alan closed the distance between them. “Jamie, what’s going on?”

  She pointed to a figure standing by the bench at the midpoint of the bridge. Alan followed her directions. Even from a side view, he’d recognize that profile anywhere. The upturned nose. Her hair was shorter, and the red had toned down more to an auburn, but it was her.

  Gail.

  She sensed him before she saw him. Gail glanced to her side. First she recognized Jamie then the man rushing up to her. He’d hardly changed through the years. The same tall figure, strong and brimming with integrity. Gray dusted the sides of his hair heavily, with a small amount throughout the rest. But she’d know him anywhere. She wanted to run to him, pretend the last thirty-eight years hadn’t happened. But they had. She’d made choices out of fear and lived with them since. If he didn’t want anything to do with her, she’d completely understand.

  She wanted desperately to hope though. She did the only thing she knew to do at this point.

  Pray.

  “I don’t believe it.” Alan’s breath came out in rapid white puffs. His heartbeat remained accelerated, kept in rhythm by a sight he never thought he’d see again.

  “Go to her. I think she’s waiting… hoping her true love will arrive.”

  Alan glanced at Jamie. The hope brimming in her eyes cinched it for him. How could he disappoint her? She’d lived with his heartache for years. Imagined his happy ending for him when he could no longer dream it.

  He made himself move forward. Step after step. Just a few feet separated them now. “Gail.”

  She faced him. Her lips parted with unspoken words, and her eyes sparkled with tears. “I tried to come into your shop to see you.”

  “I heard the bells.”

  She shook her head. “Not just today. But before… a few years ago. But I couldn’t bring myself to go in. I didn’t think you could ever forgive me.”

  He took another step closer. “Why didn’t you come that night?”

  “I couldn’t.” She dropped her head. “I was married.”

  “Troy.” His heart shattered into bits again, just like the Tiffany lamp that day in his shop.

  She nodded. “Marcia made me believe you’d written her this letter… and Troy begged me to marry him. He was sick, Alan. He needed me.”

  “I needed you, too.”

  “But I needed you more, and that terrified me.” A sob escaped her lips along with the tears running from her eyes.

  He couldn’t stand the distance between them any longer. Alan wrapped his arms around her. Time raced back thirty-eight years. She was his girl, and he was a soldier about to go to war. Only this time he didn’t have to leave her. Was it too late to build a life together?

  She sniffed against his chest then pulled b
ack, searching his face with those amazing eyes that even time hadn’t touched. “Alan, I’m so sorry. I let fear run my life—”

  He silenced her with his own lips, savoring what he’d dreamed about for years. Of holding her again. Of kissing her. Time may have moved on, but what sparked between them hadn’t changed one bit.

  And the way she clung to him and kissed him back told him she believed it, too. Maybe this time they had a chance to turn a love they’d allocated to dreams into a reality they could live out for the rest of their lives. Together.

  Alan broke the kiss gently. Kissed her eyes and ran his thumbs over the delicate line of her jaw. He didn’t want to stop taking her in, all of her, because if he looked away, she might disappear.

  She pressed her forehead against his mouth. “Alan, I love you. I’ve never stopped loving you. I wish I could go back and make different choices out of love instead of fear.” She looked up at him again. “I’m so sorry. You believed our love wouldn’t fail….”

  Inwardly he wanted to shout. Years of loving her threatened to burst out in a ruckus louder than anything Times Square would offer. He touched the pendant at her neck. “Don’t you see? Our love didn’t fail. It just got delayed.”

  She trailed a finger over his lips. “Didn’t you have a question you wanted to ask me?”

  He laughed. “Yes, I do. Miss Gibson, will you marry me?”

  “Yes, Mr. James. I do believe I will.”

  Chapter 12

  Alan stood on the platform admiring the antique wedding ring. This time the ring hunt had been for the love of his life—the soon-to-be Mrs. James. The dream had kept him alive in Vietnam and kept the spark of his love going through many years. He chuckled to himself. How like God to move in and do a miracle when he’d given up hope.

  The minister nudged his arm just as the pianist and violinist started to play. Alan snapped his attention down to the end of the aisle separating a moderate number of attendees, who were now rising to their feet.

  Then he saw her. Her champagne gown, elegant and simple, flowed down and swished around her ankles. Sean guided her down the aisle, looking handsome in his tuxedo. Alan looked to where Jamie sat in the front row, glanced pointedly at Sean and winked at her. She smiled and rolled her eyes upward. He wasn’t blind to the chemistry forming between her and Sean.

  He didn’t know what God had in mind for his niece, but if that plan included Sean, Alan would consider himself doubly blessed. Sean was a good man. He just didn’t know it yet. If their love was meant to be like his and Gail’s, nothing would keep them apart.

  Gail stepped onto the platform next to him. The pendant rested on her neck. She never took it off. The next thirty minutes were a joyful blur. He couldn’t keep his eyes off Gail. She radiated beauty both inside and out.

  The minister led them in prayer and finally reached the part Alan wanted most.

  Alan answered at his prompting. “I do.”

  Gail smiled at him.

  He’d waited to hear her answer for thirty-eight years.

  Her turn. “I most certainly do!”

  The attendees laughed along with Alan. He squeezed her hand and relished sliding the ring on her finger and hearing her gasp.

  She lowered her voice to whisper. “It’s gorgeous, Mr. James.”

  He kissed her hand then lost himself in her incredible eyes. “She most certainly is, Mrs. James.”

  Music filled the reception room with soft rhythm. Gail continued to search for Jamie among the tables. She had a mission to complete and hoped Alan would understand.

  Sean came up beside her and stopped her path toward the stage where the band played. “Aunt Mitzi. Or should I start calling you Aunt Gail?”

  “Whichever one you prefer, kiddo.” She kissed his cheek and spoke into his ear. “Thank you for understanding and forgiving your old aunt.”

  “I could never stay mad at you. Even as a kid…” Sean took her hands in his. “You look so beautiful. And so happy.”

  “I am, sweetheart. Very happy. And I want that for you, too.”

  “Don’t worry about me.” He braved a smile and walked away.

  She whispered to herself. “But I do, my sweet boy. I do so very much.” She would step her prayers up and trust God to bring him through. But watching him struggle made her ache so deeply at times.

  “Did you say something?”

  Gail jumped. Jamie had somehow come up next to her without being heard. “Nothing, my dear. But I was looking for you. I have something I want to give you.” She unclasped the coin pendant from her neck and secured it around Jamie’s neck.

  The girl’s face was a picture of shock as she touched the coin. “Oh Gail, I can’t accept this. It means everything to you and Uncle Alan. It’s what brought you two back together.”

  “No, our love is what brought us back together, Jamie. And I know Alan would want you to have it. It was always meant to be passed on.” How did she explain what she sensed in her gut, that Jamie and Sean were meant to be together? Time would have to show the two of them.

  “Thank you.” Tears brimmed in Jamie’s eyes.

  Gail hugged her. “You’re the keeper of the coin now, and I daresay you’ll soon be the keeper of my Sean’s heart.”

  “I don’t think—”

  “I know Sean, and I’ve gotten to know you. Be patient with him. He’s on a tough journey right now. Having you there to help him… well… I’ll keep the rest to myself for now. Just trust God, Jamie.”

  A slow song started.

  Alan crossed the room to her. Dressed in a black fitted tuxedo, Gail had a flashback to the day he met her on the Bow Bridge dressed in his uniform. He took her breath away now just as he had then.

  He kissed the top of Jamie’s head. “May I steal my beautiful wife away for a dance?”

  She giggled.

  Gail beamed at him. “I’d be delighted.”

  Alan held her hand as he led her to the dance floor then waited as she made an arc into his arms. They moved across the floor, comfortable in their silence. She fit perfectly against him, in the nook of his neck, in the crook of his hand. Joy surged through her so strongly that she felt breathless. “So blessed.”

  Alan lifted her chin. “Did I hear you say blessed?”

  “Yes, you did.”

  “Even after a month of spending every moment with you, your faith still surprises me.”

  “Why should it? You were the one who planted the seeds.” She gave him a light kiss.

  “So, tell me why my niece is now wearing the coin I gave to you, Mrs. James.”

  “I don’t need it anymore. You made your point. Love never fails. I believe it completely now. Besides, I have this.” She held up her hand. The ring sparkled softly in the dim lighting.

  “I love that, and I love you. I just thought…”

  “What?”

  “Patrick was my best friend and Sean is his son. He should have the coin.”

  “What makes you think he won’t get it?”

  He gave her a sideways glance. “What are you up to?”

  “Not a thing. I just know what my gut says.”

  “Which is?”

  “Sean and Jamie will wind up together. Their love is meant to be, just like ours was.” She nodded toward the direction he’d just come from. “Speaking of which…”

  Sean and Jamie made a stunning couple, dancing together just a few yards away. But then Sean stopped and walked away. By the look on Jamie’s face, the girl was crushed.

  Alan frowned. “What just happened?”

  “Like I told Jamie, Sean just needs time.”

  “I hope you’re right.” He stared at his niece, the ache in his heart written all over his face.

  Gail cupped his cheek, turning his head to look at her. “Have you already forgotten that love never fails?”

  His smile returned, washing away his worry. “Well, maybe just for a moment.”

  “But you know it’s true.” She kept her tone playful
.

  His expression turned serious. He searched her face as if he had the most important news to tell her. “I do, and I promise I’ll never doubt again.”

  DREAM A LITTLE DREAM

  PART 2

  by Ronie Kendig

  Chapter 7

  Jamie let herself into her apartment and dumped her satchel on the floor. She flipped the locks then went to the fridge for some orange juice. Raking her fingers through her hair, she groaned at the light blinking on her machine.

  She pressed the PLAY button.

  “Hey, Girl.” Monet’s voice sailed into the air from the answering machine. “Did you see tryouts for The Juilliard are coming up? Be sure to turn in your app. No time like the present, know what I’m saying? I mean—since your uncle is married and all, you have nothing to lose, right? Claude and I think you totally oughta go for it. Okay, well… see ya. Ciao!”

  Jamie deflated against the counter. “Nothing to lose?” She twisted around and slumped back against the Formica. She had everything to lose—her courage, her pride if she didn’t make it, then her grief when she did. There was no way she could come up with the money for that school anyway. And a scholarship had to be applied for waayy in advance. The only possible means of getting into that school was a miracle.

  Irritated, she abandoned the OJ idea and trudged to the bedroom, where she quickly showered and changed. Curled up on the sofa with her newspaper, she dragged a red pen over the employment ads. With Uncle Alan married, the storefront sold, and life just a total bust, it was time to enter the insanity of a part-time job.

  But twenty minutes of the black-and-white print declared her inadequately skilled. Jamie flung the paper onto the small coffee table.

  Pounding on her door pulled Jamie off the couch. “Who is it?”

  “Me, who else?”

  Monet.

  Jamie unlatched the locks and let her friend in. “What are you doing here so late?”

  Producing a brown paper bag, Monet grinned big. “Rocky Road for you, and Monster Berry for me.”