“That sounds lovely, dear.” Gwendolyn replies. “I think you’ll do a fine job. I was eating at your food truck long before I was introduced to you. Your barbecue brisket slider is one of my favorites and your strawberry cheesecake is heaven on earth. Imagine my surprise when Jeffrey introduced you as Kiera’s best friend. I think you should meet with Justice Gardener. I’d have you talk with Jeffrey, but he considers himself my attorney now and I think he can get in trouble if he gives us both advice. So, I think you should talk to William instead. But, I think we can come up with an agreement that’s beneficial to us both. May I see those plans again? These are quite remarkable. Are you sure these were drawn nearly 20 years apart?” Gwendolyn inquires as she studies the plans side-by-side.
“Positive,” I confirm as I watch her go over the plans with a fine toothed comb. “I watched Tyler draw these right in front of me.”
“He did?” She says, sounding surprised. “What a clever boy! I knew there’s more to him than he lets on. He must like you a lot to put his heart and soul into these sketches.”
Her observation makes my heart skip a beat as I consider its veracity. It’s true. Despite all of his assertions to the contrary, Tyler has done everything in his power to cement our bonds and make them very, very permanent. He has shared things with me that he doesn’t usually share with anyone else. In fact, he’s been quite open with me about a lot of things from his recent past to his very ancient past. He has done everything in his power to make his feelings known about me. Even, when it makes me feel uncomfortable to know how he’s feeling.
“Gwendolyn, is it okay if I ask you a question?” I ask. “This isn’t related to the business. This is very personal. I’m not very close to my mom, and I don’t know who else to ask.”
“Of course dear. I don’t mind. But, you might want to take my advice with a grain of salt. As you might have noticed, I’m not the best at relationships.”
“Oh, that’s okay. I’d rather have that kind of advice. Because it’s real world and not just something they can replicate in a lab somewhere because it makes a good research paper,” I respond with a quirky smile.
“That’s me for sure. Just call me Ms. Real-Life-School-of-Hard-Knocks.”
“You’ve probably guessed by now that I kind of have a thing for Tyler,” I admit sheepishly. “But, I’m not really sure where we stand. He just helped me through a really difficult time in my life and I’d like to do the same for him but I don’t know if I have the right to. To make matters worse, he might not even like what I have to say. It might drive a wedge between us before we even start to get to know each other. I don’t want to ruin a good thing.”
“Well, if there’s anything I learned in the whole debacle of my farce of a marriage it’s that secrets are poisonous. If you guys have any chance at success, you need to be telling the truth to each other right up front.” Gwendolyn advises.
“What if the truth has the potential to hurt him, but withholding it has the potential to hurt others?” I ask, deep despair clawing at my gut.
“Do you feel you can trust Tyler? Is he the type of man that would take the truth without striking back and hurting you?” Gwendolyn probes with a look of concern on her face.
“Of course,” I confirm without hesitation. But, then I remember his comments about his post-traumatic stress disorder and how it has affected his temperament and emotional well-being and I wonder if I can be so unequivocal in my defense of him. “I worry most about hurting him,” I reply honestly.
“Honey, as difficult as this seems, I think you need to have this conversation. Otherwise, you’re building your relationship on false pretenses,” Gwendolyn responds as she pats my shoulder. “I’m sure you’ll find a way to figure it all out because you’re a smart girl. I’ll have some paperwork drawn up for you. I do want you to go see William. I want another set of eyes to understand that our contract is on the up and up. It will be great fun to have a bakery next door, although it will be terrible for my diet.”
After meeting with Gwendolyn, I was on cloud nine. I even call Tyler at work. The dispatcher is so confused by my giddiness that she patches me through to his work radio thinking it’s some sort of a family emergency. I can’t resist taking a moment to share my good news even though technically it doesn’t fall within the rules of an emergency. Tyler is gracious in dealing with my absolute silliness. He quickly congratulates me and promises that we will celebrate when he comes home. My good mood lasts up until I call my family to let them know I found a potential retail space.
My dad takes the opportunity to inform me that if needed, they are planning to contest my grandma's will based on the fact that they thought she was no longer of sound mind because she was going to give me an opportunity to own a business, even after I allowed my ex-boyfriend to swindle money from me and my family. They threatened to tie up my money in probate court for months and months, unless I agree to postpone my plans to open the restaurant for at least six months, but preferably a year. I could not even muster a reply.
I simply hang up the phone and sob. It was almost like I have to mourn Grandma Lydia all over again because it’s akin to the death of a dream. I know that this is more than just a dispute about a particular location or even a simple stalling technique. My family is going to fight me every single step of the way. It doesn’t matter if I have the perfect location, in the perfect spot, in the perfect city. They will never, ever support my dream. It’s as simple as that.
When I finally stop sobbing, I strip down to my tank top and boy shorts and climb into the shower like a slow-motion radio controlled robot toy that had seen better days. Too exhausted to stand, I just sit in the corner of my shower and curl up in a ball, letting the water beat down on me as tears continue to trickle down my cheeks and mix with the tap water. I silently cry until there are no more tears left. I thought I was finished crying yesterday, and the day before and the day before that. However, the tears still continue to come. I don’t know when they’ll stop. If I can’t do this shop in the memory of my grandmother, I don’t know if this is ever going to get better. It’s all she ever dreamed of for me since I was nine years old. How can I turn my back on all her hopes? It’s not fair.
I can hear the voice of my father mocking me in my head, “The world is not fair, Buttercup. Just get used to it. Of course, it’s fair to the beautiful people. Oh wait, you’re not one of those either. Yep, you’re screwed.” His voice is so clear, I self-consciously look around to see if he’s in the room with me. Of course, he isn’t. I shrink back into myself and put my head down between my crossed arms and let the water beat down on the back of my neck.
I don’t know how long I sat there, but the next thing I know, Tyler is lifting me out of the shower and brushing my heavy wet locks of hair out of my eyes.
“My God, Gidget, what happened to you? You’re freezing cold. Did you fall down?”
“N-N-No,” I stammer as my teeth chatter like a jack hammer on asphalt, “I’m okay. I’m just sad.”
“I know you miss your grandma, but she lived a very full life. She’ll always be in your heart,” Tyler says as he wipes my tears away with his thumb.
“I know,” I respond with a sigh. “I wish it was that simple. But, I just got a call from my dad and he’s threatening to put all sorts of roadblocks in the way of the bakery. He’s even threatening to challenge the validity of the will if I don’t postpone the opening of my shop. I’ve already found the perfect location. Gwendolyn is willing to rent to me. I’ll never find another space like that. It even comes with commercial baking equipment. But, I can’t ask her to hold it for me.”
Tyler is quiet for a moment as he holds me close to his chest. “Why don’t you put some warm clothes on and I’ll make you something hot to drink?”
I just nod against his chest, hoping I don’t get snot all over his shirt. I hate that he has to see me this way. Although, he doesn’t seem to notice anything is out of the ordinary, even though I’m getting his clo
thes completely soaked.
“Thank you,” I whisper, my voice hoarse from hours of crying.
“Do you want tea or hot chocolate?” Tyler asks gently.
“Doesn’t matter,” I respond as he sets me down on my bed. Much to my mortification, there’s a basket of laundry sitting on my bed and several pairs of my underwear are sitting right on top.
Tyler eyes a pair of leopard-print underwear with approval and winks at me as he says, “Nice! I like my women with a sense of adventure.”
If I could’ve fallen through floor right then, I gladly would have. I’m sure I could give Rudolph’s nose a run for his money right at this moment.
Tyler takes one look at the expression on my face and laughs as he quips, “Oh relax Gidget, for all you know, I could be wearing something far racier, right this very moment.”
I snort as I reply, “I bet you just talk big. I bet you’re wearing tighty-whities. I don’t think you have the guts to wear anything racy. I think you’re too old school.”
Tyler howls with laughter. “Well, it’s a good thing you didn’t have anything riding on this one, Gidget; because you would’ve lost big time,” he responds as he pulls down the top of his well-worn jeans to show me his Yosemite Sam cartoon underwear.
I choke back a laugh as I remark, “I didn’t know they actually made cartoon undies for big boys.”
“Well, they do if you’re a dedicated enough fan. These babies are not easy to find. Thank God for the Internet,” Tyler responds with a good-natured shrug. “You go get dressed. All this talk about underwear is making me horny. I’ll meet you in the kitchen.”
As I puzzle over my wardrobe choices, it’s astonishing to me that I’m even considering wearing something this ridiculous in front of Tyler, but it speaks to my level of comfort with him. One year, Kiera, Tara and I all volunteered at the same camp for the Big Brother/Big Sister program. They had a pajama day and the Girlfriend Posse bought gag pajamas for each other. For me, they bought footie pajamas which feature Jessica Rabbit and Roger Rabbit splashed down the front and back. Something tells me Ty is one of few people on the planet who could truly appreciate the beauty of my PJ’s.
After I put my hair up in a sloppy bun and try to remove the trails of black waterproof mascara from my face, I put on my favorite Bonnie Bell bubble-gum lip gloss and go out into the kitchen. I know it’s not very sophisticated, but clearly, that’s not the look I’m going for here. While Tyler has his back to me, I take a moment to study him. Oh Lawdy, the man is hot! His flannel shirt is pulling across his broad shoulders and his waist tapers in, highlighting his incredible abs and obliques. He has this funny habit of scratching his stomach when he’s nervous and he thinks no one is watching; I’ve caught more than one glance at that washboard in the last year. I listen carefully to what he is humming and realize it’s Aidan’s latest hit. I smile to myself. What an unreal world I live in. My best friend’s fiancé is a huge pop star. My other best friend’s godfather is an important Former Oregon Supreme Court Justice. As I reflect back on my last conversation with him, it’s hard not to feel defeated.
Tyler turns around with two large steaming mugs of hot chocolate. “Darlin’, why are your eyes sad again? I thought we chased all that away.”
“It’s going to take more than just a few giggles about underwear to do that,” I respond as I sigh and sit down at the kitchen table.
“That’s too bad, because I’m digging those pajamas,” Tyler responds as he slides my hot chocolate in front of me. I notice he’s melted marshmallows all over the top of mine.
“I figured you might,” I answer with a watery grin. “This is about as sexy as I’m going to get today.”
“I don’t know how many times I have to tell you that it doesn’t really matter what you wear; I’m always going to find you sexy whether you have bunnies on your butt or not,” Tyler insists. “But, I have a feeling you’re just trying to change the subject. What’s really going on?”
“Well, I told you most of it. In a nutshell, my dad doesn’t think I’m responsible enough to own a business because of what my ex-boyfriend did to all of us. So, he plans to throw up every obstacle on the planet to stand between me and the money granted to me in the will. He thinks I’m flighty enough that if he makes me wait six months or a year, I’ll get distracted and forget about owning the bakery,” I explain, feeling dejected.
“That’s bullshit!” Tyler exclaims pounding his fist on the table causing the hot chocolate to slosh out of both mugs. “Does he realize that it’s not really his money to mess with?”
“My dad isn’t really big on boundaries,” I reply. “Whenever I complained about that as a kid, he would counter with, ‘Are you ashamed to be Italian or what?’ I was never sure what one thing had to do with the other. My grandparents and aunts and uncles were perfectly reasonable people.”
“Sometimes you just can’t explain family. But, yours is really something else. It’s not like you’re the only person on the planet that’s been taken in by a con man. Being in love can make us blind to all sorts of stuff. Don’t even get me started,” Tyler comments wryly as he shakes his head.
“I know that now. But, I still feel like a stupid fool. I was just so taken in by Fletcher. I thought he accepted me for me and didn’t care about how I looked. It felt so good to seem like a normal woman and be out dating. We even went out dancing. He was like a tornado of fun and I was sucked into it. Apparently, so was my common sense.”
“Gidget, I’ve got news for you. You are the one that’s normal. All these girls who starve themselves to death and eat twigs and air and bake themselves under florescent light bulbs? In my book, those girls are the strange ones. The guys whi are not falling all over you are stupid because you are beautiful,” Ty argues emphatically.
“I really wasn’t fishing for compliments,” I reply, as I blush to a deep shade of red.
“I know. That’s what makes it so wonderful.” Tyler responds. “So, I’ve been thinking the best way for me to help you is to give you a bridge loan until your dad gets over all of his craziness.”
“What?” I ask dumbfounded by his suggestion. “I can’t ask you to do that. We’ve barely started dating. In fact, I’m not even sure we’ve actually started officially dating.”
“I know,” Tyler responds nodding his head. “That’s one of the reasons I offered. You are always giving to other people and never asking for anything for yourself. I’ve got the money from my military service socked away in CDs. It’s not doing anything terribly productive anyway with interest rates the way they are. Come on Gidget, let me help you. Don’t let your dad have that much power over your life.”
“But, what if my business is a huge failure?” I ask, still amazed he would even consider doing such a risky thing.
“That’s a risk I’m willing to take on you. I know you’re brilliant. I’ve seen you cook, I know what your customer service skills are. I know how you thrive under pressure, you’re going to be amazing. I don’t have any doubts your business is going to skyrocket to the moon. Everyone you know—especially your close friends, like me, are going to do everything in our power to make it so.”
“Tyler, I am going to have to think about this. If I did this, it would change everything in our relationship. We would be more than just boyfriend and girlfriend, we would now be business partners. Are you ready for that?” I inquire.
Tyler pulls me into an embrace and nuzzles my neck as he answers in a rumbly voice, “I’ve got no problems multitasking, Gidget, do you?”
“I can’t believe we’ve managed to keep this under wraps. Mindy is going to have a conniption fit when she sees her,” I say, as I brush Velvet’s coat one last time.
Heather grins and continues to tie red and green ribbons into Velvet’s mane. “You should be even more amazed that I was able to keep it a secret. Usually, I can’t keep my mouth shut to save my life. You should have wagered money.”
“Speaking of bets, you still haven’t colle
cted on the multitude of wagers that you have won against me. I’m not sure I like all this outstanding debt.”
“Don’t we have a date next week to take care of one of these debts?”
“Yes, ma’am, we do. Dress warm and wear your tennis shoes or boots. Don’t let Lucky get near them this time.”
Heather sticks her tongue out at me. “Did you forget that I actually made the wager and I know what we have planned? I know better than to wear stilettos to the gun range.”
“I know Darlin’, but I also know you’re planning to spend Christmas with Jeff and Kiera. Lucky has a thing for your shoes.”
Heather snickers at me. “Mine and everyone else’s. It’s a wonder everyone in that household doesn’t run around barefoot. Are you coming over for Christmas Dinner?”
“I don’t know. It depends on my work schedule. I may work and give the family guys some time with their kids. Will you save me some leftovers?”
“For a guy who’s doing something as sweet as that? Absolutely.”
“Don’t be too impressed, Gidget. I’m pretty low on the totem pole. Chances are, I would’ve drawn the short straw and had to work anyway.”
“Come on, Ty. I’m sure your willingness to step up counts for something.”
I shrug noncommittally. “What about your other markers? I still owe you dinner, but you also beat me fair and square at lawn bowling and video games.”
Heather peers around Velvet’s neck. “I did, didn’t I? But, you’re forgetting one.”
“What am I forgetting?” I ask, puzzled.
“That I’m the undisputed movie trivia champ of the Northwest.” Heather teases with a wink.
“You’re right. I don’t know how that total shellacking could’ve slipped my mind,” I sigh. “Just add it to my pile of indebtedness.” I don a sad pose for effect.
“You poor baby! I’m starting to feel bad for you now. In all fairness, though, I did tell you not to bet against me when we played video games, but you wouldn’t listen.”
Joy and Tiers Page 17
