by Hailey Smoke
I sat waiting in the truck at our pre-arranged spot. We had been texting back and forth, keeping abreast of each other’s movements. Finally, I saw the headlights approach. They blinked twice. She was here. I had spread a blanket in the bed of my truck, and it was there that we made love under the stars. As I held her quivering body against mine, I stroked her shoulder.
“Juliet?”
“Hmmm?”
“Do you love me?”
She leaned up to look at me in the soft light that spilled over us from the cabin. “What a ridiculous question! Of course I love you!”
“Enough to marry me?” I felt her body go still. My heart started to race. This was it.
“Are you asking me to marry you, Henry?”
“I am.”
“Then ask me properly.”
I grinned as I sat up. I knelt over her naked body. “Juliet Hudson, will you marry me?”
She smiled up at me. “Yes, Henry Arleigh, I will marry you.”
I pressed my body down on hers, and our lips met. We made sweet love once more before finally getting dressed and parting reluctantly.
We spent most of Saturday away from each other and under the scrutiny of our parents. They had decided to drop all other threats once we decided to stay away from each other. My parents knew I was due to leave on Wednesday morning and could not wait for me to go back home and be free form the clutches of that Hudson girl. The day before I was scheduled to leave, I made a series of out of town calls. I had one last dinner with my parents and sister then went to the garage to ensure that all my belongings were packed. I told them I was low on gas and thought it better to get it tonight rather than wait until morning. I drove out and headed to m mechanic. He was open and waiting. Shortly after, the girl of my dreams emerged from the back. With the help of the mechanic, we got her things ‘that she had packed up because she did not need them anymore and was going to drop them off at the thrift store before they closed for the night’ transferred from her car to my truck. We left sufficient payment for the towing of the vehicle back to her house the next day and were off. We had a twelve-hour drive ahead of us and would take turns during the night. When we finally got on the highway, it was nearly ten.
Juliet held my hand for most of the journey. She soon fell asleep. Somewhere around four, she woke up when we pulled into a rest stop. We relieved and refreshed ourselves and were back on the road before five. This time she was behind the wheel, and I closed my eyes. When next I opened my eyes and looked outside I was home. It was just after nine. Juliet had followed the GPS correctly. As I got out and stretched, a loud bark startled me. I braced only in time to stagger under the weight of a huge Alsation.
“Bruno! Man, how I’ve missed you!” I rubbed his coat and laughed as he licked my face all over, leaving wet marks. Another bark got my attention, and a Rottweiler launched at me.
“Fairy! You sweet little girl, you! Have you been behaving?”
I played with the dogs briefly before turning my attention to Juliet, who still sat in the truck. I took each dog by the collar and walked them over to meet their new mother.
By ten, a car pulled up, and a few people came into the house. By ten-thirty, they left, and Juliet went upstairs. I settled with my house sitter, and he left soon after. I went upstairs to find my new wife still in the shower. She was taking her own sweet time and waiting for me. Some time afterward, we emerged squeaky clean. We were both tired and needed sleep. But there was one more thing to be done. We both picked up our cell phones. We punched in a series of words and pressed ‘send’ before turning off the devices and snuggling under the sheets. We figured at least one of the three persons to whom we had each sent the same message would see it and tell the other two. It was simple and to the point.
We are now Mr. and Mrs. Arleigh.
13
Juliet
One year later…
I looked down at the ring on my finger. Had one year flown by so quickly?
“Babes? Have you seen my black sneakers?”
“It’s in your shoe closet, dear.”
“But I can’t find anything in there!”
I arched an eyebrow at my husband. “You think? I have been telling you to clean out that closet for a year now.”
“Love you too, my darling.”
I rolled my eyes.”You don’t have a choice. But seriously, Henry. You need to clean that closet out. I would do it, but…”
“Don’t you even think about it. Not in your condition.”
“Henry, I’m just pregnant, not incapacitated.”
“Still, I don’t want anything to happen to you. I’ll just buy a new pair before we leave tomorrow.”
“And then add the poor shoes that did not ask to be bought, to your ever-growing collection of ‘wear em and forget em’.”
Henry shrugged. “What can I say? I love sneakers.”
I continued to pack the two suitcases which were on the bed. Henry took each item from me and rolled it before placing them in the suitcase.
I continued to hand him one item after another. “So what excuse did you give your parents and grandparents, dear?”
“I told them I was coming to town for a seminar and would love to see them. Pam has been a real trouper in helping me reach out and bridge the gap. She’s the only one who knows what is going to happen at this family reunion. The response from the family, based on what she said, is that I am missed, and as long as I don’t bring that Hudson girl, I would be welcomed with open arms. What was your excuse?”
“Well, Chris is my man on the inside, and the sentiments are the same: as long as I’m not bringing that Arleigh person with me, they will be fine.”
“They will be in for a rude awakening. I just hope we can make them an offer they can’t refuse.”
I patted my gently rounded stomach. “I’d say this offer is going to be rather hard to refuse.”
Henry pulled me to stand in front of him. He kissed my belly, and I blushed. He looked up at me, and I felt as if I was being pulled into the sky as his eyes shone brightly.
“You are so beautiful. How did I get so lucky to have you?”
I leaned down and kissed his forehead. “I’m the lucky one to have you.”
“Thank you for being my wife, Juliet, and for giving me the best year of my life.”
Our fingers intertwined and rested on my stomach as he continued to speak.
“Things have not been perfect, but what is. Nevertheless, you have stood with me for the past year.”
“And I will still be standing with you for the years to come. I love you, Henry. Thank you for choosing me as your sidekick for this crazy journey called life.”
“I wouldn’t have it any other way.” He kissed my stomach again, and I felt a slight flutter as our child moved within. We were still waiting to feel the first real kick.
Later that evening, Henry loaded our luggage into the truck. We had an early flight and did not want to be delayed in any way. We would arrive tomorrow and meet our families the next day. We could only hope that the prospect of a shared grandchild and great-grandchild would end the ridiculous feud. And if it didn’t, well, it would be their loss.
Travel the next day was smooth, and we arrived at our hotel without incident. We spent the day unwinding from our jetlag and had dinner in the restaurant downstairs. When we went back to our room, we made separate calls to our siblings, simply to ensure that all was on track. They assured us that our parents and paternal grandparents, the persons with whom the feud had started, would be there. Tomorrow was going to be an intense eye-opener in more ways than one.
Henry and I arrived at the restaurant first. Pamela had chosen the restaurant and ensured that the private room was booked for our family meeting. There was a huge round table with twelve table settings in anticipation of the number of persons who would be there. We depended on Pamela and Christopher to co-ordinate the arrival of the two families. We sat in a tiny room to the side, waiting. My parents a
nd grandparents were the first to arrive. My father’s appearance shocked me. His brilliant red hair was now mostly white. My grandfather though in his seventies, was still strong and did not need the service of a cane. I rested my hand on my stomach yet again and thought about the fact that in a few minutes, there would be four generations in the room. My grandmother was her usual bubbly self and took her seat next to my mother. I realized they were looking around the room and noticed that there was twice the number of place settings there. I needed the other group to arrive before my family started getting suspicious.
Almost as if she had heard my silent plea, a petite woman who was a replica of Henry, opened the door. Behind her came a procession of two couples. It was not hard to tell where Henry had gotten his height from as both his father and grandfather were well over six feet tall. The four couples stared at each other as if they saw ghosts. I saw Christopher pull Pamela aside as the older couples continued to look. At each other, Henry and I made an appearance then.
“Dad, Gramps, Mom, Mama, could you all sit, please?”
The Arleigh clan took a seat. It did look like an intervention meeting of sorts, with one party on the left and the other on the right.
Henry started to speak. “We are here to ask you to end this feud. We know things went sour on a business deal, and you both felt as if you were cheated by the other. Juliet and I have a theory about that, by the way. We will speak to you afterward, gramps. But back to the matter at hand. The feud needs to end. Because if it doesn’t, you’re going to miss out on one of the most miraculous moments life will ever have to offer.” He pulled me to stand in front of him. “Juliet and I are expecting your first grandchild.”
Both our mothers gasped.
Henry continued. “Sad to say, if the feud continues that includes the disapproval of our marriage from both families, Juliet and I will stay away. But, as I said, you will end up missing out on watching your grandchild grow up, and you will miss out on being a part of our children’s lives.”
I saw Christopher and Pamela walk to the front where we stood. Chris turned to Henry.
“May I jump in here?”
Henry nodded.
“Henry makes a good point about missing out on the lives of your children. I don’t think, however, he understands the full truth of the statement. If the feud continues, you will be missing out on the lives of your children Henry and Juliet, but you will also be missing out on the lives of your children Christopher and Pamela.”
A stir went up around the room then. Christopher took Pamela by the hand and slowly sank to one knee. “Pamela Arleigh, will you marry me?”
With tears streaming down her face, Pamela nodded. “Yes.”
Christopher slipped a ring on her finger, then rose and kissed her gently. He pulled her into his arms, and they faced the family once again.
“Pamela and I have been dating secretly for almost two years. We grew up together hearing of this feud and participating in it first hand. But something shifted, and we realized that we had a little thing for each other. Well, one little thing led to another little thing, and it was a hop skip and jump to dating and sleeping over. Why do you think we both moved away from home. We live in the same apartment building and sleep in either apartment from time to time. We wanted to come in the open about our relationship, but when we saw how quickly you were to cut off Henry and Juliet, we decided to remain silent. But we will not stifle our happiness any longer because of this feud. And so, Pam and I stand here to endorse what Henry and Juliet had said. If the feud continues, you will lose all four of us.”
You could hear a pin drop when Christopher went silent. Then I saw our mothers get out of their seats. They approached us at the front and hugged Pamela and me, tears streaming down their faces.
“I don’t care what these men want to do. I’m not missing out on my grandbaby. My mother held my face between her hands. “I can’t believe my baby is having a baby.” She hugged me, and we both started to cry. I felt a gentle hand on my shoulder and turned to find Mrs. Arleigh at my elbow. She hugged me as well, crying and rubbing my stomach, while my mother hugged Pamela. Then all four of us embraced. The grandmothers joined us.
At first, the men stood around awkwardly. Henry and Chris soon had them talking.
It was well into the evening before we separated as a group. It was not going to be easy to wipe away all the years of resentment. But our fathers and grandfathers at least agreed to explore our theory of the accountant embezzling and blaming each to the other.
That night, Henry and I lay in each other’s arms reviewing all that had happened that afternoon. We were simply speechless at the turn everything had taken, especially Christopher’s surprise proposal. Now so many things made sense. They had both suggested Tuesdays for the family dinner; that way, they only had to be away from each other for one evening. And when Chris had seen Henry and me in Cove Villa, he and Pamela had just arrived at the restaurant. He had come in to enquire and had been shocked to see me and then Henry. He had gone back to the car and told Pamela, and they had hightailed it out of the little town and found somewhere else to spend the weekend. He had had no intention of telling on me, so when Henry and I had outed ourselves, he had been thrown for a loop.
“What a day, what a day, what a day this had been.”
“Hasn’t it, though.” I looked up at my husband. “I never saw Christopher and Pamela coming. It does make sense, but I just never saw it coming. I’m glad we’re on the road to resolution, though.”
“So am I.” Henry rubbed my belly gently. “I would have hated to keep our child away.”
I placed my hand on top of his as he rubbed. “So would I.” Then suddenly, I felt a movement and gave a little start. “Did you feel that?”
Henry’s eyes had opened wide. “I did. Our baby just kicked for the first time!” He started to laugh. “I think our child agrees with ending this feud. I love you, Juliet Hudson-Arleigh.”
“And I love you, Henry Arleigh.”
