Bella Summer Takes a Chance (34 page)

‘I’m sorry, James, I know you don’t want that.’

He sighed. ‘You can’t make another person feel something they don’t. Rupert wouldn’t be my first choice for her. Hell, he wouldn’t be anyone’s first choice, would he? I mean, on the surface. She’s gone for the complete opposite of me. That smarts.’

‘Oh, James, he’s not your complete opposite. You’re both smart, funny, kind, cultured. Don’t sell yourself short.’

‘Is that a salt shaker in your hand? Thanks very much for the reminder that he’s a good guy. He is, though, I know he is. Much as I hate to admit it, they’re well-suited and he’s great with the boys. Objectively, I couldn’t hope for a better stepfather for them. Subjectively, I’d rather see Kat take up the veil and live out her life happily married to God.’

‘What happened, James? Where’d it go wrong?’

He stared at Kat and Rupert. ‘I think we’re both to blame. We made such good partners that we forgot to love each other. We got caught up in our life, but it wasn’t a life together. We fulfilled our roles perfectly. I went out and earned the living, came home in the evenings to be the dad, spent weekends socializing with our friends. Kat was the perfect mother and homemaker, the one who organised the social life we enjoyed. We were a team. Do you see what I mean? I don’t know when it happened, when everything in our life became external to us. There was no “us”, no connection between us. We went through the motions of our lives. She realised it first, that’s all.’

‘And yet you were the one having the affair,’ I pointed out.

‘Ah, B., you don’t pull punches, do you?’ He said without malice. ‘Kat has always been smarter than me. Yes, I had the affair and yet never questioned why I’d done it. Kat met Rupert and within a week she’d figured out what neither of us saw during our whole marriage. I wish I’d been smarter, and that it was me with my arm around her right now.’

‘I’m sorry, James, I really am. You’re a good man. Somebody is going to be very lucky to have you.’

‘I know, B., thanks. I’m moving forward, making changes in my life where I feel I need them, and when I meet the right woman I won’t make the same mistakes again. Now come here and give Uncle James a birthday hug.’

‘I’ve warned you about that!’ I hugged my friend and said a little prayer that he’d be happy one day. Aw, hell, I couldn’t begrudge Mattias either. I took back the moo.

Ding ding ding ding. ‘Attention, please, attention,’ Frederick said from in front of the cake. ‘We are gathered here tonight to celebrate
Bella’s
birthday. Here’s to B., we wish you all the happiness and success you deserve. May the year ahead be the best one yet!’

‘Speech!’ Faith said.

‘Thank you, Faith. And thank you, everyone, for the kind birthday wishes, and for coming tonight. I’m overwhelmed to see so many people I love in one room. You know I’m not one for public speaking, but I do want you to know how much you all mean to me, so bear with me, because I have a few things to say. It may not be eloquent, but it’s from the heart.’

I took a deep breath. ‘Faith, Kat and Clare.’ I tipped my glass to them. ‘You are my best friends. I thank you for every single conversation we’ve ever had, for every late-night phone call, glass of wine raised in happiness or sadness or anger, for sensible advice even though it often wasn’t listened to, and most of all, for your love and support. I know that no matter what happens in our lives, we’ll be there for each other. I love you.’ Already I needed a tissue. ‘Faith, you get a special mention for being my fairy godmother. If you hadn’t had the good sense to move in with Frederick, I’d be living in a bedsit in Zone 4 instead of your gorgeous flat. And Fred, you’ve become my good friend in such a short space of time. I will always be grateful that I answered your advert and became your flatmate. You’ve found an incredible woman in Faith and I hope we dance at your wedding one day. That goes for you too, Rupert. You’ve won the prize and I hope you and Kat are happy together for the rest of your lives.

‘And Clare, ah, Clare. You did it! You made it through nine months of torture and look at your reward. For those of you who haven’t been introduced, that little peanut is Bella and today’s her two-week birthday.’ The laughter and ahhs gave me the chance to sniffle over my namesake. ‘Clare, you’re going to be the best mum in the world, and Harry, Bella couldn’t ask for a cooler dad. Speaking of dads, James, thank you for being my friend all these years, and for raising such wonderful children, one of whom is my godson, Conrad.’

Frederick, noticing that I’d drained my glass, poured me another. I was in the home stretch now.

‘Marjorie, you are a remarkable woman and a good friend, and I couldn’t be happier to have met you. Finally, I want to say to Mattias: Thank you for all our years together, and I wish you the best that life has to offer. So cheers, to every single person in this room. All my wonderful friends!’ Mattias smiled and nodded slowly as we toasted.

‘Wait just a minute!’ Shouted Fred, stopping everyone mid sip. ‘We aren’t finished yet, are we
Bella
? Isn’t there something else you’d like to share? What’s the matter, cat got your tongue? All right then, I’ll do it. Ladies and gentlemen, I’d like to announce the forthcoming CD, to be released–’ He covered his champagne-glass-cum-microphone to speak sotto voce to Gemma. ‘Hopefully in June next year, I’m reliably informed. It’s Bella Summer’s very first CD! Whoop, whoop! Give it up for Bella Summer, ladies and gentlemen!’

‘Thanks, everyone, and thanks to my amazing manager, Gemma. Fred’s right, I’ve got a record deal with EMI. It’s just one CD, but I can start recording next month, as soon as I confirm the musicians. But I have to approach them first to see if they’ll do it.’

I walked over to Rebecca, Charlie and Matt. ‘What do you say, guys? Would you consider it?’

They traded glances. ‘Of course we will!’ Rebecca beamed. ‘We’d be honoured to.’

‘Wow, I didn’t mean for you to decide right now. I figured you’d want to talk about it. But that’s great, wonderful, thanks so much, we’re going to make a CD together, yay!’

‘B., what’s to talk about?’ Matt chuckled. ‘Would we like to play on a CD put out by EMI? Duh, yes!’

‘Well, when you put it like that, I see your point. Um, I guess we need to work out payment and stuff, and I’m not exactly getting a big advance, but I’m so excited to be working with you all on this. Thank you.’

Rebecca hugged my shoulder. ‘B., I’m so thrilled for you. This could be the beginning of something big. You’re talented, and more importantly, you took the chance. Many don’t. You should be very proud of yourself for that.’

I was proud. And I was happy. Who cares that I was a year away from my fourth decade? It didn’t matter that my face had wrinkles and my upper arms waggled, or that I didn’t have a regular job like most people. My life was out there in front of me, in that recording deal, in my friends and in dates I hadn’t even had yet. It wasn’t behind me in memories.

It was still early when Marjorie and The Grandson announced they were leaving. ‘What a wonderful time we’ve had, B., thank you so much for inviting us! And thank you for the cake for The Colonel. He’ll love it.’ Marjorie was as perky as she’d been when she arrived. That woman had the regenerative ability of a Toyota Prius. ‘I so enjoyed meeting your friends. Faith is lovely, and that little baby, my, how sweet. How nice that Clare made her your namesake.’

‘I know. I was shocked when she told me. I’ve got nice friends.’

‘You certainly do, and that makes you very lucky. Oh, I nearly forgot.’ She dug around in her handbag. ‘It’s just a little something, to keep track of your thoughts.’

‘Marjorie, thanks.’ Slowly I opened the beautifully wrapped package. The leather was smooth, pale yellow, and the page edges were marbled. Inside the journal, on the first page, it read:
Bella, There are many paths that make the journey. Whichever one you choose is the right one for you. Love, Marjorie.

‘Thank you so much, it’s beautiful, and I’ll use it. Some day maybe I’ll show it to little Bella, in case she has questions.’

‘That’s exactly the way it should be, my dear. Ready?’ She said to The Grandson.

He nodded. ‘Thanks, B., I enjoyed tonight, and getting to meet some of your friends.’

‘I feel like we haven’t had much chance to talk. I’m sorry about that, I’ve been running around.’

‘Perfectly understandable, you’re the guest of honour. And congratulations again on the recording deal. That’s some achievement.’

‘Thanks,’ I said as I walked them to the door. ‘So I’ll see you on Saturday? Hampton Court Palace, right?’

‘Right, see you then.’ He hesitated.

‘What is it? Would you like to take some cake?’

‘No, no, thanks. I just wondered… well, whether you might like to see me another time, not just on Saturdays. I thought maybe we could meet for a drink one evening.’

I paused before answering him. ‘Ben, we’ve become friends, right?’ He nodded. ‘That’s made me very happy over the months. You’re a great guy. But I left Mattias because I wanted to fall head over heels in love. And I like you as a friend.’

Not once in all the time we’d known each other had I thought of him
in that way
. Certainly, I enjoyed his company. Of course he was a nice man. And cute, in his own way. But my heart told me he wasn’t the man for me. My heart had got me this far. I wasn’t about to stop listening to it now.

‘Understood. Thanks, Bella, for being honest. You’re right, you deserve to find what you’ve been looking for. We both do. So I’ll see you on Saturday.’

‘Thanks for understanding. I’ll see you on Saturday.’ As I turned back to the party my stomach fizzed. Indigestion? Too much cake? No. Excitement. Too much life ahead of me.

Looking around the living room at everyone I loved gave me all the proof I needed that truly happy people followed their hearts. They didn’t sit quietly in the chairs life had arranged for them. They sat exactly where they wanted to, and sometimes they didn’t sit at all. They stood up and danced to the music they made for themselves.

THE END

LINER NOTES

Bella Summer stayed with EMI for the rest of her career, one that spanned nearly three decades. That was unusual in the music industry but then, when you find a good thing you stick with it. The Swingers played with her on sixteen CDs, and would have continued had Rebecca not had a stroke at age seventy-three. It ended her music career but not her friendship with B., or her love of a great riff.

Little Bella loved being big sister to her two brothers, who were born four minutes apart a year to the day after their parents’ wedding. Clare ensured there was no confusion over the epidural the second time around, and Harry kept his crotch well out of striking distance, just in case.

Their wedding was one of the best B. had ever been to, and not just because all her best friends were there. When Harry’s friend Andrew asked her to dance, she wondered if the caterers had left her scallop starter out in the sun too long. Andrew wondered the same thing. By the end of the night they knew it was much more serious than a case of food poisoning. They were happy to become a cliché, and spent the next forty years together telling everyone who’d listen that some urban myths aren’t myths at all.

Kat’s boys grew up with two dads. It wasn’t always easy between her and James but they made joint custody work and for the most part kept the boys out of the occasional skirmishes. B’s godson, Conrad, loved Rupert to death but Jonathan remained loyal to James. That made James happy, and was a small consolation for losing Kat to The Hairy Biker. He never fell head over heels in love, but he did meet and marry a nice woman a decade after he and Kat split up. For James, friendship was enough.

Faith’s journalism career went from strength to strength at
The Guardian
and later, at
The Independent
. She and Fred moved to a bigger flat and set about filling it with children. Her experience in the delivery room with Clare, though, had convinced her that adoption was the way to go. Neither of them were exactly the DIY type.

Mattias’ salsa sweetheart turned out to be the real deal. When they married, B. sang their first song. It was ‘But For You’.

B. and The Grandson continued to spend Saturdays with Marjorie and The Colonel, building their friendship into one that would last into their own old ages. When The Colonel’s heart gave up a few months before B’s CD was released, of course Marjorie was terribly sad but, typically, she chose to think about the time she’d had with him instead of the time she’d lost. The optimism that had carried her through a world war, three husbands and two continents never left her. B. and The Grandson celebrated her hundredth birthday with her. She clapped her hands in excitement at the cake and pronounced the event ‘Marvellous!’

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