Chistmas Ever After (20 page)

Back outside, she stepped over to the Santa Claus and dropped the $10.00 into his chimney. He nodded and thanked her.

She inched forward toward his white curly beard and whispered. “Can I trust you?”

He looked at her sternly, and stopped ringing his bell. “I’m Santa Claus! Of course you can trust me!”

Jennifer pulled out the $200.00 and showed it to him. She pointed to the woman and child who were clumsily shuffling across the ice. “Can you give that woman this money?”

He looked at her over the top of his wire-rimmed spectacles. “Why don’t you give it to her yourself?”

“I’d rather it came from you.”

He lifted a white bushy eyebrow. “All right.”

Jennifer gave him the money and he palmed it. “I’ll take care of it,” he said, winking at her.

As Jennifer started back toward the rink, she noticed that Alex was at the railing, still watching her.

“Asking Santa for something special on Christmas?” he asked.

Their eyes met again, his warm, hers hopeful, yet uncertain.

Alex pointed a playful accusing finger at her. “No thinking.”

She laughed, and it was so liberating! It was a deep laugh that shook her entire body.

“That’s the first time I’ve really seen you laugh, Jennifer.”

She reached for his hand. “That’s the first time you’ve called me Jennifer. Let’s skate.”

They circled the rink, feeling the cold wind on their faces, viewing the glorious buildings of the West Side, ghost-like in the snowfall, and the snow-covered trees, blurring, as they swept around the rink. Jennifer became aware that Alex kept easing his body closer to hers, until their hips joined. She pressed closer. She had never felt a thrill to compare with it—had never tasted wine as intoxicating—had never been as captivated by a delicious moment as the one that was stretching out before her into a timeless ecstasy.

She tilted her head to take in Alex’s handsome face and long hair, ruffled by the wind. Thoughts, questions and emotions struggled to rise up, but she stopped them. Nothing was going to snuff out this golden moment. “No thoughts,” she said quietly to herself.

“Did you say something?” Alex asked.

“No. Nothing.”

Jennifer’s attention was suddenly diverted to a bundled-up kid, 10 or 11 years old. He was leading the mother and child she’d seen earlier. He made a beckoning motion toward the Santa Claus. Jennifer skated away from Alex and awkwardly arranged herself to view Santa as he handed the money to the woman, patting her hand warmly. Jennifer skated near the center of the rink for a better view, witnessing the woman’s perplexed expression and her wide staring eyes as she examined the money. In gentle spasms, the woman wept in gratitude. She shook Santa Claus’s hand, energetically, took her little daughter’s hand and skated away, her face open and joyous.

Smiling to herself, Jennifer joined Alex again, and for the next 20 minutes, they skated across the ice effortlessly, making playful, imitative gestures of figure skaters, pretending, like children, that the secret world of pretend, discovery and imagination was theirs exclusively, and nothing in the world could take it away from them.

Then suddenly, there was a subtle shift in the air, and a burst of wind that changed the emphasis of the moment, as if someone had fumbled a priceless porcelain object and it fell, shattering.

Alex’s cellphone went off like an alarm. It startled them both; shook them from the spell. Jennifer lost her balance. Alex reached for her, but it was too late. Her fall was swift and hard. As she fell, her right skate grazed Alex’s left skate, just enough to pitch him precariously to his left. He couldn’t maintain his balance and he desperately back-stepped, grasping at the wind. He lost the battle and splashed to the ice, bracing himself with his hands. On impact, his cell phone leaped from his jacket and went sliding across the ice, ringing loudly.

He looked at Jennifer, concerned. “Are you okay?”

She nodded, sitting up, massaging her leg. “Yes... I think so.”

On his knees, Alex scampered over to his cell phone, as several skaters shot by. He snatched it up and answered. “Hello!.. Yes, Valencia. I’m at Wollman Ice Skating Rink. What am I doing here? Well…”

Alex looked at Jennifer. She was being helped up by a female skater.

“It’s a long story. Yes, I know. But … Look… Listen to me, Valencia.” His voice grew firm. “I’m going back to the hospital. As soon as I’m sure Jason is okay, I’ll meet you at your parents’ apartment. Yes, I’ll call before I come. Okay… goodbye.”

Alex ended the call, pushed himself up and skated over to Jennifer.

“Valencia?” Jennifer said, forcing a pleasant expression.

He nodded.

“I have to get going, too,” Jennifer said.

“Where?”

She slid her hands into her pocket and felt the business card that Dr. Phillips had given her. “I’ve got some plans.”

Alex took her hand and they skated back toward the locker rooms.

After they had gathered their things and returned the skates, they started up the pathway toward the West Side. Alex saw a horse-drawn carriage approach. He waved, and it trotted toward them.

“What are you doing?” Jennifer asked.

“He’s going our way.”

The carriage drew up and Alex helped Jennifer inside. He climbed in and sat opposite her, offering her the red woolen blanket. She placed it over her legs and feet and instantly felt its warmth.

The cabby looked back. “Where to, folks, on this snowy night?” he said in an Irish accent.

“The Plaza Hotel,” Jennifer said.

The carriage lurched forward. Alex sat with his arms folded, while Jennifer viewed Central Park, a winter wonderland.

“It’s a beautiful night,” she said.

“New York’s a great town, isn’t it? Sometimes I think anything is possible in this town. It’s so big. So many different kinds of people, places and things to do. So many wonderful histories. I’d love to study more of its history.”

“Maybe you will, after law school.”

Alex lowered his head. “Valencia and her family have been good to me. Her father is the CEO of RayBrand Pharmaceuticals. I met her when I was working a construction job over on the east side. She said I looked like a cowboy.”

“You could pass for one,” Jennifer said, “if your hair was shorter.” “She’s an attorney.”

“She sounds like a nice woman,” Jennifer said, “…and she has such a pretty name.”

“Yeah, her mother’s Spanish, her father was born in New York. Since I met her, I feel like I’m finally getting my life back together. I was just so lost and Jason needs a mother… needs a home. Valencia’s parents love him like he was their own.”

Jennifer smiled. “I’m happy for you, Alex. I really am.”

Alex looked up, not meeting her eyes. “Are you going back to Willowbury?”

“Just to straighten out some loose ends. Then I’ll probably leave.”

“And go where?”

Jennifer was turning Dr. Phillips’ card in her hand. “I’m going to start a new life. Have a completely different kind of adventure. I’m ready for that now. I’m ready to put my past behind me and move on.”

“I hope you find what you’re looking for, Jennifer,” Alex said, still not looking at her.

The carriage slowly meandered through the park until it reached Central Park South and 59
^th
Street. It paused, then the driver made the horse start trotting again, turning east, traveling toward Fifth Avenue. Jennifer caught sight of the Ritz Carlton, saw empty carriages waiting for tourists, saw strolling shoppers searching for yellow taxis. The horse’s rhythmic steps reminded her of a grandfather’s clock, winding down, announcing that time was running out. Strangely, she was almost relieved that they’d be parting soon. She was feeling a kind of emotional overload, as if she’d stuck her fingers inside a light socket.

But she also felt a little betrayed, although she knew she had no right to be. They had only just met and, anyway, it would all seem different in the morning on the flight back home. Her entire New York experience would probably float in and out of her consciousness like a dream, and then in the coming days and weeks, it would slowly be forgotten.

Alex looked directly at her, his eyes riveted on her face. There was an urgency in them, a kind of wild and lovely invitation. It was the kind of look that rattled her, that brought storms of pleasure and an urge to flee for her life.

“What do
you
want, Jennifer?” he asked, suddenly, aggressively.

She was stunned by his direct manner. “What do I want?”

“Yes. You asked me what I wanted. Why did you come to New York?”

They were approaching The Plaza Hotel and traffic began to snarl, horns blared.

Jennifer lifted her hand, as if searching for an answer. “Things happened. I just needed to get away.”

“You must have been looking for something?”

Flustered, she averted his eyes, then quickly, irresistibly, returned to them. “I don’t know!”

“How is it that we just found each other like this? Don’t you wonder about that?”

She twisted uneasily. “I don’t know anything about how or why things happen.”

“But, this did happen.
We
happened.”

“Yes, but…”

The carriage came to a stop.

Alex opened his hands. “Now what?”

“What do you mean? You have a fiancée. She’s waiting for you.”

“Are you going out with Dr. Phillips?”

She raised her shoulders and shook her head. “I might. He asked, and it
is
Christmas Eve.”

The driver looked around. “We have arrived, folks.”

Alex leaned forward, folding his hands. “That’s right Jennifer. We’ve arrived. We have to make a decision.”

CHAPTER 15

Alex took her hand and led her out of the carriage. He paid the driver, then pulled her over toward the exterior of The Oak Room. He placed his hands on her shoulders, looking at her pointedly. “Jennifer, I’m the kind of guy who dribbles soup and sometimes coffee down the front of my shirt. I’ll probably eat half your sandwich when you’re not looking. I’m not a very good cook and I hate making the bed. But I’m loyal, I’m generous … and I love you.”

Jennifer looked at him, struggling.

“Do you feel it, too, or is it just me? That…connection. That feeling of finally coming home after a long, long journey.”

Jennifer tried to avoid his eyes, but she felt the gravitational pull of them, felt the incredible accident of their two worlds spinning in perfect orbit around each other, drawing closer to impact. She felt the desire to merge, to discover intimacy and love. “I don’t know what you mean.”

“Yes, you do, Jennifer. I see it in your eyes.”

“Alex, you’re scaring me.”

“I’m scared, too, Jennifer. I don’t know what the hell happened to me when I saw you. But I’ve got to say it, Jennifer. I’ve got to. For the first time in years, I feel like I’m coming back to life. I mean, really back to life. Like I have a second chance, like I’ve been raised from the dead. Is it all just a coincidence? I don’t know. Is it fate, some phase of the moon? I don’t know and I don’t care. All I know is I have never felt like this before. I have never known anything so quickly or so completely as I know that you and I are perfect together. I’m in love with you, Jennifer. I know it’s fast and I know it’s kinda scary, but there it is!”

Her heart raced. She pulled away and jerked up the collar of her coat, blinking fast. “Look… your son and your fiancée are waiting for you. You should go to them.”

Alex searched her face. “Yes, I should. I know I should. But I’m standing here, looking at you, feeling like if I walk away, I’ll be making the biggest mistake of my life. And if you go out with Dr. Phillips, you’ll be making one of the biggest mistakes of your life.”

“That’s none of your business!”

“I’ve already made too many mistakes. I see that now. Jennifer… let’s get Jason and go back to Willowbury together. Nothing would make him or me happier.”

Jennifer stepped back, in frozen astonishment. “Alex, you’re getting married in June! We’ve just met. You can’t just be in love with me.”

“‘Whoever loved that loved not at first sight.’”

“What?”

“Christopher Marlowe.”

“I don’t know him.”

“I’ll teach you. You’ll teach me a million things. We’ll teach each other and Jason all kinds of things—wonderful things! We’ll grow and learn together. Make love.”

Jennifer turned away. Fear struck, like a cold stinging wind. His words set off so many conflicting and frightening emotions that she couldn’t think.

She had trusted Lance and look what happened. She’d given him everything—believed in him, mourned his death, swore she’d never love again. Then she was betrayed! It was like being sliced open with a knife!

“Don’t you see, Jennifer. We’ve just been given a gift. I know it! I feel it! Can’t you?”

Jennifer trembled. Was it really a gift or just another ride around the merry-go-round of life? A world where it’s so easy to deceive oneself into believing or feeling a certain way when in fact the opposite is true. It happens all the time!