Forever Yours (12 page)

The waiter appeared and they ordered. They probably could have recited the entire menu to him. After he’d gone into the kitchen and came back with bread and their salads, Charles couldn’t seem to stop smiling.

“I can’t remember the last time I saw you this happy,” Jade said. “It’s wonderful.”

“You’re the reason I’m so happy. To be honest, I never thought I’d be this happy again.” He paused. “I wanted to do this after we ate, but I can’t wait another minute.”

Having said that, he took out a small velvet box from his pocket and handed it to her. “One of my clients helped me pick it out.”

It was a beautiful diamond ring. Jade gasped. “Charles, it’s gorgeous!”

He touched her face with his hand. She took his hand and kissed it.

“Here—” he took the ring out of the box “—put it on. I intend to make an honest woman out of you. And we’re sending an invite to your mother.”

That made her laugh as he slipped the ring on her finger. Jade kept stealing peaks at it all through dinner. The moment she’d dreamed of for so long was finally coming true. They had decided to get married by the Justice of the Peace as soon as they applied for a marriage license. With the divorce finally a reality, everything else was anticlimactic. Her mother hadn’t attended the wedding.

Jade didn’t feel different being married. When Charles had moved into the apartment and she was able to kiss him good night and see his handsome face every morning, what more did she need? Being able to hold him every night was enough for her. She didn’t care whether or not she had a piece of paper legalizing their union. She had him and possession was nine-tenths of the law.

The next several years were uneventful. Preston was getting tall like his father and doing well in school like his brother, who had been accepted by the University of Albany. The first year, they took Stephen up to school in a rented minivan and made it a fun vacation. Since he wasn't allowed a car on campus for that entire year, if he wanted to come home he had to take the bus or be picked up. Charles liked the drive upstate. It took his family out of the city into fresh air and gave him a legitimate reason to be gone the entire weekend. So every major holiday, Charles, Preston and Jade would go up to Albany to get Stephen. These trips became mini-vacations.

During the rest of his undergrad years at Albany, Stephen was able to drive on campus and had his own car. On the major holidays, Stephen didn’t return to Long Island. Instead, he went to Manhattan. Caroline had never once visited Stephen at college. Jade wondered if she'd make the effort to bother attending Stephen's graduation.

Jade was far from shocked to learn that Caroline decided not to attend. However, she felt sorry for Stephen that his own mother couldn’t make the effort. She claimed that she had to chair a rummage sale for charity. Jade guessed nobody ever told her that charity began at home. In a way, that was the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back and it was a most hurtful one. How could any mother be so self-absorbed that she wasn’t proud enough of her son's achievements to attend his graduation? Jade wondered. How could she put her own selfish needs first?

Stephen graduated with high honors and was accepted to the prestigious law school at Yale. Jade beamed with pride for both Stephen and Charles. There was no excuse for Caroline's behavior, unless she was totally devoid of all maternal instincts. Maybe she was.

After the ceremony, they’d gone back to Stephen's off-campus apartment so he could change. They were going out to dinner to celebrate. Stephen had just walked into the bathroom when the phone rang. Charles answered.

Watching his face contort with anger, Jade guessed it was Caroline on the other end of the line. She watched as he absentmindedly picked up a pencil and snapped it in two.

“Why aren't you here? That's no excuse. You disgust me. He's busy. If he finds the time to fit you in, he'll call you back.” Charles slammed the phone down. “Bitch!”

“I thought I heard the phone ring. Who was it, Dad?” Stephen asked as he came out of the bathroom.

“Wrong number.”

“You look too upset for it to be a wrong number,” Stephen said.

“You’re right,” Charles admitted. “It was your mother. I told her you were busy and would call her later—if you found the time.”

Jade saw the tears welling in Stephen's eyes. He’d wanted his mother to be there for him—just once. She knew he was appreciative of the affection and support she and Preston had given him, and was especially glad they’d come today, but the bottom line was that Jade wasn't his mother. How she wished she were!

Spontaneously Jade got up from the chair and opened her arms. Stephen filled them. She rubbed his back as he sobbed, murmuring whatever soothing words she could think of that would fill the gaping hole Caroline had torn in his heart.

Charles looked her way and mouthed the words “I love you.” Jade wiped away her own tears and kissed Stephen's head.

Later on that evening while Jade lay in Charles's arms, he said, “When I saw you holding Stephen, it looked so natural. Too bad fate didn't see fit to make you his mother instead of Caroline.”

“I wish I were his mother. He's a wonderful young man. He’d make any mother proud.”

“Except Caroline, it seems. Well, what goes around, comes around. She'll get her just due one day, if I have to personally see to it.”

“Why bother? It’s useless energy spent.”

Charles drew her under him. To her, it seemed as if he wanted to express his love for her on all levels. Or perhaps he merely wanted to erase Caroline from his mind. It was a win-win situation for Jade as he covered her mouth with his. His kisses were as persuasive as a snake charmer’s tune and her body yielded to his melody.

His lips continued to devour hers as his hands traveled the rest of her. As he touched her breast, he must have felt the accelerated beating of her heart for him. He had to know each breath she took was for him. She buried her hands in the thickness of his hair. As he bent his head to kiss the hollow of her neck, she noticed the specks of gray at his temples that hadn’t been there before. Then he slid lower to her breasts. He teased one nipple, then the other with his mouth and hands, causing her to practically purr.

Without relinquishing his attention to her breasts, he embarked on a passionate trail of kisses, stopping at her navel. There where he slowly slipped his tongue in and out while kneading her breasts. The sensual pull she felt in her core grew into an overpowering tug. She wondered if he could feel the sensations within her body. When he began kissing the insides of her thighs, she nearly jumped from the bed. However, it was only the beginning of the pleasure.

Charles lifted Jade’s legs up over his shoulders and buried his head in her well-primed center. With his tongue, he parted the velvety folds, thrusting his tongue inside and out before alternately nipping and licking her clitoris. A jolt of pleasure shot straight through Jade, and her jagged breaths became quite audible. Her body reacted as if it had a mind of its own as the passion continued to pound the blood through her heart, chest and head. Jade thought she’d explode as the hysteria of delight rose to the critical level. Abandoning herself to the whirl of sensation that engulfed her, she went under, moaning aloud with the pleasure that rocked her entire being.

When the last spasm wound down, Jade drew Charles into her. As his mouth sought hers, their bodies began to move together slowly. However, a moment later he was pumping into her with such fierce intensity she could hardly keep up. After he climaxed, he collapsed breathless on her chest and they remained that way until sleep found them.

As the summer turned into autumn, Jade marveled at how the time had flown by. She’d been so happy. The only thing she’d change, if she could, was the number of hours Charles put into the defense of every client. The major one, at the moment, was Gavin MacCaffery, who was accused of killing his wife, along with his business partner. The trial was a beaut and dragged on and on. Unforeseeable complications and delays prevented it from going to the jury. The strain on Charles was evident. He was putting in full days in court and spent half the night going over court minutes and research compiled by associates. Being such a meticulous person, he didn't want to overlook any aspect of the case.

Charles had called in the morning to remind her he'd pick her up at six. They had tickets to see a show, purchased months earlier, and he needed a break from the case. Jade hoped the relaxation would do him some good. When she got home that day from work, Preston had just come home from school and was in the kitchen having a snack. She walked over and kissed the top of his head.

“Hi, Mom. Tonight’s my big night.”

“You think you’re up to it, big man?”

“I’m twelve and a half. You bet. I don’t need a babysitter.”

“Just remember that all the important telephone numbers are hanging on the fridge.”

“Got it covered.”

“And no wild parties,” Jade kidded.

Preston rolled his eyes.

The phone rang and Jade backed up to grab it. “Hello?”

“Mrs. Trotter?”

“Yes,” Jade said. A terrible feeling of apprehension crept up her spine.

“I’m the social worker at Lenox Hill Hospital—”

“Has something happened to my husband?” Jade began to shake as the fearful images built in her mind.

Frightened by his mother’s reactions, Preston was at her side.

“All I’ve been told is that he collapsed in court. He’s with the doctors now.”

Jade gasped. Her stomach knotted and she could hardly breathe.

“Mrs. Trotter, are you still there?”

Swallowing with difficulty, Jade found her voice. “Yes.”

“When you come to the hospital, stop at the triage desk in the ER and they’ll tell you how he’s doing.”

“Thank you,” Jade said and hung up.

“What’s happened, Mom?”

Jade replied in a voice void of emotion. “Your father’s in the hospital. Get your coat.”

The doorman hailed her a taxi and she called Stephen, who was spending his summer interning at Charles’s firm.

He answered cheerfully. “Hi, Jade. Dad’s at court.”

“Stephen, meet me at the triage desk in the ER at Lenox Hill—”

“Is it Dad?”

“Yes. He collapsed in court.” Jade started to cry, but managed to rein in her emotions to continue. “I’ll see you there.”

“I’m leaving right now.”

“Is Dad going to be all right?” Preston asked.

“Yes, of course,” she told her son in an attempt to convince them both while her stomach churned with anxiety.

Jade saw Stephen walking toward her as she and Preston got out of the cab. She took out a tissue and dabbed at her eyes. It was so difficult trying to be brave for the boys. He embraced her and then hugged Preston. Together they went inside and Jade walked up to the triage window and inquired about Charles. She was told that he was in the OR and that they could wait for the doctor in the cardiac waiting room. They got directions and headed there.

The waiting room was occupied by several people who seemed to be sitting and thumbing through magazines with vacant eyes, while others watched the TV suspended from a corner of the room. Jade, Stephen and Preston settled into seats in the back corner.

“It’s that damn MacCaffery trial,” Stephen said. “He wants to win it so badly. He probably didn’t even collapse until
after
he finished his summation.”

Tears clouded Jade’s eyes again and she blinked them away. “You know your father, Stephen. He truly believed in giving every client the best counsel he could.”

“I have a feeling his heart was probably a ticking time bomb and could have gone off anytime.” Stephen rose from the plastic chair and began to pace.

Suddenly it was all so clear to Jade. Charles had often complained about his bouts of indigestion and took antacids like candy. But the bouts might really have been early signs of heart trouble.

“Have you told your mother?” Jade asked Stephen.

He whirled around to face Jade, anger etched deeply into his features. “No. If Dad wants her to know, I’ll call. Not before I ask him.”

Jade nodded. What could she say? It was Stephen’s decision.

Preston buried his head in her shoulder. She knew he was crying and rubbed his back. With bravery that was more acting than real, she said, “Your father will be fine. He’s a strong man and will get through this. We’ll all get through this.”

Stephen stopped pacing and stood by Jade. “Thank God I've got you. You've been more of a mother to me than Caroline ever was.”

She took his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. “You'll always have me, I promise. As long as I live, I will always be here for you.”

All three looked up at the sound of approaching footfalls on the polished vinyl floor.

Jade made a last minute prayer as a tall man dressed in blood-soiled green scrubs approached. She knew it was a selfish prayer to ask God to save Charles for her, but she had absolutely no idea how she could survive without him. He and Preston, and now, Stephen, were her reasons for living.

“Mrs. Trotter?”

Jade nodded and stood.

“Your husband is going to pull through.”

“Thank you, doctor.” Jade then tilted her head up toward the ceiling and whispered, “Thank you, Jesus.”

“He’s a lucky man. We had to replace his mitral valve and repair some other damage, but with a lot of rest and a change in his diet, he’s going to be just fine.”

“Thank you,” Stephen said, shaking the doctor’s hand.

“When can we see him?” Jade asked.

“I’ll send a nurse down to get you after he’s settled in the ICU.”

“But isn’t that for critical patients?” Jade said.

“We put all our heart patients there to be monitored the first twenty-four hours.”

An audible collective sigh of relief could be heard as the doctor turned to leave. After the doctor had gone, Stephen went to get coffee for Jade and himself and a hot chocolate for Preston.