The Gift (35 page)

They decided to have a last dinner together to celebrate
finishing recording the album and to say good bye to each other. Tucker and
Justin drove to the grocery store and bought some steaks and potatoes and salad
fixings. They had asked the kids what they wanted for dinner and they had
requested peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. They came back with the food and
a couple bottles of wine and then Tucker fired up the grill.

Maggie sat at the kitchen table with Gabe and Belle
while they had their sandwiches and milk, and then Justin helped her put the
kids to bed. Maggie and Justin made a salad together, and Tucker brought in the
steaks and potatoes from the grill. They sat around the table companionably and
ate their dinner and had several glasses of wine. Tucker asked Maggie if she
would consider doing a short tour with him to support their album when it was
released. Maggie said she would love to, especially because then they would be
able to spend time together. After a final glass of wine, Tucker kissed Maggie
good night and left to go back to the main house.

Justin led Maggie to the living room and turned down the
lights and put some music on the stereo. They were both feeling a little sad
that it was probably the last evening they would spend alone together. Maggie
snuggled up next to Justin on the couch and he put his arm around her. They
were silent for a while, but then Justin leaned over and started kissing her
lightly on the lips. He moved to her neck and the base of her throat. Maggie
shivered at his touch, starting to feel incredibly aroused.

Justin stopped kissing her and looked into her eyes.

“Maggie, I want to make love to you one last time. I
know that you’re going back to Zak tomorrow. I would like to have one last
night with you that I could remember forever.”

Maggie whispered in his ear, “I want you too Justin,
please make love to me.”

He led her to the bedroom and locked the door just in
case the kids woke up.

“Maggie, do you have that nightgown with you that you
bought on Rodeo Drive?” Justin asked.

“I think so.”

“Please put it on for me. You look so sexy in it.”

Maggie went over to the bureau and found the nightgown
hidden under her clothes in the middle drawer. She took off her t-shirt and
jeans and put the nightgown on and then turned around to face Justin.

Justin stared at her intently for several minutes like
he wanted to burn her image on his retinas. He stepped in front of her and took
her face in his hands and kissed her passionately on the lips. His hands moved
down to her shoulders and he slowly slid the straps of the nightgown down her
arms until the nightgown slipped off her body and pooled around her feet on the
floor. He put his arms around her waist and pulled her close to him.

“Justin, why did you make me put on my nightgown if you
were just going to take it off again,” Maggie said smiling.

“So I can always remember how sexy you are,” Justin said
huskily.

Justin pulled Maggie even closer and kissed her deeply.
After a few minutes, he took her hand and led her over to the bed. She lay down
and waited for him with great anticipation while he took off his shirt and
jeans and sat down on the edge of the bed next to her.

“Should I use a condom, Maggie?” Justin asked.

“Probably a good idea,” she said.

Both of them were thinking about that time when Maggie
was pregnant and didn’t know if Justin was the father. Neither of them wanted
to go through that experience again.

Maggie waited another minute or so and then Justin
kneeled in between her legs and leaned down to kiss her. He whispered in her
ear, “Maggie, I love you so much,”

She gave a loud moan as he entered her which made him
even more excited. He wanted to take his time so that she would have her orgasm
first, but he had desired her for so long that he couldn’t restrain himself any
longer. Maggie had wanted Justin for a long time too, so she climaxed several
seconds after he did. They continued to hold and kiss each other for another
hour or two. Neither one wanted to go to sleep, knowing this would be their
last chance to be intimate with one another, but finally they both drifted off
into a peaceful sleep.

Justin woke up an hour before dawn, and looked at Maggie
who was lying next to him. Her long blonde hair was scattered across the
pillow, she reminded him of an illustration he had seen in an old copy of the
Little Mermaid. She was so beautiful, he had seen her like this in a hundred
dreams. Maggie half woke up to find that Justin had started making love to her
again. They both surrendered to their desires and after a long while, they
climaxed for a second time. Maggie and Justin then fell into a deep sleep and
didn’t wake up until the alarm went off at 8. The children were still asleep in
their bedroom so Maggie and Justin were able to have a few quiet moments to
themselves. Justin kissed Maggie gently and thanked her for the previous night.
They lay in each other’s arms for half an hour, until they heard the children
stirring in the bedroom next door. Then they both reluctantly got up and put on
t-shirts and jeans. Justin kissed Maggie one last time and then slipped out of
her room into the bedroom next door. Maggie picked up the nightgown that was
lying on the floor next to the bed and folded it up and put it back in the
middle drawer under her t-shirts. Then she went into the kitchen to start
preparing breakfast for Gabriel and Isabel.

The kids finally woke up and came running out of their
bedroom into the kitchen. Maggie put out some oatmeal and juice for them and
they started eating. Justin emerged from his bedroom, yawning sleepily with
shadows under his eyes. Maggie and Justin exchanged a long look, and then
Justin offered to make coffee. They had to pack and drive to the airport in Nashville and then fly back to New Orleans to get Zak. It was going to be a long day, and
they would need to be alert.

Maggie packed her suitcase and Gabriel and Isabel’s suitcase
and then Justin took them out to his rental car. He also took the mandolin that
Tucker had given Gabriel. He planned to carry that on the plane and put it in
the overhead bin instead of checking it with the rest of their luggage so that
it would survive the baggage handlers. Maggie also packed a small bag with
snacks, toys and books for the kids so that they wouldn’t get bored on the
plane.

When they were done packing the car, Maggie and Justin
and the two kids walked up to the main house to say goodbye to Tucker. Tucker
tousled the kids’ hair fondly, and Maggie kissed him with tears in her eyes.

“I’m going to miss you,” she said.

“Well, come back again soon,” he said. “Plus, we’ll plan
to do a short tour once the record is out.”

Tucker shook Justin’s hand and said “Take care of
Maggie. You’re always invited to come back anytime too. I can always use a good
bass player.”

Tucker walked down to the guest house with them. He
smiled as Maggie and Justin strapped the kids in the back seat of the car. Maggie
and Justin got into the front seat and rolled down the windows, and waved
goodbye to Tucker as they drove out the driveway.

.

Chapter 36

After a four hour flight, Maggie, Justin and
the two children landed at the airport in New Orleans. They retrieved their
luggage and rented a large sedan so that they could drive to the private
residential clinic where Zak had been staying. When they arrived, Maggie asked
Justin if he could watch the kids for an hour or two while she went inside to
talk with a counselor about Zak.

The counselor led Maggie into a small office, and they
both sat on a couch.

“First of all, Mrs. Robichaud, thank you for coming to
pick up your husband. We understand that you and your husband are undergoing a
trial separation and are possibly considering a divorce. In our experience, the
emotional distress of a divorce often leads to a patient having a relapse. I
just wanted to make you aware of this.”

“I don’t really want to divorce Zak,” Maggie said. “But
I can’t continue to live with someone who is abusing drugs. I especially don’t
want him to do that around our children.”

“Well, we think that Mr. Robichaud has made great
progress. We’re not sure that he was actually physically addicted to cocaine,
but he was abusing the drug. I’m not sure if you realize this, but cocaine
abuse is epidemic in Louisiana. Because New Orleans is such a busy port city,
our state is a center of drug trafficking. Unfortunately, it is never a
challenge to find drugs to buy here.”

The drug counselor continued, “Mr. Robichaud has a
couple things that contribute to making it difficult for him to quit drugs. As
I’m sure you know, cocaine use is quite prevalent in the music industry.”

Maggie resisted the urge to roll her eyes.

“Yes, I know. I’ve seen a lot of musicians using coke,
people are always trying to get you high.”

“Well, there is always the possibility that he could
relapse.”

“That’s what worries me,” Maggie said.

“But Mr. Robichaud has told us how much he loves you and
his children and he has a lot of incentive for staying straight. We think that
with your help, he can be successful.”

Maggie’s eyes filled with tears .

“Once you get back home, we would advise that Mr.
Robichaud continue his individual therapy, but also we think you both could
benefit from couples counseling. We understand that you have recently become
vision impaired, and Mr. Robichaud has been very worried about how you are
coping with this major change in your life.”

“I was having some problems with depression, but I’ve
been seeing a therapist and that’s helped a lot.”

“Does Mr. Robichaud know this?” the counselor asked.

“No,” Maggie confessed. “I didn’t want him to worry
about me. I didn’t want him to know how depressed I was feeling.”

“I’m sure he knew, Mrs. Robichaud. He would have felt a
lot better knowing that you were getting help. I suggest in the future that you
are totally honest with one another.  Also, while Mr. Robichaud was going
through detox, he told us that he was worried that you were going to leave him
for his best friend. Paranoia is a symptom of cocaine use and detox, so
possibly this was just his imagination. It would help Mr. Robichaud in his
recovery if he could feel confident in your love and support.”

“I’ll do everything I can to help him,” Maggie said quietly.

“O.k., then I think Mr. Robichaud is ready to go home.
If you wait a minute, I’ll go get him.”

The counselor left the room. Maggie waited nervously for
him to return with Zak. The door opened and Zak walked in the room. Maggie
stood up and he came over and enclosed her in his arms. Maggie started sobbing
as Zak murmured in her ear how much he had missed her. He kissed her tenderly
and told her that he hoped that they could start over again.

They then went out into the lobby to fill out some
release forms. Maggie noticed that Zak looked much healthier than the last time
she had seen him. He had put on a little weight, and his face didn’t look as
gaunt.

“You look so good, Zak.” she said.

“Thanks, Maggie. You look good too, but a little tired.
I think it’s been hard on you having to take care of the kids by yourself.”

Maggie didn’t say anything, but she knew why she looked
tired and it didn’t have anything to do with taking care of Gabriel and Isabel.

They then left the building and walked out to the car
expecting to find Gabriel and Isabel, but Justin had taken the kids for a short
walk around the grounds of the rehab center. They were just walking back when
the children saw Zak and Maggie standing next to the car. Gabriel and Isabel
started running towards Zak, and they threw their arms around his knees. Zak
bent down to kiss and hug them tightly.

“Gabe and Belle, I missed you so much,” he said. Tears
were rolling down Zak’s face.

“Daddy, we missed you too.” said Gabriel. “Are we going
to go home now?”

“Yes, we’re all going to go home now,” said Zak.

“Good, I missed Chère and Monroe too.” said Gabriel.

“Me too,” said Zak, smiling through his tears. Zak
loaded his suitcase and guitar into the trunk of the sedan and sat in the front
seat next to Justin. Maggie sat in the back seat with Gabriel and Isabel. As
they drove out of the driveway, Zak said “Boy, am I glad to get out of here. I
hope I never have to come back.”

“Well, hopefully you won’t have to Zak,” Maggie said.

“One good thing was that I wrote a lot of new songs over
the last month. Maybe we can get the Bayou Blasters into the studio and do some
recording. What do you say, Justin?” said Zak.

“I would definitely be up for that,” Justin replied. 

Maggie thought that was a good idea, it would keep Zak
busy and out of trouble.

Several hours later, Justin pulled into the driveway of
Maggie and Zak’s house. Everyone was happy to be home again. Gabriel and Isabel
ran into the house and immediately went to their room to make sure that
everything was still the same.

“Where’s Chère and Monroe?” Gabriel asked.

“They’re at Uncle Caleb’s, Gabe. We’ll drive over
tomorrow and pick them up,” said Zak.

“Mama, where’s my man’lin? I want to show Daddy my new
song,” said Gabriel.

“What mandolin is that, Maggie?” Zak asked.

“Tucker bought Gabriel a new Gibson F-5. He’s been way
too generous with us. Maybe we should put it away for a while and let Gabe use
the Harmony. It’s a lot more suitable instrument for a child.”

“No, mama. I want to use the man’lin that Grampa gave
me.” Gabe said.

Maggie looked at Zak and rolled her eyes.