The Truth is in the Wine (29 page)

“That's funny,” Mitchell said. “I remember the last time I saw you.”

“I remember it, too,” Brenda said. “I remember it well.”

“You look fantastic,” Mitchell said, smiling. “When I saw you, I felt something. Just through seeing you, I felt something.”

“You felt familiar to me,” Brenda explained. “And then suddenly, I knew it. And my heart started beating so fast.”

They stood there for a few seconds, looking into each other's eyes just as Lionel was returning from his phone call and as Madeline emerged from the bathroom. They stopped side-by-side in their tracks, stunned by what they witnessed.

“How could this happen?” Mitchell said.

“I don't know,” Brenda said. “I guess it was meant to happen. What else could it be? I mean—”

Mitchell leaned in and kissed her in midsentence. She kissed him back and Lionel and Madeline looked at each other. “What is going on?” she asked.

“Hell if I know,” Lionel said. “But let's go find out.”

He let her pass and they headed to the table, where Brenda and Mitchell stood in loving embrace.

“Ahem,” Madeline said as she returned. “Y'all been busy since we left.”

“Oh, please, sit down,” Brenda said. “You won't believe this.”

“I already don't believe it,” Madeline said.

Everyone got seated and Brenda said, “Madeline, do you remember on Thanksgiving I told you about the love of my life when I was twenty?”

“No way,” Madeline said.

“Yes, it's him, Mitchell,” Brenda said. “I'm so shocked I don't know what to think.”

“Wait. The man you said went off to the Army when you were a kid? This is the guy?” Madeline said.

“You told her about me?” Mitchell asked.

“Just a few days ago I told her about you and about us,” Brenda said.

“Wow,” Lionel said. “So, I guess it's safe to say this is the woman you spoke of on our drive up here.”

“Huh?” Brenda said. “What did he say?”

“He said his heart has only been broken once in his life—about forty years ago,” Lionel recalled. “Said he never told anyone that he was practically in tears over this woman. Turns out
you're
the woman.”

“I feel like I'm dreaming,” Brenda said.

“Me, too,” Madeline said with sarcasm. Then she gathered herself. She stood up and hugged Brenda. “I'm so happy for you. This is incredible, really. Of all the people in the world…Any-way, Lionel, would you like to join me at the bar for a drink?”

“I'd love to,” he said, leaving the table to Brenda and Mitchell.

G
inger and Paul arrived at French Blue and were floating. The realization that they would have a child set in with each passing minute, and it injected their lives with a joy they simply had not had since Helena was declared theirs.

The restaurant was located on quaint Main Street, across from a chic boutique hotel, lined with specialty shops and restaurants. There was a coolness in the night air, a freshness, which was perfect for the occasion.

A white brick, lit fireplace greeted them outside the entrance of the destination, where people sat outside in light jackets and sweaters enjoying the climate. Inside was open and airy, with beautiful light hues and sparkling lighting. The huge windows stretched the entire width of the front of the place, and fresh flowers and tasteful art adorned the walls.

There was a wonderful vibe to the dining room, a wonderful smell. It felt like a celebration.

They were seated at a table near the front windows. Paul insisted Ginger take the seat with her back to the window so she could take in the entire restaurant.

This type of thoughtfulness had abandoned Paul many years before, and it had become so routine that Ginger forgot how
special it felt to be treated like a priority. She could not pass on the opportunity to let him know that.

“It's very nice to be treated like you love me,” she said.

“I do love you and I'm sorry it took all that we have gone through to get back to showing you that I do,” Paul said. “But now that I'm here, I'm here for good.”

“I believe you. I do,” she said. “But we're going to have a baby pretty soon and definitely be wrapped up in her. I don't mean to spoil this great feeling we have, but we've got to figure out the financial part of this. A kid, as much as you love him, is costly.”

Paul smiled. “What are you smiling about?” Ginger said.

“You're extra pretty when you're pregnant,” he said.

Ginger smiled, but she was not thrown off course. “This is serious, Paul,” she said. “We've got to get on a budget. You know how much stuff we have to get? Clothes, crib, bassinet, stroller—”

“Wait,” he said, “I thought that's what the baby shower was for.”

“I see you're in a silly mood so we can talk about it another time,” Ginger said. “But keep in mind I have to get maternity clothes, too, as I get bigger and bigger.”

“Hold that thought,” Paul said as he addressed the server.

He ordered a glass of sparkling water for Ginger and a glass of champagne for himself. They perused the menu; everything read divinely, as menus do when you are especially hungry.

“I'm thinking fish,” Ginger said.

“Good; fish has the Omega3 that everyone is saying we need in our diets now,” Paul said.

“Yes, but not all fish, though,” Ginger added. “It's wild salmon, tuna, trout, sardines and maybe one other that have the most benefits… And I see trout on the menu. That's what I'm having.”

“I am so hungry,” Paul said. “I'm going to start with a salad, the
Living Butter Lettuce with rosemary-buttermilk dressing and candied pecans. Then I want the Head-On Wild Gulf Shrimp with harissa butter, roasted garlic and something called levain. And for my entrée I'm going to have the Fisherman's Stew with sea scallops, red snapper, squid, tomato-fennel broth and pine nuts. And whatever they have for dessert.”

“You act like you're the one pregnant,” Ginger said.

“I
am
pregnant,” he said. “I might not be carrying the baby, but I am so connected to you and this pregnancy.”

Ginger smiled. She could not believe how her life had evolved in a matter of months. The same person who was distant and docile and eventually asked for a divorce was now caring and thoughtful and doing a nice job toward rebuilding their marriage.

She turned away to retrieve hand sanitizer from her purse and when she turned back toward Paul, there was a small jewelry box in front of her. Paul's sleight-of-hand was impressive; Ginger did not see him move at all.

“What's this?” Ginger asked.

“Looks like a box to me,” Paul answered.

The surprise on her face was priceless as she slowly opened the small box, revealing a stunning diamond in platinum setting.

“Paul…”

“I hope you like it,” he said.

“It's beautiful,” she said. “But why? And how—”

Paul cut her off. “Why? Because I love you and because you're here with me, still here with me after all of my craziness,” he said. “You deserve nice things and so much more.”

“All I really want is for us to have a great family; that's it,” she said.

“Well, let's do that,” he said. “But there's one thing I have to tell you.”

Ginger's face went from joyous to concerned. She did not want to hear anything that would take away from their jovial spirit. And she told him so.

“Maybe I should hear this at another time,” she said. “We're in such a good place right now. Let's let it last a little longer.”

Paul smiled. “You sure?” he said. “I can wait. But I think it's time you know this.”

His smile helped Ginger; he wouldn't smile if it were bad news.
He got a job
, she thought. She wanted to say it, but didn't want to take away from his moment.

“Okay, go ahead,” she said.

“Now, don't be mad I didn't tell you this before now,” he started.

“See, you're making me nervous,” she said.

“Don't be,” Paul said. “All this time and I never really thought about how I would tell you this.”

“Just say it,” Ginger blurted out.

“We're rich,” Paul said.

She was stumped. “What?”

“Baby, two months ago, I hit the lottery—eight million dollars!”

He pulled out and handed to her a copy of the check and a bank statement with their names on it that had two million dollars deposited in it and another that had another two-million plus in it.

“I…I… I'm…I'm.…Brenda could not get out a sentence.

Paul sat back in his chair with his arms folded, smiling.

“Paul, what is this?” she finally said.

“Breathe,” he told her. “Take it easy. I hit the lottery, baby. I couldn't believe it. I read those numbers over and over again at least ten times. I literally pinched myself to make sure I wasn't dreaming. It was real. Gin, it was a little more than four million after taxes. Pinch yourself so you know you're not dreaming.”

Ginger closed her eyes for a few seconds, and then tears seeped from them and down the sides of her face. And then she let out a scream.

“Oh, my God,” she said.

The people in the restaurant thought Paul had proposed to her because they saw the ring on the table. Those in adjacent tables clapped.

“Baby, can you believe this?” he said.

Ginger did not answer. She held her hand over her mouth. Paul went around the table and hugged her. “Our life is set up to be anything we want it to be now, Gin,” he said. “Anything.”

She still did not say a word. He helped her wipe away tears before going back to his seat.

“This is so crazy,” Ginger finally said. “Paul…”

“I know,” he interjected. “I still can't believe it.”

“I can't believe you didn't tell me,” Ginger said. “How could you not tell me? Why didn't you tell me?”

Paul's salad came before he could answer. “Congratulations,” the server said. They said in unison: “Thank you.”

He reached across the table for Ginger's hands and he blessed the food. “Dear Lord, we thank You for this food we are about to receive for the nourishment of our bodies. And we thank You for the amazing blessing You have delivered to us. Only You could be this gracious. Thank You, God. Amen.”

Paul grabbed a small plate and shared his salad with Ginger. He bit into his third piece of bread with rosemary butter, which was so delicious that he asked the server if they sold the butter.

“Baby, I didn't tell you at first because I wasn't sure you still loved me,” he said.

“What?”

“When I won, we were in hell. I was in hell,” he explained. “I
had said I wanted a divorce. I didn't mean it but I said it because you deserved better than what I was at that time. That's what I thought then in the state of mind I was in. So now here comes this miracle and it's like, ‘I have a chance to fix all this.' But I needed to know that you would come back to me because of me and not because of money.”

He braced himself for Ginger to snap. He knew it was insulting to her to think she would be motivated by money in a matter of the heart. And subconsciously it is a reason he did not tell her sooner. He was afraid of what she might think of him. But the longer he waited, the deeper his fear became.

“So, you think I'm a gold digger?” she asked calmly. She took a sip of the sparkling water. “You think I would stay with you because of money? That's what you think of me.”

“What I thought was I love you and I want you to love me,” Paul answered. “That's it. I didn't want any outside influences playing a role. So, I said, ‘Let's go on a trip and see if we can find the magic.' But I knew we would because I was a different person from the last eleven months. I was out of my funk and, even though we had fallen into a rut, at the core of everything was that we had a true love for each other—and for family.”

“Still, you put me through a test,” Ginger said. She wasn't mad; almost nothing could make her mad at that point. There was too much to be joyous about in her life.

“I don't think it was the right thing to do, looking back on it,” Paul said. “So I'm sorry. But for a man, it's important to know that his woman loves him for who he is, not money. I needed to know that for my psyche.”

“The fact that I even agreed to go should have told you where my heart was,” she said.

“That's true,” Paul responded. “And the fact that I bought that ring should tell you what I believed would happen.”

They smiled at each other.

“Don't be mad, Gin. Please,” Paul said. “We have too much to be thankful for, too much to look forward to. Plus, being mad ain't good for the baby.”

Ginger smiled a big smile then, just as the food arrived. Her grilled rainbow trout with Yukon golds, bacon, Gravenstein apples and grain mustard was delicious. And Paul devoured his seafood stew.

She let go of her concern and wanted to scream again, but suppressed it. “What are we going to do with all this money?” she asked.

“Save it, a lot of it, for Helena and our new baby,” he said. “Donate some of it. Get a reputable financial adviser. Don't you think?”

“No doubt about it,” Ginger said. “There are so many people we can help—women who have been in abusive relationships, cancer research, homeless shelters, foster kids, disadvantaged youths. I am so glad you said that.

“See, this is the Paul I fell in love with. You could have answered that question by saying what you were going to buy for yourself and where we would travel and so on. But your first thoughts were to provide for our children and to help other people. Those are the qualities I fell in love with a long time ago.”