Series: Snapshots of the Past
Story: The London Years
Chapter 10
Disclaimer: See Chapter 1
Previously: After a hectic night with the baby and an argument with Jed, Abbey finally admitted her unhappiness with the situation.
Summary: Lord John Marbury makes an impression on Abbey. Jed keeps Abbey out of the loop!
- - -
July 1969
With the television blaring, a well-dressed Jed sat in a chair, whimsically flipping through the pages of a book he wasn't actually reading. He looked up every once in a while so his eyes could follow a frantic Abbey who scoured the apartment in search of accessories to accentuate the blue dress she was wearing.
"Why do you need the TV on when you're not even watching?" she asked as she darted in from the bedroom to pass by him on her way to the bathroom.
"It provides noise to cover up my growling stomach," he replied, tweaking her for making them late for dinner.
She stopped her search momentarily to turn her attention to her husband who responded with a subtle wink and a coy smile. She shook her head at him, then continued to rummage through the jewelry box she had now brought into the living room, occasionally holding up a pair of earrings for his opinion, and dropping them back into their soft, purple velvet case when he expressed his disapproval.
"You're right. None of these will work. I need silver." She glared at him.
"How many times do I have to apologize for that? Look, Abbey, you look great, even without earrings. Now can we go please?"
"No." She opened the closet door and ran her hands over her clothes. "Maybe I should go with the black dress. It'll match my gold earrings."
"Okay, that's it." Jed stood up and grabbed her arm to pull her away from the clothes. "I was going to wait until after dinner, but obviously, we're not even going to get to the restaurant unless I do it now. Come here."
He walked her over to the couch, reaching into his pocket along the way, and opened her hand to place a small gift in her palm.
"Well that's romantic," she replied sarcastically.
"It's just one of your gifts. Open it."
Abbey examined it closely before tearing open the wrapping paper, causing Jed to smile at what he always considered to be her adorable, child-like quality.
She lifted the top of the granite box to reveal two silver chandelier earrings. "Jed, they're beautiful."
"That's to make up for the pair I broke. Am I out of the doghouse yet?"
She stroked his cheek with her palm. "Yes."
"Happy Anniversary," he said with a kiss to her lips. "If you want the other little trinkets I picked out, we have to go…NOW."
"Wait! I need to pick out shoes."
Jed rolled his eyes, picked up the newspaper, and took his seat back in the chair. "You know, I can only read today's news so many times."
"I'm sure you haven't made it through the whole thing yet," she hollered from the bedroom. "Read the article about global warming."
He turned his head towards the sound of her voice. "What?"
Abbey reentered the room and sat on the couch to slide into a pair of taupe-colored pumps. "See? I knew you hadn't read everything. Experts have more proof that there's a warming trend around the world."
"I've read all the REAL news. That story doesn't count. They've always suspected the world is getting warmer."
"But now a scientist in Mongolia says his country's experiencing the warmest weather of any other time in the past millennium and other scientists are backing him up, officially calling it a global warming."
With a look of pure skepticism on his face, Jed dropped the newspaper onto his lap. "Really? Because just last month, scientists at National Geographic warned of a new Ice Age. It's nice to know the greatest minds in the world are working tirelessly to accurately forecast our weather."
"This could be a serious problem decades from now."
He picked up the paper and glanced over it absently and mumbled under his breath, "Not that we'll be alive to see it. I will have died of starvation years before."
Hearing his words, she stood up and towered above him, gazing down through eyes that flashed with indignation. "Jed, glaciers are melting."
"Newsflash, Abbey. Ice melts." He looked up over the edge of the paper, but didn't let her menacing glare intimidate him.
"Jed."
He threw the paper down and crossed his hands in front of him. "We're either going to drown in the glaciers or freeze from the ice before we ever get dinner," he grumbled. "You know, even criminals get a final meal."
"I'm almost ready," she called out while running to the bedroom to get a final look at her outfit.
"Here we go. They're showing it again." He straightened his slouched body and devoted his attention to the news report on television.
"'Tranquillity base. The Eagle has landed.' Those were American Buzz Aldrin's words as he watched fellow Astronaut Neil Armstrong walk on the moon," the news anchor said. Jed was fascinated by the use Armstrong's voice in the report. "'That's one small step for man but one giant leap for mankind.'"
Just as intrigued, Abbey poked her head out of the bedroom to watch the video. As soon as it was over, she presented herself to Jed with a bright smile. "I'm ready."
He had an ominous twinkle in his eye that Abbey knew wasn't a direct response to her declaration. "Not so fast, Abbey. I seem to remember a little promise you made several months ago...something about hanging out the window to offer up cheers when the first group of astronauts walked on the moon."
She cringed at her words. They were spoken out of skepticism after a few glasses of wine one night over dinner. "That's ridiculous."
"Oh no it's not, Sweet Knees." With a hand on the small of her back, he led her to the open window.
"You actually want me to stick my head out the window?"
"More than anything."
Abbey bent over, and forced her head outside. The compromising position coupled with the revealing neckline on her dress caused her breasts to overflow the hem.
She turned her head slightly back to look at him. "You realize I'm giving the whole neighborhood a show, right?"
He tilted his head to the side to admire her rear. "It's not just the neighborhood, Sweetheart."
"Jed!"
He reacted with a flutter of his eyes. "You got this far. Go ahead."
"Go ahead what?"
"Cheer."
Realizing she had to make good on her promise, she rolled her eyes and turned her head, suddenly letting out a bloodcurdling scream at the sight of a raven-haired stranger standing only inches from her face and staring back at her with deep, steely eyes. Jed grabbed her hips and quickly pulled her inside.
"There's a man out there!" she shouted.
Jed peered out the window and laughed at what he saw. "That's not just a man."
"Well it sure as hell isn't a woman!"
"No, I mean, it's no one you need to fear." He turned back towards the window and addressed the stranger. "Go around to the front and I'll let you in," he said before turning his attention to a frightened Abbey. "Relax, Abbey. It's just a guy I know from school."
Abbey followed him to the front door. "Your classmates just stand outside windows and stalk people? Geez, Jed, tell him to get a hobby."
"He's not my classmate. He's studying at Cambridge and teaches an undergrad class at LSE in the summer." Jed opened the door and in came the dark stranger in a black suit. "This is John Marbury."
"Lord John Marbury actually," he corrected him.
"Yeah, we just call him Johnny at school," he jokingly whispered to Abbey. "This is my wife Abigail."
"Abigail. A beautiful name for such a beautiful woman." He lifted Abbey's hand and kissed it softly.
"Why thank you, Your Lordship."
Noticing the rosy flush that washed over her cheeks, Jed's protective nature took over and he put his arm around her waist.
"Jed, I had no idea you had such a saucy wife. Just as a little aside. I don't know how you people do things in America, but here in England, a pretty girl like Abigail hanging out the window like that is practically asking for men to make crude advances or jokes about her breasts..." His turned his gaze to Abbey,"...which are exquisite by the way."
Perhaps it was the English accent or the air of charm that followed him in the room or Jed's sharp intake of breath and uncomfortable shifting of his shoes when Marbury made the comment about her breasts; whatever it was, Abbey liked him. He was outlandish and peculiar. Even a little mysterious.
Jed handed Marbury a textbook and attempted to rush him out the door. "Here's what you wanted. I'll see you Monday."
"Nice to meet you," Abbey called out to him.
Standing in the doorway with the door open, Marbury turned himself around. "By the way, Jed, I think your application package for Professor Lynn's research assistant position is pretty strong."
Jed looked down and said softly, "Thank you."
"Yeah, he's going to get it. I'm sure of it." he told a confused Abbey. "Well, I'm off!" And with that annoucnement, he closed the door and left.
"What are you going to get?" Abbey asked Jed.
"Oh, it's nothing."
"Jed?"
Jed let out a sigh and led Abbey to the couch so they could sit down. "It's a research assistant position. My professor specifically asked that I apply."
"Jed!" She wrapped her arms around him, nearly suffocating him with the strands of hair that covered his mouth. "That's wonderful! Why didn't you tell me about this?"
He pulled out of the hug, his guilt now taking over. "Easy, Abbey. I don't have the job yet. He'll announce finalists in March and the position won't start until the next school year."
"I have faith in you."
He took her hand in his. "It's always nice to hear that."
As he leaned in to give her a kiss, a feeling of pride filled Abbey's heart. She listened to him outline the reasons landing this particular job would be monumental to his future aspirations, mesmerized by the spark in his eyes, the passion in his voice, and the enthusiasm in his body language. Something as simple as his usual arm gestures were bigger, larger than life, and it made her wonder why he had kept her in the dark about something that was obviously so important to him.
But Jed couldn't tell her the truth. He didn't know how. Until there was substantial reason to believe he would get the job, he couldn't make her understand why he had to renege on their deal.
He had promised her Harvard and she had been counting down the days until they would move back home. It was wrong to keep quiet, but he couldn't tell her, for what he was afraid to tell her was that if he was chosen for this position, it would add two additional years to their stay in London.
TBC