A Place In the Sun
8
It was later that night, everyone had gone "home", Isabella back to her apartment, Rosa with her, Hayley and Mateo had taken their children home, Julia, Anita, and Bobby returned to their rooms at the hotel, and Kelsey took Sam and Maddie back to Wildwind.
Maddie came into Wildwind as hyper as could be. "Daddy! Daddy! You home?" she called through the house. She ran up to Edmund's office where he was seated at his desk looking over Tempo business. "Daddy! You should've been there!"
"Maddie, you know that I had to go into Tempo at the last minute."
"I know Daddy! But still!"
"Well then, tell me about it," he said, sitting Maddie up on his lap.
"It was so fun for us all to be together! I got to eat with Liliana and Christopher, they're so cute! And I got to meet my Aunt Julia, I like her! She told me to give you a hug for her," she gave Edmund a hug.
"Thank you, sweetie, for passing along that hug. Now, time for bed, okay?"
She nodded, "Will you tell me a story about my Aunt Julia as a bedtime story?"
Edmund laughed, "Sure, Maddie."
He followed her to her room and waited while she got ready for bed.
"Ok, ready!" she snuggled under her covers.
"Okay, now, remember, this was a true story!" he smiled.
Maddie nodded.
"Okay, here goes. Your mommy and I, we were mad at each other. Sammy was just a baby and we didn't know that you were going to be born yet. Your mommy and I were sorta mad at each other, for reasons that are impossible to understand. Your Aunt Julia, she knew how much your mommy and I really loved each other and she and your Uncle Noah, they set up a plan to trick us!"
"Uncle Noah?"
"Yes, your Aunt Julia was married, but her husband went to heaven, like mommy, a few years ago."
"Oh," Maddie said quietly. "Okay, come on, I want to hear about their plan!"
"Noah and Julia knew that they had to do something to make me and mommy make up. So, Noah got me into the wine cellar, talking about some of the wines. Then your Aunt Julia, she convinced your mommy to come down there. Noah and Julia quickly left the wine cellar and locked the door, with me and mommy still in there!"
Maddie giggled at the thought of these grown-ups locking each other in rooms.
"Well, it worked, mommy and I talked and worked things out. Julia and Noah helped us find each other again, and we didn't know it then, but you were on the way."
"So everything turned out happy?"
"Yep, it sure did. Well, except that Noah and Julia had to go away, but your mommy and I were happy," he lied to Maddie. She didn't need to know about the switched paternity results and all of that.
"Thank you," Maddie said with droopy eyes. "Goodnight, Daddy."
"Goodnight Angel," he patted her on the head and turned out the light.
...
"That wasn't so bad, was it?" Anita asked Bobby after they'd gotten up to their room.
He sat down on the bed and admitted, "No, things went pretty good."
"Sam seemed happy to see you."
"He's a good kid."
"I guess Kelsey had talked to him about you."
"Yeah, Kelsey…" he trailed off.
"Earth to Bobby! What little world are you off in?" Anita asked, he was staring off into space.
"Oh, sorry, nothing, I'm just tired, it's been a long day."
"Well, then, ready for bed?"
"Yeah…"
She sat on his lap and started to unbutton his shirt, placing a delicate kiss on his lips. He pushed her away and stood up.
"Not now, Anita," he said, running a hand through this longish blond hair.
"Why not? Usually when you're all tense like this, a little love loosens you up."
"Could you just give me some space?"
"I'm sorry, yes, of course."
"I'll be back in a while, don't wait up for me," he said, leaving the room.
Anita stood there in shock that he'd just walked out.
...
After Maddie was fast asleep and he'd checked on Sam, who'd insisted on putting himself to bed, Edmund returned to his office to finish his work.
He hadn't been sitting there five minutes when his door flew open.
"Edmund, I need someone to talk to, someone that will take this seriously," Julia said, sitting on the edge of his desk.
Edmund looked up and sat his papers down on the desk in surrender, he figured now he'd never finish what he needed to work on. "Okay, what do you need to talk about?"
"The strangest thing happened this evening," she was still having trouble comprehending it herself.
"At the dinner?"
"Yes," she said, starting to pace next to his desk.
"And?"
She suddenly stopped and leaned over his desk. "I saw someone."
"Someone you knew when you lived here before?"
"Well, yeah…" she didn't know really how to say she saw someone who looked like his dead wife.
"Who?"
"Edmund, this woman I saw, she looked like, well, she really looked a lot like Maria."
"What? It must've just been someone who resembled her, Julia, you know there's no way your sister could be alive."
"I don't know…I really thought she was Maria when I saw her, but I guess I was wrong, I mean, what are the odds that she could turn up alive after six years?"
"Pretty slim. Did you get to talk to this woman?"
"No, the second she turned around, I passed out. That's how much she resembled Maria."
"Julia…"
"Edmund, I know! I know Maria's gone. But, I thought you should know that there is someone in town now that looks like her, you should be prepared in case you see her around."
"Well, thank you, Julia."
"I've got to get going, it's late."
"I'll see you soon, you know you're welcome here at any time."
"Thanks Edmund," she said softly, turning and leaving the room.
After she had left, he said to himself, "She thought she saw Maria…" He said it in disbelief. "Time sure plays tricks on your mind, doesn't it?" he asked himself.
Never thought I'd be in this place
It's someone else's life I'm living
Wish I were living a lie
The hardest part is when the bough breaks
Falling down and then forgiving
You didn't even kiss me goodbye
I'm choking on the words I didn't get to say
I pray I get the chance one day
Edmund picked up the picture of Maria that had sat on his desk for the past six years. He smiled at how happy she looked holding Sam and Maddie. Then a tear slowly rolled down his face.
I still run
I still swing open the door
I still think you'll be there like before
Doesn't everybody out there know to never come round
Somethings a heart won't listen to
I'm still holding out for you
Ryan carefully took his arms from around Gillian as she lay sleeping, being careful not to wake her. He mouthed the words "I love you" to her as he backed away from her bed towards the door.
I can hear you smile in the dark
I can even feel your breathing
But daylight chases the ghost
I see your coat and I fall apart
To those hints of you I'm clinging
Now's when I need them most
I should get up
Dry my eyes and move ahead
At least that's what he would have said
Julia slowly opened the door to her room at the Valley Inn. She dropped her purse on the table and kicked off her shoes, collapsing on the bed. She gathered a pillow in her arms and hugged it to her, burying her face in it. Then she reached over to the nightstand and pulled out two photographs, one of Noah and one of Maria. She held both of these to her chest as her tears continued to fall.
I still run
I still swing open the door
I still think you'll be there like before
Doesn't everybody out there know to never come round
Somethings a heart won't listen to
I'm still holding out for you
Faithfully I trace your name while you sleep
It's the only true comfort I feel
Edmund entered the mausoleum, heading straight to the back. He held his hand up to Maria's name, then rested his head on his hand, no longer to hold back his tears at all.
I still run
I still swing open the door
I still think you'll be there like before
I still run
I still swing open the door
I still think you'll be there like before
Doesn't everybody out there know to never come round
Somethings a heart won't listen to
I'm still holding out for you
Holding out for you
...
A figure slowly moves out of the shadows outside Wildwind.
As he gazes up at Gillian's window, the moonlight catches his face.
Ray.
...
Lyrics in this chapter are for SHeDAISY's "Still Holding Out for You" from their CD "The Whole SHeBANG." I got the lyrics from this page: http/