Chapter Three

By the time we parked in the driveway at Owen's house his mother was already tipsy and drunk for the day. Through the open car window we heard her call out from the front door. "Owen!"

Angela stepped out the front door with Olivia in tow. "Come now, you two, let us see how cute you two are together."

While Mrs. Jasper walked across the driveway, in her mint green belted dress and heels, Owen opened my car door and offered his hand to help me to my feet.

Olivia, dressed in shorts and a white short sleeve button up shirt, rushed up to us. "Scout, your dress is beautiful."

I squatted down to be at the child's level when I replied, "Thank you! Your brother bought this for me."

"That's cause he loves you." Olivia told me. "He tells me that all the time."

With a wide grin I told her, "Yes he does, and he loves you too."

Olivia smiled back and gave her older brother a hug around his legs.

Owen scooped his sister up into his arms and asked, "Have you been good while I was gone?"

Mrs. Jasper interrupted. "Owen, put her down! You'll wrinkle your clothes. Olivia, leave him alone! He's here to have his picture taken with Scout, not with you."

Owen knew his mother's words were harsh, so he made a suggestion. "Why don't you take a few pictures of the three of us and then a few of Scout and me?"

"Owen, she is not properly dressed for a photo!"

"Mother, she's fine. She's seven, not seventy!"

Angela pulled Olivia out of Owen's arms and set her feet on the ground. Then the woman began to fuss with Owen's attire. "You look a bit disheveled yourself. Why don't you have your jacket on, and where is your bow tie? I thought you were at a formal luncheon?"

Owen gently brushed his mother's hands away. "Mother, I am capable of dressing myself. Let me get my jacket out of the car."

I noticed Owen didn't share with his mother that the luncheon had turned into a wedding and two big announcements for the Curtis family.

"Don't you two look adorable?" Johnathan Jasper, dressed in slacks and a button up shirt, approached with the family camera in his hand.

"Thank you, Mr. Jasper." I replied as he kissed my cheek and gave me a quick hug.

Mrs. Jasper then realized she had not properly greeted me, so she stumbled towards me, hugged me tightly with both arms and I could smell the alcohol on her breath. As she let me go she ran her hands down the side of my arms and held my hands in her hands. "You look lovely. I trust you approve of the dress our son bought you?"

"Yes, Ma'am." I replied as I felt the woman squeeze the ring on my left hand.

Angela looked down then raised my hand to show everyone the ring on my finger. "What's this? Is this new?"

Mr. Jasper looked closely at the piece of jewelry then remarked with a big grin. ""It's beautiful. He selected a wonderful stone. Didn't he?"

Mrs. Jasper became flustered. She held tightly to my hand as she asked me. "Owen gave you this?" Without waiting for my answer she asked her husband, "You knew about this?"

Mr. Jasper replied, "Sure I knew."

I gently pulled my hand from the lady's grasp and took a step away from her.

Owen had put his jacket on, but hadn't tied his bow tie when he walked over to his mother and told her. "I gave it to her today. It's a promise ring, so be nice to your future daughter-in-law."

Angela stood silently stewing with agitation that she was not included in the prior discussion of the ring purchase.

Jonathan asked his son, "I thought you were going to ask her tonight at Prom?"

Owen draped his bow tie around his neck. "I was, till she seemed as if she was actually considering staying at Ashford. Plus, I got to make Lacey jealous with it when we were packing up Scout's things."

"Son, you should be nice to Lacey." Mr. Jasper said, "You know she's had a crush on you since grade school."

"I know." Owen replied with a sigh.

Mrs. Jasper turned towards me in question. "So … congratulations are in order?"

Mr. Jasper put his arm around my shoulder and gave me a little squeeze. "Absolutely, congratulations on being one step closer to being a Jasper."

"Well then, congratulations on your new promise ring!" Mrs. Jasper said with a gesture towards my ring finger.

"What's a promise ring?" Olivia asked, and squinted in the sunshine.

Mr. Jasper lifted his daughter up onto his hip and joked. "It's a ring your father makes his son buy for a girl he loves when he's terrified his son is going to buy her an engagement ring too soon."

Olivia laughed even though she didn't understand why her father's comments were funny.

Owen turned around from the car window with his bow tie tied. "Is this straight?" He asked me.

I reached up, straightened his tie a little more, and noticed his mother looking at me as if I had swindled something from her.

"It looks good." I told him and backed away to put some space between us.

Owen noticed and grabbed my hand to keep me from getting too far away. "Does this look better for you, Mother?"

His mother pretended she didn't hear him, and she didn't respond.

Owen ignored the snub and told his father. "Dad, we can go shopping for that engagement ring anytime."

"I'll mark my calendar for some time in the 1970s" Johnathan laughed. "Come on, Mother let's take these photos in the backyard by the pool so the kids can get on with their night." Johnathan tenderly attempted to take hold of his wife's hand, but the woman pulled her hand away. Her husband didn't seem to mind. Instead, he put his hand on her bank and the couple led the children around the side of the house to the backyard.

I held my date's hand, and when we walked through the gate I was surprised to see the orange, green and gold colored cushions set out on the chairs and loungers. I had seen the backyard and pool area before, but not when it was dressed for the summer.

"Mrs. Jasper, the backyard looks lovely." I complimented the lady's choices.

Mrs. Jasper looked back at me, smiled and enjoyed the compliment. "Thank you, Scout. I just bought all new cushions and umbrellas. You know it's important for a lady of my stature to keep up with the trends."

Owen rolled his eyes as I made a mental note of how a home in an upper class neighborhood should be presented.

Mr. Jasper had Owen and I stop near the edge of the pool for our picture. Owen wrapped his arm around my lower back and the two of us stood tall and smiled as Mr. Jasper snapped a few photos.

"All done." Johnathan announced.

"Wait! Dad, take one more!" Owen requested. Unexpectedly, he reached down behind my knees and picked me up off my feet.

Olivia let out a silly giggle that made Owen and I smile bigger.

Mr. Jasper snapped two more photos. "Wonderful, son. Just like the photo in the paper from the Winter Formal."

Owen set me back down on my feet and called Olivia over to his side.

Olivia ran over as Owen swept her off her feet and placed her on his hip. The three of us leaned in close to each other and posed for the photos.

"All done!" Mr. Jasper announced as he advanced the film inside the camera.

"How about I take one of all of you?" I asked as I gestured at the Jasper family members.

"Ok," Mrs. Jasper agreed, "first take one of us with just Owen then Olivia can join us."

I received a quick lesson on how to use the camera then I took a few photos of Owen and his parents, then the entire family and two more of just Owen and Olivia. When I finished Mrs. Jasper took the camera and read the film counter.

Unexpectedly, Angela snapped loudly at her husband, "Johnathan, there are still two frames left on this roll!"

Johnathan responded softly in hopes to calm his intoxicated wife, "No problem. Scout, why don't you take a few of me and the Misses?"

"Okay." I agreed.

Mr. Jasper held his wife close and just after I announced, 'say cheese' he hugged his wife tight and gave her a big kiss on the cheek as I snapped the photo.

Mrs. Jasper seemed uncomfortable with the affection as she pushed him away and hurried towards me. "Let's see if the roll is empty."

She grabbed the camera from my outstretched hand and walked back into the home in a huff without check the film counter.

"Don't let her fool you, Scout." Her husband told me. "The first photo she and I ever took I stole a kiss from her just like that one and in return she stole my heart."

I looked over at Owen and noticed him roll his eyes in disgust.

Nervous that his father has seen his son's actions I generously replied, "That is so sweet!"

Mr. Jasper knew his son's feelings towards his mother, and he grabbed Owen's shoulder to get his son's attention and Johnathan looked at me. "When I see how much Owen loves you I see his mother and I many years ago. We were absolutely smitten with each other, but her illness has gotten in the way. I know this." Mr. Jasper looked at his son. "A love like ours and what you and Scout have is for better or for worse. I pray every night that your 'worse' is behind you two."

Owen's father noticed his son step away and lean against the patio table. Johnathan knew Owen was attempting to ignore the sentiments he was sharing so the older man looked me in the eye. "On the inside, my son is not as tough as he pretends to be, so you take good care of him. Ok, Darling?"

I blushed at the slightly uncomfortable conversation before answering, "yes, Sir."

"And don't let his bullheadedness get in the way of how much you love each other. When it come to him and his mother they are quite alike."

Owen straightened up. "Come on, Dad! Don't compare me to her."

Johnathan responded lightheartedly, "Both of them can hold a grudge for a long time."

Owen began to get visibly angry. "She killed my brother!"

Mr. Jasper tried to reason with his son. "Yes she did, but she wasn't well. Someday she'll get better and you'll meet the real mother she used to be."

Owen didn't want to stick around to hear again about his father's undying love for his mother. "Yeah, well Oliver will never get the chance to get better, maybe you ought to spend more time thinking about him than her." Owen grabbed my hand and pulled hard to get me to follow him. "Come on, Scout. We're outta here!"

Owen's father yelled back to his son, "Owen, I'm sorry. I just want everything to get better with the two of you! We can't change what happened, but we can choose to make better what will happen."

Owen was walking so fast I had to run on the trot of my feet in order to keep pace in my high heels. My date held my car door open, waited for me to sit down, then slammed the door shut before getting into the car himself. Without a word he started the car and headed towards the country club.

For a few minutes I pondered if I should say anything or just sit in silence. I knew how much Owen loved his father, but hated his father's forgiveness of his mother's actions. I looked at Owen and told him. "I am sorry it all has to be so complicated for you."

Owen exhausted a laugh out loud and looked at me with an unexpected grin. "Compared to what you've had to deal with … it's not that complicated." Owen grabbed my hand and his attitude grew sour again. "Don't worry about all that. It's pretty common for my mom to have ill behavior and my father to try to make it all seem okay."

I thought about the situation for a moment and then responded, "Sometimes we think our lives are falling apart, then all of a sudden what was a struggle is revealed as a path. Even though it's the worst possible thing, if you are patient and you look hard enough there's often a silver lining."

"That!" Owen said abruptly, "That right there is why I love you!"

"Sure you do, but have you stopped to think about why you do? Have you considered that without us having common tragedies would we have ever fallen in love?"

"I hate to think of it that way." Owen said quietly.

"Owen… I'm not saying you have to forgive your mother, but maybe you need to let your father love her for him to see the real woman she's become."

"What do you mean?"

"It's like…the more you try to push him away from her the stronger their love will fight for them. Maybe your dad's struggle with you makes him fear you don't love him, so he clings even tighter to your mom because he'd rather lose one of you then both of you."

"I had never thought about it that way. Maybe you're right."