Laura's Big Win (40 page)

“I’m Willadeen; you can call me Willy.
Wanna play golf?”

“Yes, with you. And I’ve never really
learned how to dance, but I remember you like dancing; how much
patience do you have?”

“A lifetime, if you want.”

“I do”.

That was something entirely different,
Laura thought to herself, as she wished the couple the best. Her
own world had been though the same thing, only hers had come
crashing down around her while theirs had a good chance of recovery
from what she had seen. She vowed to herself to never get so caught
up in things that she neglected Ryan, not with work or home or kids
or friends; nothing was to come between them. The fact that she
loved having him around helped, of course, and she was about to
make that a permanent situation. Stopping in the kitchen for a
quick snack, she met briefly with Alice to talk about the
afternoon, then realized it nearly was afternoon already. It had
long been the custom that the groom was not to see the bride on
their wedding day until she came up the aisle; today would be no
exception. Her parents would help get Jack and Amanda ready for the
event and would keep them in tow for the duration. Laura herself
would finish dressing in the big house ladies lounge since it was
much closer to the tent than her cottage. In the meantime she
conferred with Doris and Marie about the dinner arrangements,
learning that they were prepared to serve until people quit eating.
Both agreed this was easier than when Alice married, mostly because
they had time to coordinate their efforts, and to bring enough help
to handle the work load. It was a tribute to the two of them that
they got along so well, literally working in each other’s territory
from time to time. At the end of the day when Fernando produced a
bottle of Tequila he had carried back from their last visit to
Mexico, the four declared their friendship forevermore, laughing
about the things that went a little wrong, and enjoying what they
had learned from each other.

Checking with staff, Laura learned that
Ryan was in the White House, so it was okay for her to go see the
tent set-up and to check out the great room of the big house. She
almost felt as though she were in a dream sequence, looking in from
the outside at the beauty of the arrangements. The tent was filled
with flowers, chairs, more flowers, a raised platform for the
ceremony, more flowers, and so on. There was a sound system, but it
had been done so skillfully it was nearly invisible, and instead of
the more traditional loudspeakers, it was setup with more of a
surround sound effect, excellent coverage without a lot of volume.
The temporary lighting was more than enough, and if there had been
much of a chill in the air, the lights heat output would have been
enough to warm the air anyway. Tripods with remote controlled video
cameras were in multiple locations, all designed to interfere as
little as possible and to be very unobtrusive. The great room of
the big house was in similar stage of readiness, with the large
conference tables removed and a number of smaller tables brought in
to provide more intimate seating for the diners. Doris had
estimated correctly that they could not seat many more than one
third of the attendees at any one time, which is why she and Marie
had elected to serve continuously over several hours.

With everything coming together, Laura
made a quick visit to her office, more for having something to keep
her occupied than anything urgent, then headed for the ladies
lounge and her beautiful white dress.

Ryan arose at about his usual time, and
decided an early morning run would be in order. Running togs on, he
planned on doing the golf course perimeter road for a lap or two,
but a sudden urge made him change course. Turning off his original
path, Ryan made his way to the pond. He had let the dogs out to
accompany him, and they were noisily lapping water and chasing
after water walkers for sport. Sitting for a moment, Ryan recalled
the conversation with Jack, and he wondered if he was doing the
right thing, marrying this woman and adopting her children. What if
he really couldn’t pull it off and things didn’t work out so well.
It was at that moment that an apparently stray thought made its way
to his conscious mind: “You planned on having children with Mary;
why do you think this is different? You’re being given a chance to
catch up on lost time. You can do this, Big Guy.” Ryan grasped the
thought, turned it around in his mind and examined the logic. It
was true, he realized, that he was being given some time back by
adopting the kids, and he was sure Laura wanted him rather than
needed him. That much was obvious. In a moment of crystal clarity,
Ryan realized this was not just the right thing to do, it was the
only thing to do unless he wanted to squander this chance of a
lifetime. He felt a growing knot of anxiety in his belly, not for
fear these events were about to happen, but for fear they wouldn’t
for some unknown reason. The feeling passed quickly, and he
realized that this was the place and the time; he had a warm glow
and felt an urgent need to get on the with the rest of his life.
Rising with a clear mind to continue his run, Ryan noticed for the
first time that the pond didn’t seem to have its usual musky smell
or the dry leaf scent of early winter; there was a faint hint of
roses in the air, although he knew full well there weren’t any
growing in the dense brushy undergrowth, and certainly not at this
time of year. Filing the thought, he called the dogs, and feeling
as though a weight had been lifted and his vision clarified, he
continued his run.

After a quick shower and back into
street clothes, Ryan checked on Laura’s whereabouts, ever aware of
the “no see” rule on their wedding day, and with Doris’ clearance
on the subject, popped into the kitchen for a bite. Downing a light
snack, and coffee, Ryan decided it was time to go to the White
House, a structure he had all but abandoned over two years ago.
What he had said about staff maintaining the place was true, and he
had allowed it to continue while his own wounds healed. Today he
would complete the healing process at last by returning to where
the pain had started. The mere act of opening the front door was
significant, and once inside, closure was begun. Looking around, he
realized the memories were still there, but the pain was gone, and
for a fleeting moment, Ryan imagined he heard children’s excited
voices in the rooms. The head housekeeper had assigned herself to
this area for the day, but kept in touch with the rest of her staff
by pager as often as she needed. Ryan found her in the kitchen area
making sure all preparations for the reception were in
place.

“Morning Edna; got it all under
control?”

“Morning boss; It’s coming along well,
even if I do say so myself. Any new orders?”

“Kind of. Place looks great, but then I
knew it would. On Monday, all the furniture in the master bedroom
comes out and goes to the Salvation Army thrift shop. The furniture
store will be bringing in all new in the afternoon, along with some
things for the other two finished bedrooms. Those will be kids
rooms for you know who, so you know what goes where. The furniture
for the main bedroom is leased, so we can change it out easier
later on. The other furniture, I had a lot of help from a lot of
people picking it out, so I hope it’s the right thing. Anyway, not
a word about this to anyone else today, okay?”

“You got it. It’s a surprise for the
new missus, isn’t it! Anyway, let me say ‘Welcome home’. You belong
here, and I think the world of her and the kids. This place needs a
family,”

“Thanks, Edna. You’re a treasure. By
the way, how’s that new girl working out, Leslie?”

“Love her like my own daughter. You
know word travels fast, and we all knew Ms Laura had taken the girl
in. Les has never mentioned it or used it for anything that I know
of. All she needed was a chance, and believe me, she’s earned it.
Dirty shame the way that guy treated her, but I think she’s got a
good one on the line now. I’ve seen them together outside here, and
he just treats her and the baby like gold. She’s a great kid, but
we’re going to lose her in maybe a year, soon as she gets her EMT
ticket. Anyway, for now it’s great having her here.”

“That’s great to hear. My Laura seems
to have a knack for reading people, better than I have. Have to run
for now, but thanks, Edna. You didn’t have to come in
today.”

“Yes, I did. This is my place too and I
want it to be right. Now, you get out of here before I stuff a dust
wipe in your hand, and Ryan…..”

“Yes?”

“I look forward to the pitter-patter of
little feet in here. This place wasn’t meant to be a house; it was
meant to be a home, and I don’t mean just Jack and Amanda either,
if you get my drift.”

“Come on. We’re not even married yet,
Edna.”

“No, but you’re a great guy, marrying a
great gal. Can’t let it stop there, can we?”

“Edna, only time will tell, but if that
happens, we may need a little help. When’s the last time you
changed a really bad diaper?”

“Last weekend. Grandbaby. I’m still in
practice; maybe I’ll need to teach you a thing or two, Big
Guy.”

“Could be, just could be. But, I’d sort
of like to get married first. Now, remember, not a word about the
upstairs until Monday; okay?”

“You can count on me; now, get out of
here and go get married.”

With that order, Ryan took leave of the
kitchen, but couldn’t resist heading for the front stairway. The
velvet rope was across the stair, a polite way of pointing out that
while the downstairs might see anyone for an event, the upstairs
was a private residence. Ryan unhooked the rope and took a step,
only to hear a voice behind him say: “Sorry mister. That part of
the house is…..oh, I’m sorry sir. I didn’t know it was you. I’m
sorry.”

“Not a problem. You did the right
thing. You’re Leslie, aren’t you? How’s that EMT program coming
along, and the new boyfriend?”

Les turned slightly red in the cheeks
before responding: “The EMT program is going great and I really
like it; as for the boyfriend, how did you hear about that, not
like it’s a big secret or anything.”

“Les, there are virtually no secrets in
this world. Do you know how many people are watching over you? I
just talked to Edna, and you know about Laura, and that crazy Cindy
person. And, I heard about your friend meeting Dennis. You have a
pretty good sized fan club. I hear he’s a nice guy; sounds like
things are going good. Keep it up.”

“Thanks, Mr. Williams. I will. It’s
like having a whole new family, and one not much like the original,
thank God.”

“And don’t call me Mr. Williams. Makes
me sound old. It’s Ryan, okay?”

“Yes sir, Mr. Williams; I mean…..well,
you know.”

“I know. See you Les.”

Ryan walked up the steps, savoring the
experience. It felt good, not at all like the last time he had
climbed these steps, to sit with Mary for what would be the last
time. Like entering the front door, the memories were there, but
not the pain, and he realized he was thinking about coming up the
stairs with Laura, and the kids, and luggage, and noise; a family.
Edna was right; Ryan and Mary had built a home, not a house, and it
deserved to be lived in. He recalled Alice talking about giving up
the house she and her husband had shared for many years. In one of
those poignant moments, Alice had said: “It’s a family home, and it
deserves little kids in it. I’ve sold it to a young couple with two
on the ground and one in the hanger. It needs lived in, and I can’t
do that anymore, so I think it’s a good decision.” Alice had been
right, of course, and Ryan remembered the moment well. This house
too, he thought, deserves a family, and if Jack and Amanda are it,
then it’s still a family; but maybe…..and his thoughts trailed off
to looking around one more time. Five days, he thought; didn’t seem
like much time, but the kids had to get back into school after the
holiday recess, and this wedding thing had rather crowded some
other things around in the Windmere schedule of events. It could
all be done, but everyone needed to carry their load, including the
newly formed family: Ryan, Laura and kids. Pleased with what he had
seen, Ryan headed back to the big house to finalize a couple of
things, then find some lunch and get dressed. Seeing a light smoke
haze from around the other side of the house, he had to take a
moment to investigate. Rounding the corner, he found Fernando
sitting on a camp stool almost in a flower bed adjacent to the
nearby kitchen door, with a smoke cloud coming apparently from the
ground.

“Good morning Fernando; starting a
volcano?”

“Buenos Dias, Senor Ryan; I told Marie
we shouldn’t do this, but she says Grande Senor Dennis says it’s
okay for me to dig here. He even brought the rocks and took away
the dirt for me.”

“Rocks?”

“Si, Senor. I dig a hole, set a big
fire, pile in the rocks, and let it burn down until the hog he goes
in. I dug the hole yesterday and started the fire early this
morning; about an hour ago, in goes the wet straw, and senor hog,
yes?”

“Yes, I guess. You’re telling me there
is a whole hog under the tarp, being cooked by hot rocks and wet
straw. Have you done this before?”

“It is a side business for us. I do ten
or twelve a year, but could do more if I wanted. The sauce I bring
from my home town in Mexico when we visit; the peppers there are
better than what I get in the store here. It takes time, but I have
done several for the same people each year. Is it okay that I dig
this hole, Senor? There is no trouble?”