Wish List (26 page)

The cover was off the hot tub, spirals of steam wafting upward. The water bubbled and churned. Lex was nowhere to be seen. Next to the wrought iron table was Snookie’s bed that Ariel had brought along with her. The shepherd looked around before she settled herself, her head in her paws, her eyes bright and alert.

Ariel let the fluffy yellow towel drop to the chair. A moment later she was in the water. She let out a whoop when she felt herself being pulled under. When she surfaced she was grinning from ear to ear. “Now, that’s what I call romantic!” she gurgled. “How long have you been here?”

“That was my fourth underwater dip. I don’t think I could have done it again. Look at my hands, they’re all puckered up.”

“As long as it’s just your hands.”

“Uh-huh,” Lex drawled. “You could, of course, check it out.”

“Uh-huh,” Ariel drawled in return. “It’s kind of hard to tell under the water.”

“You could be right. Maybe after, when we get out, when we’re listening to records on my jukebox, sipping our Cokes, and chewing our bubble gum.”

“Now, why didn’t I think of that?”

“Because . . . because . . . I’m smarter and I . . . Ariel, I have to ask you something. I think I’m right. I’m almost one hundred percent sure I’m right, but . . . it sort of crept up on me in degrees—one minute I was sure, the next minute I wasn’t. It was all these little things . . . things I remembered, things I never forgot. Things I wouldn’t allow myself to forget. See that folder over there on the table? There are things in it I want you to see.”

“I don’t need to see them, Lex. She held up her left hand, wiggling her fingers so he could see the braided ring. He brought his own left hand up from the depths of the water to show her his ring. Ariel smiled.

“How long have you known?” Lex asked hoarsely.

“For certain? Not that long. From day one, you reminded me of someone. When you laughed, the sound touched my soul. I wanted it to be you. I even hired a private detective to try and find you. The report was so devastating, I wanted to cry. When : .. when I had to make a decision about where to go and what do, after my surgery, this was the only place I could think of. I had been happy here. Because of you. I tried to locate you. You must believe that. But, when that lawyer I hired told me there was no record of our marriage, I fell apart. Then Hollywood beckoned. Oh, Lex, all those years. Wasted. I want to cry now, just thinking about that.”

“Shhhh. It’s okay. We found each other. Maybe you were meant to find me and me you. Think about all the good you’ve done since you’ve been here. We would have gone under without you and your friends.”

“But the trouble
happened
because of me.”

“No. You have to stop believing that. If it wasn’t you, it would have been someone else. Only the names would have changed. You can’t blame yourself for any of this. Listen, I have to ask you something. I heard about all those offers that were coming your way. They want you back. It’s okay with me. I know this is the 90’s and women want careers. I know I can be an understanding husband.”

“I don’t want to go back. I don’t want to be Aggie Bixby, either. We aren’t Aggie and Felix anymore. We’re Ariel and Lex, and that’s the way it should be. If Asa still wants to buy back the company, I’m willing to sell out. I’d love living here with you. I want to catch up, make up, for all those missing years.”

“Do you mean it?”

“Damn right I mean it. Lex, at some point during the party, I heard that Marino split. Just up and left the ranch. Is it true?”

“As far as I know. He was a bloodsucker, but other than pirating away our workers and hiring Chet, he really didn’t do anything wrong. He had nothing to do with the hijackings. He’s probably back in New York bilking someone out of their mutual funds. He’s one of those people who’s always one step from the edge. Andrews is out of your hair. Life looks pretty rosy from where I’m sitting.”

“What about Dolly and Tiki?”

“Tiki is ready to go home. I’ve given her a little house in the hills. She has lots and lots of grandchildren. The decision was hers. She’s been talking about it for over a year. You need to know something else. My people are going to be damn disappointed if we don’t get married here. They’ve got it all planned. The weddings last three days, sometimes four.”

“Four days! What do you do for four days?”

“Eat. Sing. Dance. You get lots of presents you stick in a closet and give out at Christmastime to other people. It’s fun. I’m up for it if you are. They aren’t going to like that ring, though.”

“Tough. I don’t want another one. This will go with me to my grave. I mean that, Lex.”

“I know you do, and I feel the same way. I don’t know if you want to hear this or not, but I gotta tell you anyway. I’m puckering up. All over.”

“Oh, God, let’s get out then.”

They did.

Dripping wet, they pressed their naked bodies, slick with water, together. Somehow, Ariel managed to reach behind her for the thirsty yellow towel that was half on the chair and half on the ground.

“Do you really think we can make it into the house, down the hall, up the stairs, down another hall to my room, wrapped in one skimpy towel?” Lex drawled.

“I was wondering about that. How about, I keep the towel and you run ahead?”

“How about I keep the towel and you go first? Look, I can solve this in a heartbeat.” The towel was gone suddenly, sailing backward, landing in the hot tub. “We walk naked into your new home. Or, I can carry you over the threshhold. Your call, Mrs. Sanders.”

“Carry me. All the way.”

“My bed’s turned down. Clean sheets. I even bought a bottle of gardenia perfume and spritzed the pillows. Hell, I spritzed the whole room. It’s ready. I’m ready! Oh, Jesus,” he bellowed suddenly, going down on one knee.

“What’s wrong?”

“I think I threw my back out.”

“What? I don’t want to hear that! Do you hear me, Lex Sanders?”

“It’s not any worse than your dog screwing up our evening. By the way, where is that dog of yours?”

“Sleeping. As in sound asleep. For the night. Down by the hot tub. Till morning. That’s like six hours away. Six hours! Do you have any idea what we could do in six hours?”

“Tell me!”

Ariel squatted down next to him. She told him in great detail. He was on his feet in a flash, towering over her, his eyes dancing with merriment. “I just wanted to give you a taste of your own medicine.”

They were in the bed then, thrashing and laughing, tickling, kissing, romping, having the time of their lives. “I’ve been known to scream,” Ariel said and laughed.

“Can’t be worse than my bellowing. House is empty. We can do whatever we want.”

“We can’t wake Snookie up.”

“God, no!”

“Can you make love to me the way you did the first time? Do you remember all the things we did and said? I remember everything.”

“So do I. We aren’t those same people anymore, Ariel. Wait a minute,” Lex said, swinging his legs over the side of the bed. “I had a plan. Get up. Put some clothes on. We’re going to do this right.”

“Now?”

He was already pulling on his jeans and shirt. Her eyes wide, Ariel pranced down the hall to the room she’d been in earlier. She didn’t bother with underwear. She pulled on her jeans and shirt and met Lex in the hall at the top of the steps.

“C’mon,” he said, taking her by the hand.

In his office the Wurlitzer stood out like a machine from outer space. She smiled. The dream. Now, she understood. “Want a Coke? Some bubble gum?”

“Yeah. Three red bubble gums.”

“No, you need at least six in your mouth. You need to work up a good spit. Then you drink the Coke. We can blow bubbles. You any good at that?”

Ariel thought about her pricey porcelain and how gum stuck to her caps. “I can try.”

“Can I buy you a Coke?”

“Absolutely.”

“Wanna dance?”

“With the Coke and gum or without?”

“I don’t know. I never did this before. What do you think?” Ariel set her soda down and stuck the gumballs in her pocket. “I would very much like to dance with you, with your arms around me. Then, when we’re finished dancing, I think you should light that fireplace and buy me a Coke and some gum. How does that sound?”

“Is that how they did it back then?”

She wanted to tell him she was as green about teenage protocol as he was, but instead she said, “If memory serves me right, it is. I was never allowed to hang out the way the other kids did. Does it really make a difference?”

“Yeah, it does. I’ve waited for this moment all my life. I want it to be right.”

Ariel sat down, cross legged, on the floor. “Let’s talk about it. We’ve both seen movies on how it’s done. We should do whatever feels right to you . . . to us.”

“Do you think I’m crazy, Ariel?”

“Oh, no, Lex. Not at all. This is your dream. I want it to be right for you. We can’t move on until you’re happy with your memory. It’s too important. To both of us. I’m just so delighted to be a part of it. I want to be a part of everything in your life from now on. So, are you going to ask me to dance?”

“I’m not a very good dancer. And, I’m in my bare feet. Pick a song, Ariel. I would have let you pick the tune if this happened thirty years ago.”

“Really?”

“Of course. I was always a gentleman.”

“You were, Lex. That was one of the things I loved about you. You were always so gallant. Of course, at the time, I really didn’t know what
gallant
meant. The money, please.” Lex handed her a dime. She dropped it into the slot and pressed a button. She turned to step into Lex’s arms as Hank Williams’s golden voice gave life to “Your Cheating Heart.”

At first they were all over each other’s feet as they circled the room. Then they both relaxed at the same moment, their bodies glued to one another. “You fit just right in my arms,” Lex said.

“I was just going to say the same thing. Boy, this dancing is making me thirsty. How about buying me a Coke? I’d like some bubble gum, too, if you have enough money,” Ariel said shyly.

Lex threw his head back and laughed. “My pleasure.” He dropped money into the slot and waited for the Coke to settle into the opening. He plucked it free, uncapped it, and handed it over with a flourish. Then he bought himself one. “We should make a toast,” he said. “Think, Ariel, what should we drink to?”

“Let’s drink to Hollywood. If it wasn’t for Hollywood, we wouldn’t have found each other. Then we can make a second toast to long life and happiness.”

“I like that,” Lex said. They clinked bottles before they each took a healthy swig. “Jeez, two gulps and it’s gone. Guess when we were kids we didn’t think about that, huh?”

“I wasn’t allowed too many sweets. My mother said they’d rot my teeth. I can’t wait for those bubble gums you promised. I want all red ones.”

When they sat down by the fire again, Lex had two Cokes under his arm and a fist of the colorful little gumballs. “Let’s see how many we can chew at one time.”

Later, relaxing against a pile of pillows, the juke box playing softly in the background, Ariel said, “That was fun. Was it all you expected it to be?”

“And more. Because of you. Without you, I probably would have played the juke once, drank one Coke, and chewed a few gumballs. Then I probably wouldn’t have done it again. This was perfect. We have a lot of catching up to do.”

“What I want to know is when are we going to bed?” Ariel said, blowing a bubble the size of a grapefruit in his face.

Lex, in turn, blew a bubble almost the same size. He moved slightly so that the two bubbles were actually touching. Their eyes locked just as the bubbles burst. Sticky, pink gum plastered both their faces. Ariel burst out laughing as she tried to peel it off. “I think you should lick it off, chew it off, something. You said this was going to be fun. Is this?”

“I’m having a hell of a time.” Suddenly his breathing was ragged and husky. He fell back against the pillows, taking her with him. He found her eager mouth, returning her kisses with a bittersweet ardor. Hers were the softest lips he’d ever kissed. His kisses wandered over the planes of her face, to the dimple in her chin, in the waterfall of silvery hair.

His hands caressed her body, finding it as beautiful as he remembered. He drew in his breath, sighing in contentment as womanly curves fit snugly against manly muscle.

Ariel exerted pressure against him, forcing him to his back where she followed, her knees tightly clamped to his sides. She looked down into the face that was as dear to her as it had been once, so long ago. Love swelled deep inside her. Her hair created a curtain as she bent to kiss him . . . long, loving kisses meant to touch the soul and stir the senses.

Lex smiled up at her when he felt himself being taken within her. This was Aggie, the Aggie he loved . . . his equal, sharing the best of herself, giving, always giving.

Their joining was loving, tender, and filled with joy. It had been too long since they had been together this way, equally hungry for what each could bring to the other.

“Ahhh,” Lex said.

“Oh my,” Ariel said as she snuggled into the nest he made of his arms.

The only sound in the private room Lex had never shared before was the rustling of their bodies against the pillows and the soft sound of their murmurings. Ariel nestled against him, burrowing her head into the hollow of his neck, the silky strands of her hair falling over his shoulder. She breathed the scent of him, mingled with the fragrance of her own perfume. Her fingers teased the light furring of his chest hairs; her leg, thrown intimately over his, felt the lean, sinewy muscle of his thigh.

They were like light and shadow, she silvered, the color of moonlight, and he dark, like the night. He held her, gentle hands soothing her, bringing her back down from erotic heights.

It was the best of all times, these moments after making love, when all the barriers were down and satiny skin melted into masculine hardness. This closeness was the true communion of lovers who had brought peace and satisfaction to one another.

Ariel burrowed deeper into Lex’s arms. He drew her close, his arms tight and protective. He loved this woman. He nuzzled the softness of her neck.