Authors: Vivienne Harris-Scott
“
Vi,
”
I started again in a softer voice,
“
Julian and I spoke and I feel partly
responsible for the issues he
’
s
been having lately. That recording was a bit brutal
…”
I sighed.
”
Anyway, he told me he was going to call
you and wondered what the best approach would be
…”
I continued, staring at Julian who was
staring at the phone between us.
“
Look, far from me the idea of pushing the
guy into your arms if this isn
’
t
what you want. The decision is yours, but at least my conscience is clear,
knowing that whatever happens from now on, you two actually talked to each
other.
”
I firmly said.
She
asked cautiously,
“
What
did you tell him, James?
“
I sighed and said in a tired voice,
“
Nothing at all, I promise. Well, nothing
except that you were upset that I had him listen to the recording, and that you
were mad at me because I somehow hurt him
…”
I sat back in a chair, my eyes still on
Julian who was looking at me dumbfounded. He cleared his throat, clearly
uncomfortable with the turn the conversation had taken, or to remind her that
he was still in the room.
It
seemed to work because she asked with a sad voice,
“
Julian, do you mind if I speak to James
only, for a few minutes?
”
and, as if she were here with us, witnessing the expression on Julian
’
s face at her request, she added,
”
Please. I know you do not like it, and you
’
re probably mad at me right now, but I
promise, you and I will talk right after. I just
…”
her voice trailed, as he pushed one
button, lifted the receiver and handed it to me, cutting himself out of our
conversation.
His
expression was thunderous as he watched me say,
“
Vi, What is it?
”
she went straight to the point and asked
me if I had told him exactly who she was, and if Ethan had been mentioned. I
said no, and I could hear her relief. She asked if Julian knew the recording
was a fake, I said no, but I could feel my cheek blush under his gaze. She
finally asked if I thought she would be safe talking to him, and as I was
staring at him, I said,
“
Yes,
I think you should. Clearly you both have unresolved business to discuss.
”
and just because I knew Vi and I were
good now, I added with a chuckle,
“
Besides
I think he
’
s
has real feelings for you, but if it turns out he
’
a douche, don
’
t worry, it
’
ll be my pleasure to kick his ass
…”
I
got up, put the receiver back on its cradle while pressing the speaker button,
and her melodious laughter erupted in the room.
This
seemed to relax Julian.
A
lot.
((~~!~~))
Julian
James said his goodbyes to her saying he would
call her in a few days. He asked me if I needed anything else from him and I
shook a
‘
no
’
with my head, eager to finally have the
line and Vi for myself. He exited my office and I said,
“
Alone at last!
”
in a cheerful tone.
“
Well, I
’
m sorry Julian,
“
she cut in,
”
but I need some time to think before I can
speak with you. James is right we do have unresolved business
…”
“
Where are you?
”
I interrupted her.
“
In Dubai.
”
was her soft reply.
Well,
so much for a quick trip and seeing her!
In
a strangled voice, I asked,
“
So,
how are you? I mean, since I last saw you
…”
She
seemed to give her answer some thought and replied softly,
“
As well as I can be, considering the
circumstances.
”
“
You?
”
she added.
“
Same.
”
I sighed and truthfully answered.
We
were silent for a while, both feeling the tension of so many things we needed
to say to each other but were unable to, yet communicating the incommunicable.
She
finally whispered,
“
We
’
ll speak soon Julian, I promise. Take
care.
”
and disconnected the call.
The
clear and empty dial tone, only proof our conversation had happened.
Lily
I hate seeing her like this. I
’
ve known Vi almost my entire life; she my
sister, and I hate seeing her like this.
The
fact that a
Manolo
sale, hours of people watching and
gossiping and even a call from Kevin, did nothing to improve her mood tells me,
she is really lost, and this situation needs to be fixed, and pronto. I simply
won
’
t
have her go back to the dark side. Too painful, and way too hard to get her
out! I don
’
t
think one person can be that lucky twice in a lifetime. The first time around
was hard enough.
I
was against her marriage to Ethan, not because I didn
’
t like the guy, but because I feared her
moving across the globe for a man was not the smartest move. I knew he loved
her and her him, but I also knew, in her case, love wouldn
’
t be enough. You see, Vi breathes the law.
She went to business school to satisfy her father, but law is truly, where her
heart lies, then, now, and forever. It is who she is. The fact she was unable
to practice in Australia nearly destroyed her, then of course, you add that
shit with Ethan, the cancer and the clincher with Luca and my girl wasn
’
t herself anymore. It
’
s nothing short of a miracle that she
’
s still standing.
Now,
this thing with Julian has her in knots, and not in a good way. It took her
years to pick up the pieces of her life, and build a new one, and I
’
ll be damned if I let some man threaten
the stability that keeps her sane and alive. But I also want her to be loved
again. She deserves it, and call me crazy but I believe her meeting Julian was
a sign that this tide was about to turn. I just need to make sure he won
’
t hurt her. She wouldn
’
t survive it. She is finally content with
her life, and Lord knows she deserves every bout of happiness coming her way.
As
I look at her now, asleep in bed; she is holding Mephisto tightly against her,
and I
’
m
thinking I need to find a way to fix this for her.
((~~!~~))
She was a nervous wreck. Since her
conversation with James, and my admission of what I had said to Marcus, she had
been jumpy, distracted even, and I was getting worried.
We
tried to talk it out, coming up with all sort of scenarios on what could happen
next, but we got our answer this morning when her phone rang and James
announced he was with Julian. We were in her bedroom, actually on her bed
cutting fashion magazines pages to send the models to our tailor, when it
happened. She put the phone on speaker between us and was looking at me the
entire time, as if I could provide answers to the anxiety that had plagued her
the past 48 hours.
It
was clear; whether she wanted to admit it or not that, she felt something for
Julian. The way her face had lit up when she had heard his voice, her tone when
James was talking about the effect of that damn recording on him, how she held
my hand when James had left and she was finally talking to Julian alone, -
well, plus me, but he would never know, would he? -, I knew this man had
somehow managed to awaken her heart.
I
hadn
’
t
seen her like this in a long time.
When
she had finished the call, she looked at me saying
“
What should I do Lil? I want to talk to
him, I want so much, but I can
’
t
…”
I cut her out, asking,
“
Vi, baby, is this about E.?
”
Tears
appeared but didn
’
t
drop. I kicked myself, Of course, it was about E, it would always be about E.
She would never trust another man because of him. For that I hated him, well,
actually, this was just another reason to hate him.
I
held her and said
“
Look
Vi, you deserve to be loved. I don
’
t
know if Julian is the one who can actually heal you, but something is happening
here. Apparently, the man has been as affected as you are, so this is something
you seriously want to think about. Fuck Ethan! Don
’
t give him a second thought! What is your
heart telling you? The man sent a private eye to chase after you just after one
night! Speaking of which, you never gave me any specifics
…”
She
started to laugh,
“
Lil,
you
’
re
terrible!
”
“
Well, you never gave me the 411 on what
exactly he did to you
…”
I smirked.
She
threw a pillow to my face, now fully laughing and blushing. That
’
s when the phone rang again, surprising
both of us. I was the one who pressed the
‘
accept
’
button, she looked at me wide-eyed and we
both waited to see who was calling. When we heard Julian voice, I saw the
immediate relief wash over her face as she picked up the phone and put it to
her ear. I got up from the bed, and made a sign showing I was going into the
bathroom.
As
I drew water into the huge bathtub, I was thinking, who says she can
’
t have a bath at 10:00 a.m.? She needed to
relax, and since I was flying back to Boston the next morning, I wanted her to
enjoy our remaining few hours together. A bath and a massage would help. I
picked up the bathroom phone and ordered for a masseuse to come up at noon.
Then I would treat her to lunch.
I
was lost in my thoughts when she walked in, her face showing she had cried. I
said with concern,
“
What
happened? Are you ok?
”
“
Yes, I think so
…”
she whispered.
“
So, what did he have to say for himself?
”
I asked.
She
started to undress turning away from me, saying,
”
He misses me. He says he
’
s in love with me
…”
I
was so floored by what I heard, I stopped pouring the salts into the water.
I
got up, and made her turn around to face me. I needed to see her expression.
“
Say that again
…”
I said, trying to capture her eyes as she
was looking down at the floor.
”
He says
…”
she was mumbling.
“
Vi. Look at me!
”
I demanded until her head jerked up.
“
This is what he said? His own words?
”
I repeated.
“
Yes
”
she murmured, facing me. I could tell she
was uncomfortable.
I
smiled, and exhaled. This was good, this was better than good, and I said so
out loud, as she was getting into the bathtub.
She
was silently playing with the foam, eyes closed. I had to have missed something
because I could not understand why so was so pensive and gloomy.
“
Mami, what is it? You should be doing
cartwheels right now. Do you know how many women would kill to hear Julian
McCarty say these words to them?
”
She
opened her eyes, and I could see they were filled with sadness.
“
Lil, he still has no clue as to who I am.
When he finds out, trust me. He will not be in love with me but either furious
or simply call Ethan
…”
“
He
’
d never do this to you
…”
I said, believing my own words.
“
Well, we
’
ll see. I have agreed to speak to him
weekly until I return to Los Angeles. This will give me some time
…”
she said softly.
“
Mami, if the man is truly in love with
you, he won
’
t
hand you over to anyone, least of all Ethan! You don
’
t even know if they are in touch! Maybe,
just maybe you are afraid over nothing. After all, you said it yourself; Julian
McCarty isn
’
t
someone you met in your previous life, just a name that would pop up from time
to time from Ethan
’
s
mouth! God knows what kind of relationship these two have! But from what you
’
ve told me, they haven
’
t been close in years. The man refused to
attend your own wedding! If he was still best friend with E., how do you
explain that?
”
I countered, trying to reassure her.
She
looked at me, hopeful.
I
pressed on,
”
Besides,
if you don
’
t
give this a chance, you will regret it!
”
Her eyebrows arched, she was staring at
me confusion all over her face.
“
Look at you! When was the last time you
’
ve felt anything for any man? Hell, for
anybody? You wouldn
’
t
be a mess over just anyone
…
As
a matter of fact, I
’
m
starting to believe you might be in love with him...
”
I pointed, smiling.
She
had a bemused look when I raised my voice, confirming,
”
Oh My God! You are in love with him!
”
She
smiled too, and I thought I had succeeded in calming all her fears until she
sighed and murmured,
“
Enamorados
tontos
,
equivocados
locos
…
[3]
”
“
Mami!
”
I interrupted, not quite believing what I
was hearing.
“
Lil. I
’
m not putting my eggs in that basket.
Look, I don
’
t
know if they speak or not, but I simply can
’
t risk it. Last, I heard E. mention his
name, they were still tight. Me being in love with him is a moot point.
”
She bit her bottom lip as she could see I
was unconvinced.