Uncorked (31 page)

She smiled at her son, kissing
him on both his cheeks.

“I hate fighting with you, and I
know I’ve been angry, but the truth is I want both you and Chella in my life. I
shouldn’t have to choose between the two of you.”

“Mitch, I don’t like her.”

“Can you at least respect her?
For me?”

“I’ll try.”

“She’s great. I love her, and she’s
not going away.”

“I’m not making any promises.
I’ll try.”

“That’s a start. I’m still not
sure I can do this—forgive him—and be a donor.”

“Give yourself some time.
Whatever you decide, I’ll still love you.”

“I love you too, Mom. Are you
hungry? I’d like to take you to lunch.”

“Is Chella going to be there?”

“No. Just you and me. But Mom, if
we’re going to do this, Chella is off-limits.”

“I’d rather talk about you and
Emily, anyway.”

Mitch shared the
events of the morning with
Chella. The Liz he described to her that afternoon was kind, forgiving and
supportive. It almost seemed like Chella brought out the worst in her. She was
starting to see Liz differently. Whether that meant the relationship would
change had yet to be seen.

Mitch and Chella
arrived at Charlotte’s house to
pick up Emily. She wrapped her arms around her dad and wouldn’t let go.

“We’re going to the pier. We’ll
go on some rides, do some shopping, have some fun,” Mitch said as he held his
daughter in his arms.

“Really daddy? Mommy’s taking
Micky to the pier, too. Can we go together? Pleeeeease?”

Mitch looked at Chella then
Charlotte. Chella smiled.

“Emily, I’m sure your dad has
plans and other places he might like to take you,” Charlotte said.

Mitch looked uncertain of what to
do.

“I don’t mind. It’s up to the two
of you,” Chella said quietly.

“What do you think?” Mitch asked
Charlotte.

Chella could sense that both
Mitch and Charlotte had their reservations, or at least didn’t want to step on
each other’s toes. Chella thought of a way to give them some privacy.

“Emily, is that your bike over
there?” Chella asked.

“Yes, it is. Daddy got it for me
at Christmas.”

“Why don’t you show it to me?”
Chella said as Mitch put Emily down. She looked at him, mouthing
I’m-okay-with-this then took Emily by the hand and left.

After a short exchange between
Charlotte and Mitch, they agreed to all go to the pier together. Charlotte had
to visit her dad afterwards, so she and Micky followed in her own vehicle.

It was amazing to see Emily with
her brother. Chella witnessed first-hand how close they were. When they first
arrived and parked their vehicles, Chella thought it was adorable the way Emily
waited for her little brother then held his hand as they walked along the pier.
After a couple hours of walking, Chella felt tired, but the kids were eager to
go on more rides. Charlotte stopped by a vendor and tried sunglasses on with
the kids. Chella and Mitch sat on a nearby bench.

“Go ahead without me. Go have fun
with the kids.” Chella said to Mitch. Her head was pounding.

“Are you sure you’re okay with
this whole arrangement?”

“Of course. I promise. I’m a
little tired, and I have a headache. I’ll go sit, enjoy the view at the
restaurant, and have a cup of tea or something. Maybe I’ll feel better after I
relax for a while. You can find me there when you’re done.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

“Okay, why don’t you hold onto
this card and some cash. Feel free to use it for anything,” he said as he
pulled the items from his wallet.

“Really? I saw a BMW dealership
and a Bloomingdales down the street. Maybe I’ll go on a wild shopping spree.”

“If it makes you happy, I’m fine
with that.”

“I’m teasing. Thank you. Go have
fun with your daughter. You know where to find me if you need me.”

“I love you.”

“I love you, too,” she replied, kissing
him lightly on the lips then waving goodbye as he left.

After a few minutes of rest, she
walked over to the restaurant nearby. She had placed her order when Charlotte
walked up to the table and said, “Mind if I join you?”

“Of course not. Have a seat,”
Chella replied.

“The kids wanted to go on the
roller coaster, but I never go on that thing. Whenever they go, George, my
husband, takes them. Mitch was more than happy to take that role, so I thought
I’d keep you company.”

“Thanks, Charlotte. That was nice
of you.”

“This is totally none of my
business, but Chella, I haven’t seen Mitch this happy in a long time.”

“Really?” Chella replied,
smiling.

What’s your angle?

“I’m sure Mitch has told you
about our relationship and subsequent divorce. I’m not proud of how I handled
things, but it was never my intention to hurt him.”

“Charlotte, why do you feel the
need to tell me any of this?” Chella asked politely.

“I care about him. I’ve always
wanted to see him happy. You’re the first woman he’s ever introduced to Emily.
I get the feeling we’ll be seeing a lot more of each other.”

This is news… the first. He
didn’t tell me that…

“He’s fantastic. He makes me
happy, too,” said Chella.

“If Mitch is happy, I guess that
means Liz is not.”

Chella choked on her sip of tea.
“What do you mean?”

“Don’t be coy. Your response
tells me you know exactly what I mean.”

Chella couldn’t help but smile at
her words, but she said nothing.

“You’re a classy lady, not
bad-talking your boyfriend’s mom. If you’re going through anything close to
what I went through, I’ll keep you in my prayers.”

“Does she ever come around?”
Chella asked as the waiter returned with Charlotte’s glass of white wine.

“After Mitch and I got divorced.
But in all fairness to her, maybe she picked up on something I didn’t even
recognize in myself at the time. I made huge mistakes with Mitch. It’s possible
her instincts picked up on those long before I ever did.”

“It’s interesting you can admit
that.”

“I screwed up. I loved Mitch, but
I was never in love with him. I should have never agreed to marry him.”

“Well, the two of you have a
beautiful daughter to show for it.”

“We do. I guess fate has its way
of working things out.”

“I guess it does.”

“I’m starting to see why Emily
likes you so much. Mitch, too.”

“What do you mean?”

“You had quite the effect on
Emily since she first met you. She hasn’t stopped talking about you and thanks
to you, I don’t have to worry about my floor becoming
weathered
too
quickly.”

Chella laughed, “She told you
that?”

“I think you started her on a new
hobby. And she’s giving everyone lessons on how sea glass is made.”

“You have an amazing daughter.”

“I think it’s safe to say the
feeling is mutual. I like you, too, Chella. You’ve had a really great influence
on her.”

“That’s a sweet thing to say, I’m
glad we’re having this talk. Excuse me, I need to go to the ladies room.”

God… Why do I feel so sick?

“Sure. I’ll be here.”

Chella couldn’t believe how
nauseous she felt. She washed her face in the restroom then used wet towels to
help her cool off. As she headed back to the table, she felt dizzy and somewhat
off balance.

“Chella, are you okay?” Charlotte
asked with concern.

“I think I need to get to a
hospital.”

Let me call Mitch,” Charlotte
said, getting to her feet and helping Chella keep her balance.

“No, he needs to spend time with
Emily. You don’t have to stay. Just drop me off.”

“I’ll take you, but I’m calling
Mitch.”

“Let’s wait to see what they say
first. He hasn’t seen her in a while, and I don’t want to take away the time he
has to spend with her.”

Five minutes later, they arrived
at a hospital down the street from the pier.

“I’m in the waiting room,” said
Charlotte as the staff took Chella in using a wheelchair. “If you’re not out
within half an hour I’m calling Mitch.”

Moments later, a doctor saw
Chella.

After explaining her symptoms to
the doctor and answering some standard questions, the doctor suspected a
concussion. When
Ciao Bella
exploded, she had hit the side of her head.
She hadn’t hit it hard, and it was barely swollen, so she didn’t make anything
of it. After an MRI, the doctor confirmed a moderate concussion. The doctor
ordered her on strict bed rest for the next forty-eight hours.

When she got out of the ER,
Charlotte was still in the waiting room.

“How are you?” she asked Chella.

“I fell and hit my head
yesterday. I have a concussion.”

“Oh no. You should be resting.”

“Did you call Mitch?”

“I tried a few times, but I
didn’t get through. With all the noise, he probably didn’t hear his phone
ring.”

“Thanks for everything. I really
appreciate it. What time was his visit with Emily supposed to be over?”

“Not for another three hours or
so.”

“I’m going to take a taxi back to
the hotel. He needs to be with her right now. When you see him just tell him I
went to get some rest. It’s been a while since they’ve seen each other, and I
don’t want him getting concerned and cutting his time short with Emily.”

“I can take you to your hotel if
you like.”

“Thanks, Charlotte. You’ve been
amazing. Go spend some time with your kids. There are taxis outside. I’ll grab
one. Make sure you give the kids a hug goodbye for me, please.”

Chella waved as Charlotte drove
away. She was pleasantly surprised how things turned out with Mitch’s ex that
afternoon. Charlotte had been helpful and seemed to be an unexpected ally. When
Chella arrived at the hotel, she followed the doctor’s orders. She climbed into
bed and fell fast asleep.

After Ferris wheel,
roller coaster and carousel
rides all afternoon, Mitch and the kids headed to dinner. Unable to find either
Chella or Charlotte at the restaurant, he checked his phone and realized he had
several missed calls from Charlotte. He was about to call her when she appeared
at the table.

“Hey. Did you guys have fun?” she
asked the kids.

“Oh, Mom, it was awesome,” Emily
replied, her face was painted like a cat. Micky was Spiderman.

“Chella wasn’t feeling well. She
went back to the hotel to rest,” Charlotte told Mitch

“What was wrong with her?”

“She didn’t want you to worry.
She wanted you to stay with Emily. I took her to the H-O-S-P-I-T-A-L.”
Charlotte replied, not wanting to alert the kids.

“What happened?”

“Excuse me, Daddy. Can I have
some quarters to get gumballs for Micky and me? Please?”

“Sure, Sweetheart,” he replied,
handing his daughter the money and watching as she and her brother ran to a
machine a few yards away.

“She said she fell yesterday.
Apparently she hit her head. It was a small bump, so she didn’t make a big deal
about it. She found out it was a concussion.”

“I didn’t hear my phone ring when
you called.”

“She didn’t want you to know,
anyway. She didn’t want you to leave Emily.”

“How long ago did she leave?”

“She went to the hotel about an
hour and a half ago. I like her. Go and be with her. We have no plans for
tomorrow. You can see Emily anytime you want.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes. She shouldn’t be alone for
too long at a time like this.”

After saying goodbye to the kids,
and thanking Charlotte a second and third time, Mitch rushed over to the hotel.

Chella was still
fast asleep when Mitch arrived.
He didn’t want to wake her by turning on the TV, so he began reading through
the letters. In three years, his father sent his mother almost two hundred
letters, each apologizing for what he had done. By the fifth letter, Mitch got
the point. Perhaps one day he’d get though all of them, but for now, he had
enough.

He walked aimlessly around the
room. He thought of getting some work done on his laptop then remembered it
blew up right along with the rest of the boat. For the second time, so had
Chella’s. He sat at the desk and made a list of all the things he needed to
replace. Luckily, his wallet hadn’t been destroyed. However, he knew Chella
well. She usually walked around with ID, all her credit cards, checkbooks, and
a host of other items that would be very inconvenient not to have when she went
home. Most importantly was her cell phone. If Charlotte hadn’t been with her
earlier, Mitch would have been clueless where Chella was or what had happened.