Lessons From a Younger Lover (16 page)

Gwen placed the last item of clothing in her carry-on luggage and zipped it up. She couldn't believe the time had finally come when she'd end her marriage to Joe Smith and officially begin dating Ransom Blake. She marveled at the change that could come in two months: from dreading the end of her marriage to happily anticipating it. And all because of a man almost young enough to be her son.

Except for Sienna Elementary and a couple times at Kristy's, Gwen hadn't seen Ransom for the past two weeks. They'd decided not to get together anymore until after Gwen's divorce was final. Gwen told Ransom it was as a precaution, to make sure there were no last minute snags to the marital dissolution. This was true. But the main reason was because she didn't think she could be alone with him in the same room again and not have sex. It was that simple. Her body was on fire, and Ransom had the equipment to put it out.

As torturous as it was to be away from him, Gwen and Ransom's relationship had actually deepened as a result. Nightly phone calls, most times lasting an hour at least, allowed them to learn more about each other. Gwen opened up to Ransom as she hadn't with any other man, finally coming clean about her sexual inexperience and fear of disappointing him. He let her know in no uncertain terms that he was confident, positive, that she was qualified to satisfy, and he couldn't wait until she got the chance to prove it.

That's probably him,
Gwen thought as the phone rang. She wasn't disappointed when her caller ID showed it wasn't him. “Hey, baby brother.”

“Hey, big sis. Are you on your way to the airport yet?”

“In about ten minutes. Just double-checking to make sure I've got everything.”

“So how does it feel to be a day away from joining the ranks of the divorced?”

“I've never felt better, or been happier.”

“Are you sure about that? I know you and Ransom have something going on, but you were with Joe for ten years.”

“I'm positive, Robert. But trust me, this outlook didn't happen overnight. I was crushed when Joe said he wanted to end our marriage, you know that. His decision filled me with fear and doubt about myself as a wife, and as a woman. If I'd had a choice at the time, which I didn't, I would have chosen to stay married. Nobody enjoys the feelings of failure that getting a divorce brings on. A part of me will always love Joe, and I wish him well. But being with Ransom has shown me that there are levels to love and intimacy that I had no idea about.”

“Okay, sis, this sounds like some grown folks' business I'm not sure I want to hear.”

Gwen laughed. “And you won't. Besides, Ransom and I have respected the sanctity of my marriage vows. We haven't, well, we've messed around but we haven't…”

“Done the do,” Robert said, filling in the silence. “Well, I must tell you, Ransom is sounding more and more impressive every time I talk to you. I can't believe he's only twenty-six.”

“He'll be twenty-seven at the end of the month.”

“Yeah, and you'll be forty-one in July.”

“Who asked you?”

“I'm just happy you're happy. But I have to say this, big sis. Guard your heart. Everything's cool now, but there's a lot of years between you and young blood. I don't want you to get in so deep that you'll drown if things don't go the way you want them to.”

Gwen didn't know how to tell Robert that it was already too late for this advice. She was head over heels in love with “young blood.”

“Okay, Robert, I need to get moving. I'll call you from Chicago.”

Several hours later, Gwen lay across a king-sized bed, freshly showered, and grinning broadly. “You are so bad,” she said to Ransom, who'd called moments before.

“What? Just because I said I'm having a really hard time without you?”

“Yeah, and the way you said it. Just like that.”

“I'm just sorry I couldn't be there with you, Butterfly.”

“Me too. But Isis comes first and I can understand your being leery about who keeps her.”

“Yes, Miss Mary is still getting over the flu and didn't want to risk passing on anything. And of all the times for Mom to be going to Vegas…I even tried to bribe her into canceling the trip, but she wasn't even trying to hear me. Said she'd had a dream about winning, and her hand had been itching all week.”

“Well, just so you know, I'm going to try and change my ticket to come back on Friday, instead of Sunday as we'd originally planned.”

“Umm. Definitely let me know about that as soon as possible. Mom will be back by then. The weekend will belong to just the two of us.”

“All weekend? Baby, I've got papers to grade, lessons to plan.”

“I got your lesson right here….”

“Um-hmm…Oh, wait a minute, Ransom. Room service is here with dinner. Hold on.”

Gwen hurried to the door, even though the conversation with Ransom had shifted the focus of her appetite. She took a quick peek through the peephole and then opened the door.

“Joe, what do you want? What are you doing here?”

Joe looked at Gwen sheepishly. “Hey, Gwen. You look good.”

“I never would have told you where I was staying if I had known you would just show up. How did you get my room number? Never mind that…What do you want?”

“I need to talk to you before our court date tomorrow. Can I come in?”

A waiter came around the corner, pushing the rolling cart of food Gwen had ordered. Now, both appetites she'd worked up earlier were gone. Still, she stood aside as both the room service and Joe walked into her hotel room. When she turned to get her purse and tip the waiter, she noticed the phone lying on the bed.

“I'll have to call you back,” Gwen said to Ransom. Her tone was clipped, businesslike.

“Did I hear you say
Joe?
Is he there?”

“Yes.”

“Gwen, is everything okay?”

Gwen took a breath and tried to calm down. There was no need to get Ransom upset. “Yes, everything's fine. I'll call you back.”

“Call me as soon as he leaves.”

“Okay.”

“Gwen.”

“Yes?”

“I love you.”

Gwen slowly placed the phone on the receiver and willed her nerves to calm as she turned around. Her first thought was of Adam, that somehow he'd found Joe and the two were in cahoots. To collect herself for a moment, she walked over to the food cart, took the plate containing a hamburger, fries, and a salad, and placed it on the table. She sat down, opened the bottled water, and poured herself a glass. By then, her heartbeat was back to normal and she trusted herself to speak.

“Okay, Joe. You're here. So talk.”

“You don't have to be so cold, Gwen. I am still your husband.”

Gwen almost spit out the bite she was chewing. “My husband? Have you been drinking?”

Joe walked over to the table and sat down across from Gwen. “No, Gwen. I'm stone-cold sober. You have every right to be bitter toward me and angry with me. I mistreated you terribly. I'm sorry.”

Gwen nodded and took another bite of the burger. The choice sirloin was cooked to perfection. The fact that she hadn't eaten since morning was evident as her appetite came back with a vengeance.

“How's Mitzi?” she said once she'd swallowed her food.

Joe squirmed a bit before replying. “That's what I'm here about. That nonsense is over.”

“Oh, y'all broke up?”
Umm, these fries are good too.
Gwen reached for the ketchup and poured some on her plate.

“Baby, that's been done for over a month. I've been back at the house since—”

“Whoa, wait a minute, back at what house? Not the house that we both agreed to vacate in August, to sell in August. Not the house that I've been paying half the note on…not
that
house.”

“That's why we need to talk, Gwen.”

“No,
we
don't need to do anything.
You
need to stop beating around the bush and tell me exactly why you're here, and why you're back living in a condo we're trying to sell.”

“That's just it, baby. I'm hoping that after tonight, we decide not to sell it.”

While diving into her salad, Gwen looked at Joe as if he had three heads.

“Leaving you for Mitzi is the stupidest thing I've ever done in my life. I screwed up, baby. I know that now. Gwen, what I'm trying to say is…I want you back. I don't want to get a divorce.”

Gwen sat back and crossed her arms. She reached for a fry and slowly chewed it as she stared at him. “Just like that, huh?” she said finally.

“I know it won't be easy….”

“No, Joe, it won't be
possible
. This relationship is irreconcilable. My trust in you is completely gone, my faith in the marriage destroyed, and my love for you now that of a friend I once knew.”

“I'll do whatever it takes to save our marriage,” Joe continued, as if he hadn't heard her. “Counseling, whatever you want. But just give me another chance, Gwen. We've been together for ten years. Surely that's worth giving me a second chance, giving us a second chance.”

“You say that you've been back at the house for over a month. Why are we just now having this conversation? I haven't heard from you in three weeks, and when we talked earlier today, you acted like everything was on for tomorrow with no complications.”

“I knew I had to have this conversation in person. And as for the time it took to tell you this…I was scared, Gwen, and embarrassed that I had acted like a typical forty-year-old having a midlife crisis. But the closer it got to our going to court and legally ending our marriage, the stronger became my conviction that we had to try again.” While all of what Joe said was true, there was something he left out—the telephone conversation he'd had with Adam Johnson. Finding out that his wife had attracted a younger man suddenly made her more attractive to Joe, as did the ten thousand dollars Adam offered if Joe won Gwen back.

Gwen's cell phone rang. She let it go to voice mail, but moments later, the hotel phone followed suit.

“That might be Robert,” Gwen said to Joe. “I forgot to call him and tell him I made it. Hello?”

“Is he still there?”

“Yes.”

“What does he want? Is he trying to change his mind about divorcing you? Because if he is, tell him that that is not an option. Matter of fact, put him on the phone so I can tell him.”

“You know you're psychic.”

“So that's it. That fool is trying to get you back.”

“You don't have to worry.”

“I'd better not. Isis and I will catch a red-eye if we need to. Woman, there's no way I'll lose you without a fight.”

Gwen almost teared up at Ransom's words. He always made her feel special, protected, and loved. No other man had ever made her feel the way he did. When she hung up the phone and turned to Joe, she knew that their conversation was over. And so was their marriage.

“Joe, we're past the point of reconciling. We're getting divorced tomorrow. There is absolutely no chance I'll change my mind.”

“There's always a chance. Wait, who was that on the phone? Funny, you didn't mention anybody's name. Not ‘what's up, Chantay' or ‘hey, little brother.' You've met somebody in Los Angeles, haven't you?” When Gwen wouldn't divulge her relationship with Adam's brother, it made Joe even more determined to win her back, and not just for the money. As was often the case, it took another man being interested to make Joe realize the value of the woman he had and was close to losing.

“What is or isn't happening on the West Coast is neither here nor there. Our marriage ended a long time ago. Tomorrow is just a formality.”

“I refuse to believe that.” Joe walked over and opened the door. “You're my wife, Gwen. And if I have anything to say about it, you're going to stay my wife.” Joe looked at Gwen a long moment, mouthed “I love you,” and was gone.

Gwen walked to the door and latched the security bar. Her head was spinning. Had she just had a conversation with her soon-to-be ex saying he didn't want to be her ex? It was too much. Gwen sat on the bed with her head in her hands. Then she shook her head with resolve and picked up the phone. There were a few people she needed to speak to: Chantay, Ransom, Robert, and her lawyer.

The next morning, Gwen's attorney met her in the courthouse lobby. They'd barely shaken hands before Gwen fired a barrage of questions. “Is Joe here? Did you talk with his attorney? They can't do anything to stop the proceedings, right?”

“Calm down, Gwen,” her attorney, Stephen, suggested. “I haven't seen Joe yet but I have talked to his attorney. Joe has asked him to file a motion delaying the divorce proceeding.”

“No!” Gwen yelled. Those in the lobby turned to see what the ruckus was about.

Stephen grabbed Gwen's arm and pulled her down a nearby hallway. “Look, you're going to have to keep it together. I want you fully informed as to what's happening, but I don't want you freaking out. Like I said last night, there are absolutely no grounds for having a continuation granted. Joe had an affair, you've been separated for months, and last night was the first time Joe mentioned the desire to reconcile. Correct?”

Gwen nodded. “Absolutely.”

“I do have one last question that I didn't ask last night. Are you having an affair as well? Is there someone back in Los Angeles that I need to know about?”

Gwen's voice rose again. “Is this what Joe is implying?”

“Keep your voice down!”

“Is that what he is telling his attorney?” Gwen hissed. “Because I can assure you that anything happening in Los Angeles has absolutely nothing to do with what is going on here.”

“So you have met someone?”

“What business is it of yours?”

Stephen sighed audibly. “Look, Gwen, you can make this easy or difficult. The choice is yours. But in case you've forgotten, I'm your attorney. I'm on your side. I'm asking you because I need to be prepared to defend whatever accusations might be thrown our way.”

Gwen crossed her arms and glared in the direction of the courthouse doors. She wanted to see Joe walking through them, so she could give him a piece of her mind as well as a piece of her Coach handbag upside his head.

“Gwen?” Stephen prodded.

Gwen took a deep, cleansing breath and looked at Stephen. “I'm sorry, Stephen. You're absolutely right. Irrational anger isn't going to get me anywhere. I do have a friend in Sienna. We are not having an affair, as Joe might be alleging, but Ransom is very, very special to me.”

Gwen told Stephen the background story on Ransom as well as her connection with Adam, and the animosity that existed between the two brothers. She also told him about Carol's infatuation with Ransom, and Joanna, who she suspected was seeing Adam. Those two had seemed particularly cozy the last time she'd seen them in the teachers' lounge, she explained. Gwen assured Stephen that any information from any of these sources was flimsy at best, and more than likely flat-out lies.

An hour later, Gwen, Joe, and their attorneys sat in the judge's chambers. The judge shuffled through a few papers before beginning the proceedings.

“All parties are aware that a continuation has been requested in these proceedings.”

“Yes, your honor, and my client is absolutely and unequivocally against any such continuation occurring. These parties have been separated for months and for at least part of that time, my client's husband was living with another woman.”

“Objection!”

“Calm down, George,” the obviously overworked judge said wearily. He looked at another paper before addressing Gwen. “Mrs. Smith, your husband wants the chance to reconcile. Why should I not grant him the opportunity to salvage this marriage?”

As Stephen had instructed, Gwen left out emotion and stuck to the facts. “It is my desire to grant Mr. Smith's initial request for a divorce, and his acts of adultery give me more than enough grounds to do so. Your honor, there is absolutely no chance that I will change my mind, or my feelings toward this situation. I've already had several months to think about it. Our vows have been irretrievably broken, and I am clear in my decision to end this union.”

“My client denies any such actions,” George said.

“What?”
All of the emotion Gwen had kept in check during her previous answer was poured into this one word.

Stephen placed a hand on Gwen's arm. “My client is positive of this relationship, your honor.”

“She's lying!” Joe yelled.

“You're a liar!” Gwen countered. “And a cheating asshole too!”

“All right, that's enough,” the judge said.

“Your honor, we'd like to present this file as evidence.” Stephen pulled an envelope from his briefcase, and Gwen thanked God that this astute attorney had suggested they hire a private detective. “Pictures that will conclusively show that Mr. Smith was engaged in illicit activities with another woman while married to my client.”

“Your honor,” George wailed, “this evidence was not presented at discovery. I have no idea about these photos, whether they've been doctored, where they were taken, or whether the person in the photos is even my client. I demand that this evidence be tossed out, and the continuation of my client be granted so that I can have a chance to view and counter this evidence.”

The judge took the pictures out of the envelope and slowly sifted through them. He looked at Joe from time to time, as he examined one picture after another, holding up a photo at one point and looking between it and Joe, who sat in bold defiance. After looking at the last one, he gathered up the stack and handed it to Joe's attorney. “George, your motion is denied.”

 

Gwen was emotionally drained and physically tired. She opened the door to her hotel room, threw her purse on the bed, and walked straight to the shower. She undressed, turned the water to as hot as she could stand it, and stepped under the showerhead.

Her tears mingled with the water. It surprised her, these myriad emotions that did battle in her heart. She wasn't expecting to feel the sense of loss that she did, or the sadness. There was no doubt that divorcing Joe was the right thing to do, but for some inexplicable reason, the finality of the judge granting the divorce decree wrought havoc on her psyche. During the drive from the courthouse to her hotel, all of the good times she'd had with Joe began playing in her head, events she hadn't thought of in years. Gwen soaped her body and let the tears flow.

When she stepped out of the shower, her phone was ringing. Knowing she wouldn't get to it in time, Gwen took her time drying off, putting lotion on, and dressing in a baby blue fleece warm-up. She pulled her wet hair back into a simple ponytail and then went to retrieve the message from the phone.

“You have one new message,” the hotel automated service announced.

Gwen pushed the button and immediately recognized Ransom's voice. The tears flowed anew as she heard his succinct message:

“I just want to hear one thing, Butterfly. That it's over, and our time together starts right now.”