The Face In The Mirror (15 page)

We were enjoying the
Fall Harvest Meal
, the restaurants’ special that day.
Pork chops, fried corn, green beans and potatoes, butternut squash and
apples… and yes, apple pie à la mode for dessert. It was heavenly.

While we ate, Mitchell grew serious. “I want to throw some ideas on the
table.”
“Sure,” I told him, and waited, anxiously, to see what he wanted me to
know.
“There are several things. I’ll start with the one I feel is most important, so
here goes. Where are we going to live?”
“I guess we have three choices,” I laughed. “You’ve obviously been
thinking about this or it wouldn’t have been the first thing you wanted to
discuss.”
“I have no emotional ties to my place at all. It’s just walls, windows, and
doors. It’s a house, Renie - it’s never been a home. I bought it a few years ago,
but there was always something missing - you. We can sell it and invest in
Convenient Cuisine.”
“And?” I asked anxiously.
“Renie, I love the condo at the beach…”
“Me too!” I interrupted. “I feel like we found each other there. I mean,
well, you know. And we can use Granny’s house for the business. I’ve been
thinking, too. I just can’t even imagine the business anywhere but Granny’s.
She’s who helped me learn to love cooking, so having it there would be like
sharing it with her. I just pray that zoning and all that will allow it.”
“I can look into that. Its’ kind of what I do,” he laughed. “I think we can
make the front bedroom into a bigger office than what you’re using now. I’ll
move my office from the warehouse to Granny’s too, if that’s OK. It isn’t that
far away. That way we can go back and forth from the beach together. So it’s
settled? We’ll live at the beach?”
“Yes, but we’ll keep my bedroom upstairs at Granny’s for just in case…”
“Just in case you want me to make wild crazy love to you in the middle of
the day?”
I looked up and saw that face. I saw the sexy smirk and that dimple that
seemed to taunt and tease me every time he smiled. “Well, there is
that
,” I said
with a grin. “I was thinking more about late night and in-town events.”
“The thing is, before moving into the condo, we need to paint and
redecorate so it looks like our place, not Mom’s. What’s next?” I asked.
“When are you gonna give notice?”
“Notice?” I asked.
“Yeah, quit that job that you don’t love and focus on what you want to do.
The one you
will
love.”
I didn’t say anything. My brain was on full-tilt ‘what the hell do I do?’
mode. I’d never even let the thought cross my mind before. I was trying to
process all the thoughts racing through my head.
“I see those wheels turning,” he chuckled.
“I just never thought of it before.”
“Well, I guess now you need to. You won’t be able to do both. There’s a
lot ahead of us and I know you. You need to have a plan,” he replied. He
brought my hand to his lips, nibbling on my fingers as he did.
“Wait! I changed my mind!” I said excitedly. “I think we need to change
the name of the business. Convenient Cuisine at Granny Ella’s!”
“Convenient Cuisine
and
Breakfast Café at Granny Ella’s I love that!” he
laughed.

As we headed back to Gatlinburg, I glanced at the clock on the dash and
saw it was 4:22. I pulled my phone from my bag and dialed.
“Hey Maureen, its Renee.”
“How are you feeling?” she asked, politely.
“So much better that I can’t even express it. I’m in the mountains and the
altitude must have been just what my attitude needed. I’ve made some pretty
important decisions about my future and I need to tell you that I am giving
notice. I’ll type up a formal resignation, and I’ll work around whatever notice
you need.”
“Wow,” she replied, somewhat stunned. “I certainly didn’t see that
coming.”
“Neither did I!” I told her before she could say anything else. “I’ll tell you
about it when I come in Monday.”
After I hung up, Mitchell was watching me with a big grin. “What can I
say? You make me impulsive!”

The next morning when we woke I told Mitchell I was ready to head home.
The road ahead excited me. Not the blacktop - the road we would travel
together. As we drove, I realized that we’d never finished talking about moving
and the business.

“Did we talk about everything you wanted to yesterday? I just thought that
we got off track with the condo and the business. Was that it?”
“There was one other thing,” he said. “How do you want to handle us
being married?”
“What do you mean?” I asked, confused, and then I realized what he
meant.
“I want to shout it to the world! I want everyone to know that I am Mrs.
Mitchell Donovan!”
“Party?”
“You know that Midge and your mom will
never
let us get by without one,”
I said, and then added, “Small, just something small.”
“Your dad?” he asked. I felt my eyes roll back in my head and then felt the
devil crawl in my body and take over my tongue.
“I’m sure there will be an invitation to the baby thing when we get back. I’ll
just RSVP for two and we’ll show up together. I’ll introduce you to everyone as
my husband and we’ll steal the show!” I shouted, followed by a wicked laugh
that made Mitchell laugh too.
“Your dad and Derek - upstaged! Oh, Renie, I can see their faces now,”
and we roared with laughter.

We talked – no, I talked, and talked, and talked about all that had happened
in our lives in such a short time. I felt certain that Mitchell was thinking,
‘where’s the duct tape?’ to shut me up. But I was too excited to be quiet. My
heart and my head were just so full! I felt incredibly happy for the first time in
months… no, no, no… years! And every time I paused and looked at him, he
was smiling.

“Where are we sleeping tonight?” I asked, as we got closer.
“My place, if you don’t mind. I called Mom to go tidy up a bit, but I have
some stuff at the house that I need to grab so I can run into work in the
morning. I need to check in and see how things are going. I don’t have to stay
long. I just need to go in,” he explained.

When we got to Mitchell’s house, Alecia had not only tidied up, she’d left
fresh flowers on the table with a note telling us that dinner was in the fridge
and just needed to be heated when we were ready. I noticed a picture from our
first wedding sitting on the TV stand. It was a different pose than the one we’d
discovered at Mom’s. The picture was Mitchell and I twelve years earlier,
looking like the happiest couple who’d ever lived. I turned to look at him, and
as though he could read my mind, he said, “Mom must have brought it.”

I’d been there with him before, but they were quick dashes in to get
something. This time, I wandered around as Mitchell heated up the meal Alecia
had left. I saw pieces of our past here and there, but mostly… I saw MAN
everywhere I looked. He came up behind me and put his hands on my
shoulders, turning me to face him.

“Its just stuff. There’s not much here I can’t live without. The thing I
couldn’t live without was never here, so I didn’t hang out here much. I ate,
slept, showered and left. The office and the warehouse are loud and busy - this
place is quiet and lonely. That’s all about to change.”

The beep of the microwave sent us toward the kitchen. “I’m ready to make
a routine that works for both of us, and I’ll hope our routine involves as many
minutes in a day together as possible.”

Saturday morning, I opened my eyes to find an empty bed. I immediately
felt disappointed, hoping he hadn’t run to work without me, and then I smelled
deliciousness - first, coffee, and then bacon – heaven to my senses.

I jumped from the bed and went to the closet. Grabbing one of his
Donovan’s Electric t-shirts, I pulled it over my head. I couldn’t find my toiletry
bag, so I ran in the bathroom and put toothpaste on my finger. I didn’t want
morning dragon breath, because all I could think about was kissing that man! A
quick tousle of my hair with my fingers and I headed to the kitchen.

He was standing at the stove, and turned when he heard me. “Wow,” he
said, as I stood there in his t-shirt and my panties. He pulled me into his arms,
kissed me and whispered in my ear, “Your shirt’s on backwards. Donovan’s
goes in the front, George goes on the back,” he said, referring to the cartoon
drawing of George Carlin that went with the quote, “
Electricity is really just
organized lighting.
”

“I was in a hurry,” I said and pulled my arms out of the sleeves to turn the
shirt around.
Mitchell had coffee for me but quickly set it down to cup my breasts with
warm hands. Gently caressing, he kissed each one before he pulled the shirt
down. “I think I’m gonna like this.”
“Me too,” I said when I finally started breathing again.
He handed me the coffee and I sipped, and knew that he’d given Alecia a
grocery list because there was my favorite creamer sitting on the counter.
“I just have to go in for a little while. You can stay here, or…”
“No,” I interrupted, “I’m not ready for you to leave me yet. I’ll go with
you.”
“OK, and then we’ll go to Granny’s.”

I slipped a bra under the t-shirt and pulled the last pair of jeans from the
bag I’d packed. We loaded the truck with clothes for Mitchell for the rest of the
weekend and work on Monday and then headed to the warehouse.

“Really, I just need a few minutes.” He came to my side and when I
stepped out of the truck, he put his arm around me as we walked into the
warehouse. There were several guys there, gawking as we entered, and I heard a
faint wolf-whistle from somewhere in the back.

“Gentleman!” Mitchell barked, but I saw the corners of his mouth turn up
in a smile. They all stopped and waited.
“Inappropriate behavior toward my wife won’t be tolerated. Renie, this is
half my crew – the A team,” he said and started telling me who’s who.
A sandy-haired hulk of a guy stepped forward, extending his hand. He said
one word. “Wife?”
“Renie, this is Dave Moore, my right hand.”
“Renie,” he repeated, and Mitchell chuckled.
“Yes, Dave. That Renie.”
“And I didn’t have to change my name!” I chirped with a giggle as Mitchell
took my hand and led me away.
“She sure looks better in that Donovan’s t-shirt than any of us do,” one of
the guys, laughed.
“Yes,” Mitchell said, stopping to look at me. “Yes, she does.”

He grabbed what he needed and we were on our way. At Granny’s, I sorted
through the mail, quickly looking for the invitation to the christening. When I
found it, I picked up the phone and dialed my brother. It seemed easier to talk
to him than my dad, and I damn skippy wasn’t going to call Roxanne.

No one’s heard from you. What in the hell is going on with you?”
“Just Mom stuff. I went out of town for a few days, needed some time -
just got back last night. Going through all of Mom’s things brings on such
waves of emotion, so soon after Granny, I just needed some time,” I said again.
“Anyway, I’m calling to confirm that we’ll be there Sunday. Sorry I’m tardy
replying.”
“We?”
I looked up and Mitchell was watching me. “Yes, we. I haven’t talked to
Dad yet, so don’t say anything until I do.”
“Don’t tell him you’re bringing someone with you? Why would he care?”
Precisely why I don’t care to tell him.
“Because my guest is my husband,” I said
and Mitchell blew me a kiss, and then mouthed the words, ‘I love you’.
“Your what?” Derek asked in a stunned voice.
“You heard me. My husband.”
“I’m shocked by this news.”
“You shouldn’t be. I never stopped loving him. I never should have left
him. Mitchell and I eloped this week.”
“Mitchell?”
“Yes, Mitchell. He’s been the only one for me since I was fifteen. I was just
stupid. No, I was too selfish to know what I walked away from. He has been
with me through everything since the funeral.”
“I knew that all along, Renee. We’ll have a reception…”
“No,” I interrupted. “We appreciate the thought, but we just really want to
get back to our life together. We have a lot of catching up to do.”
“Well, you know the big guy will never let you two get by without a
celebration of some kind. The Ridgeways always have celebration shindigs,” he
laughed.
“We’ll see. I gotta go. We’ll see you on Sunday.”
“I’m happy for you two. I love you Renee.”
“You, too.”
After I hung up, Mitchell motioned for me to join him on the sofa where
he’d just sat down.
“I gotta call my dad.”
“You can sit here with me while you do.”
“I might need to pace.” I blew out a breath. “As happy as I am, I know
he’ll say something to piss me off.”
“You’ll be fine,” he said, patting the sofa beside him. “Join me.”
I sat down, and he slipped his arm around me, drawing me closer. I just sat
there a minute, and then finally, I dialed my dad’s personal line.
“Well hello, my dear.”
“Hey, Dad.”
“Am I going to see you on Sunday?”
“How could I miss such a special event?” I said, rolling my eyes, a gesture
that had Mitchell doubled over to keep from laughing out loud.
My dad went on and on about the baby and Roxanne until I thought I
would puke. Finally, he took a breath, giving me the opening to say what I
wanted to say. I’d said the words in my mind a dozen times while he was
rambling.
“Dad, I’m bringing Mitchell, my husband.”
Silence on the other end, and I wondered if he was processing my news, or
if he was in shock.
“Husband?”
“Yes. We’ve been seeing each other since the funeral. I can’t speak for
Mitchell, but I realized what a huge mistake I’d made. We never should have
divorced. No one in my life has ever made me feel what I feel with him. I’m
happy and proud to be his wife again. We’ll see you on Sunday,” I said and
hung up. I wasn’t going to give him the opportunity to say anything that might
piss me off.
“OK, now Midge...”

On Sunday morning, we arrived at the First Methodist Church at 10:50.
Mitchell looked so handsome in the blue suit he’d chosen. I swear he could be
a suit model. I don’t know what it was about seeing that body in a suit, but I
had quivers in places all over my body!