Make a Wish
Make a Wish: Chapter 2
Chapter two
Thursday came
with rain but Jade didn’t mind. She lived for the rain after all. Jade had had
breakfast with her family and lunch with Cathy and Ry. Cathy and Ry had tied
the knot a couple of years before and were still on their 3-year honeymoon.
Cathy had tried relentlessly to set Jade up with one of Ry’s friends but Jade
hadn’t even agreed to dinner. Now Cathy watched her best friend with narrowed eyes
as she explained why she wouldn’t be joining them for dinner.
“You have a date?”
“Not a date,
car exhibition show with a friend.”
“Friend, huh?
Anyone I know?”
“I don’t think
so”
“Okay. So,
wanna tell me his name at least?”
Jade sighed.
“Drake Arundel”
“How did you
meet?”
“At the
institute.” This from Ry. Then he turned to Jade. “Right?”
Jade nodded.
Cathy turned raised eyebrows at him.
“And you know
this how?”
“Drake” He
said simply. “But I didn’t know he’d been talking about Jade. Though looking
back, I should have guessed. He described her as petite and brilliant...”
Jade smiled, and
then frowned when he added, “…with a look that could make a man feel inferior.”
“That doesn’t
sound much like a compliment.”
“Believe me,
coming from Drake it is. He said it while grinning like an absolute idiot.”
Cathy held up
both hands. “Hold up! I don’t like being excluded. So tell me Cher, what’s he
like? But before that, how do you know him Ry?”
“We go to the
same gym and sometimes catch the game together.” He paused then shrugged. “He’s
a football fan.”
“And that
makes him a good man, of course.” Cathy put in dryly. She noticed that Jade had
been listening closely. “So Cher, tell me. What did you think of him?”
Jade shrugged.
“He’s okay.” Jade stopped but on catching Cathy’s impatient look, she
continued. “He’s in international relations, speaks 6 languages and his mother
heads the seminars I go to.”
Cathy knew of
the seminars of course. Jade had spoken about nothing else nonstop for the past
month.
“And you’re
going on a date?”
“No, I asked
him to join me for the car show at the Nine’s because he’d showed an interest
in them.”
Cathy had
stopped listening at, ‘I asked’.
“You asked?”
“This is the
21st century, Cat. Women do ask men to share their company.”
“But you?”
“It’s just for
one night.”
“Not just any
night, your birthday! He must have really made an impression.”
“Yes. My
birthday. What’s the big deal? Jason also had the same reaction.”
Cathy almost
choked on the glass she’d raised to her lips. “Jason was there?”
“Yeah, with
Brad. My car finally gave out and Brad agreed to give me a ride to and fro as apology for not making the show tonight.”
Jade knew
Cathy was about to blow. Saying that she despised Jason was putting it nicely.
Ry watched the
color rise in Cathy’s cheeks and knew he had to change the topic.
“Sweetheart,
maybe you can tell Jade our good news?”
That did the
trick. Her face softened then and she smiled. “We are done with our
honeymoon, Cher.”
Jade heaved a
sigh of relief and sent a grateful smile to Ry.
“Really? Why?
You still have two and half months left.”
“I have to
start shopping and remodeling one of the guest rooms into a nursery.”
It took Jade a
second. Then she was out of her chair the next one.
“Oh my God! I
am so happy for you both.” She hugged Cathy tightly before moving to Ry.
“You didn’t
tell me you were trying.” She scolded.
“We weren’t.
But when we found out we were both okay with it.”
“How far?”
“3 months.”
“WHAT?”
“I had no
idea. I thought I had a bug.”
“You’re
kidding.”
Cathy shook
her head. “My period’s never been stable and I’m on the pill anyway.” She
shrugged. “My mother was the one who finally suggested I see a gynecologist.”
“Oh my! I’m
gonna be an aunt.” Jade all but danced.
“And
godmother.” Ry added.
“You want me
to?” There were beginnings of tears in her eyes now. “I’m gonna spoil her
rotten!” Jade swore.
“It could be a
boy.” This from Cathy.
“No, it’s a
girl. It became so the moment you named me godmother.”
“Oh! The
Ricardo Curse.” Cathy guessed.
“Hey, Ricardo Gift!”
“There’s a
Ricardo Curse?” Ry saw the look Jade aimed his way and amended. “I mean, gift?”
“We Ricardos
are blessed with the gift of ragazza.
Literally, the gift of girls.”
“I remember it
as ‘Curse of ragazza’” Cathy put in.
“Shows what
you know then, doesn’t it?” Jade replied with a scowl then turned to fully face Ry. “About 800 hundred
years ago, the Ricardos were mostly comprised of men. They lived as they pleased, taking
whatever woman caught their fancy and just being… well, men. It is said that
they angered the goddess with their attitude and she gifted upon them the ragazza. Ever since, only one male child
is born into the Ricardo family every century. That is why the women in my
family are allowed to carry their title unlike most Italian families.”
Ry nodded and
asked, “And you say it isn’t a curse?”
Cathy laughed so
hard she almost choked.
--
Jade
felt like it was prom all over again. She fiddled with her hair a few more
times and decided that the carefully put together look would have to do. She
then removed invisible lint from her outfit and took in the overall effect in
the mirror. It would be a little dressy for the car show but she had bought it
specifically for today and she was going to wear it. It made her look all of
her 25 years and with the hairstyle she’d chosen she knew she looked like a
woman out to entice a man. As she fixed her makeup she wondered what Drake
would think before she caught herself. She blamed Cathy for making her nervous
by calling it a date. It was just two people with a mutual interest in cars spending
the evening together. People did it all the time. She stopped fidgeting when
she heard her doorbell. A glance at the clock showed that he was prompt.
When
she opened the door and Drake caught a look of her he thought he had been
sucker-punched as all the air whooshed out of his lungs. She looked regal. She
was beautiful.
Jade
caught his stunned look and gave a small smile. The kind of smile he was sure
the Amazonians had had when they’d conquered man. It made him snap out of his
thoughts and present her the tulips he’d brought her. He’d forgone the
traditional roses. She hadn’t struck him as that kind of girl.
“You
look amazing.”
Jade
accepted them with a smile and quiet, “Thank you. They’re beautiful.” She then
moved back and invited him in.
He
didn’t know what he had been expecting but somehow the apartment seemed to suit
her. He watched as she lovingly arranged the bouquet in a vase and wished he’d
bought her a dozen more.
“Can
I offer you something to drink?” She asked without turning.
“Water
would be fine, thank you.”
She
left the room then and returned briefly with a glass. “Thank you. You have a
nice place. It suits you.”
Because
she was nervous and needed to ease the tension, she said, “You mean it’s
small?”
“No,
I meant elegant.”
“Oh!
Thank you.”
She took the empty glass from him. Silence
fell.
“Shall
we?”
“Yes,
I’ll just get my shrug.”
He
helped her into it and they went out. His car was a classic Mercedes Benz. She
loved it. Low, fast and dangerous. Like its owner? she wondered.
At the show…
“Jade!”
She
turned to see Jeannie and Johnny, who seemed to be on good terms again, waving her
over. Jade waved back and together with Drake, walked over to where they were.
She kissed both Jeannie and Johnny and introduced Drake.
“Oh
so this is Mr. Hybrid!” Johnny all but cooed. Johnny, who was actually in a
serious relationship with an English journalist, loved to flirt with every good-looking
straight man he met. He simply took pleasure in making them uncomfortable.
“Nice
to meet you both.” Drake said as he shook them both. “I understand I have you
both to thank for my impromptu invitation. I’m sorry for any inconveniences I
might have caused.”
“Oh
it’s alright! It was our pleasure.” Jeannie smiled.
The
host got on stage and Johnny gestured. “Shall we be seated? I put us all in the
same box.” Just
as they were seated, the lights were dimmed and the show began.
The
whole night Jade watched Drake and how he interacted with her friends,
especially Johnny. They bonded over their mutual dislike for "big-for-nothing" cars. It was
refreshing to see how Drake hadn’t judged Johnny for his sexual orientation. It
was clear that he had impressed both her friends.
Towards
the end of the show, a middle-aged woman in a yellow, glittery dress with tacky
fur jacket, bright red lipstick and feathers in her hair came over to where
they were examining another car to flirt with Johnny. Johnny had flirted back
and cracked the rest of the party up with his veiled jabs at her outfit. When
she’d slid her finger down his chest and suggested they head out, Johnny had
pointed out how his boyfriend would have a problem with that. She’d tensed,
pursed her lips and stormed off, leaving Johnny in fits! Later they all agreed
that with her lips pursed, she looked like a rubber duck.
--
Back
in the car, Jade and Drake spoke about a million things at once. He was smart and
funny, she found. It was almost a shame that the night was coming to an end. She’d been musing
and hadn’t noticed where they were headed until they were parked in front of
Maxim’s. Bewildered she turned to Drake.
“Dinner’s
on me. It’s the least I can do. Consider it a thank you and happy birthday all
wrapped in one.”
She
was thanking him before she realized that he’d known it was her birthday. She
asked how and found out that when he’d called to Ry, he’d spoken to Cathy as
well and they’d told him it was her birthday. And that this was her favorite
restaurant, he added to himself.
Jade
wished a mini earthquake could occur just beneath her feet and bury her. She
could just imagine Cathy with her not-so-subtle hints and 21 questions.
“I’m
so sorry...” She started.
“Why?”
“For
Cathy and maybe Ry too. They’re really nice once you get to know them.” Then
added quietly in Italian, “ That’s if I don’t kill them beforehand of course!”
Drake
hadn’t missed it though and as they got out of the car, he asked, “Do you
usually contemplate murder so easily?” He was laughing at her, she knew.
“You
can laugh all you want but hang around those two long enough and you’ll be
asking for ammo.”
He
did laugh out loud at that. “I’ll keep that in mind.” Then he added, “You love
them.” It wasn’t a question
She
smiled. “Against better judgment.” Her skimpy shrug wasn’t holding out against
the cold. “Can we go in now?”
He
noticed the goose pimples. “Of course.”
The
maître d’ showed them to their table. Drake was a gentleman. He held the door
open for her, took her shrug and even helped her with her chair. The
waiter took their drink order and left.
“So
what exactly do you do when you’re not attending one of my mother’s
brainwashing lectures?”
“Don’t
ask. You’ll regret it once I get started.”
“Try
me.”
“Well,
I don’t do anything yet.”
“Okay.
Can I ask why?”
Jade
fiddled with the stem of her champagne flute before she answered.
“Everyone
knows what they want to do with their lives by college at least, but I didn’t.
So I went to university and studied Biology for 3 years while taking Chemistry
as a minor. Then I went on to do a Masters in Biomedical Engineering. I got my
PhD before I realized that I wasn’t really moving forward so now I’ve decided
to get a job at the RCS. I have an interview on Tuesday.”
“Whoa!
I’m seriously impressed here. So it’s Doctor
LeGrande then.”
She
shrugged. “I love learning. How about you?”
“Not
nearly as interesting. I knew I wanted to be in International Relations by
college as you said. I worked for it. Tipped the odds in my favor by taking
French and Japanese lessons. Graduated and interned. Worked briefly. Learned
Spanish, Italian, Mandarin and Arabic as well. Traveled a lot. Decided I
didn’t like it as much as I thought I would. Got a Master’s in Business and
Finance. Became a consultant for international companies and well, here we are
now.”
“Smart.”
“I
call it playing up my strengths. It’s a competitive field.”
“And
only the strong survive?”
He
smiled. “Something like that.”
“Why Business and Finance?”
“Why not?”
“Good answer.”
“Good answer.”
The
waiter brought their drinks and took their order.
“So what do you want to do at the RCS? Finally
figure it out?”
Jade
began to passionately talk about her plans and ideas, gesturing expressively
with her hands and doesn’t even notice that she had slipped into French.
She
caught herself and looked away. “Sorry, I get like that. Usually. I warned you
not to ask.”
“It’s
not a problem. I enjoy seeing you that way.” But he knew she was about to shut
him out again. So he added.
“Do
you always speak in French when excited and in Italian when angry?”
She
looked at him. “Excuse me?”
“Well,
this is the second time I’ve heard you slip into French while talking about
your work and earlier while you were contemplating murder you mumbled in
Italian.”
“Oh!
Really? Huh! I never noticed. Sometimes I don’t even notice the slip and my
friends are so used to it that they don’t comment on it anymore.”
“Where
did you learn to speak?”
“At
home.” At his quizzical look, she continued, “My father is French and my mother
is Italian.”
“Really?
Interesting mix.”
Smiling,
“You have no idea. My father says he took one look at those hazel eyes and he
was adonné. Says he knew from that
moment on that his life would never be the same again but first the war.”
“War?”
“Yeah,
he had to convince Mama that an Italian prince would bore her to death in two
months.” Drake looked lost. “Mother was engaged when they met.”
He
nodded then smiled. “ He won.”
“Yes,
that he did.” Jade thought back to the portrait of her mother that hung in her
father’s study. “So did she.”
“I’ll
bet.”
“Are
you also a hybrid?”
“Yes.
Paul Walker and Apollo.”
Laughing,
she said, “Hey, it got you in the show.”
“True.
But no, at the risk of sounding like a total snob, I’m purely bred.”
“Snob!”
“I
warned you.”
She
grinned. “Any siblings?”
“None.”
“Lucky!
I have a pesky little brother.”
“Is
there any other kind?” When she laughed, he added, “When I was younger I wished
I had one. Or an older one. Just someone to take my mother’s attention off me
for a while.”
“I
could lend you mine anytime.”
“I’ll hold you to that.”
They
both smiled.
When
silence fell this time, it was comfortable. They ate, each lost in their own
thoughts.
They
skipped dessert for a walk instead. Drake offered her his jacket and because
she really wanted to walk, she accepted.
“I
think I’ve told you once already, your mama raised you right.”
“That
she did.”
“Did
you grow up around here?”
“I’ve
lived here my whole life.”
“And
your dad?”
“He
left when I was young.”
When
Jade didn’t immediately reply with the clichéd “I’m sorry”, he continued, “He
and my mom got married early because she’d been pregnant with me. But my dad
was restless. He wanted to travel and a family was like an anchor to him. He
tried to stay but in the end, he bolted leaving Mother to bring me up alone. I
was four then.” He kicked at a pebble on the path they were on.
Jade
linked her arm with his and said, “It’s a shame. He missed out on seeing you
grow into a fine man.”
“I
guess so. I can barely remember what he looks like.”
“Have
you ever thought about searching for him?”
“I
have. But then I decided against it. If he wanted to find us, he would have by
now.”
“I
can understand that.”
They
walked in companionable silence after that until they reached a water fountain.
And because he felt they both needed it, when they got close enough, he spun
her round and around then caught her in his arms, waltz-style. Jade squealed
and laughed. Drake
watched the wind blow the hair around her face. She was magnificent. He
wondered what she would do if he kissed her. He hadn’t fully had the thought when
his hand was on her cheek. Somehow his brain had taken control of the
situation. He came closer and made his intentions clear. When she didn’t jerk
back or stop him, he kissed her.
Somehow
he’d known that waiting to kiss her at her door wouldn’t work. She would have
expected it and in her regal way, deflected it. But this, catching her by
surprise, was totally worth it.
Reluctantly
he drew back, held her hand and started walking back towards the car park. He
held the door open for her and went round to his side. He slipped in and
started the engine. He glanced at Jade. She hadn’t said a word since the kiss
and he really needed her to so he could gauge how bad, if any, the damage was.
A quiet Jade was foreign and that worried him.
Jade’s
brain had shut off the moment his lips had touched hers. She knew she should
stop him but she couldn’t remember why. And then he’d broken off and held her
hand, leading her to the car. It wasn’t till they were driving off that she
regained her power of speech.
“That
was nice.” Wow! She was going to shut up now. Thankfully Drake didn’t reply, simply
watched her. When
pulled up in front of her building, she quickly got out before he could help
with her door.
“You
don’t have to get out.” She said, and then leaned against the car to give him
her hand. “Thank you very much for dinner. I had an amazing time.”
He
looked from the outstretched hand to her face before taking it and lightly
running his lips over it. “You’re welcome. We should do this again.” Then
added, “Soon.” If he hadn’t been watching her face, he would have missed the
desire that flashed in her eyes and if he hadn’t been holding her hand, he
wouldn’t have felt her tremble.
Jade
saw the knowledge in his smile. Damn him, he knew he affected her. She took
back her hand, smiled warily at him and walked into her apartment. She wouldn’t
give him the pleasure of looking back. She was inside when she heard his engine
roar to life. She decided to take a quick look out her window, and as he drove
off, she could have sworn she heard his laughter.
--
Jade’s
car was still at the repairs the next day so Cathy volunteered to drive her.
She knew Cathy had only done so to quiz her and so she wouldn’t be in the same
vicinity as ‘that jerk'. Time hadn't made Cathy any fonder of Jason.
As
she drove, they made plans for the coming baby shopping spree. Cathy knew she
had promised Ry to keep silent but Jade wasn’t coming forth...
“So,
how was the date?” She finally asked.
Jade
scowled. She’d known this was coming. “I told you it wasn’t a date.”
Cathy
rolled her eyes. “Yeah right. There was dinner?”
“Yes
but...”
“Roses?”
“Tulips.”
“He’s
creative, even better. You had a great time?”
“Well
yes, but...”
On
impulse, Cathy added, “And there was a goodnight kiss too, I suppose.”
Turning
back to the road she almost missed Jade’s blush. Jade didn’t blush.
“Cher?”
A
car zoomed past. “Keep your eyes on the road please”
“Oh,
I will.” Without a glance at her rear-view mirror, Cathy pulled up at the curb,
“Spill!!”
“Hey,
you can’t park here...”
“I
just did. Spill, Jade.”
Jade
sighed. Cathy hardly ever called her by her actual name so that when she did,
Jade took notice.
“Well,
we had dinner...”
“…
at Maxim’s, yes, go on.”
“I
should have known he’d had help with that.” At Cathy’s unrepentant smile she
continued. “Yeah well, we wined and dined. We talked too. Sensible
conversations you know?” She thought of the rubber duck and grinned. “Well
mostly.”
As
she went on describing the evening, she relaxed and let the excitement she’d
felt then shine through.
“We
went for a walk outside Maxim’s. I think we were discussing his childhood when
he pulled in and kissed me.” She blushed again. “We hardly spoke after that.
When we got to my door, I thanked him and said good night. Then he kissed my
hand and said we should do this again sometime.”
Cathy
watched as Jade practically beamed with joy. She’d had a good feeling about
Drake after speaking to him but this was more than she’d expected after the
first date. And it was for that same reason that she knew what Jade would say
even before she did.
“It
sounds like you had a wonderful evening with an attractive and interesting guy
who didn’t bore you to death before the main dish was served.” Cathy studied
her nails for a while before adding. “You’re never going out with him again,
are you?”
Jade
shook her head.
“I
thought so.” Cathy turned on the car and continued driving. She also started
the mental countdown from ten. She was on 3 when Jade spoke.
“I
have two more seminars, a job interview and a wedding to attend. I don’t have
time for this now.”
“Of
course, you don’t.”
“Cathy…”
“What?”
“You
know what!”
“What
do you want from me, Jade? “
“Not
sarcasm.”
“Sarcasm.
Hah! Listen Jade; I have watched you push away every man within a mile of you
ever since that jerk of a guy hurt you. First you ran off to Venice for two
months then you buried yourself in your studies while I watched. At first I
thought it was good for you. At least you’d stopped running, I thought. But you
haven’t. You’re still running just in a different way now. You have three
degrees to your name at 25. I am so proud of your accomplishments that I brag
about it to everyone who’ll listen and even those who won’t. But that doesn’t
change the fact that you’re hiding yourself away behind it all.”
Jade
was thoughtful for a while. “You’ve had that trapped within you for a while
now, haven’t you?”
“A
while.” Cathy agreed.
“How’s
my god-daughter?”
“Kicking
like a baller.”
“I’m
sorry. I didn’t know.”
Cathy
sighed. “I know, Cher. And that probably wasn’t the nicest way to put it.”
“No,
it wasn’t. But it was the most effective.” Jade put her hand over her friend’s,
“I love you, Cat!”
“I
love you too, Cher!”
That
night as Jade packed for the wedding she thought long and hard about what Cathy
had said. She was right of course. Cathy tended to be at times like this. But
Jade was okay with the way she was. She was only sorry she had made Cathy worry.
She thought about Drake and how much fun he’d been. Then she thought about the
knowing glint in his eyes when he’d kissed her hand. A man like Drake was dangerous to her well-being. So she’d try to be more open with someone else. After the
seminars, wedding and interview. Someone safe. The accountant she’d met at
Cathy and Ry’s wedding, for instance. He was always insisting they have dinner.
Maybe when she was settled she’d accept the invitation. Yes, she thought. He
was safe. And boring came another thought but Jade put that thought aside as
part of her exhaustion. She
lay down to sleep at midnight. At 2am she decided to stop pretending she was
asleep and do something productive. She started on a paper she was working on.
20 minutes later, she switched on the TV and watched reruns of ‘The Nanny’ till
the sun came up. At 6 am, she got out of bed, showered and dressed. At 8 am she
was at the airport, tired and sleep deprived. For the millionth time she cursed
Drake and whatever impulse had made her invite him to the car show. She would
catch some sleep on the plane, she consoled herself. She thought she heard his
laugh in her head just as she had when he’d driven away hours before.
As
she boarded the plane she resolved never to see Drake Arundel again.
--
- Adonné - Addicted (French)
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