Chapter Thirty-Five
Dominic
I hadn’t seen Candice since yesterday morning, but we’d spent a lot of time texting one another so at least I knew that she was okay. She was spending a lot of time with Lily and trying to sort out a plan for her tuition. I was hoping that life would go back to normal soon and that stress wouldn’t be a part of our lives anymore. There’d been more than enough of that lately. I missed the motel and the chocolate chip muffins. I missed the time we had shut ourselves away from the world. But now it was time to face everyone, and to do it together. I also had to make sure that Derek and Lionel hadn’t done any permanent damage to my career. I was going to do everything in my power to give myself the chance I deserved, but I still had no idea where I stood.
I was surprised to receive a message from Candice’s mother asking if I could meet her that day. I only had morning classes so promised I would meet her in town for lunch. She asked me not to say anything to Candice, which I thought was strange, but I respected her wishes and made my way as soon as my last class was over. I felt a little nervous, and I couldn’t possibly figure out what she was going to say. It was only when I got to the café that I realized it might not be Marian after all, but Lionel who had tricked me into meeting him. My heart pounded in my chest as I made my way inside, and I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw Marian sitting alone in the corner.
Again, I was taken aback at how much Candice looked like her now. I could easily see what Candice was going to look like when she was older. I’d always liked Marian. At least, I liked her when she wasn’t around Lionel. He’d always bought out a side to her that made me a little sad. He took away her spark. Candice used to tell me that her mother shone the brightest light in her life, but that her light was starting to dim. I remember being so surprised that someone her age could speak so poetically. I had teased her about it then, but I had been secretly impressed. I made a mental note to remind her of that time when I saw her again. I wondered if she would remember.
Marian smiled when she saw me. I was just about to stick my hand out to greet her, but she stood up and enveloped me in a big hug.
“Thanks for meeting me, Dominic. I know how busy you are since you are back at school now.”
“I’m never too busy for you,” I said. I hoped she didn’t think I was just trying to charm her. The words came out a little too smooth, and I shook my head and laughed. “I mean, you’re Candice’s mom. I’d do anything for her,” I said.
She smiled. “That’s always good to hear. Come on, let’s order some lunch and chat for a little bit.”
I opened the menu and chose the first thing that I saw. I wasn’t really hungry, nor was I in the mood to spend too long on a decision. Then, when the waiter walked away, I turned back to Marian.
“Thank you again for coming to my rescue that day at the jail. I’m sure the last thing you wanted was to visit your daughter’s boyfriend in jail. I can’t imagine how horrible that must’ve been for you.”
She laughed. “Oh, trust me, Dominic, I have handled worse things in life,” she said. “And anyway, I might have been coming to get you out of jail, but at least I knew you weren’t in the wrong. I was visiting an innocent man.”
“I appreciate it. I’ve had so many bad things said about me lately, that hearing you say this means the world. Also, you’re the one person that I’d like to impress. You mean everything to Candice.”
“And she means everything to me. She’s a good girl. The best daughter I could ask for. I don’t think I’ve done nearly enough for her over the years.”
I shook my head. “Are you kidding me? You’ve done a lot for her. You’ve done everything for her.”
“I’ve been feeling so bad, Dominic. I’ve let her down big time.”
“You haven’t. Honestly. She loves you, and she knows that you’ve done all that you can for her. Lionel . . . well, no disrespect to your husband, but he’s been a tough person to live with for her. If it wasn’t for you, I’m not sure what she would’ve done.”
She sighed. “Thank you for saying that. And no disrespect taken. In fact, that’s one of the reasons I wanted to talk to you today. I have big news. I’ve decided to leave Lionel.”
“Leave him?” I asked. The news took me completely by surprise. I didn’t know what to expect from this meeting, but the last thing I expected to was to hear that she would be leaving Lionel. I never thought she would dare do something like that. “Are you serious? Are you divorcing him?”
She nodded. “I am.”
“Oh wow. That is big news. What happened?”
“Look, let’s be honest: it’s been a long time coming. I should’ve done this ages ago. I guess I have you and Candice to thank for me finally taking the plunge. The way he treated you and Candice was the last straw. I mean, he was willing to take her out of school just to prove a point. Who does that? To his own daughter. I was so shocked. And when I confronted him he said I had no say in the matter. I suppose I shouldn’t have been shocked. But still, I couldn’t believe he would go that far.”
“So you left him?”
“Yeah. I looked at the way you treated Candice. The way you would do anything for her, but the way you still let her be her own person. It really made me think about things that I have been ignoring for too long. I haven’t been myself for many years, you know. I thought it was too late for me. I thought I’d be too scared to start again. But I’m not. Quite the opposite, actually. I’m excited to finally do something for myself. I still have the rest of my life to live, and I’m going to make sure I finally do things right.”
The waiter came back with our food and placed the plates in front of us. I waited for him to leave before speaking again. When I looked back at Marian, I saw some tears falling down her face.
“Ah, Marian. I’m so proud of you. I think you’re doing the right thing,” I said. I told her what Candice had said when we were eleven about her losing her spark.
She smiled. “She always had a way with words that girl. And I’ve only lost my spark more and more over the years. Speaking of Candice, I would prefer if you didn’t say anything to her.”
I was surprised. I thought if she was telling me that she would’ve told Candice.
“I’m going to tell her,” she said. “But I want it to come from me. Do you think she’s going to be okay? I know she and her father have problems, but he’s still her father, after all.”
I smiled. “Oh, if there’s one thing I’m sure about, it’s that the only thing Candice wants is to see you happy. Whatever that means. If you’re happy, she’s happy. She’ll be proud of you. I know that for a fact. Thanks for telling me, Marian. It means a lot.”
“Well, I just wanted to tell you so that you can be there for Candice once I tell her. And, I really wanted to say how sorry I am for everything. I’ve never quite forgiven myself for what happened all those years ago. And to watch it happen all over again has been just devastating. I felt awful.”
I shook my head. “Don’t feel bad. But, isn’t it amazing that we found each other again after all this time. And without planning to either.”
Marian smiled. “It’s amazing.”
We sat for a while, eating sandwiches and talking about old times. It was nice to see this side of Marian, and to get to know her as an adult. There was so much I didn’t know about her, and so much of her personality that had been hidden from the world. I knew she was in for some difficult times, but she seemed stronger and more confident now that she had finally stood up for herself. When we stood up to leave, I gave her a big hug.
“I can’t wait for us all to be family,” I said.
She looked at me in surprise. I was basically saying that I would one day marry Candice, and even the words surprised me. I hadn’t even been with her for that long. And yet, as I said them, I knew that it was going to happen. I didn’t want to be with anyone else.
“I hope so,” Marian said and hugged me again.
I thanked her again for everything, wished her luck, and promised her that I wouldn’t say anything to Candice. Then I hopped onto my bike and made my way to see my father. The two of us had been strange around one another ever since I had told him that I had met up with Candice again. If Marian could find it in her heart to be strong and let us be together, then I didn’t see why my father couldn’t either.
“Hey, Pop,” I said.
He was outside his house, working on his bike. He looked up at me and smiled.
“Dominic, good to see you. Keeping out of trouble I hope?”
I laughed. “I’m out of trouble. No more jail time for me. Listen, do you mind if we talk quickly.”
“Sure, what’s the matter?” he said. He stood up and wiped his hands on his overalls. “Want to go inside?”
I shook my head. “Nah, we can talk here. I have to get back anyway. I just wanted to talk to you about Candice.”
“What’s happened?”
“Nothing has happened. I just need you to know that I didn’t do all of this for no reason. I love Candice. I love her so much. And if you don’t want to lose me, then you are going to need to accept her too. I need us to be a family. And, I know you don’t like her father, but I need you to forget about that. I need you to be strong for us. Please. We don’t want to lose you.”
My father sighed. Then he nodded. “Of course, I’d rather you had nothing to do with that family. But I do realize that Candice is not her father. And, even though it might not seem like it sometimes, I do actually like her a lot. She’s a nice girl, and I can see why you feel so strongly for her. But it’s not going to be easy.”
“I know,” I said. “All I’m asking is for you to try.”
“I’ll try.”
We shook hands, and then, just as I was about to leave, I leaned in and gave him a hug. We weren’t the hugging sort, my father and I, so it felt strange. But it also felt good. I waved him goodbye and rode off, and I could see him smiling as I left. I couldn’t ask much more from him but that. I knew how hard this was for him and I knew how deep the hate ran between him and Lionel.