Page 48 of The Spotted Cottage By the Sea
“Of course I like wine, but –”
He looked at her and said nothing.
“It’s too much,” Sheila whispered. “They’re taking you for a ride because you’re a celebrity.”
Russell laughed and set the menu down. “It’s okay. I’m used to it.”
She smiled, the mischief returning to her eyes. “Everybody wants something from you, don’t they?”
“Yes.” He paused. He wanted to addEveryone but you, but he couldn’t bring himself to say the words. Instead, he caught the waitress’ eye and told her they’d like to have all the recommended wine pairings.
“So much for a little bit of wine…” Sheila shook her head. “You really are bad with money.”
“You’re looking at it the wrong way,” he said with a grin. “I’m good atspendingmoney.”
Sheila set her menu down. “Was Holly jealous, then? Of your success?”
“No. She wasn’t jealous. It was worse than that.” He took a deep breath. “It made her sad, and that broke my heart. Looking back…man. I wasn’t even that big back then. We were able to move to Minneapolis and live normal lives. Almost normal, whatever that is. She was the one who suggested it – she wanted a break from trying to get into the business, and then we had Lucas. We were close to my parents; it was great. This business…”
He looked around. It was best if no one was close enough to overhear what he was saying. Thankfully, they weren’t. “I don’t want to say anything bad about the people in it, because a lot of them are my friends. But make no mistake, it’s a rat race like anywhere else. It’s competitive. There’s a lot of money involved. People get crazy about money.”
“That I know well,” Sheila said.
“After a few years, people started forgetting who I was. It was wonderful. Then we had Mia and we were happy. At least, I thought we were.”
She stared at him, her eyes calm, her expression neutral.
Russell cleared his throat. “I’m sorry. You don’t want to hear about this.”
“Please!” She waved a hand. “I’ve already used you for my divorce support group. I’m happy to return the favor.”
He leaned forward, resting his arms on the table. “When the kids moved out, I thought we could start traveling or open a little business. She always wanted to have a flower shop.” In some parallel universe, he was cutting roses and making bouquets. He smiled at the thought. “Then Hank came to me with the script.Pictures of a Perfect Marriage. He wanted us to play husband and wife. Said it’d be a comeback. Holly begged me to do it, so we did.”
Sheila winced. “I’m embarrassed to say I haven’t seen it. I heard it was about a bad marriage and…yeah. Couldn’t stomach it for some reason.”
Russell smiled. “No offense taken. It was really Holly’s movie. She shined. She won an Oscar, and the offers started rolling in. She was so happy, and I was happy for her.”
“But then...” Sheila said, raising and eyebrow.
He nodded. “But then.”
Sheila clasped her hands together dramatically. “That was when she told you she was running away with the pool boy?”
If only.
He couldn’t tell her the truth. No one knew why Holly had left him. People assumed he was a terrible husband, like in the movie.
That was easier than the truth, less painful than the fact that during the entire production of the movie, she and Hank were falling in love.
He cleared his throat. “She just didn’t want the life we’d planned together anymore.”
He fell silent, the sound of the other diners filling the space between them. They stared at each other for a moment in the candlelight.
Then she spoke. “I guess that’s what all divorces are. ‘You know that future we planned together? I don’t want that anymore.’”
“Yeah. Exactly.” Their first glasses of wine arrived and he took a sip. It was dry and heavy. “Life is full of surprises, though. I’ve made peace with it.”
There were other surprises, too. Like sitting at a table across from a clever, irreverent woman. A woman who made him laugh, who made him think there was a chance at joy, whose eyes looked so beautiful in the candlelight.
