Perfect Harmony

by Cee, DW

  “Do you regret agreeing with that conniving half-sister of yours?”

  “No. I have Ali, Mom. Regardless of what Ben says, she’s my daughter. I will proudly claim her as mine. Now I get to love her, watch her grow up, do mother-daughter activities with her, and never have to hide the fact that I’m her mother. In the end, Melody did me a favor. I don’t appear to have much luck with men and love, but I hit the super jackpot in the child and love department.” Thinking about my daughter made me happy. This was about the only thing that made me smile.

  “You did win the lotto with Ali. Not to mention how much she loves you. I think that little one always knew you were her true mother. She never hesitated with you. The bond was immediate and impenetrable. Not even her father can break through your closeness. No matter how much it might gall Ben, I don’t think he’ll do anything to harm his little girl. He loves her deeply.”

  “I agree. Ben’s a good father. He loves Ali the same way I love Ali. We didn’t go about it in a natural way, but we have a child together. We’ll figure out how to deal with one another. This is a new type of relationship for us. There will be an adjustment period, but we’ll work it out. We both love our daughter.”

  “Does it make you feel weird to acknowledge Ali as yours and Ben’s baby?”

  I had to stop and think about my answer. Was it weird? For some reason, it didn’t feel odd to me at all. Maybe I was the weird one. Did I want to admit to my mother that a small part of me received masochistic joy knowing Ben was my child’s father? That was probably better left unspoken.

  “I’ve had two years to accept Ben as the father. I’m fine with the acknowledgment. It’s Ben who has to get over his shock. Once he recognizes me as the mother of his child, we’ll have a civil relationship.”

  “When will you start the move? Will Eli and Cecily be all right with you purchasing the house?”

  “I need to call them first thing in the morning and ask. If they agree, I’ll move immediately.”

  “I’ve started packing, so as soon as you say it’s a go, I’ll bring what I have up to the new house.”

  “Thank you, Mom. You and Ali are what keep me going right now.” I hugged her to show my appreciation and to receive comfort. No doubt, I had and needed much of both.

  “This is going to be fun, Marni. You, me, and our baby Ali—that’s a lot of love in one house!”

  Mom was right. This was going to be a new chapter in all our lives. I would enjoy every minute of my time with my mother and daughter.

  Chapter 12 - Ben

  Change ~Churchill

  “What’s the matter, Melody? Why are you so down?”

  “I never get to spend any time with my daughter. Marni is monopolizing our baby.”

  “Marni is her food source and Ali eats all day and night. She has no choice but to be with the baby.”

  “Whenever I think I might hold our daughter or play with her, Marni has already put her down for a nap. When I think I might change her diaper, Marni’s not only changed her diaper, but also her entire outfit. I have no chance to be a mother to our child.”

  “I don’t think Mar is doing this purposely. It’s the nature of being a caretaker, isn’t it? Feeding, burping, changing, putting the baby to sleep—I think one blends into the other. It’s not anything Mar is taking away from us. As soon as Marni is done breastfeeding, I’m sure she’ll leave and head back to Noah. She’s probably anxious to go home, but is staying for the sake of our daughter.”

  “When do you think she’ll leave?”

  “I don’t know. How long do women breastfeed?”

  “She can’t stay an entire year, can she?”

  “Calm down, my sweet Melody. Let’s take this day by day. We’ll all know when it’s time for Marni to leave so we can parent alone. Just be patient.”

  “I’ll try but I don’t know how much longer I can wait to be a full-time mother to my daughter.”

  “What are you doing?” I drove up to my house to find Marni piling boxes into a moving van.

  “Now that you’re here and Ali has someone to look after her while she’s sleeping, I’ll move my stuff.” She handed me the baby monitor sitting in her pocket.

  “What do you mean? Where are you going?”

  “The home that Noah and I were to move into…” she blinked away the tears before finishing her sentence. “Mom and I bought it from Noah and his parents and we’ll be living there. Mom will come once her house is sold. I’ll start living there as soon as it’s habitable.”

  “What about Ali?”

  “Ali will be cared for as always. I’ll be here before she’s up and leave after I put her down. I know you don’t want me here.” There were fresh tears in her eyes. “After I move, it’ll be easier on the both of us. Maybe we’ll even be friends, again, one day.”

  I was unsure what to say. This was our first real conversation since I shamed her about conceiving Ali without my permission. Every night, I purposely arrived home after Ali went down and when Mar was already in her room. Marni showed me the same courtesy by having breakfast ready before Ali woke up, and allowing me to spend alone time with my daughter before I left for work. Aside from the quick handoff in the morning, we barely saw one another, let alone spoke to one another. Even now, she left me standing in the driveway, a bit dumbfounded with her news, while she went back into the house to grab her belongings.

  “Hello!” Mom and Dad parked their car alongside mine and greeted me with a generous hug.

  “Hi. What brings you both here at this hour? Ali’s down already.”

  “We know—already saw her today. We thought we’d come and babysit since today is Mar’s moving day.”

  “You knew?” I asked, a bit pissed I was the last to know.

  “Uh-huh.” Suddenly, Mom scolded, “Benjamin, I told you we should’ve come earlier. The moving truck is already full. I can’t believe she’s loaded all those heavy boxes by herself.”

  “Marni.” Dad ran to grab the two boxes, atop one another, from her. “What are you doing? Why not wait until Ben came home to help, or at least called me. Don’t you have a dolly?”

  “It’s not much and the boxes aren’t heavy. It’s fine.” She took back one box and walked in tandem with Dad. “These are the last of the boxes. I’m done.”

  Mom said, “We’re here to babysit.”

  To which Marni replied, “What for? Ali-Girl is sleeping already. Go back home and relax. You helped enough entertaining our cranky baby today.”

  My heart dropped when I heard Ali was not her usual self. “Why was she cranky? Is she not feeling well, again?”

  Marni watched me a split second longer than necessary and answered, “We had another follow-up check-up and she didn’t like all the nurses and doctor touching her. I’m sure you’ve noticed by now, your daughter doesn’t like strangers touching, ogling, or even speaking to her. She’s quite particular about the company she keeps.”

  I had to laugh. I did notice that. Even her stuck-up attitude was adorable. “So she’s not ill?” Still, I had to ask.

  “The doctor gave her a clean bill of health. She’s good.”

  Somehow, we had reverted to Marni and Ben—friend, family, and lover of Ali—again.

  The silence took us back to Marni and Ben—ex-friends, closer in family status than necessary, but still lover of Ali.

  “OK. I’m off.” Marni broke the silence and headed to the U-Haul.

  “Wait,” Mom halted all our movements. “Aren’t you going with her?” she posed that ridiculous question to me.

  Marni answered for me, “It’s all right, Shea. As you can see, I’ve loaded all the boxes, which means I can unload them too. Goodnight and thank you, again, for today.”

  She drove off without another word.

  “What’s the matter with you, Ben?” Mom was unhappy with me.

  “What?” I knew “what” but I didn’t want to hear it from my mother. Instead I walked into the house.

  “Do y
ou think it was easy for Marni when Melody asked her to carry your child? What woman wants to carry her ex’s child when she’s almost engaged to another man?” Mom followed me with a plethora of words I didn’t want to hear. “Did you also know this is the second time you’ve ruined her chance of getting married?”

  “Obviously, they weren’t meant to be, Mom. I can’t control what’s going on in her fiancé’s mind and heart. He was never right for her. That’s why they broke up so many times.”

  Now, Dad was playing tag-team with Mom and saying his piece. “You do know our precious Ali wouldn’t be here had it not been for Marni? Had she not deceived you, your life would be completely empty right now. Thanks to your sister-in-law/ex-girlfriend/once-best friend, you have a little girl to call your daughter. Rather than being a jerk to her, I think you should be kissing her feet.”

  “And” Mom continued the tirade, which I had to stop.

  “All right. Give me the address and I’ll help Marni move. I think that’ll be less painful than listening to you both.”

  Mom smiled immediately and kissed my cheek like she used to when I was little. “It’s that cute, yellow Cape Cod-looking one on the corner of Fourth Street and Marina Drive. You can’t miss it. It still has a ‘sold’ sign on the real estate marquee.”

  “Take your time helping her,” Dad called out. “We’re in no hurry to go home. We’re retired people. We have no place to be tomorrow.”

  He was a regular comedian.

  Grudgingly, I drove to her new home.

  “What are you doing here? Is it Ali? Does she need me?” If I understood one thing about this woman, she loved my daughter. That sincerity was real.

  “No. I’m here at my parents’ behest. What can I do to help?” I asked with little enthusiasm.

  “I’m good, Ben. You can go home.”

  I saw that she wasn’t good. Half the truck was still full of boxes.

  “Where the hell did all these boxes come from? Did you have this much stuff at my house?”

  “No. A lot of these boxes came from San Diego.”

  “They were shipped here? By your mom? Noah?”

  “I brought them up on Monday after you came home.”

  “You drove two hours to pick up some boxes and drove right back?”

  “Something like that.” I could tell there was much more to this story she wasn’t willing to divulge. “If you’re willing to help, each box is labeled. Could you place them in the proper rooms?”

  I did as was told and checked out her new place while following directions. The house had two master suites with bathrooms and one tiny room that could be used as a nursery or an office. The rest of the house consisted of one big room that contained a kitchen, dining area, and family area separated by key walls. It was open, well-built, and nice. The beach was only four blocks away and though the house didn’t have a pool, Marni could definitely listen to the waves at night.

  “So, you’ll come here every night after you put Ali down?”

  She nodded. “Would it freak you out if I set up a room for Ali in this house?” Her question alarmed me instantly. Mar understood. “In no way will I take Ali away from you, Ben. Our homes will be so close, I thought it’d be nice to bring her here for naps so I can get some work done. Once I move my belongings here, I won’t have a place at your home. If it really bothers you, I’ll bring my laptop and work on your kitchen table. Think about it. It’s a request, not a demand.”

  Her explanation extinguished my concern. I’d be all right with my daughter having a room here, but I didn’t want to give in so easily. Rather than giving an immediate answer, I acknowledged her request with a simple “I’ll think about it.”

  We unloaded the boxes in silence and once we were done, she thanked me and told me to go home. “I’ll be at your place after I drop off the U-Haul,” she explained. I noticed Marni stopped calling my home a home, but my/your place. Slowly, our connections were becoming severed; Ali might serve as our only connection if I didn’t do something soon. I went home thinking about this sad fact.

  Chapter 12 - Noah

  Change ~Churchill

  “Mom! Guess who I saw today!”

  “Who did you see, Noah?”

  “I saw Marni!”

  “How?”

  “Randomly on the street. I was headed to the barbershop and who do I see walking, but the woman who’s been on my mind the past few years. What good luck!”

  “So? What happened?”

  “I tried to talk to her. I tried to apologize. I tried to buy her a cup of coffee or a scoop of gelato.”

  “Did you succeed in any of those attempts?”

  “Nope. Basically, she told me to get lost.”

  “Oh no. Are you going to stay lost to her?”

  “Nope. I know where she works; I followed her to the building and watched the elevator until it stopped on the seventh floor. Tomorrow, I’m going to make a visit and ask her out on a date.”

  “You think she’ll say yes?”

  “Doubt it, but I’ll figure out a way. I need to make sure she understands where my heart is at right now. Something about seeing her today gave me hope.”

  “I want to wish you good luck, but it seems you’re confident. Keep me updated on your progress.”

  “Will do, Mom.”

  “Noah!” To say Mom was surprised to see me would have been an understatement. She dropped her shopping bags and rushed over to me. “When did you get in?”

  “Just now. I came straight here from the airport.”

  “Will you be staying long? Carson and I are headed to Paris tomorrow. I didn’t realize you’d be stopping by or I would have canceled the trip.”

  “I’m only here today. Dad’s on his way from DC and I’ve called Carson as well. I need advice from you all.”

  “OK.” Belatedly, Mom walked over and embraced me. While in this position, Carson and Dad walked in.

  “Hey.” I waved to both men as Mom stayed glued to me. “Shall we start the meeting of the minds?” I tried to find humor in this situation, but none could be found.

  “How can we help you, Son?”

  “Before we offer help, will you tell us what happened between you and Marni? She called us last week about purchasing the house and explained her side of the story. Can you tell us your side?” Carson asked.

  “Marni and I are done. I ended our relationship, she handed back the ring, not much else to tell.” As proof, I placed the diamond on the dining table.

  “That’s it?” Mom questioned. “Didn’t you try and work it out? Marni told us that she visited you in hopes of reconciling.”

  “Bullshit. She came down to return the ring and to ask if she could buy the house for her and her new family,” I spouted angrily. “If she really wanted to reconcile, she wouldn’t have walked away so easily.”

  The three adults at the table watched me with skepticism.

  “What did you exactly say to Marni when she came to talk to you?” Mom’s tone was filled with doubt.

  “I told her that she saved me a trip to the post office, to take all the boxes I’d packed for her, and then she handed me her savings and the ring. That was the beginning and the end. I told you she didn’t come to reconcile.”

  “You didn’t give her a chance to explain anything?” Mom was unhappy. “You just told her to take her boxes and get lost?” Shit. Her voice got even louder and angrier. “What did you do while she loaded her boxes?”

  I shrugged my shoulders and that’s when Carson had to hold Mom back, but Dad slapped me on the back of my head on behalf of everyone in the room.

  “Noah. I’ve never been as disappointed with you as I am now.” This was the first time Dad had told me he was disappointed with me. It was a shock. It was damn embarrassing. “This was the woman you wanted to marry. You were promising to be with her for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, in good times and bad—what part of those vows didn’t you understand? One hiccup and you run the hell away
. It’s a good thing you found out about Ali before you married. What would you have done had you had a few kids of your own and then this revelation happened?”

  Damn. My father was seriously pissed.

  Now it was Carson’s turn to rip one into me. “Your mom and I talked to Marni for a long while when she called, and you know what she never said during the hour-long conversation?” I had no thought except to wonder why Marni would talk to them for that long. Carson answered my private thought, and then some. “Marni explained everything about her sister, brother-in-law and the baby. She talked about how sorry she was for disrupting our lives and for ruining the wedding. I talked to her about the house and placing both your names on the deed. With your father’s permission, we offered the house to her outright if she’d reconsider marrying you. In all that time, she never used one negative word against you.”

  “Carson and I could tell Marni was crying throughout our conversation. There were times when she placed us on hold for several seconds. Each time she came back on the line, you could tell she had been bawling. Even then, she told us that this was what you wanted, and that she’d like to respect your wishes. She didn’t want to trap you into marriage.”

  “Mom,” was all I could say in complaint. “She lied to me all this time. She had a child with her ex. I feel like a moron for having taken care of another man’s child.”

  “It’s not like she went out and had sex with the guy,” Mom castigated. “Didn’t you see how surprised Ben was? You are both being complete jerks to Marni.”

  “Why the hell is Ben being an asshole?—though that’s his usual style. It was his wife who duped him, not Marni.” That Ben Howard pissed me off in every possible way. There was not a single thing I liked about him.