by Wood, Lauren
After getting Kendra to agree to take the weekend off and go with me, there was a lot of press about our time upstate. Since becoming deemed most eligible bachelor in the city, pictures were constantly being taken of me. I didn’t keep up with all of it. I didn’t keep up with it until Kendra called me upset. She had a meeting with her boss later in the day about it. There were questions as to why we flew and why the girls were not brought back immediately. The argument had been reported as well and like Kendra had feared, the father was trying to make it like it was the girl’s fault.
I hated that my life and status had influenced hers in such a negative way. The job meant a lot to her and I worried that she wouldn’t want to be seen anymore with me. My life was not my own half of the time and things like this was part of it. I wanted fame in football, but I got instead a scandalous love life that Kendra was now getting dragged into. I couldn’t say that I felt very good about it all because I really didn’t.
When I picked her up Friday, I was first surprised that she came, but that she was so calm about everything. Since the incident, she had been put on paid leave. I didn’t know if that meant she had lost her job or not. When I asked about it, Kendra told me that she didn’t want to talk about it.
“I know how much that job means to you Kendra. I thought you would want to talk about it.”
“I just want to have a good weekend. I have been dealing with all of the red tape this week. I need some time away from it all. There isn’t much I can do besides worry about it anyways. Whatever is supposed to happen, will.”
“I don’t know how you can be so calm about everything. I would be a wreck. I have been a wreck worried that you are going to get in trouble.” I couldn’t believe that my fears had been reassured and were true. That was the hardest thing to get through in my head. How was this all going to work now? Did she blame me and more importantly, was there anything that I could do or would that just make it worse?
“I learned a long time ago that sometimes you just have to roll with the punches. When I lost you, I knew that there was really nothing I could do, so I had to let it go eventually or it would have eaten me up inside.”
“I didn’t know that it affected you like that. I guess I didn’t do a whole lot of thinking before I left. I was mad that you didn’t want to come with me.”
“It’s fine. We were both so young. You don’t find your soulmate when you are in high school. It is just a myth.”
“I found mine.”
She smiled and looked away. Kendra didn’t even ask where we were going, just that she was happy to put the city behind her.
“You always did say the sweetest things Dennis.”
“And you always talk like it is just words. I mean what I say Kendra and the more time I spend with you the more I realize what a mistake I made. If I could go back and change one thing, it would be that.”
“There is nothing to go back and change. A lot has happened since then that was supposed to happen. You were supposed to take over your father’s business. I was supposed to get my license in social work and move to the city. That was wat was supposed to happen, so we shouldn’t regret anything. It all happened for a reason.”
“I don’t want to see it that way. I think about what could have been different if I had stayed. I knew that I wasn’t going to make it playing ball. It was a silly dream and it kept me from you. I can’t think of anything good that came out of it.”
She just scoffed, telling me that from what she had read, there were many good points in my life. “They are all over the paper. I just never thought I would be one of them.”
“That was the best day of my life. Just being with you again is better than doing anything, anywhere with anyone else. Can’t you see that?”
I made her turn to me because I wanted her to look into my eyes and to really believe and understand what I was saying. Maybe I wasn’t saying it to well as it sounded in my head. In my head, it all made perfect sense.
“I see that you are looking at me like you need a kiss.”
Kendra moved to kiss me and I wondered while she was doing it if that was her way of shutting me up. I had done it myself in the past to her and it really did work well. After a moment I couldn’t think anymore and I had a feeling that it worked rather well for her too.
She pulled away and smiled at me innocently. I knew then that she had done that exact thing for a reason.
“I just want to know that you are mine, Kendra and that no matter what. We don’t let this ever change. I don’t want to live without you in my life. We both have done it, but I am always better with you beside me.”
“I have always been yours Dennis. You know that.”
I pulled her to me and partially on my lap. It was all that I needed to hear, it really was. As long as I was going to have Kendra in my life, nothing else really mattered. I wanted her to know that I loved her and the best way was for me to show her. She had said more than once that words were just words. She wanted actions.
The car stopped and neither one of us realized it until the driver was opening the back door for us. I waited for her to climb off of my lap and get out before I got out as well. We were back at the air strip and I asked her then, where did she want to go. I had no idea where that would be, but I wasn’t expecting what she said.
“How about we go to Egypt?”
I looked at her a little strange. “Why there?”
Kendra shrugged her shoulders like why not. “Does there have to be a reason? I want to see the pyramids. Always have, but I never figured I would be able to. You wouldn’t believe what flights run out that way. Then you have to travel with a man because of all of the rules over there. I just think that would be the perfect place to go.”
I wasn’t going to argue with her reasoning. I would have never guessed there, but like everything else, Kendra has always been different. I think if she would have told me that she wanted to go to Paris or somewhere like that, than I would have wondered. But no, Kendra wanted Egypt so that was where we were going. When I first got the idea, I was going to pick the place, make it romantic, plan everything, but Kendra lived on the fly and I wanted her to be happy. I am glad that I asked her because there is no way that I would have ever picked such a place like that.
The weekend was everything I had hoped for and more. At the end of the day, all I really wanted was to make sure that Kendra was happy. She didn’t make any promises, something she seemed reluctant to do, but she did tell me that she loved me again. I don’t know why, but the very words cut at my core. I never wanted it to end, but reality set back in and we had to go back to Miami. This time though, I was bound and determined to make sure that we didn’t backtrack again. It was going to be different because now we were together and I wasn’t ever going to lose her again. Kendra was mine and she was always going to be mine.
Epilogue
One year later
Kendra
“You know that I don’t like surprises Dennis.”
“Trust me Kendra, my love. You are going to like this one.”
I wasn’t so sure. I had a lot to do at home with the baby coming in only a couple of months. I wanted nothing more than to stay home and get ready. The nursery was almost complete, but I still felt like there was so much to do. Every time Dennis had a surprise, it was a big one and I wasn’t sure what it could be this time. With that man, I really never could tell.
“Give me a hint.”
“Well it has something to do with your old job at Link.”
I frowned from the reminder. I didn’t want to think about Link because after several months on leave, I realized that I wasn’t expected to come back. While they wouldn’t and didn’t fire me, they just kept it all up in the air long enough that I just gave up on the whole thing. It killed me to even think about it so I couldn’t believe that he was bringing such a thing up to me.
“What in the world does Link have to do with anything? You know that I don’t work there anymore. They push
ed me out months and months ago.” I was thankful that I found out I was pregnant about the same time. It was something that I didn’t think was ever going to happen, but it did and I was elated. But now as he brought it up, I realized how much I missed that part of my life. I missed working with the kids and after everything I still wish I could go back into the field. It was up in the air if I would be able to and I really wasn’t sure if I wanted to face all of the ridicule.
“Calm down Kendra. Don’t get all worked up. You know that it is not good for the baby. This is a good thing. But it is about Link and I guess I should have just told you to open the door because we are here. You know I am not very good at this. I talk to you better when we are both naked.
I shook my head and then looked outside. I didn’t recognize the neighborhood, but the city was big so that wasn’t that hard to get my head around. I knew that there was a lot that it could be, but if Dennis said it was a good thing, I was going to take his word for it. He was usually pretty right when it came to stuff like that.
“Okay, so where are we?”
He smiled and opened the door, motioning for me to get out and see for myself. All I saw was a large newly constructed building. It was huge and seemed to tower over me. Where in the world were we?
“So… I am still curious where we are.”
He chuckled and moved to pull me into his arms. I went without a fight. It was the best place that I could think to be. It was where I felt safe and I don’t think I was ever going to get enough of him touching me. “Let me show you around.”
“Is this a new place that you built?” He had his hands in so many things, real estate and building apparently something new on his agenda. I could never keep up with all of the big projects that he told me about, but I didn’t remember him ever mentioning building something so big. He must have kept it under wraps. I had to wonder to myself what it was for. It was clearly for something, but if that was the case and the building was the surprise, why was I here? It just didn’t make sense and I pushed away a little as he took my hand and we went up the large concrete steps. The place didn’t look commercial, but it seemed far too big to be residential as well.
“Yes, it was just finished yesterday and they finished cleaning everything up a little while ago. What do you think?”
I crinkled my nose up for a minute and I honestly didn’t know what to think. It was clear by the expression on his face that he was happy with it, no matter what ‘it’ was, but I still wasn’t sure what I was looking at.
“Well, it’s um, really big. What are you going to use it for?” Maybe if I knew that, then I would be able to respond in a better way than I was thinking right now. Because right now I was just wondering why in the world he would have built such a monstrosity and for what purpose could it possibly be for. It was too big for everything that I had in mind that it could be. I needed a direction to go in.
“It’s going to be your Link. But this Link you will not have to temper your help and follow all kinds of rules that just hinder you. Now you can do it the right way Kendra and I know you are going to do great things.”
I was confused by his words. It made me think of one thing, but I was sure that I had to be wrong. He made it like it was mine, what does that mean?
“What do you mean?”
“I mean this is for you to start your own Link. You can hire people and use whatever guidelines you want. I have already had your new place licensed and insured. Now all you have to do is figure out what you want to do next.”
I looked down at the growing bump and I didn’t know what to say. Did he not see that I had my hands full at the moment?
“What about the baby?”
Dennis smiled and his green eyes sparkled back to me in a way that I absolutely loved. “Kendra you have more than enough love to spread around. You will figure something out. It doesn’t just have to be you. Hire people. Craig is willing to come work for you. All you have to do is call him.”
I didn’t know what to say. I wasn’t speechless very often, but this was one of those moments when I genuinely had nothing to say. What could I say to that, I mean really?
“I can’t believe you Dennis, I really can’t.”
That got him smiling even bigger. “Do you like it?”
I loved it and after a minute and a few tears I told him so. I knew that there was a lot going on and my emotions were all over the place, but in that moment, I don’t think that I could have loved him anymore than I did at that very point in time.
He kissed me and I closed my eyes to his touch. I loved him so much and I now I don’t know what I would have done without him. I can’t even imagine my life without Dennis anymore. All of that time without him seemed like a past memory or maybe even a dream. We were so right together. There was no way that it could be this good. I worried that I would wake up and it would all be over, this beautiful life that I have now.
Dennis’ touch grounded me, reminding me that this dream was real. I never wanted to wake from it. I just wish sometimes that this could have happened sooner. But maybe we weren’t ready and all we were waiting for was the right time. Now it was here. It was our time.
He pulled away and touched my stomach, smiling at me with love. “God I love you Kendra.”
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