“You look like Oscar statuettes,” Jack said, smiling.
“That’s what we’re channeling,” Emerson said.
She was glowing. I could almost feel her relief. She had been handed a Get Out of Jail Free card today. And she knew it.
“Let’s keep guessing,” Sloane said.
“I think we’re going to the opera,” Emerson said, and Mark, James, and Adam groaned.
“I think we’re going to a movie premiere,” Adam said.
“You can quit guessing,” Caroline interjected. “Because you will never guess. We could do this all night long, and you will never ever figure it out.”
Two minutes later, the limo stopped. I tried to see out the window, but the car was so low and the buildings so tall that I wasn’t sure where we were. Everyone shifted around, sitting on laps and leaning over on hips so that Caroline and James could get out first.
Then Emerson tied a silk scarf around my eyes, despite my protests. “Are you all in on this together?” I asked.
“I swear, Mom,” Emerson said, “I have no idea what’s going on.”
Sloane got out first, and I heard her gasp, followed by Emerson’s “Oh, my God.”
I could feel the butterflies welling in my stomach.
Jack maneuvered me out onto the sidewalk, and I heard Caroline say, “Are you ready, Mom?” Even she seemed nervous.
“I’m as ready as I’ll ever be, I guess.”
She fiddled with the knot on the scarf and said, “OK. You can open your eyes.”
It took me a moment to adjust to the dark sky and bright lights, and at first, I only saw huge glass picture windows. Gorgeous, enviable picture windows with stunning vignettes of furniture and accessories.
Then I looked up. And my gasp joined my daughters’. Right here, on Fifth Avenue in New York City, was a scrawling gold logo against a black granite façade. It read: Sloane Emerson New York.
“How?” I asked in amazement.
“I’ve been working on it for a while,” Caroline said. “I just didn’t want you to know until it was a done deal. That’s why I asked if I could come work for you. I needed to open accounts with your vendors and learn more about your business. I wanted to get it right. I wanted it to be something you could be proud of.”
Tears sprang to my eyes as I hugged my daughter. My beautiful, bold daughter.
“Well, for heaven’s sake,” Sloane said. “Let’s go in!”
Caroline opened the door. She handed me a glass of Veuve Clicquot. I was utterly, totally speechless.
There was no arguing that Caroline had gorgeous taste. The ceiling was gold leaf, the floors dark wood, and the walls an off-white with the most beautiful moldings I had ever seen. In the center of the room, hanging over a round wooden entrance-hall table that was a bestseller in my store, was a tremendous beaded chandelier.
The “before” pictures blown up and scattered around the room displayed a bleak, cold, empty shell with studs for walls and concrete floors. I ran my hand along the marble counter that served as the checkout area.
“You weren’t even here,” I whispered. “I don’t understand how you did all this.”
She shrugged. “The week we came back for the Hamptons party, I picked everything, and then there was a lot of Skyping and pictures back and forth.” She lowered her voice and said, “And James has been amazing. He did so much of it.”
“I just can’t believe you.”
“You know, Mom, when your heart is really set on something, sometimes you move mountains to get it.”
James came up from behind Caroline, put his arm around her, and kissed her cheek. “I am ridiculously proud of you.”
I looked around again, finally noticing that every spare wall was covered with one of Sloane’s paintings.
I walked over and hugged Sloane. She smiled. “I know. Pretty great, right?”
“Your sister did good.”
“Want to look with me?”
We walked over to the first painting, and I peered down into the corner at the price tag.
I thought Sloane was going to spit out her champagne. “Caroline!” she scolded. “Have you lost your mind? I mean, you’ve always been insane, but this is a new level.”
Adam squeezed her arm. “It’s not insane, Sloane. You deserve this and so much more.” He leaned down and kissed her, and warm, fuzzy feelings spread all through my body. Sloane’s life had been ripped from stem to stern. I wasn’t sure she would ever get back to a place where she could be happy. And now, tonight, everything in her life that had been hard or uncertain was culminating in this one glorious moment.
Caroline gestured out the window, where throngs of people had gathered. “These people,” she said, “are not waiting for me. They are waiting for you.”
Emerson cleared her throat and said, “OK. We’ve got to let this crowd in. But first, a toast.” We all put our arms around one another and stood in a circle as she said, “Here’s to taking risks and chasing dreams. May they all come true.”
“Hear, hear!” Jack said, and we all clinked glasses. Jack kissed me and said, “You are my dream come true. I need nothing else.”
As the people flooded into Sloane Emerson New York, Emerson grabbed my arm and whispered, “It’s amazing what all that beautiful Beaumont money can buy, isn’t it?”
“Emerson!” I scolded, but, well, I’d been thinking the same thing. I had scrimped and saved to open my first tiny storefront. I had no doubt that James had thrown every cent he could at this project, just to see his wife happy. Despite his flaws, I’d give it to the man: when it came to Caroline, he was unfailingly generous with what seemed to be an endless well of money.
But the money wasn’t the only thing flowing. The Veuve was, too, into the more than one thousand champagne coupes arranged in a tower underneath that giant light fixture, the string quartet was playing on the second-floor balcony, which was open to the first floor, and Caroline’s salesgirls were ringing up merchandise as fast as their fingers could fly.
“This is unbelievable,” Jack said.
I smiled and looked over at Sloane, whom people were swarming. Caroline floated over and whispered, “We’ve sold all the paintings.”
I gasped. “You’re kidding me.”
She smiled. “I am not kidding you. She’d better get home and get painting so we can sell more. I have eleven names on a waiting list for her work.”
I could feel pride swelling in my chest. Caroline, against all odds, had taken over the family business. Sloane, whose dream was to make a living as a painter, was able to do that. Emerson had succeeded as an actress and was beginning her journey with the man she loved, and I had Jack by my side. It was the best life had been in a long, long time. Maybe it was the champagne, and maybe it was the music, but I felt like I was walking on air that night. Caroline had made magic here in Manhattan. I vowed right then and there that I would visit her more often. I had avoided New York for too long, and now I couldn’t deny that coming back here felt like coming home.
“There’s nothing better than doing what you love and making a living off of it,” Jack said.
“Exactly,” Caroline said, gesturing toward Jack. “I mean, you love hot dogs, and look how well that worked out for you.” Jack had started a chain of hot dog stands in college towns that he had later sold for a fortune.
We all laughed. One of her friends pulled her away as Jack slipped his arm around me and kissed me.
An extremely tall man walking through the door caught my eye, and I did a double take. Jack looked at the door and then looked back at me. “No,” he said. “No way.”
I cocked my head to the side as he came toward me, and said, “As I live and breathe, if it isn’t my brother John.”
He shrugged and smiled sheepishly. “I told you I was going to step it up.”
I hugged him and said into his ear, “Thank you. Truly. This is a big deal.”
When I pulled away, I could see that there were tears in his eyes. He
sniffed and said, “If these past couple of months have taught me anything, it’s that families have to stick together.”
“Wait.” I looked at Jack and then back at John. “Are you saying that we’re your family?”
We laughed. I didn’t have any grand expectations for my brother and our relationship. I didn’t expect him to suddenly become the brother I had known growing up. But it touched me deeply that he was making the effort. I loved him, and I would take as much of him in my life as I could get, now and always. I had put my expectations to the side long ago. Now I could savor the moments for what they were.
Three hours later, the crowd had finally started to thin, the band was packing up, the champagne had nearly been drunk, and I was ready to get to work. Jack and I had moved to the immaculate storeroom, and I was trying to help a bit with inventory. This place might look like a million bucks, but there were still a lot of ins and outs that Caroline needed help with. With my clipboard in my hand, I was totally in my element.
Jack came up behind me and kissed my neck, wrapping his arms around my waist. I was still writing.
“You’re right,” Jack said.
I laughed, noting that my favorite L’Objet candles had completely sold out. “I so often am,” I said. “What am I right about now?”
“You’re right that we should tell the girls,” Jack said. “You’re their mother. You know best.”
I laughed again, feeling sleepy and giddy and so happy I never wanted the night to end. “OK,” I said. “If you think we should tell the girls, then let’s tell the girls.”
“Tell the girls what?”
I turned to see the three of them crowded in the doorway. My mouth suddenly felt very dry.
“Tell the girls what?” Caroline repeated.
“Because we have something to tell you, too,” Emerson said.
My heart was racing in my chest, because this was a perfect moment. They were all here, we were all happy. I could tell them all at once, rip the Band-Aid off. I would never again have to stay up nights worried about how they would react once I told them the truth. I would never again have to debate whether it was the perfect moment or not. No matter their reaction, it would finally be done.
“You first,” I said.
“No,” Sloane said warily. “You first.”
I looked at Jack, my stomach muscles gripping. “Girls, there’s something I’ve wanted to tell you for a long time.” I sighed. “But I haven’t because I wasn’t sure how you’d react.”
I could tell by the looks on their faces that I had killed their buzzes. Great. Now the night was ruined, no matter what. “You see, your father and I . . . Well, you already know that . . .” I trailed off. It felt like the words were stuck in my chest. I cleared my throat.
“Just spit it out, Mom,” Caroline said. “Whatever it is, I’m sure it’s fine.” I could tell by her face that she knew. She logically knew. But that didn’t mean it wasn’t going to rock her world, rock all of their worlds, when I said it out loud, when I put it out there and we had to deal with it.
I nodded. Then, without even thinking about it, I blurted out, “The money. The money your father was going to leave for you is gone. He lost it in the market before he died, and we were left in the most horrible financial shape. That’s why we had to move to Peachtree. I couldn’t afford to stay in New York, but I didn’t want any of you to know that was the real reason we left.” I was sure I sounded manic.
Caroline gasped and put her hand up to her mouth. I, for one, felt somewhat cleansed. There was one major secret off my chest. I mean, it was the wrong secret, a far lesser secret. But one off my chest all the same.
“Oh, Mom,” she said. “I’m so sorry I acted so horribly.”
Emerson hugged me. “That is awful, Mom. You’re amazing for getting us through like you did all on your own. I had no idea.”
Sloane nodded. “You’re our hero, Mom.”
So this was a pleasant turn of events. Now I was the hero instead of the villain, which easily could have gone the other way if the other truth had been revealed. I couldn’t bring myself to look at Jack.
“The good news is, I’ve been putting a little something away for all of you for when I’m gone.”
Emerson waved her hand. “Clearly, Caroline doesn’t need it, Sloane is going to be a gazillionaire by next year, and I . . .” She trailed off with a dramatic hand gesture. “I have decided to open Sloane Emerson LA!”
Sloane, Emerson, and Caroline squealed. I was shocked.
“But Emerson, your acting.”
“Oh, I’ll still act,” she said. “But I want something to fall back on.” She shrugged. “You know, I get on board and then let Caroline do everything. That’s kind of my MO.”
“Grand,” Caroline said. But she was smiling ear to ear.
“This is terrific news,” I said, meaning it. There had been some years when I couldn’t give my girls things I really wanted to, some things I thought they really needed. But knowing that I had made something for us, I had made a living for us, and now they could use that business to make a life for themselves made me inexplicably proud—and more confident than ever that I had made some good choices along the way.
“Man,” Sloane said. “I feel kind of left out. Where am I going to start a store?”
“Miami,” Emerson said without a pause. “Then we can be like the Kardashians.”
They all burst out laughing, and I rolled my eyes.
“You don’t have time to start a shop, painter monkey,” Caroline said.
“OK,” I said, standing up straighter. “I’m feeling lighter. Been carrying that one around for sixteen years.”
I saw tears starting to gather in Emerson’s eyes. “What’s the matter?” I whispered, drawing her in close to me.
“I just wish he could see us all now,” she said. “I wish he could see us all grown-up.”
I smiled and could feel tears in my eyes, too. “You can rest assured that your father would be beside himself. In fact, all he would do is brag to his friends about the three of you.” I paused. “I’m not sure a father has ever loved three girls more.”
“Well,” Jack said, chiming in, “I know we don’t all feel the same way about these things, but I think your father is watching over you. I think he knows how well you have all done.”
I smiled up at him. I had to admit that I loved the idea that Carter could look down and see the four of us happy after all these years. I wondered if he would be bothered that part of the reason for my happiness was Jack, this man who had played such an incredibly complicated role in the story of our lives together. But I reasoned that all Carter had ever wanted for me was happiness. It was why he’d made some of the decisions he’d made.
A few minutes later, we were all filing out of the store into the warm New York night, the bright lights so different from the shining stars of Peachtree Bluff. It occurred to me that in a lot of ways, these skyscrapers and this traffic were as much a part of my story as the calming waters of Peachtree. There was something happy in that thought, something calming, too.
“You really nailed that confession,” Jack whispered into my ear. I could hear the smile in his voice.
“I did, didn’t I?” I whispered back wryly.
I hugged Sloane. “I’m so proud of you.”
She smiled. “Thanks, Mom.” Then she turned to Caroline. “I sort of hate you for doing it without my permission, but you gave me something back tonight that I had lost. I found a piece of myself again, and as much as I don’t want to admit it, I found it because of you.”
Caroline ventured a curtsy.
James said, “If Caroline is the queen of anything, it’s pushing us all to be our best.”
“The queen of anything?” Emerson said under her breath. “I thought she was the queen of everything.”
They smiled at each other.
I hugged my eldest daughter. “Thank you for this. I never would have imagined that my vision for this store
could turn into something so extraordinary.”
“Oh, wait until you see Sloane Emerson LA,” Emerson said. “It will really blow you away.”
I kissed them all again and watched as Emerson took off with Mark, Caroline with James, and Sloane with Adam. It was right. It was perfect. I was so very much at peace.
Jack slipped his hand in mine and said, “Do you know that I think you are even more beautiful now than you were the night I inadvertently tried to stop your wedding?”
I blew air through my closed lips as if that was preposterous, which it was, and said, “That’s just because I was covered in layers of fur, and you’ve always preferred me a little more scantily clad.”
He winked at me and said, “Oh, I prefer you much more scantily clad.”
We laughed, and as we made our way into the dark city, the honking horns and screeching brakes replacing the sounds of the wind and waves that I was used to, I felt down in the tips of my toes that while Peachtree was home, there was no city in the world quite as grand as New York.
SIXTEEN
emerson: compromise
Back at the Beaumont flat, we were all a little tipsy. The champagne was flowing, the sisters were laughing, the kids were sleeping—and the Mark Loves Emerson mix CD he had made my junior year was playing quietly over James’s impressive sound system.
I was perhaps the tipsiest of all, but I was also the youngest and maybe the happiest. Even the news that the nest egg I had always imagined receiving one day no longer existed couldn’t spoil my night.
Now that I knew the money from Dad was gone, my entire mind-set was different. I’ll be honest, my first inkling had been to do what Mark wanted, move back to Peachtree Bluff and fall comfortably into the silk-pillow-cushy world he had created for me. But really, where would be the fun in that? Instead, I would throw myself headfirst into my acting and work on this new store project with Caroline. I knew that I would never be happy unless I was making my own way in the world.
The Southern Side of Paradise Page 12