The afternoon was quiet and pretty. Jessie did some sketches while sitting dangling her feet on her front porch. She felt like Huck Finn's older sister, in overalls and a red T-shirt and bare feet. The sun was bright on her face and it was a beautiful day, and her hair looked like spun gold looped up in loose curls at the top of her head.
"Good afternoon, mademoiselle." Jessica jumped, the sketch pad flying from her hands. She had thought there was no one anywhere near the house. But when she looked up, she laughed. It was Geoffrey.
"My God, you scared me to death!" But she hopped lightly from the porch as he picked up her pad and looked at it with surprise.
"Great Scott, you can draw! But much more interesting than that, you're exquisite and I adore you!" He folded her into a great warm hug, and she smiled up at him from her bare feet in the tall grass around the house. They hadn't quite gotten up all the weeds yet. "Jessica, you look perfectly beautiful!"
"Like this?" She laughed at him, but she was slow to leave his embrace. She was just beginning to realize how much she'd missed him.
"Yes, I adore you like that. The first time I saw you, you were barefoot and had your hair looped up like that. I told you, you looked just like a Greek goddess."
"Heavens!"
"Well, aren't you going to give me the grand tour, after you've kept me at arm's length all this time?"
"Of course, of course!" She laughed delightedly, and pointed majestically toward the house. "Won't you come in?"
"In a moment." But first he drew her into his arms for a long tender kiss. "Now I'm ready to see the house." She laughed at him, and then stopped and took a long look at him.
"No, you're not."
"I'm not?" He looked confused. "Why not?"
"First take off your tie."
"Now?"
"Absolutely."
"Before we go inside?" She nodded insistently, and, smiling at her, he took off the navy blue tie dotted with white, which she correctly guessed was from Dior.
"It's a lovely tie, but you don't need it here. And I promise, I won't tell a soul you took it off."
"Promise?"
"Solemnly." She held up a hand and he kissed it. The feeling in the center of her palm was delicious.
"Oh, that was nice."
"You're a tease. All right then, will this do?" She looked him over again but shook her head. "What?"
"Take your jacket off."
"You're impossible." But he slipped out of it, dropped it over his arm, and swept her a bow. "Satisfied, milady?"
"Quite." She imitated his accent and he laughed as, at last, he followed her inside.
She took him around room by room, holding her breath a little, afraid he might hate it. And she wanted him to love it. It was important to her. The house meant so much to her. It was symbolic of so much in her that had changed. And it was still a little bare, but she liked it that way. She had room to grow in, and to collect new things. She felt freer here than she had in San Francisco. Here, it was all new and fresh.
"Well, what do you think?"
"Not exactly overdecorated, is it?" She smiled as he chuckled, but she wanted him to like it, not make fun of it "All right, Jessica, don't look so sensitive. It's lovely, and it ought to be great fun for a summer." But what about for a life? She hadn't said anything to him yet about staying there, but she wasn't quite sure yet either, so there was no point. And it didn't really matter. If he fell in love with her, he could fly down to see her in his plane. It would give her the weeks alone to paint and walk and think and spend time with Aunt Beth, and the weekends with him.
"What on earth are you thinking about?" She jumped as he broke into her thoughts. "You had the most outrageous little smile on your face."
"Did I?" But she couldn't tell him what she had in mind. It had to grow slowly, she couldn't sketch it all out for him ahead of time.
"You did, and I love your little house. It's sweet." But he made it sound silly, and she was disappointed. He meant well, but he just didn't understand.
"Would you like a cup of tea?" It was a hot day, but he seemed to like hot tea whatever the weather. That or Scotch. Or martinis. She already knew.
"Love some. And then, Jessica my love, I have a surprise for you."
"Do you? I love surprises! Give it to me now." She looked like a little kid again as she plonked down on the couch and waited.
"Not now. But I thought we'd do something special tonight."
"Like what?" She wanted to do something special too, and it showed in her smile, but he let it pass.
"I want to take you down to Los Angeles; there's a party at the consulate. I thought you might rather enjoy it."
"In Los Angeles?" But why Los Angeles? She wanted to stay in the country.
"It's going to be quite a nice party. Of course, if you'd rather not ..." But the way he said it didn't leave her much choice.
"No, no ... I'd love to ... but I just thought..."
"Well, what would we do here? I thought it would be much nicer to run down to the city for a bit. And I want to introduce you to some of my friends." He said it so nicely that she felt badly about her reluctance. It was just that she had wanted to share a quiet evening with him in the new house. But there would be other times. Lots of them.
"All right. It sounds terrific." She was going to get into the spirit of it. "What sort of party is it?"
"White tie. Late dinner. And there ought to be quite a lot of important people there."
"White tie? But that means tails!"
"As a rule, yes!"
"But Geoffrey, what in hell can I wear? I don't have anything here. Just a lot of country stuff."
"I thought that might be the case."
"So what'll I do?" She looked horrified. White tie? Christ. She hadn't even seen white tie since all those ridiculous deb balls her mother had made her go to fifteen years ago. And she had nothing even remotely possible to wear. Everything dressy was still in San Francisco.
"Jessica, if you won't be too cross at me, I took the liberty of ..." He looked more nervous than she had ever seen him. He knew she had exquisite taste and he was terrified of what he had done. "I hope you won't be angry, but I just thought that under the circumstances ... admittedly, I ..."
"What on earth is going on?" She was half amused, half frightened.
"I bought you a dress."
"You did what?" She was dumbfounded.
"I know, it was a ridiculous thing to do, but I just assumed that you probably didn't have anything here and ..." But she was laughing at him. She wasn't angry. "You're not cross?"
"How could I be cross? No one's ever done that for me before." Certainly not a man she barely knew. What an amazing man he was turning out to be! "That was a lovely thing to do." She hugged him and laughed again. "Can I see it?"
"Of course." He bolted toward the door and returned five minutes later, as he had parked a little distance away. He had wanted to surprise her when he arrived, and the Porsche didn't lend itself well to surprises. But he was back with an enormous box in his arms, and a large bag that seemed to hold several smaller boxes.
"What on earth did you do?"
"I went shopping." He looked pleased with himself now. He dumped all of it on the couch and stood back with a breathless look of pleasure.
Jessica slowly pulled open the large box and gasped. The fabric was the most delicate she'd ever seen. It was a silk crepe, the lightest imaginable. It seemed to float through her fingers, and it was a warm ivory, which would set off her dark tan to perfection. When she took the dress out of the box, it seemed to clasp at one shoulder and leave the other bare. And when she saw the label it explained the design and the fabric. Geoffrey had bought her a couture dress, which must have cost him at least two thousand dollars.
"My God, Geoffrey!" She was speechless.
"You hate it."
"Are you kidding? It's magnificent. But how could you buy me that?"
"Do you like it, dammit?" He couldn't make head
or tau out of what she was saying, and it made him nervous, waiting to find out.
"Of course I like it. I love it. But I can't accept it. That's a terribly expensive dress."
"So? You need it for tonight" She laughed at the logic.
"Not exactly. That's like wearing a new car." And a Rolls, yet.
"If you like it, I want you to wear it. Will it fit?" She considered not even trying it, but she was dying to know how it looked, how it felt. Just for a moment.
"I'll try it But I won't keep it. Absolutely not."
"Nonsense."
But she went to try it on, and when she came back she was smiling. And the vision he saw made him smile too.
"Good heavens, you're beautiful, Jessica. I've never seen anyone look like that in a dress." It looked as though it had been made for her. "Wait, you have to try it with these." He dove into the bag of goodies and came out with a shoebox. Little ivory satin strands of sandals on delicate heels. Again, a perfect fit. Geoffrey certainly knew how to shop. A little silver and white beaded bag. All put together, it was dazzling. And they were equally overwhelmed. He with looking at her, and she to be wearing it all. She was used to good clothes, but these were extravagantly beautiful. And outrageously expensive.
"Well, it's settled, then." He looked decisive, and pleased. "Where's my tea?"
"You don't expect me to serve tea in this, do you?"
"No. Take it off."
"Yes, love, and I'm going to keep it off. It's so pretty, but I just can't."
"You can and you will, and I won't discuss it. That's all."
"Geoffrey, I ..."
"Quiet." He silenced her with a kiss, and she had the feeling that the entire matter had been taken out of her hands. When he wanted to be, he was very forceful. "Now get me my tea."
"You're impossible." She took off the dress and got him the tea, but in the end he won. At six o'clock she got out of the tub, did her makeup and her hair, and slipped into the dress. She felt faintly as though she were prostituting herself. A two-thousand-dollar dress was no small gift. Somehow he made it seem like a scarf or a hankie, but this was no hankie. As she slipped the dress over her head, she practically drooled.
And so did he when he saw her twenty minutes later in her new bedroom doorway. The house certainly wasn't used to this sort of grandiose coming and going in its halls. Geoffrey had gone to his friends' house to change, and had come back looking impeccable in white tie and tails. His shirt front was perfectly starched. Nothing on him appeared to move. He looked like someone in a 1932 movie. And Jessica smiled when she saw him.
"You look beautiful, sir."
"Madam, you have no idea how extraordinary you look."
"I must say, this all feels pretty super. But I feel like Cinderella. Are you sure I won't turn into a pumpkin at midnight?" She was still more than a little embarrassed by the extravagance of it all, but for some reason she had let herself be swept away on the tide of his insistence. And she had to admit, it was fun.
"Are you ready to go, darling?" The "darling" was new, but she didn't mind it. She could get used to it. She supposed that she could get used to a lot of things if she tried.
"Yes, sir." She looked down at her bare hands then and wished she had both jewelry and gloves. At any event as formal as this one obviously was going to be, it seemed as though long white kid opera gloves were in order, and jewelry ... jewelry ... she thought of something as they started to leave. "Wait a second, Geoffrey." She had brought it with her, and she had totally forgotten it. She had hidden it, for safety's sake. But it would be perfect.
"Something wrong?"
"No, no." She smiled mysteriously and ran back into the bedroom, where she bent down carefully to look for a tiny package tied in the underside of the bed. It had been the only place she could think of. But she had wanted to bring it with her. She didn't know why, but she had wanted to. She quickly took the box from its hiding place and then opened it, pulling the soft suede jewel case out of the box, and then spilling the gem into her hand. It was more beautiful than ever, and for a moment her heart stopped as she saw it. It brought back so many painful memories, but so many nice ones as well. She could remember seeing it on her mother's hand ... and then taking it out for Ian ... putting it back when the trial was all over. It was her mother's emerald ring. She had never brought herself to wear it, just as a piece of jewelry, a thing, a bauble. But tonight was a night to wear it, as a thing of beauty and pride, as something special that had been given to her. Tonight it signified a new beginning to her life. It was perfect. And tears came to her eyes as she slipped it on. She felt her mother approve.
"Jessica, what are you doing? We've got quite a drive to L.A.--do hurry up."
She smiled to herself as she slipped it on her hand. It was exactly what was needed. She also had on a pair of pearl earrings that Ian had given her years ago. They were the only jewelry she had brought, except for the ring, which she really hadn't planned to wear. She caught a last glimpse in the mirror, and smiled to herself as she rushed out to join Geoffrey. "Coming!"
"Everything all right?"
"Wonderful."
"Ready?"
"Yes, sir."
"Oh, and by the way, I forgot to give you these."
"These" were two more boxes, a long thin flat one and a small cube.
"More? Geoffrey, you're crazy! What are you doing?" It was like Christmas. And why was he doing this? She didn't even want presents, but he looked so hurt when she balked that she started to open the packages. No man had ever done this to her before.
As she began with the long thin box, Geoffrey suddenly exclaimed.
"Jessica, how lovely. What an extraordinarily fine piece of jewelry." He was admiring her mother's ring, and with a trembling hand, she held it up for him to see. "It means a great deal to you, doesn't it?" She nodded, and then, after a pause, his voice softened. "Was it your engagement ring for when you were married?"
"No." She looked at him solemnly. "It was my mother's."
"Was? ... Is she ..." So that was why she never spoke of her family. She had told him about the brother, but she had never mentioned her parents. Now he understood.
"Yes, she and my father died only a few months apart. It's a long time ago now, I suppose, though it doesn't really feel like it. But I've never ... I've never worn the ring, like tonight."
"I'm honored that you'd wear it with me." He pulled her face gently toward him with the tip of one finger, and kissed her ever so carefully. It made her whole body tingle. And then he stood back and smiled. "Go on. Finish opening your things." She had forgotten the boxes, and she went back to them now.
The long thin box yielded the gloves she had thought of as she was dressing. It was as though he read her mind. Again.
"You think of everything!" They made her laugh, but she was delighted as she slid one into place. "How did you know all my sizes?"
"A lady should never ask a question like that, Jessica. It implies I have too much knowledge of women."
"Aha!" The idea amused her. And she went on to the next box. This one was small enough to fit into the palm of her hand. Geoffrey was watching her with interest as she tore off the paper and got to the small navy blue leather box. It had a snap holding it closed and she flicked it open and gasped. "Jesus. Geoffrey! No!" He couldn't tell if she was angry or pleased, but he quietly took the box from her and took them out, holding the diamond teardrops to her ears.
"They're just what you need. Put them on." It was a quiet order, but Jessica took one step backward and looked at him.
"Geoffrey, I can't. I really can't." Diamonds? She hardly knew him. And the earrings were not terribly small. They were heavenly, but not at all something she could accept. "Geoffrey, I'm sorry."
"Don't be silly. Just try them for tonight. If you don't like them, you can give them back."
"But imagine if I lost one."
"Jessica, they're yours." But silently she shook her head and stood firm.
"Please." He looked so woebegone that she felt sorry for him, but she couldn't take diamonds from this man ... she had already accepted the outfit she was wearing, which was far too expensive a gift as it was. But diamonds? Who in heaven's name was he? No matter who, she knew who she was, and what she could and could not do. This she could not. No. But he was looking at her so sadly that she finally wavered for an instant. "Just try them on."
"All right, Geoffrey, but I won't wear them tonight and I won't keep them. You save them. And maybe someday ..." She tried to make him feel better about them as she reached up to take off one of her own earrings, and then she remembered that she was wearing Ian's pearls.
The pearls were much less grandiose than the diamonds, but she loved them. She tried on one of Geoffrey's sparkling teardrops and it looked dazzling on her left ear ... but on the right ear sat the pretty little pearl from the man who had loved her...from Ian ...
"You don't like them." He sounded crushed.
"I love them. But not for right now."
"You looked just now as though something had made you terribly sad."
"Don't be ridiculous." She smiled, and handed him back the earring, and then leaned up to kiss him chastely on the cheek. "No man has ever been as good to me, Geoffrey. I don't quite know what to do with it all."
"Sit back and enjoy it. Now. We're off." He didn't press the point about the earrings, and they left them carefully hidden in her desk drawer. She felt relieved not to be wearing them. Geoffrey had been right. Taking off Ian's pearls would have made her sad. She wasn't quite ready to yet. It would come in time. She still clung to some of their souvenirs. Like his portrait, which now hung over the fireplace.
The party was like something in a multimillion-dollar movie. Gallons of champagne, platoons of liveried butlers, and armies of black-uniformed maids. Every two feet of inlaid marble floor space seemed to be covered by the looming shadow of an immense crystal chandelier. And pillars and columns and Aubusson rugs and Louis XV furniture, and a fortune in diamonds and emeralds and sapphires, and hundreds of minks. It was the kind of party you read about but couldn't even faintly imagine going to. And there she was, with Geoffrey. Almost everyone there was either British or famous or both. And Geoffrey seemed to know everyone. Movie stars whom Jessie had only read of in the papers ran up to greet him, promised to call him, or left lipstick on his cheeks. Ambassadors cornered him over the pate, or urged Jessie to dance. Businessmen and diplomats, socialites and politicians, movie stars and celebrities of dubious fame. Everyone was there. It was the kind of party people worked years to get invited to. And there she was, with Geoffrey, who turned out to be not "Mr.," but "Sir."
Now and Forever (1978) Page 37