"Did he not try to stop you?"
"No. He had already told me the money was mine and that he had called me there to give it to me, so I just picked it up and walked out. I thought about telling him some of the details of the hardships I had gone through when I first left. I had memories of them as I stared at that smug man, and I wondered how he could sleep at night let alone congratulate himself."
"I think you could call the cops for this," I said. We both glanced at the bag before glancing at each other. He was regarding me with a casual half smile.
"I told him I forgave him when I was on my way out even though he wasn't looking for my forgiveness. I thought about everything I had gone through as a kid in New York on my own, and thought about all the pain that could have been spared if I had that money, but there was really nothing I could do about it. All I could do was forgive him and know there's a purpose for everything.
Theo left that bag full of cash as a tip for the waitress at the café. They weren't busy, so she and Theo got into a conversation while we ate. I was in on it too, but Theo was asking most of the questions. He had a delicate but direct way of making people share their story, and I always enjoyed listening to him converse with other people. I knew by the time we were halfway through the meal that he was going to leave the money with her. He made eye contact with me when she told us she was a single mom and that her little boy had some health issues. I knew right then that he was going to do it. Later, she said she was putting herself through nursing school, and it also came out somewhere in our conversation that she was a Christian. After hearing all of the sweet, heartfelt answers she gave to Theo's questions, there was no doubt in my mind that he was going to help her.
Theo and I had both already stood up to leave when she came back to collect the payment. He handed her the slip of paper along with the leather pouch. "Pay for our food out of this, and then the rest is a tip for you," he said.
She looked at him with a somewhat confused expression, because the bag was heavy and oddly shaped as forms of payment go.
"There's a lot of money in here," Theo said in a hushed but professional tone. "It's cash. It came unexpectedly into my hands, and I'd like to pass it along to you if you don't mind."
She whispered something to him in French, and he smiled.
"No, I didn't rob a bank," he whispered. "It's just money that's been sitting in a safe for twenty years doing nobody any good. I feel like I'm just supposed to hand it to you. I hope it'll help you and your son. We've enjoyed talking to you during our lunch, and we'd really like to give you this."
She blinked and scrunched up her face like she was trying not to cry. "Are you sure?" she asked, not even knowing how much money was in the bag.
"I'm sure," Theo said. He glanced around. "You might want to think about taking it to the back before you open it," he said.
She glanced down at the leather pouch and then at Theo and me again. "Are you sure?" she repeated, looking stunned.
"We're sure," he said.
Epilogue
Theo and I were married only six months after we connected in New York. It was a winter wedding, so we decided to do it in Florida. Theo invited about twenty people from New York and Canada, and I invited fifty or so of my family and closest friends.
It was a small but beautiful church wedding that we held in a quaint little chapel before throwing a party at our neighbor's house. My parents had a nice place, but our neighbors had an elaborate spread, and (as long-time family friends) they were happy to let us use their place for a reception.
The wedding was at 4pm, followed by dinner and dancing at the reception. It was a special day. At the reception, I told the story of what happened in Canada when I got to witness Theo hand our waitress a bag full of cash. I left out the details such as where he got it and the fact that it contained over sixty-thousand-dollars, but I did tell the story (with Theo's permission, of course).
We both recounted the story of meeting when we were kids. We went back and forth, telling different details we remembered. This segment was funny since we both had very different perceptions of what went on back then. We knew we loved each other, though—in spite of being kids and having a severe language barrier.
***
"Y'all should tell that story again," Zoe said, as we rode the elevator to the S&S gallery on the first floor.
"The one from when y'all were kids in Canada."
A month had passed since our wedding in Florida, but Theo and I had been on our honeymoon since then and had only been back in New York for a day. The crew at Shower & Shelter planned a wedding party for Theo and me since most of them hadn't been able to make it to the wedding.
Everyone was there—even past tenants and old friends that I had never met. Theo and I knew there was going to be a wedding party, but neither of us had any idea about the magnitude of it until the elevator opened and we saw how crowded it was.
There must have been at least two hundred people. The gallery was packed. Theo didn't have any family, but the outpouring of love I saw for him was humbling. People came out of the woodwork to celebrate our wedding and tell him how much he had impacted their lives. S&S was like a big family, and I was thrilled to be a part of it.
We had just told the story from when we were kids, and now we were just mingling with everyone and enjoying drinks and snacks. Theo went across the room with Lane to meet an artist who had recently applied for a spot at S&S. Lane was impressed with him, and wanted to make sure Theo made his acquaintance at the party.
The staff had brought big, round tables into the gallery for the occasion, and I was sitting at one of them, talking to some of Theo's closest friends while he and Lane went to meet the artist.
Sarah and Collin were sitting at our table along with Lu and Joe, and Macy and Ethan. Macy's sister, Tabitha, was there alone because her husband had been up and down taking photos. Zoe and I made conversation with Tabitha since she was sitting close to us. Zoe was asking her about these woolen dolls Tabitha made, and Tabitha showed us a few pictures of them on her phone. She custom-made them to resemble actual people, and I marveled at some of the familiar faces I saw in her work. I had met Tabitha before and I knew she made dolls, but I had never seen them.
All of the couples on the other side of the table had commissioned her to make them keepsakes, and all of them chimed in on our conversation, saying how fun it was to see what she came up with. Sarah had a picture of her and Collin's, and I compared them to the actual couple, remarking on how cool and creative they were.
I glanced up from looking at Sarah's phone and realized that Theo and Lane were headed back to our table. I couldn't believe he was mine. He was the star of the show, the man of the hour, and he loved me with his whole heart. He had on a dark suit. He had recently taken off the tie and unbuttoned the collar, and he walked toward me looking dashing. He smiled at me when we made eye contact. He licked his lips, and not in an embarrassing, cheesy way, but in a way that made me feel all warm and melty inside. I made a cute little helpless face at the way he left me breathless, and he smiled as he continued to stride toward me.
Lane sat next to Zoe, and Theo came to sit in the chair next to me. In one quick motion, he pulled me onto his lap. I went easily and willingly, smiling at him as I adjusted on his leg.
He leaned up and kissed me.
"Oh, my gosh, y'all. They are so in love," Zoe said from right next to us. The statement made both of us smile, but we didn’t take our eyes off of each other.
"I know something Caroline wants," Macy said from the other side of the table. Neither of us looked at her, but I could see her out of the corner of my eye and knew she was the one talking.
Theo's hand came around my thigh. He was being discreet, but his touch made me forget to breathe. "What does Caroline want?" he asked, talking to Macy but smiling at me and the fact that I was thoroughly breathless as a result of his touch.
"You need to hire my sister to make you some dolls," Macy said. "Caroli
ne likes them."
"I do," I said. "You should see those dolls she makes."
He nodded, wearing a little half-smile. "Good, great, sounds great. I think she should definitely make us some."
"Me too," I said, smiling and not taking my eyes off of him.
"It's a miracle!" Lu said from the other side of the table. "Not just your Canada story, or the medical stuff, but the fact that Theo is acting like this. It's a freaking miracle. It was her or nothing, I guess."
"You're right," Theo said, talking to Lu, but still holding my gaze. "It was her or nothing."
So, there it was.
There you have it.
There's the story of my full ride into the sunset. I found the man of my dreams in Theo Duval. He believed you should love God, love others, make art, and be yourself. And I had to say, I agreed with him.
It seemed as if the whole crew at S&S got their own happy ending, but after more than twenty-one years of build-up and anticipation, I had to believe mine and Theo's was the sweetest.
The End
Thank you for reading! I hope you've enjoyed the Shower & Shelter Artist Collective series.
Other titles available from Brooke St. James:
Another Shot:
A Modern-Day Ruth and Boaz Story
When Lightning Strikes
Something of a Storm (All in Good Time #1)
Someone Someday (All in Good Time #2)
Finally My Forever (Meant for Me #1)
Finally My Heart's Desire (Meant for Me #2)
Finally My Happy Ending (Meant for Me #3)
Shot by Cupid's Arrow
Dreams of Us
Meet Me in Myrtle Beach (Hunt Family #1)
Kiss Me in Carolina (Hunt Family #2)
California's Calling (Hunt Family #3)
Back to the Beach (Hunt Family #4)
It's About Time (Hunt Family #5)
Loved Bayou (Martin Family #1)
Dear California (Martin Family #2)
My One Regret (Martin Family #3)
Broken and Beautiful (Martin Family #4)
Back to the Bayou (Martin Family #5)
Almost Christmas
JFK to Dublin (Shower & Shelter Artist Collective #1)
Not Your Average Joe (Shower & Shelter Artist Collective #2)
So Much for Boundaries (Shower & Shelter Artist Collective #3)
Suddenly Starstruck (Shower & Shelter Artist Collective #4)
Love Stung (Shower & Shelter Artist Collective #5)
My American Angel (Shower & Shelter Artist Collective #6)
My American Angel (Shower & Shelter Artist Collective Book 6) Page 14