The Truest of Words

by Georgina Guthrie

  The lines around my eyes spoke volumes. This past year hadn’t been kind—my own fault, of course, for allowing everything to get to me. I made a birthday resolution: I would work harder at relaxing and re-centering myself.

  The last few days had been a reality check. As much as I loved having Aubrey in my life, I had to give her space. I couldn’t merely endure our time apart; I needed to accept it—maybe even try to enjoy it. Now that she was back, all I wanted to do was revel in our time together. As far as I was concerned, the sooner we put this birthday dinner behind us, the sooner we’d be home enjoying some private festivities.

  Aubrey perched on the edge of the bed, fastening the buckle on one of her shoes, an incredibly sexy high-heeled sandal with thin straps.

  Please, God, I thought as I watched her uncross and re-cross her bare legs to attend to the other shoe, make the night be over quickly.

  Aubrey

  Chapter 23

  Merriment

  …frame your mind to mirth and merriment,

  Which bars a thousand harms and lengthens life.

  (The Taming of the Shrew, Introduction, Scene ii)

  DANIEL STOPPED ME on the pathway leading to his parents’ backyard.

  “Promise me there’s nothing crazy waiting back there. This isn’t some outlandish surprise party, right?”

  “It’s just family,” I assured him. “No outlandish surprises, I promise.”

  Well, maybe one, but I wasn’t about to tip my hand.

  In the backyard, we were met by a chorus of greetings. Daniel received kisses and handshakes from his family, thoroughly relieved to see that his mother hadn’t organized a spectacular event in his honor. Julie sprang up and gave me a hug. I squeezed her back just as hard. Lord, I’d missed her.

  When Daniel leaned over to kiss her rather formally on the cheek, she blushed and caught my eye. I could only imagine what she must have been thinking.

  Mr. Shmexy just planted a wet one on me.

  David took drink orders, and we wandered over to the patio to sit down. That’s when I realized someone was missing.

  “Hey, where’s Patty?”

  “She’s taken Gerald up to the cottage with his daughter and grandchildren,” Gwen said. “She feels bad about not being here for your birthday, Daniel, but she told me you two had dinner on Tuesday night?”

  “We had a good visit. I’m glad she’s spending time with Gerald and his family.”

  Gwen smiled tartly and summoned David to join her in the house. I wondered if she was equally as amenable to her mother’s absence and the reason for it.

  “Don’t let me eat any more of these samosas,” Julie said, slapping her own hand. “I’ll never fit into my showcase costume if I keep pigging out.”

  “Tell me about it,” Penny moaned. “Why does stress always make me eat? I had a fitting for my wedding dress yesterday. Bloody stupid thing. I should have picked one with an elastic waist.”

  Brad sighed as he slung his arm around his bride-to-be.

  “Ah, babe, ya gotta love planning weddings. Invitations and dresses and speeches and first dances—it’s enough to drive anyone to frigging drink.”

  “Yeah, how is the speech coming along, Brad?” Daniel asked.

  Brad rolled his eyes. “I’ve got about five words written. Good—evening—ladies—and—gentlemen,” he said, counting on his fingers.

  Daniel laughed, but before he could harass his brother further, Gwen appeared at the patio doors, her hands full of gift bags. David followed with a large parcel.

  “We thought we’d get presents out of the way before dinner,” Gwen announced.

  Daniel rubbed his hands together eagerly. How adorable was he? A fluttering in my stomach alerted me to my own excitement. Daniel would have a coronary when he saw my gift—we’d decided to save it for last.

  Daniel opened his grandmother’s present first. “Apparently, this is from Gramps too,” he said, briefly scanning the card.

  “Dude, is that a kite?” Jeremy asked, peering over the arm of his chair as Daniel tore open the package.

  “Patty told me you’d understand what it was about,” David said.

  Daniel smiled wistfully. “Yes, I do.” He handed me the red heart-shaped kite. “I’ll explain later.”

  “Give him the big one next,” Brad suggested.

  David carefully maneuvered a large gift in front of Daniel. It was obviously a picture or painting of some sort, one of those gifts that can’t be disguised, even when wrapped.

  “There’s no card,” Jeremy explained. “It’s from all of us.”

  “Do you know what this is?” Daniel asked me.

  “Nope. I’m just as curious as you are. Hurry up.”

  Daniel stuck his finger into the middle of the paper and ripped.

  “Wow, you guys, that’s beautiful,” I said, not even taking in Daniel’s reaction, too wrapped up in my own assessment of the piece.

  Jeremy crouched in front of the painting. “We bought it at the gallery in the Distillery District. It’s from a collection called Weightlessness. The title of this piece is Free. I thought it was appropriate.”

  Daniel nodded, still staring at the painting. “I love it. It’ll look great in the living room. Thank you, everyone.”

  David hopped up and moved the painting out of the way, and Daniel held up a small striped bag.

  “That’s from us,” Julie said. “I picked it out.”

  Daniel smiled as he waded through the tissue and pulled the gift free.

  “Hold them up,” Julie requested.

  “Boxers?” Daniel laughed. “That’s cheeky.”

  “Read the words written on them,” Jeremy said.

  “‘Thou reedy-wheeling ripe coxcomb,’” Daniel read. Flipping them around, he tilted his head. “‘Thou art a ragged wart.’ Perfect! Shakespearean insults. These will come in handy in the fall. When students say something stupid, I’ll just refer them to my underwear.”

  He looked over at his dad, who was smiling wryly.

  “Or not,” Daniel amended, clearing his throat. “Thanks, guys. Okay, last one.”

  “That one’s from us,” Brad said. “Aubrey tipped us off.”

  Daniel stuck his hand inside the bag, pulling out a book.

  “‘Eyewitness Travel Guides: The Netherlands,’” he read. “What…?”

  He shook his head, confused. This had Penny written all over it. There was no telling her anything in confidence. She was such a shit.

  “Aubrey and I were chatting on the phone, and she mentioned you’d developed this sudden fascination with the Netherlands,” she said. “We thought maybe a travel book would be interesting, since you seem so keen on visiting.”

  How is she keeping a straight face?

  Daniel chuckled. “I have developed an avid interest in the place,” he said. “I promise to dive right in as soon as I get home. Very thoughtful, thank you.” He winked at Penny. “And thanks, everyone. This was all great—”

  “Wait, there’s one more,” Brad said, leaning forward in his chair.

  “That’s right. You still have to open mine,” I reminded him.

  “I figured you were saving that until tomorrow,” he said, squeezing my hand.

  “I’d kind of like to give it to you tonight. You can open it now—if we have time before dinner.” I looked at Gwen for confirmation.

  “Plenty of time,” she assured me. “Go ahead.”

  Brad fished his car keys from his pocket, and I grabbed Daniel’s hand. “We have to go out front.”

  He looked at me curiously. “Okay.”

  I peeked over my shoulder as we followed Brad to the gate. Everyone smiled expectantly. Julie was tapping her feet excitedly.

  My sentiments exactly, bun-head.

  Out on the driveway, there was nothing noteworthy going on. Daniel frowned.

  “What are you up to, poppet?”

  “Patience, sailor.” I nodded at Brad, who’d been waiting for my signal to op
en the garage door.

  “Hey, close your eyes, bro,” Brad suggested.

  Daniel complied, crossing his arms uncomfortably. “You two are freaking me out.”

  “You’re going to like this,” I told him.

  I hope.

  Five days of planning, organizing, and hard work had gone into this surprise, not to mention a few fibs and a crap-load of soul searching. He’d better like it. Brad climbed into his truck. The engine roared to life, and he slowly backed out of the garage.

  I slipped my hand around Daniel’s forearm. His eyes were scrunched closed, brows furrowed together.

  “Okay, sunshine,” I whispered. “Open your eyes.”

  His eyes flickered open, and I held my breath as he looked at the back of Brad’s pickup truck, his expression shifting from confusion to stunned understanding. He took two steps forward and stopped, slowly turning to glance at me and then at Brad, who had cut the engine and climbed out of the truck.

  Brad flashed me a dimpled smile, but Daniel seemed dumbstruck. He moved to the back of the truck, touching the large red bow and unhooking the tarp to run his hands across the row of boxes, each one labelled clearly in permanent marker. He stopped at one with the words “High school junk/Yearbooks” written across the side and froze, his hands flat on the box and his head bowed. Brad bobbed his head at his brother.

  “I think he’s in shock,” he whispered.

  I touched his back. “Daniel?”

  He spun around, hugging me and burying his face in my neck. Over Daniel’s shoulder, I watched Brad back away, holding up his hands as if to say, I’ll just give you guys a minute. I rubbed my hand across Daniel’s shoulders, waiting for him to say something. Finally, he took a deep breath and stepped back.

  “Is this what I think it is? These are all of your things?”

  “Everything,” I confirmed, my smile hesitant. “Brad’s going to bring the truck to the condo tomorrow and help us unpack it. What do you think?”

  “What do I think? What do I think? Are you kidding me?”

  He laughed as he hugged me again, lifting me off the ground and spinning me around. I giggled, caught up in his elation. When he finally set me back on my feet, he held my face in his hands.

  “I don’t know what to say. I can’t believe it. How the hell did this happen?”

  “I was stumped. Your birthday was coming, and I couldn’t help wondering, what do you get the guy who has everything?”

  “A pickup truck full of boxes, garment bags, and suitcases?” he suggested, bending to kiss me softly.

  “Along with the girl who owns it all,” I added. “Happy birthday, sweet-knees.”

  He held my hands against his chest, regarding me solemnly.

  “Okay…don’t get me wrong, I’m ecstatic, but this is more than a gift for the guy who’s hard to buy for. This is huge for you.” He propped himself against the truck, drawing me against him. “Where’s this coming from all of a sudden?”

  “I don’t know. My mom and I talked about us and our relationship when she was here. Initially, she’s the one who got me thinking, but what sealed the deal was something Matt said last Sunday when we were talking about his breakup. He was complaining about how he wished Sarah could be like me.”

  Daniel’s eyes flickered across mine nervously. “Wait, he didn’t try—”

  I put my fingers to his lips before he could give words to his fears. “I thought the same thing at first. But then he explained what he meant. He said he was amazed by how steadfast we’ve been in our feelings for each other despite all the crap we’ve gone through. He wished Sarah could have been half as committed to him as I was to you. As soon as he said that, my heart fell because I wasn’t completely committed to you, was I? I was holding back.”

  I wrapped my arms around him.

  “I wanted to do something that would show you how much I love you and prove that I have faith in you—in us. With your birthday coming up, this seemed perfect.”

  Daniel swiftly captured my lips and then turned to survey the truck again, hands on his hips.

  “This is a lot of stuff.”

  “It would have been more if Matt and Jo hadn’t helped me go through everything this week. Matt and I took a ton of donations to Goodwill on Thursday morning.”

  “And Brad? When did he come by to get everything?”

  “Thursday night.”

  Daniel smirked and shook his head, slipping his arm around my shoulders. “I had a hard time reaching him on Thursday night.”

  “He was at Jackman when he called you back. He was great, sunshine. He was so excited. Your whole family was thrilled. Keeping the secret was killing me. I almost told you everything on Tuesday night. After that nightmare you had, it was so hard not to tell you.”

  “I’m glad you didn’t tell me. This is one of the best surprises I’ve ever had. So, all week, I thought you were helping Matt, but really he was helping you.”

  “We were helping each other. I did want to be there for him when Sarah came to get her stuff. She finally came over Wednesday afternoon, and I would’ve headed to the condo on Wednesday night, but it was my last night with Matt and Jo. It was kind of emotional,” I admitted, remembering the feeling of finality that had descended when I’d crawled into bed at Jackman that night, for what I knew would be the last time. “Then, before I left on Thursday, Matt told me he’s heading back to British Columbia at the end of July.”

  “Hey, wait.” Daniel gazed down at me curiously. “That must have been why you were crying when I picked you up.” He pulled me into his arms again. “I’m sorry, poppet.”

  “It’s okay,” I whispered, putting on my best brave face. “I’ll miss Matt, but it’s the best decision for him. I know that.”

  In the midst of Daniel’s comforting embrace, I pushed back my feelings of sadness about Matt’s eventual departure. Right now, it was time to help the man I loved celebrate his birthday.

  Chapter 24

  True Friendship

  …ceremony was but devis’d at first

  To set a gloss on faint deeds, hollow welcomes,

  Recanting goodness, sorry ere ’tis shown;

  But where there is true friendship, there needs none.

  (Timon of Athens, Act I, Scene ii)

  ONCE DANIEL AND I were living together, it would have been easy for me to take our time together for granted, breezing through our days like a spoiled kid surrounded by a mountain of gifts on Christmas morning. I didn’t want to do that. I wanted to savor every detail of our time together.

  Some days were incredible and I’d pinch myself, amazed that sailing around Toronto’s harbor for an afternoon in Daniel’s boat or spending a weekend with his family at their luxurious cottage was standard fare.

  Of course, not every moment was exotic. I was back on the concert circuit and madly writing reviews while Daniel worked at his thesis, but I’d sometimes catch myself pausing to drink in a moment we were sharing, even if it was as simple as drying dishes together. Sure, we had our fair share of squabbles and misunderstandings. Some of the fights were silly, but even if they weren’t epic, the makeup sex always was. Walls, counters, tables, doors—there were no sacred cows.

  Many of our daily spats were about the same thing: Daniel’s tidiness, and my proclivity for clutter. I’d go looking for something, and Daniel would have “put it away” for me. If he wasn’t home, I’d end up on a solo search and rescue mission, looking for the earrings I was positive I’d left on the dresser, or hunting down the most recent issue of Spin magazine which had been on the coffee table the last time I’d checked.

  One day in late July, I was wandering around in a T-shirt and panties looking for my gray shorts. I knew I’d left them on the chair beside the bed after unpacking from a couple of days away at the cottage. Rather than searching blindly, I solicited help.

  “Daniel!” He strolled in from the hall, looking at me distractedly. I gestured to the package of felt tacks in his hand. “What are
you doing?”

  “The felt is coming off the bottom of one of the armchairs. I don’t want it to scratch the hardwood. Did you call me?”

  “Yeah, I’m looking for my gray shorts. I left them on the chair. Have you seen them?”

  “Oh, I put them in the laundry.”

  “Daniel.” I went to fish them out of the hamper. “I wore those for half an hour after my shower at the cottage the other day. That’s why they were on the clothes chair.”

  He followed me into the closet. “You won’t find them,” he said. “They’re in the wash.”

  I stood up, my hands on my hips.

  “Sorry.” He shrugged and backed out of the closet.

  “It’s okay. I’m sure you were trying to help.”

  “Actually, I was trying to tidy up a bit.” He gestured to the books I’d piled on my nightstand and the assorted collection of jewelry and hair accessories on the dresser. “I’m trying to ignore it, poppet,” he assured me.

  I wrapped my arms around his waist. “I know you are. I’m the one who’s sorry.” I reached up to kiss his cheek. “You must feel like you’re bashing your head against a wall. I clean up one mess, and then I move somewhere else and make another one.”

  “It’s taking some getting used to.” He smiled.

  I reached for the package in his hand and peeled the backing from one of the felt tacks, sticking it in the middle of his forehead. He looked at me like I was certifiable.

  “What are you doing?” he asked.

  “I don’t want you to hurt your head when you’re bashing it against the wall.” I giggled.

  “You’re a lunatic.” He peeled the sticker off. “Ouch, I think I just waxed between my eyebrows.”

  I laughed harder at the red spot the sticker had left behind. “Now you have a bindi.”

  He tossed the package on the dresser and tackled me onto the bed.

  “You’re going to be the death of me, you know that?”