A Merry Little Christmas

by Melanie Schuster

  Opinions varied in his family but the only neutral vote was his brother Adam. Big Benny was very fond of Angelique and referred to her as Babydoll, that “little spunky gal.” For some reason they’d always gotten along like a house afire and he was rather pleased they were married. Andrew also was supportive, as he knew Angelique better than the other brothers. Alan and Andre, the legal counsel for Cochran Communications, were frankly livid. They had nothing against Angelique personally; they simply couldn’t believe their brother would do something so foolhardy without so much as a prenuptial agreement.

  “From a legal standpoint, this is like suicide, Donnie,” Andre had railed. “Our companies are connected and you take this foolish step without considering what it could mean to us from a fiscal standpoint. That little girl could cause us untold grief when you divorce.”

  It was his casual use of the word divorce that had really rankled Donnie; the assumption that there was no way they could possibly stay together, that she was too fickle to maintain a relationship. It was all there in Andre’s tone of voice. Donnie had wasted no time in letting his brothers know what time it was, that this was his business and had nothing to do with them and that if they even thought anything unkind about Angelique, they’d have him to answer to. Considering the fact that he’d always been exceptionally close to his family, the new coolness governing them was galling, to say the least. Donnie was taking out his angst on the celery now, chopping it with a good deal more vigor than was called for. But his conversation with his brothers was still weighing on his mind, especially the part where Andre had reminded him that a mere two months ago he had proposed to another woman.

  “You were ready to marry Aneesah before Christmas and now you’re married to Angelique Deveraux. I don’t know what a shrink would have to say about this, but it doesn’t sound to me like you know what you’re doing, Donnie.” Andre’s smug tone had almost made Donnie lose his temper.

  “Just leave Aneesah out of this, Andre. She has nothing whatsoever to do with any of this.” Donnie’s voice would have frightened anyone but an older brother; Andre had persisted with his questions.

  “Does Angelique even know you were engaged to Aneesah?”

  “No, she doesn’t, and she doesn’t need to know. The only people I told were my brothers and their wives. Pop doesn’t even know I asked her. So as long as my brothers keep their mouths shut, it’s a nonissue,” he said with icy finality.

  As the soup began to simmer and the fragrant aroma filled the kitchen, he looked at Angelique who had volunteered to make cornbread to complete the meal. She looked thinner than usual, and pale. He knew it was due to the stress she’d been under and the strain of her family’s disapproval. Plus, she was in the midst of preparing for her exhibit and needed serenity more than anything. If he could have thought of another way to handle that mob of reporters at the hotel, he would have. But acting like a happy couple had been the quickest way to defuse the bomb of inaccurate media coverage, and it had worked. He also never wanted anyone to know the truth behind their wedding; he felt that would hurt Angelique even more. So they had decided to stay married for a while and think of some logical reason to part after all the hoopla and speculation had died down.

  It wasn’t a perfect plan by any means but it was the first thing he could come up with. What he wanted more than anything at this point was to protect Angelique from any kind of humiliation or shame. They’d both been a little crazy that night, no question, but why should she have to suffer for it? The gist of the story had finally come out when Matt and Nicole had returned from their island honeymoon. They had supplied the details the champagne had taken away. Nicole had called and Donnie and Angelique each got on an extension.

  “You two started drinking champagne on the plane and you were both a little silly,” Nicole reported. “And while we were doing all that waiting around you drank some more. And some more," she added gleefully. “And the more you drank, the happier you got and the more affectionate you got. You guys were holding hands and kissing and talking mush talk and after we got married you decided that you had to get married too, and you did. It was really sweet; Matt and I were your witnesses. Then you decided to go to the Bellagio and we went off to the airport and didn’t hear anything about it until we got back, but we didn’t really pay it any attention because we were there, you know? We knew what went on so we weren’t worried about it. Maybe we should have stopped you two, but you looked so happy.”

  Even though it was good to have some details supplied it didn’t answer the big question of how and when the inevitable divorce would occur. And it didn’t answer the question that kept nagging at Donnie, the question of why there had to be a divorce at all. For a reason he couldn’t explain, the very idea of divorcing Angelique was one he didn’t want to contemplate. He wasn’t ready to say why, but he knew he wanted to stay married.

  ***

  Paris and Lisette looked at each other and then looked at Angelique, who definitely was not acting like herself. She was quiet and distracted and picking at her food. Since Lisette had made a fabulous meal, she was naturally concerned that her friend wasn’t eating.

  “Angelique, what’s the matter? Surely you can tell us, you know we’d understand, whatever it is,” she said comfortingly.

  Paris reached over and stroked her cousin’s arm. “Look, Angelique, after you explained the whole situation with the so-called wedding, we kept it on the down low, didn’t we? Even after those brothers of yours were raking me over the coals, I kept my mouth shut. That’s between you and Donnie and nobody else needs to know. I know pretending to be in a real marriage is hard, and I know you must have some things to get off your chest, so tell us what’s going on, sugar,” she coaxed.

  Angelique made a little face and tried to smile. “I’m sorry I’ve been such a pain. I just have a ton of stuff on my mind like the exhibit, for one thing, and my family for another. I think I broke my mother’s heart, my stepfather is upset with me because I upset her, my brothers think I’m an idiot and I’m pretty sure I’ve permanently offended God by making a drunken mess of the marriage vows. The person I respect more than anyone, A.J., is so disgusted with me, we’re barely speaking. Oh, and before I forget, I don’t want to divorce my husband. Other than that, everything is just peachy,” she said bitterly.

  Lisette and Paris both lit up at that last piece of information. Lisette jumped up and removed the remains of dinner, chattering like a magpie as she did so. “Forget this stupid pasta; we can always nuke it later. This calls for dessert and right now. Paris, you get the plates and I’ll get the gateau and then we’ll talk.”

  Soon the aroma of strong espresso was scenting the room and the women were sharing an intensely rich flourless chocolate cake with creme fraiche and raspberries. Confidences just seemed to flow when there was high quality chocolate at hand. Paris was naturally the first one to speak up.

  “So you don’t want to divorce Donnie even though that was the plan? You want this to be like a real marriage? When did you come to that conclusion?” she asked with ill-concealed curiosity.

  Angelique sighed and looked at the morsel of cake on her folk before devouring it. This was the first thing that had tempted her appetite in days; chocolate had always been her weakness. “I don’t know exactly when I realized I didn’t want to let him go, but I can’t pretend I don’t care about him. He’s been so sweet to me, so kind and caring and just... sweet. He made me soup one day, really good soup. He won’t let my family say anything bad about me, or his family, either. And he doesn’t act like it was all my fault. He says he’s to blame, too. He hasn’t yelled at me one time, and that includes when I was screaming at him after he told that pack of reporters we were married for real.”

  She shuddered slightly at the memory and ate the last bite of her cake. “May I have some more, please? This was wonderful.”

  Lisette served her the cake and asked what she meant about screaming at Donnie.

  “Oh, girl, you sh
ould have seen me,” she said, making an embarrassed face. “I went ballistic because he was acting all cool and suave like this was a real wedding, and he never said a word to me about what he was going to do. He just blurted it out at the hotel and I had to go along with it. And he did the same thing after we got home, he just told everybody that this was our business and to stay out of it. It was the best thing to do, I guess, but it was just driving me crazy that he could be so cool and tell all those lies without blinking an eye. So I went off on him. More than once, I might add, and he never yelled at me or told me I was being a spoiled brat, which I was.” She sighed.

  Paris and Lisette were completely captivated by this story and were both leaning forward on the milk-painted farmhouse kitchen table. Paris wanted more information. “So did you ever apologize?”

  Angelique stopped with another bite of cake halfway to her mouth. “Of course I did, I’m not a heathen. At least, not anymore,” she amended. “I apologized the next day and he was very nice about it. He even hugged me....” Her voice trailed off and she remembered that morning in great detail, the fact that they’d been in the kitchen and that Donnie was still getting dressed and had on a wife-beater and an old flannel shirt he’d yet to button. The memory of his hard, flat stomach and the glimpse of the silky hair on his chest still made her heart beat erratically.

  Paris, bless her nosy heart, zeroed right in on that expression. “You also realized that you’re married to a big ol’ sexy man, didn’t you? You really want him, cousin, in every way. So why don’t you get him?”

  By now the second piece of cake was gone and Angelique stared unhappily at her plate. “I can’t ‘get’ him, Paris. Just because he’s being really sweet to me doesn’t mean he wants me, too. And I’ve told you before, I’m not his type. I’m not a woman he’d ever go for, I’m just some pitiful child he feels sorry for right now. I’m stupid, I’m not crazy,” she muttered.

  By mutual agreement Paris and Lisette both gave her a playful smack on the back of the head. When she looked up in surprise, Lisette told her, “We said we would do that if you started being mean to yourself again. You have to be honest with him, you simply must. Besides, I don’t think you know what you’re talking about this time. Come with me, cher, I have something to show you.”

  Mystified she and Paris followed Lisette into her second bedroom she had outfitted as a small, feminine study. She took out a manila folder and handed it to Angelique. “Look at that picture and tell me the man is indifferent to you! You can’t do it, can you?”

  Angelique opened the folder and there was a newspaper photograph of her and Donnie as they were leaving the Bellagio. Their coats were over their left arms in deference to the Nevada heat. Donnie’s right arm was around her waist and he was looking down at her as though she was the most precious thing in his universe. Her face was turned toward his and they looked radiantly in love, even in the midst of the media ambush. Without realizing what she was doing, Angelique’s fingers touched the image of Donnie’s face. She looked more unhappy than ever.

  Lisette looked shocked at the sadness in her friend’s face. “What is it, Angel? Don’t you see how much he cares for you?”

  “No, I don’t. Don’t forget, I’m a photographer. And I know better than anyone that pictures do lie.”

  Lisette disagreed with her at once. “Angel, I’ve seen you together and you’re not alone in your feelings. He cares for you, I can tell. If you want this marriage to be real, you have to make it so. Tell him how you feel. I finally told Warren I was the one who had caused his engagement to be broken and you know how afraid I was to do that.”

  This news caused Angelique to forget her own situation for a moment. “You’re kidding. What did he say?” she demanded.

  Smiling for all she was worth, Lisette told them. “He had just told me he loved me and I told him I loved him, too, but I had to tell him something. We sat down and I explained how angry I’d gotten when that wretched Tracy said those terrible things about him and I wanted him to know what kind of creature he was about to marry. I told him how I set the whole thing up, how I plotted and schemed. Then I shut up and I waited. I just knew he was going to be furious and I was waiting for him to say something terrible to me. Instead, he started laughing. He laughed and laughed, and when he could talk he told me he’d always suspected I’d done it on purpose and he’d always wanted to thank me for keeping him from the biggest mistake of his life. And the next day he bought me this, the sweet man,” she cooed as she showed them a delicate gold chain with a sizable round diamond in the middle.

  “So, telling the truth brought us even closer together. You should tell Donnie how you feel, Angel. What could you possibly lose?”

  “Besides my sanity and what’s left of my dignity? My heart, probably.” She looked at her digital watch, which was buzzing. She’d set it to alarm because she had to leave early. “Look, thank you for dinner, it’s my turn next. I hate to run, but I have an assignment. There’s this wonderful black hockey player and I get to take pictures of him for Sports Illustrated—Jarome Iginla with the Calgary Flames. He’s one of the best players in the NHL and quite handsome, too. A.J. is taking me to the Red Wings game tonight.”

  The three women went into the living room, where Lisette fetched Angelique’s coat and purse. Paris gave her cousin a big hug and reminded her that it was always better to tell the truth. “I think you’re going to get a better reaction that you know,” she said.

  Lisette concurred. “Tell him how you feel, Angel. That was the advice you gave me and see how well it worked out?”

  Angelique looked from one dear friend to the other and threw up her hands in defeat. “I’ll think about it, I really will,” she promised.

  A.J. arrived to collect her for the Red Wings game and she left, saying she’d call later. Paris looked at Lisette and predicted that her stubborn cousin wouldn’t say a thing. “But that doesn’t mean I won’t. They don’t call me Martha May matchmaker for nothing.”

  ***

  From the looks they were getting from the female patrons, Donnie, Warren and Adam were the best-looking men in Champps, a big sports-type bar in Farmington. It was a rare occasion when Adam took time off just to hang out, but tonight seemed to be a good time. Donnie was in the mood to talk and Warren and Adam were his best sounding boards. They had finished their meals and were waiting for dessert. At least, Adam and Donnie were; Warren had sworn off all sweets. Donnie couldn’t resist a crack.

  “What’s the matter, man, Lisette got you on a diet?” he asked with a grin.

  “No, as a matter of fact she acts like she thinks I’m cute, which is real strange. I’ve never had a woman who didn’t start trying to get me to lose a few pounds. Lisette never says anything about my weight or how much I eat,” he said in a tone of wonder and gratitude. “But I need to lose some weight for me, you know what I mean. Lisette could have anybody in the world and I don’t want her to think she has to be stuck with the fat doctor.”

  Donnie scoffed at Warren’s concerns. “Warren, Lisette is crazy about you. You could gain fifty pounds and you’d still be her teddy bear, don’t be stupid. What’s your cholesterol? What’s your blood sugar? What’s your heart rate? Are you healthy? Because you’ve been thick ever since I met you. Look at your dad and mom, they’re both big and both healthy.... Aww, look at me preachin’ to the choir. You’re the doctor—how’s your health?”

  “It’s fine, thanks for asking,” Warren said sardonically. “If you must know, this is a matter of vanity, not health. But speaking of health, what have you done to Angel? She’s lost a lot of weight, man. I don’t think she’s too happy right now.”

  It came as a complete surprise to Donnie when Adam agreed with Warren. “Yeah, bro, what are you doing to my sister-in-law? She’s supposed to be blooming right now and she looks wilted. If you can’t take better care of her than that, you need to send her to me,” he said, giving Donnie a hard look.

  Donnie’s arm moved abruptly a
nd he knocked his water goblet over, spilling the contents onto the floor. Warren and Adam looked at each other before looking back at Donnie, who was obviously furious.

  “Look, I know Angel is unhappy and I’m doing everything I can to make it right,” he said. “There’s a lot going on you don’t know about and I’d just as soon keep it that way; it’s too personal. But no, she’s not happy with the way the families reacted and I can’t blame her. She’s not happy about all the press coverage, and I wasn’t either. She’s trying really hard to make her exhibit perfect. Did you know she’s donating all the proceeds to charity? There’s a lot more to her than people realize. She’s smart and funny and she’s a good listener, she’s a darned good cook and she’s the most organized woman I’ve ever met in my life.” He shook his head. “She’s kind of frightening that way, as a matter of fact.”

  Warren had to pick at him a little. “So you went shopping without a list and look who you ended up with, Cochran.”

  Donnie looked blank for a moment until he realized what Warren was talking about. “Aww, don’t go there, Warren. All those grocery lists and special qualifications, that was just a bunch of crap,” he admitted.

  Now it was Adam’s turn to dig. “But you were ready to marry Aneesah just a few months ago. You were all messed up because she’d turned you down. Are you sure this isn’t just some kind of rebound?”