“And what about his back?” Virginia questioned. “It’s dangerous work he’s doing.”
“Yes it is, but he’s good at it and he’s making a difference.” Aidan handed her the martini. “Look, Virginia, you raised a good man, so why are you treating him like he’s a five year old again. You can’t control him, dictate what job he takes, how he lives, who he loves. If you keep it up, you will lose him completely.”
“Of all the impertinence,” Virginia feign indignant.
“Maybe so, but it’s true,” Aidan stated.
Virginia studied Aidan as she took a sip from her drink. She sat it down, and said bluntly, “Maybe I should let you take over for me. You’ve got a set of brass balls on you. Metaphorically speaking, of course.”
“I just call it like I see it,” Aidan emphasized.
“Well, you are right. Does that shock you?” Virginia asked.
“Yeah, actually, it does.”
Virginia picked up her drink, drank it dry, and set it on the bar. “I enjoyed our chat, Aidan. Let’s talk again after you become a parent, shall we.” Virginia didn’t wait for a reply, she turned and walked into the living room.
“What a wonderful job you two did decorating the apartment,” Alice stated as she walked up to Aidan.
The apartment was decorated in an Irish theme with green kettle pots full of chocolate shaped coins wrapped in gold. Banners with the words, Céad míle fáilte, meaning one hundred thousand welcomes, hung from wall to wall. Place cards on the buffet table full of Irish food read, Eat, drink and be Irish. Beside the bar stood an inflatable balloon shaped like a Guinness pint of beer.
Vicky was wearing a short, green velvet corset-style bodice over a white lace frilled top, and an orange skirt with green shamrock trim. Aidan was decked out in a Leprechaun costume, complete with the big, floppy hat with a silver buckle and green shoes that also had a buckle.
“Vicky did all the decorating, I just climbed up and down the ladder hanging stuff up where she told me to, and then taking it down and moving it to another wall.”
Alice laughed. “She gets that from me.”
“I wouldn’t complain if she gave it back to you,” Aidan joked, surprised when Alice laughed.
“Leonard feels the same way,” Alice chuckled.
“Everybody gather round!” Vicky called from the living room.
Aidan handed Alice her drink, and followed them into the living room, made smaller by having so many people in the room.
“Mom, Dad, you have the honor of going first,” Vicky said. “Please come up and go through the line. I’ll be waiting for you at the other end.”
Vicky had two oblong tables sitting end to end along two walls. At the beginning of the table, where Aidan stood, was a group of green-clothed grocery bags that read, Get your Irish on. Aidan picked up a bag and handed it to Alice, and then another one to Leonard. Inside the bag were things like Irish chocolate, coffee, and even a calendar with pictures of Aidan and Vicky exploring Ireland.
Laying on the table were souvenirs like T-shirts, cardigans, even men’s shorts, which made Alice giggle and Leonard blush as he held a pair up. There were Guinness Signature Lighters, slash Bottle Openers, Guinness Milk Chocolate Bars, Leprechaun Christmas ornaments, teapot cosy’s along with oven gloves and pot holders, all inscribed with an Irish blessing. Crystal candle holders, beer tankards and clocks, all with the Celtic design on them.
When they came to where Vicky stood at the opposite end, she presented her father with a sterling silver pocket watch with clover inlay trim and the word Dad on the face cover. And she gave her mother a sterling silver shamrock pendant with Connemara Marble and Marcasite gems, with the word Mom over the shamrock. Aidan joined Vicky at the end of the table. She picked up a bag and pulled out a gray Donegal touring tweed flat cap.
“Here, Pop. I picked this out just for you,” Aidan said, and handed him the cap. Aidan only picked out a few gifts while they were in Ireland, and that one was special to her.
Leonard put the cap on and adjusted it. “It’s perfect, thank you, Aidan.”
Aidan smiled proudly. Then she pulled out a violet silk scarf. “And this is for you, Mom.” Truth be told, Vicky picked that out for her mother, but insisted that Aidan give it to her.
“Oh, Aidan. It’s beautiful, thank you.”
“It’s your favorite color, right, Mom?” Aidan asked nervously. Her mother-in-law had warmed up to her, but she still intimidate Aidan by virtue of being her mother-in-law.
“Yes, it certainly is.” Alice said as she wrapped the scarf around her neck.
Aidan looked at Vicky and grinned.
Samantha and her baby followed behind Leonard and Alice, and when she started to pick up a bag, Aidan stopped her.
“Hold on a second, Sam” Aidan said as she walked over to her. “We’ve got a special bag for you and Cassidy.” Aidan knelt down and pulled a bag from under the table. It would had been cruel to give Samantha a calendar full of pictures of Aidan and Vicky on their honeymoon, so instead, they filled her goodie bag with everything except that. “There’s cool stuff in here for the baby, too,” Aidan explained, pulling out a baby Leprechaun suit with matching bootie socks, multi-colored toys like a plastic tool set and a pop-along dinosaur.
“That is cool, thank you,” Samantha said, as Aidan put it all back in the bag.
“You’re very welcome,” Aidan replied. “Help yourself to anything on the table and I think Vicky has gift just for you.”
Samantha looked at her and smiled. “I wasn’t expecting anything, Aidan, this is more than enough.”
“Vicky would be pretty upset if you didn’t accept her gift. She spent half our vacation shopping for just the right present for each of you.”
Samantha shifted the baby to her other hip and said, “All right, I guess I shouldn’t upset the hostess.”
“Can I hold Cassidy for you, Sam?” Aidan asked, walking around the table with her hands out.
Samantha handed the baby over to her and as Aidan cooed at him, she made her way down to where Vicky was waiting for her with a box in her hands.
“I hope you like it, Vicky said as Samantha pulled the lid off the box. “I had to guess at your size.”
Samantha pulled out a hand knitted, wine colored, Irish Merino wool shawl collar cardigan, with buttons down the front. She held it up and turned it around, then finally tried it on. “It’s beautiful, I love it. And it fits like it was made just for me,” Samantha stated as she modeled the cardigan.
“Oh, good. I’m so glad,” Vicky said.
“Thank you, Vicky. I’m always cold so this will help a lot,” Samantha said.
“Still haven’t gotten used to our crazy weather yet, have you?” Vicky asked.
“Not yet. And I’m still picking sand out of my hair,” Samantha joked.
Vicky and Aidan repeated the process until everyone had a bag full of gifts. By that time the smell of the food being prepared in the kitchen had everyone ready to eat. The souvenir tables were rearranged and Aidan helped Vicky cover them with tablecloths. Then Vicky, Alice, and Yvonne set the table and the chef brought out the food. A native of Ireland, Chef Quigley owned O’Brien’s Bar and Grill downtown, Vicky and Aidan’s favorite Irish pub, and did catering for fun.
He had prepared Irish salmon, poached and served with a white sauce, Irish stew, black and white pudding, colcannon mashed potatoes with cabbage, butter, and flavored with scallions. There was enough soda bread to feed an army, and for desert – Irish cream chocolate cheese cake, plum pudding, and sticky toffee pudding.
Chef Quigley brought in more soda bread and sat it in front of Vicky, who had already finished off one basket.
“Mom, how are you enjoying that black pudding?” Vicky asked as her mother looked at the round patty curiously.
“It’s different. I can’t quite put my finger on what’s in it though,” Alice replied, taking another bite.
“It’s a sausage made from pork blood, me
at, fat, and oatmeal,” Chef Quigley explained.
Alice swallowed quickly and smiled at him. “Thank you,” she said, and as soon as he left, she took a big gulp of Irish wine and swished it around in her mouth before she swallowed it.
“Are you all right, Mom?” Vicky asked mischievously.
“It’s payback, isn’t it? You’re paying me back for making you eat peas when you were a child.”
Vicky laughed and clapped her hands together. “Yes, Mom. I’ve been plotting for years, just to see that look on your face right now.”
“Are you sassing your mother, young lady?” Leonard asked sternly with a twinkle in his eye.
Vicky framed her face with her hands and cocked her head. “Now, Daddy, would I do that?”
Leonard laughed and winked at her.
“Are there any other surprises that you want to tell me about before I bite into something else?”
“You might be careful with the plum pudding, it’s addictive.”
Alice shook her head. “As long as it doesn’t have blood in it, I think I can handle it.”
Aidan wiped her mouth and looked at Vicky before she stood up. “Vicky and I have a couple of announcements. Well, they’re not really announcements, they’re more of a sort of… okay, they’re announcements. Uh, Sunday I’m giving a speech at the State House for Memorial Day. If you have nothing better to do, like watching grass grow, you are invited to attend.”
Everyone laughed, most of them knowing how much Aidan loathed giving speeches.
“And on Tuesday, the trial begins. If you would keep Vicky and me in your thoughts and prayers, we’d appreciate it.”
Heads nodded as they assure Aidan that they would.
“Uh, and I need to apologize to everyone,” Aidan continued. “I’ve been told that I’ve been a bear lately and I’m sorry for that.”
Richard held up his hand, “As the resident expert in psychology, I think we can all agree that in your case, it was completely justified. With that said, thank you to whoever it was that advised Aidan to stop being a bear.”
Aidan laughed as Jerry stood up and said, “You’re welcome.”
Chapter Seven
The old State House in Little Rock, the oldest state capitol building still standing west of the Mississippi River, exhibited the very patriotism it stood for back in 1836, when Arkansas became the 25th state in the union. American flags hung down between its antebellum columns, and bunting draped the balcony and the wrought iron fence at the entrance. Red, white and blue carnations, sitting in large flower pots painted the same colors, formed a circle around the cascading water fountain. The warm, breeze buffeted the small flags in the flower pots, and caused the larger Arkansas and American flags to wave patriotically.
People were gathering on the south lawn, in front of the civil war cannons, to celebrate Memorial Day. Aidan, who was dressed in her Army blues, with her medals and ribbons across her chest, nervously tugged on her jacket. She hated giving speeches but somehow, was about to give her third speech to a large audience. She had been so well received in Ireland, speaking to the politicians and dignitaries that word got back to Arkansas before she did. Perhaps that was due to her connection with President emeritus Jackson Trenton, who had spoken from these very same steps of the State House when he accepted the nomination for the presidency ten years ago.
“Honey, you look so handsome in that uniform,” Vicky said proudly. She ran a finger across the two Medal of Honor medals. “I want to rip it off and take you right here in the grass.”
Aidan hooted with surprise. “Oh, baby. How I wish you would, and save me from having to give this speech.”
“I told you, just speak from your heart. You always do so well when you talk about what’s in your heart.”
Aidan nodded. “I’ll try, but my knees are knocking just thinking about it.”
“Are you sure that’s not a reflex from envisioning me stretched naked across that cannon over there?”
“Damn, kid. It is now.”
Vicky stood on her toes and kissed Aidan on the cheek. “You’re welcomed.”
Vicky’s parents walked up and Leonard, a retired Marine who was also in uniform, saluted Aidan to show respect for the Medals of Honor that she wore, and Aidan returned the salute. Then they shook hands and hugged. Aidan always swelled up with pride when Leonard hugged her. Something so simple meant so much to her because it didn’t come from abuse, it came from love.
Samantha, a prisoner of war captured in Iraq, was also in uniform, and carrying her baby in her arms as she walked up to them. Samantha lived with Vicky’s parents while she continued the Army required mandatory sessions with Dr. Kline. It was the only way she could see her baby, but she had in fact, come to love living there, even with Leonard drilling her every day as part of her therapy.
Jerry, in his Army blues, walked up with Yvonne, on his arm and his soon to be step son, Freddie, by his side. His mother reluctantly followed along behind them.
“What a striking family you make,” Alice said, hugging Yvonne.
“If only you could convince his mother of that,” Yvonne whispered.
“Give it time, my dear,” Alice replied quietly.
President Trenton walked up to Aidan, who immediately came to attention, and saluted, along with Jerry, Leonard, Samantha, and Richard.
Trenton nodded at their respect. “At ease, please,” he said with a quick salute. “Aidan, I understand that you are donating your speaker’s fee to the Operation Homefront project.”
“Sir, it seemed like the right thing to do,” Aidan said stiffly.
“I agree, and if I were charging my usual fee, I’d like to think I’d do the same.”
“You’re not being paid to speak today, sir?”
“No. Not for something like this,” Trenton explained. “Being paid to memorialize our fallen soldiers is downright unpatriotic, if you ask me.”
“I totally agree,” Aidan said enthusiastically. “Uh, sir.”
Trenton smiled. “I’ll see you on the podium,” he stated and walked away, followed by a contingent of secret service agents.
Three cameras were trained on her, as Aidan walked up to the front of the stage. There was a camera in the back, behind the audience, and one on either side of her. She didn’t notice them as she shook hands with the people in the reserved seats of the front row. She spoke briefly with each one, thanking them for their service to their country. The men and women she was shaking hands with represented each branch of the military, and all of them were wounded soldiers. If the soldier used their feet because their arms had been shot off, Aidan shook hands with their foot. If they were in a wheelchair because they had no legs, Aidan knelt down to eye level and spoke with them.
“If everyone would be seated, please, we’ll begin the program,” the master of ceremonies said into the microphone.
Aidan noticed President Trenton walk to the stage and shake hands with other dignitaries on the dais. She continued shaking hands until she had thanked everyone on the front row. Then she walked up on stage, laid her notes on the podium, and looked for Vicky in the audience. As she had done in Ireland, she would concentrate only on her lover, until she could stand on her own. Vicky emitted such confidence and assurance, that it didn’t take long for Aidan to calm her nerves and speak from her heart.
“I’m not sure why they keep asking me to give these speeches. I’m not much of a speaker, so bear with me,” Aidan began nervously. “I, uh, am glad to see so many family members here today. Family is everything to a soldier. They are the reasons we go to war, and the reasons we fight so hard to return from war. They suffer as much, if not more than the soldier does.” Aidan took a slow breath to calm her pounding heart, then she continued.
“When I was hit by an RPG in Iraq, I ended up losing my memory. I was sent home and though I didn’t know it at the time, I ended up working for my childhood sweetheart, the same person that I had promised to marry someday. I can only imagine how h
ard it must have been for her, having to pretend that she didn’t know me. I remember seeing her cry for no apparent reason, and now I know it was because she knew our history but was advised not to tell me. She sacrificed her feelings so that I could heal.” Aidan paused for a moment, and again locked her eyes on Vicky, who had tears in her eyes. Aidan strained against her own tears as she continued. “That kind of agony is every bit as real and hard to bear as the pain and loneliness the soldier feels while serving this country. Thankfully I regained my memory and married my sweetheart. But there are so many military families out there who will never see their loved one again. This weekend is for them.” The audience applauded enthusiastically and Aidan took the opportunity to look at her notes. Damn, I lost my place again.
“A soldier doesn’t expect to be thanked for his service, but it feels really good when he is. What about his or her family? Who thanks them for their sacrifices? I’m talking to the soldiers in the audience. When was the last time you thanked your family for their sacrifices?” Several soldiers shrugged, a few shook their heads, and even fewer nodded.
“Will the soldier’s in the audience please stand up? It doesn’t matter if you’re still in the military or not, stand up. TEN HUT!”
Half the audience jumped to their feet and stood at attention, even those not in uniform.
“At ease,” Aidan instructed. “Now, turn to your family, your wives, husbands, brothers, sisters, children, parents, and say thank you. Thank you for your sacrifices, for your belief in me, for your love.”
A chorus of thank you filled the air as everyone stood and hugged each other. Leonard hugged and kissed Alice, and then Vicky, and although Aidan couldn’t hear it, she could see him say thank you. Jerry hugged his mother, who was shocked at first when he said thank you, but then teary eyed when he kissed her cheek. Freddie, not wanting to be left out though he wasn’t quite sure why they were all saying thank you, ran up to the stage before Yvonne could stop him, and waved up at Aidan. She jumped down and knelt in front of him, oblivious to the fact that the secret service had surrounded the boy.
I Won't Remember You (Aidan & Vicky Book 6) Page 8