Before I could wipe my falling tears, the door opened and closed, and there stood my precious grandmother looking beautiful as ever. Her hair was pulled back into a braided bun, her skin was lined, but flawless at the same time. Nana had a natural beauty about her, and she always said good living will keep you young. I guess she was right. You would never know she was in her late seventies. She dropped her bags, opened up her arms, and invited me in. Oh, I needed this hug, and somehow she knew. I cried onto her shoulder, and she stroked her hands up and down my back to soothe me, slowly releasing the tension I felt.
“Oh, my sweet girl, I kind of suspected I would be seeing you soon.”
Drying my eyes and looking into her eyes, I asked her, “How?”
“I keep track of Riley, and her…what do you call it? Tweets, yes, that’s what that is.” Riley just laughed and hugged Nana.
“How you even know about Twitter and the other social media sites are beyond me, Nana, but you never cease to amaze me.”
“Reese, you have to stay in the game nowadays, especially if you want to keep up with the youngsters. My lovely great granddaughter here showed me the ropes the last time she was here to visit. We now Skype with each other all the time. The kids at the shop showed me that pinning stuff. Now, that board is fun.”
“You mean Pinterest?”
“Yup, that’s the one. I put one of my croissant recipes on it, and last time I checked, I think I have over five thousand likes. It warms my soul to know my recipes are now in the cyber world.”
She smiled and laughed while hugging Riley. My head was spinning with Nana’s revelations. She knew social media and conducted video chats with my daughter, who never once mentioned this to me.
“So, girls, what do you think of our new additions to the family?” Nana asked.
“I love them! What are their names?” Riley asked. Granddaddy picked up one of the pups, and Nana picked the other.
“This is Socks,” Granddaddy answered.
“This is Pockets,” Nana replied.
“How did you come up with those names? I would have thought you would have picked a name like close to Bubba’s?” Riley asked Granddaddy.
“Well, Riley girl, Bubba was one of a kind, and no dog would ever replace him. But you know I like to hunt, and I figured it was time to have some companions with me. These two are brothers, and you never separate a family, so they both joined us.”
I smiled. “Granddaddy, why Socks and Pockets? Who came up with those names?” I asked again.
“I did,” Nana answered. “You see, Reese, these two little devils like to chew up your Granddaddy’s socks and roll around in his shirts, tearing at least one or two pockets a week. I do more mending to his shirts than ever before. I figured they were the perfect names for these two.”
“Well, they are fitting. I’m so happy for you, and Riley sure loves them.”
I immediately felt better, and Granddaddy took our bags upstairs to my old bedroom. Nana once again never changed it, leaving it how I remembered. I took in the fresh flowers sitting on my side table, and the rollaway bed was in place. How did she know to bring out the rollaway bed? I turned to my Nana, and she simply replied “Twitter.” Apparently Nana had known all along that we were visiting today, but she played it cool as always. Once we were settled in, Riley and Granddaddy took a walk by our pond, while I stayed behind for my talk with Nana.
She had prepared tea and scones for our talk. She poured me a cup on her fine china and one for herself. She handed me a scone and placed one for herself. She gestured for me to take a bite, but my stomach was in knots already. Nana knew me like no other, and simply nodded with understanding and waited for me to start.
“Nana, I don’t even know how to begin this conversation with you. I’m at a loss for words.”
She placed her tea down and wiped her mouth with her linen napkin. She reached for my hands and folded them in with hers.
“Reese, in every story you have a beginning, a middle, and an ending. How about you start from the beginning, and we take it from there?” Tapping my hands, she sat back and gestured for me to begin.
“I have filed for divorce from Samuel.” I practically spit out, as I struggled with those seven words. Nana was silent, but encouraged me to go on. “Nana, I already came to the decision to leave my marriage, but after talking with you, I had completely accepted my decision. I promised myself not to waver or let Samuel change my mind. He stopped me before, and this time I was leaving for good. I truly did my best throughout the years, but I wasn’t happy, just existing, and I wanted more than he was willing to give. He’s a good man, Nana, but he will be better for someone who truly can love him the way he deserves.”
“I couldn’t agree with you more, Reese. You and your doctor husband were never a good match.”
“Really? That’s how you felt all this time? Nana, why didn’t you ever say anything?”
“Why would I do that, Reese? You seemed to have made up your mind about him, and I wasn’t going to stand in your way of something you truly wanted.”
“I didn’t want Samuel, Nana! I wanted Walker!”
“I know that too. Now why don’t you tell me the real reason why you left Walker, and don’t even try to tell me any foolish stories. I want the truth, Reese. I see the burdens that you have carried on your shoulders all of these years. You have spent so many years hiding what you feel from me. I never could understand why you couldn’t bring yourself to confide in me. Haven’t I always given you the impression that you can tell me anything? Do you even know how much that hurt me; to know that I couldn’t help you, because you shut me out and simply didn’t trust me?”
“Not trust you? Oh, Nana, that was never the reason. Nana, please forgive me? I never meant to ever hurt you. I did this to protect you and Granddaddy, never to hurt you.”
“I know that too, but why, honey? Granddaddy and I come from strong Irish stock. We are tough, through and through. As long as we are together, no one can ever hurt us. That fact was lost on you, Reese. You stopped believing in our family’s strength and allowed Walker’s father to run you off like a scared rabbit, never to be heard from again. Am I wrong, honey?”
Nana had never been more on the mark than she was right now. How could she have known the truth about me leaving Walker, and not tell me all of these years? She was just as guilty of keeping secrets like I was.
“Yes, it’s true. Walker’s father, Phillip Reed, forced me out of his life. How did you know this, Nana?”
“I suspected, honey, but never knew until you just confirmed it. I had a few conversations with Walker, and he told me about his father and how his father would stop at nothing to control his son’s life. When Walker showed up here after you left New York, that poor boy was left devastated and lost. He was desperate to find you, and it broke my heart that I couldn’t help him. Had I known where you were, I would have told him, Reese. I suspect that’s why you didn’t tell me your location.”
“I couldn’t, Nana. It was too dangerous, and I was being watched at all times. Please just let me give you the short version. I don’t think I could take this for much longer.”
“You tell me what you can, and we will deal with the rest later.”
“Nana, I loved Walker with all my heart. We were planning a life together, and the plan that Phillip designed for his only son did not include the country girl from Georgia. No matter how I tried to reason with him, or ignore him completely, he just hated me on sight and plotted against me. Walker and I actually confronted him once, and Walker thought he had a put an end to his father’s machinations, but it only angered Phillip more.”
I went on, “My last night spent with Walker was magical. We made love and committed ourselves to the promises made that night. I knew a marriage proposal was coming, but he never got the chance to ask me. The morning I woke, Walker had left to run some errands, and an emergency at the office detained him from returning home to me. Another strategic move planned by hi
s father. To my surprise, Phillip and his lawyer, Miles, showed up and barged right in to Walker’s apartment. I had no choice but to listen to what they had to say.”
I took a break, and sipped my tea to calm my nerves. The next piece of my story would certainly anger my Nana. “Phillip’s lawyer handed me two envelopes, one contained the naked modeling photos of me, and he threatened to use the pictures to hurt me. The second envelope contained documents on this home, property, and your business. Phillip told me that if I didn’t leave his son, then he would own everything you and Granddaddy had and destroy our family.”
I began to sob to Nana as I said, “I begged and begged him not to hurt you, but he said this was my fault for not listening to him, and now it would be me destroying my family, not him. I couldn’t let him hurt you, Nana! So I did what he told me to do. He thought of everything. All I had to do was get on a plane and never bother his son again.”
“Oh, my sweet girl, how could you go through this and not tell me? That man didn’t have the power to just buy our home and land without us knowing. He tricked you, honey, and fed off your fear. He knew your Achilles heel and played it perfectly against you. Don’t you know we would have fought that bastard with all that we had? I know you believe you were doing the right thing by us, but all this proved was your unhappiness in the end, and the love of your life living day after day without you.”
“There’s more, Nana. I was pregnant with Walker’s child.” I watched Nana close her eyes and lean her head back onto her chair. “Nana, I wanted his child more than anything, but I never got the chance to tell him about the baby. For the next three months, I tried to talk and see him, but every time I tried, my efforts were stopped by his father or bodyguards. Walker was untouchable, and then I got sick. I was so sick that I miscarried and lost my last piece of Walker.”
Nana got up from her chair and walked into the kitchen to splash water on her face. I tried to comfort her, but she put her hands up to me. She asked for a minute to process all I had told her. I walked out of the kitchen and back to my seat in the living room. I hurt her, I know I did. What seemed like hours was really only ten minutes? Nana had returned and sat down beside me. She wrapped me up into her arms and let me cry out my lost years with Walker and the pain it had caused me.
“I’m so sorry, Nana. Please say you forgive me?”
“Oh, my precious girl, don’t you know there is nothing to forgive? You could never do anything that would ever make me not love you and hold you in my arms like I am right now. You’re our most precious gift God has ever given us. We thought we were blessed with our son, but then he had you and it was the best day of our lives.”
“You can’t change the past, Reese. It is what it is. You need to let it go if you’re ever going to be happy in your future.” She kissed the top of my head and poured some fresh tea.
“Nana,” I say just barely above a whisper, “I wasn’t finished with my story.”
“Before you begin, do I need to drink something stronger than tea?”
I laughed, and so did Nana.
NANA AND I were both calmer and, thank goodness, got through the tough part of my story. I was still treading lightly on what I was to tell her next, but she had this gleam in her eye that told me that she knew what was coming.
“Do you remember my trip to New York with Riley?” I asked her. She nodded, and I continued. “That trip changed my life. Riley’s boyfriend turned out to be Walker’s son from his marriage to his friend Elizabeth. Our children met over a year ago, became friends, now a couple, and they will be attending the same college in New York. I never knew this until I walked into the restaurant and met his father…My Walker. We were completely shocked and taken aback with each other. Not knowing what to do, we just pretended to not know one another until we found an appropriate time to talk.”
I added, “Our actions confused our kids, and when they finally went their separate ways, Walker demanded the truth from me as to why I left him. I was in no shape to discuss this with him so I ran from him, but he had other ideas. Walker manhandled me on the city street and placed me in his limo. We drove around the city, talking for hours, until I was completely exhausted. My truth destroyed him, Nana. I just wanted to climb inside his arms and be with him again.”
I went on, “Our feelings hit us like a freight train and blindsided us both. He never stopped loving me, and I told him the same. He raised Jackson by himself after his wife passed away during childbirth. He’s been on his own all of these years. I explained my life with Samuel and how he helped me after I lost our baby. Walker vowed he would reclaim us again, and after I told him my plans of divorcing Samuel, our fates were once again sealed with one another.”
I continued, “For the better part of the trip, I had spent every waking minute wrapped up in Walker, until Samuel surprisingly showed up. Samuel whisked me and Riley away to the Caribbean to fix our marriage. He wouldn’t listen to me and denied the divorce. I felt like I was cheating on Walker with my own husband. Not taking the news well, Samuel and I fought, and he slapped me and then shoved me. I ended up falling and hitting my head.”
“Oh, dear lord! I will skin his ass alive. How dare that man put his hands on my granddaughter?”
“Nana, please don’t get upset. You don’t understand what happened down there. I provoked him and pushed him to his limits. He hit me out of panic, and once he realized what he did, he was sorry.”
“Oh please, Reese! Wake up and smell the chicory coffee. No man, and I mean no man, should ever lay their hands on a woman. I feel like breaking those surgical fingers of his.”
Throughout this exhausting talk with Nana, I finally was able to smile and laugh. Nana had just said the exact same words Walker had said to Samuel. Oh my goodness, they are so much alike, it’s kind of scary and funny.
“Nana, please calm down. Samuel was devastated after he hit me, and knowing that I planned on reuniting with Walker just sent him over the edge. We talked it out, and I don’t hold it against him. For me, this is over, and I just want to move on. He is Riley’s father, and he will always have a place in our life.”
“Reese, if that man ever thinks of hurting you again, I swear as long as I draw breath, he will regret it.” I hugged her with all I could, and then tried to finish up and tell her the good part of my story.
“Nana, my divorce to Samuel will be finalized very soon, and once that happens, Walker and I plan to marry right away.”
“As it should have been all those years ago. Oh my sweet girl, you and Walker now have your second chance at forever. You must take each other’s hands and stay together this time. Fight for it this time, and never ever let anyone stop you from being happy and in love with one another. You promise me this.”
“I promise, Nana, that this time with Walker will be forever and I promise that my days of running are over. He knows everything and still wants me. Our kids are working it out, and we can only hope they remain happy. But they’re young, so who knows?”
“I know. I knew from the moment I met your Walker. That man loved you with all he had, and I should have pushed you harder, Reese. I always sensed something was holding you back, but it was your life, and I knew I couldn’t make up your mind for you. I’m so sorry that we were the reason you lost your love.”
“Nana, isn’t it you who always told me that everything happens for a reason, and we’re not meant to understand what God challenges us with? Well, I’m done trying to figure it out. Walker and I have both have had our share of loss, pain, and times of despair. That is over now, and through some magical force in the universe, we found our way back to one another. We have the rest of our lives to be in love and happy. I’m so much stronger now, and I truly believe in love and what I feel for Walker. I completely trust him to guide us down the path that will lead to our happily ever after.”
A man’s voice sounded from behind me. “Well, that’s good to know, baby, because I plan on making you happy every day for the rest of your lif
e.”
I turned around to see Walker standing there in my Nana’s living room, armed with two bouquets of flowers.
“Walker!” I broke away from Nana, and ran right into my man’s arms, forcing him to drop the flowers. “I am so happy to see you!”
I took his gorgeous, chiseled face into my hands and crashed my lips onto his mouth. I had no shame in kissing him like that in front of Nana. This was the reunion she had always hoped for, so why be bashful now? We slowed our breaths and he held me secured to his chest.
“I’m home,” I whispered for only him to hear. He kissed me behind my ear and whispered, “Forever.”
After our extreme PDA moment, Walker introduced his son to Nana. She immediately hugged Jackson and welcomed him in to her home. Riley was very forthcoming with information about Jackson. I was still in shock about how much Nana kept in touch with Riley. They had their own special relationship, as I always had with Nana.
Walker and Nana embraced and hugged for a few minutes. He looked so happy to be reunited with her, and she wore the same expression on her face. It looked like an expression of knowing that after all of these years, she was relieved that her prediction came true. I had found my true love when I left home all those years ago, and although circumstances separated us, that love had found its way back to us.
“You look amazing, Lila. I have missed you and thought of you often throughout these last years. How’s Thomas? Is he here?”
“He is, but he’s out with Riley now.”
I guessed that answered Jackson’s unspoken question. He appeared to be nervous standing there in our home. I walked over to him and gave him a hug.
“Jackson, are you okay? You look a little pale. Can I get you anything? Water, perhaps?”
“I’m fine, Mrs. Briggs.”
Second Chance at Forever Page 31