Scorpio Love

by S. Tamanaha

  “Always,” she said. “I don’t know how many lifetimes that we’ve shared, but I know that I have always loved you and I always will.”

  He wrapped her in his arms tightly. Finally, all of his fears were gone. He knew now that he never had to be afraid again of losing her—she would always be there, she would always be his.

  They decided to remain in Hawaii until his book was ready to be released. Susan began putting her sanctuary back in order. All the equipment going to Jackson was placed in storage. The pool was restored to its previous condition and the yard landscaped. Johnny kept out of sight whenever anyone came to work on the house as he had always done during those times when the pool was being serviced or repairmen had to be called. He continued with his walking, his workouts, and the now twice-weekly acupuncture and qigong sessions. He also began swimming in the pool again, in his element of water. He was able to climb the stairs easily and she put fresh sheets and bedding in the master bedroom so that they could love each other in her Universe like they used to.

  When the book was finally scheduled for release, Roy Avery arranged for Johnny to appear on the nationally syndicated Hannah Irving show to promote it on the condition that Johnny’s appearance would not be announced until the day of the show, which would be seen live in Los Angeles and in certain other areas of the country, including New Jersey.

  Johnny smiled when he read the email from Roy confirming his appearance. “Hey, come here,” he said. “Look at this.”

  She walked over and read the email. The show was airing on October 24th, her birthday, exactly three years since the day her dreams had brought them together for the first time.

  “How amazing is that?” he asked as he pulled her to him and kissed her.

  She returned his kiss and smiled. “I can’t think of a better birthday present than that.”

  Susan and Johnny had agreed from the beginning that no details of his therapy or his progress would be disclosed to anyone and that no one would be allowed to visit, including his family members and hers. She didn’t want anyone interfering with or distracting him from his therapy and he didn’t argue because he didn’t feel like seeing anyone. Susan maintained contact with friends and family through email and wrote letters to Johnny’s mother. Once Johnny had become accustomed to his routine and his therapy was yielding results, she asked him to write to his mother and to call her occasionally, but to say “no” if she ever offered to come to Hawaii. His mother did offer once while Johnny was on the phone with her and his almost angry response had guaranteed that she never made that offer again.

  “Because I don’t want you here,” Johnny had said. “There’s nothing that you can do to help and I’d just end up worried about you and wouldn’t be concentrating on the therapy. Just stay there and I’ll keep in touch.”

  Susan had written Johnny’s mother after overhearing that phone call and explained to her that Johnny’s condition made him frustrated sometimes and that he hadn’t meant to sound so harsh but that in light of how he was feeling and the challenges that he had, she should just write to him and be encouraging but not visit.

  Susan had gotten into a similar exchange with her sister, Vanessa, who had insisted, early on, that she needed help; handling the situation on her own would be too stressful.

  “I know you mean well,” Susan had said, “but I can’t let him see that look that’s on your face and in your eyes.”

  “What look?” Vanessa had asked defensively.

  “That look of pity. Johnny doesn’t need people around him who feel sorry for him. It’ll only make him start wondering whether the doctors are right. And they’re not.”

  “How do you know? You’re not a doctor.”

  “I know,” Susan had said, trying not to show her irritation. “I can’t explain to you how I know. I just do.”

  Whenever Susan had emailed, written, or spoken to anyone, she had never given them any details about Johnny’s condition. She simply told them that Johnny was getting better and that they were hopeful. Even when his condition improved dramatically, they kept it secret. They didn’t want anything or anyone impeding the progress or somehow jinxing the miracle that they knew was occurring. The only people who were aware of Johnny’s recovery were Johnny’s agent and his publisher and they had been sworn to secrecy.

  Now she emailed her family and her Hawaii friends, including the members of the band, and told them that everything that could be done had been done and that she and Johnny would soon be returning to Los Angeles. She invited them all to a farewell dinner. Everyone accepted her invitation; no one knew what to expect, but even the most optimistic of them thought that Johnny would be using a cane or some other sort of assistive device. He stayed out of sight.

  “Where is he?” Vanessa asked after all of the guests had arrived.

  “He’s on the phone with someone from L.A.,” Susan replied casually. “I’ll get him.”

  She made her way through the crowd to the side bedroom and went inside. When the door opened again, she stepped out with Angel in her arms and with Johnny following close behind her. Everyone was stunned. Not only was he walking normally, he looked handsomer and fitter than ever.

  He smiled his dazzling Scorpio smile. “Thank you all for coming,” he said.

  The room erupted with applause. Then everyone gathered around him, telling him how great he looked, how they couldn’t believe what they were seeing, and how happy they were for him.

  “Susan and I, and Angel of course, are leaving tomorrow for L.A.,” Johnny said. “I’ll be making my first television appearance since the accident on the Hannah Irving show on Friday, but since that show doesn’t air here live, we wanted all of you to see the results in person before we left and we wanted to thank you for your concern and best wishes these past months.”

  “He’ll be announcing the release of his book,” Susan said. “He’s written about his experience and his recovery. And he’s using the profits to build a rehab clinic here in Hawaii for spinal cord injury patients.”

  They all applauded again.

  “But don’t rush out and buy a copy,” Susan said. “I’ll send all of you a copy if you want one.”

  “Then you can read about how bossy she is,” Johnny said, grinning.

  “I am not bossy,” she said. “I hope you didn’t write that in your book. I knew I should have read the final version.”

  Everyone laughed.

  He put his arm around her. “Yeah, you’re bossy. But I’m glad. This wouldn’t have happened otherwise.” He gave her a kiss. “And we’d like all of you to meet Jackson Ames.” Johnny indicated the large, quiet man who had been standing off to the side. “He was here with us the entire time helping with the therapy and has become a good friend of ours. He’ll be running that clinic.”

  Everyone applauded again and greeted Jackson warmly.

  “Oh, and we’d like to keep his recovery quiet until he does make his appearance,” Susan said. “So please don’t telephone or email anyone about tonight until Friday. We just don’t want reporters calling and bothering him until after the show.”

  “So, what’s everyone waiting for?” Johnny asked. “Go ahead and help yourself to the food and drinks. Turn on that karaoke machine if you want and if you do, make sure that you get Jackson to sing. He’s terrific. It’s time to party!”

  After everyone had eaten, some of the guests went into the karaoke room while others, mostly her family members, relaxed on the patio and supervised her nieces who were enjoying the pool. Susan approached Gail and asked her for a favor. Gail was a hairdresser and Susan asked if she could give Johnny a light trim. Susan had been cutting his hair herself for all those months and had been getting good at it, but she wanted him to look his best when he went before the cameras. Gail happily agreed, feeling privileged that she would be cutting the hair of a star like Johnny.

  “Don’t cut too much, though,” Susan said. “He shouldn’t look like he just had a haircut, you know?”

/>   The cut was perfect. Susan offered to pay her, but Gail said that a photo of her with Johnny would be payment enough. She could hang it at the shop and be the envy of every woman who walked in. So Susan took a couple of pictures, printed them out, and had Johnny autograph them to Gail. She was thrilled.

  Then Susan and Johnny joined the group in the karaoke room. When they found out that Jackson hadn’t yet sung, they insisted that he do his rendition of “Everybody Needs Somebody”. When he did, the group went wild, laughing and clapping and singing along with him. After he was done, Jackson was immediately adopted by her karaoke friends and the band members and it made Susan happy. She and Johnny were standing at the back of the room near the entrance to the main living area. She patted him on the arm.

  “I’m going to put out the desserts,” she said.

  Johnny took her hand and kissed it.

  “No, stay right here. I have a little surprise for you.”

  He went over to the karaoke machine, found a disk and inserted it into the player. He stepped up to the microphone.

  “Sorry if I’m cutting in line but I’d like to do a special song for Susan. A long time ago, she sang this song to me when I took her to a karaoke bar in L.A. She said that she couldn’t sing country very well but wanted to sing the song for me because it was as though someone had written it just to express how she felt about me. I told her then that I wanted to learn it and sing it to her because I felt the same way. So, even though I’m no country singer, here goes.”

  Then he sang it—George Strait’s “I Cross My Heart”—in that deep, rich voice that made the song even more beautiful. She was completely surprised and moved to tears by the fact that he had remembered that night in L.A. and what he had said to her and had taken the time to secretly learn the song.

  When the song was over, everyone cheered and applauded loudly and Johnny returned to where Susan was standing near the doorway, crying.

  “I hope those tears mean that you liked it,” he said, smiling gently.

  She put her arms around him and hugged him tightly. “It was beautiful,” she said emotionally. “Thank you for remembering but ... when did you practice it?”

  “I tried to practice it a little every time you went out on errands. I told you in L.A. that I’d learn it and sing it to you. I wanted to keep my promise.” He lifted her face and kissed her gently. “I always want to keep my promises to you.”

  Her heart was filled with so much love for him—this good, strong man with a beautiful soul. She reached up and caressed his face. “Johnny ... ” she said, and once again, as she had done so many times in the past, she spoke his name with so much love that he felt her voice touch his soul.

  It was a wonderful night, and Susan knew that it would be a while until there was another night like it so she took a lot of pictures and videos. After everyone left, she cleaned up the house, took care of Angel, and then they both began packing for their return to L.A. In her suitcase she placed the two crystal globes and their mounts, wrapped very carefully in protective bubble wrap. It was going to be difficult to leave her sanctuary again—the place where they had fallen in love and that had helped to create a miracle in their lives. That night, they made love once more beneath the stars and the moon in her bedroom.

  “You’re going to miss it, aren’t you?” he asked as they lay together on the bed staring at her Universe.

  She nodded. “But I’ll be with you and that’s where I want to be.”

  “You know, I used to always be worried about the future. What was going to happen when the looks ran out or I wasn’t the right type for Hollywood anymore? Would I be financially set by then and in the position that I wanted to be? And then I met you and I worried about losing you and what we have together. And now, I’m not worried about any of those things. Because of the settlement funds, we’re good financially. Maybe we still aren’t rich by Hollywood standards, but the way that we live, we’re good. Better than good. And because of everything that you’ve done and what we talked about, I know now that we’re really forever and that’s brought me a kind of peace inside that I’ve never had before.”

  “I’m glad,” she said softly as she nestled closer to him.

  “Anyway, I was thinking that since we don’t have to live that old frugal lifestyle anymore, it’s time for us to build that sanctuary in L.A. We’ll have a salt water pool put in and one of these too.”

  “Really?” she asked. He could tell that the idea made her happy.

  “Really,” he said. “That way, you’ll have a special place up there while we’re there and this place when we come back every summer or at least a couple of months every year.”

  “What?” She raised herself up and looked at him in surprise.

  He smiled. “When they see me back in L.A. and the book’s released, I figure there’ll be a lot of initial publicity and appearances to make but it’ll die down. After that, I won’t need to be working the way that I used to. I can pick and choose the projects that I want to work on. Even if I end up getting another series, we’ll have more free time. We can come back here and spend that time. And that movie that I’ve always wanted to make—well, they’re talking about turning the book into a movie so it looks like I’m going to finally be able to do that too. If that happens, they’ll be shooting a lot of stuff here in Hawaii. I insisted on it. So we’ll be spending a lot of time here for that.”

  “Oh, Johnny,” she hugged him and he wrapped his arms around her tightly.

  She had given up so much for him and done so much for him with her love and never asked for anything in return except to be loved by him. He was so grateful now that he could finally do something tangible to make her happy. When she released him, he reached out and caressed her face gently, his eyes taking in the beauty and goodness of her.

  “I feel sorry for all the other people, you know?” he said softly.

  “What other people?” she asked as she turned her head to kiss his hand.

  “The ones who are together for all the wrong reasons.”

  She smiled then, showing the dimples that he adored. “Me too. They have no idea what they’re missing.”

  CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

  Johnny and Susan returned to Los Angeles the same way that they left—on a chartered jet which assured them their privacy and a more comfortable environment for Angel. When they arrived in L.A., they travelled by private car to their home. During their absence, Damien had been helping them to maintain their house by arranging for its cleaning and the necessary yard work, so he and Richard were the only ones that they had informed about their arrival. The two men were waiting at the house when the car drove up. Damien nearly burst into tears when Johnny stepped out of the vehicle.

  “It’s incredible!” he exclaimed. “I can’t believe it!”

  “Neither can I,” Richard said softly, remembering the last time that he had seen Johnny.

  “I hardly believe it myself,” Johnny said. “I want to thank you both for everything that you’ve done. You’ve been good friends to us and we’ll never forget it.” He shook their hands warmly.

  Susan, who was carrying Angel, tipped the driver who had carried their suitcases to the front door and then attached a leash to Angel’s harness and set her down.

  “Thank you,” she said, giving Damien and Richard a kiss on the cheek. “For everything.”

  She handed them a wrapped box that she had been carrying in her purse. “Just a small token of our appreciation. Not nearly enough to thank you properly.” She didn’t mention that the box contained travel vouchers for two open-ended expense paid trips to Hawaii for the both of them.

  Richard took her hand. “You said that you and he would do it and you did. I’m sorry if I ever had any doubts and I can’t tell you how happy I am for the both of you.”

  “I don’t know how I would have made it through those first few months without you and Damien,” Susan said softly, giving his hand a squeeze.

  “Listen,” Johnn
y said then, “I’m scheduled to appear on the Hannah Irving show tomorrow. We haven’t told anyone about it, or even the fact that we’re back in L.A., because we didn’t want to deal with any press or phone calls until after the show airs so we’d appreciate it if you didn’t say anything to anyone until tomorrow. I think I’m kind of nervous, you know. It’s been a while.”

  “We won’t say anything,” Damien promised, “until just before the show airs. Then I’m texting everyone because I want them to see this miracle. Oh, I put some food and drinks in the refrigerator just in case you were hungry. I’m so happy that you’re back. And once you’re settled in, you must let me throw you a welcome home party.”

  Richard shook his head and rolled his eyes a little and he and Susan smiled at each other.

  The following morning, as Johnny got ready to go to the studio, Susan sent a text message to certain individuals: “Johnny and I want to thank you for your best wishes and support all these past months. Please watch the Hannah Irving show today for an update. Love J/S”

  A private car had been sent by the studio to pick Johnny up a few hours before the show aired since he had to have his hair and makeup done. Before he left the house, he kissed her and held her tightly.

  “I’ve done a couple of hundred interviews,” he said quietly, “but this one ... ”

  Susan looked up at him and smiled. “You’ve got nothing to be nervous about,” she assured him. “They are going to absolutely love you. But never as much as I do.”

  He smiled then and kissed her once more before he picked up his garment bag and walked out of the door and into the waiting vehicle. After he left, Susan placed a special call to his mother in New Jersey, telling her only that they had a surprise for her and that she should watch the show.

  Most of the people who worked behind the scenes at the studio knew about Johnny’s accident and many of them were congregated near the entrance to the studio when he arrived, waiting to see him. When he stepped out of the car, he could see the stunned look on their faces. Then they began applauding and several of them walked over and shook his hand saying how wonderful he looked and how happy they were for him. He thanked them all very humbly and then got ready for the show and waited in the private lounge until it was time for his appearance. All over L.A., and in New Jersey, other people were waiting as well.