“You’ll ruin the surprise if you do that,” Mitchell chastised, and Kendra smiled at him and his words.
“What surprise?” she asked and heard him chuckle at that.
“You can’t honestly expect me to answer that.”
“Where are the kids?” she asked.
“Believe it or not, but they’re both in bed,” he said, and she could hear the astonishment in his voice as he spoke.
“Is that my surprise?” she asked.
“Part of it, but not one that I could reliably plan on, so no, not really.”
“Well, what is it then?” she asked before he chuckled and just directed her forward, without removing his hand from over her eyes.
“Come on, just follow my lead,” he urged, and she smiled at that before frowning slightly.
“I don’t like being left in the dark,” she murmured and heard him sigh.
“This isn’t the same thing, this is a surprise, not a lie,” he declared, and she found herself surprised that he’d even think that was what she’d meant.
“I wasn’t accusing –”
“I know.”
“Well, what made you say it then?” she asked in concern.
“I guess my mind’s been going down memory lane since earlier today,” he said sadly.
“I didn’t mean to –”
“I know. You weren’t trying to guilt me. I know that you’ve put it behind you, but I suppose every now and again I wonder if I’ve done enough to prove to you that you were right to trust me again and give me another chance,” he confessed, and she stopped walking at his words.
Determinedly pulling at his hand, she turned around to stare up into his blue eyes and spoke honestly and from the heart.
“You’ve done plenty, Mitchell. That’s why I wanted to celebrate today. When you came to me completely open, honest, and exposed, when you confessed to all that you’d done, it was a fresh start, a new beginning for us, and I wanted to remember that, to celebrate that. I never meant to bring it up in an attempt to make you doubt yourself. It was a turning point for us, a pivotal moment that set us on our course for life.
“I would never have married you if I’d had any doubts, if I’d had even a sliver of a concern that you’d hide behind more masks and lies. I knew that you wouldn’t repeat that mistake. And that was why I was able to be so open with you in return,” she explained. It had been a long time since she’d thought about her addiction. It reared its head every so often, but her husband was always there for her to turn to, to rely on, to help her in her troubled moments.
“I’m not sure I’ll ever truly deserve you,” he said sincerely, and she smiled at that.
“And I often think the same thing,” she replied. “Maybe that’s what makes us so well suited.”
“Well, that and the fire that we create in each other,” he said, and her smile widened. It wasn’t that shocking igniting that burned between them now, but rather a comfortable warm glow that was constant and reassuring. Kendra often thought of it as a warm fire on a winter’s day. The one place you always wanted to be, and always felt comfortable and relaxed.
Not that they didn’t still experience passion, but it was so much better now, so much more a part of them and their life. It was something that she couldn’t even imagine being without. And it was something that was always simmering beneath the surface between the pair of them, even now.
Before she managed to get distracted by the look in her husband’s eyes, and the fact that his hands were tightening on her waist, she pulled back and looked around herself, gasping as she did so.
“What’s all this?” she asked in surprise.
“Your surprise,” he said as he released her waist and pulled her towards the table with him. Numbly moving towards the chair, she sat down and took in the romantic layout with candles and flowers everywhere.
Studying it all more closely and sniffing the air, she could detect the aroma of Betsy’s cooking and smiled up at her husband.
“Remember how my proposal didn’t quite go as planned?” he asked, and she shook her head as she remembered the circumstances surrounding the moment so many years ago. “This is my do-over,” he stated. “My chance to do it how I’d wanted to the first time. And our chance to celebrate without any interruptions,” he murmured as he leaned down to kiss her deeply.
“Are you sure about that?” she sighed against his lips as his forehead rested against hers after breaking away when they heard the distinctive cry of their son.
“Well, at least this male isn’t able to break my hands,” Mitchell murmured as he wandered off to tend to their child, and Kendra smiled after him.
“No, but he has much more control over you,” she called out, and heard him laugh.
Looking around herself again, Kendra sighed in contentment. She had everything she’d always wanted, and everything she’d ever dreamed of. She also had more than she ever thought she’d get and she couldn’t be happier with that development.
Life had turned out good for them all, and as much as she didn’t condone lying and deception, even she could see that there was a good chance that she had all of her husband’s masks and lies to thank for their current life together. Well, more the fact that he’d willingly stripped them all away for her, she supposed. Stripped them away so that she could see the wonderful man that had been hiding beneath them the whole time.
Perhaps she’d bake him another chocolate pie tomorrow, she thought with a smile. Or maybe he actually deserved one every day.
Masks and Lies Page 32