The Visitor_New York 1871_1873

by Barbara Svetlick

  Louis stood up, folded the paper and left the room without saying a word. His attorney left immediately after Louis. Dominic and James looked at Garnett. "Trust me, he’ll think long and hard before he bothers her again but I don’t believe he will stop. His ego is driving this and he doesn’t like to be threatened even if he is overstepping common sense." They left and headed for the house. They found Meeks and Mirisa sitting in the living room drinking hot cocoa. Mirisa thanked them all for the wonderful evening and said she was going to bed because she had too much to do in the morning. Meeks kissed her lightly as he told her he loved her.

  They talked for a while about Louis and the meeting. Garnett felt he would still be an issue and insisted that she and the children be kept close to one of them. Garnett had known him longer than the rest and had represented him when he was first out of law school. Just before the war broke out his wife had died during a sexual escapade and he hired Garnett to cover up the investigation. It took a lot of negotiation and a lot of money but he was successful. Garnett had the original investigation report which he kept in the safe deposit box at the National Bank. He didn’t tell them what was in the envelope but told them that all of their names were on as signatories for the box and that Louis now understood that they all had the ability to turn over the evidence that would put him in prison for the rest of his life or ban him from the country hurting his business.

  Mirisa woke up to all three children climbing up on the bed and giving her kisses. After a few minutes they jumped down and went back to the nursery to play. Meeks sat down next to her. “Good morning.”

  “Good morning.”

  “Are you feeling better this morning?”

  “You mean knowing that you probably threatened Louis within an inch of his life if he talked to me again?”

  Meeks smiled. “You know we don’t warn people.”

  “Thank you. I’m beginning to think that Garnett is right that I have become a full time job for all of you and I’m sorry for that. I want to thank you for the drawing you did. I never realized how I looked to you. I also assume that all of you made the decision to purchase it.”

  “You are still so young and so inspiring.” Meeks kissed her searching her eyes. “I don’t know how Dominic could touch another woman when you were always right there. There’s not a woman alive that would be worth the possibility of losing you, there’s not a woman who can hold a candle to your sweet passion and I don’t think anyone could ever love you as much as I do.”

  “Does this mean you are going to tell me what you planned for tonight?”

  “Absolutely not.” Meeks kissed her nose. “Now are you ready to get up or are you going to lie in bed until it’s time to go to the church?”

  “I’m going to lie in bed all day long and eat chocolate.”

  “You are an extremely wicked woman.” Meeks reached over Mirisa and opened the drawer on the table next to the bed. “Where did you put the chocolate?”

  “I’m not telling you until you give me some information.”

  “Are you trying to bribe me?”

  “No, it’s more like blackmail.”

  “What do you want to know?

  “How am I getting to the church?”

  “Garnett will ride in the carriage with you.”

  “Can you trust him not to take advantage of me?”

  He smiled. “I can’t trust you not to take advantage of him.”

  “I’ll promise to be good if you tell me how many people you invited.”

  “A couple hundred.”

  She looked at him surprised. “To the wedding?”

  “Yep.”

  “Alexander I thought you were going to keep it small.”

  “The first one was small, the second one was intimate and this one is the wedding you should have always had. This one is for you. Now where did you put the chocolate?”

  “One more question.”

  “Alright.”

  “How can you draw me so well?”

  “I have journals of nothing but drawings of you over the last eight years. Some of them are a little too personal for others to see but most just capture the allure of you doing normal things. You truly have no idea what you do to me.”

  “It’s in the top drawer of the dresser.”

  “What?”

  “The chocolate. The children found out I was hiding it in here so I had to move it.” Meeks kissed her, got up and brought it back to the bed. Mirisa laid her head on his stomach and he gave her a bite of his piece of chocolate. “Alexander.”

  “Yes darling.”

  “I don’t know who makes me happier, you or Maggie. I love you so damn much.”

  “Good, then get dressed and we’ll go for a ride in the park while it’s still early and have lunch somewhere wonderful.”

  She dressed in gauchos and a long sleeve blouse with her hair tied back in a braid and her dark brown boots. When she reached the bottom of the steps she stopped to retie her boot.

  “You know they are my weakness.”

  She looked up at Dominic. “I know.” She reached up and touched his face. “How are you?”

  “Still in love with you.” He leaned down and tied it for her then put his hand on her hip. “And I miss sleeping with you even more. It’s hard to look at you and accept that I lost you.”

  She put her arms around his neck. Dominic held her because they both knew that only sheer willpower kept them apart. “Thank you for staying in my life even if it is hard.” Mirisa reached up and kissed Dominic which was probably the wrong thing to do because he didn’t want to let go.

  “Mirisa, it’s impossible for me to walk away from you. Even if you took the boys out of the picture, even if you walked away from the four of us, I would have to find you. It was my ego and my selfishness that lost you not my heart.” Dominic let her go and walked into the library.

  James was standing up against the door frame watching them and met Dominic’s eyes as he passed. James couldn’t even image how much torture Dominic went through each time Meeks touched Mirisa. Dominic had complete control and domination over her for so long that sharing just wasn’t in his makeup while the three of them spent so much time just on the fringe of being with her that they had no issues with each other. The only difference now was their respect for what she wanted when she wanted it and it was obvious that her husband trumped anything else in her life.

  Mirisa stood on the stairs for a moment and James walked up to her and lifted her chin. “If you weren’t getting married tonight I would take you upstairs for a few hours. I think you have been totally neglecting my heart.”

  “If I weren’t working on babies, I would so take you up on it.”

  “Can I see your tattoo?”

  Mirisa unbuttoned her gauchos and pulled the corner down revealing a beautiful little Chinese dragon in deep red and turquoise ink wrapped around her birth mark.

  “Damn, I can’t believe you did that.”

  James leaned in looking at the details as Garnett came down the stairs and turned his head sideways. “You really did get a tattoo. I don’t believe you tolerated that much pain.” Garnett ran his finger along the small Chinese dragon as she turned and looked into his eyes knowing what he was thinking. He put his arm around her waist and brought her back as he breathed in her scent. Mirisa had no idea that they had spent the last few nights with the dragon girls. She reached back and kissed Garnett loving the feel of his whiskers against her cheek. Mirisa buttoned up her pants and said her husband was waiting for her.

  Meeks looked at her as she reached the stable. “James?”

  “Garnett.” Meeks arched his eyebrows surprised. “I think he likes dragons.”

  “Then let’s see if we can release some of your energy this morning with a good ride through the park.” Meeks handed her the reins and she mounted her horse. She noticed he was wearing his shoulder harness but she didn’t say anything. They rode through the park for a few hours before stopping at the restauran
t for lunch. The manager was standing in the foyer when they came in. He looked her over and shook his head as he ignored her attire.

  Meeks ordered a light lunch with a bottle of wine. When he helped her up on her horse, he realized that she had had a little too much to drink so they rode slowly back to the brownstone. Everyone was in the library when they returned and the children were taking a nap since they would be up late. She excused herself and went upstairs.

  Meeks had the maid take her up a cup of tea and found her in the bathtub with her eyes closed. He put the tea down next to the bathtub and started to shave. She teased him that he wasn’t allowed to see her on their wedding night and he definitely had to leave before she got dressed.

  “Don’t you have to dress your daughter?”

  “True and I do get to have you alone tonight?”

  “You do.”

  “Can I have cherries dipped in chocolate and champagne?”

  “You can have anything as long as it’s just the two of us.”

  She put her face on his back and kissed him. Mirisa went down to the nursery and helped Jasmine with Maggie’s hair and put her in her slips but decided to wait until the last minute to put on her dress.

  Dominic stood in the doorway watching them. “You know she really is going to be prettier than you.”

  “Maggie thanks you for the compliment, don’t you darling.” Maggie looked at her mother as Dominic picked her up kissing her.

  “Where are the boys?”

  “In Matt’s room trying to avoid getting dressed.”

  “I’ll take care of them.” He went in and told them both they had to come down to his room to get dressed. He picked up all of their clothes and shoes. Matthew stopped on the way out and put his hands on his mother’s face and closed his eyes. She closed hers and she saw Dog Moon standing on the ledge. Matthew kissed her before leaving with his father. Jasmine fixed Mirisa’s hair exactly like Maggie’s but with more baby’s breath and pearls allowing the curls to fall down her back.

  James and Meeks headed for the church. Dominic finished dressing the boys and picked up Maggie putting them all in the coach with Jasmine. Garnett was sitting on the back of the couch waiting for Mirisa. He looked up and she was standing at the top of the landing. He slowly stood and walked up the stairs.

  “If you ever took my breath away it was nothing compared to how I feel at this very moment.” Garnett put out his hand and Mirisa put hers in his but neither moved. He placed his hand on her arm and kissed her so passionately that she had to balance herself against him as they both tried to get control of their feelings.

  “Garnett, you are so intoxicating.” Mirisa took in her breath and wondered how she ever made it from one room to the next when they constantly tempted her with just a smile.

  “And I believe you are merely an illusion that fights with my senses.”

  Mirisa put her arms around him as Garnett told her that if they were late for the wedding that it might not bode well for either of them. She laughed lightly as he escorted her down the stairs.

  Mirisa reached down and picked up her hem and he held her arm to steady her as she descended the stairs. Garnett put on his jacket and picked up his hat and gloves before escorting her to the waiting carriage.

  The ride to the church seemed to take forever and Garnett really didn’t know what to say to her. The streetlights highlighted her face as they headed down the street. The night was cold with a light snow falling and the church was still filling with guests as the carriage turned the corner to the rectory door.

  The coachman jumped down and opened the door. Garnett stepped out, turned and offered her his hand. When she stepped out of the coach he knew that everyone in the church would be speechless because she was beyond beautiful. Her father was standing in the rectory doorway watching her as Garnett literally picked her up so that her dress didn’t get wet in the snow. Dr. Eppes backed up and Garnett put her down before he kissed her lightly. She put her arms around him and thanked him. He walked out into the church and sat down at the piano. Meeks and James came out of the side door and stepped up to the altar. The Reverend picked up his bible and folded his hands in front of him and waited.

  The church was adorned in gold arches with blue stained glass windows behind the alter. The pews were decorated with white ribbons and pale yellow roses. Mirisa always felt so small and lost when she would walk into a church.

  Garnett started playing a love song that had been composed by Meek’s mother and when he came to the end he went right into the wedding march. The entire church stood and turned. Maggie stood at the end of the aisle not sure what to do until she saw her father. She loved her dress with all the petticoats and her new shoes but mostly she loved the little gold basket of rose petals. Maggie walked slowly toward her father who thought she was so little and so pretty but she refused to throw the flower petals because she wanted to keep them. She made it half way to her father when he looked up and the sight of Mirisa on her father’s arm literally took the wind out of him.

  The soft gold color of her dress with the brocaded pearls combined with the soft glow of the many candles was so magical that he didn’t think he could move. Maggie finally reached her father and James bent down and picked her up but he couldn’t take his eyes off of Mirisa. After eight years of living with Mirisa and seeing her in some of the most beautiful gowns ever designed, James was as speechless as Meeks. Her hair framed her face in little curls and pulled back in the front was loose woven with strands of pearls.

  When they reached the altar her father kissed her. As his only daughter, Dr. Eppes didn’t think he would ever be given the privilege of walking her down the aisle. Mirisa’s father held her hand as Mirisa stepped up and turned to face her husband. Garnett went into a very soft angelic piece before getting up from the piano to sit next to Dominic. Meeks put both hands on her face and kissed her so softly. She knew he couldn’t help himself. He was so stunningly handsome. She leaned into him and kissed him with so much love that you could see the physical reaction.

  The Reverend cleared his throat and they both turned and looked at him. The service was long and so meaningful. James finally had to put Maggie down. Cradling her little basket of rose petals which were spilling as she walked, Maggie reached up and took her mother’s hand standing between her parents and watched them as Meeks reached down taking her other hand. Before they exchanged rings she handed her yellow roses to Maggie as the Reverend pronounced them man and wife.

  Garnett moved back to the piano and began to play as Meeks took her in his arms and told her he could die at that moment because nothing on earth could be more beautiful than her. James bent down and picked Maggie back up as Mirisa and Meeks stepped down off the altar. They were instantly surrounded by family. Tonight was going to be a great party and they were all in the mood to dance.

  Mirisa turned searching for her children and her husband. “Dominic, where are the children?”

  “The boys are with Jasmine and your father is holding Maggie.”

  Mirisa looked around to make sure before she asked Dominic if he would be taking them to the hotel. He told her not to ever worry about the children. Mirisa looked into his eyes as he smiled. “Your beauty never ceases to amaze me.”

  Mirisa walked up to her father and spoke to him briefly turning to look for her husband who was standing next to James watching her. She smiled, picked up her hem and walked over to him.

  Meeks kissed her. “Were you afraid you had lost everyone?”

  “I did lose everyone.”

  “Are you ready to dance?”

  “I am.”

  Dominic put all the children in the carriage with Jasmine, Dr. Eppes and his girlfriend and they went to the hotel where the reception was being held. They had booked an entire floor of the hotel and the children would be in an adjoining room between Dominic and James with Meeks and Mirisa’s family taking up the rest of the rooms on the floor. Dominic told Jasmine not to open the door since they had k
eys to their room. The hotel brought up dinner for the children since the reception dinner wouldn’t be served for another half hour or more.

  James walked down the steps of the church and opened the carriage door. The carriage was covered in ribbons and roses. Meeks picked up Mirisa at the top of the steps and set her in the carriage took off his hat climbing in after her followed by James and Garnett.

  She straightened out her dress. “All of you look so wonderful tonight.”

  Meeks sat back and lit his cigar and passed it to Garnett to light his. “It’s nice of you to think that but I’m afraid tonight you pretty much took the wind out of everything else.”

  “But you’re not looking at it from my eyes and from here it’s pretty wonderful. I haven’t decided if the four of you are romantic or if your taste is just that impeccable that you can’t help but to do such beautiful things for me.”

  They pulled up in front of the hotel and Garnett and James stepped out first followed by Meeks who reached back and held Mirisa’s hand as she climbed down from the carriage. The room was decorated in the same ribbons and roses with hundreds of white candles. Along one wall was a table with over fifty glass cake holders with cakes decorated in white sugar pearls and yellow roses and each cake was different with the center cake being layered with real roses laid between each layer. James and Garnett walked into the room and Meeks stopped at the door with her. Everyone stood up and Mirisa felt so shy for a moment but he told her that the champagne was at the table.

  Mirisa put her hand on her husband’s arm as they walked in to applause and she blushed which her father thought was so much her. They started working the room and talking to the guests most of whom Mirisa had met but some she didn’t know at all. As they started serving the dinner, the guests started taking their seats and Meeks finally led her to their table and held out her chair. The waiter poured the champagne in all of the glasses at the table. Garnett was next to Mirisa, then Dominic, with James next to Meeks. Meeks decided not to have any family at their table because they were just more comfortable by themselves even though the table could have held a few more. James stood seeking everyone’s attention.