Forever Mine, Valentine

by Vicki Lewis Thompson

  She knew they’d enjoy the painting, but Jill never had kidded herself that she was good enough for the competitive world of art. Window decorations and an occasional landscape for a friend encompassed her abilities. She’d hardly call that a career, although Spence seemed willing to do so. Ah, well, he just didn’t understand that she had to find a career that would make a difference in the world.

  She packed her gear back into the van and returned to the campground, where she matted and framed the painting with materials she’d also bought that afternoon. Finding still more time on her hands, she designed a card, congratulating the “King and Queen of Hearts.” The supper was to begin at eleven, because Charlie had thought it would be romantic to toast his and Gladys’s happiness at midnight.

  By ten Jill had wrapped the framed picture in silver striped paper and topped it with an elaborate bow. Then she put the package aside and dressed for the dinner in her jeans and matching vest. She’d decided to save her new suit for the ceremony the next morning, although Gladys had assured her that jeans would be fine for the wedding, too.

  “I’ve told the Senior Striders they can all wear jogging outfits if they want to,” Gladys had said. “I considered it myself, until Charlie talked me into that romantic gown I showed you.”

  Jill was happy for the two of them, although their devotion to each other gave her a bittersweet pang. Love and commitment seemed so far away for her.

  At last, carrying her package, she approached the mall entrance designated as the one the party-goers would use. Bernie, without his walking stick and wearing a coat and tie for the first time since she’d met him, was stationed at the glass door to let people in. He smiled and opened the door.

  “I’m sure glad you’re here,” he said. “Maybe you can talk some sense into them.”

  “Who?”

  “Charlie and Gladys. There’s some sort of hullabaloo over there, but I’ve been stuck by the door and I can’t tell what’s going on.”

  Jill glanced toward the skating pond, where several linen-draped tables topped with flickering hurricane lamps surrounded the pond. Nearby a long buffet table heaped with food and crowned with a Cupid ice sculpture stood untouched. The guests huddled in two groups, one male with Charlie in the middle, the other female with Gladys in the middle.

  “I have a feeling Gladys’s daughter has something to do with it,” Bernie said. “She’s the blonde holding that little girl by the hand. Gladys introduced me when they came through the door. The son-in-law couldn’t leave work on such short notice, but the daughter’s here, and I don’t think she approves of Charlie.”

  “I can understand how a daughter might be worried,” Jill said, “but if she gets to know Charlie, she’ll feel better about this.”

  “I suppose. But I thought of something else. Maybe the daughter’s miffed because she wasn’t asked to be the matron of honor.”

  “Oh, dear!” Jill exclaimed, aware for the first time of her awkward position in the wedding party. “Of course she could be. I feel like a dummy for not thinking of that. I’ll be glad to step aside, Bernie. You’re right. Gladys should have asked her daughter.”

  “I don’t know if your stepping aside would do much good. Then the daughter might feel like second choice.”

  “You’re right. What a mess!”

  “I could be mistaken,” Bernie said. “Maybe that’s not the problem at all.”

  “There’s only one way to find out. Spence isn’t here yet?” Jill asked.

  “Not yet. He—Oh, here he comes now.” Bernie stepped back and opened the door.

  Jill turned and met Spence’s dark gaze for a moment, but the pain was too fresh from the night before and she glanced away. He’d brought his gift, too, a large package he carried under one arm. “Bernie says the happy couple has a problem,” she said, keeping her gaze averted.

  Spence unzipped his jacket. “Sounds like par for the course.”

  Jill winced. His remark, coupled with an action that reminded her of when he’d last unzipped a jacket in her presence, dug into the core of her unhappiness and lodged there like a piece of sharp glass.

  “Any idea what the problem is?” Spence asked Bernie.

  “Not for sure, but Gladys’s daughter has something to do with it, I’ll bet. I figured you and Jill might be able to help. She could infiltrate the women’s group and you could find out what’s going on with the men.”

  “You’re sure they’re fighting?” Spence asked, gazing at the two clusters of people.

  “I’m sure all right, even from here. The party started out with everyone mixed in together. Gladys and Charlie were holding hands. Then Gladys started talking with that blonde, who’s her daughter, and the little girl, who’s really up past her bedtime, not that it’s my business.”

  “She looks like she’s only about five,” Jill commented. “It is pretty late.”

  “I think she’s here because Gladys dotes on her and couldn’t bear to have a sitter. Anyway, after discussing something with her daughter, Gladys went back to talk with Charlie, only this time her face looked different, not so happy, and then they had some sharp words with each other. Again I could tell by the faces. After that Gladys ran over to one side, and all the women followed, while Charlie stayed where he was and all the men gathered around him.”

  “That sounds like a fight,” Spence agreed.

  “Yep,” Bernie agreed. “I really hate to see Gladys looking so miserable. She’s…a wonderful woman.”

  Jill glanced at Bernie. Poor guy, he was sweet on Gladys, too, she thought. That was why he’d been watching the proceedings with such concentration.

  “I’ll bet you two can patch things up,” Bernie said, smiling. “You make a good team.”

  “So they say,” Spence commented, glancing at Jill. “Ready to tackle it, teammate?”

  “I guess we’d better do something,” she said, ignoring the sarcasm in his tone. “We can’t have them splitting up the night before their wedding.”

  “Nope. If that’s going to happen, it’s better to do it early in the relationship,” Spence said, his gaze unyielding. “By the way, Bernie,” he said, turning toward the older man, “my folks will be along in a little while. Dad was doing some chores, as usual, and didn’t start getting ready on time. I hope they aren’t late to the wedding tomorrow.”

  “I hope there’s a wedding they shouldn’t be late to,” Bernie replied. “You two go over and work a miracle, okay?”

  “Sure.” Spence took Jill’s elbow and guided her toward the two groups of people. “Feel in the miracle-working mood?” he asked softly.

  “No.”

  “I didn’t think so. What did you get them for a gift?”

  “I spent the afternoon painting a watercolor of the mall and framing it.”

  Spence chuckled. “You’re kidding.”

  Stung by his reaction, she jerked her elbow from his grasp. “I’m sorry if you think that’s a dopey idea. I don’t.”

  “I don’t think it’s a dopey idea. I couldn’t come up with anything, and finally this afternoon I asked Mom and Dad if we could give them the architect’s first scale model of this place. They said fine. It’s packed in this box.” He glanced at her. “Interesting coincidence.”

  “Mmm.”

  “Charlie and Gladys don’t look very happy,” Spence commented.

  “No, they don’t.”

  “Okay, here’s the plan. You find out Gladys’s complaints, and I’ll get Charlie’s side of the story. Then maybe the four of us can take a walk around the mall, away from all these people, and work something out.”

  “Just walking or race-walking?”

  He smiled faintly. “I’m glad you’ve still got your sense of humor. Okay, teammate, go get ‘em.” He squeezed her arm and headed for the group of men.

  Tears pricked her eyes at his unexpected touch and affectionate encouragement. If only… But Spence wanted to limit her horizons, she reminded herself. With a sigh she walked over
to the women.

  Gladys greeted her with subdued courtesy and introduced her daughter Ginny and granddaughter Beth. Stephanie from Jegger Outfitters was there, and Hedda Kramer, and several female members of the Senior Striders. During the introductions, Ginny displayed no hostility toward Jill. Perhaps Bernie had been wrong about her, Jill thought. Still, she had to approach the discussion with tact, in case she was inadvertently part of the problem.

  “I’m amazed that you all haven’t started in on that delicious buffet,” she said.

  Gladys twisted her engagement ring, which Jill knew she’d paid for herself. “You might as well know that Charlie and I are having a little, um, altercation,” she said quietly.

  “I suspected you might be,” Jill said, dropping any pretense that she hadn’t noticed the divided camps. She glanced at Ginny. “I hope none of it has to do with me.”

  “With you?” Gladys looked confused. “Why would it have to do with you?”

  “Well, I wondered if your daughter might be upset because Charlie asked me to be the maid of honor.” Jill thought putting the finger on Charlie, where it in truth belonged, might help.

  “That bothered me at first,” Ginny admitted, “but after talking with Charlie earlier today I realized the poor man hadn’t meant to hurt anybody by asking you first. He was so apologetic that I couldn’t be angry with him. No, I’m afraid the problem’s more lasting than that.”

  “And it’s all my fault,” Gladys said. “I should have listened to Charlie more carefully, but I was so in love, that I…”

  “I understand,” Jill said, patting her shoulder. Boy, did she understand.

  “I guess the idea of traveling around all the time never really sank in,” Gladys continued. “Charlie told me there would be lots of traveling, but I didn’t realize we’d have no home base at all until Ginny wondered how often we’d be coming back to Colorado. I asked Charlie, and he said he didn’t know. Maybe every couple of years, he said, or maybe longer, depending on…his business.”

  Jill could tell from Gladys’s hesitation that she hadn’t confided to Ginny that Charlie believed he was St. Valentine. Jill glanced at Ginny’s no-nonsense hairstyle and tailored clothes and agreed with Gladys’s decision. “I suppose you’d have to sell your town house,” Jill commented.

  Gladys nodded. “That’s not what really bothers me, though. I’m afraid I’d never see Ginny or Beth. And without a fixed address, they couldn’t visit me, either. Then there are my friends, especially these gals, who’ve been in the Senior Striders with me. I…suppose I’m more settled in Colorado than I thought.” She gazed over at Charlie, who was deep in conversation with Spence. “But I really love him,” she added softly. “In spite of it all.”

  Gladys’s last statement echoed exactly what Jill had been thinking about Spence. So why did these men have to cause such problems? How dared Charlie allow this crazy fantasy of his to jeopardize the happiness of such a wonderful woman? “I think we need to talk to Charlie,” she said, her lips set in a grim line as she took Gladys’s arm. “If you all will excuse us, we’ll be back in a little while. In the meantime, why doesn’t everyone enjoy the buffet?”

  “Want me to come along, Mom?” Ginny asked.

  “That’s okay, dear,” Gladys said with a wavering smile. “Jill knows all the, uh, background. I haven’t had a chance to fill you in on everything, but later we’ll talk.”

  Ginny looked doubtful. “All right. And good luck.”

  “Thanks.” A few steps away, Gladys whispered in Jill’s ear. “I haven’t told her about St. Valentine.”

  “I didn’t suppose you had.”

  “I remember how you reacted, and Ginny’s even more matter-of-fact than you are.”

  The statement surprised her with its implication that she was matter-of-fact. Jill of All Trades, who followed her every whim? Yet Gladys didn’t perceive her that way at all.

  Spence must have seen their approach from the corner of his eye, because he steered Charlie away from the group and toward Jill and Gladys. “Anyone for a walk?” he called out as they drew close to each other. “I’ve heard this is a terrific place for it.”

  “I don’t have on the right outfit,” Gladys said, glancing down at her long gown and high heels.

  “We’ll take it easy,” Jill assured her.

  “Maybe for once I can keep up with you, Gladys, my dear,” Charlie said with a sad smile.

  “Oh, Charlie,” Gladys said, gazing at him with suspiciously bright eyes.

  “Let’s go,” Spence urged, starting them off at a gentle pace.

  They assembled themselves four abreast, with Spence on the left end, Charlie next, Jill next to him, and Gladys on the right.

  Jill turned to Charlie. “I don’t care what Spence or the other men told you, but you have to give up this St. Valentine stuff. You’ve offered your hand to a fine woman and now you want to tear her away from her family to live like some gypsy because of this wild fantasy of yours. For her sake, and for yours, you must—”

  “That’s precisely what Spencer told me,” Charlie said, interrupting her tirade.

  “He did?” Jill glanced over at Spence in admiration and love.

  “Of course I did,” Spence said, gazing at her as they walked slowly down the deserted mall. “That shouldn’t surprise you, that I’d advise someone to go for the love instead of the career.”

  She swallowed. “Sometimes it doesn’t have to be a choice.”

  “That’s true, but when it does…”

  “You’re both absolutely right,” Charlie said in the ensuing silence. “That’s why I’m retiring as St. Valentine and staying here with Gladys. They’ll simply have to find a replacement for me.”

  “Charlie, that’s wonderful!” Jill stopped and grabbed him in a bear hug. “Gladys, isn’t that super?” she asked, turning to the gray-haired woman. “Now you can have everything you wanted… Gladys, what’s the matter?”

  “I thought that was what I wanted, but…I can’t let him do that,” Gladys said, her voice quavering. “His work is too important.”

  Jill was stunned. “His work?” she asked faintly. “But, Gladys, you don’t really think, deep down in your heart, that Charlie…”

  “Yes, I really do.” Gladys took Jill’s hand and reached for Spence’s. Gently she placed their hands together. “Look at what has happened with the two of you because of Charlie. You’re so much in love that it’s wonderful to watch.”

  Jill stood speechless as Spence held her hand and gazed into her eyes.

  “When Charlie told me he wanted to have our wedding on February fourteenth and ask both of you to be there because that would guarantee your own marriage, I agreed immediately,” Gladys continued. “I thought about my daughter being matron of honor, but I decided to help Charlie work this magic for the two of you instead. My daughter had found her true love, but you were still uncertain whether you had, and I knew how much you deserved each other.”

  Jill shook her head to clear it. “This is crazy,” she said, taking her hand from Spence’s. Somebody had to inject a note of sanity around here. “Spence and I had a rather large disagreement of our own last night, and I doubt that we’ll be seeing each other again after tomorrow. So, Gladys, please don’t sacrifice your happiness so that Charlie can continue with his work. I’m afraid it’s a fantasy. A lovely fantasy, to be sure, but still not one worth calling off this marriage for.”

  “In that case, my dear,” Charlie said, “I certainly must retire. If I’ve failed with you and Spencer, that proves that the job belongs to a younger, more vigorous man.”

  Jill’s heart ached to hear his despairing words, but wasn’t this all for the best?

  “Nonsense!” Gladys walked over to Charlie and stood before him like a commanding general. “Unless you continue with your work, Charlie Hartman, I will never speak to you again. That’s a promise.”

  “But, Gladys…”

  “And as for you, young lady,” Gladys said, turni
ng toward Jill, “you have the arrogance of youth. Perhaps when you’re my age, you’ll have the good sense to believe in magic. Or perhaps—” She consulted her watch. “Perhaps now that it’s one minute past twelve, you’ll begin to believe a little sooner than that.” She gazed triumphantly at Charlie. “You see? It’s February fourteenth, and these two are face-to-face, as we planned.”

  “So they are,” Charlie said, “but what if my powers have, indeed, faded? You heard Jill. They had a tremendous disagreement last evening.”

  “What about?” Gladys demanded, looking at Spence.

  He shook his head. “Better talk to Jill about that.”

  Gladys folded her arms and faced Jill. “Well? We told you all our problems, so don’t be shy about telling us yours.”

  Jill fidgeted under Gladys’s scrutiny. Finally she squared her shoulders and lifted her chin. “All my life I’ve been told I could do anything I wanted, because I have talents. But talents carry responsibilities, right? Charlie would have to agree with that.”

  “I do,” Charlie replied.

  “So I’m struggling to find something worthwhile to do with my life. Spence told me he thought painting window decorations was just fine, and to forget my high-flown ambitions to make a difference in the world.”

  “I did not! I merely said that—”

  “Stop this,” Gladys said, holding up her hand. “Honestly, I’d forgotten how young people fight, without ever stopping to listen. Now, Jill, I’m going to tell you something I’ve learned. You may have to think about it for a while, but please think about it. Will you do that?”

  “Of course. I spend lots of time thinking.”

  “And she has to think alone,” Spence added with a trace of mockery.

  “Spence, that’s enough!” Gladys said, pointing a finger in his direction. “You don’t understand this woman’s dilemma, and you’re riding roughshod over her feelings.”

  “But I—”

  “Enough, I said. Now, Jill, everyone meant well when they told you that you could do anything you wanted, because you’re talented. But they unknowingly put a burden on you, too. You think you have to become something great for them. What you become must be for yourself, not others.”