An August Harvest

by Ben Marney

  “She did look pretty good that night,” I said, grinning at Marshall.

  He lifted his glass and clinked it against my beer. “Oh yes, she did!” he said.

  Brenda shot him a hard look. “She looked a bit too good and that’s why I didn’t like her at first. Then I began to study her. I can’t help it, that’s what I do. And after watching her a while, it became very clear to me that I was completely wrong about her. Annabelle doesn’t know how beautiful she is on the outside. She knows she’s pretty, but has no idea how pretty. It’s not something she seems to care about. You would think she would be shallow and selfish, but that’s not who she is at all.”

  “You learned all that, just from watching her at the party?” I said, amazed.

  She nodded. “Yes, from the party, and from talking to her today. I believe she is one of those rare people, who are as beautiful on the inside as they are on the outside.”

  “Tell him what I told you,” Marshall said, “what we talked about last night.”

  “Why don’t you tell him?” she said.

  I glanced at Marshall. “What’d you say?”

  He lowered his brow and thought for a second before he spoke. “I don’t want this to come out wrong. You know how much I care about Melissa, how much I like her, right?”

  I nodded. “Of course I do.”

  “Melissa is a special person who’s lived through hell. Hopefully, now that she’s finally rid of Jerry the asshole, her life will be a lot better and happier than it has been, but...” he paused and took a deep breath, “her life will never truly be normal. Her transplant saved her life, but for how long? There’s always the possibility that, for no apparent reason, her body will start to reject her new liver. You heard what I told her. It’s possible she could live to see sixty, but the harsh reality is that more than likely...she won’t...and she knows that.”

  I looked away, staring up at the dark sky. “Yeah, she definitely knows that. We’ve talked about it often. She’s convinced she’ll never see fifty.”

  Marshall’s expression dropped. “I think she’s probably right. And that’s what Brenda and I were talking about last night. Again, I don’t want this to sound wrong, but although I love Melissa...I love you more. You are my brother, blood relative or not, that’s who you are to me. From the moment this all began, and you told us about your feelings for Melissa and about her condition, my stomach has been in a knot. I never thought I would say this out loud to you, but I’m afraid for you.

  “I can’t stand the thoughts of you having to live through the death of someone else you’ve allowed yourself to love with all your heart. I’m not sure you’re strong enough to survive that again. I know I wouldn’t. But when I saw Annabelle and how you lit up when she walked in, the knot in my stomach relaxed. I know you were doing your best to hide your feelings toward her, but you didn’t fool me. The exact words I said to Brenda last night were ‘I sure hope Grant sees what I see in her. She’s absolutely perfect for him.’ I know that may sound...”

  I held up my hand stopping him. “I hear you, and don’t worry, it didn’t come out wrong. Unfortunately, it’s way too late. I’m already in love with Melissa. So…when she dies...well, I guess I’ll have to deal with that then. I can’t allow myself to think about stuff like that.

  “And, I’m not going to lie to you, of course I have feelings for Annabelle, I’m only human,” I laughed. “As usual, my life is totally and utterly confusing.”

  Marshall sighed. “Buddy, I wish I had the answers for you, but I don’t. I have no idea why Charley brought you here, why you were supposed to meet Melissa. And I don’t have a clue of what you’re supposed to do next, but I believe there’s also a very good reason you met Annabelle. She has to be part of what Rita was telling you when you were drowning in that water. What was it she said, ‘You have much more to do?’ I’m convinced Annabelle is a big part of that. Grant, please listen to me. I know it’s very confusing and this may not be what you want to hear, but I think it would be a huge mistake for you to ignore your feelings and the truth about Annabelle.”

  21

  Premonitions

  I wasn’t sure if Brenda talked to them before she left and flew back to Houston, but I suspect she did. Knowing her the way I did, I was confident she couldn’t have gotten on that plane if she hadn’t. Another reason for me thinking this is because of how things changed.

  Annabelle suddenly stopped with her obvious flirting. Her wardrobe didn’t change; she still dressed trying to kill me everyday, but she seemed much more relaxed and calmer somehow. She was constantly smiling and singing around the office; always in a great mood and happy, no matter how stressful or difficult the day may have been. She seemed very content with the situation and never once mentioned her feelings toward me again.

  I could sense no real change from Melissa when it came to us. In fact, our relationship couldn’t have been much better. She also seemed happier and somehow calmer. She stopped flying off the handle and losing her temper like she had done so many times in the past, and her overall attitude and outlook seemed more positive.

  The only obvious change was between Melissa and Annabelle. As strange as it may sound, with every passing day, they seemed to grow closer and closer. They talked on the phone constantly and started spending more and more time together. If I had to work late, Melissa and Molly would come to the office, and the three of them would go out to dinner. If I had to go away on a business trip, Melissa would call Annabelle to come over and stay with them until I got back. Melissa even took Annabelle to Savannah one weekend to meet her aunt.

  Over the next few months, they became inseparable best friends. And although I was happy for Melissa to have such a close friend and especially happy for Molly, who absolutely adored Annabelle...the reality of it all was surreal and very confusing to me at the same time.

  Unfortunately, my feelings for Annabelle had continued to grow, but my feelings for Melissa had grown as well. I was in a ridiculous predicament. I had somehow let myself fall in love with both of them and it was driving me nuts. The dumbest part of it all was that my deep growing feelings for Annabelle were just in my heart. She didn’t know about them, and I wasn’t even sure she still felt the same about me.

  “You are such an idiot!” I said out loud, waking up Charley. It was almost ten p.m. I was working late, alone in my office trying to finish up the final plans for phase two of the Beverly Beach project, but I was having a hard time keeping my mind on my work.

  Charley got off the floor, walked up to me and laid his head in my lap. “What do I do about all of this, Charley? I’m all twisted up inside. How could I love two women at the same time?”

  I got up, walked to the bar and poured two fingers of Jack in a glass. Charley growled. “Don’t worry. I’m not gonna get drunk. I just need to relax a little and talk this out. Are you okay with that?

  He looked up at me and wagged his tail. “Woof.”

  I petted his head, walked to my window and looked out at the lights. “What should I do Charley? Do I tell Melissa about my feelings for Annabelle?”

  I took a sip of Jack and laughed. “Maybe I should tell Annabelle first. If she’s changed her mind and doesn’t feel the same, then none of this matters anyway.”

  I took another sip. “Yeah, I guess that’s what I need to do. I can’t go on like this any longer. I have to know what she’s feeling.” I finished what was left in my glass and set it on my desk. “Tomorrow, Charley, I’ll ask her tomorrow.”

  “Why don’t you ask her now?”

  I turned around and Annabelle was standing in my doorway. “How long have you been there?”

  She smiled. “For a few minutes. I came back to get my laptop and heard you talking.” She took a few steps toward me. “Do you do that a lot?”

  “Do what?”

  “Talk to Charley, up here alone at night?” She moved closer, standing only a few feet away from me.

  The room was dark except for the sof
t glow coming from the lamp on my desk, but her face was highlighted and her eyes were glistening, reflecting the outside lights streaming through my window. “I’ve been doing that a lot more lately.”

  She took another step, standing only inches away from me. “And why is that?”

  “It’s all because of you,” I whispered, staring into her eyes.

  She raised up on her tiptoes, put her arms around my neck and moved closer. I could smell her perfume and feel her breath on my lips. It was intoxicating.

  “What did you want to ask me?” she whispered.

  When we kissed, I didn’t close my eyes. I couldn’t stop looking at her. It was a great, tender kiss, but I didn’t feel anything, nothing. I kissed her again, but longer this time, savoring the feel of her tongue against mine, and the taste of her lips. But again, I felt nothing.

  However the confusion in my heart and in my head about my feelings toward her instantly disappeared and everything became crystal clear. There was no question that I cared about her, absolutely adored her, and loved her...but I wasn’t “in love” with her.

  But now that we’d crossed that line, my mind was spinning trying to come up with the correct words to gently explain to her my true feelings.

  Before I could come up with anything, she looked up at me, smiled and whispered. “Did that answer your questions?”

  I smiled back. “That answered a ‘lot’ of my questions. And now I know exactly what I have to do.”

  “And what’s that?” She purred.

  “Well first, I have to tell Melissa about this.”

  She wrinkled her forehead. “Grant, you don’t have to, she already knows.”

  I let go of her and took a step back. “What?”

  “Grant, she’s known for a long time, and she knows how I feel about you, too. You don’t think I would have let this happen if she wasn’t okay with it, do you? I would never do anything behind her back. She’s my friend and I love her, too.”

  I threw up my hands and walked around her. “Whoa! What are you saying? Melissa knows about this? About us? Did you two plan this?”

  “No, of course not!” She walked around my desk and put her arms around my waist. “What happened tonight wasn’t planned. I really did come back to get my laptop. I swear.”

  “Then how do you know she’s okay with it?”

  “Because we’ve talked about it. She knew it would happen someday. I wasn’t so sure, but she was.”

  I sat down on the couch. My head was swimming. “How could she be okay with this? I don’t get it. You two talked about this? Do you know how wrong that sounds? If she doesn’t love me, why didn’t she say something? Why let me go on and on like some love struck fool?”

  Annabelle sat down next to me. “You are jumping to the wrong conclusion. She’s all right with this…because she does love you. She’s doing this for you.”

  I tilted my head, confused. “What are you saying?”

  “Grant, she came to me when she heard I was leaving.”

  “You were leaving?”

  She looked away. “Yes, I was going to tell you after the grand opening of phase one. I did tell Brenda. That’s how she found out.” Her eyes filled with tears, “I knew I couldn’t stop the feelings I had for you, and when I saw you two together at the party with your friends...I realized I couldn’t break you up. It wasn’t right, no matter how much I loved you. I couldn’t do it, so I decided I had to go away somewhere.”

  “Melissa stopped you from leaving? Why would she do that?”

  “She’s been having premonitions and doesn’t think she’s going to live much longer. Grant, she begged me to stay. For you...and for Molly.”

  “What kind of premonitions was she having?”

  “She doesn’t know how or when, but she’s sure it has something to do with her transplant. She believes her liver is going to fail again soon.”

  “That doesn’t make any sense,” I said, shaking my head, “She’s doing great with that. Marshall told her there’re no signs of her body rejecting it and because it’s been over two years, she’s well past the critical stages. Why would she believe that?”

  “At first, I didn’t believe her and said no, absolutely not. What she was telling me was too farfetched to accept. But she wouldn’t give up. She kept begging me to believe her. I did admit to her that I had feelings for you, but could never do anything about them, because I could never hurt her. When I said that, she just smiled, hugged me and told me that she already knew how much I loved you...and because I was willing to walk away from that love for her...proved that I was the right one.”

  I tilted my head. “The right one?”

  “I know it may sound crazy, but she knew you were going to fall for someone else. She thought it was me, but wasn’t completely sure. She knew this was going to happen because she saw it in a dream. A dream she’s been having over and over for months. In that dream, she’s hovering over her body, looking down at us. We’re all there – you, Marshall, Brenda, Molly and someone she thinks is me - and we’re crying.” Annabelle wiped her eyes with her sleeve. “I know it sounds crazy, but she believes it’s a premonition, so she can die in peace knowing that Molly will be all right.”

  “Is that in the dream, too?” I whispered.

  “Yes. She sees the three of us together, you, Molly and someone she believes is me. We’re walking on the beach, holding hands with Molly…laughing.”

  “Oh God,” I whispered, looking at her. “I don’t know what to say.”

  She reached over and touched my hand. “Grant, I know this may be impossible to understand, but she believes it. And maybe I went along with all of this, because I wanted to believe her. At that point, I was willing to do anything to be with you.” She squeezed my hand and stared into my eyes. “Was that wrong?”

  I held her gaze for a long time before I spoke. “Annabelle, you don’t know much about me, about my life. Someday, I’ll tell you everything. And when I do, you’ll understand why this is not hard for me to believe. So many things have happened to me in the last few years...” I laughed and nodded. “Nothing is too farfetched for me. And no, I don’t believe anything you’ve done was wrong… just misguided.”

  She jerked her head up. “Misguided? What are you saying?”

  I took her hands in mine. “Annabelle, I’ve been very confused, but now I think I know. What I’m feeling for you inside my heart right now is love. I know without any shadow of a doubt that I love you, I really do,” I said, smiling, “and in a different life…you never know what may have happened between us. But I also know that I’m in love with Melissa, and I don’t believe her premonition. I think she’s wrong about the future and about the two of us. There was a reason she and I were brought together.” Her eyes instantly filled with tears. “Please don’t cry, let me finish.

  “Annabelle, I know you think you love me, but it’s just infatuation. I know you want to believe her and this premonition, but she’s wrong. I’m the wrong guy. I’m too old. You are so young, beautiful, smart and kind. You deserve more than I can give you. There is someone else out there that can give you back the love you deserve. The question we have to figure out for the three of us now…is where do we go from here?” I took my hand and wiped the tears away from her face, “So, what do you think we should do now?”

  The corners of her lips curled slightly, making a small smile. Then she leaned over and kissed me. “I’m sorry, Grant, but I don’t agree with you and I’m not giving up. I know I love you and only you. So does Melissa and we both think you’re the right guy. So, I guess we need to go talk to her and see what she thinks.”

  Both of our cars were parked in the office lot. On our walk there, I pulled out my cell and called Melissa to warn her that we were coming over, but she didn’t answer. “That’s weird, she didn’t pick up.”

  “It’s almost midnight, she’s probably asleep and didn’t hear it,” Annabelle said, “Try her cell. She keeps it next to her bed. She should hear t
hat.”

  Melissa didn’t answer her cell, either. “Maybe she took a sleeping pill or something?”

  “Maybe,” Annabelle said, thinking, “but she’s not supposed to do that. It effects the other medication she takes.” She looked at me, frowning, “Grant, this doesn’t sound right, something’s wrong. I’ll follow you in my car. If she did take a sleeping pill and we can’t wake her up, I’ll go home and we can talk to her tomorrow.”

  On the way, I tried Melissa’s home and cell several more times, but she never answered. Every time I would hang up, Charley would whine. “What’s wrong? You need to go?” He didn’t bark back, so I knew that wasn’t it. The closer we got to Melissa’s house, the louder he whined. “What the Hell, Charley? What is wrong with you?”

  When I turned on the road to our houses, I figured out why he was whining and why Melissa hadn’t answered her phone. There were three police cars, with their blue lights flashing parked in front of her house.

  I skidded to a stop in my driveway and ran next door. “What’s happened?” I yelled. “Is she all right?”

  One of the police officers walked up to me. “Do you know Mrs. Hollingsworth?”

  “Yes, I live here, I’m her neighbor.” I shouted, “She’s a good friend of mine. What’s happened to her? Where’s Molly?”

  He raised his eyebrows. “Who’s Molly?”

  “Her daughter! She’s only seven years old. Where is she?”

  I tried to step around him, but the other officers blocked my way, “You can’t go up there, sir, it’s a crime scene.”

  “A CRIME SCENE!” I screamed, “WHAT HAPPENED?”

  “Calm down, sir. We don’t know what happened. We’re waiting on a detective now. I’m sure he’s going to want to talk to you when he gets here.”

  “Are they up there?” I heard Annabelle ask behind me. I reached for her and pulled her close, hugging her in my arms.