"True beauty in a woman is reflected in her soul.
It is the caring that she lovingly gives,
The passion that she knows."
~~ Audrey Hepburn
****
"First off, I do not like to keep secrets from Nica." Chase's steady finger met me as I stepped out of my car. "I'm only doing this because I know she loves surprises. And she happens to love you. I don't know why." She showed off how bemused she was of the thought, looking me up and down with a sneer. "But she does. If you mess this up..."
I had to interject. This wasn't the first time she had threatened me. "Could you at least retract your claws until after we talk about we came here for?"
"I'm warning you, Laurent. I will castrate you,'" Chase carefully enunciated the last two words.
"I am very much aware of the implications." If I grinned even a smidgen, I wouldn't get past her to take a tire iron and break my kneecaps. "Shall we?" I waved a hand towards the bar by the pier.
The pungent mixture of briny sea air and stale beer hung in the air as we walked inside the dodgy bar, called Davidson's. I knew why Chase had asked to meet here. She wanted the upper hand. It was a known biker's hang out. With her black leather clothes, complete with metal rivets and studs, and her even darker demeanour, she looked like she belonged. While I, in my checkered Oxfords, navy suit, and caramel brogues, was conspicuous in all manners.
I followed her to the banged up and scratched wood and steel bar. She occupied one of the empty stools in front of a hulk of a man, who had salt and pepper beard that matched the mop on top of his head.
Chase postured beside me, placing her helmet on top of the bar. "Three Floyds stout."
The giant, bearded man grunted at my grinning companion, then glanced at me. I couldn't ignore Chase's outright enjoyment of what she certainly suspected was my discomfort as I sat next to her. I pushed my hair off my forehead then extended my hand.
"Bonjour, Benoit. Comment vas-tu?" I greeted the burly man.
He returned my greeting with a more convivial one, taking my hand into a complicated handshake. "Olivier, pas mal! Quoi de neuf?"
"Pas grand-chose. Nous parlerons plus tard." I could sense the seethe coming from my left side. Chase was practically vibrating in her seat in anger. If I wanted to get out of there unscathed, I should cease addressing my friend, and owner of the establishment, in French. "Macallan, s'il vous plaît."
Benoit saluted me and knocked once on the bench before turning around and grabbing our drinks. Chase huffed as she grabbed her tall glass of foamy beer and her helmet, and walked away from the bar towards the farthest empty booth. Benoit and I swallowed chuckles at her annoyance. He would have a ton of questions for me later. How could one explain the being that was Chase? I didn't even know her last name. I had asked Veronica a while ago about it, and she had shrugged, stating only "Think Madonna and Cher" as her explanation.
When Chase had suggested "Davidson's by the Pier" yesterday, I immediately knew what she had been after-- to catch me unaware, to make me uncomfortable. She had wanted the upper hand. What I hadn't told her was that I was one of the bar's, among other similar establishments in the Bay Area, silent investors. Bikers seemed to like spending a lot on beer, and they made loyal clientele. With the margins the place made, it had proven to be a rather great investment.
"You're a jerk. Why didn't you tell me you know of this place?" she said accusingly. If Chase knew how to pout, she would have. She glared at me, a furrow on her forehead, most likely imagining ways of kicking my arse later.
I slid across from her, taking a sip of my scotch before shrugging. "You'll be surprised who I know in this city."
Chase scoffed. "We're never gonna get anywhere. Tell me what you're planning to do." Before I could answer, she continued, "Nica loves surprises. The bigger, the better. Don't cheap out on anything, because she deserves only the best. She is probably the best person in this entire state. She is my best friend, my family. If it wasn't for her, I don't honestly know where I would be. I want her to be happy." She paused as though she was entertaining a thought in her mind, or could it be that she felt she had exposed herself a bit much? This was the most open she had been to me. "Her ring size is five, and you have to get her mother's blessing, whether you believe in that or not."
I had had the idea in my head, but I hadn't been too sure of it. Perhaps this was why I had asked to meet with Chase. "I'm on my way to see Lily after this. I'm driving out to meet her at her place of work." And the other reason why I had insisted that I met Chase earlier in the day. It had taken her a while to agree with me, but she had relented.
"Oh. Well, that's good." I didn't think it was possible, but for once, she was speechless, and if I wasn't witnessing it myself, I'd be hard pressed to believe that she might even be impressed.
"Is there anything else you could tell me that you think only you would know?" This was a long shot. She could tell me what I needed to know or deliberately mislead me. In a way, one could even perceive that I was sabotaging myself. Would I be asking this exact question if I truly knew who Veronica was. And wasn't that one of the prerequisites of asking a woman to marry me?
But Veronica wasn't just any woman. She was the one woman for me, I believed it and felt it deep within my veins. My heart murmured only her name, and my mind was constantly filled with thoughts of her.
This was an inherent need to make this proposal perfect.
Chase lifted her glass and drank the contents halfway. She regarded me, with her arms folded over her chest. I leaned against the padded booth, waiting for her answer, parrying with her actions. "Nope. Nothing that I want to share."
I shook my head at her response and her smirk. What else could I have expected? Chase drank from her glass again, finishing off the beer in one pull, then slamming the empty glass back on the table. I signaled Benoit to bring her another. I had a feeling it would take a lot more than one to make her talk.
"Tell me, Laurent, what's your plan?"
"My plan?" She lifted a brow and pursed her lips. "Right, my plan." I leaned my arms over the table, bravely facing my surly companion before I began sharing.
****
The cool air hit my face as I slid out of the top-down convertible. The fog was fairly thick through the drive and it took a lot longer for me to arrive at my destination. When I walked into the grocer, I didn't expect a slew of shoppers, considering it was just past noon, and I had thought that it would be ideal to meet with Veronica's mother.
I had spoken with Maggie and she had informed me of her mother's whereabouts. Maggie wasn't one to put her nose in another person's business, and I was thankful for that. As much as I trusted the girl, I couldn't risk her ruining the surprise.
"Levi?" Mrs Stewart's surprised voice piped from behind me. She looked at me over her glasses. "It is you! What are you doing here?"
She was a hugger. And so I bent down to let her wrap her arms around me, then pat my face.
"Hello, Mrs Stewart." I straightened as soon as I was sure that she had patted my cheeks enough. I wasn't used to this much, and this kind of affection from an older woman, caring, motherly. Since Christmas, she had certainly warmed up to me.
"How many times do I have to tell you to call me Lily? Mrs Stewart makes me sound old." She shook a finger at me.
"Of course. I beg your pardon. How are you, Lily?"
"I'm good. Just getting this place together."
Lily had worked as a store manager for the local grocery shop for ten years, according to Veronica. She had managed to send her oldest daughter through college with careful financial planning and through hard work. I knew how much Veronica had looked up to her mother, even when she had complained about her eccentricities, and sometimes, questionable actions.
"I was hoping I could steal you for a minute to discuss some... er, something?" Lily squinted her eyes, deep in thought. "It's nothing bad. It'll be quick, I hope."
"Alright, dear. Follow me, we'll have a chat in my office." I walked beside her to a door marked "OF ICE", while she greeted customers and employees, each one smiling at her and giving me a curious once over.
She offered a chair that had seen better days, as she pulled a similar, less beat up one to sit on. "What have you come here for? Is it about my daughter? Is she acting up again and pulling off another of her tirades like what she did Christmas?"
"Not at all. Veronica and I are doing well. I'd like to think that she has more confident in our relationship now than ever before, thanks to you," I explained. Veronica and I had had a rough start, and our difference in wealth had been a sore point for her during the Holidays. I had been grateful for her honesty, and because of it, we were able to talk openly about it. We had a lot more to work on, regardless, I was confident that we could iron them out together.
"Well, go on, tell me." Lily waved her hand, rolling her wrist to encourage me to continue.
Why did I suddenly feel nervous? I pulled out my handkerchief from an inside coat pocket and rubbed my palms on it. I took a couple of soothing breaths before talking.
"I'd like to ask for your daughter's hand in marriage. I'd like your blessing." My eyes trained at Lily. My hands facing up in front of me.
She didn't answer. And I thought I'd repeat myself, just in case she didn't hear me, despite knowing that I'd spoken clearly. But as I opened my mouth, she lifted a finger.
"I don't understand," she told me.
"I intend to ask your daughter, Veronica, to marry me, soon, I hope."
The confusion stayed present in her countenance. "But why are you asking for my permission?"
Now, I was confused. "I thought it was the right thing to do?" I hadn't meant it to come out as a question.
"It might be for other girls, but not my Nica."
"How do you mean?"
Lily took off her glasses and pinched the bridge of her nose. I watched her carefully clean the lenses with the bottom of her cotton shirt, before she put them back on. "Levi, my Nica is a modern woman. If she finds out that you'd come here to ask for her hand in marriage, she might go and break it off."
Was I hearing this right? "But I thought."
"Oh dear, please tell me Chase did not put you up to this." I wish I could tell her that, but in fact, it had been my idea first, and Chase had solidified it earlier. "Just make sure Nica doesn't find out." She reached over to pat my hand. "Veronica believes that no man would ever own her. She is her own person. She may seem weak or timid at times, but she is neither. She's a strong, independent woman. When she was little, girls her age played with Barbies and whatnot. My Nica read books and magazines, feminist magazines that my neighbor across the street shared with her." She tsked at the last thought.
"I didn't realize."
"I know. I had often joked that she was two people in one little body. But you go, ask her to marry you. I bet she would say yes. She would be stupid not to. You make sure that she doesn't get wind of this."
Lily stood slowly, and I did the same. A furrow had appeared on my forehead. How had I been wrong? I was sure Veronica would have wanted this. Lily and I shuffled outside the office, and she practically threw me out of the store, saying that she had work to do. How could I have gotten that wrong? How could Chase have? Or could it be that her mother had been wrong about Veronica? They seemed to think at odds about each other at times.
I was halfway back to San Fransisco when I realized that Lily hadn't even hugged me before I left. It was unusual. I reached for the panel on the dash and searched through my contacts for Chase's number, hoping that she could clear this puzzle. But as I was about to connect, Veronica's number popped up. I pressed the button to answer.
"Sweetheart, hi."
Her voice exploded in my car. "Babe! Oh my god, I'm so excited. I'm working on something big and I think I'm going to get it."
Her excitement was infectious. For a second, I had forgotten about my little worry. "Glad to hear it. What are you working on?"
Her voice turned softer. "I can't tell you that, but it's huge. And there's something else I have to tell you."
"Go on," I encouraged.
"I have to do some traveling in the next two weeks. All expenses paid."
"Two weeks?"
"Yes, and I... kinda have to leave the day after tomorrow."
"In two days?" I gripped my steering wheel harder. "But we are going to the Benjamins' for dinner on Thursday."
Veronica sighed heavily through the sound system. "Yeah. I can't go to that anymore. I already told Sandrine. I told them you'll still be there."
"Two weeks. You'll be gone for that long?" Since we started dating, I hadn't taken more than a day or two away from Veronica. But I instantly thought that it would serve as a chance for me to get ready for my proposal. "I'm going to miss you. Perhaps we can talk about this later? Dinner at my place?"
"Yeah, sounds good. I'll see you later. I have some prep to do since I'll be gone quite a while."
"I understand. I'll make something nice tonight." A thought entered my mind, and I had to ask, "who are you going with?"
"A client. He's taking me to see some spots for an event."
"He?"
"Yes?"
I couldn't resist. I didn't know what had pushed me to think about it, but I had to be sure. "Was he the same person whom you had a meeting with yesterday afternoon?"
Her silence was my answer. My knuckles whitened as I squeezed the wheel even harder. "I can't say much about it, but yes." Her voice had lowered even more.
"Is Chase going?"
"No. Chase doesn't fly anywhere. And he's my client. My project. Look, we can talk more later. I have to go. I love you."
I exhaled. I knew she would hear nothing but tension in my voice. "I love you too."
When she disconnected, I had many thoughts: I didn't like the idea of Veronica spending weeks alone with this unknown man regardless of the circumstance. I'd need another talk with her about this man, and hoped that she wouldn't refuse to answer. I had to act soon, much sooner.
My proposal was coming up faster than I had anticipated, but I cared not of the time. I had to make sure that this man--whoever he was--and the rest of the world, knew that Veronica was to be my wife.
My foot pressed harder on the gas, hoping that it would bring me faster to her, before anyone else could think to lay claim.
****
A/N: hi! I can't thank you enough for your patience. I know this update took forever. Besides being incredibly busy during the holidays, my muse went AWOL for a while. I think my muse is slowly coming back. Please feel free to leave me any comment, tell me what you honestly think. If you think I might be offended, you can always PM me. As usual, votes are very much appreciated!
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