Chapter 20 #2
Even though he was saying all the right things, she wondered if it would really be that easy for him to talk to Reina and then say goodbye again, this time forever.
"Let's go," Walter said. "We don't want to be late."
"Good luck, Grandpa," Catherine said. "I can't wait to hear about it."
They ushered Walter down the stairs and out to the car. Jax offered him the front passenger seat, while he took the back, which made it easier for her to focus on Walter and not on Jax.
The drive to San Diego's Coronado Island was quick since it was afternoon and the day after the Fourth of July.
A lot of people were probably still off work.
Along the way, Walter was happy to talk about Reina, the Starlight Lounge, and his days being stationed at Camp Pendleton, giving them an even deeper look at his relationship with the stunning singer who had stolen his heart with her angelic voice.
When they got closer to Coronado, Walter grew more anxious, and as they entered the majestic hotel and made their way to a patio overlooking the ocean, his steps slowed. His gaze swept the tables on the patio, and then his breath caught.
"There she is," he murmured.
She followed his gaze to see Ella get to her feet, followed by a striking, willowy woman with dark-brown hair that fell halfway down her shoulders.
She wore a flowing dress with wedge heels, and she looked younger than her seventy-eight years.
As Walter moved forward, she and Jax fell a few steps behind.
Jax took her hand in his, and she didn't have the will to reject him because she was feeling anxious.
She really wanted this meeting to go well.
Ella hung back as her aunt walked toward Walter. Reina stopped a foot away from him. They stared at each other in disbelief.
Finally, Reina said, "It's really you."
"And it's you," he echoed as their gazes clung together. They weren't touching, but they were unmistakably connected.
Reina drew in a breath and let it out. "I can't believe you found my song. I never imagined it would still be there."
"It shocked me, too." Walter took the folded sheets of music out of his pocket. "But these people…" He glanced back at them. "They helped me find it."
"It feels like a miracle," Reina said softly.
"Why don't you sit down?" Ella suggested.
"This is my niece," Reina said. "Anita's daughter, Ella."
"It's nice to meet you," Walter said politely.
"You, too," Ella replied. As Reina and Walter continued to stare at each other, Ella added, "I'm going to make some calls from my car. Text me when you're ready to go, Auntie. And take your time. I'm in no rush."
"We're in no rush, either," she told Walter. "We'll be nearby, but this time is for the two of you."
"Thank you," Walter said.
As the two of them sat down at a table, she turned to Jax, who was still holding her hand. "Let's take a walk."
He nodded, and they walked through the hotel and up the steps to another ocean-view deck that offered several benches overlooking the ocean.
As they sat down, she let go of his hand, and when their eyes met, she felt another wave of emotion. "That was everything I wanted it to be," she said.
"You weren't hoping for an embrace, a kiss?"
"No. That would have been too much. That look they exchanged was everything, as if all the years between them had faded away, and they were those two young people who once fell in love."
"It's kind of a sad story, though. They spent more than fifty years apart."
"Maybe this is their time."
He gave her a long look. "Maybe this is our time."
Her heart skipped a beat. "I wasn't thinking that after what happened this morning."
"I wasn't expecting Wren to show up, Kaia. I didn't handle it as well as I should have."
"I get that you were shaken up, but you said she left shortly after I did, so why didn't you come see me?"
"I had to think about a lot of things, and I wanted to talk to you when I had a clearer head."
She wasn't thrilled with that explanation. "I'm not sure that's a great excuse, but okay. So, your head is clear now, right?"
"It is. And I want to tell you everything."
"Well, I think we have time because Walter and Reina have a lot of catching up to do."
He took a moment to gather his thoughts, which only made her more worried.
She wasn't sure what she wanted to hear.
There seemed to be so many things he could say that would force their relationship to end.
"Jax, please," she said. "Just tell me what really happened, because I know it wasn't as simple as you stealing someone else's song.
I don't even believe you did that. That's not who you are.
You're not a thief. You don't take the easy way out. "
"It was Wren," he admitted. "She stole the song from a work session she had with the band in question.
She rewrote it and gave it to me as if they were her notes, her words, her music.
It wasn't an exact copy, but once I saw the original, I realized it was definitely their song.
We had turned it into a huge hit, made a ton of money, and that band wanted their share.
They brought a lawsuit for damages. The press caught wind of the story, and our fans felt incredibly betrayed. "
"Why did you take the blame if Wren did it?"
"Because Wren was falling apart. She was spiraling.
Her mental health has always been fragile, and she has had issues with alcohol and substance abuse.
The day I discovered the truth, she got behind the wheel of my car, and she crashed into someone's house.
Luckily, no one was home, and she called me before she called the police.
I got to the scene with Clay, and he took her away while I called to report the accident.
I told them I'd been exhausted and had fallen asleep at the wheel. I was sober, so they bought the story."
"Wow! You took the blame for stealing the song and the car crash? You must really love her."
"Not the way you think," he said.
"I don't think so. I felt the tension between you two."
"Tension born of anger, betrayal, and resentment."
"All made worse because you love her," she argued, not sure why she wanted to be right about that, but maybe she needed to protect her heart a little, too.
"I told you we met when we were very young.
Wren came from an abusive home. That's why she has PTSD when people get angry or yell at her, or God forbid, grab her or touch her in an angry way.
Right before all this happened, she was involved with a guy who got drunk one night and slapped her around.
I think that was really the trigger for everything else that came after that.
She started abusing drugs and alcohol. She couldn't write music.
She couldn't think of lyrics. She was blank, and we needed a song to finish the record.
I didn't know at the time just how much mental trouble she was in.
You have to understand, Kaia, that Wren was someone I felt I had to take care of.
She was broken long before we met, and there were people around every corner eager to take advantage of her. "
"You said you had a fling," she reminded him. "At one time, there was a romance."
"Not romance, sex. We were two drunken teenagers who barely remembered any of it.
It was a mistake. We both knew it. And it never happened again because we didn't feel that way about each other.
Do you really think we would have stayed apart for the past fourteen years if we had?
We've both had relationships since then.
We're truly just friends. And until recently, we were partners. "
"Okay, let's get back to the breakdown, the song, and the crash. The public knows about the plagiarism but not about the other?"
"The crash came out eventually, and it was made to look like I'd been driving drunk because of my guilt over what I'd done to Wren."
"That's why there's so much hate against you. Wren's fans think you hurt her, you destroyed her."
"Yes."
"Why did she let you do all this for her? Is she that selfish?"
"She is quite selfish, to be honest. But she did it because I made her a deal.
I told her I would take responsibility if she went to rehab.
It had to be a real facility, and she had to stay at least sixty days and work with a therapist. I also told her I was quitting the group, and from there on out, she was on her own. "
"And now?"
"She's clean. She completed rehab. She's still seeing a therapist. And she wants me to sing with her again."
"And Clay, your agent, he wants you back together, right?"
"Yes. We were his biggest clients. He misses his commission."
"I thought you said your career was dead after everything that happened. What's really changed?"
"There's a label that, for some unknown reason, wants to work with us.
Our previous label dropped us after the lawsuit and the car crash.
They thought we were radioactive. They believed we were finished.
I didn't disagree. With all the media attention and hateful rumors, I had to get the hell out of Nashville.
Clay's father once represented Josie, and he told Clay he knew a place where I could go and find support and privacy.
I guess Josie had run away from Hollywood and had to reinvent herself. "
"She did. No wonder she was fine with your secrecy." She thought for a moment, trying to make sense of what he'd told her. "I just want to be clear. You didn't do any of the things that you were accused of. It was all Wren. You were protecting her. You did nothing wrong."
"I did do something wrong," he said, surprising her with the words.
"I lied about the song and the accident, and there was nothing right about that.
" He picked up her hand, and she stiffened, but she didn't pull away.
She couldn't. "Kaia, I'm sorry I didn't tell you before we got so involved. I should have."