Chapter 23
Viv pulled the blanket over her head as a knock came to the door. She recognized the sound. It was the same round of knocks Mom did before coming inside. But just why would she be coming to the house so early on a Monday morning?
“Vivia?” came her voice from the front room.
She sounded way too cheery for there to be an emergency. And also way too cheery to be in Viv’s house. She was in mourning right now. Deeply grieving her lost relationship with Duke.
The remainder of the weekend had gone by, and they hadn’t said so much as a word to each other.
Sure, Viv had asked him to respect the fact that she needed time, but when he actually allowed every minute of every hour to pass by without so much as a text, Viv started to wonder if he ever loved her at all.
By eight a.m. she was dying to text him and see what he thought of her note.
By nine she tapped the text out, then erased it and forced herself to shut down her phone.
By ten—the time she and the boys arrived at Mom’s for brunch—Viv was cursing herself for writing the stupid note and was desperate to drive out to Duke’s right then and tell him that perhaps she’d made a big mistake.
Eleven-fifteen had her changing her mind once more. That’s when a fresh batch of social media popped onto the web. Viv started getting texts from friends, old clients, and acquaintances alike. Even her seventy-year-old neighbor called up and asked if there was anything she could do to help.
All of it made her miss Duke even more. Which only made her feel more weak and selfish and…miserable.
“Rise and shine, Vivia,” Mom said as she stepped into the room. The distinct clatter of blinds moving from bottom to top sounded.
The room got miserably brighter.
“Why is this happening?” Viv grumbled beneath the sheet. She grabbed a nearby pillow and shoved it over her face.
“Oh, mia cara, because a sad, jealous woman drank too much and made of mess of things by trying to slander your good name.”
“No,” Viv said, “why is this—as in you showing up way too early and opening my blinds—happening?”
On came her TV. “Because.” A commercial for organic dog food blared throughout her room.
“You’re going to wake the boys up,” Viv warned. School was out for summer, after all.
“That’s okay,” her mom said. “They have baseball practice soon. Remember?”
The channels were changing now. Music. News. And the sounds of an audience cheering.
“I got a text this morning,” she said.
Viv’s eyes popped open. She pulled the pillow from her face. “From who?”
“Actually, it came in last night, but I didn’t see it until this morning.”
“Welcome to Mornings In Mind,” came the TV. “I’m Samantha Pingley, and we’re here to brighten your day, broaden your horizons, and help you see the world in a brand new light.”
Vivia had heard the introduction to the woman’s popular TV show hundreds of times before.
“You came here to watch the morning show?” she asked. “Is your electricity out?”
“Today we’ll be talking about redemption,” the woman continued.
“It’s something most of us crave at one point or another, but rarely attain.
There is, however, a woman who’s become known for her unique ability to help right wrong perspectives.
A woman who—by a recent unfortunate event—became the subject of slander herself. And might I say, wrongfully so.”
Viv yanked the blanket off her face now, propped herself onto her elbows, and blinked.
“Today we welcome a star cast of people, including myself, who have one very specific thing in common. Our reputations, and even our careers, were restored, in part, by an upright, intelligent, and—at all-costs—honest young woman. A tribute, if you will, to the lovely Verit?.
“It’s my great honor to lead this tribute with a few words of my own.
I’ve done approximately two hundred and fifty TV interviews each year for a combined total of eight years, which equals to approximately two thousand interviews in the last decade alone.
My stint was briefly interrupted when my character was brought into question after I was accused of embezzlement.
I fought back, in an often-unsavory manner, as you might imagine, and it only got worse.
“While I was soon legally cleared of those allegations, I spent the better part of two years trying to regain my place in the workforce and the public eye alike.”
Mom climbed onto the bed, scooted until she was sitting beside Viv, and shot her a teary-eyed grin before setting her eyes back on the screen.
Viv was starting to feel the emotion of it herself. A warm knot of it turning in her heart.
“Of the two-thousand plus interviews I was part of, there are few that stand out to me more than the time I spent with Vivia Tripoli, who is the famous Verit?.
I could tell by the look in her eye, by the careful pose of her questions, that she was inwardly rooting for me.
Giving me the benefit of the doubt, even.
“But I was equally aware that she sought the truth, and that she’d share that truth no matter which way it went. She has integrity, a rare virtue these days.”
A rush of emotion swept through Viv as she let the woman’s words sink in. “Wow,” she breathed.
“Indeed.” Her mom reached out and took her hand. “Mia cara,” she said, kissing the back of her hand.
It reminded her of the way Duke often pressed kisses to her palms. She wondered if he’d caught sight of the morning show amidst his morning routine.
“We’re going to take a quick break,” Samantha said, “but when we return, get ready to hear more stories like the one I shared. It’s all coming up next. Stay tuned.”
“I can’t believe she just did that,” Viv said.
“I can,” her mom said. “I brought an issue of Slipper, in case you didn’t have one yet. I left it on the coffee table.”
“Okay, thanks.” She did have one, but she didn’t want to admit it.
In fact, Viv’s issue was resting facedown on the floor at the other side of the bed.
She’d spent hours torturing herself over all twelve of the photo spreads last night.
Each picture reminded her of a new memory, conversation, or interaction she had with Duke.
Memories that had her in a state of tears until she drifted to sleep.
Their time in Costa Rica had been like a dream. And it’d only gotten better when they’d come home and gotten to know one another’s families. She could barely remember why she’d felt the need to end things with him. Why had she thought it was the best choice?
“Grandma’s here,” Diego called from the hallway. The sound of his little voice brought the image back to her mind—the picture of the twins the vloggers had shown online.
”Luce dei miei occhi, light of my eyes.” Mom patted the bed. “Come on in.”
“Are we having a TV party on the bed?” Dante asked as he trailed into the room behind his brother. The two climbed onto the foot of the bed, crawled like dogs across the length of it, and settled into their grandma’s lap, one on each leg.
“We sure are,” her mom said. “They’re talking about your mother on TV this morning. Can you believe it?”
“They are?” Dante asked.
“I believe it,” Diego said. “She’s a famous writer.”
Viv shot him a look. She’d always avoided using the word famous to describe herself. She was far from it, which was, in her mind, a very good thing.
She kept working to tell herself that very thing as the five well-known guests came onto Samantha’s morning show, via satellite.
Each took no more than five minutes or so to express their gratitude for the woman who’d graciously taken the time to get to know who they really were. A woman who, according to the man who once played Batman— knew how to relate traits that he himself struggled to believe.
Viv found herself shaking her head in wonder and wiping at emotional tears as they surfaced. “I never knew these guys felt this way,” she said in a whisper. “This is…incredible.”
“Yeah, Mom,” Diego said. “You’re incredible!”
“She sure is,” her mother agreed.
“And now to introduce the man who initiated today’s focus. A man who called me, his voice wrecked with concern, desperate to help the woman he loves. Would you welcome Verit?’s latest interview and very proud boyfriend, Mr. Duke Benton.”
“It’s Duke,” the twins shouted in unison. At once, they were off the bed and trotting across the floor before the wide screen.
Diego broke into his booty dance. “Woo-woo, woo-woo.”
Duke stepped onto the stage, flashing his winning grin at audience members as they cheered.
Viv’s breath hitched. Her heart sped. And if she didn’t know better, she’d say the vessel even bled a little. There was a massive cut there since she’d attempted to say goodbye to him. One that would likely never heal while they were apart.
“He called you his girlfriend,” Mom said as the whistles and cheers continued.
Viv couldn’t hold back a smile of her own. “You’re right.”
“Since the gala,” Samantha started, “the internet has been flooded with footage of a disgruntled woman who, rather than announce a Stanford Alumni award as she was asked to do, chose to slander the woman you love.”
Duke nodded. “Yes.”
“He just said he loved you on live TV,” Mom added.
Viv’s bleeding heart wanted to respond with a booty dance of its own. “I know…” Sure, she sounded like a swooning schoolgirl, but she could hardly help it.
Admitting that he loved her on live TV—it was definitely satisfying that part of her that wished he’d have spoken up the night of the gala. As small as she thought that part was, it swelled with such satisfaction her body couldn’t contain it. The joy seemed to lift parts of her very soul.
Beyond that, Duke had arranged all of this for her. Moments that allowed Viv to hear words of appreciation, adoration, and gratitude she’d had otherwise never known. And he’d arranged it so that all of America could tune in as well.
“Before we go along with the theme of our day which is, essentially, sharing the way Verit? has touched our lives, I wanted to give you the chance to tell all of America why this was important to you.”
“Thank you,” Duke said with a nod. “Vivi’s one of the most incredible women I know. She’s caring, compassionate, and she believes that everyone deserves a shot at redemption. She’s made a living out of doing that very thing, right?”
“Right,” Samantha agreed.
“So to see her integrity come into question…” He paused there and shook his head. “Over being in a relationship with me, no less—that was tough.” Duke turned to square a look at the camera.
Viv felt that look all the way to her core. A tingly wave of warmth spreading through her entire body.
“I’ve never loved anyone the way I love Vivi. And I’d do anything to protect her and the people she loves.”
And the people she loves. She knew just who he meant. In essence, he’d mentioned the twins without actually mentioning them at all. Those who didn’t know she had the boys wouldn’t think anything of it, but to Viv, those words meant everything.
Mom fanned her face and grinned. “Perfetto,” she said dreamily.
And as Duke continued, expressing his own appreciation for the article she’d written about him, Viv’s mind was at work. Thinking of the many people, like half of the stars who’d spoken on Viv’s behalf that morning, who were raising kids while living life in the spotlight.
That didn’t make them irresponsible or selfish, having a public career while raising children. So why had Viv convinced herself that’s what it meant for her?
Because she feared that giving into something so wonderful as being with Duke had to come at a cost—one that put her kids at risk.
But what Viv did for a living risked stepping into the public spotlight.
It’d been that way for years now. She’d mingled with some very big Hollywood names, after all.
It was likely just a matter of time that her real identity—which was nothing special, really—would come into light.
And now it had. That didn’t mean she needed to retreat and cut herself off from all connection to the rich and famous, as they say.
“I made a mistake,” Viv muttered as Samantha thanked Duke for coming on the show once again.
“We all make mistakes,” Mom assured. “Looks like Duke’s already forgiven you.”
“He loves you, Mom,” Dante said.
“A lot,” Diego added while climbing back onto the bed. “Are we still going to ball practice?” he asked next.
Viv shot a look at the clock. “I almost forgot about that,” she blurted. A million tingles were still rushing through her blood and blurring her brain. She wanted to shout from the wide window in her room that she was in love and she didn’t care who knew it.
“You boys better hurry and get dressed,” Viv’s mom said.
“Bet I’ll be faster,” Dante challenged.
Diego did a super jump off the bed and onto the floor. “Bet you won’t.”
The two raced out of the room as Viv set her eyes back on her mom.
“So, Duke texted you last night?”
“Yep. He simply asked if I’d come out and watch the morning show with you.” She tipped her head. “Well, he told me he loved you too. And that he was sorry for what had happened.”
“What did you say?” Viv asked.
“I told him that I knew he was sorry. That you loved him too, and that I’d make sure you saw the show. Of course, that was only an hour ago.”
“I’ve got to make it right with him,” Viv said.
“You will,” her mom said with a nod.
“But for now, I’ve got a baseball practice to be at.”
“And I’ve got a shift at the library,” Mom added with a glance at the clock.
Viv was quick to hug her mom, thank her for being wonderful, and assure her that she’d keep her posted on how things went.
While brushing her teeth and hurrying into a pair of cutoff shorts and a tee, Viv considered sending Duke a text. As soon as she got the boys to practice she would. Or maybe she should call him instead. Yes, that would be best.
The boys were already suited up and forcing down granola bars by the time Viv snatched her Red Sox cap off the hook.
“Let’s get going,” she said.
“Is Duke going to start coming to our practices?” Dante asked.
“He can’t come to the practices,” Viv said, “but he talked about coming to your games.” She wanted to talk about Duke with more certainty, but the fact was, Viv was inwardly worried that she’d scared him away.
Sure, he’d done something amazing to give her that incredible gift this morning on live TV.
He loved her, he cared about her, and he would not want her career to be negatively affected.
But what if being in a relationship with someone so…quick to consider letting it all go was too much for him?
She’d only told him she needed time, Viv assured herself, but it didn’t do much to calm the growing fear that she might have scared him away. She only hoped, as she pulled up to the baseball diamond where Duke and the twins first met, that he’d be willing to give her another chance.