2. Madeleine #2
I was saved from having to answer by a woman emerging from the kitchen, wiping her hands on a dish towel tucked into her apron.
She was striking in an effortless way I immediately envied: long brown hair loose past her shoulders, warm brown eyes, a scatter of rings on her fingers, and a bohemian looseness to the way she moved, like she’d never once worried about how anyone saw her.
She stopped at the head of the table near Jack and Ivy and lifted her voice just enough to gather us.
“Evening, everyone. I’m Elliot. My husband Caspian and I run the kitchen here, so you’ll be seeing a lot of us this month.
” A few people clapped, which she waved off with a laugh.
“I hope you’ll still be delighted once you’ve tasted the food.
Tonight we’re starting you off with a roasted butternut squash soup, brown butter and sage.
Then a standing rib roast—dry-aged, crusted in herbs, and resting as we speak, served with garlic mashed potatoes, roasted winter vegetables, and my rolls, which people have driven considerable distances for.
And if you save room, there’s a spiced pear crumble with bourbon cream for dessert.
” She grinned. “And you should save room.”
The table murmured its approval. Even Knox said something low and appreciative into his beer. Why was I noticing every little thing about this man? I took another sip of wine and told myself to focus on something other than the way I caught a whiff of his spicy cologne every time he moved.
“Enjoy, everyone,” Elliot said, and disappeared back toward the kitchen as the first bowls began to arrive.
I’d just lifted my spoon when Ivy rose at the head of the table, her wine glass in hand, and the table quieted.
“Don’t worry, I won’t keep y’all from this food for long.
I just wanted to say a little something before we dig in or have too much to drink.
First, thank you for being here. I don’t think I’ve ever been this happy, or had this many of the people I love under one roof at the same time.
” Her eyes moved over all of us, warm and shining.
“Thank you for giving up your December. I know a month is a lot to ask. I know some of you think this whole thing slightly ridiculous.” Her gaze flicked, fondly, toward Knox.
“I hope you’ll change your mind once you decompress. ”
“I’ll keep you posted,” Knox murmured, and the table chuckled.
“A few housekeeping items,” Ivy said. “Finley has made a calendar of all the activities on the ranch for the month of December. They’re not mandatory.
” She paused. “Except for one thing. And that’s the talent show.
We will all be participating, and here’s the catch.
No music. I want to see your talents other than what we all do for a living. ”
I raised my hand. “What about those who are not musicians?”
“Same rule applies,” Ivy said.
“Probably wise,” I said. “Since I can’t sing or play an instrument.”
“Yes, having heard you sing a time or two, I’m in reluctant agreement,” Ivy said, laughing.
“Everyone has to do it?” Knox asked, sounding grumpy. “What if we have no other talents except for the one we make a living with?”
“Too bad,” Ivy said. “I’m the bride, and I get what I want all month.”
“Lord, have mercy,” Ivy’s mother, June, said. “This could be trouble.”
“Which brings me to my next thing.” Ivy’s chin came up, and obvious pride crept into her voice.
“Y’all know we agreed to let a film crew document this month.
What you might not know is why we said yes.
” She looked directly at me. What was she about to say?
“When the studio came to us wanting to film the wedding month for a documentary, they came to Madeleine first. And my brilliant best friend sat in a room full of Hollywood sharks and didn’t just negotiate a fee.
She got them to agree to one million dollars up front, plus ten percent of the film’s net profit.
And all of it’s going straight to Luci’s clinic. ”
The table erupted. I felt my face go hot. I usually did not blush. I hardly ever got flustered. I was more the kind who made others flustered. Yet, here I was, caught entirely off guard, and mortified.
“To Madeleine,” Ivy said, lifting her glass.
“A woman who uses the gifts God gave her every day to make everyone in this room’s lives a little brighter and a lot more lucrative, but who also knows what it’s like to grow up poor, without proper health care.
So thank you for your big heart, your big ol’ brain, and for being my best friend. ”
Everyone cheered and raised their glasses. Even Knox.
“Didn’t know that was where the documentary money went,” Knox said. “Well done.”
“There’s a lot you don’t know about what I do,” I said.
He looked at me a beat longer than was comfortable, then drank from his beer glass.
Luci, Jack’s sister, stood, brushing her long blonde hair behind her shoulders and looking around the table with soft brown eyes.
She was a pediatrician and had the kind of gentle steadiness you’d want in the person who cared for your sick child.
I knew through Ivy how hard she’d worked to get through medical school and that she refused any help from Jack.
Knowing how much Charlie’s law school was costing me, I could only imagine the student loans she must have taken out.
“For those of you who are unfamiliar with my work, I created a clinic that runs on a pay-what-you-can model, which means we struggle all the time. A million dollars means a lot of kids who have parents choosing between the light bill and a doctor’s bill have a place to come for health care.
” Her voice cracked slightly but she pressed on through it.
“It means we don’t have to turn anyone away for at least the next few years.
So thank you. To Ivy and Jack for thinking of it in the first place, and to Madeleine for negotiating such an amazing deal.
Depending on how the film does, that 10 percent could make or break us.
” She lifted her glass toward me. “You have no idea how many lives you’re going to change. Thank you, Madeleine.”
I lifted my wine, murmured a “thanks,” and was grateful when the attention finally moved on.
Ivy didn’t lie. I had been one of those kids.
I’d grown up in Bellwood, Arkansas, raised by a single mother worried about making rent every month.
A doctor’s visit had been a luxury rationed like everything else.
Nobody at this table knew my story except for Ivy.
Although I’d worked as Jack’s public relations manager for a decade now, I kept my private life private.
Although Ivy had given them enough of a hint about my background tonight that they could probably venture a guess.
I wasn’t at all happy about that, but somehow I couldn’t seem to muster much irritation.
Being a part of something that mattered felt too good.
“All right, one more introduction, and then I’ll let you eat.
” Ivy gestured warmly down the table to a dark-haired woman sitting on the other side of Knox.
She was pretty, with shoulder length brown hair and a heart-shaped face.
She appeared to be about the same age as the rest of us—mid-thirties.
“For those who haven’t met her yet—this is Blake Bennett.
She’s the one who’ll be filming us all month, so be nice, and don’t do anything on camera you wouldn’t want your mama to see.
” She paused, then added, with obvious pride, “And in case her name sounds familiar, Blake’s father is Daniel Bennett. ”
That got a reaction. Even Knox sat up a little. Daniel Bennett had three Oscars and a dozen documentaries about subjects ranging from a dying timber community to history of dentistry. He could make the most mundane of subjects fascinating.
Blake lifted a hand, a little embarrassed by the introduction. “Hi, everyone. Yes, that’s my dad, but, as I’m sure you can imagine, our subject matter here at the ranch will be a little more lighthearted than his work, which he hates. But a girl has to make a living.”
“That’s the truth,” I said.
“I’m not here to catch anyone at their worst or make anyone look bad.
That’s not the kind of film I make. My crew is two people—myself and my camera op, Nick—and most of the time you genuinely won’t even notice us.
No lights in your face, no producer asking you to say it again with more feeling. Wouldn’t that be awful?”
Everyone nodded, murmuring consensus.
“If a moment’s private, it’s private; you tell me to stop rolling, I stop, no questions.
” Her gaze moved down the table, taking in each of us with a curiosity that didn’t feel like scrutiny so much as genuine interest. “I grew up on this music. I know that probably sounds like a line, but my dad worked constantly, and the way I found him was through the records he loved—so a lot of my childhood memories are listening to Merle Haggard and Waylon and Willie with him. So when I heard I might get to tell your story, I didn’t think about the wedding, honestly.
I thought about the band. Five people who found each other and built something that lasted, in a business that eats people.
That’s the story I’m interested in. How you found each other.
What you’ve survived. Why you stayed. In a nutshell, Nick and I are going to be in the background, sometimes filming, other times just observing.
If there’s something you’d like to share about your story, please let me know.
I’m fascinated by what you’ve accomplished together. ”
“She seems legit,” Knox said, under his breath.
“Are you saying I did something good?” I asked, leaning close.
“Ask me when this month is over.” He turned to look into my eyes. “But it looks good.”
Why did his praise please me so much? I chose not to examine that too carefully and focused on the delicious food instead.