Chapter 16
DAVID
The first year of April and my marriage had some ups and downs.
Months one and two were absolutely perfect. Our honeymoon in Europe couldn’t have gone better. April wasn’t as well-traveled as I was, and I got to show her some of my favorite spots in Italy and France.
I was showing a beautiful woman—my wife!—the canals of Venice, and walking her along the Seine in Paris. Life was grand.
When we got home and returned to regular life, things were still looking up. My business was thriving, and I got another promotion I’d been pining for. I was a pretty modest guy, but my ego started to grow just a little. I had a stunning wife and was making money hand over fist.
We bought a house in Santa Monica, looking like the perfect young couple.
A little over a year into our marriage, April came home one day and dropped the bomb that she’d quit her personal assistant’s job.
I’d become cordial with her former boss, the quarterback.
He was more down-to-earth than I’d expected.
Having your wife work for a handsome, well-known guy who used to play quarterback for USC brought a few worries, but he’d alleviated my fears.
He was also a family man, and I had no reason to suspect that April was anything more than his assistant.
I was making so much money, it’s not like April really had to work, but it was still jarring to hear she’d quit.
“What happened?” I asked.
“He just demands too much. He asked me to go away with him to Santa Barbara for a movie festival. Apparently, some bigwigs were going to be there that he wanted to schmooze, and he wanted my help.”
“Go away with him?” I said. “I don’t like the sound of that.”
“I mean, it was for business. I think.”
“You think? What’s going on here, April? Does he want you to be more than his assistant?”
“I’m not sure, but I was starting to feel uncomfortable there. That was enough for me to know I should quit.”
“Of course. Are you okay?” I gave her a long hug.
“I’ll be fine.”
“Do you want me to confront him?”
“No, you don’t need to do that. Plus, he’s a lot bigger than you.”
In the moment, I thought she was just trying to prevent me from a confrontation. Looking back, days later, what she said infuriated me. Who tells her husband that the other guy is a lot bigger than you when he is just trying to look out for you?
“If he really hit on you, I don’t care if he’s bigger than me, I’d knock him the fuck out,” I said.
“That’s not necessary. He just asked me to go to Santa Barbara as his assistant.”
I was fired up, but tried to calm down.
“I’m glad you’re quitting.”
“Thanks, David.”
“And now you can start looking into opening April’s Coffee Shop.”
“What? Oh yeah, that.”
“That? What do you mean? That’s your dream job.”
“I know. You’re right. Sorry, it’s just been a long day.”
“You’re right. I apologize.”
In the months that followed, I started to get that hollow feeling in my gut.
April wasn’t doing much of anything. I’d go to work all day, and she’d just sit at home. I know Margie came over a few times a week, but besides that, what was she doing all day long?
We didn’t have a child. That would be different.
But when I’d broached the subject, April said she wasn’t ready to be a mother yet.
“We’ll have one soon enough, I promise,” she’d say. “But my life will change forever once I get pregnant. I have to be sure I’m ready.”
I understood that. It wasn’t me who had to carry around a growing fetus, had to throw up all the time, and just generally had my life thrown on its head.
And we were only eighteen months into our marriage. I was okay with waiting a bit longer.
A few more months passed.
It had been long enough.
“What do you say we try to get April’s Coffee Shop off the ground?” I said one day.
“We’ve been so happy that I almost forgot about it.”
I didn’t like her response. Had we been so happy? And what did that have to do with opening a business? It’s not like you couldn’t work hard while also being happy. I was working my damn ass off, and she was sitting at home all day.
“You still want to do this, don’t you?”
“I do,” she said, but there wasn’t much conviction behind it.
“It doesn’t really sound like it.”
“No, I promise I do. I’ve just had so much fun over the last several months that I kind of forgot about it.
When I moved to LA, I studied my ass off for four years at USC, and then got the job I’ve been doing since.
I’ve had no downtime in over ten years. So I’ve just been enjoying the peace and quiet. ”
I didn’t begrudge her that. A little downtime would be good for anyone. But hers had now gone on almost six months.
And I wasn’t sure how you could just forget about one of your lifelong dreams, but I didn’t dare say that. This conversation was close enough to going off the rails as it was.
So I treaded carefully, like the good boy I was.
“Okay, I understand. But how about we start looking at some of the numbers it might take to get this business off the ground. It probably won’t be cheap.”
“I’m sure you’re right. But with the amount of money you make, it would barely be a drop in the bucket.”
She quickly realized how her comment had come off.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “That sounded terrible. I don’t mean that. I just thought since we’re married, you’d be excited to help me get the business off the ground.”
I remember being conflicted in the moment. I hadn’t married April to be her sugar daddy and pay for everything. On the other hand, I was still in love with her, and if opening a coffee shop was her dream, then I should be 100% behind it.
Plus, she was right. I was making a boatload of money and could easily afford to get a coffee shop off the ground.
“You sure you want to do this?” I asked again.
This time, she smiled brightly. “More than anything.”
She’d done a one-eighty, and while I should have been more suspicious, I was just happy she was showing interest.
“Screw it. Let’s go for it. I don’t care what it costs.”
“Oh, David. I love you so much.”
“I love you, too.”
She leaned in close, kissed me, and then hugged me.
“That’s why you’re such a great husband.”
“How great a husband am I?”
“Well, why don’t I show you …”