Chapter 1 Annabelle #2
Annabelle was careful to measure her response.
“I don’t believe in love at first sight.
Your dad and I were friends first, and I fell in love with him gradually.
But it’s better, I think, because he’s not only my husband, he’s my best friend.
” What she didn’t tell her daughter was that once upon a time, she had very much believed in love at first sight.
Back when she was young and naive and hadn’t had her heart broken.
She’d experienced that all-consuming, head-over-heels, mad love that poets and philosophers wrote about, and it had nearly destroyed her.
Maybe her knees didn’t buckle when James kissed her, but that kind of feeling didn’t last anyway.
What they had was better, more real. The kind of love that would sustain her, not obliterate her.
Scarlett made a face. “Doesn’t sound very romantic. Who were you dating before him?”
Annabelle decided to sidestep the question.
“Listen, the romantic love you see in the movies isn’t real.
Real love is—” She glanced over to see if Scarlett was listening and saw that she had put her AirPods in and tuned her out.
She sighed. The teenage years were certainly living up to the stereotype.
Annabelle was close to both girls, making sure to do special things one-on-one with each of them.
Olivia and Annabelle went to the bookstore together every week, ordered hot chocolates, and chose a new book to read together.
Scarlett and Annabelle’s thing was scary movies.
They’d make a large bowl of popcorn, turn the lights way down, and snuggle under a blanket.
But lately, Scarlett wasn’t even interested in doing that.
Annabelle supposed it was normal—this pulling away—but it didn’t make it any easier.
Thank goodness Olivia was still her same sweet self.
Annabelle pulled into the parking lot of their school.
“Bye, Mommy,” Olivia said as she jumped out of the car. Scarlett got out without a word.
“Have a good day,” she called after them, but they ran ahead without looking back.
“You too, Mom,” she said to herself, shaking her head.
—
James held up his glass of wine. “Here’s to us, and to many more years together.”
He looks so handsome tonight, Annabelle thought.
He seemed to get better looking each year.
When they first met, she thought he was a bit geeky.
Back then he wore thick black frames, and his hair was too short for her taste.
But now, with a touch of gray at his temples, contacts, and a more fashionable haircut, he reminded her a bit of Jude Law.
Annabelle touched her glass to his and drank.
“I love it here,” she said, looking around.
“All the stress of the day melts away as soon as I walk in the door.”
He smiled at her. “You look gorgeous. I love that dress on you. How do you manage to get sexier every year?”
Annabelle had on her silver Irina halter dress—a little shorter than she liked, but if there was anywhere to wear it, it was New York.
And she wanted to make tonight a special night.
She’d even had her hair blown out so that it was extra shiny and straight for the evening.
Annabelle wasn’t into labels, but her mother-in-law had given her a gift card to a boutique where the least expensive item was nine hundred dollars.
So she’d splurged and bought it for a New Year’s party last year.
“Thank you. Maybe later we can try to make up for what we missed in the shower this morning.”
“That’s a deal,” James said. “We should come here more often. We don’t get into the city enough anymore.”
“Then it wouldn’t be as special.” The first time they’d come to Per Se was after they’d had Scarlett.
Annabelle had been sleep-deprived and exhausted, and James had surprised her with a weekend away.
Her in-laws had come to stay with the baby, and he had booked them a suite at the Waldorf.
The first night they’d ordered room service; she fell asleep soon after and slept for fourteen hours.
When she woke up around noon, he’d booked her a facial and a massage and had made dinner plans at Per Se.
His thoughtfulness was one of his most endearing qualities.
James reached into his pocket and pulled out a small box, wrapped in forest-green paper with a gold ribbon. “For you.”
“I thought we were going to wait until we got home to exchange our presents.”
“I couldn’t wait. Go on. Open it.”
Annabelle tore the paper and pulled out a small velvet box. When she flipped the top to reveal what was inside, she gasped. “Oh my gosh, James. This means so much.” Tears sprang to her eyes. “How did you do this?”
“I got the name of a jewelry restorer and had it fixed.”
She gently lifted the diamond and sapphire ring and held it in the palm of her hand.
It had belonged to her mother, and to her grandmother before her.
But it had been damaged when her mother had fallen on a sidewalk years ago, when she was in the end stage of Alzheimer’s.
The gold had been badly scratched, and some of the stones had fallen out.
Her mother’s aides had been so concerned with getting her to the hospital that no one thought to look for the stones, and they were never recovered.
But now it looked like nothing had ever happened to it.
She slipped the ring on her finger and held her hand out, admiring it.
It felt like she had a part of her mother back.
“How is it that you always know the perfect thing to do?”
“I’m glad it makes you happy.”
She reached out and took his hand. “ You make me happy. Thank you so much for this.” She blew out a breath. “I can’t believe it’s been nine years since Mom’s been gone. But at least when I think of her now, it’s when she was well. It’s almost like those awful years never happened.”
“I wish I had known her before she got sick. But I’m glad I was able to see glimpses of the real her. And she loved you, Annabelle. That much was obvious, even at the end.”
Annabelle smiled. “She loved you too. From the moment she met you, she thought we were a couple, back when we were just friends. It’s like she knew right away that we were meant to be together.
” She took a sip of her wine, a feeling of contentment washing over her.
“This is so nice. As much as I love our family time, it’s great to have time with just us, especially with your crazy work schedule. ”
“Couldn’t agree more. Speaking of work. I forgot to tell you. Good news. I won best doc again this year. It’ll be in next month’s Connecticut Magazine. ”
Annabelle gasped.
James gave her an amused look. “Well, you don’t have to look so shocked.”
She forced a laugh. “I’m just happy for you. Congrats! Why didn’t you mention that you were in the running?
“Didn’t want to jinx it.”
She raised the glass to her lips with a shaking hand and took a long sip, her dream coming back to her full force.