Page 52 of Axel
“Your sister thinks I am being ridiculous, but I am positive they can hear me. They certainly perk up whenever I say something.” Lifting her head, she stared at her son. “We keep in touch.”
“I am not…“
“Ellie Logan and I keep in touch. Cathy as well. We made her promise to do so before she left. When we told her you had left, she was devastated.
Oh, she tried to hide it, but we could see the glitter of tears in her eyes.” She gave him an accusing look. “I brought you up better than that, Axel and I cannot believe you deliberately broke that beautiful woman’s heart.”
His jaw was tight with displeasure and even though he was angry at her criticisms, he could not meet her eyes.
“I don’t want to talk about it, and you have enough on your plate as it is.”
“You are my son and I love you to death, but you are making a big mistake.”
This time, he turned his head to look at her. “Then it’s mine to make and if you are going to persist in bringing up a topic I would rather not discuss, I am going to…,” his voice tailed off with a sigh. “I cannot discuss it, not now. Please understand.”
Leaning forward, she placed her small hand over his much larger one. “I love you darling. My heart bursts with pride whenever I think of you. You have achieved so much, but nothing is as important as having someone who loves you, someone in your corner to make things – make life a little easier.
I had you and Cathy and as much as it was difficult back then, it was all worth it because of my two children.” Clasping his hands, she squeezed it gently. “Don’t make the mistake of letting that beautiful woman slip away from you.”
*****
“You are going to Europe?” Her friends stared at her in surprise. “What on earth for?” Jackie stared at her in surprise.
Ellie had finally accepted their invitation to go dancing, even though she was not feeling the vibes. She had finished the article, spent time finetuning it and handed it in. She had then told Marge that she was taking an extended leave of absence, and the editor had grudgingly agreed.
“To see the sights, just laze around doing nothing. Perhaps have sex with a fabulously handsome French or Italian male. Brush up on my language skills and buy some exorbitantly expensive item of clothing.”
Ellie sipped her margarita with little enthusiasm. It was their usual haunt, but tonight it felt as if everything was wrong with the place. The music was too loud, the men who had approached their table every five minutes to ask her for a dance were too clean shaven and suave.
She was not in the least bit tempted. It had been a week since she left River Glades and during that time, she had been trying to get back her rhythm without success. Her mother was barely speaking to her, but that was not a bother, she preferred it that way.
Both Caitlin and Cathy had kept in touch but speaking to them only brought back bittersweet memories of the man she had fallen in love with. An article in the society rags reported that he had gone back to River Glades. That was yesterday.
“Honey, what brought this on?” Marcia asked as she popped the cherry into her mouth and got rid of the stem. Her pina colada was getting low, but having another one of the potent drinks would not be a good idea. She was going to switch to some rum and coke. More coke than rum.
Ellie shrugged, ignoring the invitation of the man who was sitting across from them. “I need to live. I have been modeling for most of my life and right after, I started at the magazine. I want to be able to wake up in the mornings, just wearing my nightgown and not having to set an alarm. I need a break.”
Jackie stared at her suspiciously. “Did something happen to you when you were in River Mountain?”
“River Glades,” she corrected automatically, stirring her drink. “It was a spectacularly lovely place.” She smiled at her friends. “You should both take a trip there. There are these lovely little cottages…”
“What about Axel Lakeside?”
She felt a quickening of her heart at the sound of his name. “What about him?”
“Honey, you haven’t said a word about the man since you have been back.” Marcia pointed out in exasperation. “As a matter offact, you have not said much of anything. What’s going on with you?”
She considered lying, but both girls had been her best friends forever and they always told each other everything. “I did something stupid.”
“Define stupid..,” Marcia demanded.
Taking a fortifying sip of her drink, she told them the story, right up to the humiliating episode where she went to dinner with his family, expecting him to be there. Only to be told that he had left.
By the time she was finished, their drinks were depleted, and they were staring at her in a mixture of shock and awe.
“You slept with Axel Lakeside.” Jackie pushed away the envy that had sprung up as she continued to stare at her friend.
“We did not sleep.”