| Sweet Dreams! By Sharon Holtz Chapter Thirty-Six |
The community mingled after Mary's Reading Appreciation Class, and as they
did so, they enjoyed the Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars, along with the Cinnamon
flavored Tea William prepared.
As Catherine chatted with the girls of the tunnels along with Jennifer, Rebecca
once again asked about Catherine's wedding gown. Catherine began to describe
it to her in detail, when she stopped herself, remembering Rebecca would
actually be able to see it for herself tomorrow night at the Bachelorette party.
So Catherine promised Rebecca that tomorrow night, she would just show her
the dress.
Jennifer was also asked about her dress, to which she said she would be glad to
show everyone hers too, and then in a mock arrogant manner, she said, "But if
you insist, I will even model it for you!"
The younger girl's laughed and said they couldn't wait to go to Jennifer's, for
Catherine's party. Jennifer said she was happy they all could come, and then
beamed as she expressed her excitement over throwing this party for Catherine.
Teasingly, Jennifer turned to Catherine and efficiently asked, "Cath, I thought it
would be fun if we watched a chick flick tomorrow night, but the thing is
this...you gotta pick it out..."
Teasingly adding, "...as if I don't already know what your choice is gonna be!"
Catherine smiled as she answered, saying, "I get to pick uh? Well, my movie
choice would have to be..." And at the same time, Jennifer chimed in,
"ENCHANTED COTTAGE."
The girl's started laughing, because it was so cute how Jennifer knew her friend
so well.
Meanwhile, a smile came to Vincent's eyes, as he watched Catherine from his
vantage, on the other side of the chamber. He loved watching her interact with
people, and admired how she was so warm, and open with everyone she
encountered.
As the sound of her laughter came to his ears, he tipped his head in
wonderment. How he admired the way she was able to let go of a laugh! Such
an exuberance that just seemed to envelope all of herself, involving her whole
being, with this unencumbered joyful expression. To Vincent...she never looked
more beautiful.
Warmly he thought back to the first time he saw her laugh so candid. They
were in their special spot, under the orchestra listening to the concert, when,
unexpectedly...it began to rain. Vincent remembered how she looked at him, in
this... gleeful disbelieving childlike way. She then playfully allowed the
drenching rains, to shower down on her. How she laughed, as the rain fell
through the grating, before falling into his arms.
It was one of those defining moments early on, which attributed to their
relationship deepening, and evolving into something more...
Just then, as if Catherine knew what he was thinking, she looked over at him,
catching him off guard with her striking beauty, and taking his breath away with
her smile. He held her gaze for a moment, before starting over to join her, when
suddenly Mary, "The Wedding Planner" stepped up to speak with her!
As Catherine helplessly looked over at him, Vincent nodded, indicating he
understood.
He then looked over and noticed Lisa standing by herself, carefully sipping her
piping hot tea. Dropping his eyes for a moment, he contemplated her sad
demeanor. He then walked up to her and asked, "How are you Lisa?"
Trying to smile, she said, "Oh fine...I am fine."
Delicately, Vincent asked next, "Are things going all right between you and the
man you are seeing?"
Lowering her eyes, Lisa, sadly said, "I thought they were going well...we had a
wonderful lunch together today. He took me to Sal's and Carmine's for pizza,
which was very fun...but then...a change came over him. It was just like night
and day! I could tell I no longer had his attention, and so by the time we said
goodbye at the Dance Academy, his heart and mind seemed to be somewhere
else."
In his soft husky tone, Vincent said, "There is always a risk when we
love....Lisa..."
Tearfully smiling up at Vincent she replied, "Yes, however I have never had to
rage such a fierce battle before. Oh but Vincent...he is so worth it, so...I will
remain steadfast."
Looking down upon his beautiful childhood friend, he said, "I have no doubt he
will see your beauty Lisa...and fall in love with all you have to offer him."
Hesitantly, Lisa confessed, "What if...what if he can't love me, I mean really
love me, the way he must have loved her..."
Vincent then asked, "Has he ever talked about this woman from his past?"
Contemplatively, she said, "Yes...however not intentionally, he was sort of
forced to. One night...we were in the park, sitting on a bench, enjoying a bluesy
type musician. Well, he was so fatigued from his long day at work he almost
called me by another name. He never actually said her name, but I teased him,
and he admitted to the "old habit" adage. And so I asked him about his past
love, and he said, one day he would tell me all about her if I cared to hear...but
not yet."
Thoughtfully Vincent suggested, "Perhaps it is time to force the issue with him
Lisa, before you give your heart to this man."
Tearfully, she said, "I am afraid that it is too late Vincent."
With a hug, Lisa smiled as she sincerely thanked Vincent for his advice, and that
he needn't worry about her...she will be all right.
On a happier note, Lisa relayed to Vincent, that Jennifer and Catherine had
invited her to the Bachelorette party tomorrow night. When Vincent asked her if
she would be going, she contemplatively said, "You know...I was so touched
they had invited me, I just might go. I'll wait and see..."
Vincent asked Lisa if her indecision to go, depended on if she heard from her
man friend or not?
Shamefully she laughed and admitted, "Yes...aren't I just deplorable? I have
become one of those women, who sit by my phone, desperately waiting for it to
ring."
As a melancholy settled upon her, she felt the tears well up in her eyes, and
softly spoke as she requested Vincent say her good nights for her, and she then,
discretely slipped away.
Meanwhile, Catherine finished her conversation with Mary, and just happened
to see Lisa's departure as she approached Vincent. With great concern,
Catherine asked, "Was Lisa crying?"
Saying she was, Vincent explained, "She feels the man she has been seeing is
possibly still in love with the woman from his past relationship. She dined with
him for lunch, and she feels something happened in the interim, which caused
his indifference toward her."
He then contemplated for a moment and said, "I am amazed at the commitment
level Lisa is determined to give this relationship."
Hugging his arm, Catherine sweetly said, "Well, if she loves him, she should
fight for him...no matter how resistant he is. We are proof of that..."
Knowing she was teasing him, insinuating she did all the chasing, he played
along saying, "There does come a point when a man must concede...and
surrender his-self..."
Sensually adding, "...which I so willingly eventually surrendered to you sweet
Catherine."
Vincent's tone caused her to blush, not only by his voice, but by his words too.
She often thought on their first time admitting to love one another...and so she
thought on that time now. Catherine loved knowing he trusted her enough, to
surrender everything in his heart to her.
"And Catherine..." his voice broke through her thoughts as he said, "...I was
right to have trusted you, for you have never betrayed, or turned away from
me."
Sweetly she touched his cheek, and said, "Of course not...I love you...you have
changed my life..."
Holding her hand in place, he then brought her palm to his lips and said, "And
you mine..."
As the hour grew late, the gathering began to break up, and good nights were
said all around.
Ronald told Jennifer he would escort her to the threshold, an offer she was
happy to accept. But before they left, Jennifer turned around, and eagerly
reminded the ladies, she was expecting them around 7 o'clock, tomorrow night,
and they should come hungry.
The tunnels then turned into a bustling hub, as everyone took their own
appropriate routes back to their chambers.
Vincent walked with Catherine toward her chamber, and sighed, "Two more
nights...ahhh, that still sounds like an eternity to me Catherine...it seems as
though the sun and moon cannot go through their celestial cycles quick enough
to satisfy me."
Standing at her threshold, she looked up at him to teasingly say, "If we move
the date up again...Mary would never speak to us!"
Bringing Catherine into his arms, he laid his cheek upon her hair, and said, "I
wouldn't dream of disrupting everyone's plans...I can wait these few nights...if
truth be known, I would wait through an eternal night, if it were required of me
to do so, only to mean at the dawning of the day...I may have you."
Thinking on Vincent's comment, Catherine observed aloud, "Hmm, that's
funny."
Taken aback by the fact Catherine didn't swoon by his prolific comment, he
questionably asked, "Funny? I hoped to sound profound...not funny."
In explanation, Catherine anxiously said, "Awe, you did sound profound...I
loved what you just said, but I was just thinking about how you measure time. I
find it interesting that you measure time, by the number of NIGHTS till we get
married, instead of DAYS."
Tipping his head, he expounded, "Because its the nights, that have grown to be
nearly unbearable for me Catherine...knowing you are so near."
Sensuously, she closed her eyes, and said, "Ahhh....yes, I know what you
mean..."
They then heard a commotion coming around the corner, and it was Jamie and
Laura returning to their chambers, and Brooke was with them.
The three girls decided to have a sleep over, since they were so full of
excitement, over the future days activities.
And so as they passed by Vincent and Catherine, they giddily said goodnight to
them, and then mischievously turned back once more giggling, as they
wondered if the couple were planning a romantic encounter!
Vincent irritably gave them a little fanning wave, thinking it is very difficult to
have a private moment with his Catherine any more.
He then reluctantly said, he had better go, but with a promise of seeing her first
thing in the morning to walk her to breakfast.
Smiling, Catherine suggested, "You needn't come out of your way to get me,
only to back track to the tunnel main. I could just meet you there."
Leaving her unsteady with a look of absolute intention in his eyes, he answered,
"I will see you first thing...right here. Good night Catherine."
Softly she replied, "Goodnight..."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Meanwhile, Jennifer entered her apartment, reeling form the goodnight kiss
Ronald gave her!
Realizing she had much to do to get ready for the party, she decided to do a
little cleaning and make a list of things she needed for the party.
Just then her phone rang, and it was Joe Maxwell.
Happy to hear from him, Jennifer asked, "So what's up Joe? What can I do for
you?"
In reply, Joe said, "I need to tell you since the Tuesday meeting was cancelled,
it has been re-scheduled. Can you and Radcliffe come in for another statement
one day next week. Say maybe on Thursday? Is that a problem?"
Jennifer said, "No, no problem at all for me, but I better check with Cathy."
Joe then said, "Good...good...good...well, I hope you both can make it, but if
not, at least one of you will hafta."
He then hesitated, as he asked, "I was also wondering how Radcliffe...err,
Chandler....er Cathy was doing? I kinda thought she would come in to say hi to
everyone once in a while..."
Reading between the lines, Jennifer thought it sounded like Joe was really
missing Catherine. Smiling to herself, she answered, "Well, she is doing great
Joe. I spent the day with her today, and she talked about missing you too."
Happy to hear she was well, and that she missed him, he next asked, "Oh yeah!
What else did she say?"
Giggling, Jennifer accusingly said, "That's pretty much all. Why, were you
hoping for a compliment Joe?"
Defensibly he said, "No...not a compliment exactly, its just I was kinda hoping
she might miss her job and might want to come back."
Jennifer then inquired, "I thought you replaced her right away?"
Disappointedly he answered, "Nah...everyone keeps quitting! They can't hack
it. I will level with you Jen, no one can do her job like she could! And we are
really short handed around here, in fact...I am still at work catching up on some
paper work."
In an awing tone, Jennifer laid it on the line as she carefully said, "Joe...you got
to know Cathy isn't coming back. She is very happy. I believe the happiest I
have ever known her to be."
Sadly Joe admitted, "I guess I am being dumb uh? Just hopin' is all."
He then dug a little deeper as he asked, "Hey...I know she is supposed to be
getting married...is that still gonna happen or what?"
Jennifer knew Catherine did share a few things with Joe, but was very careful
not to say too much. So she responded too in kind, and said, "Yes...she is still
getting married..."
Joe thoughtfully said, "Get outa here! Really? What do you know about
that...she is really getting hitched."
To which Jennifer added, "Yes, in fact, I am having a little party for her here
tomorrow night. A last minute Bachelorette party! I wish I could invite you, but
its for girls only!"
In reply, Joes laughed as he said, "I get it, I get it!"
Then softly he added, "Tell Cathy I said hi would ya?"
To which Jennifer softly said, "Sure Joe, I can do that, and take care of
yourself, don't work so hard."
Answering, he wouldn't, but knew it was a lie, they then said a mutual friendly
goodnight.
Just as Joe hung up the phone, one of their "over-night regulars", happened to
be getting booked next door, and Joe was called over to officiate.
Joe walked in to the precinct and asked, "You at it again Tiger?"
Looking up at Joe, Tiger was happy to see a familiar face. He then in his
exaggerated accent, said, "Ah I had to come back! I knew you missed me, so I
had to come and see ya!"
Joe shook his head, and said, "Yeah right! What ya getting booked for this
time?"
Shrugging his shoulders, Tiger said, "Ah the usual. Just trying to make ends
meet by doing a little houchie couchie on the side...that's all!"
Joe signed some required papers, and asked, "Aren't you worried about getting a
disease?"
Tiger raised his brow and said, "Since I lost my dancing gig at the Purple Stud,
what else am I gonna do?"
Joe read over his papers and saw Tiger would be released on bond in 12 hours.
He then started to laugh as an idea came to him. He turned to Tiger and asked,
"You do that Male dancing thing right? In the cop uniforms and stuff?"
Tiger did a Flamingo step and answered, "Si Senior!"
Scratching his chin, Joe asked, "How would you like a legit dancing job for
tomorrow night?"
Answering yes, Tiger then said, "Just tell me where it is, and how far you want
me to go!"
Joe quickly explained, "Not too far! Just kinda act like it's a bust, its for an old
friend and its her Bachelorette party."
Holding up his hand, Tiger said, "Say no more! I know the scenario! I have
done it a million times."
Joe then firmed up the plans with him, and so it was done! Joe hired a male
dancer to appear at Jennifer's apartment around 8 o'clock!
To be Continued
Chapter Thirty-Seven
