Chapter 30

“Oh my God! Not in a million years!” said Lana Meacham. “Ben follow my lead, please, and whatever you do, do not say anything offensive to this guy no matter what he says. Got it!”

“Got it? What guy?” said Ben Holder.

I stared as at a ghost, and uninvited ghost. She was two feet away when the waitress started to show us to our table.

“Hello, Sam,” she said. I didn’t respond. I had already begun to wheel my way out of the place. But then Rina cut in on the action.

“Sam? Where are you going? Wait! Stop!” said Rina, taking a seat at the table: the table next to my ex-girlfriend and her significant other.

I stopped, reluctantly. I turned toward Rina. I was trapped.

Lana was already out of her seat and blocking my retreat.

“Rina, this is...” I started.

“The biggest asshole in the world,” said Lana, interrupting my about to be cold, but polite, introduction.

“What the hey...” said Rina, staring at my ex.

“Rina, meet Lana Meacham,” I said, “I don’t know the man.” The man gave me a hard look, but he was silent, no doubt trying not to interfere in something he knew nothing about, and, likely influenced by my amazing good looks and the fact that I was in a wheelchair.

“Sam here was my boyfriend a long time ago, before I regained my sight. Once I did regain it, my sight, I dumped him with hardly a word. Oh, and it was he who is at base responsible for the truth that I can now see. So like I said—your name’s Rina?” Rina nodded. “You’re looking at the biggest asshole in the world.”

“Rina we need to leave. We’ll head on over to Milano’s,” I said.

“No Sam, we will. This, accidental meet up, should not inconvenience you and the lady. Please stay and try not to even think about this asshole. I truly do not want to ruin your evening,” said Lana. She was already gathering her things.

She was halfway to the door, but changed her mind and came back to us for a final word.

“And Sam, I will not be talking about you behind your back. I promise,” I knew what she meant. She meant that she would not allow the man she was with to diss my looks or Rina’s.

“Thank you,” I said, and turned back to my survey of the menu. She was gone before I even looked up again.

“She’s very pretty,” said Rina.

“Well, when we were together she was blind. She’s been history for a long time,” I said.

“Hmm, and now you’re stuck with me, and I’m not pretty,” said Rina.

“Rina, neither of us are what we once were. But, I need you and love you and you need me. And well, I hope you love me.” She nodded.

“I do,” she said.

The two of us had been staying at her house, but I’d gotten to feeling kinda closed in, trapped, being so close to all of the of the old relationships; that even though we no longer next door to the Cords. The appearance of Lana and her stud, or whatever he was, made up my mind for me. Tucson beckoned.

I got lucky, well, it’s how I felt about it. My old apartment at the Gloria Arms was available. The price was right, the patio had been redone, and it was nicer than before. We moved in.

“Tomorrow we get the license, okay?” I said. “I need you to be mine as soon as humanly possible.”

“I like a man who is anxious to have me. So yes, tomorrow would be good,” said Rina.

We’d no more than gotten home from the county clerk’s office than somebody was rapping on our door. Talk about bad timing. She and I had been intending to go out and celebrate together. Well, we did have our marriage license in hand.

Rina answered the door. I wheeled up behind her to see who was bothering us.

“Hello Dad,” said Mia.

“Yeah Dad,” said Sarah, “and you too Rina.”

“Yeah, Dad and Rina,” said Ronald.

“The whole team,” I said. “Well come in.”

I figured they’d been sent by the woman, but I’d at least wait and see before sending a message back with them to her.

“So what brings you all down here?” I said.

“Dad, Daddy told us what happened,” said Mia.

“Oh, and what did Dad tell you?” I said.

“He just said mom had offended you and Rina by something that she said, but didn’t really mean,” said Sarah.

“Hmm,” I said.

“Dad, mom’s been crying for days,” said Mia.

“Yeah Dad,” said Ronald.

“Daddy asked us to ask you if you’d allow them to come down and talk things over, Dad,” said Sarah.

“Well, let’s all have a seat and talk over a couple of things,” said Rina.

I didn’t want to talk things over. I wanted to give the kids the truth and then see how they might consider handling the situation. But the woman of the house was always the boss in these kinds of things, so I nodded and waited to be told what to do.

The talk went on two six packs of Coke worth—they’d brought the Coke with them. We were at an impasse. But, I had an idea. I wasn’t going to let the woman off scot free even if it cost me my daughters that’s how angry I was. Ironically, Rina didn’t seem to have taken it as hard as I did. But then, she hadn’t had to deal with years of the woman’s betrayals and nastiness as I had.

You girls are what, nineteen?” I said. They nodded. “Then you’re old enough to hear the truth. What your mom said was a lot worse than something a little bit offensive. But, that said. We, my fiancé and I, will be willing to consider letting bygones be bygones if she will come down here and repeat what she said about Rina and me to you, here, in front of us. If she can do that, I figure we can consider letting it go. I mean if Rina here agrees.” Rina nodded her willingness to go along with my idea.

The girls nodded in unison. Oddly, Ronnie followed suit.

“Okay then, this is the deal. We will meet with your Mom and Dad, here. But not in our house, a restaurant. This Saturday would be good; at the Roman Candle; the food’s good there,” I said.

“Okay Dad,” said Mia. “We’ll get them here. We gotta get Mom to stop all of the crying.” I nodded.