Keith cleared his throat and broke the quiet lull in the garden. “So, how are you?”
Elly wiped her lips with a napkin. “Honestly? Not great.” She felt tears gathering on the edges of her vision and told herself that she would not cry during this conversation. “In my worst moments, I’ve wondered if God is punishing me. The shock of it has finally worn off, but I’m not sure what that leaves me with. Aaron – that’s my ex-husband’s name – is marrying his lover, and if that weren’t enough, I can’t even seem to look at Isaac lately without thinking of Aaron. I finally thought that I was over him, and here he comes, with wedding bells ringing and I’m getting emotionally trampled.”
Keith nodded, listening intensely.
“Okay, so this might sound overly dramatic, but you know what it feels like?” She took a deep breath. “When I was about 10, my mother took me to the North Carolina shore. It was one of the few times that we went on vacation because we couldn’t afford much. Anyway, she swam out past the wave breaks and was just bobbing around in this warm, perfect green sea. I tried to run out there after her, but I got knocked back by the huge waves. And once I lost my footing, there was no stopping it. I got tossed around and dragged under. It was like being in a washing machine. My legs and hands got all cut up from the rocks. No matter how many times I stood up and tried to get to my mother, I panicked and got swept under again. It felt like drowning in shallow water. Finally, my mother came over and grabbed my arm and just held onto me as we walked through it together. I realized it had only been a few seconds since I got pulled under. And walking out was so easy once I was with her.”
Keith’s eyes were filled with empathy. It made Elly want to cry even more.
“And now, I feel like I’m just trying to get past these waves, but there is no one that can help me. Isaac certainly can’t – he has his own issues. I see that it’s calm and perfect on the other side of them, but I just can’t seem to get my feet underneath me.” She tucked her hair behind her ear and stared at the ground. “I need someone to pull me out.”
Keith rose and settled next to her, his face inches from hers. He took her hand. Elly was unsure how to react and froze on the spot, mesmerized by the sparkling azure blue of his eyes.
“Elly. Excuse my frankness, but that’s where you’re wrong. You don’t need anyone to pull you out. You can pull yourself out. I’m constantly impressed by your determination and attitude. You took that empty building and made an incredibly successful business. It seems there is nothing you can’t do. Don’t you have any faith in yourself?”
Elly pulled backwards, letting Keith’s hand drop. “I have faith, but I certainly can’t do their wedding, no matter how profitable it may be.” She groaned. “It was enough to pay off the remainder of what I owe on my apartment.”
“Wow,” Keith whistled. “It must have been a big wedding.”
“Huge. The biggest we’ve ever booked. It was $45,000.”
Keith’s mouth dropped open and a huge clump of turkey fell out as he strangled his sandwich. “Forty five thousand dollars for a wedding? Who would spend that much for just one day?” Elly couldn’t help but laugh at his shock. “Not $45,000 for the wedding…$45,000 for the flowers.”
Keith looked like he had never heard something so ridiculous. “ARE YOU KIDDING ME?”
Elly blushed. “Yes, it’s a lot but…”
Keith suddenly took on a businesslike tone. “How much would you make from it?”
Elly stammered, “Quite a bit, but it’s out of the question…”
“Why?”
“Why what?” Elly voiced, annoyed. “Why won’t I do my ex-husband’s wedding? Maybe because I haven’t seen him since the night I found another woman straddling him in our bed? Maybe because I don’t want him to see me, looking just as chubby as I looked the morning I left him? Maybe because if I see HER in a wedding dress I will get hysterical, kind of like I am right now?”
Keith frowned at her. “Maybe it’s because you don’t want him to see how just how wonderful you are doing without him.”
Elly stopped. “Keith, I can’t do this.”
“Elly, I hope this doesn’t offend you, but that is ridiculous. I understand you not wanting to see him, but I’m almost positive that you could arrange for that not to happen. You are looking at this completely backwards. This isn’t a chance for him to see what he did to you. This is a chance to show him that what you are without him, and that is an intelligent and wonderful businesswoman.”
Elly shook her head. “No, it won’t be like that, you don’t understand what he does to me…”