Tap Dance (Dance Series)

Epilogue

Three Weeks Later

We had gotten there late.

Even though Ram had changed his schedule, there were times on a Saturday afternoons when things had come up he was required to do or to be there to oversee.

Things which cut into our time together. I didn't usually mind as our plans were, normally, pretty flexible.

But tonight was different.

Tonight we had plans with a capital "P".

Crys was singing with her friend Gabe in Enrique's Bar.

I had been on the phone with my Posse for most of the day. We'd already gotten Crys decked out after she decided that life was too short and began to change from a girl into the woman she wanted to be, on her own terms.

All because of Crys having to be hospitalized after Human Hieroglyphix, the tattoo shop where she works, was attacked by a couple of whacked out professors who were out to break up Leila and Dex. Long story. There's a book about it. It'd be better if you read it, I'd only mangle it in the retelling.

But, we had totally forgot about decking ourselves out. Frankie finally sent a text to the rest of us simply saying, "Ass hugging jeans & classy top. Don't 4get FMPs!"

Perfect!

Then there was the seventy-four thousand texts regarding whether Crys should or should not slam back one or two shots of Cuervo Gold just to calm her nerves? It was empirically decided as a 'no' but Crys really wanted it. Leila finally told her to 'put on ur big girl panties & walk toward ur dream clear eyed & thinkg str8t'.

Crys texted back that Leila could, "STFU Now!" Which, since we all speak 'Crystal', knew was Shut the F*ck Up Now, and meant she was getting emotional.

As the time to go kept getting closer and closer, I was texting like a mad woman. I was so hoping to get a good seat but the bar was small. So small that our little group with our significant others could probably fill it.

Ram had said I could go on ahead and he would meet me there, but that's not what I wanted. I wanted to go with him, be with him.

This was a big deal to me and I wanted him to share it.

Finally, he got off work and we were able to hit the road although the big Kahuna, the Chief of Police, who couldn't get a traffic ticket if he freaking tried, had to go the speed limit. He found my requests for speed funny and, at one point, slowed down to a crawl just to show the difference between going the speed limit and going slow.

Whatever.

Then parking was a bitch.

Enrique's little car park was, of course, full so we had to use one of the downtown garages which didn't have any parking until the third freaking floor. Ram didn't find it funny that I was tugging him towards the stairs, saying I was going to break my neck because of my shoes.

But, I happen to know that my man LOVED these heels. Even had me keep them on and wear them in the bedroom. But you already know about that.

We did get a table, but it was only because Frank had a talk with Dee Dee who worked reception at his salon and waited tables here. She had the busboy roll another table directly in line with the last edge of the bar and drag over four chairs.

It was great because our table was right next to Frank and Stan.

I saw Ram slip the busboy a ten and Dee a twenty, for going out of their way, and he did it without any fanfare or fuss. It was a restaurant and Ram was in his 'Ramjet Suave' mode.

I liked him in that mode, especially if he mixed it up with the 'Street Fighting Ram' later.

He did the bar run for the evening and I got an eyebrow lift at my request for a virgin Margarita. Even knowing tomorrow was our Sunday, the only day when a person could stay in bed all day without guilt. I just nodded and turned back around.

Being at the far end, the farthest away from the stage end, I was sure would suck. But, actually we kind of had the best seats in the house.

Crys and Gabe hung out at the end of the bar, the speakers were at the end of the bar pointing towards the stage and we had plenty of leg room.

Poor Leila had to sit on Dex's lap in order not to block the view of others.

Yeah, like she complained about her seating arrangement. I was so glad to see them back together, happy and so obviously very much in love.

They were sharing a table with 'Mr. and Mrs. Gorgeousness', as Crys called Caitlin and Jake. From my viewpoint, Jake never stopped touching Cait, fiddling with and pulling her hair away so he could talk to her with their heads pressed together. I don't think either one of them noticed or even cared other people were watching. Cait and Jake had their own little world.

We ended up sharing a table with Paul and Sara who had come together but Sara insisted was not a date.

Paul looked at me with a smile and a wink.

Oh yeah, Sara was toast.

I was sitting close to Ram, kind of angled towards the stage but more facing the restaurant and I happened to see two people outlined in the frosted panel that separated the restaurant from the bar. A male silhouette leaned towards the female, her silhouette leaned towards him and the next thing you know, someone is pressed up against the frosted glass divider, their arms bent up by their head.

Strangely, the head was slowly moving.

Being unnaturally curious, as Ram says, I watched and waited.

Gabe rounded the corner first, using his fingers to wipe his mouth and Crys followed him. Her eyes were dreamy and unfocused as she moved, loose limbed and wiping her own mouth.

My, my, my. Who knew, right?

She stopped behind me, using my chair as a prop before leaning down with a double arm wrap around my shoulders.

"Love you, you know?" she whispered next to my ear.

"Love you back, Baby Girl," I whispered, my voice breaking. "Break a leg."

She released me and began moving through the crowd, making her way to the stage but in typical Crys fashion, she had to say 'hey' to everyone there.

Gabe had already finished tuning, had done a sound check and was three chords into their opening number when Crys was just making her way to through the front rows and up to the stage.

I glanced back at Gabe just in time to see him give Crys a look, his face soft, then broke out in the biggest smile as he shook his head at her antics.

Blackbird, the old Beatles classic, sung so sweet in Crys's alto was what they started with and it was a hit. I don't know how they created the sound they did with just their two voices and a guitar, but they were really good.

Ram and I both found it funny that Crys and Gabe tried to shush the crowd when the applause got too loud.

"People eating, you know," Gabe rumbled into the microphone in his deep man voice, though he couldn't have been much older than Crys.

They moved to the Gin Blossoms', 'Until I Hear It From You' and the audience joined in with soft claps and singing with them on the chorus.

But it was the magic of the two of them, weaving their voices, the sweet looks that caught and held before skittering away that wove the spell.

Which continued through Cruisin' and ended with Crys singing her heart out to Pink's, 'Who Knew', slowed way down from the radio version and that caught you in that deep place we all have. It's the special space we shove all the 'love gone wrong' memories into. And sung in Crys' sultry alto, it had more than a few of us with tears in our eyes.

Ram, who had his arm draped around my shoulders, leaned forward and said how good they sang together. I nodded and Paul joined in, "Gosh, good music in a Podunk town. Amazing!" I didn't understand why Ram and Paul laughed so hard and from the look on Sara's face, she didn't either.

Whatever.

There was a break and Ram wondered if we should get some appetizers to hold us over. We'd planned to eat after the performance but Frank said that they were going to be doing three sets. Oh yeah, appetizers were definitely needed.

The couple at Frank and Stan's table were introduced as Trevor and Zoe who are co-owners of Bewitchments, our town's only sex shop. I'd never been in it, but I will admit to going to their website. Once. Maybe, twice.

Zoe was, there are no other words for it, stunning. She was tall but shapely and had hair which fell in auburn waves down to her waist but with long layers, a Frank trademark. It was her eyes, though, that you caught in, large dark green eyes that you mistook for brown at first.

Trevor was tall, looking even taller than Jake, and you could tell he hit the gym regularly. Tall, built with long hair that he wore braided. And had fu man chu mustache that surrounded a mouth that was almost feminine in its perfection.

When we were introduced, Sara and I shared a look. Oh yeah, Trevor was 'look again' worthy. Paul and Ram seemed to know them and there were a few jokes about their online business which I didn't get.

Whatever.

I was sitting back in my chair, not paying much attention to the conversations around me when I overheard a loudly whispered conversation from behind me.

"…don't give a f*ck, Crys. I don't want you seeing him anymore. We agreed, babe."

"You don't own me, dickhead. And until you pull your head out of your ass, we still have to play it cool. Alright?"

"We'll talk about this later."

"Promises, promises. You're a pompous ass, Gabe."

"Yeah? But I'm your pompous ass, Crys, so f*cking deal with it."

I felt someone brush behind me and saw Gabe making his way through the tables, carrying a different guitar this time.

Crys pulled up Ram's empty chair and leaned in.

"I know you heard."

I looked at her. She was trying to convey a lot more than her words said. I thought about the kisses they'd stolen earlier behind the frosted glass.

"Is that your man, Crys?"

She looked at Gabe up on the stage as he rearranged the mikes and fiddled with his guitar.

She sighed.

"Always has been," she said, her voice filled with a kind of yearning that you could almost touch. She took a long pull off of her water and we shared a look.

"I'm here if and when you want to talk about it," I said with a grin.

"Yeah, I know," she said smiling, before standing and making her way towards the tiny stage.

Ram came back with two huge platters of Nachos.

"Is this going to keep you until dinner, Pyari?" he said eyeing me closely.

"Sure," I said. I didn't like the scrutiny, especially from a man that was trained to ferret out other people's secrets.

I heard a guitar start up and saw that there were now two guys on the stage. I didn't know the gorgeous guy that joined Gabe but he seemed to be in his late thirties. He was wearing a white tank top and jeans and his arms were covered in tattoos, but it was his hundred watt smile that had you smiling with him.

I felt Ram lean forward. "The other guy up there? That's Gabe's dad, Benny. Good guy."

I nodded and turned my attention back to the stage. Crys was standing in a small space to the left of it, holding a tambourine.

This set started with Creed's 'Arms Wide Open' and as Gabe sang, Ram made a point of reaching for my hand. I glanced over my shoulder at him and saw he was staring at me.

"What?" I mouthed and he moved closer to me.

"Beautiful song, Pyari," he whispered into my ear. "Our kind of song."

I listened to the words Gabe was singing as I watched Crys dancing in her little space of floor tapping on the tambourine, and got caught up in the music. Ram was right. It was the kind of song made for the night I found him in his truck, watching me. Watching over me. And, finally, admitting he loved me.

I turned in my chair and leaned into him. "Our song, then?"

"Yes, Pyari. Our song," he said bending into me, surrounding me.

Crys joined the two on stage, and squeezed in between them as they broke into Fleetwood Mac's "Landslide", and had everyone in the room singing along with them when they broke into three-part harmony on the chorus.

Benny moved off the stage but continued to play while Crys and Gabe did an amazing version of 'You Belong to Me'. It gave me goose bumps after overhearing what they'd said to each other -- and it was sung to each other like they were all alone in the crowded little bar.

They ended that beautiful set with Shawn Colvin's 'Riding Shotgun Down the Avalanche' with Crys doing her 'tambourine' dance again.

At the break, I headed to the ladies room along with practically every other female in the restaurant having the same idea. But after waiting in line for what felt like forever, I was out of there like a shot.

"Honey? We've got to go."

"Now?"

"Yes, Ram. Please let's go."

He didn't say another word but grabbed my hand and led me out of the restaurant, moving swiftly to the car park.

We were in the truck doing the round and round thing to get out of the garage when he asked, "Hospital, Pyari?"

"Yeah, honey," I said, my voice shaking.

"Were you going to tell me?" he asked and I glanced at him, my man. My beloved.

"Yeah, honey. Had an appointment scheduled for Monday." I was a bit ashamed that I hadn't told him but wanted to have the doctor confirm what I suspected.

I glanced out the passenger window and got a sense that we were moving a lot faster than the speed limit. I wanted to check, but was afraid I would start laughing if it was confirmed. I don't think Ram would appreciate laughter at this moment.



*.*.*.*.*

"Congratulations, Ms. Gibson. It seems you're three to five weeks pregnant. The spotting is not cause for concern at this time but you will need to take it easy until we can do further testing at six to nine weeks," Doc Riley said patting Marianne on her blanketed knee. "I'll give the order to release but I suggest you curtail any extraneous activities until we can get more info when the test results are in."

Ram stood in the far corner, his heart somewhere around his knees. He stepped forward when Dr. Riley turned to go.

"Is the baby…ah, is the baby alright?" Ram asked his voice breaking having to even ask the question.

The doctor looked at him and then patted him on the upper arm.

"Yes, Chief. The baby seems to be fine. Marianne is fine." The doctor looked at Marianne and then at Ram. "Take her home, keep her safe and we'll know more later."

Ram nodded and moved to Marianne. She seemed to be intent on watching the tiny folds she was making it the blanket.

"Pyari?"

"Yeah, honey," he heard her say, her voice soft.

"Look at me, Beloved."

She raised her beautiful blue eyes to his.

"We'll go back to my house and tomorrow you will call Cait and tell her that you are moving in with me. Then, you'll call Aaron and quit. And then, Pyari, we will begin planning our wedding. It may be a bit rushed but with my mother and Sati…"

"Stop," Marianne said with fire in her eyes and her hand in the stop position.

"What?"

"Take off your Big Kahuna Chief hat, okay?"

"My what?"

"You know. That 'I'm the big boss and I make all the decisions' hat." She paused and Ram waited.

"I told you before, Ram. That's not who we are. Who WE are. This is a partnership and I expect you and I BOTH to make decisions."

Ram sat on the edge of her hospital bed. She was right. They were two separate people who came together as one.

"I love you with all my heart. And, someday, I would love to marry you. Not because we're having a baby together. But, because we love and care for one another so much that we can't imagine living without each other."

He was quiet. When his girl got on a roll, it was better to just shut up and listen.

"I'd love to move in with you and, depending on what the doctor says on Monday, I may have to quit my job. But that's not something we know right now."

She raised her eyes to his as she reached for his hand.

"I love you, Ram," she said, her voice breaking.

He waited a few moments, waiting for her to calm a bit before he began to speak.

"Marianne, I already love and care for you. I know you love and care for me. And, I know that I cannot imagine a life without you in it."

Ram reached into his pocket and brought out an old, dusty velvet covered box.

"Pyari, I've been carrying this thing around since right before the situation with the CDs happened."

He opened the box and showed her a thin gold band encrusted with round rubies and baguette diamonds.

"It was my grandmother's ring on my mother's side. She and my grandfather were married for more than sixty years," he murmured, his eyes on the ring. "I like that, the longevity of their love and connection. It's what I want for us."

He stood up and moved to the head of her bed.

"Marianne Louise Gibson, would you consent to be my wife. Not because we will be tied together as parents to our child, but because we love and care for each other and can't imagine a life without each other in it?"

He watched her eyes as he spoke, her beautiful blue eyes taking in his words.

"Absolutely, Ramjet Harold Patel. I would love to be your wife," she murmured before promptly bursting into tears. Ram put his arms around her and held her close.

It was going to be a long eight or so months until he got his girl back.

But, he could wait.

She was worth waiting for.