Georgie Girl Ch. 04-06

"There's another fridge downstairs," Georgette said, loading the various containers on a bake pan. "The blue containers go in the freezer and the pink ones go in the fridge."

I took the pan loaded with the plastic containers while Georgette held the door to the basement open for me and turned on the light. As I descended the stairs I saw that it was a finished area with a large pool table, a bar, a small washroom and a door to other end of the building which I presumed contained the furnace and some storage. The big refrigerator-freezer was behind the bar and I had no problem finding space for the containers in either segment.

When I returned to the kitchen, I was handed a towel by Georgette and I began to dry the glassware and dishes as they arrived. Twenty minutes later we were done and the kitchen was looking almost unused once again.

"Thank you, John. That was very helpful and saved me a lot of time," Thomas said, holding out his hand. I shook it and nodded. It always felt good when I could contribute something like that after all the work it took to prepare the meal.

"Would you like to go for a walk around the block to work off your meal?" Georgette asked.

"Sure. Sounds like a good idea."

I helped her with her jacket and, as we left and I was closing the door, I was sure I saw Nan wink at me. She was about as subtle as a sledge hammer.

This time I took Georgette's hand and we walked... make that ambled... along the sidewalk.

"Nice night," I said quietly, looking up at the sky. City lights were reflecting off the few clouds, and there was no moon and only one or two stars visible.

"Lovely," she said. "Did you enjoy yourself?"

"Yes, I did. I really like your family. Even your mother seemed to loosen up a bit. I was worried she didn't want me there."

"No... that's mother. She's very protective of me, so it wasn't out of character."

"I'd have thought that by now she would have realized you can look after yourself."

I felt her squeeze my hand but she didn't react to my comment.

"I like your father. Very easy to talk to and very knowledgeable. Your grandmother is like that too."

"So, what about me?" she asked, looking at me with what I thought might be a slight smile.

I didn't answer right away and she didn't pursue her question either. I was trying to find the right thing that would express how I felt. I stopped walking and turned to her.

"I'm having a hard time realizing that you're comfortable being with me. We are worlds apart in our backgrounds. I once told Ginny that you were out of my league, and I've kept that feeling even though you're trying to prove me wrong."

I wasn't prepared for what happened next. She stepped to me, wrapped her arms around my neck, and kissed me as deeply as I'd ever been kissed.

"Now, tell me about that league," she demanded with a smile.

"It's the league in which an incredibly beautiful woman of wealth and education doesn't get involved with an ordinary guy... an ordinary younger guy. Okay, I'll admit I'm not ugly, but you drive a BMW and I ride a bike. You're working on a PhD and I'm still an undergraduate. Are you getting the picture?"

She was shaking her head as we stood on the sidewalk only a few dozen yards from her home.

"None of that counts, John. None of it. Have you heard the expression, 'the heart wants what it wants?'"

I nodded. "I understand that, but I don't understand why you want me. Why?"

"I have no idea," she said softly, "but somehow, you have wormed your way into my heart and it knows what it wants."

That brought about another long, deep kiss. I had no intention of resisting, but I was still trying to figure out what to do next.

"You know how I feel about getting involved with someone while I'm still in school, don't you," I said, not making it a question.

"I know. I won't interfere. I'll be patient as long as you know I'm waiting for you."

She smiled and linked her arm through mine and we continued walking. We walked much more than a block and by the time we were back at the house we had been gone almost an hour. We hadn't kissed or done anything else after our conversation. We just walked, thinking our own thoughts.

As we walked up the steps to the front porch, Georgette stopped at the top and kissed me once more.

"That will hold you until our date on Saturday night. I'll pick you up at seven, our usual time if that's okay."

I was about to say something about not assuming we would be going out on Saturday when I thought better of it. If I was being honest with myself, I did want to be with her... as often as possible. And now, she was telling me that was what she wanted too.

"Okay, seven o'clock Saturday. Any suggestions of where we should go?"

"I'll surprise you," she grinned, giving me another quick kiss before we walked to the end of the porch and into her parents' home.

Chapter 5 Learning the Truth

I didn't have to wait for Saturday night for a surprise. On Friday morning, "Black Friday" as it's known, I got a phone call.

"Good morning, John, it's Nan desBiens calling. Have you recovered from yesterday's big meal?"

"Only just, Nan. That was a feast and it was wonderful. I'm really grateful I was invited."

"You were a perfect guest, John. But that's not why I called. I understand you have a date with Georgie on Saturday night."

"I see there are no secrets in the desBiens-Fulton household," I chuckled. "Yes, I have a date with your granddaughter on Saturday."

"I wonder if I could impose on you to join me for lunch on Saturday... say one o'clock?"

"I guess. I should be able to find the time. Where would you like to meet?"

"I thought we might go to a little Mexican place I know. I'll pick you up just before one then?"

"Uhhm... sure. Just the two of us?"

"Yes... I'll call a cab and stop by your apartment."

"You know where I live?"

"Yes, Georgie told me. So I'll see you Saturday?"

"Yes, I'll be waiting out front so you won't keep the cab waiting."

"That's very considerate but not necessary. I have an account with them and they are very good about waiting. See you Saturday then."

When I hung up I wondered what this was all about. It never seemed to end. I was getting involved with their family whether I wanted to or not.

I didn't have long to wait in the lobby on Saturday afternoon. A city cab pulled up at five before one and I stepped out of the lobby and headed for it when I saw Nan wave to me from the back seat.

The little Mexican restaurant turned out to be Castillo Hidalgo, one of the most highly regarded restaurants in the Bay Area. The building was divided into three parts: a formal dining room, a lounge, and an open area that was more suitable for families with children. Nan chose the lounge.

"I don't get to come to this place often," Nan explained, "so I thought I'd take advantage of you today. I hope you like Mexican food."

"I do, but I don't get to enjoy it at places as nice as this."

The waiter appeared with menus and took our drink orders. For a change of pace I ordered a Negra Modelo, while Nan chose a Tequila Sunrise.

"They make a proper one here," she confided.

I scanned the menu and almost immediately saw what I would likely order. The lunch special was grilled yellow fin tuna with rice, beans, lettuce and pico de gallo salsa. Not too heavy, since Georgette and I were going out to dinner that evening.

"I'm sure you're wondering what an old bat like me wants to talk to you about in private, so I'll get right to it." Nan was nothing if not direct and I nodded for her to continue.

"I can see that you and Georgie-Girl are something more than just friends. It may have started out that way, but that's not what it is today. I thought I'd better tune you in to what's been going on in her life so that you can understand her a little better. If I don't, you may be in for some heartache."

I wondered if she was about to reveal some fatal flaw in Georgette that I couldn't see or know about. My only option was to wait her out and listen.

"I'm sure she hasn't told you that she was married for nearly three years."

I was completely unprepared for that. "No... no... she never said a word. I had no idea."

"She fell in love with Bradley Little when she met him at a corporate reception at her uncle's office. She was a guest and just socializing at the time.

"Bradley was an associate at Cunliffe, Harcourt and desBiens. He was just new at that time, but he was rising in the eyes of some of the partners. He was also quite a charmer with the ladies. When he met Georgie, you could almost see his eyes light up, I'm told. She was the niece of a senior partner and he was ambitious. He smooth-talked her and the next thing you know, he was dating her.

"Anyway, it was a whirlwind romance and since he was from a decent family and had good prospects in our family law firm, he was considered a good catch, especially by Sarah. My daughter was a bit of a snob in those days, so Georgette was expected to marry into a 'proper' family," Nan said, hooking her fingers in quotation marks.

"I'm not sure if Sarah talked Georgie into the marriage, or Georgie was just young enough and naïve enough to think he was Prince Charming. But six months after they met they were engaged and four months later they were married. I have to admit that I thought she had done all right with this guy and we expected to hear about grandchildren fairly soon.

"None of us were prepared for what happened next. They were living in a house in South San Francisco, so we didn't see them that often. The first sign that all was not well was a year or so after with them coming to dinner at the house and Georgie showing a bruised cheek and walking very stiffly. She claimed she had slipped in the kitchen and fallen. We didn't have any reason not to believe her.

"But... little by little, we began to see a change in Georgie and we were seeing a lot less of her as well. She lost that youthful enthusiasm that was part of her personality, and seemed listless and unresponsive when we did see her. Both Sarah and Tom were as worried about her as I was. Tom went as far as talking to Devon to see if he could shed any light on what was going on with Bradley. Was he under great pressure or something that would cause him to change?

"The answer was that he wasn't under any pressure at all. He'd been given a couple of straightforward briefs and, as far as anyone knew, he was doing what he should be doing. The other thing that was worrisome was whenever Sarah or I teased her about producing some grandchildren, she'd either go into a shell or she'd break down and cry. It was pretty obvious then that something was wrong in the Little household.

"It all came to a head when Thomas and Sarah went down one Sunday to visit them unannounced. When Bradley answered the door, he didn't seem to be anxious to have them in the house. Thomas, I guess, used his gift of gab to talk their way in and when Georgie appeared, they were horrified. Her left eye was black and blue and swollen shut. She looked like hell, Sarah told me.

"Well when Bradley tried to tell them that she slipped and fell again, Thomas exploded. He didn't believe a word of it and accused Bradley of beating Georgie. That led to a screaming match between the three of them while Georgie was in tears, hiding her face in her hands and trying to be invisible. The upshot of it was that Thomas threatened to file assault charges on Bradley if he stopped Georgie from coming home with them. That stopped Bradley cold. He knew that would be fatal to his career at Cunliffe, especially since his wife was the niece of a named partner.

"Sarah collected up some clothes and personal items and hustled Georgie out to their car and Thomas drove them home, making sure Bradley wasn't following them," Nan paused, taking a sip of her drink.

I hadn't said a word because I couldn't. I was still in shock and trying to absorb what had happened to Georgette during this horrible time. Nan must have read my thoughts.

"It was a hell of a mess, John. And the worst was yet to come. It turns out that they had been trying to get Georgie pregnant virtually since the wedding, if not before. However, nothing was happening and Bradley was getting more and more angry thinking that his wife wasn't trying hard enough, or worse yet, was deliberately trying not to get pregnant. Can you imagine a guy, supposedly married to the woman he loves, thinking like that after only two years of marriage? I sure the heck couldn't.

"Well, Bradley had insisted that Georgie get tested and make sure there wasn't a physical problem. The tests showed that she didn't have any problem at all. So, the doctor suggested that Bradley come in and get tested. He refused. He not only refused, he threw a fit and clouted Georgie, blaming her for not being able to conceive. It was soon after that Thomas and Sarah discovered what was going on. It was becoming petty clear that he was unstable and Georgie didn't know what to do about it. If her mother and father hadn't intervened, I don't know what might have happened."

I shook my head in dismay. I almost had tears in my eyes as I thought about this guy hitting Georgette.

"What happened then?" I asked.

"Devon thought it might be possible to get an annulment and declare the marriage void. No such luck, though. So, to the embarrassment to everyone in the family, Georgie filed for divorce on the grounds of mental cruelty. It was a mismatch with the best of Cunliffe, Harcourt and desBiens up against an inexperienced young guy that was probably all Bradley could afford.

"The divorce was granted thirty months after their wedding and it was final just after what would have been their third anniversary. Unfortunately, Bradley didn't accept the decision. Despite the fact that there was no alimony and no charges of assault were laid, he was incensed that she would divorce him.

"He began to harass her. He would show up unexpectedly and beg her to come back to him. When she wouldn't even talk to him, he began to threaten her. Both her parents and I were witnesses to some of these threats. He was going to 'come and get her and take her home where she belonged.' He was losing his grip and we were all worried that he might become more violent.

"So, Georgie did the only thing she could do. She filed for a restraining order, with her parents and me as witnesses to Bradley's threats. It was granted and for a while, that seemed to work. What we didn't realize was that Bradley still wasn't accepting the divorce and was planning another avenue of attack. It was only luck that he was never able to grab Georgie and take her somewhere."

"This is a horror story, Nan," I said, feeling the onset of a headache from listening to this tale.

"It was bad for the family, but it was worse for Georgie. She was afraid to go out anywhere. If she did, she had someone with her at all times. Thomas even considered hiring a bodyguard."

"Why didn't he?"

"Needless to say, Bradley was fired from Cunliffe when all the restraining order and divorce actions were known. He disappeared for a while, then resurfaced as a legal aid lawyer. He began filing nuisance suits against us and Cunliffe. He papered the house with all kinds of baseless accusations. They went nowhere, of course, but it tied up resources at the firm. Finally, Devon went to the state attorney's office and told them what was going on. With a little pressure, they arranged to have Bradley fired."

Nan leaned back in her chair as the meals arrived. I was stunned speechless at this story. The only thing that kept me from being angry at her ex-husband was the fact that the incidents were in the past and I couldn't see any after-effects on Georgette. Something must have settled him down. Perhaps being out of work took the fight out of him.

"Is it over?"

"We think so. He hasn't made an appearance in over a year-and-a-half. Where he is and what he is doing, we don't know."

"I can understand why you'd be worried about someone like me coming along and getting involved with Georgette, Nan. I can imagine your worries."

"We are all being careful. When Georgie started talking about you and telling us how interesting and open you were, we had a déjà vu experience. Was this another Bradley happening all over again? Thanksgiving confirmed that you weren't anything like Bradley. My granddaughter is much more mature now and seems to have come out of this bad period with very few emotional scars."

"That was my impression too," I said. "She doesn't give any hint to me of what had gone on before. That's amazing, I think."

Nan nodded. "I agree. She's very resilient. But there's something else to consider. She told me much later on that she had to be talked into marrying Bradley. It wasn't like she didn't like him and we had to force her to marry, but she didn't have that look about her that a person deeply in love with another usually has. That should have been a warning to us and it wasn't noticed."

"Hindsight is always clearer," I said.

She smiled. "True, but when I saw you two together for the first time, I knew this was different. You may not know it yet and perhaps she doesn't either, but there is a special look that you give each other that says a lot. Don't rush it and don't force it, but don't resist it either," she smiled.

"But Nan, I'm so much younger than her. And what about the family? What are they going to think of her being with a younger man who's still in school and doesn't have a job?"

"Forget all that malarkey. It means nothing if there is genuine love between you two. Sarah has learned a very important lesson from all this. Bradley's family station and his job and prospects for the future meant nothing in the end. He was a bad choice and none of that other stuff matters worth a tinker's darn. In one afternoon and evening, you've done more to convince Georgie's parents that you are a better man than anyone could have expected. It isn't easy to fool people who are on the lookout for someone who's insincere."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence. But... as far as Georgette and I are concerned, I'm going to take this very slowly, especially after what you've told me today. I'm a year-and-a-half away from graduation, and that's my first priority. I've told her that there won't be time for her as a serious girlfriend between now and then."

"And what did she say," Nan asked.

"She said she'd wait," I smiled. "I hope she does."

"I'll be awful darn disappointed if she doesn't," Nan smiled in reply.

I don't remember eating the lunch I was so absorbed in listening to Nan describe what had happened to Georgette. I know I must have because they came and took the plates away. On the cab ride back to my apartment I thanked Nan for her taking the opportunity to let me know what had gone on in Georgette's past. I promised that I wouldn't say anything to anyone unless I was asked directly.

I stepped out of the cab after giving Nan a kiss on the cheek and thanking her for trusting me with a confidence. She smiled and said she hoped to see me soon.

***

"Okay, John, out with it. You've been looking at me strangely since we arrived here. Just what did my Nan have to say to you at lunch?"

"You knew we had lunch together?"

"There aren't many secrets in our family. Was she giving you the third degree about what your intentions were toward me?"

"No... strangely, she wasn't," I said. "She's your biggest fan, you know, and I'm happy to say she and I get along very well."

"That's not news. Come on, John, what was lunch all about?"

"I'd rather not say. In fact, I promised I wouldn't."

"Oh... oh." She looked like she was thinking about something when I saw her eyes go wide and I suspected she had guessed what our meeting was all about.