It's What Daddy Wanted Ch. 02 - Conclusion

"Meghan, it is not that simple."

"Of course not, or marriages would never fail. But according to Shannon you came to Atlanta not knowing the full truth of what happened in your life. Now that you do, go fix it. I will not sit here and watch you screw this up. Look, you are the one who says no matter how big the wall is, someone will get over it. The trick is to make the information on the other side unusable to the wrong people. Well guess what? You are now on the other side of the wall you idiot. Only the information isn't encrypted. It is as plain as day. She loves you, you still love her."

I didn't answer her. I sat silently on the edge of the bed.

"Look Jim, I have to go to work. I happen to have the best boss in the world but I am sure he would rather do what that song says. You know, the song where you hear Julie's voice singing 'Please come to Boston'?"

Meghan hung up before I could respond. After a quick shower I grabbed my laptop and headed into the office. Apparently she had alerted the staff to some of my circumstances. Debbie stood at the door with her arms crossed and tried to be tough.

"You know I am supposed to keep you away from the computer today. Meghan said it was for your own good."

"Call Meghan and ask her how am I going to look for plane tickets if I can't use my computer?"

Debbie started laughing. "Wow, Meghan is good. Here you go. Your flight leaves at three."

Debbie reached over to me and pushed my mouth closed. "Jim, take a chance. It isn't always about security and avoiding risks."

Forty eight hours is such a short time under most circumstances. But for me my life had been altered drastically. Only it felt now that it was just being put back on the right track. I couldn't get my heart rhythm under control and my hands were sweating. If the TSA was supposed to look for suspicious travelers I was for sure going to be stopped. I can't imaging I looked anything but stressed as I walked to the security checkpoint.

For most of the two hour flight I kept asking myself what I was doing. What was I going to say if she answered her door?

Traffic was terrible trying to get out of the airport at five thirty but I managed to pull up in front of my old house in Brecker Park just after seven and knocked on the front door.

Julie froze when she realized it was me. I looked into the eyes that stilled my heart every time I saw them.

"Hi, I saw this home in a magazine and was wondering if I could meet the designer?"

She jumped the last two feet and ended up in my arms crying. Actually we both stood their crying on her front porch for ten minutes just holding each other.

"I can't believe you are here! I have waited every day for you to knock on our front door again." Julie said while she looked into my eyes.

"I can't believe I am here either."

Somehow we made it her couch. She tried to make it clear she was not letting go and I am not sure if she walked with me or I just carried her but she half on my lap wrapped around my neck still.

If all that I was missing was an apology years ago, Julie made up for it. She apologized over and over through a waterfall of tears. Having her in my arms was the same warmth I had felt years ago. She would occasionally reach up and kiss my cheek and then apologize some more.

"I am so sorry I hurt you. I have missed you so much." She whispered before tucking her body back into mine. "Do you know I kept this house so I would always have you with me?"

"Really? I thought it was because of the famous designer who built it."

I attempted that as humor but it just made her cry some more. We were like that for two hours before her phone rang at nine thirty.

"It's Shannon, should I answer it?"

"She will just keep trying so you might as well."

"Hey sis, what's up?" Julie said with a smile for the first time that evening.

"No nothing much. Just sitting here on the couch." She said and put her finger to her lips asking me to be quiet. I couldn't hear Shannon but whatever she said had Julie smiling even bigger.

"No. I sent him an email yesterday and he never emailed me back. No, no text messages either. I don't know. Why don't you ask him yourself?" She laughed and handed me the phone.

"Hello Shannon!"

"Ok very funny. Is that how you two are going to play me? Put the phone on speaker. Now."

I looked at Julie and said, "I think she wants to put it on speaker so she can yell at us."

"Ok Shannon, you are on speaker."

"Good. Now listen to me, both of you. Life can be difficult at times. Actually it can get totally fucked up. But you two have learned that no matter how bad it gets, you can still love someone forever that you hate for the moment. I want you two to figure out how to do the forever's and look past the moments. Does any of that makes sense?"

We just looked at each other and kissed. Of course it made sense. We didn't stop kissing until we heard another voice on the phone.

"And one more thing. Are you still there? Hello." It was Meghan's.

"You two stay on the couch where you belong, don't even think about going upstairs until you are married. Got it?" She started laughing hysterically at her own sense of humor. That is how Meghan is.

"Did you mean what you said and do you still mean it?" Julie looked at me and asked.

"Do I mean what?" I asked with uncertainty in my voice.

"Oh come on Jim! You jerk, you know what she just asked you." Those two comments came from the two people on the phone.

"You once told me that if I had apologized you would have asked me to marry you on the spot. Do we still have a chance?" Julie said with a sudden fear in her eyes.

Our future would be told in the next ten seconds. I stared into her eyes and could not believe we were in each other's arms again.

"Julie I am not letting you go for anything. I am here and I am staying. And I am asking you to marry me."

"Woo Hoo!" Shannon screamed out on the phone.

"Hey. I didn't say yes yet Shannon." Julie smirked into the phone.

"Oh give me a break, we only needed to hear him ask. We already knew your answer."

Everybody laughed as we embraced into another long kiss.

"Hey you two. Shannon and I have to call it a night. You guys are exhausting and some of us have to work tomorrow." Meghan called out.

"Hey sis, one more thing. You better call mom and catch her up to speed. You know what Jim thinks about secrets." Shannon added.

Julie hit the phone to end the call and we went back to kissing each other. By now she was sitting across my lap with her arms around my neck leaning back against the armrest.

"Are you going to do what she said?" I asked.

"Yeah we probably should. It is your stupid rule though if you want to break it."

"What? What rule?" I asked dumfounded.

"You know, the one where she said we couldn't go upstairs and have sex since we weren't married. That stupid rule." And that she said with the smile and eyes I fell in love with long ago.

"I missed that smile." I said as I kissed her nose. "But you know that is not what I meant."

"OK, fine. I will call my mother. Fuddy Duddy."