A Date with King Neptune

Beth made a wish for an enchanted day as she pulled the fabric blinds up in her bedroom. The sky was robin blue with drifting white critter clouds.
When her children were young, they would all lay on a blanket and make up cloud stories. Daniel came up with creatures that required a lot of thought. At the age of three, he would study the clouds with intense concentration. Creatures fought wars in the clouds, even if it was Barney and Grover.
Lacy saw fairies and castles.

There was no hint of the fear filled day waiting for her.

Beth put on a new two piece swimsuit with tropical island colors. Brian had been teased but she still believed in waiting to unveil her whole body. This suit was guaranteed to make him forget the fish. A quick glance in the mirror told her she still looked sexy for thirty with two children. Thanks to Pilate's and her "Keeping Abs in Shape" DVD.

She pictured Brian's beautiful smile and couldn't wait to see him.

Her children were her life, precious gifts she had from her relationship to Ray. Daniel was ten and Lacy; five.
It had been two years since the divorce. She should have seen Ray Blakemores’ narcissism blinking over his head from the beginning but love really is blind.

Beth had been totally blown away with his charisma and good looks when they first met. He seemed to have all the qualities she wanted in a mate. He was the kind of person that listened carefully to her from the beginning. She described her interests and what she was looking for in a partner. The jerk was a chameleon, making himself into her perfect mate. No wonder he was such a great investment broker with the perfect poker face. What a clever liar and she was naive, believing every word.

At first, their marriage was good. He made an effort remembering holidays, excitement about her pregnancies and helping out with the kids. They rented a home in an upper class neighborhood. Ray fed his ego constantly. That meant gym equipment, a Lexus with huge payments and a closet full of Perry Ellis and Armani. His job as an investment broker was a crap shoot; money coming in was never steady.

“We have to show people we have a great life otherwise they won’t do business with me. That makes sense, doesn’t it, babe?”

They hosted neighborhood barbecues. He golfed and she did play dates. They played tennis. It all costed a lot of money that went on credit cards.

She noticed he flirted a lot.

"I'm just being friendly. I thought you wanted to get to know people."

He could turn everything she said around.

Ray borrowed money and didn't pay it back. She remembered one incident with shame, Joe Henderson was a sweet guy that owned a plumbing company. He had one of his workers fix their toilets and run new pipes, saving them loads of money.

It was eight months after the job was done in when Joe came to her.

"Beth, I am so sorry to trouble you with this but.....the supplies I used for your job. Well, I put them on my card cause Ray was gonna pay me. It's been months and he owes me over four hundred dollars. That isn't a lot Beth, but I gotta have .....about half anyway."

Beth hung her head and hot tears fell.
"I am so sorry."
She gave him a hundred out of her grocery money.

Later in bed, Beth told Ray about what Joe had said.
"I gave him a hundred."

"Without even asking me? He is a lying SOB!"

She wasn't going to argue. She was tired of fighting with him over money. It was always the same excuse, everyone else was wrong, never him.

After a while their neighbors quit including them in get togethers.

Beth would have been a stay at home Mom if Ray's need to climb the financial ladder hadn't required her advertising job. She was always bailing them out financially. She had been trying to save for a house down payment but savings was always needed for something. Credit cards that she knew nothing about were suddenly being called about. There was growing resentment.

The other women had been the final straw. When she confronted him with the evidence, he was such a jerk.
She had found receipts for the credit cards, perfumed notes, pictures, e-mails and even a silk thong in his laundry.

He turned it around to be her fault.
"How dare you go through my things! Do I look in your purse?"

He didn't. What could she say?
"But why do you have notes from women?"

He pushed her against the wall.
"I can't believe you can question thank you notes for business deals that help our family out."

"What about the underwear?"

"I have no idea where that came from. If you don't trust me, leave. There is the door!"

Always trying to keep the peace and afraid a divorce woud hurt her children, she kept quiet. Then she started having a discharge and sores. She knew and was ashamed to go to the GYN.
Ray had given her a sexually transmitted disease. She confronted him.
He stood there with a smug look on his face.

"I don't have any symptoms. Guess your lover must have been messing around."

That was it. She saw red, slapping his face and telling him to get out. He came after her and she grabbed the phone to press 911.
Just then Daniel came in the door from school.

"Hey, Mom, I'm home! Falllon's goin' stay for dinner, okay?"

Beth finished calling the cops back as Ray headed for the door with a suitcase. Daniel may have saved his Mom's life. Ray had never gotten more violent then pushing Beth the one time. She wasn't hurt but the thought of what he might be capable of was frightening.

The kids never knew what he had done. Now Ray knew she had something to hold over his head; now he didn't dare fight her.

One of the first things Beth had done was call Lonnie. Lonnie was her best friend in high school. He had never married. The two of them had dated in high school, even gone to prom and whenever they wanted a date they could count on each other.

Lonnie had been out of Beth's life for all her married years because Ray was jealous. He was furious when she told him the truth. Now Lonnie was her lawyer and dear friend. Beth had been generous about letting Ray see the kids every other weekend. She told him before they signed the divorce papers, if the kids ever mentioned his temper, he wouldn't see them again. She had never seen him physically hurt the children.

The divorce was painful for the children. They loved their Dad and he seemed to truly love them. He was a real Jeckyl/Hyde, great at bringing home gifts. He showed off by taking a group of Daniel's friends for jet skiing and pizza parties, paying for all the video games. He was going through a period of having money right now.

Then Ray had someone help with the kids. The "children's entertainer" looked like she came from Hefner's Bunny Mansion. She wore a skirt that played peek-a-boo to impress Ray. Beth got complaints from parents.

Beth had Lonnie call Ray to tell him he'd better straighten up or lose visitation rights. Ray took it seriously.

Life was going along smoothly. Beth had moved into a loft apartment and was working for a really great advertising firm. With her salary and what Ray contributed when he could, she had a comfortable life. Now life was spent with the kids and Lonnie was still her steady date for social engagements. He came over a couple of nights a week for pizza with the children he loved. Beth tried to set him up and it never worked.
"Give it up. I am happy! Look at what you went through."

Then Brian walked into Beth's life at her dentist's office. Daniel had lost his favorite Boy Scout knife in the parking lot. They had looked all over and couldn't find it.
He was acting cranky. Like most kids, he hated going to the dentist.

Brian offered to help him find the knife if he would adjust his nasty attitude.
"Bribery, huh?" Beth asked.

"Hey, it may not work for Dr. Phil but it does for me," he laughed.

She loved his deep spontaneous laugh right away. It was sexy.

He found the knife, tearing a hole in his suit doing it. Beth was sick about it and offered to pay for it. She knew she couldn't afford the suit. He invited her to dinner and to see Phantom of the Opera. She said she would pay for dinner. He didn't argue but when the time came, a bill never showed up.

She thought, 'What a very sweet guy.' Maybe she had hit the jackpot.

After the show they went to get espresso and he kept her laughing until her stomach ached. Each time they dated, he managed to gently blow some healing stardust to repair damaged parts of her heart.

Lonnie met him and approved. They cooked dinner and then played cards with the kids. Lonnie often kept the kids so romantic evenings could be planned.

Now Beth's future had taken a marvelous turn and she was going to enjoy it. Time with Brian was always an adventure; a lovely Cherry Blossom Festival, a surprise ride in a hot air balloon, and horseback riding.

Brian had money but it was the time without the treats that showed her he cared. A daisy chain necklace and hand written notes said so much more than material things. The special twinkle in his eyes when he looked at her said all her heart could visualize.

One perfect evening they went to a local park that showed old movies like "Casablanca" on a big screen. They had a picnic dinner he had made with great chicken salad sandwiches. The thick quilt and secluded spot were chosen well.

She had not made out like that since high school and now both knew how to heat the flame and then blow it out with a trip to ecstasy. It was a perfect preview to the first New York City trip and their own romantic movie. The story line to climax and ending credits didn't disappoint.

The best trip to New York City had been to see "Cats" and dinner at Sardis’. He had included the kids. He genuinely liked them. At forty-five he had never married. He was too busy building his career is what he had told Beth.

Then the day came that tested their trust in each other. They drove to the marina and untied his polished wooden boat. Brian had brought a lunch basket from an area deli and a bottle of champagne. They had been dating one year.

They headed out for their special island. Spreading the blanket, they toasted their "good fortune at finding each other." Then he unpacked a lovely lunch of Brie and crackers then rosemary rotisserie chicken, Waldorf salad, and cream puffs.

After words of thanks and a deep kiss he handed her a velvet jewelry box.
She opened it. He would never forget her look of pure joy.

There lay a white gold charm bracelet with a sailing ship, a seal, the mask from Phantom, a Ferris wheel, and a tiny pen knife, and then there was a mustard seed. All their days together were reflected. She was so touched. This kind of gift took time and thought.

"This is too much, Brian," she said with a tear filled voice.

"This is just the beginning."

They sun bathed and collected shells. They began to head back to the marina. The sky suddenly changed from a deep blue to gray. The fish that had been leaping up to show off their silver bodies were now gone.

Seems King Neptune had become angry as the waves became rough, rain pelting them so hard it felt like razors cutting the skin.

The shoreline had faded from sight and the engine stopped. They tried to radio for help but the signal wouldn't go through. Brian sent up flares and they prayed out loud, joining hands.

Brian's face was filled with terror and he knew all about boats. He was a strong swimmer. That look of fear overwhelmed Beth.

The air seemed charged with electricity, lightening illuminated the sky.
They huddled together under a tarp. The cabin area had water in it.

This was the end. Beth thought of her children. She was afraid Ray would not be a good father. She knew that Lonnie would take care of them. He had even drawn up papers giving him partial custody but she began to bargain with God.

Brian was very quiet, blaming himself.

It was getting worse, the wind was literally turning the boat in circles, and the hail was golf ball size.

Twenty-four hours passed, they were trying to keep each other awake. The two talked about the things they wanted to accomplish yet and tried to stay positive in the face of death.
At the same time, they looked in each other's eyes and said, "I love you."

Then, a distant horn sounded.
Was it Gabriel's angels?

No, it was another vessel coming their way in the driving rain.
It was the Coast Guard.

A year later Beth and Brian came back to the island. They brought along family including Lonnie, friends and a Priest. It was another blue sky with cotton ball clouds. It stayed that way until sunset that glowed with colors, like tropical silk scarves in tangerine, scarlet, turquoise, canary yellow and pink coral.


By Kathie Stehr