Forgotten Love (Derrien Island Trilogy) (13 page)

Marcus was more than just
the owner but he treated all of his employees with respect and friendliness which created a wonderful work environment for all.  In fact, his excellent work ethic, creative ideas and good business sense had played a pivotal role in establishing this restaurant as the star of his two restaurants on the island.  He was always smiling with the patrons and always had something friendly or complimentary to say to everyone. He was a man who was always courteous and helpful to the customers.

So, this morning he knew that
his appearance was extremely different to the norm everyone was accustomed to. He stood near the bar instead of circulating the room and was slowly nursing a glass of orange juice whose level had not changed much in the last ten minutes. There was a dazed expression on his face which still looked slightly unshaven as he looked out to sea lost in thought.

“
Marcus?” asked Lucinda as she finally reached his side. She saw him from across the room and immediately something about his slouched posture told her that something was wrong. The attorney’s were scheduled to arrive in about twenty minutes for their breakfast meeting, but she was hoping to engage Marcus in a bit of chatter before all that seriousness began. She already decided to sell the restaurant to him even though she was being pressed by an Italian investor with a higher bid. Marcus and Natasha would be the perfect new owners and it was frankly just a formality as far as she was concerned.

“Oh hi Lucinda
,” he said turning slowly to face her, somewhat startled by her sudden appearance. Is it time already, I swore I still had a few minutes left!” he muttered bending slightly to hug her and checking his wristwatch at the same time.

Even his hug was listless thought Lucinda who had grown accustomed to the bear hugs she would get from this man, who she thought of often as her own son.

“No, it’s not time for the meeting yet. I just came early to see how you were doing and to have a chat. Have you been sleeping? You look terrible!” she exclaimed now taking in the dark circles under his eyes and the rough growth of hair on his usually clean shaven face. When Marcus folded his lips and rubbed his hand across his chin unable to find the words to respond, Lucinda knew something was off.

“
Maybe you should take a vacation Marcus. Do you think you need some time off from your restaurants? It seems as though you are dealing with something? Can I help you in any way?” she asked slightly alarmed.

Tak
ing a deep breath before he began he replied, “Look Lucinda, I know I must look like a wreck but don’t worry about me, I’m fine. I really need to be here today.”

“
Marcus! In the nine year’s I’ve known you, I have never ever seen you like this!” said Lucinda planting a thick hand on her rounded hip. “Something is wrong and I am more than a little concerned about you now, especially seeing that you want to add my restaurant to your workload.”

That response pricked Marcus
’ attention immediately. Darn, she thinks I look like this because I am overworked. I can’t afford to lose the restaurant deal because of this, he said to himself and gave himself a mental shake.

“You’re right
Lucinda, I do have some things bothering me but it’s not that I am overworked. I just need a moment to pull myself together,” he said clearing his throat unsuccessfully.

Lucinda
noted how hoarse his normally smooth voice sounded and the redness and raw appearance of his eyes. He looked like a man who had not slept in days! Marcus could feel her eyes sweeping his appearance and he regretted not taking more time to make sure he looked his best. But somehow, even that was a struggle considering how much pain he was in right now.

“
We can go to my office and I will alert Zach to let the kitchen send up some food for us,” said Marcus referring to the manager on duty, and we can talk there. Lucinda had a way of getting to the bottom of things when she needed to, and he knew he would have to tell her something to explain all of this. To her it would always be family before business.

Tapping his knuckles on the bar top
, he plastered a smile on his face and walked toward the staff entrance which led to the suite of offices on the second floor of the building. As he did so, he noticed the jazz trio setting up for the live music set that had become one of the main reasons why people continued to flock to the restaurant. This group was well known for its quality music and the soulful selections that were both relaxing and stimulating at the same time. It was actually one of the best ideas he had ever had for the restaurant and it had really become lucrative for them. The only thing was that the group was instrumental and he had recently thought that it would be nice if they had a lead singer as well. Natasha would have been so perfect for the job but she seemed to hate the thought of working at anywhere near him or at the restaurants of late.

H
e opened the door for Lucinda and once again assured her that he would follow shortly after speaking to Zach. Once he did he climbed the stairs to his office and saw that Lucinda had already made herself comfortable on the beige suede sofa on which he preferred to converse with his guests. His office had always reminded him of a mini nature reserve with the numerous plants, and artificial fountains that filled the atmosphere with the sound of running water. It was always extremely soothing to be in here and as Natasha always said, there was something about the sound of running water that always boosted her creativity and intuition. In fact she was the one that decorated it for him.

The more he thought about it the
more he could see Natasha here sitting at his desk, or trailing her finger through the water of the small fountain on the shelf.

Wearing a white pantsuit and a pink scarf around her shoulders
Lucinda was the picture of refined class this morning. Her silver hair was coiffed into an elegant bun and she wore light makeup that accentuated her features causing her to look a lot younger than her years. She had a wonderful marriage to the same man for decades before he passed on and it was obvious from her radiance that she was still young at heart.

Marcus sat beside Lucinda and took a deep breath knowing that she was waiting
patiently for him to begin.

“I don’t want you to get the wrong impression about me
or my ability to take on the added responsibility of your restaurant this morning Lucinda. As I said, I am going through something else personal that was extremely unexpected,” he began.

“Marcus,
what could have happened to cause this? You have become like a son to me and I cannot see you in obvious distress about something and literally do nothing about it. You know you can talk to me if you need to.” she replied.

“I don’t know how to say this...”
he said trying to find the words.

“Say it however you can.”

Marcus stood up and walked toward the shelf where Natasha had placed one of the fountains before he finally responded.

“
Lucinda, Natasha’s gone! She left me on Friday night and said that our marriage was over.” He closed his eyes as those words still rattled him deeply.

By
her sharp intake of breath, he did not have to turn around to know that Lucinda was shocked at what he said.

“Marcus, you must be feeling terrible, why did you come in today?
You know I would have rescheduled our meeting,” said Lucinda now standing and walking across the room to join Marcus where he stood placing her hand comfortingly on his arm.

“I think terrible is an understatement here
, and besides being in that house without her is driving me crazy. I guess I needed to be around a little joy today.”

“I am so sorry
to hear this. I did notice that you both looked a bit strained at the wine and cheese brunch last month but I figured you just had an argument or something.”

“Yeah
, well its true, things have been very strained between us but I thought we could work it out. She just left on Friday and she gave me no warning. She just packed her suitcases and left.”

“Have you heard from her since, Do you know where she went?”

“No, I haven’t heard from her but I think I know where she went. Luckily, Sheldon spotted her at the airport on her way to Atlanta.

“Atlanta?
You mean she’s not even on the island?” queried Lucinda now completely blown away by the news.

“Yes
, well that’s where the plane went on its first connection. Who knows where she is by now. I am suspecting that she is in Savannah though. Before she and I met, she was working on a degree in Art and Advertising design at a university there.”

“Marcus and you are here trying to put on a show when it is so clear that you are completely devastated
.”

“You know what
Lucinda, I am devastated and I miss her in a way that is eating me alive, but for some reason I think that I needed this somehow to wake me up.”

“Why would you say such a thing about yourself Marcus?”
she asked.

“Natasha has been trying to talk to me about something that
was very important to her for years and I just kept giving her the brush off. The truth is that we were hardly connecting much anymore. She would constantly find ways to avoid me and Friday night I think she finally had enough.”

“Marcus what are you saying?” asked
Lucinda narrowing her eyes and struggling to understand what Marcus was really saying to her.

“I’m saying that I think that the way things are
now is my fault. I am the one that drove Natasha away.”

“Your fault? I could not imagine you doing anyt
hing to hurt that woman!” said Lucinda with a shocked expression on her face.

“Yeah and for years I thought that too, but as I really began to think things through yesterday I realized that I
must have really hurt her deeply. No, I didn’t cheat on her or abuse her physically but what I did now seems a whole lot worse,” he said holding his head down as he felt the now familiar pricking sensation behind his eyelids.

“Marcus
, I need you to start from the beginning so that I can understand what is really going on here.”

L
eading her back over to the sofa Marcus explained how he had constantly shut down Natasha’s desires to pursue her dreams and ridiculed her envying his achievements and how he showed little sympathy for her in those moments, preferring to believe that she was the one with the problem, not him. He spoke of his need to prove to her father that her could provide for her and make her happy and how he had ended up stifling her in the process. When he was done, he could see tears welling up in Lucinda’s eyes as she listened.

“Marcus, how do you feel about Natasha now?

“I love my wife, I always have and now that I have stripped off my blinders I realized that I have been such a fool.” admitted Marcus.

“
Do you think there is any hope for you two in working this out?” she asked

“Right now, I don’t
even know how she feels about me. But there is something else, Sheldon saw her at the airport while she was checking in and she was with someone else.”

“Who?”
demanded Lucinda.

A man
named Lucas Johnson!”

“A
nother man? Do you think that they were having an affair?”

“I don’t know and I hope not!
All I know is that I want a chance to see her and explain how I feel about us. I need a chance to apologize to her and ask her to forgive me.”

Lucinda
took a deep breath as she considered her next words carefully.

“Are you prepared to let her go if you find out that she has chosen to be with someone else?” she asked quietly.

“I refuse to even think about that. I know she said our marriage was over but I can’t accept that. I just can’t! I want her back in my life!”

“Why? Why do you want her to come back?”
she pressed.

Surprised by her line of questioning Marcus looked at her knowing expression as she waited for his response.

“Why?” he exclaimed incredulously.

“
I want her back because I love her, because I want to build a life for her, with her! On the way up here I was even thinking about how I could help her to realize some of her dreams right here on Derrien Island. You know we have been moving toward having more live music in-house, well she is an excellent singer. In fact, just before we got married she was in-line for an international contract. I was thinking that perhaps she could sing here at the restaurant again, something anything. I want to encourage her to release her artwork, I just want to see her happy again!” said Marcus now rising from his seat once more pacing the floor.

Lucinda considered Marcus’ reply carefully and was silent for a while before she responded.

“Yes, I must agree with you that she has a fabulous voice and a wonderful artist’s talent,” replied Lucinda. “Look Marcus, I cannot tell you what to do but I think you should take some time off and if you need to go and see your wife, do so. You are in no condition to run these restaurants or to conduct our business deal. Take some time off and come back when you are more clear about everything,” advised Lucinda.