Chapter 28
“Did you really meet Nikki Yanofsky and Carly Rae Jepson? Lisa said you were in some of the pictures from the film festival. What was Natalie Portman like?” An envious Hannah asked Cassie as they sat down at the lunch table.
“She was very gracious and much shorter than I expected. She’s only a little taller than me. But it was like, ‘Hi, how are you?’ then I got dragged off to be introduced to someone else. My brother-in-law Dale seemed to know everyone that my mother-in-law didn’t.”
Caitlyn looked a bit disappointed that there wasn’t a better story then asked, “Did you actually get to talk to anyone?”
“Not really. It was pretty busy. We only had forty-five minutes before the movie started and about an hour afterwards to talk to people before we had to leave for the restaurant. Mostly I smiled and listened. My mother-in-law is on the board of the Neptune Theatre in Halifax so she knew most of the Canadian actors and directors who were there and felt she had to introduce me to everyone she knew. I did get to thank Vanessa Redgrave for her work and tell her how it kept Granny’s spirits up while she was battling cancer. Sarah Polley and Rick Mercer both had some pretty neat stories, too, but the only person I got to speak with for any time at all was Gordon Pinsent. He was surprised that I knew him, but Granny and I loved his work, especially John and the Missus. We must have seen it a dozen times while she was recovering from chemo treatments.”
“But was it fun?” Lisa leaned forward with a sparkle in her eyes.
“I had a lot of fun because I love movies and I got to meet some pretty cool people. Frank not so much. He was okay with it but he doesn’t really like crowds and he’s more into obscure sports like water polo and white water kayaking than movies. He’s just about the only introvert in his family. He had more fun at the restaurant opening we went to after the premiere. One of my sister-in-law’s cousins opened a very posh Indian restaurant in the Fashion District on Saturday. I think there might have been more movie stars there than at the premiere.”
Hannah’s eyes got wide again. “Anyone we’d know?”
“Mostly it was Bollywood people in Toronto for the film festival. Supriya was much more excited about meeting them than we were. But Johnny Depp was there. He’s had some dealings with Dale in the past about movie financing, so we got introduced.” Cassie giggled. “He kissed my hand and told Frank that he was a very lucky man.”
Lisa pointed at a picture from one of the free dailies and said, “Did they get this right?”
Cassie read the brief article under a head and shoulders picture of her and Frank chatting with one of the stars attending the premiere.
Toronto - Newlyweds Frank and Cassie Ellis of Ottawa spoke with Natalie Portman about their shared interest in ballet at the Canadian premiere of Unfinished Song. The youngest son of billionaire industrialist Grant Ellis surprised everyone with his sudden and quiet wedding this past summer. The lovely young bride may have been the best dressed woman at the premiere (see the slideshow on our web site) but it was her wedding gifts that stole the show. The heirloom emerald necklace and matching earrings were designed by Louis Tiffany for Frank’s great-grandmother’s1912 debut in New York society and look just as elegant a century later.
“I don’t know about best dressed. It was pretty weird to be the centre of attention like that. I hadn’t really realized that the Ellis family were that prominent. The strangest part of the weekend was my mother-in-law showing up unexpectedly with a pair of jewellery boxes. She told me and Supriya that they were ours and welcomed us to the family. Frank went to the bank today to rent a safety deposit box to put everything in. I mean, I know the Ellises are rich but she just handed me all this stuff like it was, like, from the rack at the kiosk in the mall.” She pointed at her elegantly understated platinum and gold Cartier watch with a single emerald to mark the 12. “This and a string of pearls are the only things I kept at home. It was Frank’s grandmother’s everyday watch.”
Lisa asked, “Is it a real Tiffany necklace?”
“That’s what my mother-in-law said. She showed me the maker’s mark on the clasp before I put it away.”
Lisa whistled.
Cassie sighed. “Frank has this prayer posted in the study based on Proverbs 30 that I really like: ‘Lord, let me not be so rich that I am tempted to deny You nor so poor that I am tempted to steal and profane your Name.’ Frank thought it was rather ironic, really. He was that rich before he came to Jesus and denied Jesus all the time. I’d never been anything but poor until I got married and when I ran away from home I was at the point of being poor enough to actually steal, not just tempted to. So now that I’m well off, I have to remember how much Jesus blesses me every day.”
Lisa persisted. “But that necklace must be worth millions.”
Cassie said, in a firm tone, “It is, but it doesn’t matter how much money I could get for it. What matters is that it was made for Frank’s great-grandmother for her eighteenth birthday. It was given to me because I am Frank’s wife. It means that my mother-in-law has accepted me into the family despite my being too young and too poor. Oh, it’s a nice bit of security for me if anything ever happens that I need the money, but its importance is not the money. It’s just another thing, even if it is a very nice expensive thing. Jesus isn’t going to look at my necklace or my nice dresses and say ‘Oh, she’s rich enough to get into heaven.’”
Lisa huffed and said, “I suppose,” recognizing the truth in Cassie’s words. To change the subject she asked, “Is Johnny Depp as handsome in person?”
Cassie grinned. “He is very handsome. And very charming, too.” Then she remembered how Frank had gotten jealous when Johnny flirted with her, which led to a memory of watching Frank’s trim masculine form diving into the outdoor pool for his morning swim while she cooked breakfast and she sighed, which the girls at the table all misinterpreted.
———
“Did it ever bother you to be so rich?” Cassie handed the bread basket to Frank.
Frank frowned as he thought. “Why do you ask?”
“Lisa sent me a link to one of the gossip blogs and Metro Ottawa printed a picture of us talking with Natalie at the premiere.” She shook her head. “Listen to me, name-dropping.”
Frank smiled and Cassie continued. “Both articles commented that the emeralds I was wearing were the Tiffany set. Lisa seemed to be very envious and a couple of other kids seemed like they were trying to suck up to me now that they know I have money.”
Frank made some humming noises as he thought about how to respond. “It didn’t bother me at all until I came to Jesus and to be honest it still doesn’t bother me all that much except that I have to be more intentional about serving Him and not just parting with money I don’t really need. I didn’t really think about being rich until I went to university ‘cause it was so normal for me. I went to school with other rich kids and spent my summers at camp with those same kids and went on the same Swiss ski trips they did. Even at university the guys I hung around with the first two years were pretty wealthy, too. I started to notice when I made the swim team but it didn’t truly hit me how rich I really am until I started coaching the kids from the projects. But it is hard to tell if someone wants to spend time with you or your wallet. Growing up I patterned myself on Father, who automatically assumes that everyone would rather spend time with his wallet. It reduces all human interactions to business transactions. It is not healthy.”
“So what did you do?” Cassie gave a murmur of pleasure as she sipped her chicken soup. “Oh, this turned out exactly right.”
Frank took a sip and said, “Very nice, dear.” He paused then got a pained look as he continued, “Mostly I behaved very badly. I drank too much because that’s what my so-called friends did. Smoked some weed, refused to try anything harder, thank the Lord, but mostly because I was swimming competitively and needed a reasonably clear head not because it bothered my conscience at the time. I wanted sex so I paid for what the girls wanted until I got what I
thought I deserved. I didn’t attract any decent women, until I met Andrea through the swim team at university. She didn’t care about my money, but I didn’t figure that out until later. It took being seduced by Tiffany and the genuine bone deep hurt I saw on Andrea’s face when we broke up to get me to even start to think about it properly. Then when Tiffany dumped me because I wasn’t rich enough or important enough for her it forced me to finally examine my life.”
Cassie knew there was more so she continued eating. Frank smiled. “You’d be a great investigator. I’ve never met anyone who listens better than you do.”
Cassie beamed at him but returned to her soup. Frank shook his head and continued. “After I came to Jesus I had to develop a set of rules for myself. I can’t avoid being rich… well I suppose I could gamble it away or enter a yacht in the Americas Cup trials or develop a drug habit…”
He stopped teasing when he saw the hurt on Cassie’s face and mumbled “Sorry, love” before continuing. “So I decided, until they prove otherwise, that people who want to be my friends are actually interested in me not my wallet. I found that it’s much easier to live with being disappointed by someone else’s greed than to live with myself as a self-centered jerk. But being a Christian means that I need to be part of a supportive community and to be generous with my time and my money. I invest in socially responsible companies, preferably with a Christian connection. And I donate at least a tithe of my time whether coaching or serving on church and charity committees or helping with youth group. And I try to live in a reasonably modest way, at least for an Ellis, so that I can afford to be more generous with my money. I like doing the gardening and that you cook for us and that Carmen only works weekday mornings to clean for us. I’d have hired a service but I’ll admit that I feel better having someone on the property when we aren’t here.”
“She’s very appreciative, Frank. I think we get much better service than most. Meghan was saying that she’s getting a higher quality of service since we rescued Carmen.”
“Because Carmen’s sister is grateful?”
“Probably. I think it’s also because Carmen helps her sister every afternoon now so they’re both making more money to send home.” Cassie held up a finger. “Oh, I think Josefina has moved in with Carmen. I’ve seen her car in the lane overnight the last week or so. I’ll have to tell Carmen that we’re okay with her sister living here and let her have the last parking space in the garage. They’re very quiet.”
Frank nodded his agreement. “So to get back to the original question, it does bother me occasionally, but then I’ll look for something extra I can do to help in the community. But it can be tough to tell who your friends really are.”
Cassie mulled it over then said, “Okay. I’ll still offer our place to study and to drive people home after but when they start expecting more or asking for more I’ll ease out of a closer friendship. You’ll watch out for me?”
“Always. But you’ll have to do the same for me.”
Cassie stood to clear the soup bowls and bring the potato casserole to the table. “How’s the forensic project going?”
Frank served Cassie then himself. “We’re still on schedule for October third but there must be some rumours going around. I ran into Tony at Costco after work on Tuesday and he was way too interested in what I was working on. I nattered on about furnishing the house for a while until he got bored and rejoined his wife.”
“I wonder who would be talking about that sort of thing with Tony.” Cassie ate a bite of the casserole and commented. “This is okay but I don’t think I’ll make it again.”
Frank raised his eyebrows at that. “This is great, Cassie. Why wouldn’t you make it again?”
Cassie gave Frank a puzzled look. “You like this?”
“What’s not to like? Diced potatoes, onions, hot Italian sausage, creamy garlic sauce and nice gooey sharp cheese. I think it’s just right.”
Cassie shook her head. “Okay. Obviously we don’t have quite the same taste in food. I think it needs something a bit extra. Maybe some red pepper or …” She sighed. “I put in too much onion. That’s the problem.”
“That’s not a problem at all. You know I like onions.”
“And you know I don’t really care for them, except in soup. They remind me too much of the lean days before Granny died.”
“Did it bother you to be poor?”
Cassie furrowed her brow as she assembled her response. “I was too busy taking care of Granny and other people in the building to notice most of the time. Granny’s co-workers at the thrift store put things in my size aside so I could get first pick. So I was always dressed reasonably well, until Mum sold all the good stuff for pills.” She frowned. “But I didn’t like going to the food bank. Everyone used to get this look of pity on their face because they assumed that I was in a very bad home situation. One of the midweek volunteers was always trying to get me to disclose the abuse I must have been suffering so she could call Children’s Aid. But I had to choose between hunger and humiliation. I suppose we were too proud to ask for extra help from Dad or from the system.”
“So it was hard sometimes?”
“Yes. I used to envy the kids at school who had nice things but, honestly, Frank, as much as we have and as much as you’ve given me, I’d rather face those looks at the food bank if it meant Granny was still with me.”
Frank reached out and took her hand. “I can’t say I agree because then I would have never met you, but I would have loved to meet your Granny.”
Cassie gave a nod then took a deep breath. Changing the subject, she asked, “Anyway, I wonder who’s been talking to Tony. I hope it isn’t one of your people.”
“Me too.” Frank took another appreciative bite of the casserole. “How’s your homework look tonight?”
“All done. Why?”
“Because I’d like to get the last two guest rooms furnished so we can offer your spare grannies a place to stay. While you were saying goodbye to Mrs. Rodriguez, Mrs. Soares commented that her second son lives in Kanata but they don’t have much room since the fifth child came along. I got the hint.”
“I thought you said you didn’t offer to help people who wanted things from you.”
“I like having people visit, even if I’m not comfortable in big crowds. And after last Saturday I know they’re family. We shouldn’t embarrass them with expensive gifts but if they want to visit we can offer them a bed and feed them and drive them around town.”
“I don’t think that Parayiayia is able to travel any more but I’m sure Mrs. Robertson would love to visit. We should invite them to see the fall colours next month.”
“Then we will.”
They finished the meal in comfortable silence. Cassie caught Frank’s admiring look as she cleared the table. She remembered some of Parayiayia’s advice and went over to sit on his lap. With a lingering kiss, she said, “Thank you, dear husband, for being so very kind and generous and so very patient with me.”
He said, “You are very welcome.” Then he was surprised when Cassie gave him another kiss, this time longer and more passionate.
Cassie leaped from his lap in panic to run for the door when his hands began to wander. She stood at the door frame hyperventilating and tried to convey a wordless apology.
“Sorry, sweetheart.” Frank said, without rising from his chair.
Cassie waved away his apology and began to calm down. After she could breathe properly, she said, with frustrated tears forming, “I am so tired of panicking all the time, Frank. Tired, tired, tired.” She almost yelled the last before she took several more deep breaths to calm herself. “I want to relax when I’m with you and let nature take its course, but I can’t, Frank, not right now. But I’m starting to understand why people think this is fun, at least until I get one of my stupid anxiety attacks. I’m so sick of it.” She stamped her foot to ease her frustration.
Frank sighed and was again tempted to hunt Gord down. After a steadying breath h
e said, “It’s frustrating for me, too.”
Frank stood and held out his arms. Cassie came back towards him and wrapped her arms around his waist. Cassie cast her eyes downward and said, “Sorry. I don’t know how you can put up with me.”
Frank carefully gathered her closer for a gently affirming hug with his hands carefully placed at her waist. “Because I promised you for better or worse and I know it’s temporary, sweetheart.” Then he teased her by saying, “If I’d been smarter I would have kept my hands still. We might have had a bit more fun.” He gently lifted her chin to look in her eyes. “But I know I can wait until you are ready.” In a more serious tone, he said, “The counsellor advised me that it wasn’t going to be easy or quick. She thinks you have PTSD and if I don’t wait for you it could damage our relationship and set you back. But I’m seeing some signs of improvement.”
Cassie raised her eyebrows. “Oh?”
He waggled his eyebrows. “After all, you started that kiss. Thank you.”
Cassie turned a bright pink and rolled her eyes. “Okay. Let’s go shopping. That will be enough fun for tonight.”
Frank waggled his eyebrows again and said, “Are you certain?”
Cassie refused to answer his question with words but her face went a bright pink colour as she fixed her gaze on his lips before she felt her panic return and stepped back with frustrated tears welling in her eyes again.