Page 77 of Return of the Spider
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Gary soneji had spentthe day getting to know his students at Washington Day, including dear Cheryl Lynn Wise, a little string bean of a girl, and Special Agent Jezzie Flanagan, a stunning blonde who was built like a swimmer and seemed to know everything about him already—everything he’d submitted to Headmaster Little, anyway.
He’d also gotten up to speed on Sandy Ravisky’s lesson plans for the various grades that came to the computer lab. All in all, Soneji thought his first day had gone smashingly well, and he returned to the motel in Takoma Park with a bag of Chinese takeout feeling like a barracuda that’s discovered a bay filled with yummy fish.
He spent Friday out of disguise, tending to his list of heating-oil clients and landing two new companies that wanted AtlanticHeating as their bulk fuel supplier. That made his brother-in-law Marty very happy. He’d called him with the contract particulars before he drove home.
Soneji reached the Colonial gingerbread house just as it was getting dark. He went inside carrying his suitcase and a stuffed bunny for Roni.
I can play Fun Daddy,he thought as he scooped his daughter up and gave her the toy along with a dozen loud cheek kisses that made Roni laugh with delight. Missy watched from the kitchen, her arms folded, her expression fixed.
“I have to give Mommy something too,” he told Roni loudly. He kissed her again, returned to the Saab, and retrieved a bouquet of roses, a bottle of champagne, and a box of Missy’s favorite dark chocolates.
“What’s going on here?” his wife said suspiciously when Soneji came through the door with the presents. “It’s not Valentine’s Day.”
“Every day’s Valentine’s Day when you’re in love with a beautiful woman,” Soneji said. He kissed Missy and gave her the flowers.
She took them but still regarded him warily. “What’s come over you, Gary Murphy?”
He shrugged and set the chocolates and the champagne on the counter. “I’ve had time to think about things the past couple of days on the road. I guess it finally dawned on me just how good I have it. With my job. With Roni. And, mostly, with you. I’m sorry if I haven’t been too pleasant to be around while I’ve been figuring all this out.”
Missy squinted. “Yeah, it hasn’t been pleasant, Gary.”
“I know,” he said, holding his still-bandaged palms out toward her. “And I promise I’ll make it up to you. Later, after Roni’s gone to bed. In the meantime, I’m going to play with my daughter and read her a story or two before dinner.”
His wife finally softened a little. “That would be nice. She’d like that.”
“And if the weather holds, maybe tomorrow we can all go for a hike in that park you’re always trying to get me to go to. Maybe catch the last of the fall foliage.”
“That would be nice too,” she said, softening a little more. “I’ll finish dinner.”
For the first time in a long while, Soneji was as good as his word. He got down on his hands and knees and played with Roni while telling her the story of the Magic Kingdom of Miss Bunny Maddox, a fantastical tale of a rabbit and a unicorn. It mesmerized his daughter even more than the two Dr. Seuss books he read to her before they were both called to the table.
Missy had made a nice meal of salmon, little red potatoes, and Caesar salad. It really was great, and he made sure to say so multiple times. Soneji insisted on doing the dishes, giving Roni her bath, and reading one more book to her after she was tucked in her little bed.
“Good night, Daddy,” Roni said. “I love you.”
Her eyes were glistening. To his surprise, it touched him a little. “I love you too, little girl.” He kissed her on the cheek, got up, and turned to find Missy standing in the doorway, tears welling in her eyes as well.
“Good night, Mommy,” Roni said.
His wife went to their daughter and kissed her good night. When they were out in the hallway with the door shut, Missy said in a voice hoarse with emotion, “Thank you for that.”
“What?”
Tears streamed down her cheeks. “All of it. Everything she’s been missing.”
“And you’ve been missing,” Soneji said, wiping a tear off hercheek. “Now, come along, Miss Missy. I’ve got champagne and one more special present that I think is going to be an answer to all your prayers.”
Soneji had Missy sit in her favorite chair in the family room while he popped the champagne and poured them each a glass. He brought the flutes out and handed one to her. “A toast,” he said, raising his glass.
“What are we toasting?” Missy asked.
“A new beginning,” he said. “A restart.”
Then he put his glass on the table beside her, fished in his pocket, and pulled out a ring box. He went down on one knee and opened the box to reveal a beautiful, sleek, art deco–style ring with two small rectangular diamonds flanking a larger emerald-cut diamond. Missy gasped.
“You always said you wanted a real engagement ring,” Soneji said. “So when I saw this unusual ring at a shop down in Virginia, I thought,Now,thisis a ring gorgeous enough for my bride to wear as long as we both shall live.”
