THE SUN, THE MOON, AND THE TRUTH

by Linda S Barth

Author’s Note: In my BatB stories, canon ended with the last scene of “A Kingdom by the Sea,” and everything in the episodes that followed, including Third Season, never happened. Please keep that in mind as you read this story, which takes place well into a Continued Classic Third or Fourth Season exploring Vincent and Catherine’s happy life.

* * * * *

Three things cannot long stay hidden: the sun, the moon, and the truth.  

~ Buddha

In the nurturing comfort of their bedroom, they stood before the cheval mirror, watching each other in the glass. She leaned back against him – her strength, her spirit, her home. His arms tightened around her – his courage, his conviction, his heart.

She felt his soft sigh rustle the hair at the crown of her head, saw the strands flutter in the mirror’s reflection. “Vincent, are you absolutely sure you’re okay with this?”

Another soft sigh, another flutter, one of decision, determination. “I’m sure.”

His hand covered hers, cradling the curve of her belly. “It’s the right thing to do — for him, for us.”

“And for her.” They shared a secret smile, full of wonder, full of faith. “I think she’ll be happy to have an honorary uncle Above, don’t you?”

“I do. It will help as our daughter becomes a woman of both worlds, just like her mother.”

“A child who will be beautiful and brave just like her father.”

A dreamy tenderness in her eyes was slowly eclipsed by the twinkle of a suggestive smile. She watched his eyes narrow in curiosity, gleam with anticipation. “And then someday she can have fun introducing her little brother to their Uncle Joe.”

He pulled her even closer. “Let’s not get ahead of things, Catherine. As appealing as the idea is.”

She slowly turned in his embrace, savoring the way their bodies always melded and moved together. “And then after we have a son, we can always try for one more. Or maybe even –”

Her enticing suggestions were momentarily silenced by the delicious pressure of his mouth on hers. Warm and probing, promising and wanting.

With gentle reluctance, she braced her hands on his shoulders and looked up at him. “I’d better call Joe now and make plans for him to stop by – before you and I find a way to avoid the whole thing.” She grinned, echoing his words, “As appealing as the idea is.”

He rumbled a laugh. “I think you’re right about the phone call. As for the rest, he’s not coming over tonight…”

She hesitated, then grabbed his hand. “Let’s go use the phone in the office downstairs. There’s too much temptation in this room!”

“Remember what Oscar Wilde said — ‘The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it.’”

She nearly dragged him to the doorway. “Phone call now. Lots and lots of yielding later!”

They sat in matching chairs in a quiet room on the parlor floor of their brownstone. Her hand hovered over the phone, then she let it drop to the desktop. “I know what I need to say, but I still can’t find the right words.”

“Catherine, Joe has been your friend, a true friend, for nearly four years. He knows you, maybe better than we realize.” Frowning slightly, he tilted his head. “Do you think he already suspects?”

She shrugged. “I don’t know, maybe. He knows there’s been someone very special in my life, and he knows how I feel about having children.”

“And he’s had considerable experience observing people – their looks, their behavior, their body language. He can’t have missed the softness, the glow on your face, the slight roundness of your belly.” HIs gaze caressed her. “The tender look in your eyes, the gleam of your hair…”

She smiled at him. “I’m not sure anyone is as observant as you, particularly when it comes to me, but Joe may have noticed a few things, especially this.” She patted the small, soft bulge. “I’ve done my best to disguise our little girl, but even Joe has noticed the clothes I’ve been wearing lately aren’t my usual style. He actually made a comment the other day about not realizing gigantic sweaters were the latest fashion.”

He smiled back at her. “If he hasn’t guessed the truth yet, he will soon.”

“Yes, you’re right.” She huffed a deep breath, puffing away a strand of hair that had fallen over her eyes. “And he has sisters he’s close to and plenty of nieces and nephews.”

“We can’t wait any longer.”  He stood and handed the phone to her. “I’ll give you some privacy.”

“No, Vincent, stay with me. I don’t want to do this alone. I need to know you’re here every step of the way.” She waited until he was seated next to her again, then she punched in the numbers she’d memorized long ago.

* * *

“Thanks for coming, Joe.” She led him into the foyer. “How’s your mom doing? Did you have lunch with her after Mass this morning?”

“Mom’s fine – nothing gets her down — but today she agreed to lunch at one of her favorite restaurants instead of cooking for me back at the house. Kind of a miracle!” He chuckled. “Or maybe it was just because she’s always had a tough time saying no to me.”

“You’ll always be her favorite son,” she teased as she took his jacket and hung it on the mahogany hall tree. But she didn’t utter the words tickling at the back of her throat. Let’s hope you’re up for another miracle tonight. 

He glanced at their surroundings as he followed her into the living room. “The place looks great, Cath. What a difference from when you first moved in. What is it – at least a year now, right?”

She felt a jolt of embarrassment. “I wanted to invite you over again long before this. It’s just that…”

He smiled as he shook his head. “Hey, don’t worry about it. I’m here now.”  He made himself comfortable on the sofa, then pointed toward a sparkling geode displayed on the end table. “That’s from your old place, right? But you didn’t keep much of your furniture.”

“Just a few pieces. Nothing else seemed to fit in with my new home, so I left the rest for whoever sublets the apartment.”

“Sounds like a good plan.” He leaned back and waited for her to take a chair close to him. “So, what did you want to talk about? You sounded kind of serious on the phone, and I got the idea this isn’t just a social call.”

Behind Joe’s smile, she noticed the slight narrowing of his eyes, the subtle tightness of his mouth, and realized Vincent had been right. Her old friend had questions, suspicions, but he would not push her. He knew her well enough to be certain that in time, she would make the first move.

She took a soothing breath. “There are some things I need to share with you, things I couldn’t talk about at the office.” For a moment, her gaze glanced upward to where Vincent waited. “But before I start, would you like something to drink – water, coffee, maybe a glass of wine or a beer?”

His laugh sounded forced, and she loved him all the more for the effort he was making to wait for her, to let her set the pace, to make the choices.

“Am I going to need a beer?”

She tried to smile. “Maybe.” Her thoughts drifted from words she wanted to say toward wishes she had so often made.

Too much time had passed since she’d first felt the yearning to confide in a trusted friend in her life Above, one who would honor and respect her most precious secrets, someone who loved her enough to set aside their surprise and doubts to honor her choices, a special person who would always want to be part of her life no matter which pathways she chose to follow.

She’d often thought of Jenny and Nancy, hopefully considered Edie, longed for it to be her father, but there had always been valid reasons, inner arguments, precautions and fears she had not been able to overcome. So many worrying twinges of not now, not yet, maybe some other time…maybe never. Despite her love for her friends and father, she could not ignore the warnings she’d heard in her heart, truths that could keep even these special people from accepting her revelations as a gift they would share and not a burden they would be forced to bear.

Now, it was too late for her father, a regret she would endure forever. Yet she continued to dream of the day her friends would become part of the world and the life she had embraced, even though she still had not found a way to break through the barrier of not now, not yet. Even as she had continued to doubt there would ever be anyone with whom she could take that first step – until now.

He had been there all along, their lives slowly but undeniably entwining in respect and confidence and affection. It had begun the very moment she’d entered his office, when her life had taken a second unexpected and unprecedented turn. And it had continued as he bent and broke rules – personal and professional — he’d vowed to uphold, in order to support her; as he’d struggled to find his place in her life; as he’d accepted her for who she truly was. Throughout it all, no matter how difficult it often had been for him, he had trusted her.

How had she not recognized sooner that he was the one she’d been looking for? There was no reason to wait any longer, and every reason to begin.

It was time.

“Joe, there are some very important parts of my life I’ve had to keep from you. I didn’t want to, but I’ve had no choice.”

He nodded as he looked into her eyes. “And now you do.”

“Yes.” She summoned a serious smile. “What I’m going to tell you – all of it makes me incredibly happy, but I don’t think any of it is what you would ever expect to hear. Before I say anything more, you need to know that some of my secrets are going to be quite a surprise, things no one could guess I’ve kept hidden.”

“How long have we known each other?” He chuckled. “I hate to break it to you, kiddo, but you aren’t always as subtle as you think you are. If someone ever asks you to play poker, say no unless you want to lose your shirt!”

At her surprised expression, his smile softened. “I know you’ve had secrets. Of course, I couldn’t know what they are, but I could see how some of them kept eating at you, and I always wanted to help. But I never wanted to push you, and I just hoped somehow you knew I’d be there for you if you wanted me to be.”

“I’ve always known it, Joe, right from the moment you took a chance on me. You changed my life that day, more than I’ve ever told you, and I’ll always be grateful.” She took another deep, cleansing breath. “We’ve had our differences, but I’ve never doubted you since we first met, and I have no doubts now.”

“Cathy, you know you can trust me with anything.” He leaned forward, the look on his face making her think of an eager boy who knew he was about to hear an amazing story and of a man whose heart would find a way to understand and embrace every word of it. “So, whatever it is you want to tell me, I’m ready when you are.”

For a moment, she listened to the silence above her and heard the sound of his love. She listened to the silence in the living room and heard the sound of his loyalty. She listened to the voice of her heart and heard the sound of the truth she would speak.

She felt a sense of lightness all around her, like a gleaming sky after a dark summer storm. She had dreamed of this moment, yet hadn’t truly believed it would ever come to be. But at last it had, in a place where endings become beginnings, where hopes become reality, where never becomes now.

And who knew better than she that there’s a first time for everything.