The Most Valuable Gift

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BurntRedstone
BurntRedstone
9,774 Followers

Tristan heard the love in Rachel's voice and got a little worried. She'd seen other women in the group fall in love with their young lovers only to be emotionally destroyed when these young men moved on. In the short time she'd spent with Rachel at the luncheon she'd immediately clicked with her. Tristan listened to her inner voice believing to her core that there was wisdom in instinct. Rachel was good people. She and Dale had met so few when they moved here from Texas. They'd left behind their social connections and had made efforts here to connect with the 'right people'. Peers from their tier of society but there was always something lacking. Some were dull as plain crackers, others had no depth, and many had a weakness of moral values. She picked up immediately from Rachel that she was more right than any of the 'right people'. Now she may be setting herself up for heartache.

Her concern must have shown on her face as Rachel reached over and touched her hand. "You don't need to worry about me. It's good."

Tristan began to apologize but Rachel just shook her head with a grin. "Get to know Edward and you'll understand."

The blond looked curiously in the direction her husband had taken the young man.

Ed and Dale were standing at the bar where the older gentleman was schooling the bartender on what a good scotch was. Finally two tumblers were presented to them to his satisfaction. He handed one to Ed.

"Some toss this drink back and swallow it quickly but I personally feel that's an insult to the craftsmanship. This is your first exposure to scotch?" Dale asked Ed who nodded wide eyed. "Then take the scent first. Careful, even that can have a kick. Then take a sip, roll it on the tongue then swallow."

Ed placed his nose over the tumbler and sniffed cautiously. The scent was like nothing he'd smelled before. Spicy, hot, rich... he took a good sip and ran it over his tongue allowing it to slide back to be swallowed. The heat moved down his chest and his eyes watered a little as he hadn't been expecting that. The flavors in his mouth just continued to get better. He looked into the tumbler with a pleased look. He LIKED scotch! He looked to the man standing next to him and saw that odd expression again. Grace wasn't here to interpret them for him and Ed felt like he was being graded, like he was back in school. He looked the man in the eye.

"Have I done something wrong? You keep looking at me like my high school teachers used to. Well, most looked at me in disappointment. If you could tell me how I've offended you maybe I can do something about it."

The older man looked ashamed. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you feel uncomfortable. You aren't what I was expecting. In the past I've seen young men with some of the ladies here tonight and these men have always been soft, egotistical, self-centred sponges. Your hands have seen work like mine. You weren't threatened by my handshake and didn't try to show me up by overpowering my grip. You haven't tried to bullshit me by pretending to be worldlier than your age would typically allow. I'm sorry if I've offended you."

Ed nodded and looked back to his drink. He sipped some more, following Dale's instructions once more. After he enjoyed the warmth he looked back at the man.

"I don't know any of these other young men. I don't know why they would behave that way. It makes no sense to me but I don't get a lot of people's behavior. I guess I'm slow that way." He felt the warmth of the scotch slide along his limbs and he felt a little more relaxed. He took the last sip and smiled as he set the glass on the counter. "That is a very good drink!"

Dale liked this young man. He was refreshingly honest and amazingly centered. He hadn't flared with righteous indignation or false bravado. And he understood scotch! He grinned at Ed and Ed grinned back. He ordered Ed another drink then they made their way back to the ladies. Just before he arrived he looked over at Ed.

"You may want to nurse that one. Scotch is a strong drink that will catch you off guard if you aren't careful with it."

Ed looked at him and nodded seriously.

"Dale! You're not corrupting this delightful young man with that wicked drink are you?" Tristan chastised her husband with false outrage.

"No, I'm grateful he's introduced me to it. It's quite good! He's also told me to be careful with it." Ed exclaimed in defense of the older man who was grinning back at him.

Rachel smiled at Ed and took his arm to lean against him. He leaned towards her as well, enjoying the feel of her body. He returned the look of love and Tristan's eyes widened as she watched. She nodded to Rachel.

"Did you want to take a look at the items they are auctioning off?" Dale asked.

They made their way around the room looking at the prizes and the older man explained to Ed how a silent auction worked. He was pleased to see that Ed wasn't particularly awed by the hugely expensive prizes. They passed the bidding sheet for a fierce looking red sports car and Ed didn't even blink in its direction. Curious.

"Ed, if you don't mind me asking, what do you drive?" Dale asked.

"A 1980 Ford F150 pickup." Ed said absently as he looked at the next item up for auction. He wondered what anyone needed with a yacht that big. Maybe for a large family outing? He didn't notice the older man's delighted smile.

"You're happy with your truck?"

Ed looked at him. "Yes. It's been very dependable and I've used it at work for hauling heavy equipment to the hazardous waste center."

"Oh! What do you do for a living?" Dale asked.

"I work for Drakos Heating and Cooling. I've got my Universal Certification so I can work on any level of system we install or maintain."

"Do you enjoy it?"

Ed's face burst into a wide smile. "Yes! It's a great job!" He realized he should be polite and ask Dale a question as well. "What do you do for a living?"

The man took in Ed's open expression and saw he was just curious. "I'm retired now. I created a few businesses and ran them until they could run themselves then moved on to the next. Eventually I met this beautiful lady and running businesses just didn't appeal to me anymore."

Tristan smiled at her husband and Ed could see the love shining in their eyes. He hugged Rachel just a little bit tighter.

There was a chime and people began to move towards the far doors which led to the dining room. They were sharing a table with two other couples who didn't appear to be happy about it. Ed just did his best to be polite but his requests to a heavyset man to pass the water jug was ignored repeatedly. He resorted to waving to the man but after an annoyed glance he turned his face away from Ed.

Ed sat back in his chair in surprise. He knew the man saw him. The tables were fairly close together so getting up to walk around the table to get to the water was going to be difficult as well. He pondered what to do.

Tristan and Dale shared a look and the older man was about to say something when Ed stretched his arm out to reach across the table for the jug. He almost had it but suddenly it tipped over away from him. The water splashed across the table and doused the rude man and his equally unpleasant wife.

Ed jumped to his feet and tried to move to help the sputtering couple but they just shrieked at him. Dale was immediately at Ed's elbow and his presence seemed to take the venom out of the words the couple were venting at Ed. They turned and left with what little dignity they retained. The other couple got up and moved to a table across the room which had two open seats. Staff quickly appeared and dealt with the mess and removed the place settings leaving just the four of them at the table.

Dale and Ed sat back in their chairs and Ed's face was burning with shame.

"I'm so sorry for making such a scene! I'm such a klutz!" Ed apologized.

"Nonsense! If that fool hadn't been so busy being a prick and ignoring you he would have stayed dry." Dale said with a grin.

"Besides, now we have the table to ourselves!" Tristan smiled kindly at him.

Ed felt better and Rachel leaned over and gave him a kiss which certainly lightened his mood. He blushed again but this time it was for Rachel.

Tristan smiled at her husband who took her hand in his.

Dinner was served and it was delicious. Ed was surprised at first by the small portions on the plates considering the cost but it soon made sense to him as course after course was brought out. Dale, Tristan, and Rachel turned some away when they were brought out though she kept a few just to transfer the food to Ed's plate.

Once they finished their dessert Dale and Ed visited the bar once more to bring back scotch for themselves and wine for the ladies. They talked and laughed, enjoying each other's company. Rachel told them all about their group of friends and she saw the look of longing in Tristan's eyes. She insisted they come over for dinner and sample some of Ed's famous steak seasoning and meet the group.

Dale's eyes lit up with the mention of barbequed steaks and Tristan was thrilled and nodded. The group toasted to celebrate their new friendship.

Several celebrities made speeches extolling the virtues of the charity and everyone clapped politely.

Then the charity organizers made their speeches and announced the winners of the silent auction. The yacht went to the couple who'd moved to another table. The red sports car went to a fellow who looked too big to fit inside. The cottage went to another older couple. There were several smaller items and Ed noticed that no one really looked happy about the items they'd bought. He thought that was really strange.

Then the organizers mentioned the door prizes. Third prize was a romantic get-away for two at a luxury all-inclusive couples resort in Barbados for one week. Second prize was a very cute little Italian car. Great for getting around the city in. The grand prize was a villa in Italy worth over a million dollars.

Ed wondered how the charity made money considering the value of the prizes. He nudged Rachel to get the ticket out of her purse and Tristan was grinning at his excitement. Both she and Dale were holding tickets.

"Didn't you get a ticket Ed?" the older gentleman asked.

"No, I guess he forgot," Ed said and shrugged. Dale shared a look with his wife and Rachel.

The organizers began calling out the numbers on the ticket for third prize and Rachel's smile began to disappear as each number called lined up with the numbers on her ticket. She sat frozen as the last number was called and it was her ticket! Ed cheered then blushed at his outburst but Dale and Tristan were right there with him. They pushed Rachel to get up and walk up to the stage to collect her reward.

Rachel's head was swimming and her skin was tingling madly. She'd never won anything before in her life! She gave her name and telephone number and handed over her ticket. She was giddy with elation and accepted the envelope from the woman standing at the podium after her ticket was confirmed to be the winner. The woman's smile was stiff and didn't reach her eyes but Rachel never noticed as she turned back to her table and held up the envelope.

Once more Ed cheered for the beautiful woman dancing back to their table. She looked so happy.

Rachel sat down and pulled the voucher from the envelope. She read it and her face dropped. "It's for next weekend!" she cried.

"So?" Ed asked.

"It's a couples resort!"

Ed pulled his phone out of his pocket and looked at his calendar app. He saw that Mr. Drakos had posted the updated schedule for the shopping complex. It was November 28th. He could finish his inspections this week and they were not working on the building the following two weeks so the other trades could work in piece exclusively.

"I'll be available," he said.

"You should take the tickets and go with Grace!" Rachel said.

"No! You won, you should get to go! Besides she has classes."

"Who is Grace again?" Tristan asked curiously.

"Edward's... girlfriend?" Rachel said as she looked at Ed for clarity on what he considered Grace to be.

Tristan's eyes went wide. "Girlfriend?!?"

Rachel chuckled and patted her friend's hand. "It's a long story which requires more privacy."

The organizers were ready to announce the ticket number for second prize. The numbers were read out steadily and Tristan pouted after the third number. When the number was complete people were looking around but no one moved.

Dale showed his ticket to Tristan who clapped her hands. He gestured towards Ed and she nodded.

"Ed, why don't you take my ticket since they didn't give you one."

"But you could win that Italian villa!" he exclaimed.

"I already have one," the man said dismissively.

"Are you sure?" Ed asked.

"Yes!"

Ed took the ticket from the man's fingers then his eyes picked up the number on it. He locked eyes with Dale. "This is the winning ticket for second prize!"

"Yes and if you don't go claim the prize immediately they will pick someone else's number. Someone undeserving."

Ed stood and held the ticket up.

"We have a winner!" he heard the organizer say. He made his way up to the stage and faced the woman who seemed to be a little flustered as she cracked a smile at him. She validated his ticket, took his name and telephone number then presented him with an envelope. He immediately looked inside and found a voucher from a dealership for the sporty little car. He blinked at the woman. He'd never won anything before and didn't really know what to do next.

She softened as she saw his lost expression. "You take this to the dealership listed and show them your identification. They'll give you the car. It's all paid for though they may try to get you to buy an extended warranty or something like that."

"Thank you so much!" Ed exclaimed.

The woman gave him a genuine smile at last and he made his way back to the table. He gaped at the couple.

"Why did you just give me a car?"

Dale chuckled. "Ed, it cost us nothing and we have no need for another car, especially one neither of us would fit into. We're too tall! You may be a little too wide in the shoulders," Dale said giving Ed's shoulder width an assessing look.

"Do you think Grace might like to replace hers? I think she'd love the little car." Rachel said. "For Christmas?"

Ed's face lit up as he thought of how excited she'd be. He swept forward and kissed Rachel until she was panting. When he pulled back both of their faces were flushed and he was seriously tenting his pants. Rachel glanced down then back up into his eyes. Her look promised a night of passion.

Their companions were looking at them in interest and more than a little confusion.

The numbers were read out for the grand prize Italian villa and a cheer went up at a table across the large dining room.

As the woman claimed her prize Ed noticed people were heading for the exit. He wondered if the event was over.

Dale leaned over to catch their attention. "There's a very nice nightclub at the top of the hotel attached to the convention center. We were planning on going up for a drink and maybe do a little dancing. Could we convince you two to join us?"

Rachel gave Ed a hopeful look and he just smiled and nodded.

"I'm not a very good dancer," he confessed.

Rachel patted his hand and he caught her fingers and brought them up to his lips. She gasped quietly as he caressed her knuckles softly. She turned to Tristan.

"Maybe for a short while," she breathed. Tristan giggled.

Ed ensured his prize envelope was secure inside his jacket pocket and Rachel checked her clutch once more to ensure her envelope was there. They followed their friends out of the convention center into the adjoining hotel and took the elevator up to the nightclub.

The doorman nodded to Dale and a hostess led them to a lovely table by the windows. They had privacy but could see the dancefloor and hear the music. It wasn't fast and loud as Ed was expecting. Instead it lent itself to dancing close and swaying slowly. He thought he could do that and was actually looking forward to holding Rachel against his body.

"Is this enough privacy to get an explanation of who Grace is? I don't mean to pry but I'm confused." Tristan asked Rachel and Ed. Her husband was watching attentively as well.

Rachel looked at Ed who gave her a questioning look in return. "Would you mind if I explained our relationship with our new friends?" she finally asked.

Ed shook his head. He trusted her so he just smiled.

Rachel looked over at Tristan. "Ed was orphaned when he was six and went to live with his mother's cousin. She had a daughter of her own named Grace. Ed grew up in their home and fell in love with Grace. She fell in love with him in return but neither confessed their love to the other."

She took Ed's hand in hers and smiled at him. "I met Ed when he was graduating from school and months later we began a relationship that was initially purely physical. But I found myself falling for him. He's a much better man than my ex-husband ever was. Grace and Edward came to live with me through circumstances beyond their control. They finally expressed their love for each other and Grace was the one who told me that Edward had also fallen in love with me."

Ed blushed and fidgeted as he rubbed his thumb across the back of Rachel's hand enjoying its softness.

"So Grace is your... second cousin?" Tristan asked and Ed nodded. "You're in a relationship with two women?" Tristan asked Ed.

Ed looked at Rachel who nodded to indicate it was ok. "Six," he replied.

Rachel's expression changed to surprise and Tristan and Dale jolted. "Are you in love with the others?" Rachel asked him quietly.

He glanced over at Tristan who was almost glaring at him. The intensity of her gaze was a little intimidating. "I- I don't know. I'm kind of confused about some, especially Zoe, but I can't deny I have feelings for them. With you and Grace I know it's love. If I have feelings for someone, even if I'm not sure it's love, shouldn't I say I'm in a relationship with them?" Ed asked, looking at the three listeners.

Dale cleared his throat and shifted in his chair. He was a little out of his element with such questions. He looked at Tristan hoping she might have an answer but she'd gone silent, watching the young man... and trembling.

Rachel smiled fondly at Ed. "Yes, I think it's the responsible thing to do. You should be as upfront and honest about your feelings as you can be so no one gets hurt."

Ed nodded as that matched his own reasoning. "Could we dance now?" he asked hopefully. He wanted to get away from Tristan whose gaze was really unnerving him.

Rachel stood up and they made their way down to the dance floor. She showed him how to hold her and he followed her steps until they were moving smoothly across the floor with the other dancers.

"I don't think Tristan likes me," Ed whispered.

"What makes you say that?" she exclaimed.

"I don't know. She was staring at me really hard and she seemed... angry?" Ed was floundering as he really wasn't good at reading people. If it hadn't been for the intensity of her reaction he might have not noticed. He closed his eyes and just enjoyed the feeling of Rachel in his arms. Soon he calmed down. They danced through another song then they headed back to the table. As they approached they saw Tristan and Dale had their heads together in deep conversation. Rachel looked at Ed who seemed genuinely worried. He stepped up to the table to address the woman.

"I've offended you somehow. I don't know what I did but I'm sorry I made you unhappy," he said to her. To Rachel Tristan seemed shaken by his apology.

"I told you. The man isn't playing a game. He's a straight shooter," Dale said to his wife. She still looked upset so he continued. "You trust your gut. Are you saying I shouldn't trust mine?"

BurntRedstone
BurntRedstone
9,774 Followers