EPILOGUE

August 19^th, 2012

“What about the band?”, inquires the interviewer, “Next year it’ll be your 30^th anniversary, are you guys planning on doing anything special?”. They have already covered Richie’s new album, the featured musicians, the inspiration behind it, how good the new single was doing, how supportive his fans had been and also the tour that would start in October. They have also talked about the new collection of his fashion line. It's time to wrap the interview up.

“Well, we’ve already done pretty much everything, maybe this time we should play on the moon”, Richie jokes, avoiding the question in order not to reveal the surprise. Jon’s stink eye flashed through his mind. He could read Jon’s lips: shut the fuck up.

The interviewer bursts out laughing. “That wouldn’t be a surprise at all!”, she exclaims, and then adds in a flirtatious tone: “And let me tell you that you look absolutely fantastic!”

“Why thank you”, Richie answers with a smirk, also flirtatiously. “I feel great! It doesn’t suck to be me these days”.

“You’ve been engaged for quite a while now, right? When’s that wedding gonna happen?”

Richie chuckles, and in his mind he remembers what Frédérique had “authorized” him to say.

“It’s gonna happen. Soon”, Richie nods, and grins. “That’s all I can say”.

“So you’re fitting it in between the promotion and the tour?”

“Well, actually I’m taking a couple weeks off before the tour, spend some time in France”, Richie adds.

“Oh, how wonderful”, comments the interviewer and waits for Richie to elaborate. She knows she has little time left, but she'll push it as far as she can, she just can't help it.

“Yeah, that’s were my girl’s from”, Richie answers with warmness in his voice and a wide smile.

The interviewer checks her notes: she remembers her name, but she wants to make sure she doesn’t mess up.  “That’s right, I believe her name is…”, she hesitates.

“Frédérique”, finishes Richie, by now he was certain he’d never get the perfect pronunciation but at least it sounded a little like it should.

“That lucky girl!” teases the interviewer. “Wow…being in France and in love must be a real bless-“

“Equals baby”, Richie interrupts her with a throaty chuckle. What the hell, he just could’t contain himself. The audience in the studio laughs out loud, some “Awww’s” can be heard, too.

”Oh come on, talk to me about it. You must be so thrilled!", the blonde exclaims with wide blue eyes, that's exactly what she'd been wanting Richie to confirm.

Yeah, they hadn’t returned to France since early December, before they found out. Boy, those past months hadn’t been an easy ride at all, but they’d both remained calm and luckily enough Richie had been able to work on the record at his studio most of the time, while he kept an eye on Frédérique. However welcome the news had been, they knew they still had a long way to go, so they’d taken one day at a time, and somehow things had just worked out. Now Richie feels lucky, relieved and happier than ever.

“He’s at home with his mom and his sister, now. The three of them are just…”, Richie places his hand over his heart and sighs, with a warm smile, “…I couldn’t love them more”.

Back in the New York apartment, Frédérique winces when she feels the sting in her ribs as she motions to stand up when the baby that is sleeping in the crib next to the sofa starts crying. But it isn’t that sting – that one was long gone – it's another one, with much happier causes.

“I got it, Fred. Don't worry”, Richie’s daughter places the remote control of the TV back on the coffee table and jumps up from the sofa.

She picks the baby up in her arms and softly rocks him and hums a lullaby. Despite the bumpy pregnancy and delivery he was after all a strong and healthy baby. Frédérique feels pure bliss: it just didn’t seem fair that she is so happy. That they are so happy and blessed.

Richie’s face when she’d seen him holding the baby in his arms for the first time was a sight that was worth everything she had to endure or sacrifice - that image would always bring happy tears to her eyes. She was certain that it had been his love and constant care and attention that had pulled her through, his uplifting spirits and laughter easing every bit of tension she unconsciously built inside of her. It was only Richie’s soothing singing voice and guitar playing at night that set her mind at ease and allowed her to rest and be strong for the next day.

To Frédérique’s and her whole family’s surprise, her mom had flown the day after she’d told them the news. Her mom never traveled further than a 300 miles radius from Bordeaux and only by land, so Frédérique felt grateful and relieved when her mother announced her that there was not a chance in hell she wouldn’t be there with her daughter this time. She didn’t leave her side until a couple of months later when Frédérique noticed how homesick her mother was and insisted she flew back to Bordeaux. Her mother had finally conceded, but was back in New York a few months later as soon as the doctors told Frédérique that she had to keep quiet and stay in bed. That’s when they established themselves in the New York apartment to be closer to the hospital, and that’s why her mother was there when Frédérique had been rushed to the  E.R. the night the baby decided it was time to come, even when it was still week 35th. Her father and brothers had taken turns flying over every month, so she’d been constantly surrounded by friends and family.

Whenever Richie had to fly to California, Jon and his wife had been there to keep her company. Even when they’d told them to be quiet, Frédérique insisted that they let their younger kids be: their energy gave her strength and hope - she wished that if everything worked out fine, her baby would be as active and as mischievous as them.

Jon and his family had also spent some time by themselves in the Pennsylvania house once Richie and Frédérique moved to New York. Jon’s wife adored that place and their children enjoyed being out in the countryside, their parents thankful that at night they dropped on their beds fast asleep from exhaustion after the daytime activities, sunshine and fresh air. Jon’s wife had always wanted to have a more modest and simple countryside house, but Jon preferred more majestic places and kept evading the subject. However, she had taken advantage and brought the subject up when Frédérique was present, maybe she could help her convince Jon to build one – both women shared similar points of views after all. Jon had tried to work his way around it by insisting that if he ever decided to build one, it would be Frédérique the one who designed it, and that wasn’t the right time for her to be worrying about any other project than “the scone she had baking in the oven”, but his wife and Frédérique were able to tell that the seed had been planted in Jon’s mind and that it would only be a matter of time before he conceded.

“He looks so handsome on TV”, comments Frédérique’s mom to Richie’s once the interview is over, standing from the armchair and picking up the tea cups and empty muffins tray from the coffee table. She had learned a little English after spending time in the US, and even though she struggled, she managed to make herself understood. Despite their age difference - the two women could easily be mother and daughter - and their language barriers, they got along incredibly well.

“He doesn’t seem to agree, though” replies Richie’s mom with a chuckle, tipping her head towards the still crying baby. She too stands up to help her daughter-in-law’s mother. Frédérique had become deeply endeared with her: she’d also been supportive and attentive, and by spending more time with her and hearing her stories of Richie’s late father, Frédérique had come to understand and know Richie even better, and how much deeper his grief had been when his father had passed than she'd ever imagined –  more than he'd ever had the courage to tell her.

Once the baby begins to calm down, the teenager talks to him with a soft but teasing voice, and Frédérique chuckles softly when she hears her words.

“Yeah, I know, S.”, she giggles and places a soft kiss in his little fist that grabbed a strand of her silky, blonde hair. “Daddy’s so much more handsome in person”