Danielle Steel - Happy Birthday - A Novel

“Let’s hope you stay there longer than I did,” April teased her, with an apologetic glance at her father. She knew how upset he had been when she dropped out to study cooking in Europe. He had had academic aspirations for her, but that had never been what April wanted. His younger daughters were much more likely to follow in his footsteps, and both were good students. His second family was of a far more academic, intellectual bent than his first. But he and Valerie were still enormously fond of each other and acted more like brother and sister than ex-spouses. Even now he was still startled by the immensity of Valerie’s career. When he had been married to her, he had been totally overwhelmed by her ambition and drive. He could laugh about it now, but at the time he had felt completely inadequate and unable to keep up. It had taken them both several very unhappy years to admit to themselves and each other that he was not the man for her. He was much happier now, and for twenty-one wonderful years Maddie had been the kind of wife he needed. But he had nothing but warm feelings for Valerie and their daughter, and enormous admiration for what his first wife had accomplished. She was a legend and a star, and she looked like one even at a quiet family dinner. She had worn a soft beige angora sweater with gold threads woven through it, with beige suede pants, high-heeled sexy Italian boots, diamond earrings, and perfectly cut blond hair. Maddie had worn a very conservative brown velvet suit. There was nothing flashy about her. And the girls had worn short skirts, heels, and pretty sweaters. Pat looked proud and happy as April had him sample two of their new wines, to see which one he liked better. He was always impressed by the wines she managed to bring in from Europe and Chile, at prices her patrons could afford. She always sent him a case of whatever he liked.

The dinner April served them that night was better than ever. The conversation at the table was animated, and Heather said she had a new boyfriend. Annie had had the same one for four years, another brain, who was at MIT with her, and April was starting to wonder if they were going to get engaged and married early, although her sister denied it. Pat was always startled that there was no man in his ex-wife’s life. She was such a beautiful woman, but her career had been her first priority for so long that he thought she had given up a lot for success and fame. At sixty, she was alone. He didn’t want the same fate for their daughter, and worried sometimes that it could happen. April was so focused on her restaurant that, like her mother, she seemed to have no private life at all. She never talked about a man, which was hardly surprising since she worked a hundred-and-forty-hour week at the restaurant.

They were still sitting at the table at eleven, as the restaurant began to empty. Annie and Heather had gone out to the kitchen to talk to some of the sous-chefs and kitchen staff they knew, particularly an especially cute boy from France. April had just poured her three parents an extremely good Napa Valley sauterne, which her mother said was as good as Château d’Yquem, or very close. Her father readily agreed, as he toasted their daughter, and the two older women joined in.

“Thank you for another fantastic Thanksgiving dinner.” He smiled warmly at April, and leaned over to kiss her cheek.

“Thank you, Daddy,” she said, smiling almost shyly.

“I think this was the best one so far,” he said proudly. He was always grateful that Valerie had helped her to open the restaurant. He couldn’t have done it, but could see easily how talented she was. And he was thrilled with every positive review he read of April in New York. He was always happy for her. There had been only one bad one in September, and the reviewer had sounded like a pill and a snob and clearly didn’t know good, wholesome food when he ate it. But other than that, Pat had never read anything negative about her restaurant. All he wanted for her now was to see her with a good man in her life. He didn’t want her to end up alone like her mother, having given up everything else for her job. It wasn’t too late for Valerie either, he knew, but he could no longer imagine his ex-wife accommodating herself to any man, and she hadn’t for him either. She was very set in her ways, and had been for a long time. She was such a perfectionist in everything she did that few men could measure up to the standards she set for herself. April was far more relaxed in her style, and less demanding, but she had no time to meet anyone either. She was always working, and owning a restaurant was a huge commitment. Unless she got involved with one of her sous-chefs, the sommelier, or a waiter, or one of their wholesale suppliers, Pat didn’t see how she was ever going to meet a man. He said something to her about it again, as they finished the sauterne.

“Are you taking any time off to play and have some fun?” Pat asked her with concern. April drove herself so hard, but she seemed to thrive on hard work, just like her mother. His second wife was far more relaxed, and her priorities were different. He was a happy man.

“Not lately,” April admitted. She always enjoyed working.

“Don’t you think it’s time? The restaurant is full every time we come here. People tell me it takes three weeks to get a reservation. You couldn’t get more people in here with a crowbar.” He knew the restaurant was making money, and she was making serious inroads in repaying her mother. “Why don’t you take a trip one of these days? A vacation back in France? Something. You can’t work all the time, April. It’s not healthy.” But they both knew that that was what the restaurant business was like, and her restaurant was a success because she was there day and night, overseeing everything, down to the last detail, and even greeting the guests whenever she had time to come out of the kitchen. She made a point of doing that every night, once or twice. April was on deck and in total control at all times. And he was right, it left no time for a personal life at all. She hadn’t had a vacation in three years, since they’d opened, or even a day off, and she didn’t want one.

“I will one of these days, Dad, I promise. But I really need to be here. I don’t have anyone who can watch it for me if I take time off.” And then she fell silent, after glancing at her mother. Valerie didn’t say anything, but a look passed between them that Maddie noticed immediately, and realized that Pat didn’t. She knew he didn’t want to ask April again if she had “met anyone” lately. He already knew the answer to the question. It was obvious that she hadn’t. Maddie knew Pat hated to nag April about it, but he worried. April was too much like Valerie in her work ethic and her drive. Her father hoped she would marry and have children, and there wasn’t even a hint of that on the horizon for now, and he was afraid there never would be, as he often said in private to his wife.

“Anything new in your life?” he asked cryptically, meaning a boyfriend, and April started to say no, and then hesitated. She wanted to tell him, but just wasn’t sure how to do it. She didn’t want to disappoint him, or upset him, and she knew that what she was about to tell him wasn’t what he wanted from her. It wasn’t what she had planned to do either, but it had happened, and she wanted him to know. He was her father and she loved him. He was her role model for all things normal, and a solid, loving marriage, like the one he had with Maddie. Her mother was different, and a bright star in her heaven, but there was nothing typical or human-scale about her mother. Valerie’s success had been enormous. April didn’t aspire to be like her, although she admired how hard her mother worked, and tried to be like her in that way. But the life her father led with Maddie and his daughters was more her style. She had never wanted to be famous like her mother. The life that went with it would have been too much for her. It was enough for April to run a restaurant where everyone wanted to come either to eat rare and wonderful delicacies, or good, simple food, and enjoy the homey atmosphere she created. In some ways, April was more like Maddie than her mother. But most of all, she was like her father, and his respect was important to her.