Cheaper Than Free: An Anniversary Story (The Dance A/U Sequel)

More Exciting Than High Fashion

Pacific Palisades, California
Sunday, November 27, 2022
(12:15 pm)
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"Hey, kid! Where's your better half?"

Lindsey's arms were outstretched for a hug as he descended the stairs and came towards his daughter. He hugged her just as tightly as Stevie had a moment ago, and Amber was afraid for a moment it would reveal her secret.

"What am I, chopped liver?" Amber teased as they pulled apart, smiling her mother's smile complete with the crinkled nose.

"Hey, I've known you twenty-five years; it's Jane I'm learning new things from," Lindsey teased back.

For Stevie and Lindsey, particularly Lindsey, it had been love at first sight when Amber had brought her new girlfriend, Jane Ryan, to the annual anniversary Thanksgiving party three years earlier, their last one before Covid. They were pleased with Amber's choice, especially after her tumultuous relationship with a woman closer to her own age - ironically named Lindsey - who'd struggled with substance abuse disorder and abandonment after her own rocky childhood. Jane was a tall, thin woman in her thirties with long, curly dark hair and piercing blue eyes, a painter by soul but an art dealer by trade, and within an hour she'd had an in-depth conversation with Lindsey about how art and music turning corporate was killing society and a conversation with Stevie about marketing her sketches of angels for a "Rhiannon" themed exhibit.

Later on, alone in bed with the dogs in the dark, Stevie half-watching the National Dog Show on the DVR as she did every Thanksgiving, they had discussed it together as they had everything else since 1970, their first time in bed in the dark.

"I thought the age would be a thing, but they seem not to even be phased by it," Stevie said, turned over towards her husband in her burgundy silk pajamas, his favorites. "But Amber's not your typical twenty-two...she was, like, born a middle-aged lady."

"You're right." Lindsey chuckled, thinking of how even at six years old, on the Say You Will tour, Amber had fit in perfectly with the adults, talking to Mick and Brett Tuggle about music and stage setup, and with Sharon about costumes and jewelry choices.

"Jane is incredible," Stevie said. They were quiet for a moment, and then Lindsey heard her giggle in the dark.

"What's so funny, angel?" He reached over and pulled her into his arms, and she assumed her favorite position with a sigh, her head coming to rest on his chest as he held her.

"You know how girls tend to grow up and marry their fathers? You know, like versions of them?"

"Yeah..."

"Oh come on, Linds!" Stevie looked up at him, her chin resting on her hand over his chest. "Don't tell me you don't SEE it!"

"What am I missing here?"

"Jane is YOU!" Stevie giggled again. "If Amber weren't gay it would be more obvious because she'd have chosen a MAN like you...but since she is gay it's a WOMAN just like her father!"

Now they were both laughing, Stevie burrowing into him, Lindsey's arms around her as he kissed the top of her head. He said, "You're right...I do see it...oh man, that's funny!" They kept laughing for awhile, finally settling down as they had been. On the TV, the toy breeds were being shown at the National Dog Show, recorded by Stevie to watch later in bed, after their guests had left and she retreated to her favorite place - under the covers, in pajamas, tucked away in Lindsey's arms. It was Stevie who broke the silence.

"You know, ever since she came out to us, I hoped she'd find a girl who would get it, you know? Get how special she is, how different and smart and quirky she is - I mean, the surprise menopause baby of Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham..." She sighed. "Jane is it. I can tell."

"I think you're right, angel." He playfully scratched into her hair at the crown. "Well...for both their sakes I hope so. Amber is twenty-two...I remember a beautiful little blonde girl who was also different and smart and quirky and special finding the one at twenty-two..." He could feel her smiling against his chest.

"Oh yeah...I remember her..." she teased. "It was in a motel room over In & Out burgers and cheap champagne...What was her name again?"

"She told me it was Stevie, but she goes by so many other names..." He kissed the top of her head as she giggled. "There's Stephanie..." He began to punctuate every one of her nicknames with kisses. "Angel...sweet girl...and of course...Mom." His last kiss was longer, deeper, and Stevie let out a little whimper as his tongue parted her lips and began to explore gently. When they pulled away, Stevie stroked his cheek, looking down into his eyes.

"Thank you for that, sweetheart," she said.

"For what, angel?"

"For making me a mom." She watched his smile grow to match hers. "We got a great kid, you know."

"We sure did," Lindsey said. Looking into her eyes, he knew she was thinking exactly what he was thinking - it was Thanksgiving, and they were thankful that after years apart, one stormy afternoon in 1997 after a Fleetwood Mac meeting at Warner Brothers, he had driven her home and she'd invited him in they'd found their way back to each other...and to their beautiful daughter. He kissed her again, and as his lips gently worked their way up her neck, he sang into her ear in a whisper that tickled, "She broke down and let me in..."

Stevie was giggling again, but this time with grateful tears in her eyes. "I love you, Linds. I love you and our beautiful baby girl who's not a baby anymore, and our dogs and our band and our home and our life and every night like this when I get to fall asleep in your arms and feel safe and warm like this." She kissed his lips softly and then let her head drop back down over his heart, holding him close. She waited a few seconds, and sure enough, she felt his lips at her forehead and heard the words that filled her with love so much she thought her heart would crack in two.

"I'll always keep you warm, Stephanie."

Amber stood in the foyer of her parents' home, her childhood home, watching the calm before the storm. Lily and Luna had given up barking and were rolling around together on the living room rug, Lindsey was texting someone on his phone, and Stevie came back into the room holding a glass of iced tea in each hand. She handed one to her daughter and said, "So what time is Jane getting here?"

Amber rolled her eyes with a laugh. "You too? That's just what Daddy asked me when you went into the kitchen. Thank you." She tipped her glass towards her mother before taking a sip of iced tea, her favorite drink, like her mother. "She'll be here a little before the party; she had a few business calls to make today."

"On a Sunday?" That came from Lindsey, who was walking towards them.

"Yeah, some buyers in Israel...you know, their work week begins on a Sunday," Amber explained. "Also a guy in San Francisco. An older man...hey!" Her face lit up, remembering something. "Actually, Daddy...I think you might know him. He used to be in a rock band in the Bay Area around the same time as you guys...his name is Javier Pacheco."

"Are you fucking kidding me?!"

Amber looked at her mother, whose eyes shot from her to Lindsey, and she had a look of confusion on her face as her parents burst into peels of laughter.

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