Wonderful Tonight-Eric Clapton by Jess Dallow
It's late in the night
She's wondering what clothes to wear
She puts on some make-up
Brushes her long long hair . . .
"Marlena Black, I'm not kidding, we have to leave in
exactly ten minutes and you haven't found a dress yet, we're going to be late,
they're going to announce my name for this award and I won't be there
because my wife insists
on being *fasionably* late," John whined as he sat on the
bed he shared with
his wife, clad in a tuxedo and bowtie.
"Darling, you and I both know that before any awards are
given, two hours of
talk about nonsense and drinking endless flutes of
champagne is what goes on.
Now if you want to be on time to this shindig, then go
ahead, I'll just take
the Mercedes by myself but if you wait for me we can have
that big limo all
to yourself . . . do you know what can happen in limos?"
she teased, raking
through dresses in her closet.
She pulled out a long
black dress, low v
neck, with two slits on each side of the dress.
"What
about this? Good
enough for the wife of 'Salem's Most Generous Man,'" she
winked.
"Sexy," he smiled. "You know, Habitat for Humanity can
wait, I think I'd
enjoy watching you get dressed first," he teased.
"Nope, you say we have to go, so I'm gonna listen," she
said shrugging her
shoulders.
She sat down at her vanity and began applying
makeup, as she
watched John stare at her from the corner of her eyes and
smiled, as she
watched his blue orbs glow with admiration and love for
her.
And she asked me
"Do I look alright?"
And I said
"Yes you look wonderful tonight" . . .
Marlena stepped out of the bathroom, her hair curled up
in a French twist, a
pair of diamond earring and a matching necklace, making
her body a little
more graceful. The same black dress she had retrieved
from her closet
moments earlier, fit perfectly on her slender body, her
curves illuminated
with every step she took in that dress. Her hazel eyes
shimmered with light
and love as she stepped up to John, wrapping her arms
delicately around his
neck.
"So?" she asked spinning around, as she released himself
from her grip, "How
do I look?"
John stared at her for a moment, his breath catching in
his throat as he
looked his wife over. He had been married to her for
over a year and in love
with her for what seemed like forever but sometimes he
forgot how beautiful
she actually was. Her hair was as bright as the summer
sun, her eyes as
shining as the evenings stars and her compassion was what
made him love her
the most, what made Marlena Black just who she was.
"You look . . . wonderful," John smiled, taking her in
his arms.
"Absolutely wonderful." He glanced at his watch and
released himself from
the hug, spinning her. "And now that you look absolutely
darling and we are
over 30 minutes late, what do you say, we head on over to
that awards
shindig."
"I say, it's a date," she said smiling, as she
intertwined her fingers with
his own and they left the penthouse.
We go to a party
Everyone touched to see
This beautiful lady walking around with me . . .
"John, Marlena, thank you so much for everything, you
always treated me like
a daughter and the fact that you bought a lot for my
family to have a house
on . . . well that means so much to me. Thank you so
much," Mimi said,
hugging both of them. "I'll let you two go, I know there
are a lot of people
here tonight who'd love to thank you."
"It was our pleasure, sweetheart, never forget that,"
John smiled as he
kissed her forehead, walking off with his Marlena.
He
was about to ask her
for a drink when Bo walked over to them, a flute of
champagne in one hand.
"John, can I speak to you for a minute?" he asked as he
lightly pulled on
John's arm.
"Of course, I'll be right back Doc." John walked over
towards the bar, his
eyes never leaving his wife. "What's up Bo?"
"I just wanted to say congrats on the award, man, you
sure as hell deserve
it," Bo said extending his hand to John's. "And I must
say, Marlena looks
absoulty stunning tonight. I'm glad the two of you
worked things out, I've
never seen her look as radiant as she does tonight and
it's because of you."
"It can't be because of me," John said simply, "because
Marlena Evans Black
makes me what I am."
And she asked me
"Do you feel alright?"
And I said
"Yes I feel wonderful tonight" . . .
John walked back over to Marlena, his arm wrapping around
her waist as he
took a sip of her champagne. She noticed the pale look
on his face and she
rubbed her hand gently against his cheek, kissing his
lips softly.
"You look a little pale? Are you feeling all right?"
Marlena asked
concerned.
"Marlena, I have never felt more wonderful than I do
tonight because I have
you with me and I finally realized just how amazingly
lucky I am. And if I
look pale, it's because I have been staring at your
beauty and it makes me
want to faint because Marlena, you are the most
wonderful, amazing, gorgeous,
affectionate person I have ever known," John whispered
honestly, nuzzling his
nose in her hair.
"Hmm," she smiled, "what's with the sudden flattery?
What have I done to
deserve this?"
"You're you, simple as that," he stated, as he brought
his lips to hers for
a soft passionate kiss.
I feel wonderful to come
And see the love light in your eyes
And no wonder I'll be long
That you don't realize how much
I love you . . .
"And tonight's award given by Habitat goes to someone who
is generous,
loving, and cares what happens to others. He has donated
a lot to a family
in need and because of that, the Lockhart's now have a
place to live.
Tonight's award goes to Mr. John Black."
Applause was sounded throughout the room as John walked
up on stage,
receiving the plaque Habitat for Humanity rewarded him
with. John leaned
down to the podium, his eyes focusing on Marlena's as a
bright smile shone on
her angelic face.
"First of all, I would just like to say I am honored to
receive this award.
I can stand up here and say that I am a decent guy and
that's why I did what
I did . . . and yes in essence that is why, but I
learned to be decent
because of one person and that is my wife. She has
taught me so much in life
but what makes me happy is knowing that she is proud of
me, to see the
glimmering diamonds in her eyes, the smile that can
brighten my day . . .
because of her, I am who I am. I am a better person
because of her love and
I just want her to know how much I love her in return.
So if you want to
thank someone, don't thank me . . . thank the person who
made me, my wife,
Marlena Black," John said smiling as he watched the tears
of joy fall from
her eyes. "And now it's time to celebrate and thank God
for what we have in
life and for the others who created that life in us."
It's time to go home now
And I've got an aching head
I gave her the car key
She helped me to bed
And I have to tell her as I turned off the lights
I said . . .
"It looks like I'm driving home," Marlena laughed as she
took the key from
John's tuxedo pocket. "You know if only that limo had
showed up earlier, we
could have had more fun on the way home," she teased, as
they got into the
car.
"Johnny's head hurts," he said quietly, leaning his head
up against the cool
glass of the window in Marlena's Mercedes. "No fun
tonight. Make it up to
you tomorrow," he said drifting off.
Marlena opened the door to the penthouse, John half
asleep as he used her
arm as a crutch.
"Come on, we're letting you sleep on
the couch tonight,"
she said, guiding him over to the couch as she pulled a
blanket over him.
"I
love you John, sweet dreams," she said kissing his lips
as she began to walk
away.
"Marlena?" he said weakly, his eyes opening momentarily.
"Yeah honey?"
"You really did look wonderful tonight," he said quietly,
drifting off to
sleep once more, memories of his wife flowing through him
as dreams of her
invaded his mind.
"Darling you are wonderful tonight". . .
