Chapter Five
“Wow, Mom!”
Annalina’s eyes widened as I slipped the dress on. Emerald green silk with spaghetti straps, the bodice smooth as it crisscrossed, each side heading down into the smooth horizontal piece around the lower waist before falling straight down and meeting the floor. And then she gasped as she caught a glimpse of my back in the mirror.
“Oh my gosh! You can almost see your butt crack, Mom!”
And promptly dissolved into a fit of giggles as my face burst into flames.
Ignoring her laughter even as my lips quirked, I reached into the bag to pull out the pumps that matched my dress and slipped them on. She finally calmed down after I’d put in the hair combs like the lady at the store had suggested, making my curly hair appear dressed up without having to mess with it all that much, just the way I liked it.
“What do you think?” I twirled and she burst into laughter again at the brief glimpse of my bare back. “I know, I know! I told you I didn’t like it!”
The bell ringing had her jumping up from the bed and running out the door, eager to spend time with kids her own age, no doubt. I hesitated on going out to meet them without Bradley, but shouldn’t have worried. He stuck his head in mere moments later and slipped inside the room, closing it behind him.
“Beautiful,” he said with a smile. “Turn around.”
My face burned even as I did what he said, the low whistle of appreciation from him ending as I turned to face him once more. He stepped closer and wrapped his arms around my waist, bringing my body flush against his, the palm of his hand searing my bare skin.
It was the first time I’d seen him in a tux and he looked even more elegant than usual. Next to him, even in this lovely dress, I didn’t feel as beautiful as he no doubt thought I was.
“You look pretty good yourself,” I observed, bringing my hands up to rest on his upper arms. “First time I’ve ever seen you in a tux.”
“Did you pick this dress out?” At my nod, he grinned. “You did a great job. This is definitely your color.”
“The back…”
He shook his head. “Completely normal I’m afraid. You’ll have to get used to it. Besides, I like it. A lot. I’ll be touching you all night now.”
“Bradley…” I licked my lips as a wicked smile spread across his face. “About earlier…”
“Ah, yes. Nice move, by the way. Leaving me with your daughter was a pure stroke of genius.”
“You surprised me,” I replied with a blush. “And she thinks you’re just my boss!”
“I know. I surprised myself.” He kept ahold of me with one hand, putting the other into his pocket and pulling out the box. “I was serious though.” He held it up, his face sobering.
“Why, Bradley? This is out of nowhere…”
His eyes moved past me and I waited, wondering what was going on in that mind of his. Afraid to move or breathe, I watched a play of emotions on his face and filed them away for later as he finally looked back at me.
“I’m not very good at this.” He swallowed as I squeezed his arms reassuringly. “I like you and we get on well. I know…I know it’s not a love declaration, but I’m not really sure that will ever happen. However, I miss you when you’re gone and I just think you should be here all the time. Once a month isn’t enough anymore.”
“It’s not just me though. It’s my daughter. And my mother, twenty-four seven.”
He nodded. “I know. But we both know how busy I am. Not much would really change, except you’d be here and you could sleep next to me, every night.”
It might be silly to say my heart skipped a beat, but it did. The sincerity in his voice — and his eyes — had me seriously considering saying yes.
The fact I loved him and he didn’t love me blared loudly in my head, but I ignored it. He didn’t have to know I loved him. I simply hope he fell in love with me before he ever guessed the true reason I accepted.
Because I couldn’t imagine a life without him and this is what he wanted. In truth, what I really wanted and had hoped for, even if it wasn’t exactly how I’d imagined being proposed to. So I’d give it to him.
“Okay.”
It may have seemed like a very unenthusiastic answer, but his face lit up as if I’d just given him the best gift ever.
Little did he know that I was dancing on the inside as he slipped the ring onto my finger and sealed it with a hungry kiss.
~*~
Leaving the room to meet Amanda and head to the dinner, my daughter squealed as her eyes fell upon my left hand that was wrapped around Bradley’s arm.
“Oh my gosh, I knew you’d say yes!”
Bradley grinned, I blushed and the woman I could only assume was Amanda raised her eyebrows. I couldn’t tell her age by looking at her as she looked young, but was probably around the same age as Bradley. Her two kids were over on the couch ignoring all of us.
“Hi,” I nodded at her, offering my right hand to shake. “I’m Lucy. I see you’ve met Annalina.”
My daughter came close to stare at my hand and Bradley chuckled. I released his arm and she automatically took my hand into hers, examining the ring with a giggle.
Amanda stepped forward and clasped my hand in hers with a smile. “Nice to meet you, Lucy.” Then she looked at Bradley. “Congratulations, although we had no idea it was all that serious…”
He shrugged and Amanda looked back at me as if she wanted to say something, but didn’t.
Yes, I definitely knew him better than most people. That much became glaringly apparent in that moment.
I tugged my hand from Annalina’s and put it around her shoulders. “So, what will you guys be doing?”
She shrugged.
“I was just going to take them out for pizza and to the carnival that just began last night,” Amanda offered. “That is, if I can get them off the couch.”
“We love carnivals. We always go to the one by us every year, don’t we baby?”
“Ugh,” Annalina said, making a disgusted face. “I’m not a baby!”
“You’re my baby.”
She rolled her eyes before pulling away and flouncing away to join the other teenagers on the couch. I smiled as she chose to sit next to Emily and not Landon. I preferred that she didn’t show any interest in boys for a long time and so far, so good.
“Let me go get the car,” Bradley murmured, then looked over at Amanda. “Thanks for doing this.” Then he leaned down and kissed my cheek before heading out the door.
His display of affection in front of his friend surprised me, along with Amanda, whose eyes widened. When the door shut behind him, I found myself being pulled out of earshot of the children.
“What is going on?”
I frowned, unsure of what she meant. “What do you mean?”
“Why are you marrying him?”
I wasn’t sure what to make of her question. She looked concerned, which only made me even more curious over the look I’d seen on Bradley’s face a few times already in the past twenty-four hours.
“He asked me and I said yes.”
“Yes,” she said with a heavy sigh. “I gathered that. But why did you say yes? Do you know what you’re doing?”
I tilted my head to the side, pursing my lips as I tried to see where she was going with this. She rushed on.
“Bradley hasn’t been with anyone in a very long time. All the sudden, he’s asking Roger if I would be willing to watch his date’s daughter during the dinner. Only now you’re not only his date, but his fiancee!”
Oh, I see. I thought. He really had told them nothing.
“Well, having been friends with him for such a long time, you know that me saying anything would not be something he approved of. But I will say I have spent plenty of time with him over the past two years.”
Now she studied me. “How old are you?”
I stiffened. “I’m thirty. How old are you?”
She smiled, her voice going soft. “I’m forty. Look, I’m not trying to upset you, but…can you still have children?”
“Yes,” I answered, frowning at the intrusive question even as I answered it. “Although Bradley and I have never discussed it.”
The only time he’d ever mentioned birth control had been before we’d begun our arrangement. It had been mandatory and at the time, I certainly hadn’t argued. I’d been on it since my daughter’s birth.
As my phone went off, I checked it to find a text from Bradley letting me know he was out front. I looked back up at Amanda, who said nothing to my response and now simply stood there, frowning.
“Look, I don’t know why you’re asking me all these questions, but I’m a grown woman. I know what I’m doing and I know what he is like. I won’t tell him you questioned me like this. Just take care of my daughter, okay?”
Her mouth curved upward as her eyes softened. “I will. And,” she said as I started to walk off, “for the record, I think you will be very good for him.”
I didn’t reply, hugging my daughter goodbye before heading down to the car.
As I climbed in and Bradley smiled at me, his hand covering mine as he pulled away from the curb, the subtle warning in Amanda’s questioning had me wondering what exactly I was missing.
And what Bradley wasn’t telling me.