Just One Look (Women of Substance) (14 page)

“No. I’m not.” He shrugged. “I might be ready after I expand my horizons but I have a feeling that once I do that Marla will no longer be interested.”

“But you’re going to do it anyway?”

He nodded. “So I think it’s safe to say that I’m not in love with her. But you are in love with Narena. So do the right thing and let’s get this father/uncle thing going. Becoming an uncle while I’m still young enough to enjoy the experience would be pretty damn awesome.”

“What would be even more pretty damn awesome was if you expanded your horizons and became a father. You’re not getting any younger you know.” I crushed my beer can and tossed it at him.

He caught it and tossed it back.

I sent it flying at him again and within seconds we were laughing like hell and tossing it at each other like a tennis ball.

* * *

I was waiting when Narena arrived home just after seven that night. Home that week was my place. As usual, she had a plate for me.

“I was beginning to think you were spending the night with your parents,” I said.

“Hi sweetie,” she said leaning down to kiss me. “I’m sorry I was so long but it’s Dad’s birthday and he and mom wanted us all to stay at the house until they left for a romantic dinner for two.”

“Did you have a good time?”

“Oh yes. What about you?”

“Me? I had a blast.”

“Why are you sitting in the dark? Feeling romantic?” she asked.

I pulled her down onto my lap and sat back against the sofa “I have something I want to say to you.”

She turned in his arms, licking the side of my neck. “I’m all ears, sweetie.”

I inhaled slowly and felt my throat lock.

“Whenever you’re ready,” she said.

Do it. Say it.

“What’s wrong, Andy?” She bit her lip. “Please don’t tell me it’s bad news.”

I shook my head. “No. I just wanted to tell you that…I love you.” I experienced such a sense of relief after I’d said the words I wondered why I’d obsessed over saying it for so long.

She made a gasping sound before she jerked away from me and bolted to her feet and rushed across the room to the French windows.

Damn. That wasn’t exactly the reaction I’d expected. I followed her, placing my hands on her shoulders. “Narena?”

She sucked in a breath and turned to burrow in my arms, sobs shaking her body.

I clutched her close—suddenly fearful that I’d taken so long to tell her I loved her she no longer cared. “Narena?”

She lifted her head from my shoulder. “Oh Andy. Do you mean it? Are you sure?”

“Yes. I’m sure I mean it.” I cupped my palm over her cheek. “I’m sorry it’s taken me so long to say but I do love you. I have from the moment we met.”

“As long as that?”

I nodded. “I’ve told you countless times that I fell for you with just one look.”

Tears rolled down her cheeks. “I was beginning to think it would take years for you to say it—if you ever did.”

“I have loved you from the moment we met, honey. And I love you more all the time. I love you and I’m tired of staying home while you go visit your parents without me.”

“I’d love to take you home.”

“But?”

“But after I graduated from college, my parents expected every man I brought home to be serious. Telling them differently soon became more trouble than it was worth.”

Fuck. That stung. If you called me a fuck buddy again, we were going to have a blowout argument. “Are you telling me you’re not serious about me?”

“You fuck me raw! That alone should tell you how serious I am about you. I haven’t had unprotected sex in years! Years. You’re the first man I’ve lowered my guard down with enough for that level of intimacy since college.”

She bit her lip. “Just because I haven’t introduced you to my parents doesn’t mean I don’t love you. I’ve never been so in love with anyone in my life. I love you so much I feel as if the emotion is consuming me.

“You can’t misunderstand about my parents.”

“Why can’t I? You’ve met my brother and my friends. You’ve talked to my mother. Do your parents even know my name or that we’ve living together?”

“That’s not something an only daughter is eager to tell her parents.”

“I’ll take that as a no. Yes?”

She bit her lip. “Yes, but you have to understand. You are the love of my life, Andy.”

“And you are mine.”

“I am? The love of your life?”

“Yes, honey. The love of my life.” I reached in my pocket and pulled out the jeweler’s box I’d placed there after my conversation with Manning. I stepped back and opened the box to reveal a full carat white gold diamond solitaire. “I hope you like this.”

She stared at it and then stared at me with tears streaming down her cheeks. “It looks like an engagement ring.”

“That’s probably because it is.” I removed the commitment ring she’d worn for month and replaced it with the engagement ring.

“Oh God, Andy.”

“Is that an Oh God Andy I’ll marry you?”

She pressed a hand to her mouth and nodded, tears still rolling down her cheeks.

“If you keep crying like this I’m going to think you’ve changed your mind. Have you?”

She shook her head.

I wiped her face dry than drew her into my arms to hold her close. “I love you so much,” I told her.

“And I love you, Andy.”

Thank God.
“Manning’s eager to be an uncle.”

“Is he? What are we going to do about it?”

“First we’re going to get married. Then in a few months you’ll stop your birth control and we’ll work on getting you pregnant. What do you think? Are you interested?”

She stared up at him, taking deep breaths. “Yes and yes! I want to be your wife, have your babies, and grow old with you.”

“Sounds like a plan, honey. Let’s not wait. Stop your birth control now.”

“First things first, Andy. We’ll get married and then I’ll stop the birth control.”

“What’s the difference?”

“The difference is I’m not going to risk ending up pregnant before we’re married, Andy.”

“You once told me that wouldn’t be such a tragedy.”

“It wouldn’t be—for me, but I’m my parents’ only daughter. They’re old fashioned. It would break their hearts if they thought we got married because we had to instead of because we wanted to.”

“So it’s like that, huh?”

She sighed. “Is it so wrong to want to make my parents happy and proud?”

I personally thought she was giving her parents’ feeling a little more preference than she needed to, but over the last few months, she’d shown me the benefit of patience. Besides, I knew the first time we had totally unprotected sex would be a once in a lifetime experience that would be all the sweeter for our having had to wait awhile.

“Andy? Is it too much to ask?”

“No. It’s not.”

“You’re sure?”

I nodded. “I’m very sure, honey. Because I am, I’m in this for the long haul and I’m prepared to wait for as long as possible.”

She wrapped her arms around me and offered her parted lips. “I love you.”

“I love you too…so much.” I kissed her slowly.

“We’re going to be all right together, Andy. Aren’t we?”

“We’re going to be better than all right, honey. We’re going to be even happier once we’re married.”

“Oh Andy. You mean that?”

“Yes. I do. Now that I’ve taken the plunge, I’m looking forward to being more than your fuck buddy.”

“It’s always been more than just sex for me.”

“For me too,” I said. And I meant it.

We went to bed to have a quick fuck before we sat up in bed and set a wedding date.

The next morning, she called her parents and I called Manning. Before I left for work, we decided to invite a few friends over for an informal celebration that night after work.

“Make sure you invite Candi,” I said as I finished my coffee.

“I will, but why?”

I shrugged. “She’s your best friend and Manning is mine. Our best friends should get to know and like each other.”

She nodded. “Agreed. She’s coming.”

“So is he.”

Manning came alone that night. Unfortunately Candi didn’t. Several times during the evening, I noticed Manning watching her. I couldn’t see that she had any time for any man other than the guy she arrived with.

“Are you all right?” I asked Manning when he came to say goodnight.

“I’m fine,” he said. “Why do you ask?”

“Still seeing Marla?”

He nodded.

“Are you interested in Candi?”

“No.” He gave me a don’t-go-there stare and walked out.

Great. I had a sinking feeling that Manning had fallen for a woman desperately trying to hold onto a crumbling relationship with a man who clearly didn’t deserve her.

That put somewhat of a damper on the rest of the evening for me.

“What’s wrong, sweetie?” Rena asked as she slipped into bed beside me.

I shook my head. “I’m just a little worried about Manning.”

“He did seem a little quiet tonight,” she said. “I hope he wasn’t pissed because he thought he couldn’t bring Marla.”

“I don’t think he planned to bring her so that’s not a problem.”

“Then what was wrong with him?” she asked.

I wasn’t ready to share my suspicions with her—especially since Manning had out right denied he had any interest in her friend.
Just like you denied you were in love with Rena for far longer than any sane man should have.
“I’m not sure.”

“He looked almost as handsome as you did tonight,” she said, rubbing her cheek against my shoulder. “If I wasn’t already taken, I’d have set my sights firmly on him.”

“How are things with Candi and her dumbass boyfriend?”

She sighed. “I don’t know. He still watches every bite she puts in her mouth but she seems to be happy with him.”

“Do you think she’s open to dating someone else?”

“Not at the moment no.”

Damn!

After a few days of avoiding me, Manning and I had dinner alone one night and he seemed fine. He flirted with two blondes seated at the table behind us and left with both of their numbers in his phone.

With Manning apparently over Candi, I turned my attention to my own problems—namely the upcoming dinner with the Devons. Although I was eager to marry Rena, I was not looking forward to meeting her parents.

We arrived two hours before our scheduled dinnertime. Like her daughter, Julia Devon was a plus-sized, pretty woman. Although she didn’t seem particularly happy to meet me, I found it reassuring to know that Rena would be just as enchanting in twenty-five or thirty years as she was now.

Her father’s greeting was decidedly chillier than her mother’s. Looking into his eyes, I knew he thought she was settling with me. Oh well.

“Join me in the family home,” he said.

Rena gave me a weary look before looking at her father.“ Surely that’s not necessary, Dad.”

“You’re my only daughter, Rena. It’s necessary.”

“But he hasn’t even had a drink yet.”

“He’s driving. He doesn’t need one.”

Damn. This was going to be a fun evening.

He looked at me. “Coming?”

“Of course,” I flashed Rena a smile and followed her father from the living room.

The moment we were seated in chair facing each other, he started shooting questions at me. Although I’d made well over two hundred thousand dollars last year and would make even more that year, he behaved as if I had a minimum wage job that would require Rena to spend our entire married life slaving away. After he grilled and filleted me for nearly half an hour, we returned to the living room where her two brothers were waiting to vet me.

During the course of the next hour both of them walked me out on the patio to tear off the few pieces of skin their father had allowed me to retain.

It was clear to me that none of her family was thrilled about meeting me. I thought they were prejudiced but she heatedly denied it. Although a little annoyed by the lack of warmth in their welcome, I was determined to show them I loved her and would take good care of her. And they needed to know that no matter how unpleasant they were, nothing would change how I felt about her.

Still by the end of the night I couldn’t wait to get out of there.

Neither one of us talked much on the return drive. The first thing I did when we got home was have two beers.

She sat watching me drink them in silence before she finally spoke. “About tonight, Andy.”

“What about it?”

She sighed. “Your mother was very gracious and Manny is shaping up to be the best brother-in-law in history. I’m sorry my father and brothers weren’t more welcoming tonight.”

Neither was your mother.
“That’s one way of putting it.”

“They’ve always been very protective of me. They just want the best for me.”

And that couldn’t possibly be me?

“I know they were rough on you tonight, sweetie.”

“That’s putting it lightly.”

She bit her lip. “I hope they didn’t discourage you too much, Andy,” she said.

Noting how tense and unhappy she looked, I shook my head. “Don’t worry, honey. I admit they pissed me off. Hell, your father made me feel like a pauper and your brothers…”

“What about my brothers?”

They had really fucked me off by informing me that if I ever laid a hand on her they’d break every bone in my body—twice. “Never mind.”

“They threatened you. Didn’t they?”

Her brothers clearly loved her and she them. And I guess if I had a younger sister, I’d be overly protective of her as well. “No. They both gave me a promise that was totally unnecessary.”

She bit her lips again.

“The point is that although they annoyed the hell out of me, I know they have your best interest at heart. They didn’t discourage me at all. You’re my woman and I’m your man. It would have been nice if they liked me but I’m not marrying any of them. We’re going to be very happy together, honey. Right?”

“Right,” she said, laying her head against my shoulder. “And once they get to know you they’ll love you almost as much as I do.”

“I seriously doubt that,” I said, recalling the deep freeze I’d felt from his father and brothers.