Authors: Ashley Blake
“That’s probably a good
idea because I can’t be held responsible for what
I
might do to
you
.”
He smiled at me and
playfully touched the tip of my nose. “Promises, promises.”
I walked him to the door
and he gathered me in his arms and smoothed the hair out of my eyes. “I know
that I already said this but, I’m really happy that you’re here Emma. I love
you.
So much
.”
“I love you too, honey.”
He leaned down and
gently kissed me on the lips.
“I will see you in the
morning, love. Sleep well.”
Thanksgiving at the
Morgan house was so much fun. I met a lot of Caleb’s aunts, uncles, and cousins
that day and I was surprised that his mom was the one who actually cooked the
turkey. Their chef prepared everything else for us, and it was delicious. It
was such a pleasant surprise to meet everyone and to see how down-to-earth this
über
wealthy family was.
I called my family to wish them a happy
Thanksgiving and to let them know that I was having a really good time, and
that I missed them.
We spent the rest of the
weekend with his family and they had a full house for the remainder of our trip.
We flew back to Chicago on Sunday and before we left I thanked his parents for
everything and told Colton how awesome it was to meet him, and I hoped to see
him again sometime soon. I felt so comfortable around them and they were so
welcoming to me. The trip was like nothing I had expected and it was such a
nice surprise to see how easily I fit in with them, or at least I thought I
did. I didn’t feel uncomfortable with them for one second the entire time I
was there.
“Emma, you are welcome
in our home any time. It was lovely to get to know you dear, and we look
forward to seeing you again soon.” Caleb’s mom gave me a big hug, and so did
his dad.
On the flight back to
Chicago, I couldn’t stop gushing about how awesome Caleb’s family was.
“Everyone was so nice to
me, Caleb, I just didn’t expect that. I know that sounds horrible and I’m not
trying to be mean or anything, but I didn’t expect that people who are so
incredibly wealthy would be so down to earth. I know that I come from a
privileged family also, but what we have compared to what your family has, I
mean there is no comparison at all. I thought they might prejudge me because I
didn’t go to an Ivy League school, and I didn’t feel that from them at all.
Your parents are just so awesome. And Colton, oh my goodness, I bet he has to
beat the girls off with a stick, much like I’m sure his older brother had to
until I snapped him up.”
He laughed at what I
said and seemed to be amused by my love fest over his family.
“Well, I’m happy that
you enjoyed yourself, and I know that they all really liked you. I think
people always tend to have a preconceived notion about my family because they
are so successful, but like you found out, once you get inside the doors and
peel back the layers, you see that they are regular people just like everybody
else.”
When I got back to my
apartment, Kelly was already home from New Holstein and she wanted to know
everything. I told her how nice I thought his parents were and how welcoming
they were to me, and I also told her about Colton and how the good looks really
ran deep in that family. She was really happy for me and she kept telling me
that she knew that this was it for me and he was the one, and then she went on
and on about how she wanted to be my maid of honor when we got married. I told
her she was being silly, that we had not been dating for very long and she
wanted to hear none of that.
"Emma, I totally
see you guys getting married, I’m telling you, he is the one for you, you guys
are perfect together. I bet he’s never met a girl like you before, am I
right?”
“Yeah, he did say that
to me. But Kelly, we are having a great time getting to know each other,
okay? If it gets close to what you’re talking about, I promise you, you will
know. Now, tell me how your holiday was with your family. Did David have a
good time?”
“Yeah, you know they
love him, he’s practically part of the family already.”
“You’ve been going on
and on about me and Caleb getting married, what about you guys? Any talk about
that?”
“No, silly, not yet!”
“Hmm, so how do you like
having me ask you about it?”
She looked at me and
playfully scrunched her nose at me. “Alright, I get it, no more getting
married talk.”
“Thank you, it’s way to
soon for that.”
“You’re right Emma, my
bad. Let’s make dinner and watch some bad reality TV.”
“Sounds good.”
The semester was winding
down and Christmas was just around the corner. Friends of Seniors was having a
Christmas party and Caleb and I were helping Jean and a couple of other
volunteers do everything from decorate to cooking the meal. We arrived at the
center a little bit earlier than normal that Saturday of the Christmas party,
and Jean put us to work right away. A couple of hours later the room was
transformed into a Christmas paradise and the meal was in the oven. We were
having baked chicken with potatoes and mixed vegetables, and then we were
having lemon cake for dessert. We put candy canes and little chocolate Santa’s
at everyone’s place setting, except for those who had diet restrictions.
At 11:00, everyone
started to arrive to the party. Caleb was in the kitchen and I was putting
finishing touches on the decorations when Jack and Mary came over to me to say
hello.
“Hi Emma! It’s good to
see you.”
“Hi Jack, hi Mary! How
are you both doing? Any more dates to Starbucks?”
They looked at each
other and smiled and Jack spoke up first. “Oh yes! Mary and I go every week!”
“Yes, Jack is very good
about picking me up on time. He walks over to my place and then we walk to
Starbucks together and just enjoy each other’s company and a delicious cup of
coffee!”
“I’m so happy that you
guys are still going for your weekly coffee date. Do you want to sit down? I
can show you where your seats are. Today we have done things a little bit
differently and assigned everyone a seat.”
“Thank you dear.” I
showed them to their table and got them settled in their spots, when Jack
turned to me.
“Is Caleb here?”
“He is, he’s in the
kitchen putting the finishing touches on the lunch. Did you want me to go get
him for you?”
Jack patted my hand.
“Oh no, no, don’t bother him. I just wanted to know if he was here, he’s such a
nice young man. Are you both sitting at our table with us?”
I gently put my hand on
Jack’s shoulder and smiled at him. “Yes, we are Jack. I’ll be back in a few
minutes. Do you need anything?”
Jack turned to Mary.
“Do you need anything Mary?”
“No, I’m fine. Well,
maybe a little more apple juice.”
I winked at her. “You
got it, coming right up. Jack, what about you?”
“I’m fine dear, thank
you.”
I headed to the kitchen
to get some apple juice for Mary and to see if Caleb needed any help in the
kitchen. Just as I was walking in, he was walking out and I nearly crashed
into him. He grabbed my arms to steady me.
“We have got to stop
meeting like this.” He was smiling as he bent down to give me a quick kiss on
the lips.
I giggled and quickly
glanced around to make sure that no one saw us. “You’re silly and you’re going
to get us in trouble with Jean!”
“Oh, Jean was young once
too. Did you need me for something?”
Oh do I.
I batted my
eyes at him and whispered so that no one could hear me. “You have no idea, but
we’ll have to take care of that another time.”
He took a step toward
me. “Oh really? Tell me more.” His eyes smoldered as they slowly perused my
body and, for a split second, I forgot that we were surrounded by people.
I lightly placed my
hands on his chest. “Someone will see us.”
He took a step back.
“You’re right, I just can’t help myself around you.”
“You’ll have to try,” I
whispered to him as I flashed him a flirtatious smile. “Mary wants more apple
juice.”
“I’ll get it and meet
you at the table.” He winked at me and he lightly swatted me on the behind as
I started to walk away.
Caleb came over to our
table with the apple juice a few minutes later and sat down to join us.
“Caleb, it is good to
see you. How have you been? We missed you a couple of weeks ago.” Jack seemed
really happy to have Caleb back.
“I was swamped with
school work Jack, I’m sorry I couldn’t be here. Are you doing alright?”
“Oh yes, I’m fine. We
just like seeing you around here.”
“Thanks Jack, I really
appreciate that, and you know what? I like seeing you guys around here. Oh! I
almost forgot, I have some news for you and Mary.”
Mary and Jack were all
ears, waiting to learn what he wanted to tell them. I was curious also because
I had no idea what he was going to say, this was news to me that he had
something that he wanted to share with them.
Caleb grabbed my hand
and Jack and Mary’s faces started to light up. “Emma is now my girlfriend, we
have been dating for a couple of months. I wanted to share that with you both
because you were the first people who said that we should be dating.”
“Hey! That is great
news!” Jack was all grins.
“Yes, that is wonderful
you two.” Mary couldn’t stop smiling at us.
“I think we should all
go out together for a cup of coffee after the holidays. By the way, what are
your plans for Christmas?” I turned to look at Mary first.
“My children and
grandchildren are coming to Chicago next week so I will have a lot of visitors
in my condo.”
“Oh that sounds nice
Mary. Jack, what about you?”
“The same goes for me.
This year everyone is coming to Chicago. Next year, I think we are all
supposed to meet in California to stay with my daughter.”
“That sounds wonderful
Jack. I hope you both have a fantastic time with your families.”
“And what about you
two? What are you doing?”
“I am going home to
Wisconsin to see my family. I didn’t see them at Thanksgiving because I went
home with Caleb to meet his family.”
Jack looked very
surprised and a big grin spread across his face. “Oh how nice, you met his
family, I think that’s terrific. And Caleb, what are your plans for Christmas?”
“Just going back to New
York to see my family, and then hopefully, Emma will want to go to Cancun with
me for a few days after Christmas.”
I was completely
shocked. I had no idea that he was planning any kind of trip and I’m sure I
looked silly because I was sitting at the table with my mouth wide open.
Caleb chuckled as he
looked at me. “What do you say, does Cancun sounds like fun?”
A huge grin spread
across my face as I jumped up from my seat to give him a big hug. “Cancun
sounds like heaven, I would love to go with you!”
We spent the rest of the
party chatting with other guests and moving around to visit people at other
tables. The sweetest part of the night for me was when we all gathered around
the piano and sang Christmas songs. Jean and her assistant played for us and
it was so much fun. I saw Jack reach out and hold Mary’s hand, and I nudged
Caleb so that he could see it also.
“Aren’t they sweet?”
“Yes, they are.”
Caleb turned to look at
me as everyone was singing ‘O Holy Night’.
“So are you. You make
me so happy Emma and I am so happy that you came into my life.”
I looked at him and
smiled as tears glistened in my eyes. I had never felt so happy in my entire
life. “Ditto.”
Eight Months
Later
Caleb’s gallery opening
was a huge success. His parents and Colton flew in for the opening and he was
so nervous to have his dad see his work, but once his dad saw how talented
Caleb was, he completely changed his tune about wanting Caleb to work with
him. He finally understood that this is what made his son happy and it didn’t
hurt that Caleb was able to make a living doing it. In addition to the several
works of art that he had sold around the city, Caleb sold six paintings that
night. Kelly and David showed up to support him and I think that really helped
to put him at ease.
Caleb and I had been on
several double dates with Kelly and David, and David and Caleb really hit it
off. Kelly and I were so happy about that because we knew how hard it was to
find another couple to do things with where everyone meshed and got along.
Caleb and David even hung out together alone sometimes. They both liked
soccer, so they would often go to Fad
ó
to grab a beer and watch a game.