Teasing in Texas (At the Altar Book 10) (6 page)

He shrugged. “How big is your apartment?”

“Pretty big. Couple of bedrooms. Plenty of space for two. You?”

“Tiny. I’m still in the place I rented when I finished college, because I’ve always kept myself on a tight budget.”

“Sad. Why have money if you don’t spend a little of it?” she asked.

Tony made a face. “I’m an accountant. We believe in saving every dime for the future. What does your 401K look like?”

Jenni sighed. “I’m a trust fund baby. Do you have any idea how much money I get monthly from a trust fund and will for the rest of my life?”

“That doesn’t mean you don’t need to save for the future!” How could someone be so fiscally irresponsible in this day and age?

“I could live off my trust fund very comfortably, and save every dime I make for the future.”

He frowned, realizing for the first time just how diverse their backgrounds had to be. “I grew up the son of a single mother who struggled to buy me school clothes second-hand every year.” But he’d always had new clothes. He couldn’t complain about that at all.

Jenni sighed. “My mom took me shopping in Manhattan for school clothes every year.” Sometimes she was embarrassed about the affluence she came from, but he needed to accept all of her.

“You’re kidding, right?”

“I wish I was. I always wanted just a regular pair of Wrangler jeans and maybe a pair of cowboy boots. Instead I got skirts and cashmere sweaters. If I had jeans, they were big name designer jeans, not something a normal girl got to wear. I felt so out of place, even in my prep school.” The families there were mostly moderately wealthy, but none of her school acquaintances had the kind of money her family did.

Tony flinched. “And you haven’t told your parents you’re married yet?” He couldn’t help but wonder how that would go.

“Nope. I usually go there for Easter. I’ll tell them I have a plus one, and we’ll see if they notice the ring.”

“You’re joking, right?”

She sighed heavily. “Mostly. It’s not a conversation I’m looking forward to, and I know it would go easier if you were there with me. She’s going to be so mad.” Why she was still worried about her mother’s anger after she’d been on her own for more than five years, she didn’t know.

“Why?”

“She’s had a boy picked out for me since I was a little girl. Her best friend had a boy two years older than me. We were forced together constantly, and we could never stand each other. When I had my coming-out party, he was my escort, and I didn’t want him to be, but I really didn’t have a choice. It was that night we decided whoever married first had to do it in secret so our parents wouldn’t try to get involved.”

“Really?” People had coming-out parties?

“Yeah, really. He was awful. Freddie Applebee the Third. He acted like a third too. He was always telling me I should be grateful for the wealth and position I was born into, instead of wanting to be like everyone else.”

Tony made a face. He couldn’t even imagine being around people like that, let alone marrying into a family who would look down on him. “Let’s never introduce your parents to my mom, okay?”

She shrugged. “I can’t wait to meet your mom. She raised you, so she can’t be all bad.”

He was silent as he drove through Houston, trying to avoid getting killed on the crowded highway. How was he ever going to fit into her life? And how would she fit into his? For the first time, he worried that Dr. Lachele may have made a mistake.

Jenni watched him as he drove, feeling him grow more and more distant. Why would her wealth bother him so much? Most men would have considered it a boon. “Do you hate rich people?” she finally asked when they were just north of Houston.

“I don’t hate them.” He sighed. “My mother was a maid for a really rich family in Dallas when I was growing up. They were always kind but condescending. The kids of the family treated me like garbage. It’s hard to believe I married into something like that.” His mother had to leave a decent job to take care of him, so he’d always felt somewhat to blame for her having to work there.

She frowned. “I probably knew them. Don’t tell me their names, because I just don’t want to know. Does she still work for them?”

He shook his head. “She actually has her own business now. She runs this little twenty-four-hour daycare in Arlington. It’s government subsidized, so people who have to work in the middle of the night can leave their kids there, and it doesn’t cost a fortune.”

“That’s really cool! I have a couple of nurse’s aides I’d love to send to her if they were closer. She should open a second one in Grapevine or Southlake.”

He shook his head. “Those areas are too affluent. It wouldn’t make sense.”

“I guess I can understand that.” She reached over and stroked his hand which he had resting on the console. “I’m sorry if the idea of me coming from money is intimidating for you. I promise, I am nothing like my parents.”

“I can see that. I also saw you didn’t quite fit in with the craziness of your friends. You weren’t able to be as laid back and silly as they are.”

She stared at him in shock. “I thought that was a bonus in your mind! You seemed pleased by the fact I wasn’t like them. Now you’re
complaining
?” She really did want to start yelling at him. She was who she was and unable to change the fact that she was born into wealth.

“I’ll survive.” He sighed. “It’s just a shock. We’ll get through it.”

Her trust fund was in the high nine figures. She sure hoped they’d get through it, because she wasn’t going to divorce him just because she had money. She lived a simple life. Mostly.

They stopped at Buc-ees, and she didn’t even want to go inside. All the fun had been taken out of the visit. Would he have reacted the same way if she’d been dirt poor and not working? Then he’d have been too good for
her,
probably. Well, it was just too bad she didn’t have a solid middle-class background.

She went into the clean restroom Buc-ees was known for, just so she could get away from her new husband for a minute.

When Jenni emerged, she went to the snack section she loved, and picked out a few snacks to take home with them. She sensed when Tony walked up behind her.

“I’m sorry.”

Jenni shrugged, not ready to accept his apology. She’d spent her whole life fighting to not be like the family she’d come from, and he was still judging her because of her birth. It wasn’t fair at all.

She nodded once and took her purchases to the counter, whipping out a debit card to use. He stood to one side and watched, frowning. He’d messed up, and he knew it. Jenni was special, and he had no right to treat her as if she was even one iota less than perfect. What was he thinking?

The rest of their drive back to Arlington passed mostly in silence, with only the songs on the radio for company. For once in her life, Jenni didn’t feel like singing along. How could she? She was married to a very opinionated man, and she wasn’t sure she was going to make it through marriage without his life being in danger.

Chapter Six

Tony stopped at his apartment in Arlington, turning to her to speak. It had been hours since Jenni had said anything, and he was feeling more and more nervous by the minute. He knew he’d blown it.

“I want to run in and get some clothes for tomorrow. Do you have a washer dryer?”

“Yeah. Full connections in my apartment.”

“Let me leave my suitcases here then and just run up for something to wear tomorrow. I have a feeling neither of us is going to feel like doing laundry tonight.”

Jenni nodded, but other than that, she remained where she was.

“Do you want to come up?” he asked.

She shook her head, reaching for her iPad. “I’ll read.” She never had finished Kaya’s book, and she wanted to.

He frowned, but didn’t argue with her, getting out of the car and running up to his second floor apartment. While he was there, he quickly called Seth. “I think I blew it.”

“Blew what?”

“My marriage!”

Seth laughed. “You’ve been married what? Three or four days? Trust me, you can overcome.”

“I don’t know that I can,” Tony said. “I was really cold to her when she told me about her family. She comes from money.”

Seth groaned. “You’ve always had issues with that.” He sighed. “Well, make sure you let her know that she’s not where she came from. She’s a person in her own right.”

“I’ll try. I feel like such an idiot. She didn’t talk to me for the last three hours in the car.”

“Oh, just take her to bed and make her feel like a million dollars.”

Tony sighed. “I’m not sure I’m getting bed privileges again anytime soon. I’m at my place to pick up more clothes, but she wouldn’t even come up the stairs with me.”

“Then you need to take her out for a nice meal. Where’s a good place to eat where you are?”

“I don’t know! She lives in Roanoke!”

“Call Slade. Better yet, I have an idea. I’ll ask Slade to meet the two of you at the bar he used to frequent in college. He does this awesome thing where he rides a mechanical bull standing up. I know it sounds crazy, but if she’s still mad after seeing that, she’s nuts.”

“I might call you and beg you to set that up for me. She’s actually friends with Slade’s wife.”

“Heidi? That’s awesome. Heidi can talk some sense into her.”

“I'd like to hope so, but I’m just not sure it’s possible right now.” Tony knew he’d messed up. Fixing that should be his responsibility, though, not Heidi’s.

“Well, got off the phone with me and go treat her like she’s queen of the world. I’ll call Slade real quick and see if he’ll get Heidi involved.”

Tony groaned. “No. I need to deal with this myself. It’s starting to feel like one of those junior high deals, where everyone gets involved in everyone else’s life, and notes are passed to find out if someone likes someone else.”

“Good point. Make an effort, and you’ll make it work. It’s not like you can split up.”

“Not for a year anyway,” Tony said, ending the call. He grabbed his clothes and threw them into an old back pack, because all of his real luggage was in the car. Locking up his apartment, he took the stairs two at a time, and returned to his car.

She was sitting with her iPad on her lap, reading a book, and he figured it was one of her friend, Kaya’s. She’d been trying to get through a novel the whole time on the ship.

Tony slid back into the driver’s seat and started the car before turning to her. “I’m an idiot. I shouldn’t have reacted like I did. No matter how much it shocked me, I had no right to treat you that way. Please forgive me. I’ll wash all dishes for a whole month if you’ll give me another chance.”

Jenni looked at him, her head tilted to one side as if considering. “Make it six weeks, and you have a deal.”

“Six weeks it is!”

She smiled slightly, obviously still hurt, and he understood that. He slid his hand under her hair at the back of her neck and pulled her close, kissing her softly. “Thank you for the chance to make it up to you.”

Jenni sighed. “I can’t stay mad forever, even though I kind of want to. We need to be open to learning new things about each other.”

He nodded. “Yeah, we do.”

“If you found out I’d been homeless as a child, would you have reacted the same way?” Jenni asked, wondering where his lines were.

“Probably not. I’d have felt bad for you. It’s reverse discrimination, and I know it.”

“Well, then let’s get past it.”

“We will.” He pulled out of the parking lot of his North Arlington apartment building. “Do you want to meet my mom?”

“Now?” she asked, flipping her visor down and checking her appearance. She needed to look her best to meet his mother!

Tony grinned over at her. “My mom’s not like that. She’s incredible.”

“Every mom is like that! Mothers-in-law are supposed to be the worst monster known to mankind! How may siblings do you have?” she asked, quickly fishing lipstick out of her purse and applying it.

“I’m an only. What about you? Did I ask you that?”

“I’m an only too. Mom and Dad were older when they had me. I was an IVF baby. Groundbreaking and all that.”

“I don’t know that I’ve ever known an IVF baby.”

She shrugged. “I’m sure it’s not something most people talk about. Most kids probably don’t even know if they were. My mom had no problem complaining about how hard it was to have me and how grateful I should be she went through all the pain and difficulty.”

“Oh, one of those.”

“Yeah. What about your dad?”

He shrugged. “He took off when I was a toddler. Said having a kid wasn’t for him.”

“That stinks. Do you ever see him?”

“Yeah. I found him after I graduated from college, thinking we could rekindle our relationship. I always had in my head that Mom was wrong, and he really did want me.” Tony sighed, not really wanting to talk about his father, but he needed to help her understand how different they were.

“And?”

Tony turned onto the street where he’d lived until he was out of high school. It was in the oldest part of town, and the houses all needed a good painting. “He was remarried and had two kids. He told me he didn’t want to upset the status quo, and he’d appreciate it if I went on my way.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. We had dinner first, and we talked. He told me he was glad I was doing so well, but he had nothing for me, and really didn’t need me in his life.” Tony shrugged as if it hadn’t mattered.

“That’s really sad.” Jenni reached over and took his hand in hers as she looked at the house in front of them. It wasn’t middle class. It was much further below middle class than she’d imagined. “Let’s go meet your mom.”

Tony got out and walked to the door, ringing the bell. When his mom came to the door, she looked excited. “So this is the new bride, is she?”

Jenni was startled for a moment that she knew about the marriage, but then she realized he’d had no reason to hide it like she did. “It’s nice to meet you,” Jenni said softly.

“Jenni, this is my mother, Beverly. Mom, this is Jenni.”

“So good to meet you, Jenni!” Beverly hugged her close. “I’m so glad Tony finally found someone. I thought he’d be single forever.” She opened the door wide to invite them both in. “Can I fix you something to eat?”

Jenni shook her head. “No, I’m not hungry.” She’d been munching on snacks the whole way, so she had no need of anything. “Tony told me about your daycare, and I think it sounds amazing. I wish you had one closer to where I work, because so many people need overnight care for their children. I’m surprised more people haven’t started centers like that.”

“I could have used it with Tony when he was small. I had a job at a call center, which wasn’t what I wanted to do with my life, but it was good money. I got bumped onto night shift, but there was no one to watch Tony. My mom tried for a while, but it was a pain, so I ended up quitting and going to work somewhere else for half the pay.”

“Well, I think keeping other women from having to do the same is just amazing. There are a lot of call centers up in Westlake, and it would be so nice if you were to open a branch up there.”

Beverly laughed. “It takes a lot of funds to open two places, and I’d need someone to manage the other one. I can’t do it right now.”

“What if you had an investor?” Jenni asked, thinking she’d love to be part of the expansion of an operation like his mother’s.

Beverly looked at her with surprise. “Maybe I could do it then, but I don’t know anyone with the kind of money I’d need, and I don’t want to take out another business loan.”

Jenni started to open her mouth to offer, but Tony shook his head, and she stayed quiet for a moment. “I just think it would be a good idea to have another one. For you and for the community.”

“I’m glad you’re so enthusiastic about it. What do you do, Jenni?”

“I’m a nurse. I actually just graduated a couple of months ago. I’ve been a CNA for a while as I was going through nursing school.”

“I bet it feels good to finally be a nurse then!”

Jenni nodded with a smile. “It does. It’s all I ever really wanted. My parents wanted me to be a doctor, but I had no desire. Being a nurse suits me well.”

“A nurse and a CPA. That’s a power couple if you ask me.” Beverly seemed pleased. “Are you sure I can’t get you anything to drink?”

Tony got to his feet. “We’ve been on the road all day. We stopped at my apartment to get a change of clothes, but we’re going to live at her place in Roanoke until we find a house. It’s time we get there.”

“Not too far from here, I hope!”

Tony smiled at that. “You’re just worried we’ll move any potential grandbabies too far away.”

Beverly laughed. “Of course I am! You know I want several, and I want them all to live next door.”

“Jenni works in Northlake, and since I work in Grapevine, we’ll probably end up in the Roanoke or Southlake area.”

“I can live with that if you promise to visit often.”

Tony hugged his mother, who was a good six inches shorter than him. “You know I will.”

Beverly hugged him back. “I’m proud of you, son.”

Tony wasn’t feeling particularly proud of himself at the moment, but he smiled. “Thanks, Mom.”

Jenni moved forward for a quick hug as well. “I’m glad we stopped to meet you today. I hope we’ll get to know one another really soon.”

“We will. Maybe we could get lunch next weekend?”

Jenni frowned. “I work weekends at the moment. I have Wednesday and Thursday off this week. I never know what days I’ll have until the schedule comes out two weeks prior.”

“We’ll figure something out,” Beverly said. “Don’t be strangers.” She walked them to the door, a smile on her face.

Jenni got into the car beside him. “She’s really nice.”

“She’s a pretty awesome mom. I loved showing her off to my friends growing up, because she always made the best snacks.”

“Why wouldn’t you let me invest in her company?”

He shrugged. “I don’t know. I just—I’d rather keep the money separate for now. I don’t want her to feel obligated to us. She’s spent so long saving up enough to get her business started, that I don’t think she should be in debt any more than she already is.”

“Okay,” Jenni said softly. His reasoning didn’t seem to hold water to her, but she wasn’t going to argue any more. If he didn’t want her to help his mother, then she wouldn’t do it.

The drive to Roanoke took about thirty minutes, and she gave him directions to her apartment. Once they were there, the two of them carried everything inside and she gave him the tour.

If he hadn’t known about the money she had been born with before, he’d have known the first time he saw her apartment. It was obvious in so many little ways. When he saw a photograph of her with her parents on the wall, he stopped short. “Wait…You’re the daughter of James and Judy Thompson?” He knew most people wouldn’t recognize her father, but he followed the financial news of Dallas, and there had been a write-up on him only a couple of months before.

She nodded, waiting for him to freak out. Her father had been a pioneer in a surgical procedure back in the seventies. “I am.”

He stared at her for a moment before nodding. He couldn’t let it be a big deal. She hadn’t lied to him or hidden anything. Her personality wasn’t wrapped up in who her parents were. “Cool.” Thoughts of meeting her family made him slightly queasy, but she seemed to want to put it off for as long as possible anyway.

“What do you want to do about food tonight?” she asked. “I’m not feeling up to cooking, and I’m assuming you aren’t either.”

“We could go out or I could pick something up,” he suggested. “Do you have a preference?”

“Let’s go out. I don’t want you to have to go get something without me.” She rubbed the back of her neck, stiff after all the hours in the car. “Would you mind resting for a bit first? I could use a quick nap. Maybe thirty minutes or so. I’m not super hungry yet, anyway.”

“I wouldn’t mind at all. Is this your way of inviting me into your bed?”