A Boy Worth Choosing (The Worthy Series Book 2) (14 page)

“At least a year. We can travel or build a house, whatever you want, but I’m not yet ready to share you just yet.” I feel her smile against my chest. I pull back just enough to be able to look into her eyes. “I mean it. I’ve waited a very long time for you. I know that makes me selfish but—“

I’m interrupted by the mashing of her lips to mine. My hands make their way from her waist to the back of her head and I savor her every taste. She snakes her hands to my chest and grabs hold of my shirt, pulling me as close to her as I can get.

“Okay.” Her breath tickles my chin.

“Okay?” I ask, kind of amazed she’s agreeing. I know how badly she wants a family.

“Okay.” She nods, her nose brushing against my five o’clock shadow.

“Okay, let’s get married in the fall,” I say, losing hearing a second later.

She screams her excitement and jumps up onto me like a spider monkey, thanking me repeatedly. I hug her tight, laughing at her excitement. Daphne sticks her head out the door, concern laced on her face, as she searches the floor of the deck to look for the reason Jess is in my arms.

“We’re getting married in the fall!!” Jess squeals as she hops down, letting go of me. Daphne joins in on the squealing and hugs me too.

“Yay!!” Daphne claps. “Okay, well then we can get rid of the other swatches. Oh, and come look at this color combo I just put together.”

Jessie grabs my hand, still bouncing from excitement, and guides me back to the disaster that is her living room. Daphne holds up three swatches and to my amazement, I actually kind of like them.

“Navy. Pumpkin. Cypress.” She says as she holds up the three together and Jessie stops bouncing. I don’t think she’s really digging the palette until she turns to me with moist eyes and the most beautifully breath-taking smile.

“I like it,” I tell her. A single tear slips down her face. I wipe it away with my thumb, resting my palm on her cheek. “What do you think?” 

“I think…it’s perfect.”

Chapter Fifteen

~Jessie~

“Yay!” Daphne claps again. “Okay, so in the fall, the colors. You know what the next part is, right?” A mischievous grin grows on her face.

“The dress,” I say in awe.

“Yes. We need to pick a shopping date. And who all do you want to be there?” Daphne says as she starts picking up the colorful mess off the floor.

I got an idea and I’m not sure how well it will pan out, but I decide to go for it anyway…then pray really hard that all goes well. I turn to Stephen.

“Do you think your mom might want to go with us?”

His face goes from curious to concerned. I know what I’m asking and how much stress that could potentially ensue for both of us, but she doesn’t have a daughter to get to enjoy all the fun stuff with and, well, my mom isn’t here. I could really use someone like Janine on my side, and I think dress shopping could potentially help ease her concerns.

“I’ll ask,” he says, not adding the part where he doesn’t think she’ll go for it. Daphne’s look of shock isn’t missed either, but it is ignored.

“Okay, well then, who else? Shaina and Shelby, of course. Anyone else?” Daphne asks.

“Nope,” I say, shaking my head. “I kind of already have in mind what I want, so…” Stephen’s eyebrow rises along with a smirk.

“Do I get to see the dress beforehand?” He pulls me in by the waist, giving me a very ornery grin.

“Absolutely not!” Daphne exclaims disbelievingly. “You can see it when she walks down that aisle.” She looks like she could slap Stephen for being so dumb. She turns around and picks up the heavy bag of catalogs and paint cards. “Do you get to see the—Seriously, what is wrong with you?!”

Giggles escape my chest as I pull out of his embrace and hug Daphne good bye. She gathers up the rest of her stuff and heads out the door, giving Stephen the stink eye one last time before bidding us goodnight. I turn back to Stephen who snakes his arms around my waist, holding me loosely.

“Are you sure you want my mother involved in planning our wedding?” Stephen asked.

The look on his face said that he didn't necessarily think inviting her was the best idea I've ever had.

“I'll talk to her. Don't worry.” I give him my best reassuring smile and stand up on my tippy toes to kiss his cheek.

“She is a force to be reckoned with,” he warns.

“Oh, so am I.” I don't mean the playful growl in my voice when I say it. I see a flicker in his eyes and not even a second later, his mouth descends upon mine.

He takes one step toward the couch and not wanting to lose his touch, I follow. He sits and pulls me down so I sit across his lap, one hand finding my hair, the other pressing into my shoulders. He pulls back and nuzzles my nose, a playful smirk of his own plastered all over his face. He trails tender kisses along my cheek and starts to go in for the spot just behind my ear that liquefies my insides when there’s a quick knock on my door just before it bursts open.

“Sorry, I forgot--” A shocked Daphne stops in her tracks.

Stephen pulls back and moves his hands to my waist, and I would have started giggling if Daphne didn’t look like she could kill me with just the look in her eyes.

“You forgot?” Stephen asks, a hint of annoyance in his voice. Daphne starts to respond before she catches the fact that he seems annoyed.

“Apparently I'm not the only one forgetting things today.” She narrows her eyes at him, and even I flinch under her glare. But then she turns it on me and I instinctively move to the spot beside him on the couch. “You two…ugh!”

“Daphne, we’re fine. We are two grown adults—“

“Who have clearly forgotten that you’ve made a vow of abstinence,” she practically yells.

“We keep ourselves in check.” I say defensively. This isn’t something that she has to worry about and she is making a big deal over nothing.

“But what happens if one day you don’t. Trust me, I understand all…” She waves an open hand in our general direction. “That. But…come on guys! This isn’t safe.”

“You’re right.” Stephen concedes. He quickly stands up, creating some space in between us, and runs a hand through his hair.

“Thank you.” She throws her hands up in the air. I see a light bulb illuminate in the back of her brain and I immediately brace myself for whatever crazy scheme she’s thought up now. “You need…a three person policy or something. If you’re not in public, you have to have a third person with you at all times.”

I look at Stephen who is surprisingly nodding his head in agreement. He looks at me, face still flushed from our little moment on the couch, and nods again with more finality.

“I like it,” he says. He turns back to me, sitting on the edge of the spot he just left. He picks up my hands and pulls them to his mouth. “I respect you too much to let things keep going the direction they are. I want very much to do everything the right way, and if that means we need some parental-like supervision, then.” One side of his mouth curves up in an amused grin. “That’s what we’ll do. I won’t fight you on anything else about this wedding, except this.”

I think about each time we’ve found ourselves in a position where we’ve had to choose between what we want now and what we want most. We’ve done really well about remembering our promise, but I’d be lyingif I said it hasn’t been getting harder and harder to remember why we even made the pact to begin with.

“No fight. I agree.” I turn to Daphne then. “Does that mean you’re willing to leave your schedule open to help babysit us?”

“You bet your virgin butt I am. I’ll move in if I have to.”

“That won’t be necessary.” I know she’s not messing around, and so does Stephen, so he leans over and gives me one quick kiss, and tells me he lovess me before making his way out the door. 

Daphne gives me one last motherly look before picking up the laptop she had apparently forgotten earlier.

“Can I trust that you are not going anywhere tonight?” she asks.

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Good. Then I’ll see you bright and early tomorrow.” And without looking back, she’s gone.

***

By some miraculous work of my new accountabilibuddy, I am scheduled for two appointments the following Saturday at two different bridal boutiques. I had really wanted to talk to Janine in person to hopefully hammer out some of her hesitation about me and Stephen, but I just couldn’t find the time to make a trip home throughout the week. She was gracious when I called to ask her to join us, but so much so that I wasn’t exactly sure what to expect when she got into town this morning.

I’m distracted by my nerves as I make my way to the first boutique, arriving almost twenty minutes earlier than I need to. I get checked in and take a seat outside the dressing room they assign me. I opt to wait for the rest of my group by flipping through a catalog, but don’t really see the pictures as I pray that Janine arrives before the other girls get here so that we have the opportunity to talk.

The sweet blonde stylist that said she would be back when the rest of my group arrived, ushers in my future mother-in-law, closely followed, to my surprise by my fiancé.

“Hey there, gorgeous,” he greets me as he steps around his mother and kisses my cheek. I take a step back and smile, speechless.

“Good morning, Jessie.” Janine hugs me warmly as Stephen steps back and takes in all the mirrors, lace and bling.

“Hi. Thank you for coming.” I’m too shocked that Stephen is here that I forget that I wanted to speak to Janine on my own.

The three of us make small talk before Shaina and Daphne finally arrive. Poor Shaina is so swollen, she’s waddling. I jump up out of my seat and immediately force her to sit. Daphne eyeballs Stephen before greeting Janine and introducing Shaina.

“Are we all here?” the stylist pokes her head around the corner to ask.

“Yes,” Daphne barks, before turning to Stephen. “You. Out. I’ve already told you, you can see what she picks when she walks down the aisle.” She starts to shoo him out of the store, but he stops to kiss his mother goodbye.

“Do you mind driving Mom to your second appointment and dropping her off at my place when you’re done?” he asks me.

“Of course not.” I give him a smile that is a mix of nerves, anxiety, and faulty reassurance all in one. He winks at me and turns to leave. He abruptly stops though and turns around, crossing the distance between us in two steps and dips me low for a heart pounding kiss.

I hear Shaina catcall and both Daphne and Janine huff their disapproval as he whips me back up and sets me back on my feet before strutting his way out of the store.

Embarrassed and nearly out of breath, I turn to our amused stylist and ask, “Shall we get started?”

***

I’m grateful that Daphne scheduled us a second appointment since the first boutique was a bust, but now I’m not so sure that inviting Janine was the best of ideas. I tried on at least a dozen dresses and every one of them received either a huff, a sneer, or a blank, hollow stare. To say I am a little more than irritated by the time we were done with the first boutique would be a bit of an understatement.

To her defense though, I wasn’t feeling anything that I had tried on yet either. But still, would it kill her to be a little more positive with her responses?

We climb into my Outback and start to head to the second boutique in silence. You could cut the tension in my car with a knife, and I can’t take it anymore.

“I know you don’t want us to get married yet.” I throw the accusation out for free game after pulling off of the expressway. She doesn’t say anything for a few moments.

“I don’t think you’re ready for another serious relationship, let alone a marriage.” She doesn’t expound, causing my temper to continue to rise. I quickly pull into the parking lot of the boutique and park, waving Daphne and Shaina on to check in for us, before turning to Janine.

“With all due respect, how do you know what I am and am not ready for? You haven’t stopped judging me for two seconds to see that there is no one else in this entire world for me than your son. He has spent so much of his life being there for me and taking care of me when I’ve needed a friend. He’s been this incredible man who hasn’t gotten lost in the things of this world. He stands up for himself, the people he loves, and Jesus every day. He’s everything I’ve always wanted but was too afraid to admit I wasn’t getting. And he stood beside me, no matter how stupid I was in making life decisions. Now it’s my turn to do the same for him. It’s my turn to stand up for him, take care of him, be what he needs me to be. And it makes me happy to do so. And I like to think that I make him happy in doing so.”

I take a quick breath, expecting her to go off on me for being disrespectful, but she doesn’t. So I make the grand finale I practiced while cleaning the bathroom at midnight last night.

“I’ve always wanted the absolute best for your son. Above all else, I respect his well-being. If I thought for one moment I wasn’t ready, I wouldn’t have agreed to marrying him. But I am, and he’s ready to marry me. So I’m sorry if you can’t get on board with that, but we’re getting married. Whether it be four months from now or four years from now, it’s happening. Either way, I’m still going to defend our decision, because that is exactly what it is. Our decision.”

My heart is pounding, feeling proud of myself for standing up to her, but fearful that I may have just crossed the fine line of disrespect to the one person who could make my life a living hell if she truly wanted to.  When I finally break eye contact, I search her face to find a hint of pleasant surprise.

“That,” she says after a few moments, “is probably the most honest you’ve ever been with me. I’ve never had a problem with you personally. But I did wonder if you were taking advantage of Stephen’s feelings for you. Clearly, I need to step back and regain some perspective.”

She opens her car door and steps out, leaving me to try to interpret what she means by that. I shake my head and try to resolve myself into not letting her get to me while I try to get through this appointment.

Janine is standing outside with one hand on the door to the boutique as I approach the building.

“Thank you for inviting me to come along today,” she says, her tone a little softer than a few moments ago. 

“You’re welcome. Listen, I don’t want things to be hard between us. We both love your son very much and although we might disagree what it means, we both still want what is best for him. You’re about to become my mother-in-law, but you’ve always been like a mother to me. I really hope that we can overcome titles and can respect the new roles we will have in each other’s lives going forward. ”

She kindly nods at me and opens the door, allowing me to enter in front of her.

Daphne gives me a curious look as we make our way toward the dressing room, but I just smile and shake my head, praying she doesn’t ask what our delay was about. Thankfully she doesn’t.