Just Beginning (10 page)

Five days later, Jenny sat in the car outside her parents’ house and pulled out her checkbook and a pen. To Mary and Michael Campbell, five hundred dollars and zero zero over one hundred. Jennifer Lyn Campbell. Jenny smiled as she tore the slip loose.
Ah, the sweet sound of freedom
. She recorded the check, tucked the checkbook and pen back into her purse, and went in search of Mom.

Wednesday mornings, she volunteered in the school library, but she should be home now. Jenny’d deliberately dropped by before Michael got home so she could catch Mom alone. She pushed through the back door. “Mom?”

“In here.”

Jenny followed the sound of her mom’s voice to the study. Mom got up and rounded the desk.

“Just catching up on my email.” She smiled. “What’re you doing here in the middle of the day?”

Jenny pulled the check out of her back pocket. Shoulders back, chin up, she held it out. “Paying off my loan. Thank you very much, I appreciate the help.”

Jenny’d deliberately made the payment to both Mom and Dad, and she’d given it to Mom—not Dad—so she’d feel included.

Her mother took the check and stared at it a second before looking at Jenny. “I’d have loaned you the money, too.”

“I know.” Jenny gave her mom a hug. “You’ve always been there for me, even when other parents probably would have kicked me out, and I can’t tell you how much I appreciate all you and Dad have sacrificed and done. I don’t tell you that enough, but I
do
appreciate it.”

Mom shook her head. “We know. We don’t expect your undying gratitude. We’re happy to help—that’s what parents do.” She smiled, an impish glint lighting her eyes. “We just never suspected you’d need quite so much help.”

“Yeah, well, I didn’t either.”

“I’m glad you stopped by.” Mom put the check on her desk, sat on the couch, and patted the spot next to her. “Have a seat.”

Oh, no. Now what
? Jenny perched on the edge of the couch and watched her mom carefully.

Mom took a deep breath and raised troubled eyes to Jenny. “I’ve been giving your situation a lot of thought this past month.”

“My situation?” Jenny frowned. Financial situation? Her wedding? Her job?

“Your relationship with Dr.—with Gabe.”

“You mean my engagement?” Jenny’s thumb touched the underside of her engagement ring.

“Uh huh. Something’s been nagging me, and I think I figured it out. It’s the way it all came out. You sprang it on us.” She tilted her head to the side. “Why do you think that was?”

Jenny thought back to the day they got engaged. “Well, it was a surprise to me, too. I certainly wasn’t expecting Gabe to propose.” She looked at her mom. “I guess I was just excited and wanted to share my happiness with my family. Was that so wrong?”

“No, of course not. But we didn’t even know you were dating anybody, let alone in a serious relationship. You were dating, what? Four months? That’s plenty of time to introduce us. Bring him by for dinner, or to one of Michael’s soccer or tennis matches, or Dad’s birthday...” she trailed off. “But you didn’t say a word.

“You hid Gabe from us, like you were ashamed of him—or us. Then you suddenly announced you’re getting married and expected us to be thrilled for you.” She looked at Jenny. “What were we supposed to think?”

Jenny’s shoulders drooped, and she leaned back, away from the gentle accusations. When put that way, it sounded bad. Worse yet, it was true. “Okay, so I
did
keep it a secret, but only because I knew you wouldn’t approve—”

“And why is that? Are we so unreasonable? So close-minded? I think we’ve proven to be pretty flexible in the past.”

Jenny looked away from the hurt in her mother’s eyes and picked at her thumbnail. “Because of our age difference. Because he’s a doctor. He has kids. Because…”
You don’t trust me and think I’m immature and impulsive
.
Because I have a bad track record
. But she couldn’t say that.

“And why would we be concerned about all those things?”

“Because they complicate a relationship, and you don’t think I can handle it.” She frowned and looked at her mother. “I’m not stupid—”

“No, you’re definitely not stupid.” Mom shook her head. A hint of a smile curled her lips. “Headstrong, but never stupid. The thing is, it’s a mother’s job to teach and protect her kids, and, well, I haven’t done a very good job of it. I didn’t see it coming with Danny—”

“Danny wasn’t your fault, Mom, that’s all on me.”

“No.” She held up a hand. “I was too buried in my career. I wasn’t paying attention. I fell down on the job, but with Gabe, the challenges are obvious. I don’t want you to get hurt.”

“I won’t.”

“Marriage is a big deal, Jenny. It’s emotional and complicated and difficult to undo—especially when there are children involved. You have to think about his kids. What you do affects them, too. A failure of that magnitude is tough to recover from—for everyone.”

Jenny frowned and pushed aside Mom’s assumption that she’d fail. “That’s why you suggested we live together?”

“It’s not ideal, but it’d give you time and flexibility. Divorce is painful.” Mom covered her hand and looked her in the eye. “It’s not like before. Dad and I won’t be able to bail you out.”

Because naturally, Jenny was destined to crash and burn and would go running to her parents to pick up the pieces. Jenny raised her chin. “I wouldn’t ask you to.”

She didn’t even mind burning that bridge. A divorce would be painful, but unlike before, she could deal with that on her own. And seriously—she and Gabe were meant to be. There would be no divorce.

“Dealing with an ex can be difficult and being a stepmom...even harder. You’ve never had to be the bad guy or take responsibility for a child before. It’s tougher than you’d think.”

“Not a problem.” Jenny sat back against the couch, tucked one bent leg beneath her and fully faced her mom. “Judith’s this big-shot heart surgeon, and she and her second husband have two kids of their own, so she’s too busy to bother with us.

“And Gabe’s kids are great—we get along fine. Besides, they’re nearly raised. Ted left for school in Ann Arbor a few weeks ago, and Alex just got her driver’s license and Judith bought her a car, so I won’t even have to drive her around.” She shrugged. “Easy peasy.

“Besides, Gabe, Judith, and Dave have been juggling the parenting stuff for years. They’ve got it down. There’s nothing for me to do but stay out of their way and do my own thing with Gabe. It’s perfect.”

“Famous last words,” Mom muttered.

“Don’t worry. I know what I’m doing.” Jenny pursed her lip and cocked her head, trying to read her mom. “Sooo you’re okay with our marrying?”

“No.” She shook her head. “I still think you’re making a mistake. But there’s no way I’m going to let a man come between us. You’re my baby girl, and I love you.”

Not the full endorsement she’d hoped for, but it was something. Time and Gabe would eventually allay her fears. “He’s a good man, Mom.”

“I never doubted that.”

Right. She never doubted Gabe, just me
.

“However.” Mom took a deep breath. “I was hoping that maybe you’d consider extending your engagement and get married in the summer instead of February.”

Do what?
Jenny’s eyes grew wide and her jaw dropped. “Why would we do that?”

“Six more months would give us opportunity to get to know your future husband and his children. It’d give you and Gabe more time to get to know each other better and be certain that you
really
want to spend the rest of your lives together.

“You could move in together and have a trial run to make sure you’re compatible and give you confidence in your decision, which I think is critical when children are involved.” She looked Jenny in the eye. “Just consider it?”

That’s not going to happen
.

Jenny got a heavy feeling in the pit of her stomach as Mom laid out her plan. She’d clearly thought things through, and it was logical, but it wasn’t going to happen, and she wouldn’t understand. Mom was going to see this as another example of her being “impulsive.” Jenny was going to disappoint her mother again, and she hated it.

“I…I’d like to give you that peace of mind, but we can’t. That’s the other reason I’m here today. We’ve had a change of plans.”

Mom’s eyes narrowed, and she grew still.

“Instead of getting married at The Academy, having the reception at the Country Club in February with a hundred and fifty of our closest friends and family...we’re getting married on a beach in Maui, next month, with the family, Cindy, and her boyfriend, Dillon.”

“Next month.” Mom raised her eyebrows and stared hard. “You’re moving the wedding up.”

Jenny put a hand on her arm. “Don’t freak out. And, no, I’m still not pregnant. We’ll totally reimburse you for any deposits we lose, and Gabe wants to pay for everybody’s trip. It’s our gift to the family.”

“Your gift or his? Because last time I checked, you didn’t have that kind of money.”

Jenny rolled her eyes.
Fine.
“His.”

“Why
in the world
would you move it
up
?”

“It’s just that all the wedding plans were stressing me out, and I hated that everything I’d planned was a repeat of Gabe’s first wedding.”

“What do
his
parents think of this?”

“They’re dead. It’s—”

“Which we
would
have known
, if you weren’t in such a rush to—”

“They died when Gabe was twelve. His uncle George raised him.”

“So you’re canceling
everything
you’ve dreamed of for the past decade, for him?”

Seeing the color flush her mother’s cheeks and the glint of battle lighting her eyes, Jenny hurried on, but not before noting the irony of Mom’s protective reaction. Her mother didn’t approve of her marrying Gabe, but if they were going to do it, apparently she wanted it to be everything Jenny’d dreamed of.

“Not only for Gabe, for both of us. I was getting stressed out by all the millions of little details—”

“If it’s
that
stressful, you’re obviously not—”

“That’s only part of it.” She broke in, not wanting to hear more of her mom’s negativity. “I need this day to mean as much to Gabe as it does to me. I don’t want a redo of his first wedding. It
has
to be perfect for both of us.”

“But you’ve planned this day since you were a little girl.”

“I know, but my tastes have changed. We found this amazing all-inclusive five-star resort in Maui that’s perfect. We met with their wedding planner and got it all worked out. I’ve got my soul mate, my dream dress, the perfect bouquet, a wonderful meal, and dancing—we can even have the butterfly release.

“The only really disappointing thing is that the wedding cake comes with that nasty fondant icing—there are no other options. But I can live with that as long as the family’s all there.

“It’s October eighteenth—during Ted’s fall break. We got permission from Judith to take the kids, and I know you’ll have to take Michael out of school, and I know it’s short notice. And I know it’s a long way to go, but please, say you’ll come.”

Please, please, please. They have to come
. Jenny wasn’t even sure she could get married without her parents and Michael.

“Where do I even begin?” her mother muttered. “One month is not a lot of notice, and did you even think to consult anybody before finalizing a date? No. You expect everybody to drop everything and fly to Maui because you two want us to?

“Jennifer, weddings aren’t all about you two—that’s romantic marketing nonsense. Weddings are an art in negotiation, compromising what the bride and groom, and both families want. The way you start your marriage sets a tone for your future relationships and interactions with both sets of in-laws, and his kids. I’m sure you didn’t think of that.”

Jenny wanted to shrink under her critical stare. “Not exactly like that.”

“I’ll have to talk to Michael’s teachers and try to get his school assignments, and I have no idea if your father has a business trip scheduled then, but it’s likely he does, so you’re asking him to rearrange his work schedule.

“And you’re mighty cavalier about losing thousands of dollars in deposit money. I’d hoped when you showed up with that check, it meant you’d learned some fiscal responsibility, but obviously I was wrong.” She sighed. “We’ll do our best to make it to your wedding. However, we will pay our own way. We do
not
want to start out our relationship with your husband paying for us—he can’t buy his way into this family or our good graces.”

What
? Jenny scowled at the unfair accusation. Gabe was a sweet, generous man. Buying his way into the family was the last thing he’d think of. “He
wasn’t
trying to. Why do you have to make it sound so dirty? We realize what an inconvenience it would be, and he wanted to make up for that by doing something nice.”

Mom opened her eyes wide and tilted her head. “Did it ever occur to you that maybe we
wanted
to be more included in our only daughter’s wedding? More included than writing a check—oh, right, now you’ve taken that away for us, so we don’t even have the opportunity to give our only daughter a beautiful wedding.”

Are you kidding me right now? This is so unfair
. Never in a million years did Jenny expect this reaction.

“It’s as if you decided that by paying for everything yourself, you’d be able to have everything your way, and we could either fall in with your plans or not. Is that the type of relationship we can count on in the future? You two make all the decisions, and we can choose to participate or not? I have to say, I’m really hurt. I thought we raised you to be more considerate and family-oriented than that.”

Jenny sat quiet for a minute, letting her mom’s painful words sink in.

“I don’t even know what to say. Apparently I can’t do anything right.” Tears glistened in Jenny’s eyes, and disappointment roughened her voice. She was so tired of fighting—and losing. She sighed. “There’s no grand plot here, Mom. We aren’t trying to exclude you and Dad in any decisions. Your reaction to our engagement made it crystal clear that you weren’t enthusiastic about our wedding, so
why
would I think you’d want to be involved?