Sometime Soon (33 page)

“Thank goodness for that.” Laura’s
hands unclench and she rests her open palms on her knees. “I like him, Andy. I
really like what you tell me about him. It sounds like he already knows you
pretty well, too, and he doesn’t take it too seriously or personally when you
say stupid stuff like that.”

 “He’s a confident person.
It’s not in your face or anything, but I think he has a pretty healthy ego. And
what I said wasn’t that stupid. Ryan actually thinks I’m nice.”

Laura’s still critical stare
softens. “You are nice. You just like to poke the bear sometimes to see what
kind of a reaction you’ll get. You may have done it unintentionally, but you
were doing it again when you said that to Ryan. Would you really not spend the
night at his place because of Tiger?”

My shoulders slump because I’m
afraid she’s right. “I don’t know. I guess not. I’d feel badly about leaving
him alone all night. I know that much.”

“By the way, I ran into David Rose
last week. It was awkward,” she says, wrinkling her nose and adding a
high-pitched, sing-song tone to the word
awkward
.

“Sorry.”

“Whatever. No big deal. It was at
the courthouse. He tried to pretend he hadn’t seen me even though he was about
two feet away. I pointedly said hello to him. He reluctantly said it back and
then took off as fast as humanly possible.”

“Wow. I actually made him run from
you. I think I’m a little proud of that.”

Laura tries to stifle her laugh.
“It was kind of funny. I think his face actually turned red when he realized I
wasn’t going to ignore him.”

“No more fix-ups,” I state. “I
don’t want to make you an outcast among your colleagues.”

“Hopefully, no more need for them,”
she quickly responds.

I smile because I’m hoping so, too.
Then I point to Laura’s laptop sitting open on the coffee table. “So, how about
those wedding bands?”

Laura pulls her laptop onto the
couch between us. “I’m going to schedule the first dress fitting for next
Saturday. Is that good for you?”

“I think so. If not, I’ll let you
know.”

“Okay. Here’s the first one.” 
Laura clicks the play button to start the video, and loud, thrashing music
blares at us through the speakers. I notice that the lead singer of the band
has a blue Mohawk and he is covered in tattoos that can be seen through his
ripped wife-beater.

“What do you think?” she asks with
an eager expression.

“You must really be mad at Mom,” I
snicker.

“This is just what they play out at
clubs. They can play whatever we want at the wedding.”

I turn back to the laptop. “It’s
hard to picture them playing at your wedding. I don’t think my imagination is
that good.”

She huffs with frustration. “Okay.
What about this one?”

She clicks play again, and another
video starts. This time, I see a group of clowns with painted faces and green
polka-dot jumpsuits. They’re singing “Happy Birthday.”

“Those are
clowns,” I state.

“If we hire them for the wedding,
they won’t be dressed as clowns, Andrea,” she says like she’s talking to a
two-year old. “This video is from a children’s birthday party.”

“But you can’t tell anything from
these videos.”

She closes her laptop with more
force than necessary. “I don’t have time to run around and see all these bands.
This is the best I can do.”

 “Fine. Then hire the clowns.
At least they’re happy.”

Laura’s face drops into her hands.
“I can’t do this anymore.  It’s too much work. It’s a full-time job, and I
already have a full-time job.”

I move the laptop back to the coffee
table and slide closer to her. “I’m going to call Mom and tell her you want to
hire the band I saw with them. I’ll talk her into it. I think they were good,
you know, for a wedding band. Mom and Dad seemed to like them when they weren’t
playing too loudly.”

Laura shakes her head and turns
shiny eyes on me. “Mom said they were too expensive.”

“I didn’t get the feeling they were
outrageously expensive. They just weren’t the cheapest. You trust my opinion,
right?”

She nods. “I do trust you, but I
almost don’t care what they sound like at this point. Do you really think you
could talk her into it?”

I nod.

“You’re welcome to try,” she says,
her voice tinged with resignation. She is already certain of my defeat.

“I’ll do more than try. I’ll get it
done. See? Ryan is right. I am nice.” I grin triumphantly even though I have no
idea if I can pull this off.

Laura’s watery smile strengthens my
resolve to help her.

“You’re the best,” she tells me,
before she turns and hugs me.

Tiger jumps up on the bed and blinks
at me. He walks across my legs, notices that I’m not alone, and then he blinks
at me once more before jumping back down again and trotting out into the
hallway. I’ve slept later than usual and he wants his breakfast. Having company
over nearly every night for the past couple of weeks has left Tiger feeling
neglected and out of sorts.

I quietly slip out from under the
blankets and follow him down the stairs to the kitchen. Dodging his impatient
mouth, I manage to get the food into his bowl, and I watch him go at it like he
hasn’t eaten in days.

 Tiger has not spent the night
alone yet. I’ve offered to stay at Ryan’s house several times, but he has not
taken me up on it. He wants to wait until he has a litter box set up at his
house. That way, Tiger can come with me when I stay. I grinned like an idiot
when he casually made that suggestion.

I plug in the coffeemaker, pour in
the water, and lower my head in defeat when I realize that I don’t have any
coffee. I hear a low chuckle behind me. I turn to see a gorgeously rumpled Ryan
standing in the doorway in nothing but his boxers. He’s smiling at me, and I
place a hand on the counter to prevent myself from dissolving into a puddle at
the sight of him.

“You never have anything to eat or
drink here, but somehow that fact keeps surprising you,” he teases.

“I always intend to go grocery
shopping. I’m just not so good on the follow through,” I say soberly.

“That’s okay. You’re good at other
things.” He closes the distance between us and gathers me to him for a kiss. “What
time do you have to be at the dress shop today?” he asks, as he places his
hands on the countertop on either side of me, effectively trapping me there.

I feel his warm breath move over my
ear and down my neck. “Not until four-thirty,” I reply, my eyelids fluttering
shut as his tongue darts out and touches the sensitive skin just below my
earlobe.

“You said it’s down Route 95, near
Rhode Island?”

I nod my response when he presses
his whole body against me.

“Maybe I’ll go with you,” he
suggests casually. “We can drive into Providence for dinner.”

This surprises me. I lean my head
back to look up at him. “You want to come to my dress fitting with me?”

“Sure.” He shrugs. “Then we can do
dinner. Maybe go someplace on the water. They do that water fire show on the
weekends, don’t they?”

“Yes, they do.” I smile. “That
sounds really nice.”

He grins back at me. “Then it’s a
date.”

“My mom and sister will be there,”
I warn.

“Then I’ll get to meet them. Is
that okay?”

“It’s okay with me if it’s okay
with you,” I reply as though I’m indifferent to it, but I’m most certainly not.

He places his hands on my
shoulders. “I know how close you are with your family,

Andrea. I’d really like to meet
them.”

I smile hesitantly.

He laughs and pulls me back in for
a hug. “Why do you look like you want to throw up?”

“I do not look like I want to throw
up,” I protest. “I know my family is going to love you.”  That’s the
problem, although I don’t tell Ryan that. My mother is going to be over the
moon about him. I only hope she can play it a little cool and not embarrass us
both.

“It will be fine,” he reassures me.

“Want me to run out for coffee?” I
ask. “And maybe I could pick up something for breakfast?”

Ryan reaches over me to pull open a
kitchen cabinet. “Well, if you don’t feel like going out, it looks like we’ve
got one bag of chips and tap water.”

“Oh. We’re good then.”

He laughs as he shakes his head at
me. “Your eating habits are terrible.”

I shrug and playfully hip-check him
as I walk past. “Come on,” I call back over my shoulder. “I’ll take you out to
breakfast.”

“Okay. Anywhere but that waffle
place.”

Ryan parallel parks a few doors
down from the dress shop. When Laura gave me the directions, she told me that my
dress and the other bridesmaids’ dresses had all been purchased here. Her
wedding dress is being made at a fancy boutique in town.

As we make our way toward the
entrance, Ryan has his arm loosely draped around my shoulder. I can’t help but
admire the way he looks in his grey turtleneck sweater and black pants. We’re
dressed up for our dinner later tonight. Even though it’s only late afternoon,
the sky is already starting to darken. Without the warmth of the sun, the air
has a definite bite to it. 

Once we reach the door, a knot
forms in my stomach, and I try to reason myself into calmness. Beside me, Ryan
appears completely unconcerned as he pulls open the heavy glass door and waits
for me to go inside. I poke my head into the bright bridal shop and peer around.
Then I freeze as I take in the sight of my entire family standing inside. It’s
not just Laura and Mom. Jonathan and Dad are here, too.

I feel the pressure of Ryan’s hand
on my back, gently nudging me forward. I see Laura smiling hesitantly at me before
shrugging and rolling her eyes. She told them. I told her that Ryan would be
with me, and she told them. The pressure on my back increases and I realize
that I’m blocking the doorway.  Once I finally step in, my mother
approaches me with a smile brighter than the high-beams on my Honda.

“Hello, Andrea.” She greets me
using the pleasant tone she puts on for company. “Introduce us to your friend.”

Ryan moves next to me. He is
standing so close that our arms are touching. I realize that he’s crowding me
purposely, offering me his warmth and his support.

“Mom, this is Ryan Miller.”

Ryan smiles at her. “Hello, Mrs.
Whitman.”

“Call me Karen. It’s so nice to
meet you.” Then she takes Ryan’s hand in hers and squeezes it.

Mom takes over the remaining introductions,
and I subtly move away, needing some space to breathe. I don’t feel as though
I’m deserting Ryan because he seems so completely at ease.

“Should I bother getting to know
this one?” Jonathan whispers beside me.

I dart him a displeased look.

He chuckles and offers me a quick
hug. “Just kidding.”

Grudgingly, I smile in return.

“Not completely though,” he adds
before taking his turn to meet and shake hands with Ryan.

Just then, Laura tries to slip past
me. I step into her path. “What is everyone doing here?” I ask.

She grimaces. “I know. Sorry. It
wasn’t me. Jonathan mistakenly mentioned to Mom that Ryan was coming with you.
Don’t worry though. He’s great and so handsome. He’s doing fine.” Laura takes
my hand. “I really need to thank you. Mom called me this morning to ask if she
could hire the band you all went to see. How did you manage that?”

I smile and shrug. “I just reasoned
with her.”

Laura eyes me suspiciously before
embracing me, profusely thanking me again, and moving to talk to a short, dark-haired
lady at the back of the store.

What I’d actually done was drop by
Mom and Dad’s house unexpectedly last week and convinced them that Laura was on
the verge of a nervous breakdown. I told them they needed to hire one of the
bands they’d already seen before she loses it completely. They didn’t
immediately cave. It took a detailed description, maybe somewhat embellished,
of Laura’s deteriorating state of mind to turn them around. Dad agreed first
and he convinced Mom.

I notice Laura pointing me out to
the woman she’s speaking to. Then she’s calling my name and waving me over. I
glace back at Ryan, filling with pride as I recognize the effort he’s making
for me. I’ve come to learn that he’s not exactly gregarious and outgoing. But
in his own quiet, determined way, he goes after what he wants. I have the
feeling he usually gets it.

I head to the dressing room for the
fitting. The same dark lady introduces herself as Nadia the seamstress. She
shows me the dress and leaves me to change. I notice the deep red-violet color,
but that’s all that registers as I slip out of my clothes and into the long
gown. My thoughts are still out there, wondering what my parents might be
saying to Ryan now.

When I emerge from the dressing
room, all conversation ceases. The seamstress motions for me stand on a
platform in front of a full-length mirror.

“It’s beautiful,” Mom says as her
eyes travel over me.

I can feel my cheeks heating at the
exposed feeling I have as I stand in the full-length gown in front of everyone.
It’s strapless, with a sweetheart neckline and a fitted bodice. It’s only
pinned on, and it buckles at my waist and hips. But I have to admit, the color
does seem to suit me. For the first time since I re-entered the room, I seek
out Ryan. When I locate him still standing by the doorway, his eyes are glued
to me, and the admiration I see in them causes me to blush even more.

The seamstress yanks on the dress
in an attempt to pull my attention back to her. “Turn around,” she mumbles
through the pins clenched between her lips. I turn toward the mirror and watch
the room reflected behind me while Nadia works on the hem around my ankles.

Mom’s jubilation is apparent in
every pleased glance she throws my way. She can barely control her glee, and
I’m on edge waiting for her to do something over the top like hugging Ryan and
welcoming him to the family.