The Truth She Knew (23 page)

I bit my lip at the thought of how many parties I’d already gone too.

“
Mama, don’t get upset,” I said and sat down on the couch. “Joss’s mom will be there. Emma’s coming and a few of Walker’s friends, that’s all.”

“
You’re lying! As soon as I get home you’re pulling the same shit! I can’t believe it. You’re going over there to get drunk and party.”

“
Mama, take a breath. I’m telling you the truth. You can call Joss’s mom if you want to talk to her. She’s going to be there.”

“
I don’t give a fuck if she’s there or not, you’re not going to a party. I don’t give a rat’s ass who it’s for!”

I chewed on my lip as I stood up. Walker was right: it hadn’t lasted. Even though Mama had been diagnosed with high blood pressure, there was more to it. She’d been under a doctor’s care for a few weeks, her blood pressure was doing better, but she was still tearing me to pieces.

“
Mama, I love you very much and I’m not going to argue with you. Your health is important to me, but you need to understand that I love Walker. He’s going to be gone for six weeks, and I’m going to spend as much time with him as I can before he leaves. That includes tonight.”

I turned away and walked out the front door, leaving Mama fuming alone in her chair.

I gripped the steering wheel and willed my hands to stop shaking, but they shook the entire forty-five minutes I drove to Walker’s house. I’d never stood up to Mama like that. I had no idea what to expect when I went home tomorrow either, but I would deal with that then. For the next week, I planned on telling her I was working or at someone’s house. I’d also tell her I was with Walker and deal with the aftermath when he was gone.

I knocked on the door as I opened it. Walker was on the phone in the kitchen. Surprise crossed his face when I came in.

I tilted my head and questioned what was going on. He was acting weird.

“
Yeah, thanks, bye,” he said and hung up the phone.

“
What was that all about? You jumped when I walked in the door.”

“
Nothing, sorry, you just caught me off guard.”

“
What’s going on? Was it another girl?”

Frustration filled me at his secretiveness. As hard as I tried not to, I still worried about him finding someone else. Maybe that was stupid, but he was with Brittany for a long time. Even the list Garrett provided was half girls, and some of them would be there tonight.

“
What? No, no, nothing like that. I was just talking to Aunt Linda about some stuff with Mom. I promise there’s no one else for me, only you,” he said and smiled.

“
Promise?”

“
Promise,” he said and kissed me hello.

“
Mmmm, okay,” I whispered between kisses as I mentally pushed the fear away. “You smell magnificent. I could take you to your bedroom right now,” I said, laughing.

“
No dinner first?”

“
Yes, so sorry, I’ll take you out to eat first and
then
I’ll take you to your bedroom.”

“
That makes me a happy man all the way around,” he said and smiled.

I’d told him I was treating him to dinner, but on the way, I planned to make an excuse that I needed to stop by Joss’s house first. He had no clue what we were really doing, which made me happy enough to forget my earlier concern about him finding someone else.

We left the house and I mentioned I needed to stop by Joss’s house. I almost panicked when I pulled into her driveway. There weren’t any cars there except hers and her mom’s. Had I gotten the night wrong? I was pretty sure it was tonight. In fact, we’d confirmed everything yesterday at school, so where was everyone?

We got out of the car and I knocked on the door as I opened it, pulling Walker into the dark living room.

“
Surprise!” The lights came on, music started blasting, and an entire room of twenty-five people stood there, beaming.

I thought I was prepared, but I screamed like a little girl. I stepped backward, right onto Walker’s foot, and then burst into nervous giggles.

I turned around and hugged him as he acknowledged all his friends. Joss and Emma had done a fantastic job with the “Good Luck,” “We’ll Miss You,” and “Kick Some Ass” banners throughout the living and dining room. Red, yellow, and blue balloons were tied to the lamps and some floated close to the ceiling. The house was already full of people.

I stepped to the side and let Walker get smacked on the back and put into headlocks by all the guys. I rolled my eyes at the girls who hugged him longer than I would’ve liked. I made my way to the snacks, where Joss and Emma stood waiting.

“
You two are amazing!” I yelled above the music and hugged them both. “Where the hell did everyone park? I thought I’d gotten the wrong night!”

“
They’re all up the road in the empty pasture,” Joss said, laughing.

Arms encircled my waist and a kiss landed on my cheek.

“
That had better be Walker or I’m going to punch someone square in the nose,” I said.

“
Thank you,” Walker said.

“
You’re so welcome, and I’m sorry I stepped on your foot. Are you okay?” I giggled again.

“
I’m alright.”

Emma cleared her throat and smiled at me.

“
I’m sorry, Emma. Walker, you’ve met Joss, and this is Emma. She’s my other best friend who I’ve told everything to. She and her family have let me stay with them on several occasions.”

“
Thank you, Emma, for being there for Lacey. She’ll be okay while I’m gone as long as she has both of you.”

“
She’s gonna be just fine,” Joss promised. Her warm smile reassured us all.

More of Walker’s friends showed up and pulled him away. The beer started flowing, along with the vodka and rum. I waved at Joss’s mom across the room and blew her a kiss. I’d get through all the people eventually and hug her.

People stopped streaming in a few hours later and the house was at full capacity. Walker was having a great time, but every twenty minutes or so he’d come over for a kiss and check if I was doing okay before he got pulled away again. I was perfectly happy hanging out with Joss and Emma. I loved watching him laugh and have fun. Joss always remembered to take pictures, too, which was another reason she was so great. She remembered the important details.

A few couples found some dark corners in the living room and started making out while others started dancing.

Then one of Walker’s good friends, James, turned the music off and started chanting, “Speech, speech, speech, speech!” Everyone joined in until Walker stepped up and quieted the room. I joined the others as everyone settled into their seats. I hadn’t seen Walker with a large group of people before. The girls stared at him completely mesmerized and the guys settled down the minute Walker asked. Apparently he had the ability to lead, which shouldn’t have surprised me, but it did. I just hadn’t been around him in high school.

I leaned against the wall, a little more in awe of him. Joss and Emma joined me.

“
I can’t thank everyone enough for showing up,” Walker said, addressing the room. “This has been amazing. I wasn’t sure I was going to have the opportunity to say goodbye to a lot of you before I left . . . Joss, Emma, Lacey, thank you for making this happen.” He grinned at us.

“
Some of you have already heard that I leave next Sunday for boot camp in Texas. I’ll be gone for six weeks. My mom and brother will stay here, of course, and I’ll come back home as soon as I can. The hope is that I’ll get stationed in Little Rock so I’ll be close to my family. I won’t be far.”

He paused for a moment before continuing.

“
After I’d already enlisted, something happened. I met someone.” He glanced my way.

Everyone sat still as Walker talked, but some of the girls he’d attended high school with whispered and giggled. I’d forgotten how catty it could be.

“
I’d like everyone to meet my girlfriend, Lacey,” he said as he motioned for me to join him.

I could feel the heat on my cheeks as everyone stared. I glanced back at Joss and Emma for support. They met me with broad smiles. I turned to focus on Walker and took a breath. I didn’t do well in front of large groups. It didn’t come as naturally for me as it did him.

“
Lacey,” he said as he turned to face me.

He reached his hand out to James and took something, but I couldn’t tell what it was.

“
Lace, I love you. You’re beautiful, generous, and caring. You stole my heart in this very living room and I haven’t been the same since. You’re the strongest person I know other than my mom,” he paused as he lowered himself to one knee and flipped open a little box.

“
Lacey Anne Beaumont, will you marry me?”

I’m not sure who gasped louder: the girls in the group or me.

I stared at him on one knee as the question sank in. He was asking me to marry him, be his wife, and wear an engagement ring while he was gone.

Holy shit.
 

“
Yes, yes, I’ll marry you!” I squealed.

My hands shook as I reached for him. He stood and picked me up in one motion and kissed me in front of everyone.

“
I love you muches and muches and muches,” he whispered as he put me down. He reached for my hand and the group cheered as he slid the diamond ring onto my finger.

I stared at the ring on my finger in shock. I had no clue what Walker had been up to. It was beautiful.
Lacey Anne Farren.
I could deal with that. I could totally deal with it.

I peered at him and grinned from ear to ear. “So, when I walked into your house earlier and you were acting funny, were you talking to James about tonight?”

“
Yeah, you almost caught me talking about proposing. James had picked up the ring for me and I was making sure everything was in place.”

“
Wait! You knew? You knew about the party?”

“
Have I told you my brother can’t keep a secret?” Walker said, laughing.

“
Ohhhh! He’s in trouble! He promised he could keep his mouth shut. But, you! I had no clue you had any idea.”

“
Yeah, I’m much better at keeping secrets,” he said as he pulled me close and kissed me. “Mrs. Walker Farren. You’re going to wear it well.”

“
Yes I am,” I said, returning his kiss.

We made our way to the other side of the house with Joss and Emma. Joss hugged me tight and confessed that she’d known the whole time. Emma did as well; they were all in on it. We were supposed to surprise Walker, not me.

Emma needed to leave and I walked her outside. The chill of the night air greeted me as we stepped outside. I rubbed my arms in an attempt to ward it off.

“
Are you really going to get married?” Emma asked as we walked to the field and located her car. The flashlight revealed what could have been mistaken for a used car lot. The cars had multiplied like gremlins.

Well, it had started out to be a small party,
I thought.

“
I love him. He shocked the shit out of me, but I’d marry him in a New York second.”

“
Promise me you’ll wait for a while, though.”

“
What’s the matter? Are you not supporting us?”

I was confused. She’d helped Walker set everything up—didn’t that mean she was on board?

“
I’m not saying that at all. I think Walker’s a great guy, but you both have a lot going on. He’s leaving next weekend, his mom is sick, and so is yours. All I’m asking is that you wait to set a date for a while, that’s all.”

“
That’s fair. I mean, I understand what you’re saying. We won’t make any big plans until after boot camp is over and he gets stationed somewhere. We’ll know more then, okay? I love you for caring, Emma,” I said as I reached out and hugged her. “Thank you so much for helping tonight.”

“
You’re very welcome,” she said as she hugged me back.

“
Be safe going home,” I said and shut the car door behind her.

I stood in the cold as she pulled out onto the road. Everything had happened so fast that I hadn’t digested it yet. I considered what Emma had said, but we had plenty of time to talk about it. There wasn’t any real rush, except Susan. He would want Susan to be there, and so would I.

My stomach flipped at the thought of getting married in a few weeks. It was fast. It scared me, and on top of that, how in the hell would I tell Mama? I didn’t have to worry about that tonight, though. Tonight I was with Walker, and we were engaged.

I found Walker in the middle of a group of girls who were congratulating him. They didn’t have their hands on him, so there wasn’t a need to leave a solitaire imprint on their face. I finally made my way to Joss’s mom and hugged her. She fussed over me and my new ring. We made plans to talk about the wedding while Walker was away.

I glanced at the clock—midnight had arrived fast. Most everyone had left for other parties or gone home. I’d laughed as the girls quickly funneled out the door after the proposal. I was ready to go as well. All the excitement had me anxious to talk to Walker and find out more about where his thoughts were concerning a date.

I made my way into Joss’s bedroom and grabbed my purse. We’d spent many nights laughing together and discussing life in this room. I hoped I wouldn’t lose that when I got married. I pulled her bedroom door closed behind me as James walked out of the bathroom.

“
Hey,” he said.

“
Hi, James. Listen, I wanted to say thank you for helping Walker with the ring,” I said. “You’re a great friend and I appreciate everything you did. It means a lot to me and I hope you and I can become friends.”