She took a few slow steps into the room, turning around slowly and taking it all in. He continued talking while she looked around. “There's a closet over there, and the bathroom's through here.” He opened a door and turned on the light switch. “I'm afraid there's no tub in here, but the shower is big.”
She nodded again and peered into the empty closet. The floor was bare dark wood and gave the room an echo-y feeling that was compounded by the austere uncovered windows and the plain white walls. Thinking back, she realized there wasn't a single picture hanging in the entire apartment, just vast white walls everywhere she looked. This room had nothing but a queen-sized bed on a simple metal frame, no headboard, no dresser, just a small square nightstand with two tiny drawers on one side of the bed.
The bathroom was a little bit better, but only because the white subway tiles reaching halfway up the wall had a blue accent tile running through them. There was nothing soft in sight. Looking next to the commode, she noticed there wasn't even any toilet paper.
“Well, what do you think?” He hadn't been concerned at all about showing her his place, but now that she was there, and hadn't said a single word since they walked in, he was beginning to wonder if he should have given this more thought.
“It's very... white. And empty.” Her voice sounded louder in the bare space.
“Yes, I've never done anything with it. I just bought this bed last year when my cousin came to visit. It's not old, but if it isn't comfortable to you, go ahead and change it.”
“How long have you lived here?”
“Two years. My parents had a place on the upper west side, but it was too big for me on my own, and my sister owns half of it. Making changes can be tricky, so I just bought this.”
She nodded, wandering back into the hall and looking around silently.
He continued, “I never hired a decorator—I don't really entertain and it has what I need.” Why do I feel like I need to defend myself? My home is perfectly fine. And a lot bigger than the cracker box she lives in.
“Would you mind if I painted my room?” she finally asked.
“No, of course not. It's your room, you can do whatever you want in there. Just don't knock down any walls or anything.”
She smiled and gestured toward a door across the hall. “What's in there?”
“That's another guest room. It's empty though.”
He opened the door and she saw he was right. It was a white square with a small window and absolutely nothing in it.
“Can I see your room?”
“My room?”
“Yeah, the place where you sleep?”
“Umm, sure. It's down here.” He led her back down the hall and opened the door at the end.
The room was spacious with an entire wall of windows, a feature that seemed to be prevalent on that side of the apartment. There was an enormous California king platform bed on one wall, flanked by two shiny black nightstands. The bed was covered in a fluffy charcoal gray duvet. There was a long, low dresser across from the bed and a cozy armchair in the corner with a floor lamp next to it. Otherwise, it was as empty as the rest of the house.
“Is that your bathroom?” she asked, pointing to a door on the right.
“Yes,” he answered, trying to remember if he had left any underwear on the floor.
She walked in and stopped short. “Oh, Holy face of Moses!”
“What?” he asked, coming up behind her. “What's wrong?”
“This bathroom is bigger than my bedroom.” She walked in slowly, looking around in awe at the warm colors on the floor tile and the endless double vanity. “How many people can fit in this shower?” She opened the door and stepped in, shoes and all, and stretched out her arms. “I can't even reach both sides! How many heads are there?” She began counting the spigots on the wall behind her as Harper shifted from surprise to diversion at her behavior.
She looked back at his amused expression, slightly chagrined at her own excitement. “Sorry. I don't usually ooh and ah over other people's bathrooms. Guess I'm getting more comfortable with you,” she said uneasily.
He looked at her for a moment, then replied, “Good. That's what we want.”
She smiled in response.
“Did you see the tub?” he asked.
She looked at him with excitement and turned around. “Oh. My. God. That might be the most glorious thing I've ever seen.”
He chuckled. “Thought you might like that. It's great to soak in on cold winter nights.”
“You'd probably drain your water heater before you filled it up!”
“It's tankless.”
She gasped and faced him, her hand on her chest. “Be still my heart.”
He laughed. “Feel free to use it. I guess it isn't really fair that you don't have a tub in your bathroom.”
“Be sure you mean that. I just might take you up on it.”
He laughed again, oddly proud of himself that he had something that made her so obviously happy.
“Come on, let's eat. Food's getting cold.”
**
The next morning, Will walked Liz to her eight o’clock class. He left her outside the English building with a quick kiss and a squeeze of the hand he’d been holding. Liz said goodbye, then turned to walk up the steps and go inside.
“Damn, girl! That is a prime piece of real estate! You gonna get you some land?”
Liz laughed when she heard the familiar voice. “Thanks, Angie. William will be thrilled to know he’s on your hot list.”
“So it’s true? You’re dating William Harper?”
“Not you, too! I never pictured you as the page six type.”
“Why? Because I’m not a skinny white girl?” she asked.
“Nice try. Because you’re not vapid and shallow.”
“Well, not vapid, but shallow can be fun sometimes.” Liz laughed and they continued up to the third floor. “Besides, Sheila told me. So, tell me everything! Is he as hot out of that suit as he is in it? Hairy or smooth? Come on, woman! I need details!”
“You know a lady never kisses and tells.”
Angie looked around. “Do you see any ladies here? Now spill!”
“Oh, all right. Yes, he’s just as hot out of the suit.”
Angie raised a brow. “And?”
“Hairy.”
“Ha! I knew it! Has he bought you tons of diamonds yet? What’s his place like? Did he take you shopping? Is he good? He looks like he’d be good. Is he good?”
“Whoa, slow down! No, he hasn’t taken me shopping or bought me tons of diamonds, or any diamonds for that matter. And his place is very nice. And that is ALL I’m telling you!”
“Party pooper!” She pouted as they took their seats.
Just then, Sheila plopped down on Liz’s other side. “Did I miss it? Has she spilled?”
“No, you didn’t miss anything,” Liz said as Angie motioned to Sheila behind her back. “William is my boyfriend, he’s very nice, I really like him a lot, and that’s all I’m telling you,” Liz said firmly.
Angie leaned across her and spoke to Sheila. “No diamonds yet, but I think it’s only a matter of time.” Liz gave her a look. “What? I saw how he dropped you off. That boy is a smitten kitten.”
Liz rolled her eyes.
“Ten says she’s sporting bling before the semester’s out,” Sheila said.
“Twenty says she’s got it by Saturday,” replied Angie. “That man comes money.”
Liz let her head fall to the desk. “I need new friends,” she murmured.
***
“Hey, Jenny. Ready to go?” Liz popped her head into Jen's office a little before one o'clock.
“Yeah, I'm starving! Where do you want to eat?”
“Your turn to pick.”
“Let's go to that deli on the corner.” She followed Liz out of the building, and as soon as they were outside, turned to her sister. “So how did last night go?”
“I got something shiny.” Liz held up the key to Harper's apartment
that now dangled from her key chain as Jen smiled in approval.
“What was his place like? Trust fund chic or dirty bachelor pad?”
“Neither. It was mostly empty. And white. There wasn't a single thing hung on the walls—anywhere! Except mirrors in the bathrooms, but I don't think those count.”
“Are you going to redecorate?”
“I'll do my room. I have to. It's completely depressing. All stark and echo-y. The mattress was so hard, I lay awake half the night thinking I was in some sort of asylum.”
Jenny laughed. “Oh, no! That's awful! What are you going to do?”
“Feel like painting with me?”
“Always. When?”
“Well, I am busy dating this week and studying, and next week is exams, but my last one is Thursday morning. We could start Thursday afternoon. What do you think?”
“Works for me. I can't get there till after five, though.”
“That's fine. That'll give me time to tape it off and get everything ready. I think I'll move my stuff into the guest room first. I'm thinking of doing that room as well. It's completely empty right now, so I don't think he'd mind. If someone comes to visit, we'll have somewhere to put them.”
“Do you think you'll have houseguests?”
“I don't know, but we'll be there a while, so we might. Maybe it could double as a guest room/den for me. I don't know if William will take to me sharing his living room. It's got a major man-cave vibe going on right now.”
“Ugh. I hate those places. Nothing but leather and big screen TV's,” Jenny agreed.
“Exactly. I'd love to take a can of paint to the whole place, but I don't want to insult him or take over his home.”
“But it's your home now, too. You'll be living there just as much as him.” Liz shrugged. “I know you. You say you want to be nice now, but after living in a hospital for a month, you'll be going crazy. Just talk to him about it. Maybe you can do it together. Be all domestic and choose paint colors and fabric swatches.”
“Haha, Jenny. I can't see me getting domestic with Will. Actually, I can't really see Will getting domestic at all. He's so... contained.”
Jen just raised a brow and looked at her sister. “Uh huh. Come on, let's eat. I'm starving and I've been craving this all week.”
After they slid into a deserted corner booth and placed their orders, Liz passed an envelope to Jen.
“What's this?”
“Look.”
Jen opened it and slid out the contents. “Oh! The pictures! Do you like them? What does William think?”
“I like them fine, Will didn't really say anything. He smiled once, but otherwise I got no feedback. He did say he thought they would suffice, though.”
“Wow. He's kind of close-lipped, huh?”
“Yeah. I'm hoping he'll loosen up when he knows me better. When he has something to talk about, like something he knows and understands well, like work, he talks plenty. But if you want information out of him that he wasn't prepared to give, forget about it.”
Jen made a sympathetic face and flipped through the pictures. “Oh, this one's funny!” She held up a picture of William with Liz's foot on his chest. “Love the red nail polish.”
“Thanks. I thought it was a nice touch.”
“So it looks like you were pretty relaxed together.”
“Yeah, it was awkward at first, of course, but we warmed up to each other pretty quickly. You know, it was funny,” she said thoughtfully. “When he got behind the camera, he seemed less nervous, almost determined. He actually put me at ease. You should have heard the way he was directing me. 'Look over here, arms up, smile, turn to the side'. I felt like Heidi Klum, but shorter and less blond.”
“Maybe he felt more comfortable behind the lens than in front of it. Is photography a hobby of his?”
“I don't know. I'll have to ask him. If it's not, it should be. He was really good at it.”
“How's the studying going?”
“Good. I have a final project due tomorrow and then four exams next week. I feel like all I'm doing is studying and going to dinner.”
“You're almost there, you'll make it.”
“I know. It' just that end of semester exhaustion. I am really looking forward to a free summer.”
“I thought you were thinking about taking a class or two so your load would be lighter in the fall?”
“I was, I am.” She sighed tiredly. “I know I should, but right now, I am just so tired that spending three months relaxing sounds great. But then I know the fall will be crazy hectic with everything I'll be doing with Will and classes and my work with Mark.”
“I didn't know you were still working with The Passionate Professor,” Jen said with a look.
“Yeah.” She sighed. “I quit tutoring in a few days—I have my last lesson Monday—and I’ll stop with the dogs some time after the wedding. But when I talked to Mark about not being his assistant anymore, he flipped. He offered me more money and told me he'd do anything to get me to stay.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. He said he was counting on me and that it would throw the whole schedule off for him to have to find a new assistant.”
“So what did you say? Did you take the money?”
“Of course! I'm not stupid! I work my butt off for him and he knows it. So I'll keep working with him a few hours a week and just try to juggle everything. If it gets to be too much, I can always cut back. He's supposed to publish in February, so it's not that long, anyway.”
“Well, good luck, little sister.”
“Thanks. I'm going to need it.”
**
That night, Liz was attending a fundraiser with William. He came by her apartment a few minutes early to pick her up. Before she could grab her purse to leave, he handed her a long narrow box in a telling blue color.
“What’s this?”
“It’s a gift. Open it.”
She gingerly took the top off the box to reveal a long, slender black velvet case. She opened it slowly and there sat a large diamond pendant on a dainty chain.
“I thought you could wear it tonight… if it matches your gown, that is,” he said, almost shyly. The truth was he had never given a woman jewelry before (except for family and he didn’t think that counted), and he was more than a little nervous about his selection. Evelyn, his assistant, had told him you couldn’t go wrong with simple diamonds, so that’s what he got. Now, looking at her face as she stared at the glimmering stone, he wondered if he’d made the right choice.
“If you don’t like it, we can exchange it for something else. It’s no problem. I didn’t really know your tastes—”
Suddenly, he was cut off by Liz’s lips against his and her hand on the back of his neck holding him closer. After a long moment, he responded and kissed her back, putting his hand on the small of her back and pulling her to him.
“I like it. A lot,” she said when they pulled apart a moment later. “Thank you. I don’t think I’ve ever been given anything so beautiful.” She smiled warmly and he smiled back, all his nervousness gone for the moment. “Do you mind?”
She held out the opened necklace and turned her back to him, pulling her hair out of the way. After he secured the clasp, he kissed the back of her neck softly.
“There. Are we all set now?” he asked.
“Yes. I just need my wrap.” She grabbed a silk shawl off the back of the chair and followed him out the door.
On the way, she couldn’t resist sending a text message to Angie. Sheila owes you $20. A minute later her phone buzzed with a reply. Yes! I knew it! Send me a pic later!
8
The Proposal
Late April, Thursday
1 Day to Marriage
“I can't believe that after tonight you'll be engaged!” Jennifer exclaimed.
“I know. It's all a little surreal,” Liz answered.
“And we're going to Vegas tomorrow.” Jennifer clasped her hands together. “If this were real,
it would be so romantic!”
“Since when is Vegas romantic?”
“Not that part, but getting proposed to on top of the Empire State Building-”
“In front of a bunch of reporters,” Liz interrupted.
“And being whisked away to celebrate-”
“To Vegas.”
“In a private plane.” Jen sighed and fell back onto the pillows of Liz's bed.
“Are you sure you don't want to marry him?”
“Oh, Lizzy! Where's your sense of romance? This might be the only time you get proposed to. You should enjoy it.”
“Hey! Who says I won't get married after this?”
“That's not what I meant. Nowadays people just discuss it and start planning. There's not even always a real proposal—and definitely not one this romantic. Who knows, you might propose the second time.”
“Seriously? I would never propose. If he can't man-up enough to ask, what kind of marriage would that be? I don't think so. I'll start out as I mean to continue, thank you very much.”
“You sounded just like mom for a minute there.”
“Not funny, Jenny!”
Jenny laughed and rolled off the bed to begin shuffling through Liz's closet. “So have you decided what you're going to wear tonight?”
Liz scrunched up her nose as she looked in the tiny closet. “So far, it's between the vintage floral dress I bought last summer and the new red dress. What do you think?”
“I love the vintage, but I think it's a little more daytime. The red dress screams glamour and night on the town.”
They both stood back and looked at the two dresses hanging side by side, identical expressions of concentration on their faces.
“All right, the red dress it is.”
“Good choice. Jewelry?”
“The diamond studs dad gave me for graduation and my new necklace.”
Jen's eyebrows shot up. “What new necklace?”
“I can't believe I forgot to tell you! Will gave it to me Tuesday night for the benefit we went to.” She handed Jen a delicate chain with a diamond pendant hanging in the center. “Here. What do you think?”
“It's beautiful! How many carats is this thing?”
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