Chapter Ten
It was a busy day. It had been a week since Adam was released from the hospital. He would have a permanent scar and have physical limitations for a while if not permanently. We still hadn't told his family about our engagement. He'd decided to wait until he was out of the hospital when we could tell them together. So, that's what we were doing. That and I was moving some of my stuff into his place. Then dealing with what I would do with the left over stuff still in my apartment in Denver.
Lastly, we were having dinner with my family. My parents had agreed it was a good idea to at least get to know Adam since I was going to marry him. They just hadn't warmed up to the rest of the family yet. Not that they had warmed up to me either.
"Let's do this," I whispered to myself as I knocked on the Walkers' door. The last time I’d gone there it hadn't gone so well, and I didn't know how much better it could possibly go with me telling them I was about to be family. I looked down at my ring, wondering how quickly they would notice as the door swung open in my face.
I looked up expecting an unenthused Mr. Walker again, but thankfully, it was Adam. "It's good to see you up and about," I told him, smiling as he pulled me into a gentle hug.
"I donated a kidney, but I'm not crippled. I'm going to be fine. You can stop worrying now," he said as he pulled away from me and led me into a familiar dining room. I had been worrying about him for days now, and I was sure it had started to drive him insane.
"If I stopped worrying it would mean I didn't love you anymore," I told him as he pulled out a seat for me. His family quickly joined and it began to feel a bit like a corporate meeting instead of a family gathering.
I held onto Adam's hand tightly as he cleared his throat, ready to make the announcement. "I know you guys are probably wondering what all of this is about right now. I have some pretty good news, or at least, I feel its good news. I have asked Iris here to be my wife. And she accepted." He kept it simple and to the point, smiling at each person at the table. I looked around at them nervously, waiting on their reactions.
Mrs. Walker reached across the table to grab my hand and look at the ring. She smiled at it and patted me affectionately. "Welcome to the family," she said softly. I was glad at least one of them was on board. I swear I caught her elbowing her husband under the table.
"Yes, congratulations you guys. Let us know if we can help with the planning or anything," his father offered to my surprise.
"Congrats guys," was all Casey said in a bitter tone before leaving the room. Adam looked at me encouragingly and smiled.
"Thanks for being nice about this guys," he told his parents. "We'll keep you posted but we have to be going now. We have a lot of things to do. She will be moving some of her things in with me this afternoon." They just nodded at Adam words and hugged him, his mother including me in the hug. We walked out, and I felt a weight lift from my chest. That was one big thing down.
I let a deep breath out as I climbed up into the driver’s seat of his red pickup. Adam still wasn’t allowed to drive yet. And I started the engine. I looked over at him to see a concerned look on his face. “What’s wrong, Adam?” I asked, sitting back in the driver’s seat, waiting to take off until I found out what was going on in his head.
“Are you sure about all this? I mean, there was a reason that you left and that you chose the job you did. You’d be giving up a lot to come here and be with me,” he said, looking down. The instant he had asked me to marry him I knew that I was going to move back to Melville or nearby and start a life with him. I made that clear to him. But apparently he was feeling insecure in my decision.
“Adam, I already told you that this is exactly what I want. If I get the inkling to get a PR job we can move closer to Helena, and I can commute. It was never about Denver specifically. Denver was just a way out. And sure, I’ll miss some things and people there, but I’d miss you more. I’d miss all this more.” I pointed around to the landscape around us; the beautiful mountains and green land that I’d grown up with. All of that had stuck to my heart and never left even when I did. Moving back home was a no brainer. “Plus, I love the tour place in Big Timber. I love Big Timber period. The view is amazing, and I love all those little downtown shops. It’s going to be great.”
“You don’t have to convince me of that,” he said, leaning over gingerly to touch his lips to mine. “I know it’s going to be great getting to spend all that time with you. I’m just not sure what I’m offering you. But I’m sure glad you think there is something, and I hope you don’t figure out anytime soon that I really don’t have anything you want.” I shot him a look and hit him playfully on the shoulder before taking off towards Big Timber.
(3 Book Romance Bundle) "Escape to Vegas" & "Love, Forgiveness & Horseshoes" & "The Cowboy's Love" Page 19