by Gina Henning
My dad has rented a lake house for the rest of the weekend for our family to sit back and enjoy boating and all the other fun water activities. I can’t wait until tonight when Jack and I will sit under the stars and decide on our wedding date.
I scan the crowd. Megan is still not there. The crowd is large—maybe she couldn’t find my parents. But my mom has got to be hard to miss.
The lady in charge stands up at the podium and begins speaking about crusts and how important it is to have a great one. Even though I’m at least a hundred feet from my grandmother, I swear I can see her eyes rolling. I laugh.
Jack gazes at me with an eyebrow raised. I mouth “tell you later.” He nods.
The lady finishes speaking and the crowd cheers. I can’t help but wonder if the cheering is about the ending of the crust discussion or if they are really excited about what she has said. Either way she stands in front of the table and there are three pies each with a slice cut out. This is the final round of judging. The first round was done pre-award ceremony. A panel of ten judges had a bite from each pie and then ranked their favorite three. Now the master of ceremonies will decide which of the three is the best pie and the person who wins gets a year’s supply of piecrusts from the sponsors and a spotlight on a TV commercial. Not that I’d want to win that. I’ve already had too much TV time with my elf interview over Christmas. I peer over the tables and try to determine if either of the three pies on the table is Jack’s or mine. But they are identical. The lady takes a bite of the first pie and nods. She wipes her mouth with a handkerchief and takes a long swallow of water.
“Must clear my palate.” She chuckles into the microphone. The crowd quasi-laughs with her. She moves onto the next pie, takes a bite, and clears her palate. What a pro.
Finally she takes a bite of the last pie. She stands up and takes the piece of paper from underneath the middle pie and the one from the third pie and finally the paper from the first pie.
“In my hand, ladies and gentleman, I’ve got the pie winners.” She waves the papers in her hand like she’s won the lotto.
“And the third place prize goes to Molly Oliver for her Golden Delicious Apple Pie. Great job.” The crowd claps and an auburn-haired woman makes her way to where the master of ceremonies is standing. A guy pins a third place badge on her shirt. She raises her hands up in the air and pumps a fist. A heavyset man rushes up from the audience and gives her a double high five.
“Thank you,” the pie judge says to the audience with a simmer-down tone. “And our first runner up, with her Granny Smith Apple Pie, Lauren Hauser.”
I gulp. Wow. I placed. I’m surprised. I swallow hard. Jack wraps his arms around me. “Congratulations! Go get your badge, but make sure his hands stay close to your shoulders.” Jack breathes into my ear. I laugh.
I walk up to the stage and the guy places the second place ribbon on my shirt. I glance back at Jack. The vein in his neck is throbbing. I imagine one second longer with the pinning and Jack will rush over to assist.
The third place winner is grinning at me. I join her on the stage. Judge Lady clasps her hands over her heart as she inspects the paper with the winning person’s name.
“Now, y’all, I have been judging pie contests…” She stares up at the sky. “Shoot, for more years than I can count…or at the very least that I can tell you…as I’m not a lady to give away her age.” She giggles into the microphone. Fuzzy sounds come from the speakers and then a high-pitched screech.
“Oh dear, let me get on with this. The winner of the first place prize in our annual Fourth of July All-American Pie Baking Contest…with his Braeburn Apple Pie is…Jack Walker.”
The crowd cheers. My jaw drops to the ground. I cannot believe he won. And even more the fact that he beat me. I take in a deep breath. Jack is grinning with the right amount of humbleness. His eyes catch mine and he winks. I smile back and clap my hands. I’m happy for him, but also extremely surprised.
“Folks, when I was looking over the ingredients, I was surprised to see that Jack here used Braeburn apples, not commonly used for apple pies but super delicious, so there you have it.” She hands over the shiny pie trophy to him and he raises it above his head like a hockey player holding the Stanley Cup. The crowd shouts even louder and Jack steps towards me and wraps his arm around my waist.
“I told you they were special apples.” His lips brush against my ears. My face is warm and it’s not from the blistering heat.
“Congratulations, Jack, I’m happy you won a contest that you had no intention of entering until a few minutes before the start.” I flutter my eyelashes at him.
“Lauren, don’t be a spoilsport. You’ll always be number one in my heart.” He palms his chest.
“Yay.” I clap my hands and laugh.
My grandmother has made her way up to the stage. “Might I try a piece of this winning pie?” She takes a fork from the cup on the table and digs into the pie. Jack’s pie. My grandmother chews thoroughly as if she is the final judge.
“Very good, Jack. Congratulations.” She squeezes his arm.
Then she takes another fork and takes a bite of mine. Mimicking her earlier chewing she takes her time with my pie as well.
“Lauren, you added extra nutmeg—good choice. Very nicely done.” She brushes my cheek.
My chest rises. I would have liked to be holding the shiny pie trophy but having my grandmother’s approval of my recipe is more important and I did win second place. I smile.
Jack and I pick up our pies and stroll towards the spot where the rest of my family is waiting. Winter and River are chasing each other in circles with their ice cream cones and Luke and Aurora each have a baby in their Baby Bjorn. My dad has his arm over my mom’s shoulder and they both are wearing big smiles on their faces. I scan from side to side, but Megan and Brian are nowhere in sight. Are they still looking for her phone?
“Congratulations, honey.” My mom hugs me. “And Jack, great job. It’s nice to know we will have another award-winning baker in the family soon.” She squeezes his arm.
“You have a new one today.” I point at my chest.
“Oh of course, dear, but I meant the winner…you know, first place.” She swishes her silver garland wig off her face.
“Right, where are Megan and Brian?”
“Right here, we saw the awards from the back of the crowd.” Megan rushes up behind my mom and swipes some hair off her face. Her jean shorts and blue tank top look like she’s been rolling around in the dirt mixed in with the flour.
“Did you find your phone?” I inspect her face.
“Yup.” She nods. “Brian really worked overtime to, um, find it.”
I inspect Brian’s appearance. He also has the I just rolled around in the dirt thing going on. I take in a deep breath and let my thoughts stop right there. I do not need to think about this situation any further.
“It’s about time you two give Ma and Pop some grandkids. Aurora and I have been more than doing our part.” Luke slugs Brian in the arm.
“That’s right, baby,” Aurora says and as if on cue Luke leans down and they kiss. The two babies are squeezed between them and I’m not sure who is making more gurgling sounds, the twins or Luke and Aurora. I cringe.
“Heyheyhey look at our little Aurora in action. Gurl, you working on baby number five?”
I take in the familiar voice. It’s probably been ten years, but that voice is unforgettable and so is the body encompassing it. It’s Aurora’s mom. She’s got on her full glam gear: a large red wig with huge star earrings, followed by a tamed-down outfit of a neon pink tube top and bright yellow leggings. On her feet are purple platform plastic boots.
“Oh Mom, you know the doctor says I should wait a whole year.” Aurora hugs her mom and her father, who is silent. His hair has grown out since the last time we saw him, which was at Luke and Aurora’s wedding. He’s like a thinner version of Willie Nelson except his beard is also braided.
“Bev, how lovely to see you
again.” My grandmother reaches out her arms. “I didn’t realize you would be here.” She glances at my mom.
“We didn’t either, sugars, but when I heard your son got a lake house for the weekend, I thought we might as well take a detour and enjoy the rays with ya’ll.” She squeezes my grandmother into her neon-splattered mess.
“Oh how lovely.” My grandmother pats her back and takes a step to the side.
“Now, who is this hot young fella? Lauren, did you finally snag yourself some sugar?” Bev feasts her eyes on Jack.
Jack pulls me in tightly to his side. I’m not sure if this is out of love or if he is using my body as a shield from a Bev smoosh, as she calls them.
I laugh. “Bev, this is Jack Walker. He just won the pie baking contest.” I squeeze him.
“Oh my goodness, is that not sweet! A hot fella and a chef…mmmhmm, you done good, Lauren.” She squeezes my cheek and stands in front of Jack. “Now come on, you aren’t going to leave this old gal hanging, are you?” She holds her arms open.
Jack releases my side. “Nice to meet you.” He offers his hand.
Bev grabs it and wraps herself into his body. “Come on now, give me some good hugging.”
Jack pats her back and after what seems like an eternity, I’m sure for Jack, she releases him.
“Mom, Lauren and Jack are engaged.” Aurora pulls out a lollipop from her pocket and unwraps it.
“Is that right?”
“Yes, and they’re finally choosing a wedding date today.” Megan steps closer to us. I throw eye darts her way. I do not need a prolonged discussion with Bev.
“Well I’ll be.” Bev jerks her head back.
“Mom, why don’t you marry them while you’re here?” Aurora pops the lollipop in her mouth and begins sucking on it as if she is trying out for an adult video.
“That’s a great idea, babe.” Luke tickles Aurora’s sides and she jumps back.
“Baby, don’t, you promised no tickling in public.”
Is there really a borderline for their PDA? Wonders never cease.
“Well, I could if you and your smoking-hot bag of baking goodness want me to.” Bev licks her lips.
“Oh that’s really nice, but we want to have a big family wedding.” I squeeze Jack’s hand. He needs to come up with an exit for us before she says the magic words and we’re married before even discussing our wedding date.
“Leia, you could hustle up some decorations this weekend, right?” Bev peers over at my mom.
“Oh, I’m sure I could, but Bev we have to let them decide things on their own.”
“Why? The Amish do group things together all the time like building a house and such. I could even call up my TV connection and see if they could come and film it.” Her eyes are wide and I’m sure her brain is working overtime planning the wedding, my wedding, in her mind.
“Lauren loves being on television.” Megan laughs.
“Ha, funny.” I roll my eyes at her. Now, not only do I need to get Luke back for the non-solicited ice bucket challenge but I’ve got to return Megan’s help with this discussion too.
“Bev, we appreciate the offer but Lauren and I have already begun planning our wedding and have a different vision in mind than getting married on the Fourth of July.” He squeezes my side. All eyes are on us. My mother cocks her head to the side as if she is trying to figure out if this is true and I’ve been holding out on sharing wedding planning details with her. I shrug my shoulders at her. I can’t disagree with Jack about this and I do want Bev’s planning to cease.
“Aww, that’s too bad. My mom’s weddings are so cool.” Aurora pops the lollipop back in her mouth.
I nod. “All right, I guess we’ll see y’all at the lake then.” I hug everyone goodbye and Jack and I make our way back to his car with our winning pies.
“Congrats again on winning. I can’t say I’m not a little surprised, but I’m proud of you.”
Jack places our two pies in the trunk and turns around. He pulls me in close to him and tilts my chin up. Our eyes meet; his forever blues are staring down at me. His mouth brushes against mine and his tongue pushes apart my lips like he is searching for something delicious. I’m warm all over and his mouth is sweet and tasty like hot apple pie.
Chapter Nineteen
The sun is setting and a light breeze washes over my skin. Being on a boat is cooler than sitting on land watching the fireworks. Jack rented a yacht for the weekend.
“Do you want to boat up to the house and watch with your family?” Jack offers me a glass of wine. He’s wearing a white buttoned-down shirt and khaki cargo shorts and looks like he could be in a Dolce & Gabbana ad.
I laugh. “I think they’ll be okay without us.” I take a sip of my wine. It’s the Cabernet Franc again.
“But what do you want?” Jack traces my face with his finger.
“This.” I take in a deep breath. “Just you and me under the fireworks.”
Jack leans down and kisses me. His hands run through my hair and our bodies meld together. This is it. We are going to pick a date, here tonight. Finally a wedding date, and then we will be together forever.
I lean back. “Jack, obviously you chose the right apples for the pie…” I bite my lip. “But why didn’t you get the ones I wanted?”
Jack inspects the floor of the boat. “I told you the apples were special.” He shrugs and takes a swallow from his glass.
I roll my eyes. “Yes, they were special and you won, I know…but there had to have been a reason for it.”
Jack nods. “You’re right. There was or is a reason for it. But that’s a surprise.” He pulls me in close again and our lips meet. Fireworks of love are transcending from our bodies… I never want to be without him again. We’re standing on the stern overlooking the lake. The waves are splashing up against the side of the boat.
I lean back. “Why can’t we discuss it now?”
“Because we have a different topic to tackle.” Jack swipes his index finger over my nose.
I raise my eyebrows.
“Our wedding date.” Jack takes a sip from his glass. “Lauren, I asked you to give me until today and I can finally say I’ve got everything in order—a new office building in Baltimore and I’ve hired another person to help out at Vintage Estates. I even have one of my employees from Dallas transferring to Baltimore to help open the new branch of my firm.” He raises his glass to me.
I clink mine against his and take a long swallow, both literally and figuratively. All this time Jack has been working behind the scenes to set up his life in Baltimore to be with me. He’s rearranged everything. I flutter my eyelashes. I’m overwhelmed with exploding love for him. My heart hurts. I can’t believe everything he has done and how a bunch of miscommunications and pride on both of our parts could have prevented this moment from happening. I swallow. What if he had given up or just let me go? I blink.
“Wow, Jack…I almost don’t know what to say. I…” I bite my lip. “Thank you.”
“Thank you?” Jack raises an eyebrow at me.
“Yes, thank you. Thank you for moving mountains to be with me. I feel like I don’t deserve these types of grand gestures… Are you sure you want to do all of that?” I blink my eyes several times. Tears are filling my eyes and I don’t want them to spill out.
“Lauren, I would move continents for you. I love you. I only wish I could have made all of this happen sooner. Being without you…so many nights of not seeing you, not having you in my bed and waking up next to you…never again.” He takes my hand and places it over his heart. “You are my…my everything.” He leans down and kisses me. His hand is running through my hair and his arms are pulling me in closer to him like he is trying to force our bodies into one.
My lips are pressed against his and my tongue meets every pull and tug from his. I’m falling deeper than I’ve ever thought was possible. Jack has wooed me beyond compare and I am utterly and completely, madly in love with him.
Jack releases my
lips and presses his forehead into mine. “So when do I finally get to call you my wife?”
“Do you have a date in mind?”
“Tomorrow.”
I laugh. “That wouldn’t really give much time for planning…and I really don’t—”
“Yes, no Bev.” Jack shakes his head. “How much time do we need?” Jack strokes the back of my head. Tingles run down my neck.
“I don’t know—a month or two? I’d have to ask for time off for our honeymoon.” I roll my lips together. “Maybe after Q3?”
“Fine. Then I’ve got the perfect date.”
“Okay, well don’t keep it a secret.” I raise an eyebrow at him.
“October twenty-second.”
I scan my brain for a reason as to the significance of this date. Jack and I met in November, the day before Thanksgiving, so it’s not the day we met. His birthday is in May, so that’s not the reason.
“I give up, what is October twenty-second?”
“Our wedding date.” Jack grins at me.
“Okay, but why?” I nudge him.
He grabs my hand and kisses each of my knuckles. Shivers flow up my arms. “It’s National Nut Day and, Lauren, I’m nuts about you.” Jack chortles.
I laugh. “Are you serious?”
“Yes, I think I’ve made it clear how crazy I am about you.” Jack traces the side of my jaw.
“Yes, but is October twenty-second really National Nut Day?” I purse my lips to the side.
“It is.” Jack kisses me.
“So you want to get married on Nut Day?”
“Lauren, I’ve been going pecans for you since the day we met. It only seems perfect to marry you on the day that celebrates the thing that brought us together.”
I laugh and shrug. “I guess you have a point. Then we’d better get cracking on these wedding plans.”