Perfect Match
Page 18
“So how long are you going to punish him?”
Hannah let her shoulders drop, realizing how much she’d revealed of her true feelings. “I can’t go back to him.”
“Too proud?”
She sighed. “Yes.”
He shook his head. “It’s not that.”
“What?”
“You’re just as afraid of marriage as he is because marriage isn’t just about love. It’s about compromise. You have to love each other enough to do that.”
* * *
Hannah thought of her father’s words as she and Amal walked down the aisle side by side during Hector and Bonnie’s wedding. She did her best not to notice how good he looked, how wonderful he smelled and how much she missed him. Part of her wanted to admit how sorry she was, but another part of her wanted to scream at him for not seeing things from her side. But perhaps that was her trouble. It couldn’t be all about her. Her father was right. She may have liked the idea of marriage, but she instinctively knew she wasn’t ready for the realities of it.
The wedding was beautiful but long. The reception, which was held in the grand hall of a private club, was filled with relatives of both the bride and groom. There were lots of assorted food and pastries and plenty of dancing. Hannah spotted Doreen with J.R. over to the side but didn’t have the courage to go up to them and say hello. She felt too vulnerable. Instead, she went outside and sat on a bench and stared up at the sky, which was a mixture of blue, pink and purple hues. The sound of laughter and music floated from the room behind her. It was a wonderful day and she’d survived it. She glanced down and saw some buttercups.
She walked and picked one up, remembering the time when a stranger arrived in her life and brought joy where there had been pain. She tossed the buttercup away. She could apologize, but she didn’t think it would change anything at this point. Too much time had passed and there was too much hurt between them. But it would be cowardly of her not to try. She picked up the buttercup again. She would try. She picked up another buttercup and another, thinking of presenting them to Doreen as a necklace. Just in fun. Maybe she could help her get close to Amal again. But she would be patient because he was worth the fight.
Hannah smiled to herself and reached for another buttercup when a black shoe came into view. She glanced up and saw Amal with J.R.’s stroller. She stood.
“What are you doing?” he asked. “I know you could disappear in a garden bed, but I didn’t expect you to try.”
Hannah glanced down. She’d forgotten about her hideous green dress. “Don’t make fun of it. I wore it for my friend.”
“What are you doing?”
“Just picking flowers.”
“They look like weeds.”
“You didn’t think so the first time.” She bent down and brushed one under J.R.’s chin. “Hey, cutie. Bet you don’t remember me.”
“He does,” Amal said.
She stared at him, curious. “He’s still young and it’s been months and—”
“He knows you because he sees your picture every day. At first I took all the pictures of you down, but then he told me not to.”
Hannah’s brows shot up. “He told you?”
“Yes, he doesn’t talk yet, but we have a special father-son way we communicate.”
“I see.”
“Yes, he’s taught me a lot of things. After scolding me for taking all your pictures down like a big baby, he told me to get a nanny who respected the people I cared about. No matter how well they treated him and me, J.R. thinks they should also treat others like Mom with respect, too.”
“Smart little boy.”
“Yes. He also said he doesn’t like when I lose my temper and shout or get too stubborn.” Amal shoved a hand in his pocket. “But mostly he taught me his favorite game. It’s called ‘Do you know how much I love you?’”
Hannah took a step back, tears springing to her eyes. “Don’t—”
Amal took a step toward her. “Go on and ask me how much I love you.”
Hannah shook her head, unable to speak.
He held out his arms to the side. “I love you more than this much, and I’m sorry I hurt you.” He then let his arms fall. “I want you to be part of my life and I want you to be a part of J.R.’s life. Not because of my image, not because of my son, but because of me. I want to be in your life, and I want you to be in mine. And I won’t lock you out of any part of it. I won’t say it will be easy for me, but I’ll work at it. I talked to the Walkers, and you were right about J.R. knowing the other part of his family. I never did. My father wasn’t close to his family, and once he left they never tried to know me. I never faced how much it hurt. Damn, I’m babbling, and I don’t babble.” He took a deep breath. “What I’m trying to say is I want you to marry me and I want us to buy a house together and raise our son because that’s how I want you to see him—together. So just tell me what I have to do to win you back.”
Hannah brushed away her tears, grateful for this second chance and humbled that she hadn’t lost him. “Forgive me.”
He blinked and then frowned, confused. “For what?”
“I’m sorry I hurt you and I’m sorry I just walked out and let you be angry with me. I want you to forgive me for going to the Walkers behind your back and—”
Amal pulled her into the circle of his arms and squeezed. “I forgive you,” he said, his voice muffled against her neck. “Don’t cry. I hate to see you cry.”
“Do you forgive me for everything?”
Amal tenderly brushed a tear away with his thumb. His voice shook with emotion. “For everything now and forever,” he said and then claimed her lips with a passion that surprised them both. He crushed her to him as if afraid she’d leave him again if he let go. “Say you love me,” he breathed.
“No.”
Amal drew away and stared at her with a hint of fear in his eyes. “No?” he repeated just to make sure.
“No.” Hannah wrapped her arms around his neck and smiled up at him, glad she was taking the chance to risk her heart. She felt an intense joy she didn’t know was possible. “Because I plan to show you how much I love you for the rest of my life.”
She picked J.R. up and kissed him on the cheek. “I missed you, little one.”
J.R. giggled and hugged her.
Hannah hugged him back, and then she took Amal’s hand. Together they walked back to the party, hand in hand toward their new life together. Amal was more than the man of her dreams. He was the man she wanted to make dreams with.
* * * * *
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PERFECT MATCH
ISBN: 9781460315644
Copyright © 2013 by Sade Odubiyi
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