by Naomi Niles
“Yes, but–”
“Not only did this man pay for it in full, but when he came here to pick it up, you told him that your website was incorrect. Now, I’m sure you know that is bad business. I am also sure you know that because of his position as the CEO of High Time, he can make business for you a living nightmare. Now, I am not saying that he will do that; if you start receiving bad press, I am sure that will just be a coincidence. I would hate for that to happen, though. Wouldn’t you?”
He smiled nervously as he looked between April and I. “Well, I see. Since you put it that way, I don’t see why we can’t give you the preferred customer discount. I mean, just to show that we have every desire to please each one of our customers.” He removed the ring from the case and allowed us to examine it. “And, if this is to your liking, we can go ahead and ring it, um, excuse me, charge it to the same card, if that is alright with you, Mr. Wallace.”
I examined the ring for any flaws, then passed it to April. “Yes, that seems alright with me.”
April took a little longer to examine it, turning it in her fingers until she finally tried it on. “Yes, this is it. This is going to work.” She slid it off her finger. “What was your name again, sir?”
“Harold.”
“Right, Harold. Well, it was a pleasure doing business with you. He will take this one. Please check him out, and don’t forget to add that preferred customer discount.”
“Sure thing, ma’am. Sure thing.”
He walked away defeated as I smiled at April. “You are a tough one. I should bring you to my office when I need to close deals. You would probably scare the shit out of everyone at the table.”
“No,” she said, fanning herself, “it’s not who I am. Well, it is, but I am a little more vicious these days. If you had to sleep sitting up because a baby’s foot was jammed into your liver, then you’d understand what I mean. It’s probably best just to stay on my good side until I give birth.”
“Duly noted.”
Ten minutes later, Harold came back with a small bag in his hand. “Well sir, I put my card in your bag, and you have received the discount as well. I hope your future fiancée looks as good in that ring as your friend did.”
“Flattery will get you nowhere,” April responded. “Have a nice day.”
“You as well.”
I chuckled as we walked out of the jewelry store. The next step was to propose to Bethany; I just wasn’t sure when or how I was going to do it. When I got home, Bethany sat in the living room with Vinny. The two of them were laughing on the couch, watching cartoons. I couldn’t wait for this image to become permanent in my life. “How is everything going?”
“Good,” Vinny responded, “we are just watching TV. Bethany ordered pizza, and it should be here in a little while.”
“Yeah. I got extra mushrooms for you,” she said, gagging at the end.
“Whatever. A pizza is not a pizza without mushrooms.”
“Says who?”
“Says me.”
I squeezed between the two of them. Vinny huffed, and Bethany laughed. “How are you going to just come in here and squeeze in between us like that? We were comfortable.”
“Well, I had to get comfortable, too. So, here I am.”
We sat around and joked with each other until the pizza man came. As I got up to get the door, I thought about the ring I hid in the garage inside of my toolbox. I had to put it there for now because it would’ve been too obvious if I walked into the house with a little bag from the jewelry store. After I grabbed the pizza, I brought it back to the table. It already felt like we were a family. April said that she wanted to be around whenever I proposed to Bethany, so I had to make sure everything was perfect. I had to make sure it was like a fairy tale. She deserved it. I watched her as she bit into her pizza. I loved everything about her. The way she connected with Vinny. The way she persevered through every obstacle that came her way in life. She was full of strength. Full of vigor. She was somebody that I would love to call my wife and right now, I just had to wait for the right moment.
Just then, I got a text message from April. I had to hide it from Bethany, so I went into the kitchen to grab drinks for everyone. I read it with one eye on the entrance to the kitchen. “Hey bro, and yes, I can call you that now because soon, you will be my brother. I want you to know that Bethany is going to be so happy when you propose to her. She cares about you a lot and just being with you today, I know that you two are a perfect fit.”
“Thank you, April. That means a lot.”
Bethany walked into the kitchen in the midst of my smile. “What’s funny?” she asked, curiously. I slid my phone into my pocket and approached her. I wrapped my arms around her and kissed her lips softly. She smiled. “What was that for?”
“Just for being you, babe. Just for being you.”
Epilogue
BETHANY
Five months had passed since I started working at Gavin’s office. I re-enrolled in college to finish my last hours so I could graduate and start my career as a teacher. Principal Jones called me out of the blue last week and asked me about my progress. Once I told him that I was close to finishing, he said that there was another district he could refer me to. Things were too hard for him to keep me hired at Morris Elementary, but there were other districts that weren’t as strict. I was grateful for the opportunity, and I let him know that as soon as I became available, I would reach back out to him. Things between Gavin and I were moving along as well. As time passed, though, I completely put the question out of my head of whether or not he was going to propose to me. It had been months since I saw the website in his office, and I figured that if he didn’t ask by now, maybe he wasn’t going to.
I arrived at April’s home. She’d had a baby boy a month ago, but I was so busy that I didn’t have the chance to come by and see my new nephew. When I got to her house, I pulled my gifts out of the trunk, then headed inside. When I opened the door, April sat on the couch nursing Mark Jr. “Close the door, girl. I don’t want the whole neighborhood to see my tit.” I laughed then closed the door behind me.
“Aww, look at him,” I said, placing his gift next to the couch. “He is so little and cute.”
“He is sucking the hell out of my nipple. This stuff hurts so bad, but I am going to just deal with it for now. I hear that natural milk is better than Similac, so I don’t have a choice.”
“Yeah, it is better. It is healthier, you know? Gives the baby more nutrients.”
I sat down on the couch and watched him feed. He looked so small and innocent. I couldn’t wait to have one of my own, but at the rate things were going, it didn’t look like I was going to have one. “So, how’s life?” she asked.
“It’s okay. I am close to finishing school, and the principal at Morris called me earlier this week. He said he could possibly have a job for me in another district once I completed my degree. So, maybe I will have an easy road to the teaching career. But we will see.”
“That’s good. I am glad you finally buckled down and got serious about school. I knew it would open up doors for you.” Mark Jr. finished eating, so she propped him over her leg and tapped his back until he burped. “Oops, that was a good one,” April said, laughing. She picked him up and extended him towards me. “Now, this is your Aunt Bethany. She has been too busy for you in your first month of life to come visit you at home, so I think you need to spit up on her once or twice to welcome her.”
I laughed. “It’s okay, little one; you can spit up on me if you feel like it, I don’t mind. I will still love you the same.” I took him out of her hands and held him close. He opened his eyes and looked at me as if he was trying to figure out who I was. “He is beautiful. He has Mark’s wide nose and your eyes.”
“Yeah. I was hoping he would get my nose because Mark’s nose is like a curse.”
I laughed, “You are so mean. I thought you would get a little nicer after your pregnancy.”
“Well, you knew I was sor
t of an a-hole before I got pregnant, so I think I am rounding back into form.” A few moments of silence passed. Mark Jr. made gargle noises for a moment before he drifted off to sleep. “So, how are things with you and Gavin?”
I sighed. “Things are okay. I mean, I will say that they are moving kind of slow. I figured that he would at least have proposed by now, you know? Remember when I told you about seeing that website on his computer?”
“Yes.”
“I don’t know what that was about, but apparently it wasn’t about moving forward with me. I guess I need to be patient, but it is hard because I know what I want. Now, I am questioning if he wants the same thing.”
“Yeah, I hear you. But you’re right; you just need to be patient, that’s all. Don’t start doubting yourself or his love for you. I know he loves you. I only met him the one time you two visited the hospital after junior was born, but he seemed like a good guy. I could tell by the way he treated you that he loves you, so don’t give up. I think you two are a good fit.”
I looked at her with curious eyebrows lifted to the middle of my forehead. “Um, okay, that is weird. You’re not usually like this when it comes to me with other guys.”
“What? If you forgot, I am the one who set you up on that website to meet Gavin. I just didn’t like your ex-boyfriend. That bastard. Is he still in jail?”
“I believe so. I hope so. Last I heard, he was doing years for drug charges.” Mark Jr. fidgeted, so I got up to lay him in his bed. “So, I’m sure I won’t hear from him anytime soon.”
“Good. So, what do you have going on later?”
“I don’t know, but Gavin wanted me to come to his house. Apparently, he has something that he wants me to see, so I’m going to go over there and check it out.”
“Right. What time? I forgot about that.”
“About what?”
She paused. “Oh, um, never mind. I was thinking about something else.”
“Okay, weirdo.”
I stayed there with her for another hour until I got up to head for Gavin’s home. I didn’t know what he wanted me to come over for, but I was excited to see him. I had been so busy with school for the last two months that we barely had time to see each other. A part of me felt like we were drifting away, but I was just panicking. I knew that he loved me; I only hoped that he loved me enough to want to spend the rest of his life with me. “Hey babe,” he said as I walked through the door.
“Hey, sweetheart. How are you?”
“I am good.” He kissed me on the lips.
Just behind him, Mike and Stacy sat on the couch right next to each other. I thought it was cute how Mike said that he wasn’t going to settle down at all, but now, he was starting to get serious with another woman. It gave me hope that love would find anybody when the time was right. “Hey, Bethany,” Mike said from his seat, “good to see you.”
“Hi, Mike. Hi, Stacy. What are you two doing here?”
“Just hanging out,” she said, “shooting the shit until you got here. We were in the neighborhood, so we just swung by.”
“Oh. Okay, that sounds cool.”
Just then, Vinny ran out of his room and met me in the front. He wrapped his arms around me, “Hi, Bethany. I’ve missed you.”
I kissed him on the top of his head, “I missed you too, Vinny. I’ve just been so busy with school work. I’ve barely had time to do anything else.”
“Yeah, that’s what Dad said. It’s okay, though. I understand.”
“Your dad tells me that you signed up for a pee-wee football league?”
“Yeah. I figured I’d try it out. I like football, so I just wanted to see how good I could be at it.”
“Nothing wrong with that.” I smiled as Gavin put his arm around me and led me to the couch. Things seemed different. It felt like something was going on, but I just couldn’t put my finger on it. Mike and Stacy smiled at me awkwardly. My eyebrows wrinkled as I glared at them. “Um, what are you guys smiling at?”
“You and Gavin,” Stacy responded. “You guys make a great couple. Don’t you think?”
“Um,” I looked at Gavin as he shook his head. “I guess so. I mean, I don’t know. Why are you guys acting weird?”
Mike stood up, “Well, I don’t know about you all, but I need a brew. Anybody else want one? Stacy? Gavin? Bethany? Vinny?”
“Vinny?” Gavin said.
Mike laughed, “Come on, man, you know I am just fucking with you. Get your fucking panties out of a bunch.”
Everyone laughed as he walked to the kitchen. “Wait, what the hell is going on, guys?” I looked at Gavin. “And why did you call me over here? What did you have to show me? Everyone is acting weird, and I don’t know what is going on. Are you guys about to play a prank on me or something?”
Stacy laughed, “Girl, calm your ass down. You are losing it. Nobody is going to play a prank on you at all; we are just here hanging out. That’s what friends do, you know?”
I looked at Gavin. Just then, his phone rang. He picked it up, “Hello? Yeah, we are all here. Sure, not a problem, come on by. Okay.” I kept my eyes on him, waiting for an explanation. “What? It was just one of my friends that you haven’t met yet. They are on their way over here to meet you.”
“Meet me?”
“Yeah. They are in town for a little while, and I told them all about you. No biggie.”
“But–”
“Alright, brewskis for everyone.” Mike tossed them to everyone in the room. “Oh, shit Gavin, what were you telling me earlier? I forgot.”
Gavin smiled. “Yeah, I was telling you how much I loved Bethany.”
He laughed, “Yeah, right. That’s what it was.”
The doorbell rang again. Gavin got up to answer it, but at the moment, I was desperately trying to figure out what was going on. Everyone was acting strange, and I didn’t understand it one bit. I looked towards the door. Gavin stood to the side and let Mark Sr. and April into our home with the baby. I rubbed my eyes as if I had to be clear of what I was seeing. “April? Mark? Okay, guys, what is going on? Somebody better tell me something!”
April kissed me on the cheek as Mark shook Gavin’s hand, then took a seat next to me. “Bethany,” Mike said, grabbing my attention.
I faced him with a curious glance. “Yes?”
He smiled and took another swig of his drink while I waited for him to open his mouth. Suddenly, I heard Gavin’s voice to my side. When I turned towards him, he was on one knee with a small box in his hand. My heart fluttered inside of my chest as everyone took out their phones and started recording. Vinny stood to his feet with a bright smile on his face. I put my hand over my chest as Gavin spoke, “Babe, I’ve had this ring for months. I was waiting for the right time to ask you this question and, in the middle of searching for the right way to do it, I realized that I couldn’t come up with it. I realized that the best way to do it was to face you like a man, in a room full of people who love you. People who care for you. I wanted you to feel the love in the room before I said one word.”
My eyes filled with tears of joy as he continued. “I’ve known from the very first day that I sent you the message on the internet–”
“I can’t believe you two met on the internet!” Mike blurted out.
“Mike, you shut your ass up right now!” I snapped.
Stacy snickered as Gavin continued, “Ever since that day, I knew you were beautiful. But, what I didn’t know is that you were beautiful inside and out. It only took a few dates for me to realize that you were the perfect woman for me. Bethany, I can’t see my life without you in it, and I don’t want to imagine what it would be like if you weren’t around. You complete me. You are my better half, and it would do me a great honor to be able to call you Mrs. Gavin Wallace. Baby, will you marry me?”
I didn’t say a word. An uncomfortable silence filled the room as he kneeled in front of me. “No,” I said, shaking my head. “No, I can’t. I’m sorry.” The smile on his face dropped to the ground like
a bag of bricks. April was confused, and Mark searched for the words to fill the awkwardness. Vinny was on the verge of tears while Stacy and Mike sat with their mouths halfway open. “And that’s what you all get for creating all of this suspense when I got here!” I smiled, then extended my hand to Gavin for him to put the ring on my finger. “I would love to be your wife, Gavin.”
There was a brief pause. “So, is that a yes?”
I wiped the blurry tears from my eyes, “Yes, Gavin! Yes, I will marry you! I will marry the hell out you!”
I lunged forwards and threw my arms around him, knocking him down to the floor. I guess dreams did come true, and as far as those books went? I tossed them all in the trash. There was no longer a reason for me to read any more of those books because now, it was officially my reality.
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BURNING FOR LOVE
By Naomi Niles
This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places and incidents are products of the writer's imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental.
Copyright © 2016 Naomi Niles
Chapter One
Sam
I rolled over at the shrill sound of my alarm coming from the bathroom. My instinct was to reach out and stifle the annoying sound, but that was exactly the reason it was out of my reach in another room. If it were on my bedside table, I’d probably never be on time for anything.
I groaned heavily, pushing away the sleep from my consciousness, and forced myself out of the comforting warmth of my sheets to head into the bathroom.
I almost tripped over the towel I had left there the previous night. I picked it up and shut off my alarm as I gave the towel a sniff. It had the rancid smell of material that had been overused. I glanced at it a moment longer, contemplating whether or not I should just go ahead and use it.