by Elyse Kelly
“Son, don’t interrupt while a lady is speaking.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Christian and I snicker at their conversation behind the closed front door.
“Now, you say you’re Ava’s fiancé. Is that right?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“I see. Then where is her ring?”
“Well, I’m here to take her back home so she can pick one out, and our mothers can start planning the wedding.”
“So, you proposed without a ring, did you?”
“Well, I mean, we had our engagement dinner just before she ran off to find herself. Or whatever it is she’s doing down here.”
“So, did you propose at this engagement dinner? With no ring?”
“I didn’t exactly propose, I guess. Ava and I have known each other for years and our parents are old friends. It was always assumed we’d be married. We both went off to college, and I started my career while Ava patiently waited for me to come home and marry her. I just got home a few months ago and came to dinner to claim my wife.”
“Claim your wife? Is that what you just said?” She waits, but he doesn’t respond verbally.
“Well, Caveman, just how did Ava respond to you ‘claiming her’ as you so eloquently said?”
“She was just embarrassed, that’s all. I warned her not to cause a scene, and ever the wife she was raised to be, she behaved beautifully in front of our parents and friends at the club. She knows her place and will make an excellent wife for a man like me.”
“Blaine, son, I can’t tell you all the things wrong with what you just said.” I envision Christian’s mom shaking her head in disappointment at Blaine.
“What on Earth do you mean?”
“Ava doesn’t strike me as the kind of girl that you ‘warn not to cause a scene’, so I’m pretty sure you’re lucky to still be alive to have this conversation. And of everything that you’ve told me, I haven’t heard the part where you actually asked for her hand in marriage, and she responded with a ‘yes’ to your question.”
“Well, no, I didn’t exactly ask and she didn’t exactly say ‘yes’. But I’m here to take her home. Once she gets back there, she’ll get her head right and come to her senses. Then we can put this all behind us and get married.” He sounds so sure of himself, like I’m really just going to walk out the door, get in his car, and drive away with him.
“So, do you love her?”
“I beg your pardon?”
“It’s a simple question, son. Do you love her?”
“I mean… well… I mean…”
“So that’s a no, then?”
“I care for her, sure.”
“And you think she wants to be married to a man that doesn’t love her? A man she doesn’t love?”
“Who marries for love these days?” he scoffs. “I can give her anything she wants. She’ll stay home with the children, while I provide for them. That should keep her busy. And she can do charity work and spend time at the club, like the other wives.”
“Blaine, honey, it’s obvious we are talking about two completely different people. You think you know Ava, but you don’t. And worse, you don’t seem to care that you don’t know her at all. She is an amazing, wonderful girl, and I feel bad for you that you’ve missed out on knowing her.
“I can promise you she isn’t your fiancée, and she isn’t going anywhere with you. You wanna know how I know? First, my son will never let her get away. I’ve never seen him look at a woman, or talk about a woman, the way he does Ava. He loves her something deep, and he’ll never let another man walk away with her.
“Second, that sweet girl belongs here with us. I don’t know anything about her life back home, but it was clear she was running away from something when she came here with Callie. She’s building a life here, and she has friends here, and a family here. Not a family that she’s obligated to, but a family she chooses to love, that loves her right back. You can’t give her that, can you, son?”
Blaine doesn’t respond and I take that as my cue to give him a break. I open the door, with Christian at my back, and step out on to the porch. I don’t say anything. I just launch myself at Olivia, giving her a fierce hug as tears spill over my eyes. She squeezes me back, whispering in my ear that she’s so glad I’ve finally found my home, and it’s here in Magnolia Springs. I compose myself before turning around to face Blaine.
“Let’s talk, OK?” I tell him. “Why don’t you guys go on to the festival, before Callie blows a gasket because we’re late. I won’t be far behind you. I just want to talk to Blaine for a few minutes.”
“I’m not leaving you here, Ava Bear,” Christian says, grabbing my hand and giving it a squeeze.
“I promise I’ll be OK. And I’ll only be a few minutes behind you. Please, Christian?” I want so badly to tell him I love him, but I want the first time I say those words to a man to be in private and not in front of an audience.
“Come on, honey. Let’s give Ava and Blaine a few minutes. It’s not like he’s gonna kidnap her or anything.”
“Seriously, Mom?! That never occurred to me until you just said it!”
“Kidnapping? I am a Douglass. I wouldn’t kidnap someone myself. I’d just pay someone to do it,” Blaine says with a smirk. It’s a poor attempt at a joke, and Christian takes a menacing step towards him, narrowing his eyes as his hands ball into tight fists. Blaine’s eyes go wide and he puts his hands up defensively.
“Don’t poke the bear, son,” Olivia says to Blaine. She grabs Christian by the arm and pulls him down the steps, heading toward his truck. I take the steps two at a time and throw myself into his arms. I pull him down to me for a kiss, wanting him to know that he has nothing to worry about.
“I’m calling you in fifteen minutes, and you better be on the way, babe.”
“I will be. I promise.”
He gives me another kiss, this one much deeper, telling me how much he cares for me, but also making damn sure Blaine knows he most certainly is not my fiancé. His mom calls his name, muttering something about the neighbors getting a free show. We smile at each other, our foreheads pressed together.
“I’ll see you in a minute, baby.” He gives me a kiss to the tip of my nose, then gets in his truck and pulls away. I take a deep cleansing breath before turning around, seeing a sheepish looking Blaine waiting for me on my porch. I guess it’s finally time to say goodbye to my old life.
CHAPTER 17
Ava
“So, I guess you’re not coming home with me then?”
“I am home, Blaine. This is where I belong.” I pull him over to the porch swing and we sit down, side by side.
“I don’t understand what’s happening, Ava. This has all been planned since we were kids. Why would you want to change that?”
“Can I ask you something?”
“Of course, princess. Ask me anything.”
“I hate it when you call me princess. Did you know that?” His mouth opens and closes a few times like a fish. “There’s so much about me you don’t know, but you’ve never really asked. How could you ever think you’d be married to someone you didn’t even know?”
“Of course, I know who you are. You’re Ava Morgan, daughter of Cal and Barbie Morgan. Granddaughter of Caledon Morgan, II and heiress to the Morgan investment empire.”
“Blaine, that may be what I am, but it most certainly is not who I am. You don’t know me and you don’t love me. What kind of life is that going to be for either of us?”
“It would be like the lives our parents have. Don’t you want that? We’d have everything, Ava. Everyone would want to be us.”
“In case you didn’t notice, our parents are miserable. And they live a materialistic, fake, plastic existence. I want no part of that. What I have here is real. People who care about me, who love me. They make me happy and I can be myself around them wi
thout having to worry about what others think of me. That’s the kind of life I want.”
“You’re really not coming back with me, are you?”
“No, I’m not.”
“What am I supposed to tell my parents, Ava. Or your parents?”
“Tell them whatever you want. There are a million girls back home just dying to be Mrs. Blaine Alexander Douglass, III and live the exact life you described. I’m just not one of them. My life is here. In Magnolia Springs. With Christian.”
He stands and begins pacing across the porch. I stay seated on the swing and watch as various emotions come and go across his pretty face. Finally, I stand and walk over to him, wrapping him in a friendly hug.
“I hope you find the wife you’re looking for, Blaine. I’m just not her.” He squeezes me back, before releasing me.
“I hope you know what you’re doing, Ava. Because once I leave, I’m not coming back.”
“That’s a good thing. Because I think if you come back, my boyfriend just might kill you. That’s if his mom doesn’t do it first.”
I give him a wink and a smile. He smiles back at me, but it doesn’t quite reach his eyes. I know his ego is bruised, but there’ll be some pretty debutante just waiting to throw her panties at him as soon as he gets back to the club, and he’ll forget all about me.
He gets to his car and turns to give me one last look. Lifting my chin to him, I raise my hand in a small wave as he gets in his car and drives off. I stand on the porch for a second, trying to wrap my head around everything that just happened. As I turn to lock the front door, my phone in my back pocket begins to ring.
“I don’t have to come back and kick his ass, do I?” Christian’s voice is like a balm to my soul.
“No, he just left. I’m walking to my car now to head your way.”
“Be careful, Ava Bear. I’ll see you in a minute.”
“I’ll see you in a minute.”
I park my car and just sit for a few moments, trying to calm my nerves and put aside everything that’s happened this morning. The festival is just getting started, and it’s going to be a busy one. I’ve got to get my shit together if I’m gonna be of any use to Callie today.
I’m not there long before I hear a gentle knock on my window. I turn to see Callie looking at me with the same sweet smile she had on her face that first day of kindergarten. She takes a step back to allow me to open my door and I step out of the car. We don’t say anything; she just wraps me up in one of her famous hugs, and my eyes begin to well up with tears.
“Have I ever told you how happy I am you’re my best friend?” Callie asks.
“Yes. But tell me again anyway.”
“I’m so happy you’re my best friend, Ava Morgan. My Ride or Die. My Sister from a Different Mister. I love you to the moon and back.”
“I love you, too, Callie Girl.”
“C’mon. We’ve got everything almost set up. And Christian is gonna have a heart attack if he doesn’t see you soon.” She links her arm in mine and leads me to our cupcake booth. “There’s no time for you to give me all the details now, but you will tell me everything that just happened.” She narrows her eyes and points her finger at me. I just roll my mine back at her.
“Yes, I’ll tell you everything. I always do. Now let’s go. We’ve got some cupcakes to sell.”
We weave our way through the crowd of vendors and people setting up their booths. Just being here with my bestie, with the sun shining down on us and smiling faces greeting us everywhere we turn, I’m already forgetting the stress of everything that’s happened. The Sweet Spot booth comes into sight just as strong arms wrap around me from behind, lifting me in the air and making me giggle.
“Put the girl down, before you hurt her,” Olivia fusses.
“I’d never hurt my Ava Bear,” Christian says into the crook of my neck, nuzzling my sensitive skin and making my belly flutter with butterflies.
“C’mon you two, we’ve got work to do,” Callie says as she and Olivia walk ahead of us. He takes my hand and we follow behind them.
“You OK?”
“I am now. Thank you for being so patient with me. You know I come with a lot of baggage, but you’ve never made me feel like I didn’t matter or I wasn’t worth the trouble, and I can’t tell you how much that means to me.”
“Of course you matter. You’re my Ava Bear. You’ll always matter to me. It’s why we closed the shop this weekend, so we could be here to support you and Callie. This is important to you, so it’s important to me.” He lifts my hand to his lips and places a gentle kiss across the tops of my fingers.
This man is everything to me. This has happened so fast, but I know without a shadow of a doubt that I’m deeply in love with him. He’s so good to me. Makes me feel so precious and cherished, like there’s nothing he wouldn’t do for me.
He hasn’t said it, I think because he’s afraid he’ll scare me off, but I know he loves me. And he must’ve told his mom as much because she said it earlier today on the porch. I can’t wait to be alone with him, so I can tell him exactly how I feel. That I love him more than anything and I want to stay right here with him. Forever.
CHAPTER 18
Christian
Leaving my girl with that pretty boy Ken Doll took every last ounce of restraint I had. If it wasn’t for my mom, I would’ve thrown Ava over my shoulder, carried her back in the house like some caveman, and slammed the door in Blaine’s too perfect face. But I didn’t do that. I listened to my mom and she told me to trust Ava, so that’s what I did.
And I do trust her, but it was never about trust. I just wanted to protect her. She’s been hurt so much by her family, and I couldn’t bear it if this idiot made her shed one tear. But Mom said this was something she had to do on her own, or she’d never be able to do it at all. So, I left, even though every fiber of my being screamed at me to hold her and never let her go.
Once I saw her with Callie at the festival, it was like my soul was finally at peace again. My girl is so beautiful and so strong, I love her more and more with every passing second. I was worried that she’d be a mess when she arrived, but there she was, smiling and laughing with Callie and putting on her brave face like nothing happened. I know she’s trying to bury it deep inside so she can be a hundred percent for Callie and The Sweet Spot today, but when we get home, I’ll hold her and kiss her; and she can let it all out with me, knowing I’ll gladly carry that weight for her.
We finish setting up all the displays in the huge booth Callie and Ava have. The Peach Festival closes down Main Street, which works out great so shop owners can set up right in front of their stores. Their booth runs the full length of the store front and Sophie’s set up hers right next to theirs.
I notice her and Dane are bringing out racks of clothes, while Mama Addy and Noelle are setting up some jewelry displays. Those two are awfully chummy these days. I give Dane a shit-eating grin when I notice him watching Sophie’s ass as she works, and he flips me off in return, making me chuckle.
With the Georgia heat and humidity, we leave most of the cupcakes inside The Sweet Spot, but me and Asher will run back and forth to refill the displays while the girls pour on the charm with all the customers. Mom is here to help out too, making sure Asher and I don’t fuck anything up because ‘what the hell do we know about cupcakes’.
“I think I should get a shirt like Callie and Ava. I wonder if they have an extra one?” Mom asks.
“Oh, hell no! You are not allowed to wear a shirt that says ‘Wanna lick my cupcake’, Mom,” Asher says to her.
“I think your dad would like it,” she tells him with a smirk. I’m then reminded of the time I found my parents having sex on the kitchen table a few months ago. I cringe at the thought and Mom notices.
“Christian, you look like you’re about to get sick. Is the heat getting to you?”
“It ain’t the heat, Mom. I think he’s having a flashback.” The asshole just laughs, knowing what’s going through my mind right now.
“You mean a hot flash.”
“No, I mean a flashback. You and Dad should really be more careful when you let him give you the ‘ol pickle tickle.” The fucker just keeps laughing. Me, on the other hand, I almost throw up in my mouth.
“Asher!” she says with a warning in her voice, but he just ignores her.
“I hate to break it to you, Mom, but Christian caught you guys a few months ago and now he’s scarred for life.”
“What are you talking about?”
“If you’re gonna do it in the kitchen, Mom, be sure to lock the door to the garage. Poor Chris is in therapy now, thanks to you two.” Mom blushes furiously and I punch Asher in the arm. Recovering quickly from her embarrassment, she lifts her chin and brushes her hair out of her face.
“You boys weren’t created by immaculate conception, you know. And your dad and I aren’t dead yet, and we finally have the house to ourselves. We can enjoy it any way we want to, anywhere we want to. Besides, we’ve been doing it in the kitchen all these years, and it hasn’t bothered you before.”
“That’s it. I’m out.” I throw my hands up and walk away before I have to hear another word about my parents having sex. The thought sends a shiver down my spine and not in a good way. I walk over to the girls to see if they need anything else.
With everything ready to go, we take a quick break before the festival starts, knowing it’ll be nonstop until tonight—when the sun goes down and the live concert starts at the Pavilion. That’s when everyone closes up and heads over to enjoy a few local bands that come out to play for free, sitting in the park and enjoying music under the stars before finishing the evening with a fireworks show. I’ve got a special picnic planned for us and I’m finally going to tell Ava how much I love her.
“Twelve hours of slinging cupcakes, and I don’t think I can stand on my feet a minute longer,” Callie says.