by Karen Pokras
“That’s your boyfriend?” He laughed, and then cleared his throat. “Sorry. No, I was going to apologize, too. I shouldn’t have blurted it out like that. I know I caught you off-guard. Like you said, it was a long time ago. When I first met her, I didn’t even realize it was the same person until we got to talking.”
“So you two haven’t been together since high school?” Holly asked. She didn’t remember Michelle having a steady boyfriend back then. She preferred to … move around.
“No. We didn’t even know each other in high school. Not really. I mean I knew who she was, but we never dated or anything. We actually only met this past summer.”
“You don’t say.” Holly glanced around, more interested in Michelle’s current whereabouts and less interested in the story of how they met. From what she could tell, Ben had come to the wedding alone. “So, is Michelle here?”
“She’s on a business trip. She’s the Director of Marketing for her company. They’re based out of Manhattan.”
“Does she travel a lot?”
“Not too often. These days, most of her work can be done remotely, but every now and again they want to see a human. The timing isn’t always the best.”
Holly couldn’t tell if he sounded sad or annoyed, but she could tell Michelle’s schedule did not make him happy.
The music ended, but Ben still held on to Holly, staring down at her. She thought she saw something in his eyes, a spark maybe. Perhaps she was imagining things.
She caught sight of her family standing in front of the bridal table. “I, um, I should be getting back. Looks like Ava’s getting ready to throw the bouquet. She promised to aim it at me. It was great seeing you again. Thanks for the dance.”
“Same here,” he said, his hand lingering at her waist a few seconds longer before slowly letting her go. He began to head toward his table, but turned back around. “Hey, good luck,” he added.
“Good luck?”
“Yes,” he said, motioning to the crowd of women starting to surround the bride. “With the bouquet catching, I mean.”
She smiled. “Thanks.”
Chapter 6
“Honestly, Jared! At my own sister’s wedding!” Holly paced their bedroom, fuming, pausing to slam dresser drawers, as she changed out of her gown and into a sweatshirt and yoga pants.
“Could you tone it down a little, Hol? My head is pounding.” He lay curled on the bed, looking like hell.
“I’ll bet,” she said, struggling to pull the sweatshirt over her head. Her hair was still in its fancy up-do from the wedding. “You’re lucky Jenna’s asleep in the next room, otherwise I’d really be making some noise.” As far as she was concerned, he’d earned every ounce of misery he was feeling now. She placed the silk gown into the garment bag, hanging it in her closet, and began the painstaking process of removing the fifty or so bobby pins that had held her hair perfectly in place all evening.
“You’re doing a pretty good job already,” he mumbled, before jumping up and racing to the bathroom.
As the reception started to wind down, Max and Holly went up to the honeymoon suite to check on Jared. Kick him out was more like it, since Max kind of wanted to use it for Ava and himself at that point. They’d expected to find Jared fast asleep. Instead, they found him hunched over the toilet getting sick. Max helped him get cleaned up while Holly went back downstairs to get Jenna and say good-bye. She was looking forward to spending quality time with her niece while Ava and Max took a short honeymoon before returning to California.
He stumbled back over to the bed, appearing a bit green, but unapologetic. “It was a party, and they had an open bar. They wanted people to drink.”
“They wanted people to have a few drinks each,” she said, “not drink enough to pass out before the food was served.”
“So I drank a little too much, what’s the big deal?”
Why didn’t he care? Did he enjoy feeling this way? She didn’t understand.
“You always drink too much. This happens every time we go out, Jared. Every. Time. You do realize that, don’t you?” Even after all of the hairpins were out, her hair stayed in perfect formation on top of her head. She attempted to run her brush through it to separate the strands. After the third attempt, her long blonde hair fell over her shoulders. A good shampoo would remove whatever hairspray remained.
Picking up the bouquet she’d caught at Ava’s wedding, she twirled it between her fingers. “I don’t know why I thought tonight would be any different. I guess I’m the idiot who thought maybe this time you’d be a little more mature since it was my sister’s wedding—a wedding that might even have some sort of effect on you—maybe get you thinking. Apparently, the only thing you were thinking about was how much fun you could have.”
“Isn’t that what you’re supposed to do at weddings? Have a good time? I’m sorry. Next time, I’ll just sit at the table quietly with my hands folded neatly across my lap and not move. Oh, I know … I’ll even bring something to read. The Wall Street Journal, perhaps? Help me out here, ’cause it seems like you’re talking about more than me getting drunk.”
Holly was talking about more than his drinking, but now wasn’t the time to get into it … at least not all of it … not the part about how she was getting tired of always being the bridesmaid and never the bride. She really thought—hoped—he would want their relationship to experience the same level of passion and commitment she craved—especially after witnessing the deep love Ava and Max had for each other. Didn’t he want that? Maybe, but he was obviously too drunk to notice. Now wasn’t the time to get into it. She had plenty of other things from the night to be pissed about.
“You’re right. It wasn’t just the drinking. It was the being loud, knocking into stuff, the ridiculous dancing—the flirting. It was embarrassing, for me and for you. You nearly took out the entire band and the wedding cake. Do you know how much that cake cost? Not to mention the fact that you spilled one of your drinks all over Max’s eighty-year-old aunt. Do you even remember that? The poor lady nearly broke a hip trying to get out of your way before you almost knocked her over. I told her to send us her dry-cleaning bill.”
He laughed. “Oh yeah. That old biddy was cursing at me. I do remember, now that you mention it. She was a spunky one. Nothing funnier than hearing an old hag yell dickhead.”
“It’s not funny, Jared! That woman is part of my sister’s family. You should be ashamed of yourself.”
He rolled his eyes. “Oh, stop being so dramatic. Just because you don’t know how to have a good time, doesn’t mean the rest of us shouldn’t enjoy ourselves.” He laid back on the bed, putting his hands behind his head.
“Really, Jared? Really? Was rolling around the floor like a pig, trying to peek up girls’ skirts, what you call having a good time? Yeah, I saw you doing that, and so did everyone else. That was a real shining moment for me. Hey, everyone, check out my boyfriend! Isn’t he dreamy? Don’t you wish he was yours? Sorry, ladies, he’s all mine! But if you want to line up, you can give him a cheap thrill. Woohoo! Aren’t I the lucky one?”
She placed the bouquet back down on her dresser. So she caught it, big deal. She should have let Tessa catch it. Why did her sisters both insist Ava throw it to her? It wasn’t like she’d be getting married soon anyway.
“When are you going to grow up? You’re not in college anymore. And even in college, this behavior would be unacceptable.”
“Geez, Holly, lighten up! You’re acting like my mother, not my girlfriend.”
“Well maybe if you acted like an adult, I’d treat you like one. Two-hundred and fifty guests, and you were the only one who passed out before dinner.”
“Don’t forget, Jenna. She passed out before dinner, too,” he said, chuckling.
“She’s a toddler, and I’m not laughing.”
“Whatever. I can’t talk to you when you’re like this. I have a headache, the room is spinning, and I just want to rest. Why don’t you come give me some loving and he
lp your old man fall asleep?” He reached out to try to pull her toward the bed.
Disgusted, she stepped aside. “You’re right, I’m not your mommy. I’ve already got more than enough kids in my classroom at school. Right now, I’m looking for a man. It’s up to you to decide if you can be one or not.”
She grabbed her pillow and stormed out the door. She’d be more than happy to snuggle with Jenna in the guest room tonight.
Chapter 7
“Aunt Holly, Aunt Holly, wake up!”
“Mmmm …” Holly opened her eyes to see Jenna peering down at her. Her chubby little finger still poking her cheek despite the fact she was now awake.
“Hi, sweetie.”
The early morning sun shone through the cracks in the blinds hanging in the guest room. She’d have to try to adjust those so they didn’t let in as much light tomorrow morning. She’d forgotten little kids woke up so early. She only had a few days off before she had to be back at school, and she wanted to be able to sleep in—at least a little bit. It was one of the few luxuries she rarely had a chance to enjoy. “Do you want to watch a little TV? Aunt Holly just wants to sleep for a few more minutes.” She reached for the remote, but Jenna pulled it out of her hands before she could click the power button.
“No! No TV. You have to get up. We have a surprise!”
“Surprise? We?” Rubbing her eyes, she tried to shake off her fatigue and noticed her niece had a huge grin across her face. “What’s going on? What’s that smell?”
Jenna was hopping up and down. “Come on, Aunt Holly, come on!”
“Okay, okay.” She pushed the covers to the side. How could she resist the adorable wide-eyed girl standing next to her? She could always sleep later.
Her niece took her hand, pulling her out of the guest room and into the kitchen of the apartment she shared with Jared. She couldn’t help but stop and smile. The kitchen table, a plain folding table they’d picked up at a yard sale, was covered with one of her fancy tablecloths—the ones she used whenever they had company. On top sat a bud vase with a single red rose. Propped up against that was an envelope with Holly’s name written across it. In front of the vase and card was a plate of food: eggs, pancakes, and her favorite—a chocolate chip muffin—along with a cup of coffee.
“What’s all this?” she asked, her tone suspicious.
Jared, who was leaning against the kitchen counter, grinned. Either his hangover was gone, or he had learned over the years how to successfully hide it. Holly knew the latter was most likely the case.
“This,” he said, pulling the chair out for her, “is my way of saying I was a big jerk last night.”
“Ooh, he said a bad word,” Jenna tattled.
Holly stifled a giggle. She was still mad at Jared, but he was making an effort to apologize. He earned points for that. She could feel her anger slipping away, although she wasn’t quite ready to forgive him yet. She sat down and picked up her fork.
“I helped cook,” Jenna announced, bouncing up and down beside her, obviously thrilled at having been a part of the surprise.
“Oh did you now? Did you make the eggs?”
“Uh, huh. I helped stir them, and I told Uncle Jared to make the pancakes like hearts.”
She stared at the lopsided ovals on her plate. “These are hearts?” she teased, glancing at Jared.
He shrugged and nodded, a shy smile crossing his face.
“Mommy makes me heart pancakes all the time. Except hers look like hearts. I miss Mommy … and Daddy. Are they coming to get me soon?”
“Oh, honey.” Holly picked her up and balanced her on her lap, “Mommy and Daddy are on their honeymoon. Do you know what that is?”
“Their wedding vacation?”
“Yes,” she grinned, trying not to giggle. She loved Jenna’s innocence. She missed so much of her niece’s life with her sister living clear across the country. Holly was so happy to have this time to spend with her and dreamed of the day she’d be able to snuggle a little one of her own on her lap like this every day. “Yes, their wedding vacation. They’ll be gone for a few days, but we’re going to have lots of fun. Aunt Tessa’s going to stop by later to take you out, and tomorrow you’re going to Grandma and Grandpa’s house for a few days. Mommy and Daddy will be back before you know it. I’ll bet they’ll call you later.”
She gave her aunt a hug before she jumped off her lap. “Can I watch TV now?”
“Sure,” Holly said, glad her moment of missing Mommy and Daddy sadness seemed to be over.
“I’ll go get her set up,” Jared offered. “You eat before your food gets cold.”
She took a bite of her eggs and opened her envelope. He must have gone out to the twenty-four hour market at the crack of dawn to put all of this together. She pulled out the card. It was one of those mushy ones with a couple on the cover that said, “I’m sorry” in fancy script. Inside were more passages asking for forgiveness and professing the writer’s love, including a handwritten note stating how lucky he was to have her in his life. In the three years they’d been dating, he’d never bought her a card for an occasion other than her birthday or Valentine’s Day. Even then, it always had a joke or sarcastic remark attached to it—usually referring to her as the old ball and chain, or something like that. Was this the same Jared? She took another bite of the eggs.
“How’s the food?” he asked, coming back into the kitchen.
“It’s good, thanks,” she replied, laying the card beside her plate. She gazed up at him with a hint of an apprehensive glint in her eyes.
He pulled out the chair next to her and sat down. “I really am sorry, you know. Humiliated, to tell you the truth. I thought a lot about what you said last night after you left the room, and you were right. My behavior was awful. It’s not going to happen again, I can promise you that. I plan on calling your parents later to apologize.”
Holly raised her eyebrows. “Okay,” she said slowly and pinched herself under the table. Was she still asleep? This had to be a weird dream, right? She wasn’t actually sitting next to Jared—her Jared—listening to him apologize. He never apologized, not like this. Call her parents? The next thing she knew he’d propose to her. She started choking on her eggs.
“Hol? Are you okay?” He jumped up and ran behind her.
She brought her hands up to her throat, and panic set in as she realized she couldn’t draw in a breath. Jared wrapped his arms around her torso, and with a hard thrust, the offending piece of egg flew out of her mouth and across the table. She gasped for air.
No, she was most definitely not dreaming. “Thank you,” she whispered. “Thank you.”
He buried his head in her hair. “I’m so sorry, baby, I really am. I realized last night after you went to the guest room how miserable I’d be without you. We were meant to be together, you know. Forever. And I’ll do whatever it takes to make that happen, to prove to you I’m the man that’s meant to be in your life. I just want you to be happy, for us to be happy. I love you, Hol. I love you so much.”
She wiped away the tears that were streaming down her face, and turned around to hug him. “I love you, too, babe. Always.”
Chapter 8
Holly sat in the staff meeting watching the clock. School officially ended at three. She’d planned on staying until three-thirty to get ahead on lesson plans—then she’d wanted to hit the grocery store on her way home. She and Jared were completely out of food. Her dinner last night consisted of frozen waffles and peanut butter. It was reminiscent of her college days.
Jared had eaten at the hospital cafeteria. He was on the maintenance crew at Crestmont Memorial and had worked the evening shift last night. He liked to tell people he was involved in some of the construction projects at the hospital, but in reality he spent most of his eight hours changing light bulbs in the ceilings and batteries in the IV pumps. Holly reminded herself regularly everyone had to start somewhere.
Her phone buzzed. She tried to muffle the sound with her hands, so as not
to disrupt the meeting, while discreetly reading the message.
Want to grab a drink tonight?
Just as Holly was about to leave earlier, Dan Harper, the newly hired principal of her school, popped his head into her classroom to say he wanted to hold an impromptu staff meeting at four o’clock with the math teachers. “Certainly,” she’d responded with a fake smile. According to her contract, she was supposed to stay at school until four-thirty, so she couldn’t exactly say she’d planned on leaving an hour early.
Dan Harper insisted his staff call him by his first name when out of earshot of the students. Around them, he was still to be Mr. Harper, of course. However, despite his request, most of the senior staff still called him Mr. Harper, whether there were students present or not. The principal before him, Mrs. Sinclair, had been there forty years and had always been referred to as Mrs. Sinclair. Nobody would dare call her Elizabeth, even behind her back. Holly supposed old habits were hard to break. She had no problem calling him Dan.
She peeked at the clock: four-fifteen. She hid her phone behind her stack of books while she typed, feeling like she was back in high school.
Sorry, Tess. Long day. I’m beat. Rain check?
There were two other math teachers besides herself at West Place Elementary. Gus Shaw, a pudgy, balding man who occasionally filled in for the gym teacher, and Elaine Fairview, a silver-haired, wrinkly woman who looked like she was old enough to have taught Holly’s parents.
Elaine mainly taught the sixth-graders and was constantly complaining about either her students or the curriculum, stating the former were too unruly and the latter was too difficult. Holly found it funny she chose education as her profession since she appeared to have such a low tolerance for both children and teaching. Elaine also insisted everyone, including Dan Harper, call her Mrs. Fairview. Oddly enough, however, she wasn’t one of the ones who called him Mr. Harper. Holly wondered if Mrs. Fairview knew everyone called her Elaine behind her back.
