For Always
Page 22
“Okay. Can I get you anything?” I asked.
He shook his head. “I’m fine.”
I’d only taken two steps away before Jordan reached out and pulled me back to him. “Hurry back!” He kissed me again, offering motivation, before watching me go.
Instead of coffee, I thought a cup of chamomile tea would be a better choice. I also bought two bottles of water, one for Jordan and one for me. I had a queasy feeling in my belly, that he wasn’t as okay as he wanted me to believe, and rushed back as quickly as I could.
When the elevator doors opened, I looked down the hall toward my mother’s room. No sign of Jordan. My stomach got that weird feeling, like just before a roller coaster drops from the highest point of the track, scaring the daylights out of you. I tried to still the panic storm rising inside me. Everything is fine, I told myself, knowing I was full of it.
“Are you trying to finish me off?” I heard my mother say from just outside the door. Only I didn’t know if she was joking or serious.
“I mean it,” I heard Jordan’s voice, calm and serious. “I want to spend the rest of my life making her happy.”
I thought I was going to fall face down on the floor. I didn’t move. I stood just beyond their sight, frozen, curious to hear what came next.
“Jordan, are you planning to ask her to marry you?” Mom asked with both disbelief and alarm.
I couldn’t believe she asked him that. So inappropriate, and embarrassing.
And intriguing!
For a moment I heard nothing and decided to march in and save him, but the sound of his voice stopped me.
“Yes.” He cleared his throat, “Not now, but someday.”
“She has to graduate from college first.”
Was she setting a condition? How could she!
“I know,” he answered, “I just wanted to make sure you knew what my intentions are.” Something in his voice pulled at my heartstrings. “In case you didn’t approve.”
“Oh, Jordan,” Mom sounded sympathetic. “She loves you.”
“I know.”
“Then you also know, nothing I say will make any difference. Just be good to her and make her happy. That’s all I can ask.”
“I promise to always try.”
“Just one question,” Mom continued, “Is Stephanie aware of your intentions?”
“I doubt it.”
“Then maybe you should be having this conversation with my daughter.”
“I wouldn’t want to scare her off,” he chuckled.
Even if he told me he was a zombie, back-from–the-dead-to-eat-my-brains, he couldn’t scare me off. I let his words sink in before entering the room. He loved me and someday he wanted to marry me.
Someday.
I couldn’t let on that I’d been eavesdropping outside the door. Not a good way to start a relationship. I’d just have to wait until he was good and ready to tell me himself.
And I knew anything that good was worth waiting for.
About the Author
Danielle Sibarium was born and raised in Brooklyn, NY. She earned her BA from Fairleigh Dickinson University in New Jersey. For Always is her first novel. She lives in New Jersey with her husband and three children. Visit her at daniellesibarium.com