“Hmm. I can see your point.”
Her validation of my concern only makes it seem more possible. “So you agree?”
She looks thoughtful. “Did he ask you to move in before or after you talked about buying your wedding gown?”
“After.”
“There you go then.” She sits back like she’s answered my most difficult question.
My eyebrows furrow. “I guess I’m missing something.”
“He’s obviously planning on the wedding happening or he wouldn’t have told you to spend what you want on the wedding gown, right? And then he asked you to move in. Sounds to me like moving in and getting married are mutually exclusive.”
Her logic makes sense. But still, I’m not one hundred percent convinced. “Or,” I say, “he’s just going along with the planning, but he’s in no hurry to actually go through with it.”
She sighs in obvious exasperation. “Have you talked about a wedding date?”
“Well, no.”
“Then don’t be an idiot, Ash. Get him to commit to a date. Then you can decide about whether or not to move in.”
“Now why didn’t I think of that?”
A wide smile curves her mouth. “Because I’m the genius in this operation.”
Feeling better about my concerns, I give her a hug. But as I lay in bed that night, I can’t help but worry that Drake will soon come to his senses and realize he’s not ready to be with only one woman—me—for the rest of his life.
Ten
DRAKE
“Here you go,” Jasmine says as she sets a document on my desk. “Is there anything else you need me to do before I head to lunch?”
I lean back in my chair and smile at her. “No, you can take off if you’d like.”
She nods, then turns and walks out of my office.
Barely paying attention to her as she leaves—won’t Ashley be pleased about that?—my thoughts are on the conversation I had with Ashley at dinner the night before. I was so certain she would jump at the chance to move in with me, but I was wrong, and her words come back to me.
“What if this is too good to be true?” she said. “I mean, so many things can go wrong. Your father might hate me and convince you to dump me, or you might realize you’re not ready to be committed to one woman for the rest of your life, or what if I realize I’m not ready?”
I did my best to convince her none of that would happen, but she’s placed doubts in my mind, doubts I would never admit to her.
She’s right about one thing. My feet are a little cold over the idea of being committed to one woman for the rest of my life. I’ve always lived freely, but I love her and I want to make her mine.
Will that change? Will you get tired of her?
I hate that my subconscious is poking at me, planting seeds of doubt.
I need to settle my nerves, to be with her, to give my emotions free rein. I need to hold her in my arms and feel my love for her.
I pick up my phone and send her a text.
Drake: I need to see you tonight. Are you available?
ASHLEY
My phone vibrates on the table beside my laptop. I glance at the screen and see it’s a message from Drake, but I’m in a meeting so I’ll have to wait to reply.
The moment I get back to my desk, I swipe my phone and read Drake’s message. Slightly alarmed by the urgent tone, I try not to worry as I text back.
Ashley: Yes, I’m available. Is everything okay?
He responds a short time later.
Drake: Yes. I just want to see you.
Touched, and more than a little relieved, I reply that I want to see him too. We decide I’ll come to his place after work, and then I turn my attention to my computer screen.
When lunch time rolls around, Evan comes by and asks if I’m ready to go. I’m a little surprised that he seems perfectly normal—especially after the way he responded to my engagement announcement the day before.
“Yeah,” I say as I log off of my computer. “I’m starving.”
“Do you want to drive, or should I?”
Not liking either option, I come up with a better solution. “I have to run some errands after we eat, so why don’t we drive separately?” Though that’s a lie, he agrees and I decide this will be the last time we go to lunch alone.
Ten minutes later we meet at a nearby deli, and after we order our sandwiches, we sit in an empty booth.
“Sorry about the way I reacted to your news yesterday,” he says before taking a bite of his sandwich.
Surprised, yet pleased, that he’s offering this olive branch, I smile. “I accept your apology.” Wondering if he’s going to offer an explanation, I leave it at that.
A moment later he says, “So, when’s the big day?”
I guess he’s not going to explain. Not that I really need him to. I think the reason he reacted the way he did was because he must have had some sort of fantasy that he and I could end up together. My news shattered that fairy tale. Still, I feel sorry for him. I had my own fantasy about Drake—one that ended up coming true—so I know how it feels to hope for something that may not happen.
“We’re still discussing the date,” I say, although we haven’t begun that discussion. It’s something on my agenda for my dinner with Drake that night.
“Well, I hope everything works out for you, Ashley.”
I hope he means it, otherwise working together is going to become very uncomfortable.
We get through our lunch without any awkward moments, and then I excuse myself, telling him I need to run those errands.
“See you back at the office,” he says.
Though I don’t actually have any errands I need to run, I can’t go back to the office right away or he’ll know I was lying, so I drive around aimlessly until I feel like enough time’s passed.
This is stupid. Why do I feel like I have to walk on eggshells around him?
But I know why. I like my job. I want to keep my job. And if I make an enemy of Evan—a person who’s worked there much longer than I have—I know there will be trouble.
When I get to Drake’s house that evening, I feel my body relax. As much as I love my job, I hate that being at the office stresses me out sometimes.
“Ashley,” Drake says with a smile when he sees me standing on his porch. His eyes sparkle, and I feel the love he has for me.
When he draws me into his arms, any lingering tension melts away.
“How was your day?” he asks as he leads me inside.
I don’t want to talk about work. “It was fine. How was your day?”
“Nothing exciting.”
I think about the text he sent me earlier, how he said he needed to see me. “So what’s up?” I flutter my eyelashes at him. “Why did you say you need to see me?”
DRAKE
Now that she’s standing in front of me, any panic I felt at the idea of committing to her for the rest of my life disappears. I tug her into my arms and murmur into her ear, “I just missed you.”
“I missed you too,” she says as she snuggles against me.
We separate, then work together to get dinner on the table. Once we’re seated, she places her hand on my arm and says, “Can we talk about a wedding date?”
As much as I love her and want to marry her, this is the moment I’ve been dreading ever since talking to her father and telling him we weren’t in a big hurry to get married, that we would have plenty of time to get to know each other better before our wedding day. “Sure. What were you thinking?”
She laughs. “The sooner the better as far as I’m concerned.”
Crap. I don’t think we’re on the same page.
Eleven
ASHLEY
Drake’s smile seems to have frozen and his eyes briefly widen.
Certain that my doubts have been spot-on, that he’s hesitant to actually take the plunge into marriage, disappointment surges through me. Hopeful that I’m wrong, I ask, “What are you thinking?”
“I, uh, I guess I haven’t thought that far ahead.”
Great. I put on a happy face. “Sounds like this is the perfect time to talk about it then.”
He’s quiet, then he says, “I have to tell you something.”
My nerves feel like they’ve come alive, and that’s not a good thing. “What?”
“To be honest, when I talked to your dad I told him it would be a while before we got married.”
This is news to me—shocking news. “What? Why did you tell him that?”
“He told me he’s concerned that we haven’t known each other very long.”
I think about my conversation with my mom, and I nod. “My mom said kind of the same thing.” I frown. “She said our engagement seemed kind of sudden.” Fresh doubts swirl in my mind—doubts that we’re actually ready for this step. “Do you think it’s sudden?”
He gazes at me a moment. “I know your parents just want what’s best for you, and I have to admit it was kind of impulsive for me to propose to you the way I did, but that doesn’t change how right it feels.” He places his hand over mine. “What’s wrong with having a long engagement? That way we’ll have lots of time to get to know each other all the more, and plenty of time to plan the perfect wedding.”
What he says makes sense, but still, I’d like to nail this down. “How long are you thinking?”
For a moment he seems to tense, but then his shoulders relax. “You know what? I’ll get married whenever you say.”
Not sure if this is some sort of trick, my eyes narrow. “Are you sure about that?”
He laughs. “They’re your parents, Ashley. If this is about them and their approval, then it should be your decision.”
I respect my parents, and I do want their approval, but even more, I want to do what’s right for Drake and me, for our relationship. “Okay.” I think about it, and then I say, “What about on Valentine’s Day? That’s nearly eight months away.” I quickly go on. “I know getting married on Valentine’s Day is kind of cliche, but I don’t care.”
He laughs. “Okay. February fourteenth it is.”
With a firm date in mind it’s as if all of my emotions settle into place, and all at once I decide I do want to move in with Drake.
With a bright smile, I lean towards him and kiss him.
“What’s that for?” he asks.
“I changed my mind.”
His eyebrows shoot up. “You don’t want to get married on Valentine’s Day?”
I laugh. “That’s not it.”
“Okay. Shall I keep guessing, or are you going to tell me?”
With a small smirk, I say, “We could play Truth or Dare.”
He shakes his head. “Please no. I almost got into trouble the last time.”
I think about him admitting his attraction to his assistant, but quickly shove that from my mind. “Okay. I guess I’ll just tell you then.” I pause for dramatic effect. “I just decided I want to move in with you.”
His face lights up. “Really? That’s great.” Then he cocks his head. “Are you sure about this? Last night you had all kinds of doubts.”
Now that we’ve set a wedding date, I’m much more confident. “I’m positive.”
His smile grows. “That’s what I want to hear.”
We decide I’ll move in the following weekend. That way we can focus on meeting with Drake’s father the next day, plus that will give Emily time to find someone to take my place as her roommate before I move out.
The rest of the evening flies by, and now that I’ve decided to move in, when it’s time to say good-night, I don’t want to leave.
“Stay the night, Ashley,” Drake murmurs against my ear as we stand near his front door.
I think about going home to a probably empty apartment—I know Emily had plans with Nick—and then sleeping alone in my bed. I turn my head and meet Drake’s gaze. “Okay.”
With a wide smile, he scoops me up and carries me into his room and deposits me onto his bed.
“Welcome home, my love,” he says as he stretches out beside me.
I remember how we made love in his bedroom at his cabin and how Rachel showed up later that afternoon and how he took her into that same room, and I wonder how many women he’s made love to on this very bed.
When his lips press against mine, I gently push him away.
With his elbow bent, he props his head up and gazes down at me. “What’s wrong?”
Hesitant to bring up the women in his life because I know it will just irritate him, but knowing I have to anyway, I press forward. “I’m sorry but I…I just can’t help but think about who else has slept here with you.”
A heavy sigh escapes his lips and he flops onto his back and stares at the ceiling before he rolls onto his side and looks at me again. “I thought we’d gotten past this.”
So did I, but I guess not really. I shrug as I lay on my back and meet his gaze.
“Those things happened before I met you, Ashley.” He frowns. “How would you feel if I asked you about all of your past boyfriends?”
One side of my mouth quirks up. “All two of them?”
A small smile forms on his mouth. “Right. So I guess I have a little more experience than you.”
I notice he hasn’t answered my original question of who else has slept in his bed. I don’t reply, instead I just wait to see what else he’ll say.
“I can’t change what happened in the past,” he says. “You know that, right?”
I softly sigh. “Of course.”
“Then what do you want me to do? Buy a brand-new bed? A new bedroom set?” His eyes widen. “A new house?”
I shake my head. “No, Drake. Like you said, what happened happened. I guess this is something I have to deal with on my own.”
He strokes my face. “Not on your own. I’m right here beside you, okay? I love you and I want you to be happy. Whatever it takes.”
The love in his eyes does me in, and I push aside thoughts of him being with any other women, then I snake my arms around his neck, pulling him down so that our lips touch in a passionate kiss. A kiss that makes me forget everything outside of the two of us and this moment.
Twelve
ASHLEY
After a late breakfast with Drake, and with the plan that he’ll pick me up for dinner that evening so I can meet his father, I kiss him good-bye and head back to my apartment. I texted Emily the night before to let her know I wouldn’t be coming home, but I still have to break the news to her that I’ll be moving out.
“I was wondering when you’d get home,” she says when I walk through the door. “Are we still going to look at wedding gowns today?”
Extra excited now that I have a wedding date, I nod with enthusiasm. “And I have some news.”
Her eyebrows rise. “News, huh? Do tell.”
A smile of contentment curves my mouth as I sit beside her on the couch. “We set a date.”
“Yay! When is it?”
“February fourteenth.”
“Ahh, Bee. That’s so sweet. Valentine’s Day.” She smirks. “Kind of cheesy too. Was it your idea or his?”
“It was my idea. And yes, I know it’s cheesy, but I don’t care.”
Laughing, she says, “Of course you don’t.” She swings her legs to the floor. “So, are you ready to go shopping?”
I place my hand on her arm and grimace slightly. “I have one other bit of news.”
Her eyes are on me and it only takes a moment for her to figure it out. “You’re moving out, aren’t you?”
Trying to hold back my smile, I nod.
“When?”
“Next week.” At the look of alarm on her face, I say, “I’ll help you find another roommate.”
“You’d better.” After a moment she smiles, though it’s obviously forced. “We’ll focus on that later. Right now let’s find you a wedding dress.” She pushes to her feet and turns to me. “Especially now that we know when the wedding’s going to take place. There’s
no time to waste.”
At the bridal store, I ask the sales lady where their pre-owned gowns are and she takes me to a large rack of dresses.
“As you can see,” she says, “we have quite a few, although I don’t think there are many in your size.” She smiles brightly. “But we can alter any of them to fit you.”
“Thank you. I’ll let you know if we need any help.”
She walks away and Emily and I begin sorting through the rack.
“I don’t know why you’re so determined to get the cheapest gown possible, Ash,” she says with a frown.
Though I’m not sure she’ll understand my reasons, I want to explain. “It just doesn’t feel right that he has to pay for everything.” I lift a gown from the rack and appraise it. “What do you think of this one?”
She’s not looking at the gown. Instead, she’s staring at me with a hand on her hip. “So you want to make this a cheapskate wedding? Is that it? Is that going to make you feel better? How do you think Drake’s going to feel about that? It’s his wedding too, you know.”
I put the gown back on the rack, then turn to face her. “I know it’s his wedding too.” Her words have hit their mark, and now I feel guilty for wanting to save money and pre-guilty for spending too much money. I sigh loudly.
She smiles in a way that says I knew that would get you. “Can we look at some new wedding gowns now?”
With another sigh, I nod. “I guess.”
“Good.” She grabs my wrist and tugs me toward another rack, and as she looks through the gowns with enthusiasm, I stand beside her and tell myself I don’t have to actually buy any of these gowns.
“Do you like this one?” she asks as she takes one from the rack.
I look at the intricate beading on the bodice and reach for the price tag.
Emily slaps my hand away. “You’re not allowed to look at the price until you’ve tried it on.”
Drake and Ashley: The Complete Story Page 50
