by Gina Leuci
I tuned out the words. A week ago, I’d stood in this room watching the wedding of my college roommate to a man she loved. The ceremony had been simple and beautiful as Caroline and Aaron stood with their hands together, gazing lovingly into each other’s eyes. The church had been decorated with fresh cut flowers. The members of the church had been there to celebrate a joyous occasion. While I’d told my friend she was rushing into the relationship, I’d still been happy she’d found the man of her dreams.
Now the same words that had been spoken a week before were repeated. I stood where my friend had, except I was covered in mud, my hair tangled, and the man whose hands were holding mine was in as much disrepair as me.
I looked out to the crowd of Wellington townsfolk and spotted Leland, his arm in a sling, anger emanating from every pore. This was payback because I’d continually said no to his advances. Jackie, my former boss at the school cafeteria, wore a bigger scowl than usual on her pinched and homely face.
My summer house parents, Kurt and Amy, looked calm and peaceful, as though shotgun weddings were a normal occurrence.
Perhaps for Wellington, they were.
I looked over at Jake, wearing his usual Sunday attire of khakis and golf shirt. While he was dressed a hell of a lot better than I, his wide-eyed gaze showed his shock at the unexpected nuptials. His bride, on the other hand, had decked herself out in a floral sundress. Her makeup was flawless; diamond earrings sparkled below her up swept blonde hair. If her blue eyes, twinkling with a spark of glee, were any indication, I’d guess she’d been forewarned of this impromptu ceremony.
I’d warned Jake, my friend since elementary school, to not hook up with the Wonder Twin, but the girl had played him like a guitar, strumming his strings until he’d snapped. This whole thing had all been planned. Probably right down to Daddy catching them in the act. While her sibling wasn’t getting where he wanted with me, another few minutes and Leland may have made it look close enough to have had the double wedding he’d wanted with his twin.
The next thing I heard was the pastor saying, “I now pronounce you husband and wife.”
“Wait. What?” I gasped. I hadn’t exchanged any vows. I’d just stood there, not listening to half of what had been said. No words, no rings.
“As you take on the Wellington name, you will be expected to learn and accept the rules and moral code we expect of all of our family,” Pastor Rick instructed before he looked past us, focusing his attention on the congregation. “There are details which need to be made immediately. While I know many of you will be out assessing the properties for damage, I would like to ask if there are any volunteers to prepare apartments for the new couples?”
Apartments? This couldn’t be happening. I looked down at my hands, still clasped within much larger ones as arrangements were made.
“What about my children?” Caleb’s words, while non-confrontational, were controlled. I knew he was as unhappy about our new-found situation as I was.
The room seemed to close in. I heard conversations around me, yet it was as though I was just an observer watching someone else’s life being shanghaied.
Pastor Rick responded, “I’m sure they can continue to stay with your mother until a house becomes available for you later. Tomorrow, you will meet with the jeweler to order rings and then with Dr. Todd. As is custom, you will be relieved of your work duties for the next two weeks. In the meantime, have a seat, we will proceed with the service.”
With a slight tug on my arm, I was led to the pew where Caleb’s mother, stepfather, and three children sat. They scooted over to make room. I sat in stunned silence as the youngest, Shawna, crawled into her father’s arms.
I was married.
I wasn’t going home.
I felt my breath hitch. Don’t cry. Don’t cry.
The man beside me, my hus—Nope, not going there—leaned down to whisper in my ear. “Don’t worry. I’ll fix this. Somehow.”
Chapter Two
Married.
I stared into the mirror in the restroom of the fellowship hall at the stranger before me. I wasn’t surprised to see the wrinkled shirt or the denim jeans that had been soaked in the rain, then dried into stiff, uncomfortable cardboard. My hair was flat in some places and stuck out in strange angles in others.
It was the pale face and vacant eyes I didn’t recognize.
My brain tried to process the past twenty-four hours. When I’d rejected Leland, after weeks of telling him I didn’t want a summer romance, he’d blurted the truth about why the interns had been brought to this secluded town. The residents needed spouses, and the son of the town administrator was laying his claim on me. I gripped the counter top as the memories flooded. The police chief had arrived in time to stop things from going to the next level.
I lifted the corner of my shirt to examine the black and blue bruise forming on my ribs where Leland had landed his vicious kick. The attack had been unexpected, but watching Caleb respond by grabbing him and snapping his arm in retaliation had been more shocking. It was at that moment Roger had arrived, screaming about Jake and Hope’s infidelities, and in the ensuing chaos, I fled the scene.
I released my shirt and turned from the mirror, leaning against the Formica counter. Running had seemed the best option at the time, despite the incoming storm. The town’s top cop had followed.
He’d found me, of course. The tracking device encased in the electronic bracelets everyone wore ensured no one ever got lost in this gated Pennsylvania town. Or escaped. But by the time Caleb caught up to me at the lake, the storm hit, and there was no time to head back to town, especially as I’d kicked off the borrowed over-sized boots.
Roger insisted that I’d been compromised. Ha. What an archaic term. Not for Wellington. No siree. Here they took nonsense like that seriously. Yes, we’d spent the night together. On the ground, under a rock, for God’s sake. Clothes on.
Sure, when the search party found us, I may have been nestled or possibly sprawled over said male body, but that had only been because there wasn’t a lot of room in our make-shift shelter. And he’d been warm, and large and protective as the wind howled throughout the night.
Well, there was that kiss. No, even that had been a farce. An interesting and appealing distraction, but a farce, none the less, as my rescuer had used that moment to check my ribs after the brutal kick. He’d known it would be the only way he could ensure I’d not been hurt more than I’d admit to. He’d won that round. Not that I’d really minded in the end.
That didn’t seem to matter to the pastor or anyone else in town. As far as they were concerned, we’d slept together.
As for Jake and Hope? I could only shake my head at those two fools. I’d known all along that the goddess had her sights on my best friend, but I hadn’t suspected she’d set such an elaborate trap where she’d make sure her own father caught her fornicating with the summer intern. Sex in this moralistic town meant automatic marriage. The blonde diva got exactly what she wanted.
The bathroom door swung open, and one of the students from the elementary school came in and smiled at me. I forced my lips up in response to the child and pushed myself away from the counter. I couldn’t hide in here all day.
Sundays meant the entire town joined together for a pot-luck fellowship meal after church. I’d taken enough time in the restroom that the food line was empty. I took a paper plate and slopped something onto it, not really looking. Not really caring. Unlike the wedding last week, The Hall as they referred to the large, barn-like building they gathered in, was bare. No music, no streamers, no decorations of any kind.
With food on my plate, I turned to look at the rows of tables filled with people. I didn’t know where to sit. Caroline and Aaron were away, allowed to leave for their honeymoon to visit her family in Vermont. I had no intention on sitting with Leland and the bully brothers: A.J. and Phillip.
Jake—oh, dear, wonderful friend of mine, sat beside the object of his indiscretion at a table in the ce
nter of the room. Hope’s parents remained within reach, in case the new son-in-law decided to jump ship. I caught his gaze and recognized the lost and confused stare I’d witnessed in the mirror a moment ago, but there was nothing I could do for him.
I moved to the doorway leading to the covered courtyard area connecting both The Hall and church, where more residents sat at picnic tables, enjoying their weekly Sunday meal. I spotted Caleb and his family at their usual table by the open glass door, leading to the playground outside.
Normalcy ensued. Rita, his mom, talked with her husband, Conrad, while cutting up food on a plate for the three-year old, Shawna. Five-year old Justin shoved strips of bacon into his mouth. Eliza, the oldest at eight, stood beside her father, her hands going a mile a minute as she spoke. Her expression was not one of happiness.
His family. His children. I felt a tremble begin in my knees. I can’t be married. Not to him. Not to a man I’d met seven weeks ago. Not to a man with children. Not to a man, who by the very definition of his job title, was the reason I was still in this God-forsaken, back-woods town.
His gaze lifted to meet mine across the crowded room, and maybe he recognized my lost stare. He motioned for his daughter to sit before he wove around the tables in long strides and reached me in the blink of an eye.
“I’ll take this for you.” His voice was smooth and calm which I couldn’t understand, because my insides were twisted into knots.
“How can you be calm?” I didn’t even recognize my voice. It sounded hollow.
Then I saw the darkness flash in his eyes, and I knew. It was all a façade. “We’ll talk later. For now, let’s get through dinner.”
The thought of making polite with the new in-laws was daunting. “I’m not hungry.”
He frowned as he took in the plate that had one handful of fresh cut vegetables and a single plop of some kind of casserole. “You didn’t have supper last night, and it’s almost noon. When did you last eat?”
“I don’t know.” The past day was a bit hazy now. My brain wasn’t working. When had I eaten? “I think I had an apple yesterday when helping out with the horses.”
He turned on his heel and headed back into The Hall. I silently followed him as he returned to the food tables to add several more items to my plate then motioned me to follow. “I’m not one of your children. You can’t tell me what to eat.” The words were harsh. Sarcastic. But there was no heat behind it.
When he stopped suddenly, I almost crashed into him. “I understand you are stressed and confused and the last place you want to be is with anyone in this town, especially me. But don’t starve yourself. You need to eat something. Please.”
It was the please which did it. I backed off my attitude and found a place across from him at the table. His parents sent me warm smiles that I didn’t know how to respond to.
Still too numb to taste anything, I ate, not because I was hungry, but it kept my hands busy. People seemed to crowd around, making me feel claustrophobic. The residents of Wellington carried on with their Sunday routine as though nothing had changed. As though they hadn’t just witnessed two near strangers being forced to marry into their community.
I pushed food around on my plate. Why would they? Was this normal for them? Bring strangers into town and marry them off so they can never leave?
Rita seemed to take the wedding of her son in stride. “There won’t be any food at the apartment tonight, so why don’t you two plan on eating at our house.”
“Yes, thank you, Mama,” Caleb said. “We will.”
I shoved a forkful of lettuce in my mouth. Like hell we will. How dare he make decisions for me? Damn him. Still arrogant and overbearing as ever.
“I want to spend as much time with the kids as possible,” he continued. “This transition isn’t going to be easy.”
I nearly choked on my salad. Well, shit, wasn’t I the selfish one? Good thing I’d kept my mouth shut. I hadn’t thought what this was going to mean with regard to the children. Holy Mother Mary. Kids. If we were married, then that meant I was now a—Nope. Not going there either.
Connie, the phone operator, stopped by the table. “Hiya, newlyweds.” Her super-friendly voice grated on my nerves, and I shoved another forkful of food in my mouth to keep from snarling.
“I want you to know I will be helping with setting up your new place,” she announced. “Why don’t you bring your belongings over to the apartments on West Eighth Street at four, and we’ll show you which unit is yours.”
“Thank you, Connie,” Caleb said, “for giving up your Sunday with family to do this. It’s very kind.”
I stared, again shocked at the cordial demeanor. This was a new side to Caleb I hadn’t seen before.
“Aww, sweetie. We’re all family. I’m happy to do this for you.”
When the chatty woman finally moved on, I observed the man I’d been forced to join hands with earlier. I’d never seen him rattled before, or at least, I’d never noticed the signs. On the outside, he was being super polite and gracious, but looking close, I saw the tense jaw, the shoulders pulled back, and the closed off stare. He had all of his emotions under check. Total control.
Me? I wanted to scream. I wanted to throw things. But I was surrounded by the people who’d forced a marriage down my throat, and throwing a tantrum would probably not do a lick of good. So I took my cues from him and finished my meal without telling any of the well-wishers who stopped to add their congratulations, where to shove it.
****
I took the longest, hottest shower when I finally did make it back to my temporary summer home that I’d resided in for the past seven weeks. While I was clean, it didn’t help clear my mind.
I packed my few belongings into my suitcase and looked around my tiny pink room and realized I would miss it. I went upstairs to say goodbye to my host family.
“Thank you for all your wonderful hospitality,” I said as Amy wrapped her arms around me in a huge hug.
“It was our pleasure, dear.”
Kurt moved to plant a kiss on my forehead. “Caleb is a good man. He’ll treat you right.” I didn’t know how to answer, so I nodded.
“Yes,” the gray-haired grandmother continued. “God speaks in mysterious ways.”
“I don’t see how God has anything to do with this,” I mumbled.
“Oh, my sweet girl, of course He does.” She grasped my hands. “Why, the storm coming through, trapping you two together? That was God’s doing. It’s part of His master plan.”
I snorted. “No, the storm was just a storm. The marriage was Roger retaliating for his son’s bad decisions.”
She patted my hands. “I know believing in God is new for you. In time, you will learn and trust in his ways.”
Kurt stepped forward. “There isn’t another shuttle before four. Do you want me to come with you and carry your suitcase?”
I smiled up at him. He was a kind man. “No. I’ve got it. The walk will do me good.”
I left my host family home, cursing the sun and its bright day. My mood was more suited to the storms from yesterday. I kept my pace slow, in no rush to get to my new destination. The house I’d stayed in the past several weeks since my arrival was already on the west side of town, so I didn’t have too far to go. A few blocks up, a couple blocks over.
The apartment complex was the only four-story building on the street, so I knew where I needed to go. The police cruiser parked out front gave added confirmation.
Seeing the chief waiting for me outside gave me mixed emotions. The kisses we’d shared the night before had been hot, and at the time I’d enjoyed them way too much. But with the turn of events this morning, I didn’t want to have anything to do with any Wellington, not even this one.
I’m sure he wasn’t thrilled with the cards he had been dealt. He was forced to leave his children in the care of his mother. Over the weeks, I’d seen how he doted on them. While his mother was a constant in their lives, Caleb was a single parent, doing everything
he could to fulfill the role vacated by his deceased wife.
He pushed from his stance against the wall of the building and walked down the street to meet me. “I’ll take that for you.”
I handed over my rolling luggage and watched as he lowered the top handle and lifted it by the one on the side. He motioned me to enter the building. “We’re on the third floor. There are no elevators.”
At least there was air conditioning, which I was thankful for as I climbed the stairs of the building which looked to have been built early in the town’s history. The stairwell had been painted fairly recently, but nothing could detract from the age of the building itself.
We entered a hallway and went right, stopping at an open door at unit 309. “This is it. I sent Connie home.”
Thank God for small miracles. There was no way I could handle her chattiness. I didn’t think I could handle any of this right now.
I walked in and stopped. It wasn’t very big. The kitchen and living room were one large room, separated by a small table with four chairs around it. The furniture consisted of a single chair and a loveseat. No long couch. A bookshelf, void of books, but there was a radio. One end table held the single lamp in the room. The only other lighting was a three-bulb fixture over the table.
I moved to the kitchen and opened the fridge, which held a few casserole dishes, leftovers from the fellowship meal, I assume. I opened cabinets and found a few pots and pans. Enough to get a couple started.
There were three closed doors along the side wall of the living room, and I strode over as he continued to stand by, watching as I explored. The first one was the bedroom. A king-sized bed filled the confines of the room, leaving little space for the end tables and bureaus. Lamps and alarm clocks were the only adornments. The hand-made quilt with purples and greens was the only splash of color in the white-walled room.
I didn’t want to think about the bed, or the size of it, or what it meant for sleeping arrangements tonight, so I opened door two. The bathroom. The chocolate brown tub, toilet, and sink screamed it hadn’t been updated since before I was born, but it was clean. I moved on to the third door, praying for a guest bedroom.
