Other Side of the Wall

by Jennifer Peel

I waited for several minutes to speak. “Is everything ok?”

  He didn’t immediately answer and I didn’t push.

  “I just forgot how negative her parents can be. I’m happy you didn’t come in.”

  “Do you want to talk about it?”

  He glanced quickly my way and half smiled. “No.”

  “Ok”

  He switched gears on me. “Does my family know you’re here?”

  “No.”

  He smiled wickedly. “Very good.”

  “What is that supposed to mean?”

  He smiled at me again, but didn’t answer my question. He was acting odd, but not in a bad way.

  We decided to stop quickly for Chinese take-out as the roads were getting horrendous. I kept thinking, do I really want to live here again? But then I looked at Scott and thought, Um, yes, yes I do.

  Scott carefully drove us back to his house in the dark. We saw several accidents on the way back. I was so thankful by the time we made it back to his place. I only liked the snow when I could watch it from the warmth and safety of the inside. As soon as we entered his house, he went to work lighting his gas fireplace, and I set out dinner on his coffee table. He then turned on some jazz and turned the lights down. We ate by the glow of the firelight and then snuggled in close. I was so happy he hadn’t pushed me away on a day when he very well could have.

  We didn’t say much, and thankfully we didn’t have to. His kiss told me everything I needed to know. As midnight approached, he rubbed my back. “I keep waiting for your dad to pop up and tell me I should be going upstairs.”

  I laughed and sighed. “I guess I should probably go to my place.”

  Scott looked up toward the wall we shared. “You know, I’m tired having walls and space and miles between us.”

  I snuggled in closer to him. “Me too.”

  He paused for a moment. “Ava…”

  “Yes?”

  “Marry me?”

  I sat up and looked at him. I wasn’t sure if I heard him right, but my heart was beating about a mile a minute. I sat up to find him smiling so sincerely.

  He touched my cheek gently. “Ava, please be my wife?”

  The tears started, and I shook my head yes. I lost my ability to speak for a moment.

  He smiled. “Is that a yes?”

  “Yes.”

  He drew me to him and kissed me until I sighed and the clock struck midnight.

  Then he shocked the heck out of me. “Today?”

  “You want to get married today?”

  He smiled. “Yes”

  “Are you serious?”

  “Ava, I’ve never been more serious in my life.”

  “But my family can’t get here today.”

  He grinned. “I know.”

  “But…”

  He placed his finger on my lips. “I just want it to be you and me.”

  I sat there for a moment and thought. I thought about the repercussions and ramifications of agreeing to such an idea. I knew our mothers wouldn’t be happy about it one bit. My momma was already looking at bridal magazines and sites, itching to plan another wedding. But, we had already both had big weddings, well at least me. Scott’s first wedding was pretty simple. Then I thought about where would we live and what about my job, which ok, I knew I could easily get out of it, but if I moved back here, I wasn’t sure I wanted to work, at least not at the ER. Honestly, I was kind of hoping to work on a family, but what if Scott wasn’t ready for that?

  Scott kept looking at me expectantly with his loving smile. I shared my string of concerns, and he still kept smiling. “Take a deep breath, Ava. Our parents will get over it. I’ll just let you tell my mom because she’ll easily forgive you, and next week we can fly down and tell your parents. We can live at my place or yours until we can build or buy something that’s ours. I make more than enough money to support us, and I’m all for starting on that baby-making process.” He wickedly grinned and looked at his watch. “We could get going on it in like nine hours, as soon as the courthouse opens and we say I do.”

  I shook my head and smiled at him. “I don’t have a ring for you, or even a proper dress to wear.”

  He kissed me tenderly. “None of that matters to me. All that matters is that we love each other and there will finally be no more walls.”

  Epilogue

  After the initial thrill of the thought of eloping wore off, I could practically hear my momma and his mom screaming, “Don’t you dare even think about it!” And after all that had happened this past year, I convinced Scott it would be best to let our families be part of it. Believe me, I wanted nothing more than to be married to him as soon as possible, but I knew letting Myrna see us get married would erase all tensions that had previously existed between her and Scott, and although I knew my parents really liked Scott, they were wary about me marrying again. I knew eloping would just add to any misgivings they might still have had.

  That didn’t mean we planned on waiting. Scott had planned on flying into Alabama on the fourteenth anyway, so we decided to get married on the fifteenth in a private ceremony on the beach. His parents were thrilled, even though it was short notice to travel. I’ll never forget telling Myrna, she practically hugged the air out of me. But, it was the look between mother and son that was priceless and touching and made waiting the extra few days completely worth it. My parents weren’t exactly happy. My momma was looking forward to planning a big affair, and of course, they were worried; they didn’t want me to move away again, but in the end they were supportive.

  I flew back before Scott; it was the last time we had to say goodbye, this time only for a week. The week actually flew by. Even though it wasn’t going to be a big affair at all, my momma insisted on putting her touches on it. There was the matter of buying a dress and a ring and, of course, packing. Honestly, I hadn’t really unpacked much. I think in my heart I always knew where I belonged, and that was with Scott.

  The Langston gang, minus Scott, all flew in a couple of days early. Scott had some things he had to tie up at work before his week off. We weren’t really doing a honeymoon. We were planning on staying at the newly renovated romantic-themed rental house my momma and I had just finished for a few days, and then we would slowly make our drive up north. And really, all we needed was a bedroom and each other. I couldn’t think of a better honeymoon than that.

  The Langston’s took over the guest house, and I stayed in the main house in my old bedroom, which just happened to be close to the guest bedroom. Tucker teased he would be sleeping outside my door; my Daddy thought it was a great idea.

  Our families immediately meshed well together. I knew they would. My momma was grateful to have Myrna’s help with the food and decoration preparation. My momma insisted that we at least have a small reception after our Saturday afternoon wedding. Unfortunately, my momma doesn’t truly know the meaning of small. Before I knew it, at least a hundred people were invited to come wish us well. I still insisted the actual ceremony be just family. And Scott insisted our reception be short. For some reason he wanted to leave quickly.

  After the craziness of the week leading up to our wedding, I was so happy when Scott arrived early Friday afternoon. He was my sanity. I loved our mommas, but they were out of control. Everyone was just staying out of their way, although I did enjoy overhearing their conversations. Several of them surrounded the future grandchildren they were hoping to share. And they were very impatient. I didn’t tell them Scott and I were planning on working on that right away, just in case it didn’t go as we planned. But believe me, no one wanted a baby more than me, especially Scott’s baby.

  Scott walked in and wrapped me up in his arms, and I instantly felt warm and calm and like I was home. “I’m never leaving you again,” he whispered against my ear.

  I loved the sound of that.

  Our reunion was cut short by our family, who thought they needed to show Scott everything they had been working on from the decorations to food. I could tell
he was completely uninterested as his gaze focused on me as our mommas talked on and on. I wanted to say, “You’re talking to the man that was dead set on eloping, and by the look in his eyes, I could tell he wished we would have.”

  Then Nick and Tucker came in; they were fast friends. They were actually crazy enough to do some surfing in the still-cold temps of the gulf. They were shirtless and wet.

  “This is your last chance, Ava, to choose the better looking brother,” Nick said.

  I held on to the better looking brother and looked lovingly into his eyes. He leaned down and kissed me sweetly, just once, on the lips and then smirked at Nick.

  Myrna yelled at Nicky to go get dressed. The Langston’s were taking us all out to dinner. It was a groom’s dinner of sorts. But first Scott and I needed to go to the courthouse to get our marriage license; we would meet everyone at the restaurant. I was more than looking forward to the time alone, even if it was only for an hour or so. Scott and I made our escape upstairs to change. As soon as we turned the corner away from any prying eyes, Scott picked me up and kissed me like we hadn’t seen each other in a while. “Tomorrow can’t get here soon enough.”

  I smiled. “This time tomorrow, I’ll be Ava Langston.”

  He smiled wide and repeated, “Ava Langston.” He rested his hand on my cheek. “Thank you for taking my last name.”

  I placed my hand over his. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

  “Ava, I love you.”

  I knew how much it meant to him and his family. It was never a question in my mind whether or not I would take his name, but I loved that he asked me to.

  “I know,” I replied.

  I think we could have stood in the hall all afternoon, just the two of us, but we knew if we wanted to get married the next day, we had to hustle. We quickly changed. I put on a sleek light-gray pant suit that fit me to a tee; I paired it with some strappy high heels. Scott dressed in a black suit and blue tie that brought out his eye color. I had never seen him in a suit. He looked fine. Very fine. It was funny, he was wearing a suit tonight but wouldn’t be for our wedding. We wanted to be a little more casual for our big day.

  We met back in the kitchen with our mommas. They both gave us motherly love looks. I honestly thought Myrna was going to pinch my cheeks. She didn’t pinch my cheeks, but she hugged me tight. “My beautiful daughter.” It made my eyes water. She had no idea what it meant to me to have her make me part of their family. I would happily and proudly call her mom. My momma hugged Scott too. I knew it was hard for her to let me go again, but the look she gave Scott, I could tell she had come to terms with it.

  As we walked out, they warned us not to even think about getting married at the courthouse. We nervously laughed it off and told them we would see them soon at the restaurant. We hadn’t told them we had almost eloped.

  That would be our secret.

  Thankfully, we were able to get right in and get our marriage license. I don’t think either of us quit smiling as we held that document in our hand, giving us permission to tie the knot. We drove slowly over to the restaurant and tried to savor our last moments of aloneness for the evening. We pulled into the parking lot and recognized our families’ cars. I think I sighed as Scott came around to open my door. I loved our families, but I really was ready for some quality alone time with my intended.

  When he opened my door, he surprised me and knelt in front of me with a tiffany box in hand.

  I smiled. “What’s this?”

  He winked. “Why don’t you open it?”

  I took the tiny blue box out of his hand and carefully lifted the lid. I was speechless. Scott definitely had superb taste when it came to diamond rings. In my nervously shaking hand I held a square diamond ring, I was guessing two carats, and the band was inlaid with diamonds. With tears running down my face I looked down into his eyes.

  “Will you marry me, Ava Mae Elliot?”

  I wrapped my arms around his neck. “Do you even have to ask? Of course I will.”

  He took off my “promise” ring and replaced it with the engagement ring. He kissed me gently. “I love you,” he whispered almost reverently.

  “I love you,” I whispered back before I wrapped my arms around his neck again and told him thank you for the most beautiful ring I could ever imagine. We kissed briefly and then decided we’d better join our families before they sent out a search party.

  As we walked in, Scott slipped my promise ring in his pocket. I asked him what he was going to do with it. He just smiled at me and winked. I let him have his secret.

  We walked in to cheers and hugs. We definitely felt loved, and I felt an overwhelming love for all that were at the table, from our parents to our siblings, but especially for the man that held my hand and frequently glanced my way through the meal. Those thoughts and feelings continued through the night as we separated. I was going to spend the evening with our mommas and Deanna, and he was going to spend it with all of our male relations. It wasn’t our idea to be apart, but we weren’t going to argue.

  The rest of my evening was spent being pampered with a manicure, pedicure, facial and massage. I guess if I had to spend it apart from Scott, it wasn’t a bad way to go. There was also lots of laughter and happy tears. I sure did love these women. I didn’t know what the men were up to and if Nick and Tucker were involved I wasn’t sure I wanted to know.

  All I know is I was in bed when they got home. Scott was allowed to knock on my door under the watchful eye of my brother. I opened it and he quickly told me goodnight and that he loved me, and he gave me the chastest of kisses.

  I smiled to myself as I went to bed that night. I didn’t sleep much. I was too excited. I was up early the next morning, and the momma brigade went to work on me, from hair to make-up. They wouldn’t allow Scott to see me. Breakfast was even served in my room by my daddy. I think he was going to cry. I remembered the first time he gave me away, he was emotional. I think we were in for a repeat, which was making me emotional; it was driving the mom’s nuts as it wasn’t good for the newly applied make-up.

  As noon approached, I slipped into my dress. It was a simple white flowing chiffon gown. It was perfect for getting married on the beach. I never felt more beautiful or feminine. Scott would be wearing a white linen button down shirt and natural-colored linen pants. I couldn’t wait to see him. Once I was ready, my momma and his both hugged me and kissed my cheeks, and each told me how much they loved me. Then it was just me and my daddy. When he saw me, he was too choked up to speak. But he didn’t have to speak. I knew, as he held my hands, how he felt about me.

  We made our way downstairs and out the back to the beach. Our pathway was lined with white rose petals; it was lovely. The weather was absolutely perfect, warm and sunny with just a few wispy clouds in the sky. As my bare feet hit the sand, I smiled. I smiled wider as I looked up and saw Scott with my old youth minister waiting for me just a few yards away near the shoreline. I felt like running; I couldn’t get there fast enough, but instead, I savored the moment as I walked toward him, never letting my eyes leave his now-wet eyes. The only time my eyes left his were to look into my daddy’s. My daddy kissed my hand before handing it to Scott.

  Scott eagerly took my hand and brought it up and held it to his chest as we faced each other, inches apart. There was no doubt that he loved me and his heart was mine. I don’t even really remember what the minister said. All I remember was we each said, “I do,” and he pronounced us husband and wife, and we kissed. I mean really kissed.

  He was awfully good at it.

  When we finally finished kissing, Scott lifted me up into his arms, and we faced our beautiful family as Mr. and Mrs. Scott Langston. I noticed the tear stained cheeks of our parents. It was all perfect.

  Our honeymoon was more than perfect. No more walls or separations, just the two of us blissfully happy. That first night, as we stayed up all night in each other’s arms, we reflected on our journey to each other and how we started out as neighbo
rs. Neighbors that reached across the wall to become best friends and then husband and wife.

  Eventually we added more titles. Scott became the Research Director of the Georgia Aquarium. We both agreed we needed our own city and place. Of course, my family was thrilled that we were closer. Scott’s family, not so much, but they understood, and they visited often, especially when we made them grandparents. We were quick studies in the baby-making process, and we welcomed a daughter the following January, adding the titles of mom and dad. We named our blue eyed beauty Sophia Mae. The day of her birth, Scott presented me with a diamond pendant made from the promise ring he had given to me. It was perfect.

  As life went on, we experienced lots of joy, some pain and tears, and lots of laughter, but together, no wall was insurmountable.

  THE END

  About the Author

  Jennifer Peel is a fifth generation Colorado native who currently calls Alabama home. She is the mother of three amazing children who have grown up way too fast. She enjoys the mountains, vacations at the beach, date night with her wonderful husband, late night talks with her kiddos, touring model homes, pink bubblegum ice cream…and writing.

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  Other books by Jennifer Peel:

  The Girl in Seat 24B

  Professional Boundaries

  To see more about her and her books, visit her website at: www.jenniferpeel.com