“Vicky, if you’ll just give us a minute, we can explain,” I said calmly, feeling nothing of the sort. I knew better than to tell a woman to calm down.
“Yes, please just listen,” Ren said. She was standing close to me, her intoxicating scent enveloping me once again.
“Hold on. Are you, um, sniffing her right now?” Vicky barked. “And open your eyes. You look like a lovesick puppy.”
My eyes popped open just as Ren turned to me, an amused smile evident on her beautiful face. I hadn’t even realized I’d done that.
How embarrassing.
“Ohhh. Hmm. I see,” Vicky said, nodding with an obnoxious smirk. All fire and rage were now replaced with something worse. Sass. I could see it brewing in her twinkling eyes. I’d seen that look before, but she’d never turned it on me. Maybe she was a fairy after all.
I cleared my throat and took a tiny step away from Ren, who was still looking at me in shock.
“Well, well, well. I knew you were attracted to Ren by the way you acted at game night, but I thought you were practicing for your acting debut with Grammy. By the way, I’m so happy she’s doing better. Sorry, I should’ve led with that,” Vicky said.
Bouncing from one subject to another was her other superpower. It was hard to follow at times, not to mention her demonstrative hands that smacked anyone who dared get close. Ren seemed to have the same trait, and I loved it.
“Vicky, I wasn’t pretending,” I answered. Although embarrassed to be caught smelling my fiancé—wow, that sounded strange and wonderful—I had no intention of denyingmy feelings. “I’ve told Ren my growing feelings for her have taken me by surprise, but they’re real.”
I was saying this mere feet from the woman I’d come to care for, and her growing smile was like the perfect sunrise over the Pacific. Wow, she was beautiful.
“It’s a little unconventional,” Ren said, still locking eyes with me, both of us chuckling over the word that kept coming up in our conversations. “But it feels right.”
“Yeah, it does. You’ve turned my world upside down in the best possible way. Honestly, I couldn’t wait to see you this morning,” I replied, forgetting Vicky was on the phone. Ren had that power over me.
“I was nervous before, but I…I think this is going to work,” she answered, shyly dipping her head.
Vicky’s gasp reminded me we weren’t alone. Ren and I turned to face our friend, who was shaking her head, a wide smile on her face.
“Oh. My.Goodness. You’re falling in love,” Vicky gushed.
“You’re getting ahead of yourself, Vicky,” I clarified, not wanting this to be the way I said those words to Ren.
“Oh, come on, Mike. With that sappy look, I’m waiting for you to tell her that she has bewitched you body and soul. I’ve got goosebumps thinking about you walking over to her in a long coat in the mist,” she answered, eyes unfocused in her own little world.
“What are you talking about? Have you been talking to Niko?”
They both chuckled, and Ren said, “It’s a scene fromPride and Prejudice.”
I guess Niko didn’t gate-keep after all. Miles must be in on the secret. “Whatisit with this movie?”
“We both love it. Just watch it. Together would be even better,” Vicky said, with a soft, dreamy look. “Mike, you’veredeemed yourself. I wasn’t sure what your intentions were, but I can see it so clearly now.”
Ren quickly said, “Amica, don’t get any ideas. We can talk more tonight at your house, but we’re not in love. I mean, not yet.” She looked at me, then back to the phone, my heart pounding.
“What?” came the flat answer from our friend.
“No, we’re…friends. Friends who believe that something more could come from this later on down the line. Right, Mike? I mean…” Ren said, her words trailing off. She was looking at me with those eyes that begged me to help her explain.
Facing the phone again, I said, “It’s simple, really. I feel more than just an attraction to Ren. She’s starting to understand that, I think.” I smiled at her, and she reciprocated. “There’s affection, connection, a depth that I believe once we have the time to discover, we will find everything we’ve been looking for. She’s not where I am yet, but I know God has brought us together. My original motivation was to give Grammy what she has been asking for and in turn, have a way for Ren to stay here. But I’ve realized how much I care for her, so as important as those are, they’re secondary now. I’m beyond asking her to marry me for convenience. I want Ren to marry me for life.”
Ren’s eyes widened, even though she knew all of this. Saying them in front of her closest friend probably made them land differently. There was a long pause, and all of us seemed to be holding our breath. Finally, Vicky spoke.
“That’s, well, wow, okay. When you say it that way, I guess it’s a little more romantic than just a remake ofThe Proposal. But you’re getting married for real, right? Living together?”
Ren and I answered simultaneously. “Yes.”
I smiled at her. “We’re just starting a little differently than other couples.”
