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“You said that.”
“I’m just stunned.” We were quiet for a moment while she absorbed what I’d told her. “Well, are you happy at least?” I nodded. I was happy. Being around Travis made me feel light and free, like I could be myself, not some imagined version of myself that everyone expected me to be. Leigh smiled. “Then good. I’m happy for you.”
“Good. And speaking of all that, I’m taking tomorrow off. We have to go look at a venue. The wedding planner says we can’t afford to wait any longer if we want to get married next month.”
“Next month,” she said, tone incredulous.
“We didn’t want to wait.”
A moment later, Armand sauntered over to us. “Good morning. What are you two cackling about?”
Leigh glanced at me and I nodded, took a deep breath, and blurted it out. “I’m getting married.”
He stared at us in silence, looking from me to Leigh and back again. “Really?”
“Really. I’m officially off the market.” The words sank in, and I found I was more relieved than panicked by them. I was glad they felt right, natural to say. Like that was exactly what was supposed to be happening in my life.
The day flew by quickly, though Armand did seem more interested in what I had to say than he usually was. I chalked it up to making some significant progress on the Amante Bay brief, did my job, and headed out to meet my buddies after work for kickball practice and drinks.
By six thirty that evening, I was on the field, watching Jared pitch to Ethan, one of the seasonal guys who’d just joined the team a few weeks prior. Behind the plate was Theo acting as catcher, and I was playing first base. Levi was standing near me and coaching the team, giving tips to Jared.
Without looking at me, Levi cleared his throat and lowered his voice. “How’s the new man? Moved on yet?”
I shot him a dirty look. “Not on your life.”
He shook his head as if he couldn’t believe it, then shouted at the team. “Straight across the plate, Jared. Ethan, when the ball comes to you, try to kick to left field.
Ethan connected with the ball and sent it sailing into the outfield as the guys went scrambling for it. I waited for the ball to come my direction, but when Bennett tossed it toward me, I missed the catch and fumbled the play. As Ethan rounded second, I raced to grab the ball and toss it to third to stop his run. When Cam caught it, cheers went up for Cam and the infield patted Ethan on the back.
When practice wrapped up, Bennett came up to me. “You coming with us to Jock Strap, or do you have to head home to your man?”
“Oh yeah,” Theo said. “Travis, right?”
I nodded and swallowed. “I hope you all will come to the wedding. We haven’t picked a venue yet, but we set a tentative date.”
“I’ll put it in my calendar now,” Cam said, pulling his phone out.
“So, you’re really serious?” Jared asked.
“Why wouldn’t I be?”
“I figured it was just a prank or whatever.” Jared rubbed the back of his neck. “I don’t know.” A few of the guys murmured their agreement.
“Look,” I said loudly to catch their attention. “It’s not a prank. I know it’s sudden, but we figured we were both getting older and we’re still single, so why the hell not? I don’t mind you all giving me shit about this. But I need you to believe me when I say we’re honestly going through with it. We’re really getting married. We’re taking the day off to go look at a venue tomorrow and nail down a date. We’ve picked out invitations and photographers and we have a wedding planner. I want drone videography. It’s going to be fucking amazing. And I need you all to be happy for me or shut up about it. Everyone understand?”
They all nodded, and Ethan spoke up. “Look, I know I’m new or whatever, but I just want to say I am happy for you. Really.”
“Thanks man. That means a lot.” I patted him on the shoulder. “Now, I’d love to come for drinks, but I have wedding-related plans. I’m going to take him out and buy him a real ring.”
Levi nodded and put his hand on my shoulder. “That sounds like a great idea, man. I’m sorry I was an asshole.”
“Thanks.” I was excited to see Travis again, even though we’d spent most of the weekend practically joined at the hip. I hurriedly packed up my things and headed home to change and take Travis out to find him the perfect ring. Just over an hour later, Travis and I were strolling into a huge jewelry shop, one of the few that was open late in our area.
“You really don’t have to do this,” Travis protested as I held the door open for him.
I laughed a little. “Open the door or buy you a ring?”
“Yes. But I meant the ring part.”
