Carrie slid beneath the covers in the
guest room. Her thoughts bounced from hope to despair. She had asked him. He
hadn’t said no, but he hadn’t agreed to be her husband either.
She closed her eyes and visualized a scene
that had been a feature of her dreams for years. A cathedral with sunlight streaming through a
multitude of stained glass windows; A
carpet of white rose petals covering the gray stone floor; Tony in a black tuxedo standing before the
altar. He held out his hand and she floated toward him.
With a moan, she cut off the fantasy. She
couldn’t let him discover how much she wanted this marriage to last longer than
the short time she’d requested. Not when he didn’t love her.
She ran her hands over the white tee
shirt--- soft, comfortable, his. She wished the spicy scent of him still clung
to the fabric, but the only aroma belonged to the fabric softener.
Sleep seemed out of reach. Her thoughts
raced. She couldn’t wait until tomorrow. She’d ask for his answer now. She slid
to the edge of the bed. Maybe he had decided. She could slip down the hall to
his room and demand to know his decision. Waiting was a drag.
With a sigh, she slumped against the
pillows. She had to stay in this room and practice patience. If she appeared at
his bedside, he would laugh the way he had years ago when she’d teased him to
know what was in every Christmas or birthday present before they were opened.
What if he refused? Impossible! In all the
years she’d known him, he’d never refused a reasonable request. Was a marriage
proposal reasonable? Did she really know
Tony today?
She curled her arms around her knees. He’d
changed. His eyes held shadows and his face bore lines. Had the divorce
completed what his father’s desertion had begun? Had Tony forgotten how to trust?
“Don’t go that way,” she whispered. Her
future depended on his caring for her and his believing she wouldn’t hurt him.
The reality of what her life would be if
he didn’t marry her was drab. Her days would be bound by her mother’s needs and
that was only right. Until she’d finished college, her mother had worked as a
secretary during the day and as a waitress on weekends.
She would do the same, but the inheritance
held a promise she wanted. Until sleep chased them, her thoughts circled the
possible scenarios that might take place in the morning.
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I enjoyed A Marriage Takes Two and have posted my review on Amazon, Good Reads and Smashwords.
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