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THE NEXT AFTERNOON Ajay arrived at Emms' house to drive her to her birthday party at Copper Creek. But before they left, the plan was to inform her parents of their engagement.
Jesus. He was really gonna do this.
Get married.
Felt surreal.
Even a little awkward.
But also right.
He'd never felt so sure about anything in his life.
Even his decision to join the military was with some apprehension. Okay, more than some, but it wasn't because he didn't think he could do the job.
And it wasn't because he didn't think he'd like being a soldier.
Chain of command was an integral part of the military. Within the first week, everybody in their basic training unit had to memorize the military chain of command. It was the first written test they took.
So not a big leap to say the chain of command was pretty darn important in the military.
And . . . well, he and 'Authority' never mixed well.
Jags had said it was because of his parents. The first two people of authority in his life had proven to be not all that impressive.
His dad?
Asshole.
Mom?
He loved her. But she let that asshole stay in their life.
For way too long.
And might've been for even longer, had Cam not killed him.
So yeah, he never had much use for authority.
Learned—at a young age—to trust with caution.
After Dad died, Cam became the new 'man of the house', which Ajay hated.
At first.
Didn't want to trade one authoritative asshole for another.
But Cam had taken too many bullets, so to speak, on behalf of both he and Jags.
Cam deserved Ajay's respect.
Cam had his respect.
Which he could say about few people.
What would Cam say about their engagement?
Surely, he'd give him shit . . . tell him he was rushing things with Emms. Tell him he wasn't ready for a serious relationship.
What would Jags say?
Probably saw it in a vision, so wouldn't be a big surprise there.
And Emms' parents?
Surely, not happy to hear the news, at least her father, at any rate.
The guy made his disapproval of their relationship no secret. For one, he didn't like the age gap. For two, didn't like . . . well, let's just say wasn't much Emms' father did like about him.
Ajay looked at the closed door.
Took a breath.
Lifted a fist to knock, but before he made contact, the door eased open.
Emms frowned. "How long you been out here? Why didn't you knock?"
"You ready?" With a tilt of his head, he gestured to his Jeep. "I'll drive."
"We got tell my parents about the engagement, remember?"
Worth a shot. "Yeah."
"You're looking kind of pale."
"That's because I can't feel my feet."
She pulled him into the foyer. "You worry too much."
"And you don't worry enough." Ajay closed the door behind him. "You're not just going to blurt it out, are you?"
"It's like a bandage. Best way to remove it is just rip it off."
"Shit."
"Stop worrying." She led him down the hall and to the living room where her parents were seated on the sofa.
Sean stood. "What's this all about?"
Emms and Ajay sat on the sectional, not far from her parents. Not far enough, Ajay thought.
"We're getting married," Emms said, "Okay bandage gone. Let's go." She stood.
"Hold it." Sean looked to Emily then to Ajay. "You son of a bitch! You got my daughter pregnant!"
Emily stepped between her dad and Ajay. "Not unless it's an immaculate conception."
Shiiiiiit. Did she really just say that?
Gail embraced Emms. "Congratulations. How wonderful for you both."
"What's so wonderful about it?" Sean said, "She's not even old enough to drink but we're supposed to let her get married?"
"She's not old enough to get married, but she's old enough to die for her country?"
"As far as I'm concerned, she's not old enough for that either."
"She's also not old enough to register her own vehicle, or change a light bulb or do her taxes."
Emms waved. "I'm in the room."
"You can't put an age on love," Gail said, "I was only twenty-one when we got married."
"That was of no concern to me because I was your lover, not your father."
"Sean!"
"Now, I am the father and there is no way, I'm going to let my little girl marry this punk."
"She doesn't need your permission," Gail said brusquely.
Emily said, "Can I say something?"
"No!" Gail and Sean said together.
"If she wants me to pay for the wedding," Sean wagged his finger, ". . . she needs my permission."
Gail pushed his wagging finger aside. "Anyone can look at them and see how much in love they are."
"That's not love you're seeing; that's hormones."
"If I could just—" Emily tried again.
"They're going to get married whether you give your permission or not," Gail said, "And I'm sure she has no qualms about going to City Hall if she has to. Is that what you want?" Gail's head cocked, her condescending gaze pinning her husband.
He threw his hands up. "I will not let her be married by some stranger who doesn't know us from a hole in the wall. She will have nothing less than a good, old fashioned Christian wedding. " His wagging finger rose again. "She'll be married by Pastor Moore, and that's the end of it."
Gail winked at Emily. "If that's what you want dear."
"That's exactly what I want." He huffed.
Gail put her hand around Sean ushering him from the room. "Myrtle Cove Cottage would be a nice place to have the reception."
Their voices faded as they continued down the hall.
"Never heard of it."
"It's where we had PB & J's graduation party."
"That little place? It barely holds a hundred people. We'll have three hundred easy. We're not having a band either. I want a DJ."
"Well, we better get working on the list."
"What list?"
"Of songs you'll want played."
He groaned. "I feel a headache coming on."
Emms gave a playful punch to Ajay's shoulder. "That was pretty painless. You didn't have to say a word. I told you there was nothing to worry about."
"Rip the bandage off, huh?"
"Exactly."
Ajay pulled her across his lap. He cradled her in his arms. "I wish I could see things through your eyes. So naive, so young."
"You mean immature?"
"It's not a bad thing. It's what I like best about you. You don't see the bad in the world. For you there's no war, no crime, no poverty."
"So, I'm immature and ignorant?"
"I've seen enough of those things for both of us. Don't be mad. We just got engaged. We shouldn't be fighting." He slid her flat, lowered his body over hers. "I can think of better ways to spend our time." Distracting her with his slow kiss, he slipped his hands under her shirt and tickled her tummy.
She giggled.
"You're ticklish? I'll have to remember that?"
Sean bellowed from a neighboring room. "Could you kindly refrain from deflowering my little girl on my living room sofa?"
Emms blushed; her eyes went wide.
Smiling, he pressed his lips against her stomach and delivered a loud and wet butterfly kiss. She tried to wiggle free but he held her firm, continuing to tickle her stomach with his tongue.
Sean peered around the corner. "Get the hell off my daughter."
Ajay pulled her up. His gave Emms' father the look, letting Sean know that he would have his daughter soon enough.
Sean returned his own communicative glance, letting Ajay know 'not yet'.
A few minutes later, Sean's voice trailed from the next room. "If it's a boy, Clarence, after my great uncle would make a fine choice."