Moses
I PRESSED THE PROGRAMMED NUMBER, smiling at the picture staring back at me. My fiancée. It felt good to finally call Alex that. After the second ring, she answered.
“Hello.”
“Is this the soon-to-be Mrs. Moses Adair?”
“Yes, it is. Is this my soon-to-be husband?”
I could visualize her beautiful smile. “Yes, it is. I need you to come downstairs.”
“Okay, I’ll be right there.”
I pressed the button ending the call. A few minutes later, I heard the sound of familiar footsteps coming towards the kitchen.
“What’s all of this?” She walked over and kissed me.
“Dinner.”
“This looks a little familiar.” She looked around the kitchen. “Where is everyone?”
“Grams and Mom Connie are having dinner with my parents, and Bas took Kendell out to dinner to smooth things over with her.”
“He’s got his work cut out for him.” Alex walked over to the sink and washed her hands.
“And Otis and Mrs. Joseph are on a date.”
“So we’re alone?” She smiled.
“Yes.”
“Are you sure this is a good idea, with your repentant thoughts and all,” she teased.
“I think we’ll be okay. Get the bread.”
She got the bread basket and placed it on the table and sat down. “This reminds me of when you cooked on our third date. So, what are we having?”
“Baked ziti.”
“One of my favorites.” She smiled.
“Since you wanted to get reacquainted, I thought it would be good to go down memory lane.” I sat down, took her hand and said grace.
“Does that mean we’re going for a walk later followed by a make out session on the patio?”
I smiled. “Maybe.”
“Watch it. I’ll have you know I am an engaged woman.”
“I vaguely recall hearing something about that.”
She put a forkful of ziti into her mouth. “This is good, and exactly what I needed.”
After dinner, we sat and talked. It was just as I remembered, good conversation with the woman I love. It was also the most relaxed I had seen her all day. She didn’t tell me, but whatever transpired with her cousin, really hurt her.
I leaned over and kissed her. I love how she bites on her lower lip after we kiss. “I’ve been wanting to do that since we sat down. I have a lot of time to make up with those lips.” She smiled and at that moment, I knew I was willing to do whatever was necessary to keep her like this. I gently kissed the inside of her wrist.
“Watch it mister, we’re not married yet,” she teased.
“About that.” She tilted her head to the side, another move of hers that pushes my buttons. She doesn’t see it, but it’s the subtle things she does that make her sexy. The biting of her lower lip, the casual way she tucks her hair behind her ear, the way she hangs on my every word, and those eyes. I could stare into those beautiful dark brown eyes and never see everything she sees. “You were right.”
“About what?” She sipped her wine.
“Waiting.”
“What?” That beautiful smile had been replaced with a frown. “Is it because of what Kendell said?”
I gently brushed her arm. “No I shouldn’t have pressured you. I was being selfish. It’s just, I don’t want to waste any more time.”
“I didn’t feel pressured. It was more of...”
“Let me finish. The ten months we were apart were very difficult for me. It forced me to think about the past. It also gave me time to ask myself what I really wanted. You, Alexandra, are what I want. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. And if that means we take a little time to get reacquainted, I will do that.”
“What about your other problem?” She smiled.
I kissed her palm. “I guess I’ll be taking a lot of cold showers.” I joked. “Seriously baby, I’ll be fine.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes. So, when you go home, I’m going with you. I’ll get a place and when you’re ready, we’ll get married.”
“Thank you,” she sighed and smiled. “The past ten months weren’t easy for me, either. I forced myself to confront my feelings about Terrence and Jonathan. I also asked myself what I wanted, and the answer was always the same, you. I want to be your wife, but I need time.” She tucked a stray hair behind her ear. “When I left my office yesterday, I was coming here with the intention of telling you how I felt, and to apologize for my behavior. I had no idea that less than twenty-four hours later I’d be sitting with my fiancé.”
“So what’s the plan?”
“I think we should take the next six months---”
“No.” I protested.
“No, but you said...”
“The longest I’m willing to wait is three months.”
“Excuse me?”
“Too much time is too tempting.”
“Anything less than six months will cause suspicion.”
“Honey, I love you and the longest I’m willing to wait is three months.” She looked at me and then started laughing. “What’s so funny?”
“You.” She gently stroked the side of my face. “Three months is fine. What’s next?”
“The pre-nup.” She quickly pulled her hand back.
“Excuse me?” The tone of her voice reminded me of the first time I heard her signature question.
“The pre-nup, what are your terms?”
“I’m sorry, my ears must still be stopped up from the plane, because I thought you just said you wanted a pre-nup.”
“I do.” She was at full tension mode and ready to pounce. “It’s more for you than for me. God knows I’m not saying anything will happen to our marriage. But I want you to feel secure, and I think you should have your uncle draw up something. I want you to be protected. You get the plane plus a one time cash settlement, no alimony.”
“I see you’ve given this some thought.”
“We’ll share joint custody of the children with modest child support until age twenty-one, and I’ll pay for college. I have no rights to your stores and investments, and you have no rights to any of my businesses and investments. Any property or investments we acquire after the wedding, will be split equally. After our wedding, you’ll be made the primary beneficiary of my estate, with an equal distribution between my dad, brother, and Grams, plus some other minor disbursements. There will be a clause added for the children at the appropriate time.”
“Uh-huh.” She looked like all the blood had been drained from her body.
“Baby, this is normal for people in our position.”
“I’m sorry. I’m still trying to wrap my head around the way my fiancé is laying out the terms for our marriage.”
I know that tone. Let me act fast. I reached for her hand. “We both agree divorce isn’t an option, right?”
“Yes.”
“Then what’s the problem?”
“It just sounds like we’re taking out an insurance policy against our marriage. Oh yeah, and let’s not forget the summary of your will you just threw in. Is there something I need to know?”
I smiled. “I’m in perfect health and in love with you. Alex, you’re a rich woman now, and I would have reservations marrying you if you didn’t want a pre-nup.”
“Fine, what’s next?” I see we’re on the verge of an encounter with Evil Alex.
“We aren’t moving on until we both agree. What’s bothering you?”
“I never thought...”
“Okay, look at it this way. We plan to have a daughter and she’ll be a very rich woman, and when she comes home announcing she’s marrying some knucklehead who’s convinced her his gourmet pet restaurant is the next best thing,” She started laughing. “Don’t you want her protected?”
“Pet restaurant?” She laughed harder.
“You get my point. In spite of our attempts to dissuade her, she insists on marrying him and when the marriage tanks, do you want her to have to write him a check for half of everything she has because she didn’t protect herself? A rich man or woman leaves an inheritance for their children. I don’t know about you, but I’m not working hard to see some pet chef swoop in and take half of what I’ve saved up for my children.”
“When you put it like that...”
“It’s not that I don’t love you. It’s just business and good sense. It’s the same with my loving God. You wouldn’t marry me, if I wasn’t in love with God, right?”
“Right.” She cupped my face and gently pressed her lips against mine. “Promise me, when our daughter starts dating you’ll run a background check on all her dates.”
“Deal.”