Chapter 7

Laura

When I wake up, Grayson is holding my hand against his chest, sliding his finger over my engagement ring. Drawing in a deep breath, I say, in a way that he knows that I’m kidding. “Having doubts?”

He kisses my head. “Not even a little bit.”

I turn over to face him. “You better not.”

His face says he’s feigning taking offence. “Really.”

“Yes, really. Remember. It’s not just about you and I anymore.”

He kisses my lips. “I’m well aware, darlin’.” He pats my rear. “We should get up. Lots of work to do today, and we forgot to set the alarm last night. It’s almost six o’clock.”

“Shoot!” I dart out of bed.

“Hey, hey…take it easy.” Grayson chuckles. “There’s plenty of time, baby.”

“Not really. Grace will be here in a half an hour to start breakfast.”

“It’s okay.” He rises, gloriously naked. I watch him as he walks to me. Taking me in his arms, he holds me close. “You worry too much. Grace can handle the kitchen all by herself. Remember, she is studying to be a chef? On an accelerated program?”

“I know.” I say, and then I look at him. Just as I feel my stomach turn. I pull back.

“What’s wrong, Laura?” he says, concern registering on his face.

“Oh God.” I say quickly, trotting swiftly to the toilet, where I regurgitate whatever is left in my stomach from last night. As I do my business over the toilet, Grayson is dampening a washcloth with cold water. He lifts my hair, deftly twisting it, so it isn’t falling into the toilet, and he places the cool cloth on the back of my neck.

“You can’t jump out of bed anymore, baby.” He says soothingly. “Hormones go all nuts like that.”

Another wave comes as I’m about to respond, and he rubs my back, as I empty my stomach, all the way down to my toes from the feel of it. I’m shaking like a leaf from the surprise. I’ve never had nausea come on that strong and that quickly before. “Shhh…baby, you’re okay. Just a little morning sickness is all.” Grayson says, hearing my ragged breathing.

He flushes the toilet for me and grabs the waste basket from beside the toilet. “Come lay back down, darlin’. I’ll get you some dry toast and ginger ale. We’ll bring the garbage pail in case you need it.”

As I lay in bed, I’m so grateful that I’m about to be married to a doctor. I’m not good at being sick at all. Not that I am sick, but you know what I mean. So much as a cold hasn’t taken me out in years. With all the fresh air and exercise I get daily, the only thing I ever feel is run down from time to time. It seems like this baby is going to kick me straight in the ass. Chip sneaks up the stairs when Grayson leaves the bedroom, after throwing on a pair of shorts. The dog jumps up on the bed and rests his head on my side. I’m laying sideline on the bed, hoping the nausea will pass. It’s awful. I feel like I just want to lay in bed and not move. I’m never like that. Ever.

Five minutes later, Grayson comes back upstairs, and I’m just drifting off. “Feeling a bit better, sweetheart?

“Yeah. Now I’m just tired.”

“Your body’s been thrown for a loop. You want me to take care of Grace when she gets here?”

“No. I’ll be okay. I just need to lay here for a while.”

“Okay. Well, nibble on this toast in the meantime, and sip on this ginger ale, while I go get in the shower.” He kisses my head. “We’ll have to get you some of those ginger pills and have you take one first thing, before you get out of bed. That’ll keep this at bay.”

“I’m so glad I’m marrying a doctor.” I sigh.

“You bet you’re marrying a doctor. And I’m marrying the most beautiful woman in the world.”

“Except for now.” I manage a small giggle. “I look like hell right now.”

“You’re a little pale, I admit. But you’re mine.” He kisses my head again. “Rest for a bit.”

“Okay.”

I manage to drag my butt out of bed fifteen minutes later. After hopping in the shower while Grayson shaves, I start to feel normal again. Thankfully Grace is a little late, as she texts me to say that she’s picking up fresh eggs from the farm on her way in. Bless her. By the time she arrives for work, she’s none the wiser. Grayson kisses me on his way out the door, just as Lisa walks in. “Morning.” Grayson says to her.

She looks extra chipper this morning, and she doesn’t even try to flirt with Grayson, surprising me. “Good morning.”

Glancing back at me, Grayson gives me a look, and I can read his mind. “Go ahead.” I cave.

Turning, so he can take my hand in his, he set his briefcase down and clears his throat. “Ahem. Since you’re the…um…town foghorn and all…you can tell everyone that Laura and I are getting married.” He grins, lifting my hand up, so that she can see the ring.

Her eyes bulge, her jaw drops, and a huge gasp comes from her. “Oh…my…God!” she shouts. “You’re getting married???”

Of course, Grace and Wendy hear the hoopla, and join in on the group hugs that are suddenly abound. We’re all making enough noise to wake the neighbors, and the front door is open. Kurt suddenly appears at the front door, with Simon, Lloyd and Johnnie in his wake. “What’s going on here?” Kurt chuckles, watching the charade.

Lisa doesn’t wait. “Grayson and Laura are engaged!” she gushes, pointing at us both. “Can you believe it!”

The smile lights up Kurt’s face. “Holy cow, Grayson.” He hugs his brother, giving him a healthy pat on the back. “Congratulations, man.”

“Thanks, man.”

Kurt comes over and hugs me, too. “Looks like you’re going to be my sister-in-law.”

“Looks like.” I say, hugging him back.

Lloyd and the boys get in on the group hug.

“Ah, hell, I’m staying for breakfast. There’s just too damn much love in this room to leave it all.” Grayson says.

“Breakfast is ready when you are, Grayson.” Grace says. “You won’t be late for work.”

“Sounds good.” He smiles. “How about we all go into the kitchen and have a nice breakfast together.”

As much as I don’t want to make it obvious, the last thing on my mind is food, so I make like I’m deep in conversation, and not interested, just to avoid drawing attention to the fact that I’m not eating. The kitchen has a decent din, as we converse together. Grayson and I are sitting together, and Lisa is across from me, while Kurt is across from Grayson. Suddenly, Lloyd’s attention is on Kurt and Lisa. “So, where’d you two head out to last night?”

Instead of the room being stone cold silent at such a question, because of the earlier din, everyone starts oooing and awing, and I think Johnnie even whistles. Kurt’s face is red, and Lisa is trying to keep a straight face but failing miserably. Finally, Kurt pipes up. “We just went out to dinner and to play pool. Nothing special.”

Lisa can’t look at me. She just directs a ‘shut up’ my way. I giggle and she kicks me from under the table. “Nothing happened, so stop thinking whatever it is you’re thinking.” She insists.

“This is you we’re talking about…something happened.” Grayson says.

“Nothing happened, man, I swear.” Kurt confirms.

“And if anything did happen, you’d never kiss and tell.” Grayson retorts.

Kurt lifts both hands into the air. “I swear to God, man. Nothing happened. Believe all you want. I’m no liar.”

Grayson gives his brother a look that says he’s letting him off the hook. “Well, that I’ll give you.”

Kurt pipes up. “But I bet something happened with you two last night.” a snuffle.

“We got engaged, man. Big difference.” Grayson says.

Twenty minutes later, Grayson is out the door, kissing me again. “I love you, baby.”

“Love you, too.”

The boys are right behind him, and I notice the little smile that Kurt gives to Lisa when he says goodbye to her. With one look, Lisa insists we go into the study and shut the door.

“Alright, girl. Spill.” Lisa says.

“I was going to say the same thing to you.”

She waves. “Oh, never mind that. We went out for dinner and played pool. Like he said. He gave me a tiny peck on the lips goodbye and that was it.”

“You didn’t sleep with him?” I’m utterly shocked.

She shakes her head slowly, emphasizing how ‘no’ it really is. “He told me flat out he wasn’t interested in that.”

“Are you going out again?”

“He didn’t ask me.” She shrugs. “It was off to a rocky start anyway, so who knows if he’ll ask me out again.”

“But he kissed you goodnight.” I point out.

“I think it was more out of manners than lust, Laura. He probably would have kissed his cousin the same way if I’d been related.”

“So…who asked whom out?”

“He asked me.”

“Really?” I’m intrigued. “How?”

She explains the situation to me, how she tried to seduce him, and he wouldn’t go for it. And how they went on a date instead. “So, do you like him?”

“So much. He’s even more good-looking when we’re alone.” She’s dreamy-eyed. “He’s got this…way about him…it makes my toes curl.”

“So how come he didn’t want to sleep with you?”

“Said he wasn’t into one-night-stands.”

“Well, maybe this’ll turn into more than that.”

She shrugs. “I don’t know. I think I like him more than he likes me.” Reaching her arm across my desk, she pats my hand. “Let me see the rock.”

I giggle. “It’s not a rock…thank God. Nothing worse than those gawdy-looking rings with the stone so big you haven’t got a prayer getting a pair of gloves on.”

Lisa looks at it and shakes her head in disbelief. “Grayson is so the man for you. Where on earth would you ever find a man more apt to your taste? This ring was made for you, girl. And so was he.”

“That’s exactly what I was saying to myself after he proposed.”

“How did he propose?”

“We went out for dinner. He asked the chef to put the proposal on a cake lit with a sparkler. It was really sweet.” I recall.

Lisa ignores the proposal part. “Wait…you went out for dinner? I didn’t know you could pull that off.” She’s being facetious.

I slap her. “Get real. I go out sometimes.”

“Hardly. I’m surprised that he could get you out of the house for something other than ordering supplies.”

“Oh, give it a rest. Anyway, it was nice.”

“So, when are you getting married?”

“Soon. I mean, we’re not getting any younger.” I gloss over the part about a baby coming. I’m not sure for how long I can keep that a secret, but I try my best. “We’re going to El Paso this weekend so I can meet his family and tell them the news. The wedding is going to be here at the ranch.”

“I figured.” She says, unimpressed.

My smile falls. “Could you be any less enthused?”

“I’m sorry, girl. I just…know you.” She states. “You’re so not the fancy type, and you’re about as small town as they come.”

My hand goes to my side. “And what’s that supposed to mean?”

“Nothing. It’s just a fact.” She shrugs. “There’s nothing wrong with it or anything.”

“Sure seems like it.” I argue. “It’s not like I married Quentin here, too. That would be weird.”

“No, you two tied the knot in that cute little church in Dallas.”

“So, what’s wrong with doing it here? It’s not like the place isn’t big enough. We can do it out by the water.” An idea strikes me. “You can make one of those archways for me. You know…with flowers and stuff?”

Her face gets serious. “Laura, remember…that’s where Quentin died. Don’t you think it’s creepy getting married there?”

I think about it for a moment. Suddenly realizing that that memory is erased and has been replaced with the memories of Grayson and I camping out there, having bonfires there, and most of all, making love there. “No. Not at all. That memory is the furthest from my mind now. Besides, it would be a beautiful place for pictures, with all the rocks and the water and all. I think it would be just fine.”

“You’re going to have to rent one hell of a big tent in case it rains.”

“That’s okay. We can manage.” I pat her hand. “Will you make an altar for us?”

“Sure.”

I decide that it’s time to change the subject. “Why don’t you ask Kurt to go out again? Why wait for him to make another move?”

“I’ll think about it.”

My look turns sober. “Lisa, honey, you need to decide what you want out of a relationship. Do you want to just continue having casual fun, or do you want to have someone to grow old with?”

Lisa sighs. “Remember Harlan?”

Now I sigh. “I knew that you were going to go there.”

“Well, it’s valid.”

I huff. “No, it’s not. That was a long time ago. You two were different people who wanted different things.”

Lisa sidesteps the statement. “Kurt asked me if I’d been in love before.”

“And did you tell him?”

“Of course.” She says, but I get the feeling that there’s more to it.

“Did you tell him that you were engaged to him?”

“Of course not.” She says casually, like it isn’t a big deal.

“Why not.” My voice is flat.

“Because that’s always an opener to an actual relationship, and I’m not going there again, Laura.”

“What are you so afraid of?” I’m exasperated. “It was ten years ago…longer…geez, I’d lost track.”

“Don’t matter how long ago it was, Laura. I’m not going down that road again.” She murmurs, staring at her fingers.

I sit up straight and speak to her as though she’s a high school student trying to make up her mind on what to do with her life. “Lisa, are you ever going to let it go? You have sacrificed so many next-to-perfect men because you were afraid and too quick to get them into bed before solidifying anything with them.”

“You talking about Clint?”

“He’s one example.” I admit, nodding once.

“Laura, I just…don’t want anything serious.”

“I’m your best friend, Lisa. Don’t lie to me.”

This has been a bone of contention between us for many years. Something happened between her and Harlan that she’s never let go…and she’s never told anyone about it. I lean towards her and take her hand in mine. My voice is almost a whisper. “Did Harlan hit you?”

“God, no.” she says, finally giving me eye contact. “It was nothing like that.”

“Then what. Come on, Lisa. It’s been so long, and you’ve never dealt with it.”

“I’ve dealt with it just fine.” She argues. “It doesn’t make a lick of difference anyway, Laura. The man is happily married now. The past is in the past. Unlike some people, I like to leave the past where it belongs.”

That comment stings. “My husband died, Lisa. My fiancé didn’t dump me. There’s a huge difference there, and quit trying to change the subject by hurting me.”

“I’m not trying to hurt you, Laura. It’s a fact. You like to keep living in the past, and until Grayson moved here, that’s where you lived all the time…in the past. I’m not like that. The minute Harlan and I broke up, I moved on. That’s that.”

“Yeah, but you’re forgetting one minor detail here, Lisa.” I point out. “You moved on, but you skipped over the part where you digested it and dealt with it. Hell, you were jumping from bed to bed a week after Harlan hit the bricks.”

“That’s how long I needed.” She says stubbornly.

“And that’s exactly how you remained until now. Before Harlan, you were never like that. In fact, I think Harlan was your first, wasn’t he?”

Her lack of a response is telling. “Makes no difference, Laura. It is what it is."

"No, it’s not, Lisa.” My voice is raised an octave. “Now, I let it slide when you wrecked whatever future you could have had with Clint, but I won’t let you do it again. What happened with Harlan and what happened with Clint was a long time ago. It’s time to grow up, Lisa. Kurt is great, and you know it. At least give it a decent chance to see where things go with him.”

She’s frustrated and I’m hitting a nerve. “Why are you so hell bent on me getting together with Kurt, anyway? Is it just because you want us to keep being sister-in-laws? That’s a pretty sick way of going about it.”

“Honestly, I hadn’t even considered that until now.” I admit levelly. “That’s not the issue here. Now, I’ve been your best friend for nearly thirty years, and I’m telling you that if you screw up another good thing, you’re going to regret it.”

She’s had enough. Lisa rises like an errant child. “Fine. I’ll go out with him again. Hell, I’ll even ask him out myself, if that pleases you. But don’t go on your high horse, thinking that I never moved on. I did. I just dealt with it in my own way is all. You’re still living in the past, Laura. Leave it be.”

“I’ll point out that you’re the one who brought up Harlan.”

“Oh…blow it out your ass, Laura.” She spits before leaving, slamming the door in her wake.