"Good morning, Jennifer," came a chorused reply. They continued to stand there, waiting.
Now what was she supposed to do? Everyone's gaze seemed to move between the nameplate and the roses. No one said a word. She wondered if anyone was breathing, it was so quiet. Chad, how could you do this to me! She felt his love and amusement swirl around her, and she knew that he was paying her back for what she had said to him on the phone last week. Where are you ? she demanded. There was no answer.
He could have had all of this done by someone else. In fact, he probably had. Although she felt sure he was wishing he was there to see her face.
"I, uh, you're probably wondering why-" She waved her hand helplessly at her new name and the flowers.
All heads bobbed in unison. What had they been doing, for crying out loud? Rehearsing?
"Yes, well, I thought that-What I mean to say is, we had felt that perhaps-After all, he's been traveling and-" She gave up. What was there to say, after all?
Folding her hands primly in front of her, Jennifer announced, "Mr. Cameron and I were married in Las Vegas two weeks ago."
Chapter Twelve
Contents - Prev / Next By the time Jennifer arrived home Friday evening all she wanted to do was to fall into bed, roll over and play dead.
She had not heard from her mysterious boss and so very secret lover. Which was just as well. She might have shot him. Actually, shooting was too quick and painless. Given enough time and energy, she was sure she could think of some really interesting and long-drawn-out ways to make him suffer.
Their newly announced marriage had created a minor riot at the office. "Too bad you couldn't be there to participate, my darling," she muttered to herself.
Of course everyone was shocked right down to their brightly painted toenails. And why not? There had never been a hint of romance between them. Not even a faint whiff. As a matter of fact, some of the women were embarrassed to remember going to her with complaints about him, only to recall that she had emphatically agreed with them.
And she married him anyway?
How could she explain? Jennifer saw him exactly as they saw him. He was just-most of the time-and fair-most of the time-but had never heard that justice and fairness could be tempered with mercy. More than once she had interceded on an employee's behalf.
But if she was happy, it was obvious they were happy for her. She had accepted their teasing and congratulatory comments with good grace, and tried to get some work done.
The next afternoon she had come back from lunch to discover a surprise shower, complete with cake and streamers, and gifts-all kinds of gifts, from gag to practical.
And poor dear Chad had missed out on all the excitement. Why was it she had a hunch he'd planned it that way?
What with all the added commotion in the office, Jennifer had gotten behind on her work. So she had stayed late tonight to catch up.
Chad hadn't called in during the week. Nor had he contacted her through their more intimate channel. Not that she could blame him. The man showed rare insight as to how she would react to what he had done.
She shook her head as she sank onto the side of the bed.
Well, she had survived, anyway. No doubt that by Monday something else would take precedence over the personal lives of the boss and his assistant. She hoped. In the meantime, Jennifer was going to fill the tub full of hot water and indulge in her favorite ritual of wine, music and relaxation.
By the time she got out, she was too relaxed and at peace with the world to be angry at anyone.
She wasn't really so very angry at Chad, anyway. She missed him too much to be angry. They had been married two weeks today, and for most of that two weeks they had been separated.
Face it, kiddo, you 're going to have a lifetime of that sort of existence, she reminded herself. She could handle that, if she knew a few of the particulars. Was he even going to live with her, or would they continue to keep separate residences?
Obviously, he was going to acknowledge her as his wife. There was no reason to wonder about that any longer.
Jennifer was looking under the cabinet for her small saucepan to heat some soup when the doorbell rang. She glanced down at herself in dismay. Since she wasn't expecting company she was padding around the house in her flannel pajamas. The ones with the feet in them.
She had no idea who could be there. Jennifer hadn't talked to Jerry in months. It couldn't be the paper boy collecting. He'd been by the week before.
She shrugged. When all else fails, answer the door and solve the mystery of the ringing doorbell, she told herself. Somehow that seemed to take all the fun out of the game.
"Just a minute," she called as it rang again. She ran for her bathrobe, the old fuzzy one that her mother had given her several years ago. The sash had pulled a hole in the side, which she fully intended to mend one of these days, and she had spilled hot chocolate down the front, which left a lurid stain, but it was comfortable. And who was she trying to impress, anyway?
Glancing through the security peephole suddenly reminded her of one person she might want to impress. Scrambling to take the chain off, she unlocked the door and opened it.
"I wasn't sure you were home," Chad said, standing in the hallway and looking at her rather uncertainly.
He looked so tired. There were lines in his face and dark circles under his eyes and she wanted to take him in her arms and hold him for at least a century or two for starters.
"Come in," she managed to say, stepping back and waving her arm.
He stepped in and looked around. Jennifer had decorated her apartment with various pieces of furniture that she had liked. Some of them she had refinished. Some still needed work. Bright prints and silk flower arrangements gave color to the room.
She had never looked at it from another person's viewpoint. Jennifer had filled her small home with items that meant something to her, so that old rubbed shoulders with new without much rhyme nor a great deal of reason. It was home.
She had a sudden attack of stage fright. Jennifer had no idea what sort of home Chad had grown up in, or what his home looked like now. He was getting an idea of the type of place his wife lived in. He could very well turn around and run screaming into the night.
Only he didn't.
He's probably too tired, she thought to herself. "May I take your coat?" she offered politely. He slipped it off his shoulders with a sigh.
"Sit down. Anywhere. Can I get you something to drink?"
She was babbling. This was Chad, for heaven's sake. Her Chad. She'd known him forever. More important, he had known her for the same length of time.
Chad sank down on the sofa and said, "A drink sounds fine."
"Hot? Cold? Alcoholic? Non?"
"Anything."
"Hot coffee, hot chocolate, hot apple cider-"
He glanced up at her, a look of puzzlement on his face. "You're pushing hot these days?"
"That's because it's so cold these days."
"Cold?" He looked at her with surprise. "Fifty is not considered cold."
"It is to me," she responded emphatically.
"Coffee's fine."
She put on the coffee, then went back into the living room. "I just got out of the tub. I wasn't expecting anyone. If you'll excuse me, I'll go and-"
He grinned. "You look fine the way you are. The pigtails are a nice touch. I feel as though I kidnapped and married Buffy."
She'd forgotten that she'd tied her hair back. Hastily undoing the yarn, she finger-combed her hair. "Is that what you think? That you kidnapped me?"
Chad leaned his head back on the couch and closed his eyes. "Didn't I?" he asked wearily.
Cautiously Jennifer sat down beside him. She had never seen him look so tired. Defeated, almost.
"Chad?"
"Hmm?" He didn't open his eyes.
"You don't want to be married to me, do you?" She could feel the pain of the thought going through her like a laser.
Chad opened his eyes and saw her sitting by his side. He lifted his hand and rested it against her cheek. "I want to be married to you more than anything I've ever wanted in my life," he murmured: "I'm just not sure it's the best thing for you."
Jennifer could feel her pulse racing. "Why?"
"You deserve more. I'm so much older, so set in my ways, so used to being on my own."
She leaned closer, so that her mouth was only inches from his. "None of that really matters, Chad, if you love me and want me."
He pulled her onto his lap and began to kiss her. Between each kiss he said, "I do love you.. .and I want you constantly. You brought sunshin into my life years ago.. . you are the greatest thing that ever happened to me." After a thorough, lingering kiss he added, "But I didn't give you a chance to say no."