A Proposal

SEVERAL WEEKS LATER

Cassie

Things changed once the article came out with all of Vanessa’s revelations. The public’s desire to know everything didn’t ease up, but at least Jack and I were no longer viewed as the bad guys. Melissa told me that the online message boards were filled with comments about how much I must have loved Jack to forgive him for everything, and how strong we must be as a couple to have endured it all and still be together. True to my word, I hadn’t been online to read any of it since the night I broke down. And Melissa had been right, I did feel better. I guess sometimes ignorance is bliss.

I also attended Jack’s games without the fear of being ridiculed or mocked… unless he lost, then the fans were still unforgiving. Even a few of the mean wives commented about the article and what a horrible thing happened to me and Jack. They still didn’t go out of their way to talk to me, but at least they acknowledged my existence. Which I’ll admit was hard at times, considering I knew what some of their husbands were doing behind their backs.

Work got busier for me, and I was assigned to my first on-location shoot after a tornado practically destroyed an entire town in the Midwest. It was harder than I imagined, shooting the devastation and witnessing people’s pain up close and in person. My heart literally ached with each shot I captured.

Sometimes I questioned if what I was doing held true value. And I wondered how I was any better than the paparazzi, invading people’s personal space for the sake of a photograph.

But when one of my photos was chosen to solicit donations and another was used to focus on rebuilding the town, my fears were eased. I convinced myself that my pictures did good and helped bring to light the true devastation, so others could see it and be called to help.

I walked the short distance from the subway station to our apartment, excited to see Jack. His team had an afternoon playoff game that day and I didn’t attend partly because I knew Jack wouldn’t be pitching and I was also under a deadline at work. It was embarrassing how excited I got at the idea of coming home to Jack. He wasn’t normally home before I was, and I liked walking through the door and into his waiting arms. I looked up at our apartment building, the shadow casting halfway across the street, and grinned. I allowed myself to get lost in the sounds of the traffic rushing past me, finding comfort in their constant accompaniment.

When I opened the front door, a familiar smell hit me, and I struggled to place it. “What are you cooking?” I shouted into the apartment with a smile.

Jack peered around the kitchen wall at me. “You won’t believe what I got Gran to do,” he said with a laugh.

“That’s where I know that smell from! That’s Gran’s sauce!” I raced into the kitchen, reaching for a spoon before dipping it into the saucepan on the stove. I blew on it lightly before tasting it. “Oh my God. So good. Did you make it?”

Jack wrapped his arms around my waist. “I had her freeze some sauce and then overnight it to us. She’s been freaking out the whole time.”

“That is awesome.” I dipped my spoon in again and Jack swatted my hand.

“Get outta there. Wait for dinner.”

I turned to eye him. “What are you up to, mister?”

“Nothing.” He let out a breath. “Can’t a guy just cook dinner for his girlfriend?”

“Sure.” I nodded. “Can I do anything?” I glanced around, noticing a vase of red roses on the table.

“Nope.” He smiled and kissed me on the cheek.

Jack

I wanted to do this right. That’s why I reached out to her father and asked for his blessing days ago.

I knew I didn’t have to do that. Cassie would have insisted it wasn’t necessary, but Gran would probably have me killed if she found out I hadn’t. I figured it was the right thing to do, which should have pointed me in the opposite direction given my past, but I followed my gut anyway.

The phone rang as my heart thumped in my ears. “Hello,” a soft voice answered.

“Mrs. Andrews?”

“Yes.”

“Hi, it’s Jack Carter. I was wondering if your husband was home, and if I could speak to him,” I asked as politely as I could.

“Oh hi, Jack. Is everything OK? Is Cassie alright?” she asked nervously.

“Cassie’s fine. Everything is OK.”

“Oh, OK. That’s good to hear. Hold on a second and I’ll grab her father.”

“Thank you,” I exhaled, wanting to get this over with as soon as possible.

The phone clanked on the other end and a male throat cleared. “Hello? Jack?”

“Hi, Mr. Andrews. How are you, sir?” I hated being respectful when he’d let Cassie down so many times over the years.

“I can’t complain. What can I do for you?”

“Well, sir,” I stalled, clearing my throat before continuing. “First of all, I want you to know how much I love your daughter. She’s the most amazing person I’ve ever met in my life.”

“Uh-huh,” he said.

I knew I was supposed to ask for permission to marry his daughter, but I didn’t want it. And I knew damn well I wouldn’t need it. He couldn’t stop me from marrying her if he tried. So I worded it a different way. “I just wanted you to know that I plan on asking her to marry me, and I wanted to ask for your blessing.”

“Do you think she’ll say yes?”

What the hell kind of question was that? I gripped my hair with my free hand. “Yes sir, I do.”

“Well, alright then!” he said happily into the receiver. “You have my blessing.”

“Thank you.” I smiled, and hearing shouting in the background I asked, “May I speak to your wife again quickly?”

“Oh sure, sure. Congrats! And let us know what we can do. We’ll pay for anything you need and handle anything you kids want.”

I hesitated before realizing that he’d never follow through on those offers. Cassie was right about how easy it was to get sucked in by his charisma and enthusiasm.

“Jack? Tell me you asked him what I think you asked him!”

I laughed into the phone. “I did.”

She squealed with delight. “When are you asking her?”

“I’m not sure, so please don’t say anything to her if you two talk.”

“I won’t say a word. We’ll wait for her to call us with the big news!”

I exhaled with relief. “Great, thanks. I’ll talk to you later, OK?”

“Alright, Jack. And hey.” She paused before continuing in a hushed tone. “Thank you for calling. I know you didn’t have to, but it was nice that you did.”

I smiled to myself, finally convinced that I’d actually done the right thing for once.

Nerves rarely raced through my body, but they were having a field day as I waited to pop the question. I loved this girl more than anything in the world and we’d been through a lot.

I longed to make this girl my wife, and I hated sitting here at dinner, waiting to ask. Why couldn’t I just ask her now, while her mouth was filled with pasta? Should I get down on one knee? I wondered if she sensed what was coming. I’d never cooked dinner for her before and here I just went all Gourmet Chef on her ass.

What if she says no?

She won’t say no.

Fuck.

She’d better not say no.

Cassie

After dinner, Jack carried all the dishes into the kitchen and loaded them into the washer. He refused to let me help at all. I stared out the window at the skyline. I really did love living in New York.

Suddenly, Jack was kneeling next to my chair. As he placed my hand in his and started speaking, my heart began to race. “I don’t know any other couple who has been to hell and back more than the two of us. I feel like everything we’ve been through has only made us stronger. We’ve had to learn to work together. To be a team. To support each other and stand by each other.”

I started to shake. Nervous energy consumed me, and I could barely hear half the words he said. My brain started to spin, and I couldn’t concentrate on anything other than the fact that Jack was kneeling next to me.

Jack

Her eyes glazed over, and knowing Cass the way I do, I wasn’t sure she could even hear me anymore, but I kept talking. “I promise to stand by you, to hold you up when you’re about to fall, and to always keep you safe. I never believed there was a girl out there for me. Until I met you. You changed everything. And I never want to live without you. I love you more than I ever thought possible.”

I closed my eyes before taking a deep breath. All my confidence wavered in this moment as I realized Cassie held my future in the palm of her hands.

“Kitten. Be my wife. Marry me.” I opened the black velvet Tiffany’s ring box.

Cassie

Seeing the diamond inside caused me to gasp. It sparkled and danced in the light. The center diamond was huge and was surrounded by smaller diamonds. It looked too pretty to touch.

“Kitten?” Jack’s voice cut through my sparkle coma as I realized I hadn’t answered him yet.

My gaze moved to meet his. “Yes. Of course I’ll marry you. Who the hell else would I marry?” I smiled, still not reaching for the gorgeous ring.

He grinned and his dimples appeared as he reached inside the box and pulled out the ring. I held out my left hand, and he pushed that gorgeous piece of jewelry into place. My eyes were transfixed on the diamonds lighting up my finger. “It’s huge,” I said breathlessly.

“You don’t like it? We can take it back.”

I pulled my hand away from his, clutching it against my chest. “No way. It’s amazing.”

“We’re going to be very happy.”

“I already am.”

Date: 2015-02-28; view: 596