Page 90 of Second Time Around
Twenty-Five
Jenna glanced at Beck from the passenger’s seat and said, “You don’t have to do this, you know. You can just drop me off and leave.”
He laughed. “No way. You’re not getting rid of me. Besides, it sounds like fun.”
“Fun is a vacation in the Bahamas. Fun is curling up on the couch with a fresh cup of coffee and a good book. Fun is visiting the cider mill in the fall, which I want to do, by the way. But fun is not attending a family dinner where everyone is going to be staring at us and asking inappropriate questions.”
“You came to dinner with my family, so it’s only fair that I come to yours. What kind of inappropriate questions?”
“Well, now that they know we’re officially dating, there’s bound to be something like, ‘So, when are you two getting married?’”
He flicked his eyes in her direction. “Would that bother you?”
“Yes! Wouldn’t it bother you?”
He shrugged. “Not really. It’s not like I haven’t thought about it.”
She shifted sideways in her seat and gaped at him. “We just started dating!”
He chuckled. “We’ve known each other for years, Jen, and neither of us is getting any younger.”
She stared at his profile, which gave nothing away. “You’re serious.”
“About you, I am.”
“Wow.”
“Don’t worry, though. If anyone brings up marriage, I’ll deflect.”
She nodded, although she didn’t necessarily feel comforted. Two weeks had gone by since he’d told her he loved her, and she still hadn’t said it back. They’d been spending all their free time together, doing a variety of activities, eating a lot of great food, and having a lot of fantastic sex.
A few days ago, she’d been taken aback to see he’d left a spare razor and shaving cream in her bathroom. After the initial shock, she’d decided she liked having it there, liked having him there.
Since she often went straight to his house after work, she’d left a few changes of clothes and pairs of shoes there. She’d been hesitant to leave her pajamas and a toothbrush, but he’d worn her down on that point. In fact, he’d cleared out a drawer for her and encouraged her to bring over more of her things.
“There’s plenty of room,” he’d said, although they’d both known it wasn’t about the space.
With each passing day, she’d fallen deeper in love, but she hadn’t told him yet. It was like she was afraid to jinx it—afraid something would ruin the good thing they had—again.
“Anything else I should be prepared for?” he asked, breaking her out of her reverie.
“Babies.”
“Huh?” He whipped his head around so fast she feared he’d run them off the road.
“Don’t worry. I’m not pregnant,” she said, laughing at his panicked expression. “It’s just that my parents desperately want grandchildren, and Stacy and I have yet to provide them.”
He visibly relaxed. “Oh. Well, it’s not that I don’t want babies, but—”
“You don’t have to explain. I’m not ready for that, either.”
“But you want them someday, right?”
“Um-hmm.”
“Good.”
She felt a twinge of discomfort at the direction of their conversation and averted her gaze out the window. He was saying the things most women would love to hear, but she wasn’t most women. She’d resigned herself to staying single and imagined herself as a fun aunt to her future nieces and nephews and honorary aunt to her friends’ kids. The idea of marrying Beck and having children with him…well, it was a bit overwhelming.
