No Ordinary Romance (27 page)

Connie finished her workout and took a
shower in one of the guest bathrooms. She and Thomas were getting
their blood tests today before work, later that week they would
apply for the marriage license. Thomas just asked her to marry him
Friday and already things were falling into place.

Joanie took her out on Saturday, and they
ordered the wedding cake from the Cake Gallery. She was no dummy;
the appointment at the bakery had to be in place for some time. She
never heard of a walk-in appointment for ordering wedding cakes.
Her tastes were simple she wanted a white cake with buttercream
frosting and none of that whipped crap. She really found those
cakes with cream or jelly fillings utterly disgusting. Joanie
couldn't believe how quickly they soared through their appointment.
Thomas and Joanie were running a game on her, she didn't mind so
much. Thomas was trying to keep her stress level to a minimum; it
was touching to see how much he cares.

One thing was for certain, they were cutting
the cake first at the reception. How many receptions had she
attended just to get a lousy piece of cake? They always waited
until the last possible moment to cut the cake; well her reception
would be different. There would be enough cake for everyone to
enjoy and no little slivers of cake either. She laughed to herself
if anyone could hear the conversation in her head they would think
she was nuts.

Next Saturday she, Jenna, Samantha, and
Joanie were going shopping for her wedding dress and the
bridesmaids' dresses. Connie had no particular color scheme or
style in mind, but she had better come up with something or three
highly opinionated women would eat her alive. She played every
version of 'Say Yes To The Dress' in her head, and the outcome
didn't look promising. She wrapped a towel around her body and put
her dirty clothes in the hamper.

"Are you hiding from me?"

Thomas obviously just came from the shower
his hair was wet, and he was dressed for work. "Of course not I
just didn't want to disturb you. We still have an hour before we
have to get the blood tests; I can make you a quick breakfast if
you like."

"Why don't you let me handle breakfast, and
you go get dress, seeing you in a towel is planting other ideas in
my head."

Connie gave him a quick kiss and scurried
across the hall to her bedroom. "I'll be back in ten minutes, and I
want more than a bowl of cereal."

Thomas patted her ass as she squeezed by
him. "I know how to cook, just hurry up, or you'll be eating in the
car. Some days they rode into work together, but they wouldn't be
doing that for the next several weeks. If he wanted to have a
honeymoon with Constantina, he was going to have to pull some late
nights and push through the workload on his desk. He also needs to
hire another attorney and a few more legal assistants.

Constantina didn't know that he'd been
secretly planning the events of their wedding for the last month.
The only person he told was his mother. She made the appointment
with the bakery to order the wedding cake weeks ago. Her best
friend's daughter owns an exclusive boutique, which allowed them to
finagle an early appointment with her to look at dresses.

He had his secretary Caroline reserve the
Wingate's ballroom for every Saturday in May until he locked down
the Saturday after Mother's Day. He gave Constantina the ceremony
options, but he was glad she chose the church ceremony. He wanted
his family and friends to see his beautiful bride as she walked
down the aisle to him.

Thomas wanted everything to be perfect from
flowers to the decorations. He didn't want Constantina to feel
stressed, so he took over as much he planning as possible. Jenna
and Samantha had been instrumental in telling him her favorite
colors, flowers, and food. If she ever found out what a controlling
swine he is, she would kick him in the junk.

Thomas made a quick batch of buckwheat
pancakes and turkey bacon, Constantina entered the kitchen just as
he put their plates on the table. He handed her a cup of coffee and
like usual she blessed her food and made short work of her
breakfast. "Do you always inhale your food?"

Connie smiled at him as she stole a piece of
bacon off his plate. "The quick bird always catches the worm."

"I thought that was the early bird. Have you
given any thought to where you'd like to go for our honeymoon?"

"Someplace quiet with no people around."

"Do you prefer the beach, or we could take a
trip to New York?"

Connie made a face at him, "I'm not the lay
on the beach type of woman. I've been to New York, and there's
nothing quiet about New York. Why don't we just spend a week at
your family's cabin?"

Thomas couldn't believe his ears; most women
would throw a fit if their fiancé suggested spending their
honeymoon at an old rustic cabin in northeastern Nebraska. "Are you
serious?"

"Thomas all I want to spend some quiet time
with you. Now we'd better step on it, or we'll be late for our
appointment. I don't understand how you were able to get us in so
quickly."

"Baby I have motivation on my side and
friends in high places."

"More than likely you set the appointment
weeks ago. Don't act surprised, I'm on to you Thomas. You're
crafty, sneaky, and you'll do anything to get you way. Momma Lettie
didn't raise no fool, but I let you get away with it because I love
you."

He kissed her before she could get out the
front door. "I swear baby, we must be the two best loved people on
the planet."

***

Thomas's best friend and fellow attorney was
waiting for him in his office. They were roommates in college, and
they had been friends ever since. Aaron was the only friend who
stuck by him during trial and his divorce from Elise. "You've got
something on our mind so spit it out."

"You look rather like a cat that swallowed
the canary. I heard through the grapevine that you and Connie got
your blood tests today. I'm proud of you man, you finally got the
courage to ask Connie to marry you."

Thomas sat in his chair facing his friend.
"I was sweating bullets for a while trying to figure out a way to
ask her to be my wife. I certainly never thought I would get
married again, but once I met Constantina, I knew she was the woman
for me. Of course, you know you're my best man."

"This time I agree with you. So which
Saturday in May is the wedding, I take my duties as best man
seriously I had to turn down some compelling offers so I could be
on standby for you."

"The type of women you date are available
every night of the week."

"Don't judge me Tom, most of us don't get to
marry the women we love, so we make do the best that we can."

"Aaron you're closer to me than any brother;
I would give anything to see you as happy as I am with Constantina.
You can't go on punishing yourself because Anna left you. She made
her choice, and she chose her father over you."

"Anna was my one true love, and I'll never
love anyone else like that again. No woman will ever get close to
my heart. That doesn't mean I'm not happy for you."

"I thought the same thing, but life has a
way of throwing you curves. Just don't be surprised if a woman
comes into your life and knocks you off your feet."

"Now that would be one for the record
books.

***

Connie had spoken with Jenna over the phone
several times since Chad and Beth's kidnapping, but this was the
first time she'd seen her in about a week. Thomas was working late,
so she decided to swing by to see her godson. Jenna must have seen
her pull in to the driveway; she was waiting at the door for her
when she stepped on the porch.

"Come on in Connie, I wasn't expecting to
see you today. I was just getting ready to feed Alexander."

Connie could tell by Jenna's jerky moments
that she was still a little put out with her."Are you still upset
with me Jen?"

Jenna gave Connie a wry smile, "No so much
upset than just a little disappointed. I know that you were Laura's
best friend, and that was all I needed to welcome you into my life.
You were there for me through some of the lowest points in my life.
You're my sister just as much as Laura, and when you're in trouble
or hurt, I want to be there for you."

"You know Samantha pretty much same said the
same thing." Connie couldn't believe how fast Alexander was
growing. He clutched Jenna's breast as if he were afraid she would
take it away.

"Alexander is greedy just like his father;
sometimes I'm worried I won't have enough milk for him."

"Did someone call my name?" Mike came into
the room giving Jenna a quick kiss while rubbing his son's head. He
had given Connie a knowing grin before he hugged her. "I hear that
congratulations are in order, does that mean that I'm drafted as a
groomsman?"

"You sure are, Jenna's a bridesmaid and I
know good, and damn well you'll never let another man escort you
wife down the aisle."

"The only good thing about the situation is
that I know Allen will be roped in too. How's Chad and Beth?"

"They both showed up today at work and put
on a brave front. I'm just glad that they have each other."

"Hey son, save some for dad, these breasts
belonged to me long before you came on the scene." Alexander
laughed.

"Mike!" Jenna punched him in the arm.

Mike picked him up taking the hand towel
from Jenna, putting him on his shoulder gently patting his back
until Alexander gave off a series of small belches. "Were the
suspects bodies identified yet?"

"I haven't heard anything from the FBI, I
know this sounds selfish, but I hope Crystalline didn't get caught
in that fire."

"Uhmm, identification may take awhile, when
bodies are charred beyond recognition they usually have to use
dental records. He took the baby and handed him to Connie. "Go
spend some time with your Aunt Connie while I greet your momma
properly."

"Take all the time you need, Thomas is
working late tonight." She smiled at their retreating backs giving
her sole focus to baby Alexander. She loved running her fingers
over his soft hair, obviously he loved it too; he smiled at her
before closing his eyes. "Go to sleep baby." She wondered what her
and Thomas's children would look like; she could see her children
with the father's black hair and green eyes, and dimples of course.
She didn't know how long she sat there before Mike came and got
Alexander.

He started to cry at first, upset that his
nap had been interrupted. When he saw his daddy he relaxed and went
back to sleep. "We're going to leave you two ladies alone; I have
to spend some quality time with my son."

"Later Mike."

Jenna came back in carrying two glasses of
wine; she sat on the sofa handing one glass to Connie. "Do you know
that I've barely gotten a glimpse of your engagement ring."

Connie held out her left hand for Jenna's
inspection, "Thomas didn't play fair he asked me to marry him after
several rounds of intense love making."

"It beautiful, I've seen that shade of blue
in your eyes just when you're about to rip someone a new ass."

"Well according to Thomas that's the color
of my eyes during sex, he said it's his favorite shade."

"I'm so happy for you Connie, I'm just glad
that Thomas wouldn't give up on you. Samantha and I have been lucky
in that same regard. Have you noticed that all of our men are
rather arrogant and bossy, I never thought I could fall for a man
like that."

"Our men come from another era, they would
love to keep us chained to the bed and pregnant. Mike seems like
he's adjusting to fatherhood."

"He's so good to us, one thing I don't have
to worry about is childcare. Sam and I had a nursery put in with a
full time nurse on duty. I know this is a luxury for most mothers,
but we've been using this as a selling point to new employees. I
think people feel better about working if they can check on their
children throughout the day."

"Wow what an excellent idea."

"Most days when I get home Mike comes out to
the car and carries Alexander into the house. I have a little time
to myself before dinner. I couldn't imagine doing this on my own.
We take turns with him at night, he sleeps good, but he doesn't
sleep through the night yet. Some days I'm dog tired, but when I
see Alexander smile I get rejuvenated."

"Except for this situation with my mother,
everything in my life is perfect. I've never been so content and
happy before. I owe it to Thomas and my friends. I know I don't
tell you enough Jenna, but I appreciate your friendship, I didn't
know that befriending Laura would give me a whole new family."

"Here's to family, the ones were born with,
and those we claim as our own."

"Amen sister!"

***

It was after nine o'clock by the time Connie
got home. Thomas was in the living room going over contracts. He
had a half eaten sandwich and a bottle of beer on the table. "Hey
baby."

Thomas took off his reading glasses setting
them aside as he got up to greet her. How's everything at the
Johnson household?"

Connie surrendered to his kiss. "Everyone's
perfect, especially Alexander." She slid off her shoes and joined
him on the sofa. "While I was holding him, I started thinking about
our children; will they have you dark hair and green eyes, and your
strength of character."

"I've often thought about seeing you
pregnant with my child, but I imagined a yard full of children with
your eyes and your generous heart. We've never talked about
children, thought it's obvious that we both want them."

"I've always wanted children, but until now
I never met a man I deemed fit to father my children. You'll be an
awesome father Thomas, and when the time is right I'll be delighted
to be the mother of your children."