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"Your dad thinks the world of you"
He set hireat cuts of beef" He paused "My reat mother Wasn’t bad, either, just not born to it" He paused "She visited a bit for the first year or two, but that tapered off My dad’s been single ever since"
"Mine, too Ever since my mom died That’s e’re all pretty thrilled about him and Mrs Johnson"
"And your e to kiss her was back "I’m sorry"
"It was hard We were really close" She paused "I haven’t had too uessed that"
He tucked some hair behind her ear "I wonder what she’d think of all this," he said softly
Honor s, and her cheeks pinkened "I guess we should get a e license"
At which point the clock would start ticking till their weddingand his green card "Yes"
"I’ll get one Monday, then"
He took her hand and turned it pal the silky skin of her wrist "Thank you," he ht her hand to his mouth and kissed it
Her eyes were soft and wide, her lips slightly parted His eyes dropped to her mouth
And then, just as he was about to kiss her, she stood up abruptly and picked up the sleeping dog, cuddling it against her chest "I should--I should go to bed U hi room
Which was not what he expected at all
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
IT WAS ONE of those days Not in the good sense
First, Honor had woken up to the sounds of Tohtly, and not very well, and the i aside their dairy-freeahead with it She’d come home from work yesterday and stopped at city hall for a license, and once that was filed, they had sixty days That meant that by June 10, she would be soht inspired equal parts of terror and disbelief, with a side of lust and a chaser of panic They were going through with it Coovernain, there was that lust
Last night, she sat at the kitchen table after dinner and filled out the paperwork Learned a few things about Thoer than she was by three years Just in case the years are precious wasn’t enough Secondly, he’d been born in the back of a cab
Thirdly, wellshe couldn’t remember what thirdly was, not with Tom in the shower just fourteen or so feet away
He’d been about to kiss her the other night on the couch And she stopped it Why, she had no flippin’ idea Cowardice, probably Because if he kissed her, she’d sleep with him, and if she slept with him, she was pretty sure she’d fall in love with him, and she was already a bit swoony, and he wasn’t Not at all
Men didn’t feel the same omen did about sex They’d take it when offered, same as they wouldn’t pass up a cookie warm from the oven No, it was the women who counted calories and fell in love Which was really not fair Okay, Pru didn’t count calories, not the way she and Carl were going through hot fudge these days And Faith didn’t, either, always looking like a pn star when she ate dessert, which was often
The water turned off, and Honor resisted the urge to run into the hallway and get a gli clumsy and irritable with lust Spent four minutes with Toe She felt al class, too
Her work ht scheduled phone calls, awith Ned, Jack and Jessica to talk about wine club sales and writing an article for a tourisy, who showed up at the office after lunch, when Honor was finishing up a conference call with the sales staff "Who’s this?" she asked, staring suspiciously at Jessica "Honor, who is this?"
"It’s Jessica, Goggy Guys, randmother just came in," Honor said
"Hi, Mrs Holland!" came a chorus of voices froy asked, ever amazed that Edison’s little invention had such diversity "It sounds like there’s a dozen people in there!"
"It’s a conference call," Honor said
"A!" The old lady clucked in awe
"Okay, call oodbyes, and Honor hung up "This is Jessica Dunn, Goggy You etting y pursed her lips "I don’t remember You’re very pretty, dear"
"Thank you, Mrs Holland Would you like soh , but not anyang?" Honor asked Now that she was used to it, it was pretty nice having an assistant
"You bet Nice to see you again, Mrs Holland"
"I’m sorry if I interrupted, Honor I didn’t realize you were on the phone," Goggy whispered Better late than never
"I’ve got a bunch of errands to do, Goggy What can I do for you?"
Goggy sighed "You young people Always running around"
"I have to go to Rushing Creek Want to con Honor was fairly sure she was a shoe-in, but she did love her grand Creek? That place? I’d rather be y said happily "But I’ll coy fifteen minutes at the Old House to find a coat ("in case it rains"), applyPeach lipstick ("you never knoho you’ll run into"), go to the bathroom ("I’d probably catch a disease at that horrible mental hospital") and trundle into the car
Sainthood seey asked on the car ride over
"He’s great"
"How did you randy was completely serious "Um, you fixed us up, remember?"
"I know that, dear," the old lady said "I et that look on your face I don’t have Alzheilad for you, honey It’s nice that one of us found happiness through an arranged y," Honor said, hoping Goggy wouldn’t inadvertently blow it "You fixed us up You have good instincts with people" Flattery would distract her, hopefully
"That’s true," Goggy said "I always thought so, but it’s nice to hear How does this car work again? There’s no key"
As they pulled into the Rushing Creek corandparents would consider living here So hter "You sure you and Pops want to stay in the Old House forever?" Honor asked