Icalled Myla’s mom first thing the next morning and told her the news about Jude’s and my engagement. I could tell she was really happy for me, but she was also very much aware of the dilemma with our best man and maid of honor.
“Do you think she’ll even come?” I asked, dreading the answer.
She was quiet for a while, and my heart fell. “All you can do is ask,” Tammy finally said. “I expect we’ll hear from her within the next few days. Her duty is scheduled to end tomorrow. Of course, that could change like it did before.”
“I’ve never been out of contact with her for this long,” I said worriedly. “She has no idea I’ve even been dating anyone, and now I’m going to dump wedding news on her. And the whole JP thing—I just don’t know how she’s going to react.”
“She’ll be happy for you, Ava,” Tammy assured me. “I don’t doubt that. I just can’t guarantee she’ll be able to face coming to the wedding.”
I decided to be brutally honest. “You know, Tammy, I feel guilty for admitting this, but I really like JP. I expected him to be a terrible person, but he’s not.”
“No, he’s not,” she agreed before I could go any further. “I was almost as enamored of him as Myla was. But he did something that almost destroyed my daughter. I don’t know what that was, but it happened. He’s not a terrible person, but I believe he did a terrible thing.”
I rubbed my temple. “You’re probably right. But the thing is, when I mentioned Myla to him, I saw something in his eyes that made me think he has a lot of regret. I just caught a glimpse before he looked away, but he looked devastated. I can’t help but wonder—do you think there’s any chance at all we can get the two of them to talk? Neither of them have gotten past what happened. Maybe they need to hash it out once and for all before they can move on.”
Tammy sighed. “I know you love her, Ava, but I wouldn’t try too hard to arrange that. I can’t see Myla making herself vulnerable to JP ever again. Tell her about the wedding, and we’ll go from there. If she agrees to come, we’ll just have to pray that she leaves town no worse than she came.”
***
It was two days later that my phone rang, with Myla’s number finally showing on the screen. I was in my office, finishing up for the day, and I grabbed the phone eagerly.
“Myla? Is it really you?”
I heard her laugh on the other end. How I’d missed that laugh.
“It’s me, girlfriend. I’m back in the land of cell phones and wi-fi, and I have permission to use them. Oh my word, I feel like I’ve been completely cut off from civilization. I can’t tell you where I was or what I was doing, but trust me, you’d never believe it.”
“Where are you now?”
Again the laugh. “Would you believe I’m on my way to Denver?”
“Wait, what?” I screeched. “Why are you going to Denver? That’s totally the wrong direction.”
“Because I have a month of leave coming, and I’m going to spend the first part of it there. With my boyfriend.”
I froze, unable to form a single word.
“I know, I know, shocking, huh? It’s a guy who was on the assignment with me. He’s amazing. I feel like I’m finally alive again. I can’t wait to tell you all about it, but I have so many calls to make before my flight. I promise I’ll call you again later when we can talk for hours, but just tell me real quick, how’s life in Hidden Creek by now? Does it feel like home yet?”
“Myla, so much has happened.” I took a deep breath. “I have some shocking news for you, too. I’m getting married. Soon. And I want you here.”
Silence, followed by a squeal. “You’re getting married? Ava Milton, what in the world? I fall off the face of the earth for two months and you meet a guy and get engaged? Without even waiting to consult me first? How can you agree to marry a guy without me giving the okay?”
She was teasing, but I knew she’d sober up quickly enough when I told her who my fiancé was. Before I could break the news, I heard the doorbell and then the front door open. Jude was here.
“Hey, Myla, hang on a sec.”
I went downstairs and met him in the hall. I pointed at my phone and mouthed “Myla.” He nodded and stayed quiet, dropping a quick kiss of greeting on the top of my head.
I hugged him, then stepped away and put the phone to my ear again. “Okay, I’m back. Yeah, um, I guess I did make a pretty important decision without your input.”
“Well, who is it? It’s gotta be someone I know—Hidden Creek is tiny.” She was genuinely excited and I hated to burst the bubble.
I looked at Jude for support and he moved behind me, putting his hands on my shoulders. I leaned back against him and told her.
“It’s Jude Keller.”
I could practically feel her shock. “Jude?” she finally said, her voice sounding small and strangled. “Wow, um, congrats. He’s a great guy.”
“I know you weren’t expecting that,” I said apologetically. “I hate that we haven’t been able to talk.”
“Hey, no sweat,” she said, sounding a little more in control. “And there’s no reason to beat around the bush. You’ve obviously figured out the connection. At least you chose him and not his brother.”
“I’m sorry to dump this on you all at once, but Myla, you have to come to the wedding. I know it’s selfish of me to ask, but I can’t get married without my best friend. It’s going to be really simple—we can do it during your leave if that helps.”
I heard her clear her throat, then she spoke again, her voice way too perky. She couldn’t fool me, but she was trying. “Of course I’ll come, as long as I can bring Derek. It’ll be a good chance for him to meet my family. How soon will you know the date?”
“I was waiting to hear from you, to see when it would suit you. How about the last weekend of your leave? That would be in, like, three-and-a-half weeks, right?”
“Wow, you guys aren’t messing around.” She paused. “That should work for me, but isn’t your mom going to have a fit if you don’t have a huge, fancy wedding befitting a Milton?”
“I’ve already told her it’s going to be here in Hidden Creek, very small, and in the very near future. She’s dealing with it.”
“Well, that’s good. Hey, I have to run. I need to call Mom next. I’ll check back in soon, okay?”
“Yeah, okay. Thanks, Myla. I can’t wait to hear about Derek.”
“I can’t wait to tell you. Bye, girlfriend. Talk soon.”
And she was gone.
Jude turned me around and put his arms around me. “Did that go a little too well?” he asked perceptively.
I nodded. “I took her completely by surprise, but she doesn’t want to rain on my parade.” I snuggled into him. “On a positive note, she said she’s dating a guy she met on her assignment. She seems excited about him, so maybe that’ll help.”
“Will she bring him to the wedding?”
“She said she is.”
I felt Jude exhale heavily. “I’d better break the news to JP.”
I propped my chin on his chest and looked up at him. “Do you think he’ll care?”
He nodded. “Not that he’d ever admit it.”
“I think he will, too,” I agreed. “I was hoping the wedding would force them to talk, but I doubt that’ll happen with Myla’s boyfriend along.
“Probably not.”
We were both silent with our thoughts for a while, hurting for the two people we loved.
“Back to a positive note,” Jude finally said, a smile in his voice. “Did you just set a date?”
I laughed. “I think I did. Three weekends from now, if that suits our families.”
“So, you’ll be Mrs. Keller in less than a month?”
“If plans hold,” I said, grinning at the thought.
“We’ll make ’em hold,” he drawled, before planting a very motivating kiss on my lips.
We spent most of the evening fleshing out those plans. I was determined to stick to my guns about keeping the wedding simple. I’d received no less than a dozen emails from my mother and sisters in the past couple of days, all of them giving “suggestions.” I’d read them, then deleted them. I’d never conformed to their idea of perfection before—why start now?
Jude and I both liked the idea of having the ceremony and reception at his house, in the big, beautiful backyard. We planned to have no more than eighty people there, and the yard was easily big enough to handle that number. We could put up a tent in the side yard for the reception, and if it rained, we could hold the ceremony there, too. Each of our pastors would have a part, and Jude had some friends who could do the music. Priscilla had already offered to organize the food, and I’d already accepted.
It was Jude’s and my idea of a perfect wedding, and I hoped my family wouldn’t turn up their noses. Even if they did, I wouldn’t let them ruin it for me.
After a while, we moved from discussing wedding details to talking about life after the wedding. Jude was very tactful, knowing how much Grandma’s house meant to me, but he admitted he’d rather live at his place. It was bigger and closer to his work, and he’d just spent months renovating it.
I pretended to be mightily torn, but I couldn’t keep it up for long. I finally punched his arm playfully and curled up against him.
“Of course we’ll live at your house, Jude. I never thought differently. I’d prefer not to sell this place, though. Maybe I’ll rent it out, if I can find someone I trust to treat it well.”
“There’s no rush. You can be choosy.” He grinned. “Or we can keep it as a vacation home.”
I giggled. “A vacation home thirty minutes from our real home. Nice.”
He shrugged. “It would make it easy to hang out with Chase and Hannah.”
“We’ll figure something out,” I said, giving him a fond smile. “Let’s just concentrate on getting married for now.”
“Gladly.” He effortlessly lifted me and put me on his lap so I was facing him, straddling his thighs. “No second thoughts?” he asked softly, his hands warm on my hips. “I appreciate you not making me endure a long engagement, but I don’t want you to feel rushed.”
I tilted my head and gave him a disbelieving look. “Are you serious? I feel like the next three-and-a-half weeks are going to crawl.”
He smiled. “I just want you to be sure. No doubts. Because if we say those vows, we grow old together. No outs. No excuses.”
I took his face in my hands and kissed each cheek. “I’m sure, Jude. So sure. One day, I’ll tell our kids how you swept me off my feet and had me walking down the aisle within four months.” I kissed his lips gently. “I’ll tell them I loved you so much I didn’t want to waste a single minute.”
He smiled slyly. “We could elope this weekend. Save some more of those precious minutes.”
“Hmm. Tempting. But that would disappoint our families too much.”
His lips curved into that slow smile and his hands moved up to my waist. “I do kinda want to see you walking up the aisle to me,” he admitted.
“I might run to you instead,” I told him, my eyes fixed on his. “I love you so much, Jude.”
His kiss told me he felt the same.