Noah

“What did she say?” Preston asked. He had been blowing up my phone all day. I shouldn’t have told him when I was going to do it. I swear since being married, he couldn’t wait for me to take the plunge.

“She’s wearing my ring,” I answered.

He yelped. I held the phone away from my ear. I knew the engagement plan would be a risk, but the Valentine’s gesture turned out to be a flop. One day I would get the hang of the grand gesture. Today was the day.

“Did it go down like you thought?” Preston asked.

“Yeah, she spied on me from the coffee shop across the street.” I had dropped Callie off at school and Nip and I were making our way back home. “I almost didn’t see her. Nip gave her away.”

“Nice.”

“What did it set you back?”

“You know Callie. She’s not into flash.” I smiled. “Four carat, Ascher cut. Platinum setting. I sent you a photo.”

Preston whistled from a distance.

“Well, man. I’m proud of you. So how you guys celebrating.”

“Callie had class today. I thought I’d make her dinner. Start planning.”

“You need me to send you some dates,” Preston said and chuckled.

“Listen. I made myself available for your wedding, you move things around to make mine.”

“Okay, Okay.” He laughed.

“Thanks man. You were right. It was perfect timing.” I turned the corner and scoped Noah up in my arm before descending the steps to the subway. “I got to go.”

“Yep.” He hung up.

As I sat on the subway, I took my phone out and looked at the ring again. It was perfect for her hand. It felt right slipping it on her finger.

I sent her the photo and a text message.

Noah: My favorite photo of you.

Callie: I can’t stop looking at it. I have no clue what the professor is talking about. :-)

Noah: Spring Break's coming up. You’ll have time to catch up.

Callie: Love you. :-)

I stopped at the fancy bodega around the corner from our place.

“Hey, Noah.” Rick, the store own, greeted me.

“Hey Rick. How’s it going?”

“I can’t complain.” His eyes moved across the store. “How’s Miss Callie?”

“She is really good today.” I held up my phone and showed him the photo.

“You did that?” He pointed.

“I did.”

“Wow. Congrats. Linda.” He called towards the back of the store.

“What?” Linda came running. “You’re going to have to find another crush, Noah is off the market.”

Linda was Rick’s daughter. She was seventeen, but flirted like a grown up. She was a good kid, though. She rolled her eyes.

“You asked Callie to marry you?” she asked.

I showed her the photo.

“Wow. You did good.”

“You think?”

“Yep. Lucky girl.” She said under her breath. “So, what do you need?”

“I was going to cook dinner. Have it waiting for her when she got home. Something easy.”

“Easy is ordering from Phil’s across the street.” Linda said with her hand on her hip.

“I can cook.”

“Okay.” She laughed and headed back toward the meat counter. “You like to grill.” She said it as a fact she knew about me.

I shrugged.

Without asking she wrapped up two filets and gathered a bunch of asparagus. She plucked the ends off the asparagus and grabbed a bottle of something and sat it on the counter.

“Let me finish this up, go pick out a bottle of champagne.” She pointed towards the beer and wine with a piece of asparagus.

I nodded.

I wouldn’t find a bottle of Ace of Spades in this little shop, but they had Yellow Label. It would have to do.

By the time I returned, Linda had packed up our meal with a little card for preparation instructions and I was on my way.

I returned home whistling. When I was safe in the house with only Nip and Valentine to critique my awful voice, I began singing and preparing the meal. Callie only had one class on Wednesday afternoon. She would be in a car already heading home. I was done within an hour.

Two hours had passed and Callie hadn’t returned home.

I texted her.

Noah: Dinner’s ready. Where are you?”

She didn’t answer right away.

I waited another thirty minutes before sending another text.

Noah: Where is my future wife? Call me.

I called her phone, but it went to voicemail. I had no right to be, but I stared getting angry and annoyed. Where was she?

I flipped through my messages to make sure I hadn’t missed anything and there it was. A message from this morning I’d missed.

Callie: Reminder. Having dinner with Dad tonight. I’ll be home later. Wish me luck. {Heart emoji}

I shook my head. Her parents lived in Manhattan part of the year and on a ranch in Texas the other half. I never knew when they were in town or not. Every few weeks, she’d have lunch or dinner with her father as a way for him to catch up on her life. She dreaded them because inevitable the conversation would turn to his plan for her future. While some people would call his tactic bribery, he called it encouragement. It was the reason Callie was in school now. If she got her degree, he promised to give her the brownstone.

It was bonus that Callie actually liked school and since she changed her major to journalism, she was exited about her future. All this happened with in the last month, so much had changed since the wedding. Our relationship had grown.

We were closer than ever.

Asking her to marry me was the logical next step. Besides, it was the same words I said to Preston on his wedding day. He couldn’t see his life without Kate. It was the same way I felt about my Callie.

I put the food away. We could have it for breakfast.

I flipped on the television and vegged out with Nip and Valentine on my lap.

I hadn’t experienced a quiet off-season in a while. Three years ago, it was Maria. Two years ago, it was the demise of Maria. Last off-season, before Callie started school, it was the two of us all over the world. Now that she was in school, she didn’t have as much freedom.

That’s why I was looking forward to her spring break.

We were meeting Preston and Kate in Aspen for five days. Now, that she said yes, it would be the perfect time to do some scouting for the wedding.

I woke up when the dogs jumped up and ran to the door.

“Hey guys.” Callie said as she dropped her bag and kneeled down to give them her attention.

I stretched and sat up.

“Hey baby,” I said. My eyes immediately went to her left hand. “Where’s your ring?”

She looked down and then at me as she reached in her backpack, pulled out the box and slid the ring back on her finger.

“I didn’t want to tell Dad with Mom not there. She would be so pissed.” Callie pushed a strand of hair behind her ear and smirked.

I narrowed my eyes, but didn’t speak. Her explanation made since, but …I thought once I put that ring on her finger, she would never want to take it off.

I shook the thought out of my head. She wore it now.

She’d said yes.

I had nothing to worry about.