Chapter Six
Two weeks of video chatting had gone by. Dalisay twisted her hands nervously and stared at the empty screen.
Ina stood over her shoulder. “You have to ask him today. If he can’t fly out to marry you, then we have to move on.”
Her mother had been keeping the two non-creepy Americans at bay while Dalisay built a relationship with Aaron. Ina refused to let them go in case Aaron fell through, but one was pressuring Dalisay into agreeing to a visit.
Her anticipation at Aaron’s reaction was killing her. It would cost him thousands to travel here and he couldn’t stay with them, so housing was an extra expense. Ina leaned over and punched the dial button, then she sidled out of the way.
Aaron’s smiling face appeared. His hair was combed, and the yellow lines in his blue plaid collared shirt brought out the color in his eyes. Her stomach flipped like a dancing dolphin. He looked better every time he called.
“How are ya, Daisy?”
Her voice left for a second. That deep rumble of his turned her insides molten.
“Good,” she squeaked, too aware of her mom peering at her from a foot away where Aaron couldn’t see her. “How are you?”
He chatted about the weather and how they were expanding their herd. His face lit up when he described getting to visit his little nephew. Dalisay would love little nieces and nephews, but she was an only child. Ina said they’d tried, but she hadn’t gotten pregnant again.
Ina’s stare turned stern. “Ask him,” she mouthed.
Dalisay swallowed and directed her gaze back to the screen. “Would you…would you like to come visit?”
His brows lifted. “Oh.” She couldn’t describe his expression, but now his brows were pinched together. “I suppose we should meet, huh. I mean, not that I don’t want to meet you—it just hasn’t been that long since we’ve started talking.”
The look of alarm on Ina’s face might’ve matched her own. “No, it hasn’t. You’re right. I…” She couldn’t think of what to say next. “I need to know where this is going,” she blurted.
Her mother nodded, but it hadn’t felt like the right thing to say. She should’ve said something complimentary, something other than the truth. But in the end, it was the truth. She couldn’t string herself along on Aaron W. if they weren’t heading to the altar.
And as much as she’d gotten on board with the plan to marry and move overseas, she wasn’t going to sacrifice her entire life to do it. Otherwise, why not move home and hit up Michael? Then she’d still be around her family, like her mom, who could coast through life with her.
The more she thought about America and researched its schools and opportunities, the more she envisioned herself there. She could get her own car, live in a city that wasn’t as populated as Metro Manila, and apply for scholarships to university. Each time she talked to Aaron, she crushed on him harder. She was definitely in like with him. That made it all the more critical that they meet. Because if he wasn’t in it for the long haul, or their chemistry was off, she’d have to scramble to find another suitable bachelor. Or move back to the province and forget her dreams forever.
Aaron hadn’t said much about the town he lived in, just that Moore was a small town but within driving distance to a couple of bigger cities. How perfect was that?
“This would be the best time of year for me to travel.” His expression was unsure, but he watched her like he gauged her reaction.
“I could send you a list of decent hotels in my area.” It wouldn’t matter with Manila traffic. It’d still take a couple of hours to commute to get there. She lifted a shoulder, afraid anything she’d say would push him into deciding not to come.
“I don’t know how long I could stay, but I’d like to see you.”
“However long will be fine.” As long as they married while he was here.
Her hands trembled. She clutched them in her lap. During her engagement, she hadn’t been as nervous as this.
They talked more with her mother watching. It brought her back to the days of dating when Ina would accompany her on dates for the first few weeks until she vetted him. With few good friends, there had been no one else to go along.
Dalisay was about to say goodbye when he gave a firm nod. “All right. I’ll send you the flight information when I have it.” His smile was hesitant. “I look forward to seeing you, Daisy.”
***
Aaron put all his tools away by tossing them on the workbench. Good enough. He’d finished putting a new belt in his favorite combine. They had three, but he babied this one. It was one of the first major pieces of equipment he and his cousins bought after they’d taken over. It was a luxury liner compared to the older combines he’d grown up using. Since then, they’d upgraded the other two with newer used models and he did some of the easier tasks Brock didn’t have time for.
The sound of an engine reached the large shop where he kept two of the combines and one of the semis. The guys were showing up. Another pickup droned with the first. Aaron stepped out of the shop. Travis had already parked, and Brock had ridden with Cash and Dillon.
Now was the time. Mom and Dad were waiting inside with his brothers. Aaron had asked them over to discuss his plans.
A trip to Manila would be a considerable expense. The plane tickets cost as much as he’d feared, along with the hotel Daisy recommended. The money wasn’t what worried him. Neither was the time away.
No, he absolutely stressed about the time away.
Would Nicolas get in trouble with Emily’s parents while he was gone? Which cousin was going to be away from his budding family and hauling grain while Aaron kicked it in paradise? And his parents? Would they have the fight that ended it all since he wouldn’t be around to set up distractions for them? All it’d take was Dad turning the channel before the Wheel of Fortune puzzle was solved.
Yeah, he’d have to leave a chore schedule for his brothers and maybe his parents while he was at it.
Telling his family why he was going to be gone ate a hole right through his stomach lining. He was almost thirty and Daisy was twenty-three. They were both adults; it shouldn’t be a problem. But how did one break the news that he was flying overseas to meet the woman he might marry, only he hadn’t met her in person yet?
No matter what they thought, he was flying out next week. He’d haul a load of soybeans to the elevator on Monday and he’d fly out Tuesday. Over twenty-four hours of travel time. When was the last time he’d sat still for that long?
Dragging in an icy breath, he tucked his face into his coat collar and crunched through the snow-crusted gravel toward his house. He couldn’t even take his time walking across the yard. The wind cut through his skin and down to the bone until the bridge of his nose stung like he had brain freeze without the fun of a bowl of ice cream.
The guys had been curious when Aaron had asked them to come solo. He loved their spouses, but this topic was too personal. In a way, he wanted to meet with just the ladies and listen to their thoughts on the subject and how they thought the others would handle the news. He hadn’t because what if it hadn’t been positive? Elle was practical to a fault. Abbi might fist-bump him and say “go for it.” Josie would stay out of it because she wouldn’t want to ruffle the waters after how she and Brock had gotten their start. And then there was Kami. The wild card to Travis’s efficient speculation of all the reasons why this wouldn’t work.
He hadn’t considered telling the rest of his cousins, the ones he didn’t work with. The information was going to spread like an autumn grass fire and he’d have enough opinions lobbed at him.
Voices drifted out from the house. Loud guffaws as his family combined into the moderately sized living room. They used to get together more often, but after his dad and uncles sold and all of them moved, the frequency had dwindled. Aaron and the rest didn’t hang out as often as they had in the past because they weren’t five bachelors looking for a good time. Aside from a few holiday get-togethers every year, they just kept an open-door policy and visited when the occasion arose.
He entered into the familiar warmth and mess of his mudroom. Savory scents surrounded him, and his stomach ditched its mess of nerves long enough to rumble, reminding him he hadn’t eaten much for breakfast. It was only noon, but a pot roast simmered in the crockpot, Jackson’s favorite kitchen gadget. Set it and forget it. Aaron had no food or appetizers to serve his visitors; he hadn’t been sure anyone would be staying.
“We’re all here, Aaron,” Mom called from where they were all crowded. “Time to break the bad news.”
Aaron paused taking his boots off. Thanks for the foreboding, Mom. Hopefully, she wouldn’t think his news was bad. He slung his jacket on top of the pile, but kept his Walker Five cap on.
“Yeah, we’re dying to know,” Cash said. “And by we, I mean Abbi.”
Aaron grinned in spite of the inferno raging within. He entered the room. No seats were available. His brothers sat together on the short couch and thumbed through their phones. Aaron wouldn’t be surprised if they were messaging each other. Dillon was in the corner, murmuring with Dad. Poor Dillon always got grilled about all the work planned and where Dad could lend a hand. If Dillon minded, he never let on. Travis would be targeted next. Dad was as interested as the rest of them in upcoming trends and what the Walker Five planned to incorporate. When Travis had brought a drone home to check crops and fence line, Dad had been the closest to giddy as Aaron had ever seen.
Cash and Brock were pinned by Mom as she extracted all the latest happenings in their homes. Cash gladly discussed Abbi and how she was feeling as she neared her due date. Brock’s answers were short, but Mom knew to keep asking questions until she was satisfied.
“Thanks for coming.” The room quieted down. They all looked at him, except for Jackson and Nicolas, who barely glanced up from their phones.
“I’m going to leave on Tuesday. I’ll be gone for almost three weeks.”
That did the trick. He had all of their attention. Him leaving town was an oddity. Three weeks was unheard of.
“Whatever you need, man,” Dillon replied, as if he sensed the gravity in Aaron’s voice.
Aaron nodded his thanks. If only Dillon kept that attitude for the next few minutes. “I met a woman online and we’re going to meet in person.”
That little tidbit dropped like a Fourth of July smoke bomb. A spark to ignite and then a steady infusion of shock.
“Where’s she from?” Travis asked. Leave it to him to suss out the gap in information.
“The Philippines,” Aaron answered. He rushed to get the real shocker out so it didn’t keep spinning like a cyclone in his brain. “She lives in Manila. If it goes well, we’ll probably get married.”
Someone snorted. Probably Nicolas. Or Cash.
“Married?” The blue in Mom’s hazel eyes sparkled with incredulity. “To a girl you haven’t met yet?”
“Like a mail-order bride?” Nicolas asked. Everyone swung their head toward his brother, then back at him.
“No. We’ve been talking and stuff.” Aaron shoved his hands in his pockets.
“That’s all you can do with an ocean between you,” Cash drawled.
Aaron scowled at him. “Her name is Daisy.” She wasn’t both nameless and faceless to them now.
“Daisy what?” Mom asked.
“Dalisay Calamba Cortez.”
“And she goes by Daisy?”
Aaron grounded his teeth together. “She said she likes when I call her Daisy. It was her profile name.”
Jackson coughed a laugh. “And what was yours? Lonely Farmer with Money?”
Aaron scowled at his brother. The tension in the room thickened. Jackson only said what others were thinking. “I’m not rushing headlong into this. I’ve done some research and got a passport. We’re meeting first and if there’s something between us, then I can come back and apply for a visa for her.”
“How…” Mom blinked and looked away, her mouth working. “How did you meet her?”
Brock spoke. “He said online.”
Irritation flashed through Mom’s features, but softened when she glanced at Brock. “I mean, what site? Did you really go looking for a mail-order bride?”
“She’s not a mail-order bride. I went looking for someone to start a relationship with. Someone who’d be willing to get to know the real me.” He gave Jackson a pointed look. “Unlike the women in town who do know how well off our family is. Look at you all. Married. Having kids.” While he was raising the family that’d raised him. “If I haven’t found anyone in Moore, then it’s not happening.”
“Why the Philippines?” Dad asked.
“Why not?” Aaron tried not to be defensive but the conversation thus far had done nothing to ease his mind that he’d worried about nothing.
“Well, why international, for one,” Travis said. “Why not Tinder around Fargo and meet a girl who’s familiar with forty below zero weather?”
“Because that girl still might not want to share her life with a guy whose job is his life.” He glanced at Cash. “What’d Abbi think of your first calving season?”
Cash rubbed the back of his neck. “I’ll admit, she had her first ‘What did I get myself into?’ moment, but it’s not like she was going to leave me over it. And the first googly eyed calf she had to bottle feed sealed the deal in case I hadn’t.”
But Cash’s parents didn’t live with him.
“Why the Philippines?” Travis asked again. “And not Russia, or… Where else do they do mail—international dating?”
“I looked around.” It still seemed seedy to say that. Too close to shopped around. “I read a lot of success stories and a ton of failure stories. I mean, it can be bad—for either party, but mostly for the women. I found a dating site that seemed more likely to have couples looking for long-lasting love.”
Mom started to say something, then huffed out a breath. She ran a hand through her wavy hair that was getting grayer with each year that went by. “I don’t understand her perspective. Is life so bad that she has to marry a stranger?”
He shook his head. “Not at all.” Daisy hadn’t said so. “Her dad passed away and it’s just her and her mom. She said she’d been in school for nursing when her dad died, and she’d had to drop out.”
“So it’s a money thing?” Mom asked.
“No.” He took his hat off and ran a hand through his hair. This wasn’t going well. “I mean, why do we go to the bar? We go to meet people because love might happen there when it hasn’t happened at church, or at work, or wherever. Think of this dating site as a bar. We met, we started talking, we liked each other.”
“You said you were going to marry her,” Brock pointed out.
“That’s what I’m flying to the Philippines for. To meet her before we make the leap. How long did you know Josie before you wanted to marry her?”
“We met a week before the Fourth of July parade, then—”
“My point is that you didn’t know her long. I’ve already been chatting with Daisy for over a month. We haven’t even kissed, and I know her better than any other person I’ve dated.”
The room went quiet. Had that finally gotten through to them? He didn’t want to leave with everyone intent on changing his mind.
His dad spoke first. “It still seems a bit extreme. And like her only goal is to get her green card.”
“She could do that quicker than waiting on me. I just want to meet her. Who knows, we might not be compatible and you’ll all be right.”
“We don’t want to be right about this not working out,” Travis said. “We don’t want to see you get hurt.”
The others nodded. Except Mom. She gave him a steady stare with the slight crease between her brows that meant she hadn’t given her approval about anything.
“You’re sure you’re not planning to marry her over there?” Mom asked in a stern tone.
“No. I’d want all of you at the wedding. And I don’t want to marry and then fly home while she sits and waits for a visa.” He wanted a real wedding, with all his family and the town to celebrate, to prove to everyone that the relationship was serious and not bought and paid for. “And you all know I can’t be away for months.”
Her mouth flattened. “There’s that then. I don’t like it, but I’ll reserve judgment until you meet her in person.”
Dad cleared his throat. “So you two decide to… You get home, and then what?”
“We apply for the visa and she’ll fly over when it goes through. We’d have ninety days to get married or she’d have to go back.”
The information didn’t soften the lines in Dad’s forehead. “And during that window is when you’d get married?”
Aaron nodded.
Cash folded his arms, his expression serious. “The time between you flying home and her coming here? What would she be doing?”
They obviously didn’t trust her. Aaron sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. The line of tension radiating through the room had broken. He didn’t want to snap it back in place, but he had to draw a line. “I guess that’s between her and I.”
His cousins gave him assessing looks, like they were deciding if they should respect his limits.
It didn’t matter. If he and Daisy were going to get over the hurdle of how they met, it would be together, not him making excuses to everyone.
“I want you to call when you get there,” Mom demanded. “And check in every day.”
Aaron suppressed a sigh. “I’ll call when I land and as often as I can. I’ll be all right.”
“I’ll take over for you while you’re gone. Just go over what you need done.” Dad sounded slightly less disturbed about the situation than Mom.
Aaron nodded. He had it all mapped out and ready; he just had to find the scrap of paper he’d scribbled it all on. Was it in the shop or his office?
He tapped the front pocket of his flannel button-up. The fabric crinkled. Good thing he hadn’t tossed his shirt in the wash yet. He dug it out and handed it to Dad. He hated bogging the guy down in retirement. Dad needed a hobby other than watching cable shows he’d missed all the years he’d been in the field.
“I’d appreciate it if you guys keep this to yourselves as much as possible. I don’t want her showing up and everyone thinking she’s a mail-order bride. I’d rather she got to town and then we told everyone that she and I met online.” Then it’d look like they’d been dating a while before the wedding. If the town caught wind of the juicy gossip first, he feared Daisy would be labeled and feel more like a fish out of water than she might otherwise.
“If it works out,” his mom added.
Yeah. If it worked out.