Chapter 12

Jana

After such an amazing and relaxing weekend with Jason, this week seemed to be drudging on. Monday was pretty productive for me, but it seemed like today I had the Tuesday blues. I texted back and forth with Jason all day and pretty much got nothing done at work. His texts were a riot, and I had to stifle my laughter in an attempt to at least look like I was being productive. I definitely caught the front desk secretary looking over at me knowingly a couple of times.

When the clock hit five, I collected my things and headed over to the bridal shop to finalize my dress order. They had all my measurements already, so all I had to do was stop by and pay them. Of course, at five in the evening in New York City, that was easier said than done. I sat in the traffic for over an hour just staring out the window thinking about the last month or so. It had definitely been a whirl wind of events, but luckily, I was left with an amazing boyfriend and a new lease on life. We pulled up in front of the shop, and I hopped out, feeling my phone buzz in my pocket.

“Hey,” I answered, seeing Jason’s number on the screen. “Let me call you back in five. I’m at the bridal shop ordering my dress.”

“Okay, beautiful but hurry I have something to ask you,” he said before hanging up.

I scrunched my nose hating cliffhangers and reluctantly walked into the shop. The woman at the front recognized me immediately and pulled my information up on the computer. I paid her for the dress and signed a couple of forms before thanking her and heading back out of the shop. It was amazing how easy things were when you paid an arm and a leg for service. They were especially ready to jump through hoops since they knew I was the Maid of Honor in one of the biggest weddings of the year. Ryan definitely had some clout.

Once back outside I pulled out my phone and dialed Jason. The evening air was more refreshing than cold, so I strolled along the walk, looking at the different stores along the way. Jason had gotten my attention by telling me he had something important to ask me so it better not be what color tie to wear to work tomorrow.

“Hey there. That was fast,” Jason said, picking up on the fourth ring. “I had to escape the meeting I was in to answer the phone.”

“Glad I could be of service,” I said laughing. “Now, what is this important thing you have to ask me?”

“Have you ever been to Martha’s Vineyard?”

“Um, no I don’t think so,” I said stopping and looking at an amazing dress in the store window. “Why?”

“Trivia question, just thought I’d ask,” he said condescendingly. “No, I wanted to know if you would join me this weekend for a mini vacation in Vineyard Haven? I have a house up there, and I thought it would be good to get away.”

“Hmm, well I’ll have to okay it with my other boyfriends but…yes! Of course, I will; it sounds awesome,” I said excitedly.

“Nice. I can’t believe you’ve never been there! A prominent young woman from your upbringing, it’s almost a crime that you haven’t hob nobbed with the wealthy in Martha’s Vineyard,” he joked.

“Yeah, well you know me. I’m a rebel,” I said chuckling.

“Yes, you are,” he said in a sexy tone.

“You keep talking like that, and I’ll have to make a special trip to your office sir,” I said teasingly.

“Oh yeah? A little-closed door office play, I like it,” he whispered. “I’ll break out the special stapler.”

“I don’t even know what that means,” I replied, giggling. “But I don’t think I am down for the stapler.”

“Can’t take the heat,” he sighed. “Okay, I gotta get back in this meeting. I’ll call you later.”

“Okay, have fun,” I replied, hanging up the phone and shaking my head.

I grabbed some take-out and headed back to my apartment, really excited for this trip. I couldn’t believe I was going to get to go relax in Massachusetts during my favorite time of year with my new favorite person. I had heard stories about Martha’s Vineyard growing up but never had the chance to go there and see it for myself.

When I got home, I sat and ate my dinner before deciding that packing was the best course of action. I spread my clothes across the bed and plopped an empty suitcase down on the floor. I had separated it into piles according to the possible types of events we might partake in. I had a business pile for finer casual experiences, I had casual clothes for the walk around the park kind of day, the club dress for the night out on the town, and finally, the sweet meet the family outfits. I knew Massachusetts would have very similar weather to New York, so I made sure to have some comfy warm outerwear as well. When I was done there were enough clothes to move to Martha’s Vineyard and never return. I needed to pick one or two from each pile and leave it that way.

I sighed at the choices and sat down on the floor, propping my back against the bed. I knew exactly who I needed to talk to; Megan. I dialed her number and stared down at my nails realizing I hadn’t had a manicure in about two months. After a few rings I figured she was lost in fiancée love land, but before I could hang up, I heard her voice on the other end.

“Hey girl,” she said happily. “What’s up?”

“Not much…except Jason invited me on a vacation to Martha’s Freakin’ Vineyard,” I said loudly.

“Ahhh,” she screamed causing me to pull away from the phone. “That’s so awesome!! Have you started packing? You should separate your clothes into different piles….”

“Way ahead of you,” I said laughing. “I was just taking a break and wanted to gush about it with you.”

“See, I knew he was wayyyy into you,” she stated matter of factly. “It was only a matter of time until it all fell into place.”

“I’m really excited to see this place in the fall, but I won’t lie, I’m a bit nervous,” I admitted. “This will be like a real getaway with Jason. Like a, there is no one to distract us, kind of thing.”

“But that’s good, right? I mean how does he feel about you?” She brought up a question I hadn’t really given much in-depth thought to.

“Well, I don’t really know,” I said, stopping and looking up. “I mean we really haven’t had that kind of talk yet.”

“You should,” Megan stated. “You need to keep things where you are both on the same page. It only gets confusing when you aren’t open and honest about your feelings.”

“Like you were the first three days with Mr. Wonderful?”

“Hey, that was three days, you guys have known each other a lot longer,” she said defensively. “Besides when we finally admitted it to ourselves we were done with the games. It’s been all uphill since then.”

“You’re right,” I sighed. “Maybe this trip to the Vineyard will be the perfect opportunity.”

“I think that is a perfect idea,” she replied. “Girl, I am so happy for you two. This is going to be really good for you guys. Actually, I am kind of jealous. I want a vacation.”

“Get your own love story,” I joked. “Besides, you have an absolutely insane honey moon coming up next year. You will be care free and on the go.”

“Very true,” she replied. “Listen, girl, don’t fret. Don’t overpack and have a good time. Okay? I gotta get in here and finish dinner.”

“Okay, tell Ryan hi,” I said looking at the piles on my bed.

Leave it to Megan to start getting my mind wondering about things I thought I already knew. I looked through the casual pile and picked out two outfits, grabbing the rest of them and hanging them back in the closet. I sat down next to my suitcase and slowly folded the items, strategically laying them out in the bottom to avoid excessive wrinkling. Pile by pile I went through the clothes, picking the best two and throwing the rest back into my closet. I was pretty impressed that by the time I was done, I still had room for shoes, well at least one pair.

This getaway, in my opinion, was really important to me and Jason’s relationship. It could totally be that push forward to the next level, solidifying our feelings for each other and committing one hundred percent. On the other hand, I may not like the answer I get when I ask the question; how does Jason really feel about me?