Dare to Love (24 page)

“Hey, I thought we were going to shop,” Andrea said, half laughing at his urgency.

Doug slowed. He was doing this all wrong. “Right. Sorry.”

He forced himself to walk casually beside her, listening to her comment on the holiday sights, all the while looking for one particular store. He gritted his teeth through the first store she wandered through, and waited outside the door of the second. And then he saw the store he'd been watching for.

Andrea probably wasn't ready. She'd spent four years building up fear. He knew it didn't all just evaporate in the space of one morning. But he also knew that it never would if she didn't move forward.

“Let's go in here,” he said, pulling her across the aisle to the other side of the mall.

She frowned at his gruffness.

Great, Avery. What charm.

He watched closely to see her reaction when she realized where they were going. It was frustratingly nonchalant.

“You got some lady you're sending jewelry to for Christmas?” She said it like a joke, but she wasn't laughing.

“Nope.”

She didn't say another word. She just gave him a nervous look and followed him into the store.

“May I help you?” The saleslady was on them the minute they stepped onto the thickly padded carpet.

It didn't take Doug long to find what he was looking for. “That one. Can I see it please?”

He didn't look at Andrea as the woman pulled out a half-carat diamond solitaire with a unique oval cut. But he held tightly to her hand. She might not go along with him, but she was going to have to refuse him to his face. He wasn't going to have another woman walk away from him without saying goodbye.

The saleslady handed him the ring, an eager smile on her face.

“You've made a good choice, sir. That's one of our best diamonds. The clarity and cut...”

Doug took the ring gently, uncomfortable at handling anything so delicate and beautiful. He didn't even hear the saleslady as he took Andrea's left hand and slid the ring onto her finger. He didn't hear anything except the roaring in his own ears.

He stared at the beautiful ring on Andrea's slim hand and felt like a hero for the first time in his life. He couldn't look up at her, needing to savor the moment, afraid that this would be the only one like it he'd ever have. If he looked at her, if she shook her head, his moment of glory would be gone forever.

“It looks gorgeous, sir. A fine choice. Yes, a fine...”

A tear dropped onto their clasped hands, forcing Doug to face whatever was to come. He raised his eyes slowly, taking in trembling lips that were so sweet to taste, a small, pert nose and finally, eyes that were glowing behind their pools of tears.

“You like it?” It was as close as he could get to asking.

Andrea nodded, a tremulous smile breaking out on her face. “It's a perfect fit.”

Doug nodded too, his relief so palpable he thought his legs were going to give out on him. And then he turned back to the saleslady, reaching into his jacket pocket for his checkbook.

“We'll take it.”

* * *

“I
MAY LET YOU DOWN
.”

“I can pretty well guarantee I'm gonna fail you sometimes, too. God knows, I'm far from perfect.”

“I mean it, Doug. No matter what Scotty says, I'm still partially to blame. I should have been watching out for him more closely.” Andrea lay in bed with her head on Doug's chest, afraid to believe, even now, in the happiness he'd brought her. After the basketball game, they'd spent the rest of the evening at her parents' house and Andrea had never seen her mother so quiet, or so content. Gloria had just sat and watched her children all evening, nodding and smiling, her glance lingering on the diamond on Andrea's finger now and then.

“You're human, Andrea.”

“I let John down, too.”

“He let you down, baby. He wouldn't let you be who you had to be. He wanted you to be who
he
needed you to be.”

That might have been the case, but Andrea was still afraid. “I just need you to be prepared for the fact that it's probably going to happen. I'll probably lose perspective again. You just wait and see.”

“If you're trying to get out of this, Andrea, forget it.” He trailed his fingers down her naked back.

Andrea shivered, nestling closer to him. She could hardly believe this man was hers, that he'd chosen her to share his life. She was afraid she was going to make him regret that choice.

“I just need to know that you'll still love me when it happens.”

“You can make mistakes all your life, baby. Just don't ever leave me. That's the only thing I'll ever ask of you. Just don't ever leave me.”

The final knot in Andrea's stomach faded away. “You have my word on it,” she whispered against his chest.

Finally, a promise she knew she could keep.

ISBN: 978-1-4592-8577-4

Dare to Love

Copyright © 1994 by Tara Lee Reames

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