Remember Love (17 page)

Brenna

Last night was perfect and completely unexpected
. I knew that one day Tucker would ask me to marry him. I just wasn’t thinking it would be so soon. Not that I’m complaining. I’m beyond happy and can’t wait to start my life with him. There are absolutely no doubts left that we are meant to be. Lying here, staring at the ring he slid on my finger, I didn’t even glance at it last night. It’s gorgeous. He did very well. The permanent smile that has been on my face since last night is starting to be painful.

Tucker begin
s to stir beside me, and I turn over to face him. A beautiful smile spreads across his face when he sees me awake and looking back at him.

“Good morning
, baby.” His voice is husky with sleep.

Rising up on my elbow
, I lean down and kiss his lips softly. “Good morning.” I place my hand on his cheek and his hand is covers mine. Tucker pulls it away and looks at the ring he placed there.

“Tomorrow.”

“What about tomorrow?” I ask him, completely puzzled at what he’s saying.

“
We get married tomorrow.”

I l
augh at his line of thinking, until I see the seriousness on his face. “We can’t get married tomorrow, Tucker.”

“
Why not?” He’s serious. Doesn’t he know that there are things that have to be done first?

“Let’s see we need a marriage license first, a preacher, and wedding bands to name the most important, plus we haven’t even told our family or friends.”

His eyebrows are almost touching, causing his forehead to wrinkle, he’s thinking so hard. I smooth away the wrinkles with my fingers waiting for him to say something.

“We can do all that tomorrow then.”
His smile is infectious as it spreads across his face.

“We’re still not getting married tomorrow
, Tucker.” I tell him and watch as his smile slips a little. “Now don’t get me wrong. I’d marry you right this minute if we could, but don’t you want a small ceremony?”

“If that’s what you want
, then I guess I’ll have to wait. Do you have something in mind?”

Yes
, in fact, I do. However, I’m not telling him just yet. I want to make sure I can pull it off first. “Maybe.” I say while grinning down at him.

“You’re not going to tell me are you?”

“Not yet, but I promise I won’t let you miss it.”

“You better not. If you
take too long either or you might find yourself standing in the courthouse.”

Shaking my head at him and laughing
, I know he’s serious. Tucker isn’t going to wait long and that’s fine by me.

Knowing we have a lot to do today
, it’s time to get up. After I tell Tucker this, he groans and gets out of bed and strides naked across my room. Now, that’s a sight that will never get old. I haven’t even moved yet. Tucker pauses and looks back at me with a wink. His lips edge into knowing smile and he motions for me to come with him.

I’m off the bed and
heading in his direction within seconds. I know where this is going. Shower time with Tucker is an experience I’ll never miss. He’s already in the shower when I walk in and pull back the curtain. Stepping in, I take in every inch of him. Soon the water isn’t the only thing steaming up my tiny bathroom. Definitely, a good morning.

* * *

Tucker

Spencer and Lexi bring over breakfast not long after we’re dressed. I could get used to this morning routine with Brenna. It feels so natural. Knowing that I’ll get to do this with her whenever I want leaves a smile plastered on my face.

I was dead serious when I told her that she better not take too long before planning what she wants
. I’m ready to make her my wife now. She’s already mine in every other way, so I can wait a few more days to make her my wife. Two weeks tops.

Between the four of us
, it doesn’t take long to load all of Brenna’s things onto my truck. Lexi offers to drive up to help us unload. Brenna tells her she doesn’t have to, but gives in when Lexi says she wants to. She’s a good friend and Brenna is going to miss her. Maybe things will work out for her and Spencer so they will be neighbors again soon.

Looking over at Spencer
, I see the smile on his face when it was decided Lexi was following us back. Yeah things look pretty good right now.

“Y’all ready if we leave now we can get unloaded and throw some steaks or something on the grill before Lexi has to head back.”

Everyone nods their heads in agreement. I toss my keys to Spencer and tell him we’re taking the back roads in case we get separated. I figure it’ll be safer than the interstate with semi’s blowing past us. Last thing we need is bedroom furniture flying out the back of the truck causing a pile up.

Two hours later
, we pull down my driveway. No, not mine anymore, it’s now ours. I really like the sound of that. It doesn’t take us long to unload. All the things she doesn’t need at the moment go into one of the spare bedrooms. Her bedroom furniture is going into the other. Spencer and I set that up so Brenna wouldn’t feel like she had too. Now I know why I never filled these two rooms. They were waiting for her.

We find the
two girls on the back deck. They’re sitting at the table talking, heads close together, speaking in hushed voices.

“What are y’all talking about?”

“Nothing.” They both reply. Looks like we interrupted some girl talk.

I walk over to the
grill to fire it up. While it’s warming to the right temperature, I get the meat out of the freezer and throw them in the microwave to defrost. Watching the steaks, Brenna’s arms snake around my waist and she rests her cheek on my back.

“Need help with anything?”

Taking her arm, I pull her around in front of me, picking her up to sit her on the counter. I place my hands flat on the counter beside her hips and put my face close to hers but not touching. “Not with the food.” 

Brenna slides her hands
up my chest and around my neck. “I did say anything.” She whispers before pressing her lips to mine.

When we pull away
, I rest my forehead against hers. “You have two weeks Brenna.” The microwave beeps before she answers. Picking her up and placing her back on her feet, I wait for her response.

“Fine
, Mr. Impatient. I may not even need two weeks.” She grins as she turns to go back out on the deck.

I grab the steaks and follow behind her. When she opens the back door and steps on the porch
, she stops short. I’m about to ask her why she stopped when I see Spencer and Lexi kissing.

“Hey Tucker
, you got any popcorn?” Brenna asks with as much seriousness as she can before laughter takes over.

Lexi and Spencer jump apart like they were just caught by their parents and I
can’t keep from laughing.

While w
e eat, the four of us share a few laughs. By the time Spencer and Lexi are ready to go; we make them promise to make this little gathering a permanent thing. Brenna is all smiles when Lexi promises to come up next Sunday. What Brenna doesn’t know is Spencer already told me Lexi would be here.

I couldn’t ask for a better night
. I have Brenna here, in our home. She will be my wife in at least two weeks and hopefully by then, we’ll know if we’re going to be parents.

Life is good.

Brenna

The days have flown by
, and each day has been better than the last. Living with Tucker is amazing. We have fallen into a routine easily. Tucker took off work on Monday to go to the county clerk’s office to get our marriage license. The poor guy isn’t wasting any more time. He asked me, before we left, if I didn’t want to just get married right then. I thought I’d have to drag him out of there.

On Tuesday
, while Tucker was working, I unpacked and starting putting my things next to his on shelves and tables. When Tucker came in that night he found supper waiting on him. He thanked me very well later that night. While we lay in bed, we talked about wedding rings. I found out mine was already taken care of.

Of course
, he has no idea what size ring he needs. He told me how he sized mine. Well that explains what he was up to that morning. Digging in his bedside drawer he handed me his class ring after making sure it still fit. One problem solved. So, now I just have to get his ring and plan our wedding.

My mom came over on Wednesday
. The two of us went through the things I wasn’t keeping to see if she wanted any of it. Once we were done, we both loaded it in my SUV to take to Goodwill next time I’m in Glasgow. I showed her my ring and talked to her about my plans for where I wanted to marry Tucker. I made her promise not to tell him. She’s going to take care of everything for me so all I have to do is show up.  She also made sure to let me know that I had to stay at her house the night before.

Y
eah, Tucker’s not going to be happy over that bit of news.

Thursday
, I decided to take Tucker and Spencer lunch at work. Seeing Tucker smeared with grease did something to me and before long we made good use of his desk. Before I left, he told me that we were having a get-together Sunday. Tucker reassures me, except for a few things, it’s all been taken care of. He ran down a list of things we would need and I headed off to Wal-Mart.

When I passed a display of diapers
, I was hit with the realization that now I am a week late. I decided that since I was already here, to go ahead and grab a pregnancy test. I’m not going to tell Tucker yet, though. I want to surprise him when he least expects it. Obviously, he knows I haven’t started my period. And he’s asked me a few times about it a few times.

Friday morning
, as soon as Tucker left for work, I sent my mom a text to see if she wanted to ride with me to the mall, so I could get Tucker’s ring. He doesn’t want anything expensive; afraid he’ll ruin it or lose it under the hood, so I settle for a wide plain Titanium band for him. Mom and I had lunch before going back home.

Graduation went off without a hitch
, of course, I knew it would. I was surprised when Tucker’s parents showed up that morning to follow us down. My mom and Pa rode together and Spencer rode with us. I was happy he was going to watch Lexi graduate. He says he was there for me, but I knew better. After graduation, we all go out to eat and went over the plans for the next day.

Sunday morning dawned
bright; it looked like it was going to be a gorgeous day. Tucker and I didn’t get out of bed until about an hour before everyone was supposed to be here. The two of us were rushing to get ready when we hear a car coming down the drive.

Today is the day we’
ll find out if I’m pregnant. I can’t wait to see Tucker’s reaction when he gets the picture I took. I’ve been biding my time so I could send it to him when I’m ready. I didn’t even realize I was smiling, until he spoke.

“What are
you smiling about?”

“Nothing, I’m just happy. Today is going to be a good day.”

Tucker pulls me to him for a heated kiss me just as someone knocks on the door. “How much you wanna bet its Lexi?” I ask him.

“Not e
ven gonna place a bet since you’re probably right.”

Opening the door, it
’s confirmed he would’ve lost that bet.

* * *

Tucker

Waking
up and coming home to Brenna everyday has been extraordinary. Every time I drive down the driveway and see her SUV parked by our house, joy flow through me. When I open the door, no matter what she’s doing, she drops it and is in my arms almost instantly. We have fallen into a routine, and I couldn’t be happier with how everything is working.

She still hasn’t told me when or
where we’re getting married. I’ve been impatiently waiting for that answer. I tried to get her to go to the courthouse after we got our marriage license on Monday. She pretty much drug me out of the clerk’s office laughing. She has one more week until I put her in my truck and we elope.

Lexi and Spencer are the first ones to
arrive for our get-together. Earlier in the week, I asked him and Lewis to both bring their picnic tables so we’d have enough room to sit. Leaving Brenna and Lexi in the house, we go out to unload his picnic table.

“How are things between you and Lexi?” I ask him
, as we carry the table across the yard.

“Going pretty good, I really like her
, but I don’t know man if I’m ready for it.”

I know that Spencer had some heartbreak of his own in the past. He doesn’t talk about it and I don’t ask.

“Just don’t hurt her, that’s all I ask.” Spencer nods his head but doesn’t speak, as we place the table in the middle of the yard.

Hearing more cars coming down the drive
, I walk back toward the front to see that my parents and Brenna’s mom and Pa are all here. Spencer and I unload the other table from Lewis’s truck and carry it over to sit down beside the other one.

Mom and Caroline are unloading enough food to feed double the amount of people that are here.
Brenna and Lexi come out carrying plates and things. Watching everyone as they interact together, I realize this is my family now. This is how every weekend will be spent from here on out.

Thirty minutes later
, we’re all sitting around the picnic tables eating and laughing. We listen to Lewis tell jokes and talk about whatever pops in his head. When my dad joins in, they begin rehashing everything they can, remembering all the things they caught me and Brenna doing when we were young and both still lived on the farm.

It’s not long before my mom and dad are telling everyone all the times they caught me & Brenna kissing when we were teens. I watch Brenna’s face go red and can’t hel
p the laugh that escapes me. We’ve been sitting here for about an hour when Brenna tells me she’ll be back in a few. I get up to follow her, because I can’t stand to be away from her when she’s near.

“Hey Tucker
, have you talked her into eloping yet?” Lexi asks, right as I go to stand. She knows I haven’t, she talks to Brenna daily.

“She still has a week.” I reply to her
, watching the door.  As soon as I go to stand again, I’m stopped. I’m starting to think they’re keeping me from following her.

“Boy, sit still
, she’ll be back.” My dad says.

This draws laughter from everyone except
Brenna’s mom, Caroline. She’s only smiling at me.

“I think it’s sweet that he can’t sit still unless she’s right beside him.” Lexi tells them all
, explaining how I always follow her. I can’t help it I want every second.

I hear my phone beep
in my pocket. I have no idea who would be texting me when everyone I talk to is here, unless it’s a customer. Pulling my phone from my pocket, I see it’s a picture message from Brenna. After opening up the message, I jump off the bench and sprint toward the house. Brenna sent me a picture of a pregnancy test with a message to come see the results.

Throwing open the door
, I head toward the bathroom, but don’t see Brenna anywhere. There is a white stick lying on the counter with a piece of paper. Reading the paper, I realize it’s instructions on how to read the pregnancy test lying on the counter. I pick up the test, glancing between the white stick and the paper, reading the results.