thought that far ahead before. He figured that once they were married, she’d relax and be more casual about everything. There would be nothing left to worry about. She’d have everything she wanted. It was simpler letting her plan it all, since it made her happy. It felt like one giant video to him.
She was an easy woman to please, unlike other girls he’d gone out with. They got along famously and never argued, mostly because he gave in. There was no fire in their relationship, and no challenge. It was peaceful and effortless for him, with Amanda and her parents running everything.
Amanda never objected to the time he needed to develop his videogames, which she knew was important to him. He stayed late at the office frequently, and lost track of time. It only bothered her if they had a dinner to go to and he forgot about it, and had turned off his phone so he could concentrate. He had missed a few events that way, but each time he promised he wouldn’t do it again.
Their conversations were mostly about the wedding now, and before that they had been about her job. She was planning to give it up before the wedding. The last month or two before their big day would require her full attention. It seemed a little excessive to him, how time consuming it could be to organize a wedding, but he knew she didn’t like her job, and he made enough money to support them. He had agreed to move into her apartment. Her father owned it and didn’t want them to pay rent. Anthony’s apartment was too small for both of them, and he didn’t have enough closets for Amanda’s wardrobe.
Her apartment was in SoHo, which she loved. The only thing missing from Amanda’s life was a husband and children, which was all she’d ever dreamed of. He knew she’d be a wonderful mother because she wanted kids so much. And once they had a child, they were going to look for a house out of the city, maybe near her parents. She had it all mapped out. He wanted to have more say about their future, but he figured they would work that out after they were married.
Getting married had been her idea. He was comfortable with the arrangement they had, but she had told him she wanted a commitment from him, or she didn’t want to see him anymore. It made him realize that he didn’t want to give her up. He assumed that marriage would be like dating, but in one apartment, and eventually with kids. He liked her parents, and his mother thought Amanda was perfect for him. He liked making Kate happy. She had been a fantastic mother in his opinion, and had been both a mother and father to them. She had always encouraged him to follow his dreams. Amanda was part of them now. As long as she gave him the time he needed to develop his games, he was happy. He dreamed of having his own videogame company one day. Her father thought he could find investors for him. All the pieces of the puzzle fit perfectly.
It annoyed him that Claire was critical of Amanda and didn’t think she was intellectual enough. Anthony was part of the creative board of the company he worked for, and got enough stimulation there. He didn’t need to come home at night and talk to Amanda about work. He didn’t expect her to understand technical issues.
Plans for the wedding had taken over their life since the engagement, but in December that would be all over, and they could settle back into ordinary life, go to the movies, see their friends, go sailing in the summer. They were going skiing in Europe for their honeymoon. He wanted to spend more time doing sports with her, but they’d been too busy lately. He wanted to get back to that too, although she warned him that they would have to postpone anything strenuous if she got pregnant.
He wanted to make love to her that night after she told him about the latest details of the wedding, but she was asleep by the time he got out of the shower. There was a stack of bridal magazines on the floor next to her side of the bed, and two new books she’d found about table settings for weddings. They were her bibles now. He wondered if other women spent as