See Jane Love - By Debby Conrad Page 0,56

to love her. But he couldn’t pretend any longer. He did love her, and he couldn’t continue this farce.

Tomorrow, he thought. Tomorrow, he’d tell her their marriage wasn’t working.

CHAPTER TWELVE

“What do you mean it’s not working?” Janie asked, then bit down hard on her bottom lip and prayed she wouldn’t cry in front of him. “We’ve been married less than a week! Aren’t you even going to give it a chance?”

Gabe looked up from his coffee mug briefly, then averted his eyes. “I’m sorry.”

“You’re sorry? Well, sorry doesn’t cut it, pal. You asked me to marry you, remember?”

“Yes,” he said on a sigh and rested his elbows on the kitchen table. He still refused to look at her. Which was just as well. Right now, she didn’t want to look at him either.

Janie got up from the table, and keeping her shoulders squared and her back straight, went to the sink to rinse her juice glass. “We’re supposed to go to Sara and Alex’s for Thanksgiving dinner today. My parents are there. Won’t they get a kick when I not only tell them I just got married, but that the father of my child already wants a divorce.” And then the tears came. Big, fat, ugly tears. And she was powerless to stop them.

“Janie, don’t,” Gabe said, coming up behind her. “I never wanted to make you cry.”

“Well, what did you expect?” she asked in between sobs.

“I don’t know,” he said, turning her around by her shoulders. “Not this.” With the pads of his thumbs, he wiped away her tears and studied her face. “I need some time. Can you give me a few weeks, a month maybe, to sort things out?”

She sniffed and nodded.

“Thanks.” Dropping his hands from her shoulders, he said, “Look, if you want I’ll go with you today. We can pretend to be the happy couple.”

“Okay,” she managed to say. “I’d appreciate that. Just let me wash my face and change my clothes.”

As Janie walked away from Gabe, she realized this was the second time he’d broken her heart. She’d lived through it the first time, and she could live through it again. Besides, what choice did she have? If Gabe didn’t want her, there was nothing she was going to say or do to change his mind.

* * * * * * * * * *

It didn’t take a rocket scientist to know that Ruth and Doug Callahan weren’t exactly happy that their daughter was married, or with her selection in husbands. Nor were they excited Janie was expecting in the spring. Shocked, was more like it.

“So,” Ruth said, first glaring at Gabe and then looking at Janie. “I can understand why you may have wanted to elope, but did you have to go to Las Vegas? The thought of my daughter being married in one of those tacky wedding chapels . . .” The woman ran a hand over her short, auburn hair and shuddered with disgust. “Sara had a beautiful wedding at St. John’s.” She dabbed at her dry eyes with a napkin. “We wanted the same for Janie.”

Doug patted his wife’s hand. “Honey, don’t get yourself worked up. They can always renew their vows in the Catholic church.” Doug Callahan had a full head of dark hair with just a touch of gray at the temples, a slick buttery smile, and a trusting face.

“Mom, it wasn’t so bad,” Janie said. “In fact, the chapel was really kind of cute. Wasn’t it, Gabe?” She gave him a small kick under the dining room table.

“Uh, sure,” Gabe lied.

“Did you have a fowler girl?” Livvy asked, and all the adults grinned at the way she’d said ‘flower’.

“No, sweetie, we didn’t,” Janie said, a sad expression on her face. “Because we couldn’t find any little girls who were as pretty as you.”

Nor did you have any flowers, Gabe wanted to say. He’d only just realized how much Janie had probably hated getting married all those miles away, and without her family. But why hadn’t she said anything?

“Did you see the beautiful ring Gabe bought for me?” Janie beamed a smile at everyone around the table as she held out her hand for inspection.

“Cool,” Travis said, then went back to shoveling turkey into his mouth.

Doug’s and Alex’s brows shot up, but both men were smart enough not to say whatever it was they were thinking. Sara and Ruth obviously weren’t that smart.

“Are you sure those stones are real?” Ruth asked Gabe. “I mean, you didn’t buy my