Bring Me Home for Christmas - By Robyn Carr Page 0,43
out of Rich’s truck and break my ankle. I have a splint and crutches. In fact, I had a surgical procedure and then a splint. And now Rich is on his way home, while I’m stuck here for another week. Denny said he’d drive me home after the doctor takes the stitches out.”
Silence again. “All right, let me get this right,” Beverly finally said. “You went to Virgin River to see Denny, while we thought you were with Doug, and now you have a broken ankle and can’t come home with your brother?”
“Well, Rich does have to work tomorrow. He couldn’t hang around any longer.”
“Becca, for the love of God! What are you thinking?”
She took a breath. “I’m thinking, this is the rest of my life. I’m not taking any chances. I’m not going to spend years wondering or brooding over a man who abandoned me and I’m not going to move forward with a man I’m not sure is the right one for me. That’s what I’m thinking. That some things have to be complete.”
“And is this thing with Denny complete?” her mother asked, her voice heavy with sarcasm.
“I will tell you this—we’ve made a little progress. I now understand some of the things he was going through when he left for Afghanistan. Things I never would have known if I hadn’t made this trip.”
“And does he understand some of the things he put you through?”
“What’s more important to me, Mom, is that we all get past the hurts so we can go forward.”
“But, Becca, you’re too different,” Beverly said. “You were never really right for each other. You come from completely different backgrounds and families. You and Doug seem such a good fit—your families are similar, you have both parents and siblings, you both went to college, you have similar interests. And unless there’s something you haven’t told me, Doug has never treated you badly. I knew right away that Doug was much more appropriate for you.”
“You’ve used that word before, I think. Appropriate.”
“The minute I met him, I knew—this is more the type of man I expected you to attract. To marry. You have similar goals. His family is stable. Successful.”
“Funny. Doug said something very similar….”
“See there?” Beverly said.
“He said, ‘Becca, you’re the kind of woman who looks like the wife of a lawyer.’”
“There you go. Really, there should be no question. You’ve been with Doug for a year! You and Denny broke up a long time ago. Why didn’t you just come home with Rich?” she asked.
“Because the doctor was against the idea,” she said. “Too long a drive, danger of swelling under the splint or even blood clots. I’ll see the doctor on Friday. Denny said he’d drive me home, but of course, I can always catch a flight.”
“And you’re staying where?”
“In Denny’s apartment.”
“Oh, my God,” she said weakly.
Becca laughed in spite of herself. “It’s one-room over a garage, an efficiency. He’s letting me use it.”
“And where is he staying? Never mind, I don’t want to know. Becca, this is a huge mistake. Doug might never understand! Who would expect him to?”
“Mom, I didn’t do this so that Doug could understand. I did this in hopes that I might finally understand. Like I said, this is the rest of my life. I intend to be sure.”
Nine
Oddly enough, that conversation with her mother made telling Doug what she was doing all that much easier. She couldn’t count the number of times Beverly had openly said, with great relief, He’s so much more right for you! But today was the first time she put that statement with Doug’s. You’re the right kind of woman to be married to a lawyer or even a senator.
Doug was a very careful planner. He’d been aiming for his father’s legal firm since he started in pre-law. He chose his fraternity carefully; he wanted the right political connections to be strong. He came from good Northeastern stock. He had aspirations to make a lot of money in law and perhaps enter politics. Yes, he’d been good to her. But she couldn’t shake the notion that he might be choosing his future wife like a man might chose a horse.
He answered sleepily. “I woke you,” she said.
“It’s pretty early,” he said.
“Well, I had to use the phone when I could. I need to talk to you about something very important—can you think straight? Doug, Rich left this morning and I’m still here, on my crutches.”