wrong. “I’ve waited a long time to say this. I didn’t think it would be right to say it before April, because of the anniversary. And your birthday is coming up soon. So here we are.”
“Are we celebrating something?” she asked naively, feeling a slight buzz from the champagne.
“I hope so,” he said softly. “That depends on you. It’s up to you to decide. What I’ve wanted to tell you since last summer is that I’m in love with you. I don’t mean to upset the applecart of our friendship, or to startle you. But somewhere along the way, I fell in love with you, Annabelle. I think we’re wonderful together, and I can’t stay single forever. I’ve never met a woman who made me want to settle down. But I can’t think of a better foundation for doing that than being best friends, which we are. So I would like to ask you to do me the honor of marrying me, if you will.” As he said the words, he saw Annabelle staring at him in complete amazement. Her mouth was slightly open and her eyes were wide.
“Are you serious?” she asked him when she finally caught her breath.
He nodded. “Yes, I am. I know this comes as a surprise to you, and you can think about it if you need to. Annabelle, I’ve been in love with you for a long time.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?” He couldn’t tell if she was happy or angry. Most of all, she looked shocked.
“I thought I should wait until now.” She nodded. It was proper and made sense. And Josiah always did the right thing. It was one of the things she loved about him. She was still staring at him in disbelief. “Are you upset?” he asked, looking worried, and she shook her head. There were tears in her eyes when she looked at him.
“No, of course not. I’m very touched,” she said, reaching out to take his hand.
“I know I’m a lot older than you are. I could be your father. But I don’t want to be. I want to be your husband, and I promise I’ll take good care of you forever.”
She believed that as she listened to him, and then wondered, “Does my mother know?” It explained her occasional discreet suggestions about Josiah, all of which Annabelle had brushed off.
“I asked her permission in October, and she said yes. I think she believes it would be a good thing for both of us.”
“So do I,” Annabelle whispered with a shy smile. “I just never expected this to happen. I thought we were just friends.”
“We still are,” he replied, smiling too. “And if you accept, we always will be. I think a husband and wife should be best friends, along with everything else. I would like to share children with you, and the rest of my life. And I will always, always be your friend.”
“So would I,” she said, looking misty. And the thought of having children with him shocked her a little, but touched her heart. As she listened to him, she tried not to think about all the antics Hortie had described in Paris. What she shared with Josiah seemed so much more pure. She hated to spoil that. But Hortie had always been a little crazy, and now that she’d discovered sex, she’d gotten worse. The only thing that was slowing her down now was getting fatter day by day.
“Would you like some time to think about it? I know this came as a surprise. I’ve been biting my tongue for a long time.” And then he laughed. “That’s why I had a scotch, and half a bottle of wine tonight, and now champagne. I guess your mother should have warned me not to get drunk. It took a little courage to ask. I wasn’t sure if you’d slug me or say yes.”
“Are those my two choices?” she asked, reaching for his other hand. She was already holding one. “Slug you or say yes?”
“Essentially.” He smiled at her, and squeezed both of her hands in his own.
“It’s simple then. The answer is yes. If I slug you, it would make a terrible mess. They might throw us out of the restaurant. And you might not be my best friend anymore.”
“Yes, I would.” And then he asked her the same question she had inquired of him when he first proposed. “Are you serious?” He was referring to her timid “yes.” It was gentle, but heartfelt.
“Yes, I am. I never thought of us that way before. And whenever my mother suggested it, I thought she was insane. But now that I think about it, there’s no one else on earth I’d want to marry. Except Hortie maybe, but she can be such a pain in the neck. So if I’m going to marry my best friend, I’d rather marry you.” They were both laughing while she explained.
“Have I told you that I love you?” he asked her.
“I think you did. But you can always say it again,” she said primly, with an enchanting little smile.
“I love you, Annabelle.”
“I love you too, Josiah. I love you very, very much. I guess this is the best way to protect our friendship forever.” And then as she said it, he saw her eyes fill with tears, and her lip quiver, and he could see she was upset.
“What’s wrong?” he whispered.
“I wish I could tell Robert and my father. This is the most important thing that’s ever happened to me, and I have no one to tell. My mother already knows. And who will walk me down the aisle?” As she said it, tears rolled down her cheeks.
“We’ll figure it out,” he said gently, as he wiped her tears away with his hand. “Don’t cry, sweetheart. Everything is going to be all right.”
“I know,” she said. She felt absolutely certain that with Josiah she would always be in good hands. Suddenly, it made perfect sense to her, although it never had before. But now it was his idea, and her own, not someone else’s crazy suggestion that made no sense. Now it all did. “When do you want to do it?”
“I don’t know. That’s up to you. I’m at your disposal from today on. We can get married whenever you want.”
“What about in Newport this summer?” she said, looking pensive. “In the garden. That would be less formal than a church.” And there would be no aisle, which was so upsetting to her now. She had no uncles to walk her down the aisle, no one to stand in for her father or brother. There was no one at all. She’d have to walk down the aisle all by herself. “Maybe we could do the actual wedding very small, and have a big party later. With Daddy and Robert gone, it doesn’t feel right to do a big wedding, and I think it would be too hard on my mother. What about Newport in August?”
“Sounds great to me.” He beamed at her. Things were going even better than he’d planned, or dared to hope since last October. “Does that give you enough time to organize a wedding?”
“I think so. I don’t want a wedding like Hortie’s. And she’s the only bridesmaid I want, and she’ll be nine months pregnant.”
“I’d say that sounds more like a matron of honor,” he teased her. They both knew that most people would be shocked to see her out socially in that condition.
“She says she might have the baby in Newport,” Annabelle added.
“Maybe she could have it at the wedding.” He chuckled. He had a feeling that with Annabelle, life was going to be interesting forever.
“Can I still do my volunteer work at the hospital?” Annabelle asked, looking worried.
“You can do anything you want,” he said simply, smiling at her.
“My mother said I’d have to stop when I got married.”
“You don’t have to stop for me, except maybe when you’re expecting. It might be a good idea to give it up for a while then.” She could tell just listening to him that he was going to be reasonable, and always there to protect her. It seemed like the ideal marriage to her, and she couldn’t imagine why she’d never thought of it herself before. She liked everything he said, and always had.
They chatted for a while longer about their plans. His mother had been dead for years, and his father was remarried to a woman Josiah didn’t particularly like, but he thought they should invite them, and his half-sister with her husband. He had two uncles, and a brother. His brother lived in Chicago, and Josiah wasn’t sure if he would come. He said his brother was a little eccentric. So he didn’t think they’d be overrun by his family, and all she had now was her mother, and a wide assortment of distant cousins. She said she’d like to keep it below a hundred, maybe even fifty. And her mother could give them a big party in the city in the fall, which sounded great to him. He liked the idea of keeping their wedding personal and private, as a special moment just for them, and not a cast of thousands. He had never wanted a big wedding, and until now none at all.
“Where do you want to go on our honeymoon?” he asked happily. August was just around the corner.
“Anywhere we don’t have to take a boat to get to. I don’t think I could do that to my mother, and I’m not sure I’d want to either.”
