“Okay,” she whispered, her gaze locked with Jerry’s. His was steady, filled with certainty. She clung to the reassurance she saw there.
He blinked then. “Okay?” His voice climbed, catching the attention of everyone in the kitchen. “Did you just say okay? You agreed to marry me?”
Cora Jane nodded, aware of the heat climbing into her cheeks as startled gazes turned to the two of them. “I did.”
“Well, I’ll be,” her son said, delight breaking across his face, when she’d been anticipating disapproval. He jumped up and came over to pump Jerry’s hand. “Congratulations!”
Gabi and Samantha were next, showering Jerry with kisses and her with hugs.
“It’s about darn time,” Gabi said. “Now I’ll have something to tell Emily when she calls. What about a date? Have you thought of a wedding date?”
Cora Jane held up a hand. “Not until after you and Wade are married,” she said firmly.
Gabi looked so taken aback that Samantha laughed.
“Way to go, Grandmother!” Samantha said approvingly. “That’s just the pressure she needs to get the show on the road.”
“Amen to that,” Wade concurred.
Cora Jane held Samantha’s gaze with another unrelenting look. “You, too, young lady.” She shifted her eyes to Ethan. “Am I clear?”
“Grandmother!” Samantha protested.
“That’s my plan, and I’m sticking to it,” Cora Jane told them all.
Jerry sighed heavily. “I guess that puts my fate in your hands.” He looked at Wade. “You, I’m not so worried about.” He turned to Ethan. “Try to remember I’m not getting any younger, okay?”
Ethan laughed.
“I’m not kidding,” Jerry said sternly.
Cora Jane leaned in and kissed him. “And that is exactly why I love you. We’re always on the same page.”
It should keep whatever time they had left lively.
* * *
On Monday morning Ethan waited for panic to set in, now that the wedding was behind him and the reality of Samantha’s staying was starting to sink in. Instead he felt more optimistic than he had in a long time. Even Jerry’s added pressure wasn’t as weighty as it would have been even a week ago.
“You look cheery,” Greg said, eying him suspiciously. “Something happen this weekend to put you in a particularly good mood? Given how you feel about love and marriage, I thought you’d be impossible to live with today. Isn’t that what usually happens with cynics, they go overboard to prove they didn’t buy into all that romantic nonsense that weddings entail?”
“If you were hoping for me to be especially grouchy, keep pushing. I’ll happily accommodate you,” Ethan told him.
Greg grinned. “That’s more like it.”
“Don’t you have patients or something to do besides pestering me?”
“Nope. It’s quiet in the reception area. I checked. No walk-ins and the first appointment isn’t for a half hour.” He hesitated. “Of course, Debra seems to have a lot to say, but I left Pam out there trying to talk her down.”
“What’s she carrying on about today? Please tell me I’m not at the center of it.”
“Apparently she took my advice and went on a date. It didn’t go all that well. I believe she’s discussing the sorry state of the male population. I have to admit I ran before I got the whole tirade. Pam, however, seemed genuinely enthused about it. She and her husband must have had another fight over the weekend.”
Ethan shook his head. “And you wonder why I have so little faith in love and marriage.”
“You pick and choose your examples,” Greg countered. “What about me and Lindsey? Or Boone and Emily? Wade and Gabi?” His expression turned sly. “You and Samantha?”
Ethan gave him a hard look. “Me and Samantha?”
Greg chuckled. “She is the reason for this bright and sunny mood of yours, isn’t she?”
“Okay, maybe a little,” he conceded. “Hanging out with the Castles yesterday made it hard to be a skeptic. Love was definitely in the air. Cora Jane finally agreed to marry Jerry. Even Sam Castle looked to be caught up in a little post-wedding romance with one of Emily’s Hollywood friends.”
“That must have been the elegant woman wearing a diamond that could have paid off all our med-school loans,” Greg said. “She was working the crowd like a pro, and I say that with awe. It’s no wonder she’s been able to raise all that money out there. I’ve never before met anyone who could look a stranger in the eye and know his life story in less than two minutes. She’s scary charming.”
“You find that admirable?”
“In certain circumstances, absolutely. I like people who know how to get things done. I can see why that would appeal to Sam Castle. I don’t really know him, but I know his reputation, and I’ve followed the research going on at his company. They’ve been ahead of the curve with a lot of things. Just think what they could do with an infusion of cash to add even more top-notch researchers.”
“You think he’s after her money?” Ethan asked, not liking that particular spin, even though it made an awful kind of sense.
“Absolutely not,” Greg said, looking shocked by the suggestion. “I think he’s interested in her powers of persuasion.” He hesitated, his expression thoughtful before he added with a smirk, “Or maybe he’s just after her body. She’s pretty hot for a woman her age.”
“I’m sure she’d be thrilled by the compliment,” Ethan said dryly.
Greg merely shrugged. “Let’s get back to you and Samantha.”
“Let’s not.”
“You know, I suffered through the whole Lisa fiasco with you. I think it’s only fair that I get to share in the good times, too.”
“Stop trying to live vicariously through me,” Ethan chided. “You have a lovely wife at home. It’s slow here. Take an hour and go home to Lindsey.”
“She’s room mother at school this week,” Greg lamented. “She left the house with enough cupcakes to send the entire class on a sugar high for a week. And
