The realization that she was newly engaged didn’t really hit her until the next morning. Sunshine entered her bedroom, and reflected off the large diamond. Splashes of rainbow colors reflected off the white walls.
Wow, it’s gorgeous, she thought to herself. The engagement ring Rory had given her was about an eighth of the size of this one. She remembered that Rory had wiped out his entire savings account in order to buy the ring for her. She could picture it sitting forlornly on top of the sink where she put it the day before. She felt guilty for being so enamored of the new ring. What was she going to do with the old ring now? She honestly had no idea. She couldn’t wear it ever again, but she didn’t want to put it away either.
Another question…how was she going to break the news to her family?
Hey everybody, I’m engaged to a nineteen year old kid, she could imagine herself saying. It sounded so ridiculous that she couldn’t help chuckling. She wasn’t afraid of Ben’s reaction as much as Colleen and Malcolm’s. They could be a little old fashioned.
Gennie figured it was best to get the lectures over with sooner rather than later. It was better for her family to hear it straight from her. She was afraid the tabloids would catch wind of a celebrity’s son’s secret relationship and someone in her family would see the screaming headline DAMIEN DAVIDSON’S SON, 19, HAS TRYST WITH 32 YEAR OLD GAL PAL while waiting to check out at the supermarket.
She figured it would be easiest to call Ben and tell him about it. He wouldn’t be very understanding, but he was the least likely to lecture her.
Peter was still sleeping, so she went into the kitchen and called Ben from there. Hopefully, he wouldn’t be working today.
“Hello?” A groggy voice answered.
“Ben?”
“Why are you calling so early?” he said, sounding more tired than annoyed.
“Nine o’clock isn’t early.”
“Well, I was up until four last night, so it’s early in my book.”
“Partying right?”
“Yeah, we had a New Year’s celebration for all my employees and their families at the restaurant.”
“Well, I thought with the baby you’d be used to sleep deprivation by now.”
“I guess not,” Ben said. “So, why did you decide to call me out of the blue?”
“I have something to tell you.”
“Like what?”
“Um…well…you see, someone proposed to me last night.”
“Proposed what?”
“Proposed proposed.”
“With a diamond ring?”
“You can be so clueless sometimes. Yes, that’s exactly what I mean.”
“Sorry, but I think I have a hangover or something,” Ben said. “It’s just that…”
“Yes?”
“Hey, wait a minute. I didn’t know you were dating anybody.”
“Well, actually we’ve been dating for a year. I just never told anyone.”
“Have you had sex with this guy?”
“Ben!”
There was a pause on the line for several seconds. “So, who the hell proposed to you then? Was it your boss, Erik?”
Gennie’s stomach sank when she thought about Erik. She and Peter didn’t tell him about their relationship because they didn’t want to hurt his feelings or jeopardize their jobs. He would be devastated to hear about their engagement. They would have to find a way to conceal it for as long as possible.
“No, it isn’t Erik.”
“One of the suits?”
“No.”
“The writers?” Gennie could hear the bewilderment in his voice.
“No.”
“The best boy…or is it the worst boy?”
“No! Ben, why don’t I just come out and tell you. It’ll save us both a lot of trouble.”
“Why didn’t you say that a minute ago?”
Gennie sighed. “Yeah, I should have but…okay, here’s how it happened. You probably heard me talk about Peter, who works in the props department with me. Well, he asked me to go out with him last year and he’s been living with me for about seven months now. Last night he told me he had a present for me. He gave me a bracelet box. I assumed it was a bracelet, but it wasn’t. It was a diamond ring. Then he proposed to me.”
“The kid?”
“Yes.”
Ben sighed. “You didn’t say yes, did you?”
“Of course I did.”
“Are you sure this is a good idea, Gennie?”
“I knew you were going to say that.”
“Well, he’s just a child. What kind of husband can he be to you? He was born yesterday for godsakes.”
“You think this is a bad idea?”
“Well, it doesn’t seem like a particularly good idea.”
“I don’t want to give the ring back though. He seemed so happy when I said yes.”
“Look…do whatever you want, but I’m just going to tell you this…if you want another child to take care of and trust me, he is another child, go ahead. But if you want a real grown-up relationship, I’d call it off if I were you.”
Gennie sighed.
“I know it sounds awful, but he’ll get over it.”
Gennie didn’t know what to say. She felt horrible even thinking about calling off the engagement and she wouldn’t be able to bear the look on Peter’s face if that happened.
“Why don’t you go back to sleep?” Ben said.
“Are you talking to yourself?” Gennie asked.
Ben chuckled a bit. “Yeah, I guess so.”
“All right, I’ll let you go back to bed,” Gennie said. “Bye.”
When Gennie hung up the phone, she decided that calling Malcolm and Colleen right now would be a bad idea. Ben was right; Peter was young and probably not mature enough to be married. When she looked at her ring though, she felt that she should stay with him, despite all the misgivings. He loved her and she loved him. Isn’t that all they needed?
Chapter 67: July 31