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Authors: Caroline Mickelson
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now.”
“Wait, Jessie, we’ll talk tomorrow.” The last thing Ava needed was for an overzealous Jessie to show up and grill Mateo. “I promise.” After uttering a few more mollifying comments, Ava ended the call and then powered down her cell.
She met Mateo’s amused gaze. “What?”
He shrugged. “You handled that so well I have no worries about how you’ll handle my mother once she arrives home.”
Wine glass halfway to her lips, Ava paused. “Your parents.” She set the glass down and sat back in her chair. “Have you told them?”
Mateo set his plate to the side and leaned forward, his elbows resting on the table as if he was shooting the breeze with an old friend rather than discussing his mother’s reaction to his faux engagement. Ava envied his cool sense of calm.
“Told them that I’m engaged? Yes.”
“And?” Ava prompted when he didn’t elaborate.
“And what?” Mateo asked, a teasing gleam in his eye. “You want to know how my mother received the news that we’re getting married?”
Ava nodded. Nothing in Mateo’s manner indicated that he was upset or concerned about his parents’ response but then again, she reminded herself, there was still much she didn’t know about Mateo Ortega. “Tell me, please.”
“My parents were incredibly surprised, caught off guard is probably the most accurate way to describe it.” He drank the rest of his wine and waved a hand in refusal when Ava held up the bottle. “But I think both of them understand that time is of the essence if we want abuelo to be well enough to enjoy the wedding.” He stood and pushed in his chair. “More than anything, I think they’re just upset they won’t be back in time.”
Ava watched wordlessly for a moment while Mateo gathered up the dishes and took them into the kitchen. None of what he’d just said made any sense.
“How can your parents know they won’t be back in time if we don’t have a date set?” she asked.
“We’re going to set the date right now,” Mateo answered. He slipped his cell phone into his pocket and took out his keys. “I was hoping you could arrange a few days off of work.”
Ava felt as if she were a passenger on a runaway train. “Starting when?”
“Tomorrow.”
Mateo reached down and tucked a loose strand of her hair behind her ear. His touch was incredibly gentle. She shivered.
“Tomorrow?” she repeated in surprise. “For how long?”
“Here’s what I’m thinking. Tomorrow we pick out your dress and spend the day making plans. The day after tomorrow we have the wedding rehearsal and get our marriage license, and the day after that we get married.”
“You make it all sound so easy.” Ava hardly knew where to begin to object to the three day whirlwind he’d proposed. “We can’t possibly arrange a wedding that quickly.”
Mateo leaned down and kissed her cheek. “We can and we will, trust me. You just arrange for a few days off of work and I’ll take care of the rest. I’ll pick you up at your office at ten o’clock tomorrow morning if that’s okay with you.”
Ava nodded. “So that’s it? You really think we can pull everything together so quickly?”
Mateo grinned as he slipped through the front door. “After that, we just take a short honeymoon. Which I’m sure will be the easy part. Goodnight, Ava.”
The easy part? Ava leaned her head against the door once Mateo was gone and closed her eyes. No. Nothing about any of this was easy and she wondered if she just hadn’t made the biggest mistake of her life.
Chapter Eight
It took Ava less time than she anticipated to clear her work schedule, which just reinforced her belief that a good administrative assistant was worth her weight in gold. “Thank you, Marti. You made that look easy.” She leaned back in her chair and smiled across the desk at the other woman. “In fact, it’s almost unnerving how well things appear to function while I’m away.”
Marti laughed. “Don’t kid
“Wait, Jessie, we’ll talk tomorrow.” The last thing Ava needed was for an overzealous Jessie to show up and grill Mateo. “I promise.” After uttering a few more mollifying comments, Ava ended the call and then powered down her cell.
She met Mateo’s amused gaze. “What?”
He shrugged. “You handled that so well I have no worries about how you’ll handle my mother once she arrives home.”
Wine glass halfway to her lips, Ava paused. “Your parents.” She set the glass down and sat back in her chair. “Have you told them?”
Mateo set his plate to the side and leaned forward, his elbows resting on the table as if he was shooting the breeze with an old friend rather than discussing his mother’s reaction to his faux engagement. Ava envied his cool sense of calm.
“Told them that I’m engaged? Yes.”
“And?” Ava prompted when he didn’t elaborate.
“And what?” Mateo asked, a teasing gleam in his eye. “You want to know how my mother received the news that we’re getting married?”
Ava nodded. Nothing in Mateo’s manner indicated that he was upset or concerned about his parents’ response but then again, she reminded herself, there was still much she didn’t know about Mateo Ortega. “Tell me, please.”
“My parents were incredibly surprised, caught off guard is probably the most accurate way to describe it.” He drank the rest of his wine and waved a hand in refusal when Ava held up the bottle. “But I think both of them understand that time is of the essence if we want abuelo to be well enough to enjoy the wedding.” He stood and pushed in his chair. “More than anything, I think they’re just upset they won’t be back in time.”
Ava watched wordlessly for a moment while Mateo gathered up the dishes and took them into the kitchen. None of what he’d just said made any sense.
“How can your parents know they won’t be back in time if we don’t have a date set?” she asked.
“We’re going to set the date right now,” Mateo answered. He slipped his cell phone into his pocket and took out his keys. “I was hoping you could arrange a few days off of work.”
Ava felt as if she were a passenger on a runaway train. “Starting when?”
“Tomorrow.”
Mateo reached down and tucked a loose strand of her hair behind her ear. His touch was incredibly gentle. She shivered.
“Tomorrow?” she repeated in surprise. “For how long?”
“Here’s what I’m thinking. Tomorrow we pick out your dress and spend the day making plans. The day after tomorrow we have the wedding rehearsal and get our marriage license, and the day after that we get married.”
“You make it all sound so easy.” Ava hardly knew where to begin to object to the three day whirlwind he’d proposed. “We can’t possibly arrange a wedding that quickly.”
Mateo leaned down and kissed her cheek. “We can and we will, trust me. You just arrange for a few days off of work and I’ll take care of the rest. I’ll pick you up at your office at ten o’clock tomorrow morning if that’s okay with you.”
Ava nodded. “So that’s it? You really think we can pull everything together so quickly?”
Mateo grinned as he slipped through the front door. “After that, we just take a short honeymoon. Which I’m sure will be the easy part. Goodnight, Ava.”
The easy part? Ava leaned her head against the door once Mateo was gone and closed her eyes. No. Nothing about any of this was easy and she wondered if she just hadn’t made the biggest mistake of her life.
Chapter Eight
It took Ava less time than she anticipated to clear her work schedule, which just reinforced her belief that a good administrative assistant was worth her weight in gold. “Thank you, Marti. You made that look easy.” She leaned back in her chair and smiled across the desk at the other woman. “In fact, it’s almost unnerving how well things appear to function while I’m away.”
Marti laughed. “Don’t kid
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