That night after the two younger ones were put to bed, Paige went out to the front porch and sat down on her mom's rocking chair. This should have been a time to relax, but she wasn't feeling it. A thought was nagging her and after a moment's reflection, she realized what it was...GUILT! "Oh, my God," she thought, "this is NOT good!" She replayed the afternoon's fun in her mind; there was no denying how much she enjoyed it, yet she found herself wondering if it was worth it. And even as she tried to rationalize it away, the same truth kept hammering away at her, she was cheating.
On top of that people were starting to notice, and not just notice; they were starting to comment on the fact that Chad seemed to be in no hurry to get married. He had given her the ring months ago, yet every time a date was brought up, there always seemed to be an issue involved which pushed the wedding can further down the road. And now, the guilt. "Well, what the fuck," Paige whispered to herself, "if he's not gonna man-up, then I may as well have my fun!" Even as she said it, she knew that thought was unacceptable. No, she was going to have to be completely honest about everything! "But how am I going to do that?" she wondered out loud. Everything considered, this needed to be addressed very soon. Sleep did not come easily that night.
The next day was particularly busy; the whole time she was on the go with clients, and the bothersome thoughts were pushed into the background. Marie called her late that afternoon and wanted to gush about the Sunday fun, but Paige directed the conversation elsewhere. Her ever-naughty friend tried to steer it back, but she simply said, "Hey Marie, the McCullers want to have lunch with us to celebrate the contract. You up for that?"
"Oh Wow! I'm seriously up OR down for it!"
"Great, when I get a closing date, I'll set it up. I'm pretty sure your boss will let you get away!"
"Fantastic! Oh and by the way, when you left...Robert said..."
"Marie," she interrupted, "I'm sorry; I have to make some calls. Let's talk later, okay?"
There was at least a five second pause, "Yep, call me back when you can."
An hour later her phone pinged with a text, "You okay?"
She texted back, "No, but I'll get over it."
Paige got home around 5:00 and took a quick shower before helping with the dinner prep. All through the meal she was abnormally quiet even as Olivia was chattering away over the fact that her friend Alyssa had gotten her first bra over the weekend. When she asked Paige, "Mom, I think I should get one too...right?" it was as if Paige didn't even hear her.
That was when her mother spoke up, "Honey?" No answer. "Paige!"
"Yes?"
"What do you think?"
"About what?"
Fortunately Paige didn't notice the eye rolls, and after dinner Jimmy bugged her to let them watch "Frozen" for the tenth time. She put it on without giving it too much thought, and went back into the kitchen to help her mother clean up.
"Paige, are you okay?"
"Sure, I'm fine; things are extra busy at work and it's a little overwhelming."
"No, that's not it; what is it? You have a fight with Chad or something?"
Paige smiled, "Not yet."
Her mother nodded, "Yes, it had to come to this sooner or later, right?"
She just shook her head; Mom didn't know the half of it, "It's getting more complicated every day, Mom."
"Communication is the key, Sweetheart, say it with love and you can say anything!"
"I'm not so sure about that."
"What other option do you have?"
Just then her phone rang; it was Marie. "Hello?"
"Hey, can you come outside for a minute?"
"Uh, yeah, be right out."
Looking up, her mother said, "Go ahead, we'll finish our talk later."
When she stepped out onto the porch, Marie and Michelle were sitting on the swing and the little girl was just finishing up a grape Popsicle. "Yummy, Michelle, got one for me?"
With her lips and tongue all purple, Michelle happily held hers out for the redhead to have a lick. Marie laughed, "Didn't you have enough dessert?"
Paige took a lick, "Mmm...that IS good! Hey, would you like to go in and watch 'Frozen' with Jamie?" Michelle's eyes brightened, "Okay then, c'mon!"
When Paige returned her friend was standing on the front lawn near the sidewalk, her eyes were brimming with tears. "Wow, this is new; are YOU okay?"
Putting her hand on the smaller woman's shoulder, Marie quietly said, "Paige, I'm sorry!"
"For what?"
"For putting you in this situation."
Paige cracked a smile, "Oh yeah? Which situation is that?"
"For invading your world, and messing up your life!"
"Wow! You think being friends with you is ruining my life?"
"Maybe not yet, but I think it went a bit too far; and I'm sensing there's a lot of pressure on you now. Am I right?"
Paige stepped closer and pulled Marie into a hug, "Here's what I'm sensing; you and I will be friends forever, and that won't change. I don't regret the choices I've made."
"Thanks for that!" said the brunette, she wiped her eyes, "But then, what are you gonna do next?"
"Yeah, that's the $64,000 question; you have any ideas to share with me?"
Marie put her hand on her girlfriend's shoulder; the two of them locked eyes, "Well, short term goals are fine, long term is harder. What is it you want? Do you want to marry him?"
"I do."
"Why?"
"We're good together," she replied pensively, "and I just like the whole idea of marriage. I don't want to spend the rest of my life thinking what could have been. I do love him, so what should I do?"
"Lately I've found the direct approach works best!"
Paige's eyes widened, "You? The direct approach? You're kidding!"
Marie laughed, "Yes, it seems hard to believe, but I wasn't always this way. My ex-husband walked all over me. When I finally decided to stand up for myself, he hit me...and that was that!"
"Oh my God, really? That is so sad. Chad would never hit me; he's funny and kind and our sex is amazing!"
"Priorities, eh? How is he with the kids?"
That made her reflect, "He's okay."
"Have you ever had a real conversation about them?" Paige was silent; the wheels in her head were turning and it registered in her face. So Marie continued, "What else is not being discussed?"
"I guess we don't discuss the future as much as we should."
Marie nodded, "What do you see in YOUR future, besides walking down the aisle?"
"Yes, I see your point; what do I really want?"
"Right, and what does HE really want?"
"Lots to think about, but I feel better; things look clearer!"
*********************************************************************************************************************
The next day Paige got the closing date for the McCullers and she immediately called Jason with the news.
"Awesome! Two weeks? That's great! Sara told me to set up our celebration lunch as soon as we got the date. How does this Friday look?"
She checked her calendar, "Friday should work, I don't have any showings that afternoon. Is this just the three of us?"
"Oh no, Sara wants Marie to come as well; I'll clear her schedule."
"Okay, we'll be looking forward to it! How about Manino's? It's my favorite!"
"See you there at noon!"
Paige called Chad with the news and invited him over for dinner that night. "Babe, you must be so excited! This is your biggest commission yet, isn't it?"
"Oh yeah," she sang, "I'm in the money now!"
"Got some plans for it?"
"Not really, but my mom needs a new mattress; the one she has is pretty well worn out."
"Really? I didn't realize she was getting that much action!" he quipped.
If he had been there, his fiancée would have punched him in the shoulder, "Yeah, and you're fuckin' silly too!"
Chad was snorting with laughter, "Your mom probably needs a boyfriend!"