I do not own JE's characters. I just like to play with them.
A/N: This a new story. Brace yourself, Babes, this is a TART. I welcome your reviews and input. The rating is for future scenes. Thanks for reading.
His POV
Ever since I was a kid, I wanted to be a soldier and after graduating high school early and taking accelerated college courses, I enlisted at 19. I am proud of my accomplishments so far in my life. I am an Army Ranger. I am one of the best. Most of my information is classified, but I will tell you my age is 25.
I am part of a crew that is shipping out in a week on a two year mission. There is a chance we won't make it back, but if we do, our contracts will be marked completed and we can decide to sign anew one. I trust these men with my life, or I would not have agreed to the two year field trip.
It just suddenly hit me that I might not come back, not in the 'I am afraid to die type of feeling', but in the 'who would really miss me type of feeling'. I think I want to get married. What a thought to have at this point, I know. I leave in a week.
I drink my cranberry juice and let my thoughts wander. I know I have a family, but we are only as close as we can be with my constant trips and missions. My friends are all coming with me. I want to fall in love. I can tell if a woman is right for me within five minutes of meeting her. Well, I can tell the wrong ones that quickly. I told the guys that I was going "trolling for some talent", but I was once again people watching.
I have noticed a pretty young woman who appears to be moping alone in the corner. She has apparently shot down every guy that has approached her. I go to the jukebox and play a few songs and walk over to see how she got rid of so many guys. I may need a new approach because being polite does not always work on some of the die-hard ladies.
When I am almost to her table, I notice she is chair dancing. That is adorable, because she does not seem aware that she is doing it. I catalogue her looks, wild curly brown hair, deep blue eyes, and very kissable lips. She just stares at me and I say the first thing that comes to my mind. She is going to throw her drink at me, I just know it.
Steph POV
Ok, I ran away, but you don't understand. I don't love him, so how can they expect me to marry a man that calls himself Dickie and that already has male patterned baldness at the age of 26? Plus I caught him sharing more than his "legal briefs" with Joyce Barndhart! Ew. They don't know that I saw them in the backseat of his car. I just cannot do it. I begged Mary Lou to agree that we would have a 'Bachelorette Week' and go to Atlantic City. She went to AC alone all expenses paid two days ago.
I came here to Point Pleasant to think. I cannot marry Richard Orr. I know he is a lawyer, but so what? I want a career, too and I want to get my master's degree in Marketing, Business and Psychology. I also want to minor in childhood education. I have a dream. I want to open an after school center for elementary school kids and teach them life skills, languages and reading and math.
I also want to open a consulting business like to be an image consultant and that is where my college best friend, Lula comes in. She called me the other day and listened to my wedding plans and told me I did not have to marry that "Almost Bald White Dick" when I could actually pick anybody.
She said to be honest and maybe it could be a friendship and maybe more one day. I told her I would think about it. She told me to check myself before I wrecked myself. Lula sometimes used music to talk to me. She cracked me up.
My grandpa Harry had left me an inheritance of $5M in a trust fund if I got married by the time I was 22 to a trustworthy man that had to be Catholic and he had to be at least 25. My mother did not know the amount of the trust fund, but she knew the requirements. She had me on her version of the dating game and she and my older sister Valerie had chosen Richard Orr, attorney at law. He was from a good family and he was 26 years old.
My problem is that he was not trustworthy and I had proof. I took pictures. I would send them with a letter stating he could not fulfill the requirements. My Grandma Mazur had warned me that his Package was not up to par and that I should decline him, but I had not listened.
As we speak, there are hugely hideous Gone With the Wind dresses complete with hats and parasols. I am not joking. We live in Trenton, New Jersey and my mother chose a plantation themed wedding. Well, she can wear that cupcake looking monstrosity. I just don't know what I am going to do. My birthday is in three months exactly. Today was July 12th. I was going to be disowned, I just knew it. But right about now, I am wondering if that is such a bad thing. I sighed and drank my non-alcoholic iced tea.
This song was kind of cool. A throat was cleared and I looked up. Wow. He is very handsome. I waited, though because even a cute guy could be an idiot. A few of these morons had talked to my breasts and while I am glad they liked them, that was a no-no. I am wearing a green sundress that flairs and comes to my knees and shoes Lula made me buy that are surprisingly comfortable but are 6" heels! I love Lula, though because she said I had pimp juice. She is a hoot.
So I waited and I cannot believe he said, "Nobody puts Baby in the corner." I just looked at him and cracked up laughing. I loved Dirty Dancing! I did not realize I was sitting in a corner. He held out his hand and I got up and put my tiny purse around my shoulder diagonally and danced with him to "Yeah" By Usher. He had moves and I tried my best to follow all of them.
His smile was infectious and I giggled at him when he turned his back to me and grinded on me that way with his hands in the air. He was officially crazy. The next song was "Stand Up" by Ludacris. Lula taught me well. I gave my dance partner a look and he said, "You gotta love Ludacris." I just kept dancing. At least while I danced I could forget my problems for a little while.
I noticed when we moved that he was wearing a cross and dog tags and I reached out to touch them like the newsy person that I am. He caught my hand. "No one touches my tags but me except my wife or my medic." Wow.
"So, you are married?" He just laughs but it is not a happy laugh. He pulls me back to my table and holds out my chair.
"I will get us drinks and we can talk, Baby." I blushed. He came back with two bottles of cranberry juice and I smiled. He was not trying to get me drunk.
"So, tell me pretty girl, why are you here alone looking so contemplative?" I loved his use of vocabulary words. Stop it, Stephanie. This is not school. I took a deep breath and explained my problems. We had not exchanged names yet.
"So what is your name, Soldier Boy?" He smiled that wonderful smile at me.
"What do you want it to be?" He made me laugh again.
"I saw Pretty Woman too you know. I cannot believe you are flaunting your chick flick knowledge at me. Okay. I like Shakespeare, so I want your name to be from that." He leans in close to me.
"I am not letting you call me Romeo." Nope.
"No, I like Petrucchio. He was the male lead in 'the Taming of the Shrew'. I liked that he liked Katherina the way she was and realized he did not have to tame her to be happy and he liked her the way she was." He beams a smile at me.
"Fine, but shorten it, please." I smiled and he took my hand.
"So, tell me, Kio. Why are you here all alone? I have to tell you that you look hot, you can dance and you know movie quotes. A girl could do worse than to spend some time with you." He sighs this time.
"I leave in a week on a two year mission. I am an Army ranger and my crew has this assignment. We will have limited contact with anyone back home. They say there is a chance we won't come back, but I trust Ranger and the guys with my life. I am here thinking about what I will leave behind." Wait a minute.
"You are an Army ranger and you have a guy named Ranger in your crew?" He smiles and nods.
"Yup. He is the best. We all are, but he is just that bit better, so he got the title. Let's get out of here and go for a walk, Rina." I got up and followed him outside and we walked to the boardwalk.
"So, now I am the shrew?" He held my hand.
"Not to me, you aren't. I know you don't know me, but take my advice. Do not marry that guy. If he is already a cheater, he will not change. And another thing, those dresses sound disgusting. I dare you to find a man that will not appreciate a simple dress on his bride. It should be the woman, not the dress that he waits for at the altar." Wow. Just wow.
We hold hands and talk about our childhoods. I learned that he has lived in Georgia, Massachusetts, Louisiana, Hawaii, and Florida and that he always wanted to be in the army. He learns that I wanted to fly when I was six so I jumped off the roof of our garage and broke my arm. I told him I loved Wonder Woman and I hated playing with dolls when I was little. I also told him that Point Pleasant is my favorite place to visit because it reminds me of summers with my grandparents.
He said he liked music, movies and xbox. I said I loved movies, shoes, music and good food. I leaned into him and he wrapped his jacket around me. He was a gentleman. I noticed that he kept me away from the curbs and that he almost shielded me with his body at times.
I liked him, even if I do not know his name. He is tall, about 6'2" and I love his eyes. They are so expressive, it is like I can tell what he is thinking. I feel safe with him. I even think Lula would approve of him. Mary Lou would be scandalized. I love her, but the Burg got her. She is almost as Stepford as the rest of them. She speaks pot roast language. My stomach lets out a loud roar and he howls laughing.
His POV
"Wow. I guess we should feed you before that thing attacks me." She shoves me. I like her. She is funny, smart and she has goals that do not include getting me naked. I am more than a handsome face.
We go to a diner to eat and she has pancakes and turkey sausage, while I have an egg white omelet with Spinach and cheese. I like how she almost attacks her food. She is not acting all dainty like girls do. That shit does not impress me. I watch her eat and she gives me attitude. She sneers at my food and calls me an amateur.
I smile at her and speak to her in a patronizing manner. "Listen, you are cute so I won't shoot you. Don't make fun of my food. I like different things and I had pancakes yesterday. Who knows when I will get to have an egg white omelet again, Rina? You are a heartless hussy and you are mean! I should quit you."
I finish eating while she processes my speech. Her expressions are adorable. She looks horrified, then offended, and then she cracks up and hits me again.
"And you are violent! That's it!" I stand up making scene. "We are through! Do not come begging me to take you back. I will not fall for the banana in the tailpipe again!" I pay the bill and leave a tip and walk out of the diner to wait for her.
She comes outside and glares at me and walks right by me. "You know it was funny, Rina. Those people gasped and everything. Come on!"
She protested a little, but I grabbed her hand and pulled her into a picture booth. We took pictures and made faces. In the last one, we just stared at each other. The sun was fully up in the sky when we made it to her hotel.
"It was great meeting you, Rina. Thank you for allowing me to have fun and to forget my problems." She smiles and she is deep in thought.
Steph POV
"I had a good time, too. Are you really leaving for two years?" He nods.
"And you would not have contact, so if you got married, you would not feel neglected if your wife moved away to finish her degree for two years?" He smiled.
"This works better if you get down on one knee, Rina." I snorted.
"I am just floating out the idea, Kio. It could work, though. How old are you?" He smiled and took my hand again.
"I am 25 and you are 21. My birthday was April first. Do not laugh at me." I giggled anyway.
"You do fit the requirements. I will give you the rest of the day to make up your mind. If you want, we can sign a pre-nup. Plus if you marry me, you get to kiss me." He snorted and pulled me close to his body.
"First of all, I could kiss you right now if I wanted to. Second of all, you have some nerve proposing to me without a ring and while you are still wearing someone else's ring. You harlot!" He turns away from me, and then turns back.
"Lastly, proposing marriage is my job. Have dinner with me tonight. I will meet you here at 1700." He saw my expression and laughed.
"That means 5pm, Rina." I smiled and nodded. He kissed my hand and I gave him back his jacket. I raced back to my room to plan what I was wearing and to take a shower. I was also going to take a nap because I am tired.
Wow. I liked him. He is so dreamy. He did not kiss me! Maybe I should hock this ugly but expensive ring. Yes! I am keeping it. He cheated after all. I set my alarm. I have a new errand to run before my dinner date. This was going to be good.
