Chapter 17
Lee pulled the Wagoneer into the driveway, placed it in park, and shut the engine off. He leaned against the window to use the light from the streetlamp and glanced at his watch. Ten till eleven. He couldn't believe how late it was. Lee rubbed his face with both hands, then glimpsed over at Amanda, then back to the boys. All three were peacefully sleeping as he smiled and thought to himself, I'm one lucky man. He quietly reached over and lightly shook Amanda's arm. "Honey, wake up. We're home."
Amanda slowly opened her eyes and squinted over towards Lee. She sat up in her seat and asked, "Are we home yet?"
"Yes, beautiful, we're home. How do you want to handle those two?" He motioned to the boys in the back seat.
Amanda twisted to face the back seat where her two sons were sound asleep. "Let's use some teamwork. I'll get Philip, and you get Jamie."
"Sounds like a plan." Lee and Amanda got out of the car and opened the back doors to get to the boys. They each gently woke both boys. They all began to exit the car and head for the house.
Before they could clear the car, the front door flew open, and Dotty came running out. "Oh, there you are. I was so worried about you all. You should've been home hours ago." Dotty marched over to Jamie to help him into the house.
"We're sorry, Mother. There was a big accident on the interstate, and we were stuck. There wasn't any way to get off or contact you."
"I'm just glad you got here in one piece. Let's get everyone inside." Dotty herded the sleepy boys into the house while Lee and Amanda grabbed the bags out of the Wagoneer.
As they set the bags by the door, they went into the family room to join Dotty and the boys. "Lee, let's just leave the bags there. We can get them later. You need to come in, sit down and relax for a while. That was a much longer drive than it should've been." Amanda walked to the sofa, pulling Lee by the hand to follow her. They sat down and let out a huge sigh.
"Man, am I glad to be home. I didn't think we'd ever get here. I'm just going to rest for a little before I head home."
Jamie perked up and pointed out, "Why would you go home? You can just stay here. There's no reason for you to drive to your apartment. Besides, you look exhausted."
Lee raised his hand to his mouth to try to hide his yawn. "I'll be alright. I just need a few minutes to relax."
"Sweetheart, Jamie's right. You do look very tired." Amanda raised her left hand and brushed the hair back off his forehead. "Are you sure you don't want to spend the night?"
"Oh my gosh! Amanda!" Dotty screamed as she quickly stood up and ran over to the sofa. "Young lady, let me see your hand this instant!" Amanda smiled at Lee, then held out her hand for her mother to see. Dotty gasped as she placed her hand over her mouth. Hardly able to control her joy, she struggled to get words to come out. "Amanda? Lee? Does this mean what I think it means?
Lee sarcastically answered, "Well, that depends. If you think it means Amanda has a new jeweler, then no. It does not mean what you think. However, if you think Amanda agreed to be my wife, then it is exactly what you think."
Dotty glared at Lee, then peered over at the boys with a questioning eyebrow. Both boys sported matching smiles on their faces and nodded their heads in acknowledgment. Dotty turned back to Amanda and gleefully cried out, "Oh, Amanda, I am so happy for you!" They hugged for the longest time. Dotty stepped back and turned to Lee to embrace him as well. "I can't wait to tell my club about this. We need to start planning." Amanda peeked over to the boys, who held this I told you so look on their faces, and back to Dotty as she continued to ramble. "We need to contact our church to see if we can have the ceremony there. We need to start calling caterers. We need—"
"Mother, please. We have time for all of that. I'm so glad that you are happy about the news, but we don't have to decide on everything tonight."
"You're right, dear. I'm sorry. I'm just so excited for you."
Lee yawned again. "I'm sorry to break up this happy moment, but I think I need to head home."
"I thought we decided you were going to stay the night. You can't drive home like this. You'll fall asleep before you get out of the neighborhood, sweetheart."
"Amanda, I have to go home. I don't have any clothes for work here."
Dotty sounded off before Amanda could. "Yes, you do, Lee. In fact, you have two suits here." Lee gaped at Dotty with wonder as his mouth dropped open. "You have the one from Thursday and the one from when you came over after work to look at the Paris pictures. I fixed the button for you on your pants, by the way. They're both hanging up in Amanda's closet as we speak. I just got them back from the cleaners today. You, my son, are going nowhere but up those stairs."
Lee sheepishly glanced at everyone and noticed the cheesy smiles plastered on their faces. "Alright, I know when I'm outnumbered. I can crash here on the couch."
"You will do no such thing, young man. You will sleep in Amanda's room. There is no way you will get a good night's sleep if you are not in a proper bed. Besides, you two will be married before long. No more arguing. All of you off to bed," Dotty lovingly admonished him.
The four of them silently stood and grabbed their bags by the stairs as they went up to get ready for bed. Amanda entered her bedroom to find Lee staring out the window. She crept up behind him and placed her hand on his shoulder. "What's wrong, sweetheart?"
"I don't know what's wrong. I mean, I already feel like I'm home when I'm here with you."
"But?"
"I don't know. I just feel like something's wrong. Like, I shouldn't be here until we're married." Lee waved his hands to motion around the entire bedroom as he spoke.
"Sweetheart, I know this feels off. I feel the same way. I still can't believe how Mother and the boys are reacting to you staying."
"You know I wouldn't be staying if they hadn't insisted, right? There is no way I would try to force this before everyone is ready."
"Yes, I know that. However, I can't say I'm upset that they want you here. I just don't sleep very well anymore unless I'm in your arms. Why don't you use the bathroom first? I can get everything ready out here. Then we can get some sleep."
Lee nodded, grabbed his things, and headed for the bathroom. Amanda turned down the bedding and went to her dresser to get a nightgown. Lee exited the bathroom a short time later in his blue pajama pants and no shirt. Amanda spun around when she heard him and had to catch her breath as she stared at his tan, muscular chest. He passed by her and announced, "It's all yours."
Amanda shook her head to bring herself out of her reverie and headed for the bathroom. "Thanks, I'll just be a minute."
A few minutes later, Amanda exited the bathroom to find Lee sitting on the edge of the bed with his elbows resting on his knees and his head resting in his hands. Amanda smiled and walked over to stand in front of Lee. "You okay?" she asked.
Lee sat up, wrapped his arms around her waist, pulled her close to him, and laid his head against her stomach. "Yeah, I'm okay. Just waiting for you."
Amanda placed her hands on his shoulders and started to knead his tired, stiff muscles. "Oh my gosh, your muscles are so tight. That drive must've taken more out of you than you let on."
"I'm just tired. I'll be okay as soon as I get some rest. Unfortunately, I'm so tired right now, I don't know if I can relax enough to sleep." Amanda continued to massage his shoulders as Lee relaxed into her. He fingered her nightgown as he thought back. "I like your nightgown."
Amanda softly laughed. "This old thing. Sorry, it's not very sexy."
"What are you talking about? It's very sexy. It's the same light blue one you were wearing the day we first met at the train station. I'd recognize it anywhere."
Amanda pushed him back a little. "How did you know that? I was wearing my trench coat that day."
"Amanda, I do get paid to notice things like that. Besides, there is no way I will ever forget the moment I saw you for the first time."
"That's so sweet-" Amanda was interrupted by a soft knock on the slightly opened door. "Come in." Dotty softly pushed the door further open to see Lee nuzzled into Amanda while she continued to massage his tired muscles. There was no attempt to separate or move.
"I'm sorry, dears. But I saw your door still open slightly. I hope I didn't disturb yo..." Dotty stopped mid-thought as it finally sunk in that they were trying to enjoy a private moment. "Oh, I'm sorry! I can come back later."
Lee never attempted to cover himself due to complete exhaustion. "Dotty, you're not disturbing anything. I hope my appearance doesn't bother you. I'm way too tired to try to cover myself right now."
"No, darling, you're fine. I've already seen you in much less."
Amanda cleared her throat as Lee smugly grinned into Amanda's abdomen. "Um, Mother, did you need something?"
Dotty slyly smiled with a slightly raised eyebrow and continued, "Yes, well, um, it's not that important, but I don't think I will be able to sleep if I don't ask. By chance, have the two of you thought about when you wanted to get married?"
Lee inhaled sharply as Amanda hit a sensitive spot on his shoulder. Amanda relaxed her grip a little and ran a hand softly through his hair. "Sorry, sweetheart." She focused her attention back on her mother. "Yes, Mother, we have set a date. We will be getting married on December 29th."
Dotty made a motion with her fingers, and she responded, "This December 29th? Wow, that's only four months away. That doesn't give us much time to pl….Wait a minute. There isn't another reason why you are getting married so soon, is there? Is there something you're not telling me I should know about?"
"Mother! No, there is no other reason. We just don't want to wait too long."
"Oh, well, that's good. Okay, we can talk tomorrow. Good night, darlings."
"Good night, Mother."
"Good night, Dotty," Lee mumbled back, his head still planted on Amanda's abdomen.
Amanda watched her mother as she leaned in and turned the lock on the door before pulling it shut. Amanda just shook her head in disbelief.