A/N: Thank you, Julie. I added a bit more but I think you will approve. :)
So sorry for the extremely long breaks between posting. I just get picky and then I get blocked and then I get busy. It sucks. I kind of wish I could just get it all written down in one night, but my brain doesn't work that way. :)
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A Change In Me
Chapter Twelve
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The next few weeks were a blur of activity. Between getting Sophia acquainted with her new family, spending as much time as possible with Dickie so that the time spent with Joe wouldn't continue to be a problem, getting ready for the holidays, and planning a wedding, I was exhausted.
And then Val went into labor while I was visiting her. Steve had to leave town on some emergency business trip, and I volunteered to stay with her for the two nights he would be gone. I left Sophia with Joe, putting him in charge of her schedule for the first time. I figured he could deal with making time for her and setting up babysitters to watch her when he was working. Also, I expected him to bring her to me for a change.
The first night, Val complained the entire time about her back hurting, but she refused to admit that she might be in labor. I secretly called Steve in the middle of the night. He was in California so I figured that the call wouldn't be quite so late for him. He told me that he would head home early just in case I was right.
I called into work the next day when Val continued to moan throughout breakfast. My mother would kill me if I just left her alone when I already knew without a doubt that she was in labor.
"Val," I said sweetly. "Honey, I think we should go ahead and go to the hospital."
"No. It's not time, Stephanie. And Steve won't be home until tomorrow morning."
"Well, he could catch an earlier flight if you would just call him and tell him to come. I'm sure he doesn't want to miss the birth of his first child."
She glared at me. "It's not time! And I would never let the father of my child miss the birth of his first child!" She gave me a small smirk and then bent over to rub her back.
"Fine. Be a vindictive bitch right now. Just think, you're putting bitch vibes into your daughter right before she's born. That means she will always be that way." I smiled at her and then sat in the comfy chair she usually hogged.
"You're an idiot."
"An idiot who has not only given birth before but is a … what was that? What do I do for a living?" I shoved my lips over and tilted my head. "Oh, that's right. I'm a nurse. Which means that I have actually studied these things." I smirked at her.
"You don't work in obstetrics!" She clutched the back of the couch. "Mom must have been drunk when she went into labor with you."
"So you admit you're in labor?"
"No. I …. Arrrrrrrrrrr …." She threw her drink at me and it missed by several feet, splashing on the wall. "Fine! Call Steve!"
"I already did. He'll be here by seven."
"Seven! It's only eleven! I can't keep her in me for another eight hours!"
I frowned at her. "Well, it's the best I could do. And if we went to the hospital, then they could tell you at least how far along you are." I got up and went to her. "I love you and everything, but I'm not checking your cervix."
We both shuddered at that.
"Besides, I have been timing your moans, hopefully not confusing them with your 'I'm pregnant and I'm big and I don't feel pretty' moans."
"I hate you."
"And if I'm correct, they are still a ways apart. I think you're good for a while, but let's not chance it. Besides, if you wait too long, you won't get an epidural."
"What?"
Finally! Why didn't I think of that earlier?
It only took five minutes to get her out of the house after that. I called Joe to tell him not to bring Sophia over for lunch.
"Hey, it's Steph. I'm on my way to the hospital so –"
"Hospital? Stephanie, what's going on? Are you okay? I can send a car as soon as I get off the phone. Are you in an ambulance? I'm on my way now." He put the phone against his shoulder, I think, since I could barely hear him say, "It's okay, princess. We need to go see Mommy. But everything is fine."
"Joe!" I yelled into my phone.
"I'm sorry. I will be there as soon as I can."
"Joe! Val's in labor. I'm fine." I looked over at Val to see if she caught what was happening. She rolled her eyes at me. "Don't bring Sophia. Your mom will have to keep her or you can call Grandma Mazur to see if –"
"NO!" Val interrupted. "Grandma is going to be with me! Mrs. Morelli will have to take her."
I sighed. "Fine," I said to her. Then back to Joe, "Your mom will have to take her tonight."
"Yeah sure. I'm sure it will be fine." He laughed quietly. "I .. uh … I thought something happened to you."
"Yeah, I caught that."
"I had a terrible night last night at work. I think I'm still jumpy."
"Are you okay? Were you in danger?"
"No …. Maybe. I don't know. But there were several … casualties." He moved away from the phone again. "Sophia, will you draw a picture for Auntie Val's baby?"
"Okay, Daddy!" Sophia answered excitedly.
"I'm so sorry, Joe."
"Thanks. It's still shocking sometimes to see the bodies. I have mixed feelings about getting used to it."
"Joe, you're a good person. I don't think you'll ever get used to it. At least not to the point where it won't bother you."
"I hope so."
"I know –"
"Holy fucking cow!" Val grabbed my phone from me and held it to her ear. "Hi, Joe. As much as I enjoy listening to this fascinating episode of Dawson's Creek, I need my sister to focus on driving so she can get me to the hospital since I am having a baby!" She hung up and handed me the phone.
"That was rude." I smiled. "But really impressive sarcasm, Val. I didn't know you had it in you." I looked at her with my mouth wide. "Oh no! Maybe the baby is what's making you so clever. Damn, she's going to drive you crazy. Bitchy and sarcastic! How are you going to handle that?"
"She will be sweet and kind and lovely and perfect! Stop putting those crazy thoughts into her mind. You know she can hear you!"
I could tell Val was close to tears at that point so I continued to drive in silence for a while. When she appeared to have calmed back down, she commanded I keep talking to distract her.
"Okay," I agreed happily, hoping to keep her calm. "So if Joe is Joey, who am I?"
"You're Joey."
"Um … then who is Joe?"
"Pacey."
"Pacey?"
"Well, yeah. He's the friend there could be more with, but we all know she's going to end up with Dawson. Dickie is Dawson."
I frowned at her. "What do you mean 'friend there could be more with'?"
"You're such a good person, Joe," she mimicked. "And Steve thinks Joe has feelings for you. Dickie even said he doesn't trust him with you."
"When did he say that?"
"Last week."
"Well, you just ruined your whole Dawson reference because Pacey and Dawson are best friends. And we know that's never going to happen with Joe and Dickie."
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Val gave birth at 7:20 to Angela Dawn D'Onofrio with a head full of dark hair and looking just like her father, who had made it just in time. I had stayed with Val, much to our mother's dismay. I think Val just wanted someone to keep her tough until Steve arrived. Mom was more of a worrier than me, and she was driving Val nuts with her predictions that Steve would miss out. So when he arrived, Val immediately asked Mom to leave and me to stay. I think if it weren't for the nurses quickly pushing her out the room, Mom would have caused a scene.
It was really emotional to watch Steve hold Angie for the first time. He looked so happy, and he kept kissing Val's forehead, thanking her for their daughter. It was nearly impossible not to think about how it would have been if Joe had been around for Sophia's birth. Would he have thanked me? Would he have looked at me with such tenderness and adoration? The Joe I knew now would do those things, and that made my heart flutter uncomfortably. Joe had turned into the most amazing man, but unfortunately, that was not the boy who had left me behind. And even though Joe confessed to having loved me then, I wondered how true it really was. I wasn't so sure if that boy would have been capable of supporting me emotionally and physically throughout the labor of our daughter. Never mind the shocking responsibilities of caring for a newborn baby. For as much as I appreciated how mature and caring Joe was as a father, he was still late to the game. A four year old that you only saw overnight maybe once a week was not even close to the same kind of commitment being a full time parent was from day one.
And then I felt guilty about that. I would never know for sure what Joe would have done, because I hadn't given him the opportunity. It was cheap consolation to think he needed his time in the Navy and on his own to turn into the man he was today. And even so, he would have probably done the right thing anyway. He would have just come home to us whenever he could. It made me feel sick to think how much I cost him. He never brought it up, and I felt both relieved and sad that he kept those thoughts to himself.
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OoOoO
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Joe offered to bring Sophia to the hospital the next day to meet her new cousin. I was working, but I wanted to be there when Sophia met Angie. I asked Anna if I could take my break early and meet up with them. Thankfully, she was my supervisor and very understanding. I quickly made my way down to Val's room. When I entered, I was surprised to see Val crying while Steve was holding the baby.
"Hey," I said softly with a couple taps on the door.
"Oh, Stephanie!" Val cried.
I immediately crossed to her and sat next to her on the bed. "What's going on? Is Angie okay?"
"She's perfect!"
I looked at Steve, who gave me a frustrated smile. "Okay. Val, honey, you need to calm down. Why are you so upset?"
"I don't want to leave!"
I stroked her hair and then looked back again at Steve. He stood up, placed the baby in the crib, and left. Okay?
"He's making us move to California," she blurted out through her sobs.
I turned back to her. "Why?"
"Some stupid internet company thing. He says that the new jobs are out there. That this is a chance in a lifetime. I thought he was there for his job. He went for an interview! He almost missed Angie being born for a stupid interview!"
I held her to me, trying to calm her down. I was having a hard time believing it. Val and I weren't the closest of sisters, but she was the only one I had. And I had hoped we would spend more time together now that we both had children. And I wanted to know my niece. I held my emotions back so that I could stay strong for her.
After a few minutes, she asked for me to get Angie. I cradled the baby to me, happy to hold her one more time, before handing her over to Val. Angie was a very quiet baby so far, and I was glad for it as she worked her own kind of magic over my upset sister. And just in time, because Sophia tiptoed into the room a few minutes later.
I lifted a brow at her. "Hey, bug. You trying to sneak in?"
She held a finger up to her mouth to tell me to be quiet. "Daddy says to be quiet," she whispered.
She continued to Pink Panther her way into the room, making both Val and me share an amused look. Once she made it over to the bed, she leaned up onto her toes and peered at the baby. Then she clasped both hands over her mouth and turned to me, her eyes lit up. She bounced up and down a few times and then slowly lowered her hands.
"Can I touch her, Auntie Val?" she whispered, so softly we both leaned towards her to hear her.
Val scooted over in the bed. "You don't have to whisper, Sophia. And come up here so you can hold her."
"Really?" she practically shrieked, causing Angie to fuss for a moment. "I'm sorry."
"It's okay, bug. No screaming, but you don't have to whisper." I walked over to help her onto the bed and then kissed her head. "Where's Daddy?"
"He's in the hall." She didn't even look at me. Her eyes were glued to the baby.
"Okay. Did he bring his camera?"
"Uh-huh."
I went out to the hall and spotted Joe standing at the nurses' station. He was in uniform and a very pretty nurse was flirting with him. I stood there for a moment and watched. He flashed her a grin and she flushed prettily. I wanted to rip her hair out.
I shouldn't feel that way. I had no claim on him, and most of the time, I was still pissed at him. It hadn't taken long to realize that I had very much been lying to him when I told him I forgave him. I still wasn't sure what to do about that.
And then I watched her take his number.
Suddenly, I was very upset. I knew he was dating Jessica, who may have been immune to serious head injuries, but had seemed – much to my misplaced annoyance – really sweet. And yet there he was picking up another woman. It made me think of how easily I had been the other woman, never knowing he had a girlfriend. I had believed in him so much, and I had hoped so much since he returned that he was the man I knew he could be. Even if he had not been the boy I had needed. Hadn't I just thought how amazing a man he was turning out to be? I felt like my mind - and my heart - was in a constant whirlwind when it came to Joe.
I turned back into Val's room and stood just inside the door, where no one could see me. I wiped at my eyes and then turned to go back and get Joe's camera. And ran straight into him.
He grabbed my shoulders to stop me from falling. My heart beat violently against my chest, and I knew it just wasn't from the surprise. Joe still affected me on a very deep, physical level. I didn't know if that would ever go away. But I did know it felt dangerous being so close to him.
"I got called in early, so I am leaving Sophia here with you until your mother gets here."
I frowned at him. "I'm working."
"Then Val can watch her." He studied my eyes, which I knew were probably red or at least glassy from my tears. "I called your mom, and she's on her way already. She will be here in just a few moments."
"Okay." I started to step away, but he held firmly to my shoulders.
"You've been crying. Are you okay?"
"Yeah. I'm fine," I answered. "Val just told me she is moving to California. It's just … a lot."
He pulled me to him and gave me a tender hug. This was the closest we had been since the night at the Tasty Pastry. A part of me wanted to melt into his arms, but I wasn't that girl anymore. I knew better than to fall for him this time. I shrugged free from his embrace.
"Thanks, Joe," I said to soften my actions. He looked at me with confusion, and maybe a flicker of hurt. "I appreciate … " I gestured between us. "The hug, but I don't think that it's a good idea."
His eyes immediately hardened. "It was a hug."
"Well, Dickie wouldn't like it. And Jessica may not either."
He crossed his arms. "Dickie." He breathed out heavily through his nose.
"And Jessica," I said again, wanting to test him after the display I had seen in the hall.
"Jessica is very understanding. She wouldn't be so insecure."
I smiled at him, thinking how Jessica would be very insecure if she knew who he really was. I wondered if I should tell her. It wasn't my place. She would probably not believe me, and taking a number wasn't exactly cheating. Just the intent. Ugh. Why did he have to be this way?
I looked back into the room and saw Sophia holding Angie, with Val's help of course. I definitely wanted a picture.
"You have the camera?" He was frowning at me. I could tell he wanted to finish our conversation, but I was not going to let that happen. "I can't believe I forgot mine this morning."
"No. I asked your mom to bring yours. I … I need to go. Tell Sophia goodbye for me."
"You can come in and tell her, Joe."
"I already kissed her goodbye before she came in. It's fine. I need to go."
But he didn't leave. He stood there, staring at me. I allowed myself to look into his eyes and really see him. I hadn't done it too many times since his return. It always felt too risky. I could see that he was upset. He looked at me longingly, and I thought about what he had said on Halloween. And the longer he stared, the more I wanted to run.
"Stephanie," he breathed so softly. "Are you happy?"
I took a quick breath. That was not what I had expected him to say. I wrapped my arms around myself, an act of protection – from what I wasn't sure. "Yeah. I'm happy." I almost asked if he was, but I just didn't want to continue this conversation.
"That's good." And he left.
I noticed he didn't even glance at the nurse as he passed by. She practically had flung herself across the station once she saw him heading her way, but he walked briskly right by her. I felt a small sense of satisfaction that I had no right feeling, so I told myself it was because I wanted him to be a better man for Sophia. Everything was for Sophia. It had to be.
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OoOoO
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Much to my mother's disappointment, Dickie insisted that Sophia and I accompany him to his family's Thanksgiving in Lake Mohawk. It was a small town in Sussex County that had grown since the sixties from wealthy vacationers into mostly wealthy commuters. Dickie's mother had worked as a book editor for a small publisher in New York. I wasn't sure exactly what she did these days. Dickie's father was an orthodontist and had a practice in Hopatcong, where Dickie and his sister grew up. I was pretty sure his sister still lived there. I had known Dickie was used to a slightly higher standard of living than I was, but I was still surprised that his parents could afford to relocate to Lake Mohawk. Once we arrived at their home, which was beautiful, I noticed that it was one of the smaller homes at the lake.
"Mommy, can you see the water?"
"Yes, I can. Isn't it pretty?"
"When it's nicer out, Sophia, we can come back and go out on the lake. Wouldn't that be fun?" Dickie asked her as he lifted her out of her seat, placing her on the ground.
"But it's pretty out now. Can we go on a boat today?"
"It's too cold, bug."
"Please, DD," she begged.
"I'm afraid today will be just about eating lots and lots of turkey," he replied as he scooped her up and tickled her. "Are you a turkey?"
"No-o-o-o," she giggled. "Wait. Yes. Gobble-gobble-gobble." She flapped her arms like a chicken, and we both laughed at her.
"Come on, turkeys," I teased. "I think we need to get inside."
I grabbed the pie Mom had handed me before we left. It was her award-winning derby pie. She had pulled me into the kitchen early this morning and made me stir something and then later had me place the pie in the oven. That way I could say I made it, she had whispered with a wink as she handed it to me in an actual pie carrier. I didn't even know they made things to carry pies. I still wasn't sure if I was willing to say I had made the pie. What if they wanted the recipe?
We walked up the drive along several other nice cars, Dickie still holding Sophia. When we made it up to the large front door, Dickie looked at me and gave me a reassuring smile.
"Steph, we are not as close of a family as you are with yours."
I knew he was telling me the truth. He rarely talked with his parents. His relationship with his father was strained – from what I wasn't completely sure. I think it had something to do with a stock that Dickie wasn't included on.
He gave me a reassuring smile. "There's nothing to worry about. They just want me to settle down and be happy. They won't care beyond that."
I frowned. "Yeah, remember that in an hour."
He chuckled. "Sophia, you want to ring the bell."
"Uh-huh."
He leaned over so she could reach it. We waited for a moment, and I could hear some talking from the other side of the door.
"Dickie!" a tall woman with light brown hair said cheerily. It made me feel a little less nervous. "Oh, you must be Sophia. I have two girls about your age that are so excited to meet you. And hello, Stephanie, I'm Claire-Claire, Dickie's sister."
Sophia had brightened up at the mention of other little girls. I had not told her much, just in case the Dickie's nieces wouldn't be very friendly. Based on their mother, I had a feeling Sophia would have some fun this afternoon.
"Hi, Claire." I didn't think I could say Claire-Claire with a straight face. "It's nice to meet you."
"Well, are you going to invite them in or what?" a tall man with blond hair barked from behind Claire.
She gave an exasperated look and then opened the door. "Please, do come in."
Once we entered the foyer, Dickie immediately started helping Sophia out of her coat. I was still holding the pie, and not sure what to do with it.
"Is that a pie?" blond man asked.
"Yes, it's derby." I smiled broadly, already looking forward to it.
He gave me a disinterested hmphh and walked back down the hall, away from us.
"That's Sterling. He's my husband. Ignore him. He hates that Mom lets the girls watch the parade on the big screen."
Once was made our way to the back of the house, I noticed that there was a cook in the kitchen, complete with uniform. Dickie smiled at her but led me straight to his mother.
"Mom, this is Stephanie Plum and her daughter Sophia." He put Sophia down in front of him and pulled me to his side. "Girls, this is my mother, Judith."
"It's a pleasure to meet you," she said automatically. I realized immediately how much warmth my mother had when she wanted to, and how much this woman did not really care about meeting me or my daughter.
"Thank you for inviting us to your home. It's really beautiful." I stroked Sophia's curls. "And Sophie just loves the lake."
She gave Sophia a small smile, slightly more genuine than the one she had given me. "You are joining our family, Stephanie. You are always welcome to celebrate the holidays with us."
"Thank you." I gave a small shrug with a big grin. I had no idea what to say to her.
"Where's Dad?" Dickie asked. I could see that he was aware of how uncomfortable I was. He glanced over at me and squeezed my hand.
"He is watching the game, I think. They are in his office."
"Of course. I'm just going to introduce them."
She sipped her cocktail. "Yes." And then she brushed past us. "Gianna, please don't forget to add garlic to the potatoes. I just love that."
"Yes, Mrs. Orr. I already took care of it."
Judith turned back. "She's an early Christmas gift from your father." And then she left the room.
I felt my eyes go wide, and I tried to not look at Gianna. "Um … did you always have a cook?"
Dickie laughed. "Hardly. She's just here for the day. My mother actually does know her way around the kitchen. She just rarely makes more than a one-dish meal. Nothing like your mom." He pulled me along, taking Sophia's hand in his other. "Let's go meet my dad. And then … I think there are some little girls that need to meet."
"Yay!" Sophia bounced between us as we walked down a hall towards the back of the house, the sound of a football game growing louder as we approached.
After an awkward few minutes of waiting for a commercial, Dickie's father gave us his attention. Sterling barely acknowledged us. I guess we had already met. Dickie's dad had the same coloring as Dickie and was still in pretty good shape. His skin was tanned and had to have been from a tanning bed considering it was late November – and it had that lovely burnt look to it.
"You must be Stephanie," he said jovially. "And this is the beautiful Sophia!" He crouched down in front of Sophie and smiled. "I have two little granddaughters around here somewhere that are so excited to meet you."
"I know," she answered with a little hop. "Their mommy told me I could play with them."
"Well, aren't you cute?" He patted her head and stood up. "Dickie."
"Dad."
I glanced between them, surprised in the quick change in his father.
"Stephanie, you can imagine our surprise when our son calls us to tell us he is bringing his fiancée home for Thanksgiving when we didn't even know he was dating someone."
"Yeah, I'm sure that was a surprise," I replied hesitantly. I hadn't been too anxious to meet Dickie's family, always worried about the whole teen mom part of my life. Dickie also had seemed so disconnected from them that I never gave it much thought. So I never worried about them until we were engaged.
"Well, welcome to the family. You can call me Bing. Would you like a drink?" He gestured to the fully stocked liquor cabinet.
"Um… no, thanks."
"Your name is Bing?" Sophia asked with a little giggle.
He laughed. "No, sweetheart. My name is Jerry. But my friends started calling me Bing a long time ago."
"I like it!" she squealed.
He chuckled. "Sterling, take Sophia upstairs to the girls."
Sterling practically glared at us as he walked past. If he weren't family, I probably would have refused to let him take Sophia. But he did smile at her and begin telling her about his daughters as they left the room, so I relaxed a little.
"Stephanie, I want you to know that Judith and I think that you are probably a good thing for our son."
Dickie groaned and then plopped down on the nearest chair.
Bing shook his head. "And even though most parents would be concerned about their son marrying into a ready-made family, we think that fatherhood will suit Dickie. Mature him, if you will."
I blinked a few times, unsure of what to say to that. 'Thanks' seemed wrong.
Dickie saved me by pulling me onto his lap. "Ignore him." He kissed me on the forehead. "Dad, please save the lectures for another time. We are here to enjoy the holiday."
Bing crossed back over to his chair and sighed. "I'm just letting her know that we are happy to have her in the family."
I stayed focused on Dickie. I didn't believe for one second that Judith was happy about me at all. And as for Bing, I felt he just wanted to piss off his son.
"The game is back on," Dickie pointed out and then pulled me closer to him, shifting me so I could watch too.
And so the day continued with equally awkward conversations throughout dinner. The derby pie was a hit – with the girls. Everyone else ate the pumpkin pie that Gianna had made. But I didn't care because I planned on taking the rest of that pie home with me!
The only truly happy part of the day for me was that Dickie's nieces were very friendly with Sophia, even though they were eight and six. The three girls played well together, and Claire played nice with me. But I could tell by the end of the evening that Claire believed she was above me. Maybe it was because she was ten years older than me.
Maybe it was because Judith had somehow booked our wedding at the historical Lake Mohawk Country Club. As I sat dumbly, no idea what to say, Judith informed me that it was going to be a Christmas present, but she wanted to prevent me needlessly booking a space in Trenton. All I could think was that my mother was going to be ironing into the new millennium when she found out I wouldn't be having a church wedding.
.
Once we were headed back home, I couldn't keep my curiosity at bay any longer. With Sophia passed out in the back seat, I knew we could talk freely.
"What exactly happened between you and your dad?"
He snorted. "He cut me out of a major deal that earned him all that money he likes to pretend he inherited."
"Why would he do that?"
He looked at me briefly before turning back to the road. "Well … it was not completely legal. He said I chose the law when I decided to become a lawyer."
"You mean like fraud?"
"Insider trading. With a friend of his from college."
"Oh. Would you really have wanted to do that?"
"At the time … yes. It was a lot of money, Stephanie. And he clearly got by with it."
"So that's how they can afford the lake? I wondered."
"Yes, that is exactly how they can afford it. And they can't stand it that they don't really belong there. I wouldn't be surprised if Mom poisoned someone so we could have our wedding there. They do anything and everything in their power to fit in. Like hiring a cook for Thanksgiving." He shook his head. "My parents have always tried to keep up with the Jones's, but since the money, they have only gotten worse."
I nodded. "Yeah, about that country club. Do you really think that's a good idea?"
"Well, I know it wasn't what you were thinking, but it is truly beautiful. I will bring you back at Christmas so you can see it all lit up. I think it will be worth any crap your parents will give you."
"Okay. So … are you still going to take the classes?" My mother had immediately signed Dickie up for RCIA classes at church as soon as we were engaged. He had gone a few times, but his job often kept him away.
"I wouldn't need to, would I? And you and I both know that I don't actually need to join the church to marry you." He chuckled. "You're Catholic enough for both of us."
"Very funny." I rolled my eyes and decided to return the conversation to his parents. "Do your parents have a problem with me being a simple girl from the Burg? You were supposed to marry up, right?"
He took my hand and kissed it before laying it on his lap. "I think I am marrying up. And they have problems with everyone. If they really wanted me to join them in their little fantasy world, they wouldn't have excluded me from getting rich."
My happy smile quickly turned to a frown. "But you could have gone to prison. Maybe it wouldn't have worked for you."
"I know. And that's what Dad says too. But it didn't stop him from including Sterling."
"Oh." I sat there for a moment, digesting this information. "I'm glad you didn't cheat. You have earned everything you have the right way. You should feel really proud of that, Dickie."
He smiled at me. "I am. And I'm really proud that you are part of that. Thanks, Steph."
"Anytime. I am here to help you mature after all," I teased.
"No, Sophia is supposed to make me mature. I think you're just supposed to make me happy."
"Awe."
"You do, Stephanie." He gave me a serious look. "You do make me happy. You're exactly what I never knew I needed. Both of you."
"I think I could say the same thing to you." I leaned across the seats and kissed his cheek. "Love you."
"Love you, too."
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Thank you! Please review! Please!
RCIA = Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults / These classes can take up to years to complete, but in some parishes - and with an eager student - they can be completed in months. The process usually culminates with a ceremony and communion, etc. around Easter. This would fall before the wedding in my fic. I will leave you to speculate whether Dickie would have ever actually completed them before the wedding. Also, a sacremental marriage does not have to be between two Catholics, as long as both are free to marry and in good standing (no divorces, attend church, etc.)
Lake Mohawk seems like an idyllic place in the pics I have seen. I'm sure not all the residents are rich or snobby. But for the story, the Orrs are only associating with that part of society. Also, the country club is a real place. It is absolutely beautiful and ranked as one of the top wedding locations in the country. I didn't even know that until I had already written Lake Mohawk into the story!
If you're still reading and can tell me (in a review of course) why Val's theory about Dawson and Pacey is funny, I will give you a little peak at what's coming! And trust me, I checked the timeline against the seasons. Her point is completey spot on for that time.
