Chaste (McCullough Mountain) (34 page)

“I
know better than to gamble with a scoundrel.”

“You
wound me with your sharp tongue, lass.”

“You
have an obsession with my tongue.”

He
growled. “You have no idea.”

* * * *

When
Kelly left the market, he drove to Colin’s. Sammy opened the door, her belly
sticking over the threshold, and Tallulah hanging from her side. She was gonna
have this kid any day.

“Kelly,
I wasn’t expecting anyone.”

“Sorry
to just barge in. Is Colin around?”

“He’s
in his office. You can head back.”

Kelly
kissed his niece and went to find his oldest brother. He knocked on the door
that led to Colin’s office and stepped inside.

Colin
grinned. “Kelly, what are you doing here?”

Kelly
settled into the chair across from his brother’s desk. “I have some news.”
Colin’s brow lifted inquisitively. “I’m getting married.”

His
brother stilled, then his face split with a wide smile. “That’s wonderful. Is
it the woman you told me about?”

“The
one and only.” While he’d confessed his feelings to Colin, he’d never said who
she was. He was still busy protecting Ashlynn at that time and made sure to not
let her name slip.

“Are
you going to finally tell me who she is?”

“You
know her.
 
Pretty well, I think.”

“Who?”

“Ashlynn
Fisher.”

Colin’s
smile slipped. “Kelly…”

He
held up his palms. “I know. I know all about her and how she’s nothing like the
woman everyone imagined me settling down with. But I love her, Colin.”

“I
don’t think you’d marry someone you didn’t love. But when you said you were in
love…I just never suspected Ashlynn Fisher to be the girl. Then you said she
was a virgin and I sort of assumed—being she’s slightly known for her
chastity—but my mind rejected that idea. I’ve never known you to say more than
a few words to her.”

Kelly
shifted. “I told you we had a thing this past spring, but Ashlynn… she takes
the church very seriously. And I’m, well, you know…me. It wasn’t working out so
we ended it. Then there was that night with the cops.”

“That’s
why you got in the fight. That man did something to her?”

Kelly’s
expression grew serious. “I stopped him.”

“I’m
glad. I know the rumors. A girl like Ashlynn Fisher might not have been able to
recover from something like that.”

“I
know. I don’t think I would’ve recovered either. But I stopped him and she’s
okay. That’s what matters.”

Colin
nodded. “That and the fact that your fear for her safety showed you something
about yourself.”

That
night showed him a lot. It was one thing to like a girl. It was totally
different to be willing to kill for her. “We were miserable apart.”

“This
is a big commitment.”

“I’ve
tried hooking up with other girls, but I always pull back before it goes too
far. I’ve been celibate since May.”

Colin’s
eyes widened. “Okay.” Knowing Kelly, Colin understood what that meant. Colin
had spent a great part of his life celibate, but Kelly was
not
the kind
of man his brother was. “So what do you need from me?”

“Not
to sound like a dick, but I wanna get married fast. She wants a wedding at the
house, but a ceremony at the church. I know we have to take those classes, but
I wanted to see how long that took. I figured you’d know.”

“First
of all, the classes are called Pre-Cana and I believe you can take them online
now, in the privacy of your home.”

“Excellent
news.”

“But
the course is intended to help you better know your spouse. It shouldn’t be
rushed into.”

“I
understand. I’m not rushing. All this is important to Ashlynn. I just want to
know what I’m looking at so I know how big of an icepack to get. My boys are
hurtin’.”

Colin
rolled his eyes. “I suggest you talk to Father Mark. He can give you the
website and get you started. In the end he’ll likely want to meet with the two
of you to go over some things.”

“Thanks,
Colin. I knew you’d know more about this stuff.”

“Uh,
Kelly, this stuff is a sacrament. I hope you’re serious.”

He
nodded. “I’m serious.”

“Good.
I look forward to seeing you make the commitment. It’ll be good for you.”

He
smiled. “She’s good for me.”

“She’s
a nice girl, Kelly. You chose well.”

* * * *

Later
that week he met Ashlynn at her house. They had a meeting with Father Mark at
seven. He was a little nervous about facing the priest and feared he might have
to be baptized again to repent for all his sins, but Father Mark was a pretty
cool guy.

“The
Pre-Cana classes typically take between two and six weeks. Here’s the website
where you can pay for the course and print out your worksheets. Once you’ve
addressed everything and feel comfortable with your decision, contact me and
we’ll get together again to go over what you learned.”

“Thank
you, Father,” his good little fiancée said.

“You’re
welcome, Ashlynn. Congratulations to the two of you and God bless. And, Kelly?”

Pausing,
from easing out of his chair, he hesitated. “Yes, Father?”

“Confession
is Saturday morning at ten. I’ll be expecting you.”

“Yes,
Father.”

As
they walked out to his truck Ashlynn looked completely content. He opened her
door and asked, “So how do you think that went?”

“Fine.”

She
was so calm about everything. “Are you nervous?” he asked and she frowned.

“Why
would I be nervous?”

He
shrugged. “These classes are supposed to tell all.”

She
laughed. “Kelly, you know my ‘all’.”

“Right.”
He shut her door and rounded the truck.

He
was quiet on the drive home. He knew her ‘all’, but she might go running for
the hills when she discovered his.

“Did
you want to print out the worksheets tonight? That way we could work on them
and go over the first ones tomorrow.”

His
stomach tightened. “Sure.”

He
shut off the truck when they returned to her house and followed her inside. “My
printer’s in my room. Come on up.”

He
took the steps slowly, very aware that he was probably the first man not
related to Ashlynn to see her bedroom. It was nothing like he’d expected. The
walls were pale yellow and her bed was covered in an old—what looked handmade—quilt.
He stood at the threshold.

She
turned and laughed. “What are you doing? You can come in.”

“Do
you think that’s a good idea?”

“You’ll
behave.”

He
stepped over the threshold and slowly took in the space. It was simple and
organized. Ashlynn wasn’t a girl who surrounded herself with clutter. He’d have
to tidy up his act once they lived together.

Suddenly
an odd thought struck him. “Will this be our room?”

She
stilled. “Yeah, I suppose it will be. Do you like it?”

“It’s
nice.”

She
kicked off her shoes and slid onto the bed with her laptop.

Danger!
Alert! Mayday! Warning!

“Are
you gonna just stand there?

He
hesitated. “I don’t think you want me on that bed with you.”

She
frowned then understanding dawned. In that throaty voice of hers, she leaned
back and said, “Oh, I think I do.”

“Ashlynn.”

Her
laughter tickled his insides. “Kelly, I think we can control ourselves. We’ll
be looking at a church website. Stop being silly and get over here.”

He
slowly approached the bed and sat on the opposite end, keeping his feet on the
floor. Ashlynn lay on her belly, laptop open at the foot of the bed. Her
fingers rapidly punched in the web address. “Here it is.”

He
glanced over her shoulder and saw a simple survey. “Is that it?”

“This
is the first inventory. There are a few. I’ll print them out.”

She
hit a button and the printer on her desk made a chugging sound as papers rolled
from the tray.

“Here.
This is your copy. Do you want a pen?”

“You
want to do it now?”

She
shrugged. “Why not? Sue’s covering the bar. Might as well make use of our
time.”

“Should
we go into separate rooms or something?”

Her
throaty laugh made him harden. God, this room was small. “Do you really feel
the need for an isolation booth? I think I can trust you not to copy my
answers. You sit there and I’ll sit over here.”

He
took the pen and book she offered so he had something to lean on. The first
section was simple.

Does
your partner compliment you?

Does
your future spouse’s voice irritate you?

Does
your partner discuss outside interests with you?

The
only question he had a negative answer for was the one about his future in-laws
making him uncomfortable, but he bet she had the same issue with that question.

He
glanced in her direction and saw her scribbling away.
What is she writing?

He
turned the page.

What
worries you most about marriage?________________________

That
was an awfully small space. He considered the right answer and then he thought
about his actual worries.
Not enough intimacy. Letting down my wife. Not
being able to support a family. Coming up short. Working too many odd hours.
Jealousy. Not being the man she deserves.

It
was getting warm in the room. “Is the air on?”

Ashlynn
looked up from her paper. “It’s cool in here.”

Kelly
nodded and skipped that question.

The
quality I admire most about my partner is___________________.

That
was easy. He wrote the word ‘honesty’. That one was a freebee. The rest were
trap questions. Why should he answer what he thought Ashlynn’s most annoying
quality was? She didn’t really have any. Her virginity was a bit of a wrench in
the mix, but he respected her choice. It didn’t make
her
annoying.

He
filled out the sheet as best he could, trying to avoid all offensive answers.
Then he hit the big one.

Why
do you want to marry your partner?

Fuck.
He pushed the paper away. “Let’s talk for a bit.”

“Are
you finished?”

“No.”

“I’m
almost done. Let me get this thought out.” Her pen scraped over the paper. What
was she writing,
a book
? How much could she possibly have to say about
him? She was probably going on about his annoying habits.

“Do
you want something to drink?”

She
shot him a warning glance that told him to stop interrupting. Maybe that was
her annoying quality. Not really though.

Kelly
went to the kitchen and poured two glasses of ice tea from the pitcher. Her
cabinets were simple pine with ordinary glass, nothing fancy. He liked that
because it was Ashlynn. When he returned to the bedroom she was waiting for
him. He handed her the beverage.

“Thank
you. What part did you get to?”

“I
stopped at section three.”

“Do
you want to go over our answers for the first two parts?”

Not
really.
“Sure.”

She
frowned. “Are you all right?”

“I
don’t see the point to all of this. It’s like a test. What if I fail? Does that
mean the weddings off?”

“Kelly,
there’s no failing. It’s just meant to stimulate discussion so that we get to
know each other better.”

He
sat back on the bed. “You go first.”

“Fine.”
She shifted and sat cross-legged. Her feet were pretty. Little delicate girl
bones formed her toes and she wore no polish. “Does your partner compliment
you? Yes.”

“I
put yes too.”

“Good.
Does your partner irritate you? No.”

“I
put no too.”

“See?
We’re doing great.” She ran through the next few questions and all their
answers matched. “Do your future in-laws make you feel uncomfortable?” She
smiled nervously at him. “Sometimes.”

He
laughed. “I put the same.”

“You
did? Roy’s harmless.”

“Ashlynn,
he cocked a gun at me.”