The Moment of Truth

“What do you think?”

This was better than any movie. Somehow while she hadn’t been paying attention her life had gone from a disaster to amazing.

“You don’t like it. Well, that’s fine. We can—”

“No, Josh. I love it.”

She wasn’t going to ask questions, although they were practically burning her tongue. She wasn’t going to spoil the moment.

“Good,” he said. “The rest of it doesn’t matter as much. There’s a fireplace in the living room, can be wood burning or gas, but I’m told that there are often bans on wood burning fireplaces in the city to try and keep the air fresh and clean as much as possible, being this close to California.”

Was Josh babbling?

She watched him as he moved quickly through the rest of the rooms, pointing out three full bathrooms and four bedrooms. He gave room dimensions, talked about wallboard thickness, insulation and flooring.

“It has both an evaporative cooler and central air,” he was saying when he turned to face her.

He was nervous. Which made her all the more willing to be patient. It made her smile, too.

“You’re smiling. Does that mean you like it?”

Like it? She loved him. So it had only been a little more than two weeks since she’d met him. She’d waited a long time for him to walk into her life. And just as she’d always imagined, her heart had recognized him immediately.

“Dana? Do you like the house?”

The house. Not the man. She was getting ahead of herself.

“Yes, it’s a beautiful house, Josh.”

When was he going to tell her it was all hers if she’d marry him?

“Good,” he said. “Let’s lock up, then, and get back to the office.”

She’d kind of been expecting to see a tray with a bottle of wine and a ring in the master bedroom. Or a table set up on the patio with lunch waiting—and the ring.

Was he going to propose in his office?

It wasn’t what she would’ve imagined, but she didn’t think she’d be disappointed. And maybe now she’d hear what had happened in his past, what issues he’d had to overcome. Or how she could help him overcome them. People didn’t usually just solve their problems overnight. More like over a lifetime.

Whichever way this went, she was going to be the happiest girl on earth as soon as Josh got over his jitters and asked the darn question.

He parked closer to the school cafeteria than he did to his office building. And told her to pick out a sandwich and a drink and paid for both of them.

Fine. He’d bought a house this morning. He couldn’t have been expected to do lunch, too. It wasn’t as if he had an entire movie crew at his disposal making sure everything was perfect.

Josh continued to talk about the house as they made their way through the throng of students to his office. She saw at least five people she knew, all of whom said hello to her, and took note of Josh by her side.

She’d hear about him later, she guessed. And imagined how it would feel to show them her ring.

They’d reached his building, and then his floor. Dana looked around for Ian, wanting him to see her there with Josh so he could tell Amy, but there was no sign of him.

Josh made a beeline for the chair behind his desk. Dana sank back into the seat she’d left, feeling an entirely different type of nervousness. Josh hadn’t summoned her to blow her off, to let her down gently, as she’d half feared when she’d read his note.

And he only had so much time on his lunch hour. He’d done the important thing, the practical thing, in taking her to see the house that they would live in after they were married.

Unwrapping his sandwich, he bit off a corner of it. Too excited to eat, she held on to hers.

“Aren’t you hungry?” he asked.

“Not really.”

“Morning sickness, which doesn’t always come in the morning in case you didn’t know, doesn’t usually start until the sixth week.”

“I know. Remember, I told you it was too early.”

He nodded. He was so attentive, and damned cute, but would he hurry up and pop the question already?

She wanted to talk about the house. Which room would be the nursery. They had to think about furniture and painting before she was too far along.

And she wanted to talk about the wedding. They would have to set a date.

Would there be anyone from back home he’d want to invite? Any family?

Dana’s thoughts skidded to an abrupt halt. She knew next to nothing about Josh’s family. She knew he was close to his mom, but had no idea what she or his dad did for a living. Josh had told her he was an only child.

Josh finished his sandwich and said, “You’ll need to keep a stash of crackers or dry cereal by your bed, and to set your alarm for an hour earlier than you normally get up. Eat smaller meals throughout the day, and try to drink a glass of water half an hour before every meal. You might have to avoid cooking during the first trimester and it’s good to avoid spicy foods at dinnertime. Bland foods are best....”