Page 41 of A Storybook Wedding

“Uh-huh. I was very taken by the whole bread-baking thing.”

“That’s funny. I can’t picture that.”

“Well, maybe someday I’ll let you try my rosemary-garlic bread. It’s killer.” We pause, and I’m dumbfounded by how easy it is to talk to her. I wonder if she’s thinking the same thing.

“Okay,” she continues. “Where were we?”

“COVID quarantines.”

“Right. So yeah. They can’t see each other because of quarantine.”

“He wants to see her though.”

“Of course he does. She wants to see him too, but her family is overbearing and won’t allow someone who lives in Manhattan to come in their house.”

“Before too long, he gets really busy because of the book, so they lose touch.”

“Yes,” she agrees. “And then he gets all famous, so the girl assumes that he’ll never want to speak to her again. That ship has sailed, she decides.”

“But she’s wrong. He’s just so busy. And then, too much time passes, and he feels weird reaching back out to her.”

“But then she starts her master’s program.”

“Exactly.”

“And they can’t help but rekindle what they once had.”

“Not right away though,” I add. “Because that would get me in trouble.”

“Right. So no, not right away. The girl is surprised to see that he’s a professor at her school and even more surprised to see that he’s her professor for workshop.”

“Yes, yes. They haven’t seen each other in years, and it’s weird, them being in the same workshop.”

“It’s also like fate.”

“Ooh. I like that.”

“And fate again when they end up stuck in the hallway together at the infirmary,” CJ adds.

“Yup,” I agree.

There’s another break in the action. I can’t help but notice my pulse racing. It must be adrenaline. This is a lot to take in. Also, what if we get caught? I consider this. The thing is, it doesn’t feel like we could really get caught. It sounds like an extremely believable story. “So the girl pursues the guy, because she doesn’t know about the rules as they are clearly stated in the university’s personnel handbook—but since he knows, he decides to propose to her.”

“Why would he propose though? That seems extreme,” she says.

“Maybe he doesn’t want to risk losing her again.”

“Hm. That could be.”

“And he knows he’s not allowed to just date her.”

“And he doesn’t want to waste two more years waiting.”

“That’s right,” I say. “He loves this job, but he also loves this girl, so he wants to have his cake and eat it too, and this is the only way to do it.”

“Assuming his director approves.”

“Correct.”

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