Page 78 of Falling Again
“Was that last round extra amazing, or is it just me?” Natalie asked.
Anthony lifted an arm and patted Natalie’s leg, which was currently draped over his torso. “I think what we did may be illegal in Buckeye Falls. I’ll have to check the town charter and get back to you.”
“You’d probably need Trudy to find it for you, and then we’d all die of embarrassment.” The thought of Anthony asking Trudy about sexual deviancy related to his marriage was too much, and she burst out laughing. Anthony’s reply to her comment was laughter that shook the bed. She loved Anthony’s laugh, and she vowed to hear it every day from now on. Life could be hard, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t share a laugh along the way.
A low grumble emanated from Anthony’s stomach, and he sighed. “I hate to say it, but I think I’m hungry. Apparently I can’t survive on wedding cake and wine alone.”
“Don’t let CeCe hear you say that,” Natalie teased as she pulled herself from the bed. Throwing on Anthony’s forgotten dress shirt, she walked to the bathroom. “I know it’s technically our wedding night, but is frozen pizza okay?”
“That sounds perfect.”
They went downstairs and made a quick dinner of pizza and a salad, working together and only taking a dozen kissing breaks. Natalie felt as light as she did when they were first married, and she couldn’t wipe the grin from her face.
When they finished polishing off the pizza, Anthony wiped his hands and sighed. “Not to bring the mood down with talk of real life, but I wanted to ask you something.”
“What is it?”
Anthony went right to the point. “I want to talk to Dad tomorrow about the lake house. He seemed keen to sell to us on the phone, but now that we’re back home I wanted to make it official.” Taking a moment to meet her gaze, he continued. “That is, if you’re still on board.”
Natalie nodded, knowing it was a good investment for their family. The lake house would offer their children the same fond memories Anthony and Alice shared, not to mention a place for her and Anthony to get away. The house seemed too important to both their histories to see it sold.
“I’m very much on board.” Natalie nodded firmly. “And since we’re on the topic of serious stuff, I want to run something past you.”
“Anything,” Anthony said, clearly pleased to have won the lake house issue.
Natalie had been thinking about N&G a lot while they were away. When she wasn’t thinking about the kids, it had been hovering in the back of her mind. “Here’s the thing,” she started, toying with a forgotten crust of pizza. As she tore the dough into pieces, she committed to her plan. “I’m struggling at work. Nothing major, but we’re growing faster than Ginny and I anticipated.”
“I knew you would. You two are unstoppable together.” Anthony’s eyes shone with pride Natalie hadn’t seen before—or allowed herself to see. He’d always supported her decision, but Natalie didn’t see beyond his initial approval. There was no faking that look on his face, and she bolstered herself to continue.
“It’s time to hire someone, just part time. Bringing in Evan on the web design has been a lifesaver, but we need someone to help with more day-to-day things.”
Anthony tilted his head in question. “I have a feeling you have someone in mind for the job already.”
“I do: Alice.” There was a moment of silence while Anthony let the news sink in. He didn’t frown or grimace, so Natalie pushed ahead. “I know she’s way overqualified, but since she might be staying in town for a while, I thought it would help. Selfishly it would help me too, but she needs to find something to do.”
“Go for it. In fact, let’s get her over here tomorrow with my parents for family dinner. We’ll ask everyone about everything.”
Natalie dropped her mangled pizza crust and beamed. “You’re right. Strike while the iron is hot.”
*
The next day everyonein Buckeye Falls with the last name Snyder invaded their home. Madeline and Otis were still hyper after a night with the grandparents and the opportunity to eat cake for dinner. It took five solid minutes of begging, but Madeline had finally changed out of her flower girl dress and into normal clothes. Otis—not having the same concern with fashion—opted to take off all his clothes as soon as he arrived at his grandparent’s house. Donna said she was lucky to get him in pajamas for bedtime. Apparently they had a future nudist on their hands.
“This is new,” Natalie mused from her perch on the sofa.
Alice shrugged. “He started that when you were on South Bass Island. He didn’t pee everywhere, so I let it go.”
Natalie raised an eyebrow but didn’t go any further. “So now that we’re all here, there’s a few things we wanted to talk about.”
Anthony’s parents shifted in their seats, clearly nervous after two days of spontaneous family time. “Wait a minute,” Alice said, her finger pointing at Natalie. “I thought this was just dinner and dropping off the kids.”
Natalie shrugged. “It is, but we wanted to talk about a few things.”
“So you Natalied,” Alice said, seeming pleased with her new word.
Anthony stood and gestured toward the kitchen. “Dad, let’s have a drink.” Turning to his mother he asked, “Do you mind watching the kids for a second?” He knew Natalie didn’t want to discuss the job opportunity for Alice with an audience.
“Then I guess I stay here for a mystery conversation with Natalie?” Alice asked, her shoulders tense.
