Page 58 of Brides and Brothers
Camille gasped. “You did?”
“Well, I said no for now, but I also told him I needed time to think and pray about it. But, of course, that takes a lot of concentration, and I can’t seem to concentrate for the life of me. Every time I get on my knees, my mind wanders, and I think of something I need to do. It’s like I’m scared to know the answer. I love Derek, and I know I’ll love being married. But am I ready for such a huge commitment? I still feel so young—even if I am the oldest in my apartment by two years.”
Camille swallowed. “You’ll make the best decision. Derek is a nice guy, but do you want to be with him forever?”
Daisha groaned. “Hey, I tried to influence you, shouldn’t you give me the same courtesy?”
“I’m trying to, but maybe I’m being too subtle.” Camille laughed and walked into the laundry room. She threw a shirt from the clean laundry on the dryer into her to-be-ironed pile. “I love being married. But I love being married to Aiden. I have no idea how you’d feel being married to Derek.”
Daisha hummed for a moment. “I know he would be financially responsible, caring, sensitive, trustworthy...”
“Admirable qualities,” Camille agreed, “and a logical take on the subject—most women our age can’t get past the chemistry side of things—but I’m curious what your heart is feeling. Would you take Derek over any other guy you’ve ever met? I know that in my mind no one comes close to Aiden.”
Daisha fell silent.
“Daisha?”
“I’m here.”
Camille put down the pants she was folding. “You need some time to think about it.”
“Yeah, you’re right.”
Camille thought she’d better change the subject. Daisha sounded depressed. “So Thanksgiving is right around the corner. Are you going home?”
“Derek invited me to his house.”
“And did you say yes?”
“Not exactly,” Daisha answered. “I was so caught up in the ring he was flashing in my face that I couldn’t make sense of anything.”
Camille’s eyes widened. “He had a ring? And you didn’t know about it?”
“We’ve been dating forever, but I’ve been an expert in changing the subject every time he talks about ring shopping or setting a date. I guess he finally took matters into his own hands. Which, honestly, is how I prefer it anyway. The diamond was way fancier than I would have picked for myself, but Derek has always been a little more ostentatious about clothes, cars, where we eat... you know, everything.”
“Does that bother you?” Camille reminded herself of the importance of being supportive, not biased.
“No, he worked for his money and still has savings,” Daisha answered a little too quickly. “Not every college student could say the same.”
Money was not romantic; Camille should know. “You’re lucky.”
“I know.”
Camille’s phone beeped. “Sorry, Daisha, but someone else is calling. I’ll check in on you tomorrow.”
“Thanks. See ya.”
Camille switched over to her other call. “Hello?”
“Hello, this is Jessica Hopkins, the nurse you saw yesterday. We have the results back from your labs.”
“Oh, okay,” Camille said. “And?”
“You have a high HCG count. Congratulations!”
“HCG?” Camille asked, confused.
The nurse chuckled. “That means you’re pregnant. The doctor wants you to come back in a few weeks for an ultrasound to see how far along you are.”
