Part 45
Settled on the couch, Chelsea gazed around the room taking in all the flowers AJ had bought her….roses, wildflowers, daisies, carnations…every imaginable kind.
Returning to the living room from his office, AJ asked, “Are you hungry?”
“A little.”
“How about I order something and have it delivered?”
“Sounds good. What do you have planned for this afternoon?”
“Got two meetings and I need to go get Annie.”
“What am I going to do while you’re in your meetings?”
“You’re gonna be with me.”
“But Alex, I don’t want to be in the way.”
Placing a finger on her lips, AJ said, “This is business that involves you and even if it didn’t, you would NOT be in the way.”
“What kind of business do we have?” asked Chelsea as the doorbell rang.
“Well, you’re about to find out part of it. Back in a second.” Giving her a kiss, AJ rushed to the door and returned seconds later followed by a lady carrying an armload of books. “Chelsea, I want you to meet Ella Hunnicutt. Ella, this is my girlfriend, Chelsea Whitlock.”
“Nice to meet you, Chelsea.”
“Same here. Baby, why’s Ella here?”
“Ella is an interior decorator and she’s here to get started on making this OUR place.”
“You’re kidding?”
“No, I’m not. Chelsea, I want you and Annie to feel like this is your home too so I want you to do whatever you want in the way of re-modeling. Start wherever you want.”
“You’re gonna give me your ideas too, aren’t you?”
“If you want, yeah.”
“I want this to be our home, Alex….not yours or mine.”
“Well, let’s get started,” said Ella.
“I was going to order us some lunch. Would you like something?”
“No, thank you.”
“Baby, I’m going to start with Annie’s room until you come back.”
AJ leaned over to give her a kiss. “That’s fine, ‘Beautiful’. I won’t be long.”
“Now, how old is Annie?” asked Ella as she set the books on the table.
“Six. She’s my daughter.”
Pulling out a book, Ella handed it to Chelsea, “This is what I have for children’s rooms. Go through it and let me know what you like and I’ll make notes as we go.”
AJ returned a few minutes later and settled on the couch with Chelsea where the two looked through all the books Ella had brought picking out things that they both liked. With Ella’s help, the two picked out what they wanted throughout the house, even in AJ’s office which Chelsea had tried to protest but AJ wouldn’t have it. There was a balanced blend of AJ’s taste, Chelsea’s taste, and what was already there.
“So, when can you start?” asked Chelsea.
“AJ and I already discussed the starting date,” said Ella.
“Ella’s going to get the work done while we’re on the road for the tour so when we come back, it’ll be ready….my wedding present to you.”
“When is the big day?” asked Ella curiously as she started putting away the books.
“Don’t know yet,” grinned AJ. “But it’ll be somewhere on the tour. Thanks for coming out, Ella.”
“It’s my pleasure. I’ll have to admit, I’m a HUGE fan and when I was told you requested me, I was thrilled and extremely honored.”
“You come highly recommended.”
“Who’s your favorite?” asked Chelsea.
“Honestly, I can’t decide between Kevin and Nick. Nick is so boyish and Kevin is just so damned sexy,” giggled Ella forgetting that AJ was even there.
Chelsea laughed, “Yeah, I can see where you’re coming from.”
“I would ask who your favorite is but I think I already know. Were you a fan before you started dating AJ?”
Chelsea looked back at AJ adoringly before turning back to Ella and saying, “Yeah, I got to see them when they first got started in Europe. My dad was stationed in Germany when they came over there and AJ has always been my favorite but Kevin and I did date for a few months…when AJ was dating Amanda.”
“You are so lucky. AJ, if you’ll leave me the key before you go on tour, I’ll get started the day you leave.”
“Sure. I’ll see you out,” said AJ as the doorbell rang.
Chelsea said good-bye to Ella and as AJ walked her to the door, she leaned her head back and closed her eyes. She was tired but she couldn’t help letting her mind wander to their wedding day. Where would they get married? What would she wear? Who was going to give her away? She would HAVE to look at the tour stops and see what was going to be the most romantic spot. She wanted this to be perfect…no, it was going to be perfect because she was going to marry AJ.
“’Beautiful’, are you okay?”
“Hmmm…yeah, I’m fine. Who was at the door?”
“YOUR next appointment. Chelsea, meet Michelle Nelson.”
“Hey!” greeted Michelle happily.
“Hi.”
“Chelsea, I need to get going so I can pick Annie up from school and get her things from Kevin’s. While I’m gone, I want you and Michelle to talk and get to know each other.”
“Why?”
“She’s agreed to be your physical therapist while we’re out on the road.”
Chelsea reached for his hand and he moved to sit facing her on the couch. “Please, don’t take too long.”
“I promise,” smiled AJ as he caressed her cheek. Lowering his voice, “You’re gonna like Michelle and the time is going to fly by…you won’t even miss me. I love you.”
“I love you too. I’m sorry if I seem clingy.”
“It’s okay, beautiful. You’re tired. I probably overwhelmed you with all this. I promise, this is it for today and tonight, we’ll spend a quiet evening watching movies or whatever you want to do.”
Chelsea leaned into his hand. “You have been so wonderful to me today.”
“And I plan to spoil you even more. Do you need anything before I leave?”
“I’m fine.”
Getting up and turning to Michelle, AJ said, “I’ll be back. You two have fun talking and try not to let me be the main topic of conversation.”
Michelle and Chelsea both blushed and watched as AJ grabbed his keys and headed out.
Alone, Chelsea looked at Michelle who stood awkwardly. “Have a seat.”
Michelle sat in the chair across from Chelsea. “Did AJ send you all these flowers?”
Smiling as she looked at the arrangements, she said, “Yeah, they were his ‘Welcome Home’ present for me. AJ said you’re a fan.”
“Yeah,” blushed Michelle. “What about you?”
“Since they started in Europe. I saw them in Munich when I was fifteen.”
“WOW! So, was AJ always your favorite?”
“Yeah, even with all the funky hair-dos.”
“Oh my god! Did you see the leopard hair-do he had?”
Chelsea laughed, “Yeah, and I think that had to be one of the wildest ones. Who is your favorite?”
Once again, Michelle blushed. “AJ. What made him your favorite?”
“His voice and his eyes when he was younger but as he started to do the ‘wild’ things…the piercings, the weird hairdos, the tats…it was his free spirit. You know…seemingly not caring what people thought of him? It just grabbed me. My life was so structured…my dad was a hard-core marine and everything my brothers and I did had to be by the Marine Corps manual. Watching Alex gave me a chance to be free.”
“What does your dad think of you and…..Alex being together?”
Chelsea looked down first before saying, “My father disowned me seven years ago when I told him I was pregnant with my daughter, Annie, and I had no intentions of marrying her father.”
“Oh….I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. You had no way of knowing. I guess if you’re going to be around us a lot, you should know the truth about Annie. Kevin is her father.”
Chelsea and Michelle spent the entire time AJ was gone talking and by the time he and Annie returned, it was as if they’d been friends forever!
