Soldier Boy

05

Carissa's POV.

"Would it be so bad if y'all got married?" Mom
asked the next morning as she stood over the stove, flipping pancakes and teaching Gavin how to load the dishwasher at the same time.

"Yes, because we were never marriage material. We just— we just made a drunken decision to sleep together and a child was created from that decision," I said, ruffling my hand through Logan's hair as I waved my other hand around for emphasis on the craziness of this whole discussion. "It wouldn't work. We'd be divorced within a year."

Gavin scoffed as he rinsed off a plate and put it into the dishwasher. "You say that, Cissy, but you don't know what would happen after a year's up. You could be pregnant again."

Mom laughed, looking at me with a goofy smile plastered on her face. "Just try dating him, Carissa. See what happens."

I groaned in annoyance and kissed Logan's head before walking over to the front door and sliding my rain boots on over my pajamas. "I'm headed to the barn," I declared.

It felt nice to be outside in the summertime air, away from the pressures of my family, and in the barn cleaning the horse stalls.

Clementine snorted at me and tilted her head up as I threw her fresh hay. "You done with me too, girl?" I whispered.

She huffed and brought her head back down, inching closer so I could extend my hand and kiss her nose.

"I know you better than that, girl. You love me too much to be done with me, huh?" I said, running my hands through her mane. She flicked her ears towards me and licked my hand with her tongue.

I laughed at that and walked off towards the garden, watering the flowers and watching bees pollinate.

"Hey," a voice sounded behind me. I turned around and saw Cameron standing there with arched eyebrows and his hands on his hips, his boots digging into the red clay.

"Hi," I replied, looking at him. "It's half past noon. Shouldn't you be at the bar, you know, knocking back shots with your buddies?"

He chuckled, running his tongue over his teeth and sighing. "First off, I don't drink this early in the day. And second off, I don't have "buddies." Those idiots were dropped in middle school."

"You don't have any friends? That's hard to believe since you were the star athlete in high school. You were quite the popular sort, always going to parties and hooking up with every girl that dared looked your way."

He grinned. "You done sorting me out? I came out here 'cause your mama said that the plumbing needed fixing. I didn't expect you to corner me and use my own words against me."

"The plumbing is fine, Cam. And for the record, my mama and Gavin are in there planning mine and your's nuptials so it's best if we avoid those two for as long as possible."

"They want us to get married?" He asked. He had a sly grin on his face as he looked at me.

"Yeah. They're pretty much betting that you propose tonight. But you wouldn't wanna marry me. I'm just the middle-aged farm gal with an illegitimate son who still lives with her parents. Hey, my life should be a movie. Yeah, then I'd be rich. You know, the typical "soldier comes back home, finds out he has a secret love child with an old friend, they get married and live happily ever after" movie. Bet a lot of people would pay to see that."

Cameron huffed, running a hand through his hair. "You don't know that I wouldn't want to not marry you. What would you do if I proposed right now?"

I laughed. Now everyone was going crazy. "Say no."