Reece and Jennifer

Reece and Jennifer - The Exchanging of Rings

Justin and Tina ------>

Jen POV

From the moment I opened my eyes my hand was attached to my phone. Waiting patiently for Anya to call with news from her meeting with Reece. Eight am, nine am, ten am. No call, no text, nothing. By eleven I was surprised I hadn't worn a hole in Tina's bedroom carpet with my pacing. When my phone finally did ring I jumped out of my skin.

"Yes!" I shouted, possibly deafening poor Anya.

"I was going to ask if you are coming home today, your outburst is most childish." Crap, my father. "Be home for one please Jenny we need to talk." He hung up on me. My hands were shaking as I dialled Anya's number.

"Jennifer, I was just going to call you." She sounded happy.

"So you have spoken with Reece? What does he say to you?"

"When are you coming home?"

"Anya! I ask what he says and you say when are you coming home? Please Anya I beg you! Tell me!"

"He said," she sighed. "On your birthday go to church. He will be waiting at the altar to make you a wife." I heard the smile in her voice. He's won her over! I screamed and jumped on Tina's bed, waking her up in the process.

"Thank you so much. Thank you!" I hung up the phone and screamed again. Tina grabbed my legs and pulled me down. I told her what Reece told Anya. "We can be together Tina, just eight short weeks and everything will be fine." I wiped away a happy tear.

After building up some courage to see my parents I finally left Tina's house with the promise to call her later. The smile following Anya's call was still on my face. Hell, it will be there forever. As I pulled into my house I quickly texted Reece.

'I spoke with Anya, thank you! You have made me the happiest girl on the planet!!!! xxx'

I put my phone on silent and back in my bag. Skipping through the huge double doors that were being held open by security my smile soon faded when I saw my father, mother and Thomas Messer waiting for me in the lounge.

"Um, hi Jen. These are for you." He handed me a bunch of red roses.

"My name is Jennifer, Thomas." I took the roses and placed them on a table behind me.

"Isn't there something you would like to say to Tom?" My mother said in that sickly sweet voice. She touched his hand as he sat next to her.

"Nope," I popped the p knowing she hates that. "Nothing comes to mind."

"JENNIFER MARIA CAPSON!" My father yelled. He never yells at me. "You will apologize to Thomas and you will do it now! We raised you better then this!"

Actually Anya raised me better than this. But I wasn't about to say that.

"I'm sorry." It came as a whisper and it had no meaning.

"I forgive you Jennifer. Please, walk with me. We have much to discuss." He took my hand and we left my smiling parents behind.

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We headed out into the gardens and stood by the fountain. I took a seat and ran my fingers in the water. Thomas cleared his throat and I looked up at him. His blue eyes were nothing next to Reece's. He looked nervous to be around me. Reece oozed confidence. "So I guess we uh, better start discussing the wedding?"

"Thomas." I sighed his name and he smiled looking hopeful. "Do we have to do this now? I don't have an engagement ring yet and you want to plan the wedding? These things take time." I smiled at him hoping to delay the inevitable. He raised a finger to me and fumbled in his pocket.

In an instant there it was, a green velvet box. He got down on one knee. He opened the box to reveal a ring. Diamonds all around the band. A huge diamond right in the centre. Oh god. He slipped it on my finger without even asking.

"Now we can talk." He smiled smugly. This is a side of him I've never seen and I still don't like it. He grabbed my wrist and pulled me close to him. "The date will be September first at noon. Ten weeks from now. You will wear white. You will love me Jen."

Like a coward I said nothing. We ate dinner with my parents and brothers. Prince and the boys were still angry with Reece. This time dad didn't try to silence them. After dessert, I excused myself to my bedroom and cried. When I finally stopped I saw myself in the mirror. I was a mess. My face was pale with black mascara everywhere. I knew I shouldn't have wiped away my tears.

My brothers came to check on me. Anya quickly saw them away and she sat with me. "He makes me feel normal Anya. I'm not an image to him. There is no expectations."

"Hmm. I see it in his eyes Jenny. I trust him with you." She slid my cell to me. "Make a call Jenny, I'll tell your parents and...that man you have retired to bed with exhaustion. Goodnight." She kissed my forehead and left the room. I locked the door behind her.

I called Reece. After sneaking out through the gardens I jumped in my car and sped away from the house. We met at a hotel a few towns away, one owned by his parents. In the private underground car park he hugged and kissed me softly. He took off his hoodie and slipped it over my head. I pulled the hood up and he took my hand. "Keep your head down." He whispered as he squeezed my hand. He greeted some people as we walked through the kitchens.

Before I knew it we were in the penthouse suite looking across the city. I stood on the balcony with a glass of champagne spilling my story to him. When I finished he took a deep breath. "Well, I guess we have to speed things up." He smiled. I leapt in his arms and crashed my lips to his hungrily.

He carried me over to the bed and dropped me, hovering above me until I grabbed his shirt and pulled his lips to mine. "Wait." I stopped him as he reached for my jeans. "I want to be your wife before we do this." I said seriously.

"Fine, it will be better when you are Mrs. Morris anyway, so much hotter. Jennifer Morris. I like it." He smiled. His eyes sparkled with love. Thomas's eyes were dull when he looked at me. Reece reached for my left hand, slowly he pulled off my engagement ring. "I have a better one." He jumped off the bed and reached for his jacket. Inside a white box was a platinum ring with one tiny diamond. "You seem like a simple kind of girl so something like that doesn't seem right." He pointed to the ring from Thomas.

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We spent the next morning eating breakfast in bed and trawling the internet to find somewhere we could marry without me needing consent. Nowhere. I hate being 17. Life sucked but Reece put that smile back on my face by coming up with a plan where we could be together without hiding.

"Let's go on vacation." He grinned. "We can take Justin and Tina so it doesn't seem too weird to the parents."

"Yeah I can say I need to relax before the 'wedding'. That's a great idea. But where can we go?"

We called Justin and Tina and asked them to meet us at the hotel. They were there within the hour. After a few hours looking at places we decided on Aruba. I called my dad and after little persuasion he agreed to pay for me and Tina to go and relax for two weeks! He tried to get me to go with Thomas but I demanded to go without him, stating that we have forever to be together and all I ask for is two weeks.

Reece's parents also paid for him and Justin. When we get to the hotel we would just ask to change rooms. The whole day was perfect. I eventually went home, taking of the perfect ring from the perfect boy before I walked through the door.

 Already I'm counting down the days of the next three weeks until I'm alone with the boy who makes me feel alive!