Chasing Anne

When I See You

"So, let me get this straight," Ryan began, as he tied his tie. "You want to go back to Minnesota?"
Mark nodded. "As soon as possible."
The two of them were in Ryan's bedroom. Ryan was struggling to tie his tie and Mark was seated on his father's large master bed behind him, staring out the window to his left.
"May I ask why?" Ryan pressed, turning to look at his son. "Anne's hardly recovered from the time she was with Raymond and you want to take her right back onto his side of the battlefield?"
"Dad, I'd take care of her."
"I know you would, but Raymond . . . he's out to kill her and you know it. Why do you have to get back to Minnesota so soon?"
"Because I want to marry Anne in Minnesota and if she says yes to me tonight-."
Ryan laughed. "As if she's not going to say yes."
"Dad, I just want to go back."
"Mark, you're not telling me something," Ryan said softly, knotting his tie and then tightening it. "What else is back in Minnesota?"
Mark sighed and stood, scratching the back of his neck. "Anne's father's place."
Ryan's eyes narrowed. "You mean to return to Minnesota to try and retrieve McCourtney's weapon alone?"
"I wouldn't be alone. And I wasn't planning on looking for the weapon. Not without Jadon, or you with me. It'd be too dangerous. No, I wanted to try and find something else."
"And what's that?"
"I want to know who exactly Raymond Parr is. I want to know just what I'm really up against."
Ryan snorted. "If you want that it won't be hard to find. The police are looking for him and so are the CIA."
"How do you know that?"
"Jadon told me so. He's been put on the case with his partner, Gracelyn. He's just as anxious to find answers as you."
"How much does the CIA know about him?"
Ryan shrugged. "Next to nothing surprisingly. He was thought dead five years ago and is just now resurfacing. It's putting a lot of people on edge. I'll tell you that."
"More than a lot of people, Ryan," Jadon said softly, walking into the room. "It may put our entire nation on edge.
Ryan tried not to jump at the sound of his old lieutenant's voice, taking a deep breath to calm himself as his friend closed the door behind him. "Jadon, I've told you. There's such a thing as knocking."
"I'm sorry, I guess you just didn't hear my knock."
Ryan rolled his eyes. "You know, you've haven't changed at all since I last saw you right after Iran."
Jadon smiled. "I tried not to change too much."
Mark smiled. "Good afternoon, Jadon."
Jadon nodded and smiled back. "It's good to see you on your feet, Normand."
"Yeah, you too. I owe you."
Jadon laughed. "For what?"
"I owe you my life, and my girl."
Jadon shrugged. "And I owe you mine. We're even."
"When did I save you?"
"When you let me use your phone to call Rhino."
"Rhino?" Mark asked, eyebrows arched.
Ryan spun around. "That's enough, J!"
Jadon threw back his head and laughed. "That name still wears on you, doesn't it?"
Ryan rolled his eyes. "Why'd you come in here?"
"To tell you that the ladies have returned and that Anne is all right. But now that I'm here, I need to tell Mark something else."
"Yes?"
Jadon turned to him, his eyes suddenly growing fierce, and cold. "Mark, what happened in Wisconsin was just the beginning. If what I'm hearing is correct, you want to go back there?"
Mark nodded. "I do."
Jadon wagged his head, crossing his arms over his chest. "Look, that's just not worth the risk, no matter the reason. It's too dangerous!"
"Aren't you going back there?"
"I have no choice. Gracelyn needs me back at the office. After tonight, well, I'll be gone. My flight leaves in the morning."
"Are you looking for Parr?"
"We'll try to find him before anything else happens. That's my job currently. But answer me honestly when I ask this. Why do you need to return to Minnesota?"
"Because I want to marry Anne there."
"Why Minnesota?" Ryan asked.
"Because the whole state was praying for me while I was in Wisconsin. One man in particular, Pastor Steven Duncan, rallied all of them. I want him to marry Anne and I. That is . . . if she says yes."
Jadon laughed. "As if that's a question."
"Hey, it's a possibility."
"Oh, right. After all you two have been through, you're not in love anymore?" Ryan asked.
Mark blushed. "No, I just think she might say no . . . What if I'm being too forward?"
"Fine, it's a possibility. An extremely unlikely one," Jadon mumbled. "But still, it's not safe to return to Minnesota right now. Can't you wait a while for everything to cool down?"
"How long is a little while?"
Jadon thought a moment, counting on his fingers before answering. "How about two months? After that time, I'll be sure to secure both of you a trip back."
Mark sighed and nodded. "If you think that's safer, then that's fine."
"It'll be safer than it is now. But that's all I can guarantee."
"That's probably the best we'll get then," Mark said, sitting back down on his father's bed.
Ryan raised a brow. "Mark, is something wrong?"
Mark hesitated and then half nodded. "I'm nervous."
"About what?" Jadon questioned.
"Asking her to marry me."
"Mark, relax. You're scaring yourself for no reason," Ryan said, touching his son's shoulder.
Mark took a deep breath. "I'm also on edge because I got no sleep last night," he muttered. "I'm going into overdrive."
"Why were you up all night?"
"I was doing what you said I should, Dad. I was praying about Anne and me."
"And I'm guessing your answer was to marry her?"
Mark half nodded. "Not that exactly, but I . . . well I just know she's the one for me. Me wanting to marry her, well that just fell along the lines later."
Ryan smiled. "You'll be fine. The chance of her saying no to you is miniscule."
"I know, but . . . it still worries me," Mark said softly.
"Mark, relax. This is the girl you're head over heels in love with. What could possibly happen?" Jadon asked.
"Anything," Mark muttered, looking down at the floor. "Absolutely anything."
Jadon sighed, glancing through the stain glass ornament on the door. "This is probably a bad time, but Andrew and David are standing outside right now," Jadon said.
"Let them in, I'm fine," Mark mumbled, standing and resting his hands on the crest rail of a chair. "I just need a minute to breathe."
Jadon glanced at Ryan and Ryan shrugged, nodding to the door. Jadon rolled his eyes and grabbed the door handle, turning it and then letting David and Andrew in just as Andrew raised his hand to knock.
"Come in, gentlemen!" he beckoned.
Andrew glanced at Mark. "Is he okay?"
"I'm fine," Mark muttered. "I'm just . . ." He ran his hand over his face. "Never mind, I'm not fine."
Andrew looked at Ryan and then Jadon. "What did you two do?"
"We didn't do anything!" Jadon exclaimed, raising his hands in surrender.
"Then why is Mark so upset?" David questioned.
"Because he's going to ask Anne to marry him and he's worried that she'll say no."
David laughed. "Really?"
Mark groaned. "None of you are helping, you know that, right?" he asked, turning around. "Is it not normal for a guy to get nervous before asking a girl to marry him?"
"No, Mark, it's not," Jadon said softly. "It's just surprising to think that you're nervous."
"And why is that?" Mark asked, closing his eyes again.
David shrugged. "Because you and Anne have been through so much together, I guess."
Mark opened his eyes nodded slowly. "Yes, we have. This is just . . . soon. That's all."
"Well, I don't think you should get yourself worked up about this, Mark. The only part that's intimidating is getting the courage to ask," Ryan said softly. "But once you see her, trust me, it'll make everything easier.
Mark sighed and closed his eyes. "How long until I see her?"
Andrew glanced at his watch. "Brianna said to give them an hour. So an hour from now you'll be with her."
Mark nodded and took a deep breath. "Okay, I'll make it that long. Now, where's the ball room?"
But that hour lasted much longer than Mark thought it would. It felt like an entire day was passing as he stood in the massive manor's ball room awaiting whom he hoped would soon be his bride. Jackson soon joined then with Mitch, but Mark hardly even noticed his friend's arrival. His heart simply wouldn't stop racing and his mind wouldn't stop swirling. Thoughts of all the worst possible outcomes of what he was about to do raced through his head, echoing over and over again. What if Anne said no? What if he made an absolute fool of himself? What if he stepped on her toes while he was dancing? What if Raymond suddenly attacked and captured her again. What if he lost her, and never saw her again? What if, what if, what if. They simply wouldn't stop pinging through his mind like bouncy balls. He took a deep breath and sat down on a velvet cushioned, wooden chair. Why did he have to be like this? This was Anne! The love of his life! This was the girl he'd nearly died for, the woman who'd captured his heart! Why was it so terrifying to ask her to spend the rest of her life with him as his wife? He took a deep breath again and ran his hands through his now clean hair. He was being absolutely ridiculous. Jackson sat down across from him and smiled, folding his hands.
"You okay?"
"No, but I'd like to be."
"What's going on?"
"I . . . I want to ask Anne to marry me, and I had no idea just how nerve racking that was."
Jackson smiled. "You're thinking about it too much. That's all. I did the same thing. I think I went through every single worst case scenario for what could happen if she said no," he said, laughing. "And I probably would have chickened out had Cindy not found me when she did. I never deserved her. I'll tell you that."
"I just don't want to mess things up."
"You won't, trust me, "Jackson chuckled, patting his friend on the shoulder. "She'll make sure of that. Though you might want to know that on your left, behind those two navy blue curtains, is a balcony."
"Why would I need to know that?"
Jackson smiled. "Because Brianna doesn't know about it."
"And why would that be important?"
Jackson smiled and patted him on the back as he stood. "You'll find out."
And then the room went completely silent. Mark looked over at his father for a reason why the conversation had all of a sudden stopped, but his father was intently looking at him instead. Mark scrunched his eyebrows downward, confused. What was wrong? He sat up and stood, walking towards his father, but Ryan held up a hand nodded his head in Mark's direction. Mark tilted his head slightly and stopped moving, even more confused.
"Dad, what is it? What's wrong?"
But then he heard her laugh and all the strength he possessed with in him melted from existence. He nearly collapsed.
"You're ridiculous, Mark!" Anne exclaimed, her laugh continuing. "I have everyone's attention but yours."
Mark swallowed hard and started turning to her, "You should have called me," he said softly.
But when he saw her . . . it wasn't her. It wasn't the Anne he remembered . . . She squinted her blue eyes at him. "Mark, are you okay?"
Mark nodded slowly, as if unsure of himself, but then he shook his head and smiled. "You've outdone yourself, Anne," he whispered.
Anne blushed and laughed again. "It was Brianna's idea, not mine," she replied.
She was wearing a gray-blue floor length gown. It was fairly plain, with no huge amounts of sequence elaborating it, but as Anne came closer, he realized that carefully stitched into the fabric of the bodice were what looked like rosettes . . . no not rosettes. They looked like begonias. They framed the neck of the gown, forming a v shape across her chest, and then fading out as they continued toward the skirt. Along the hems of the edges of the short sleeves was another short string of begonias. Silver thread traced the edges of each flower petal, giving the entire piece a faint sparkle. It was a truly subtle work of art, but it wasn't the dress that truly had him mesmerized. Anne looked different too. She'd bathed which in itself had improved her appearance, but her skin no longer looked sickly pale like the last few days he'd seen her. Her hair was no longer a mess of knots and tangles. Now it was delicately curled into golden locks that over laid her shoulders. He held out his hand to her as she drew closer and she took it, squeezing it gently. Mark drew her closer, resting his palm against her cheek. "I'd say you look amazing, but I think that's an understatement," he said softly.
Anne blushed. "The dress is complimentary of Andrew. He said that gray blue went with my eyes."
Mark squinted at her, tilting his head slightly. "I actually do think it brings out your eyes, but I wasn't talking about the dress, Anne," he said smiling. "I was talking about you. You look amazing, and it's not the dress that makes you pretty. You're beautiful without it. When you're you is when you're most beautiful."
Anne blushed bright red and looked at the floor, completely at a loss for how to respond. "You've never said that to me before," she finally whispered.
"That's why I'm saying it now."
Anne had to laugh at that. She looked back into his green eyes and smiled wide, saying nothing. But she didn't have to say anything. Her eyes said everything. Mark nearly lost himself looking into them and had to close his eyes to regain himself. "Anne," he said softly. "Can I ask you something?"
Anne smiled and nodded, lacing her fingers through his. "You can ask me anything, Mark."
Mark hesitated, his heart pounding. His breath hitched in. Why couldn't he just ask her? It had come so easily to him on the ledge after the dance. It had seemed so natural. But right now . . . with everyone watching him . . . it was just too much. He sighed and looked at his toes, embarrassed. "Would you like to eat?" he asked, trying to breathe normally again.
"Mark, are you okay?" Anne asked, touching his cheek.
Mark nodded. "Yeah, I'm okay."
Anne sighed and gave his hand a squeeze. "I'm here when you're ready to tell me."
Mark smiled. "I know, Anne. And I will tell you, just not here . . . with everyone watching."
Anne's eyebrows furrowed, but then a smile lit up her face. "Do you dance?"
Mark raised a brow. "Do I what?"
"Dance?" Anne repeated. "Can we finish that night on the ledge? You and I?"
"There's nothing to dance to-." Mark started, but as he was speaking, Ryan held up a hand.
"Mark, I have that taken care of," he said softly.
And immediately following his father's words, music began to swirl about them from an unknown source. Mark tried not to laugh and instantly turned bright red, turning his eyes to the floor. "Well, may I have this dance?" he asked, softly, slipping his hand around her waist.
Anne smiled. "Yes, you may, Mark," she whispered.
Mark smiled and drew her closer to him. "I'll try not to step on you."
Anne laughed. "And I'll try not to step on you," she replied.
Mark turned, her hand still in his, and led her to a clearing on the ballroom floor. There, he turned her to face him and with a smile, he again clasped his hand on her waist, taking her right hand with his left as the dance unfolded. Anne laid her head against his chest and sighed deeply. Mark couldn't imagine the moment being any more perfect. He smiled and looked down at her, his heart pounding so hard he thought he could hear it. Anne sighed again, and then yawned. Mark tried not to laugh.
"Tired?" he asked.
"Hm?" Anne answered, looking up at him.
Mark chuckled. "I asked if you were tired."
"Oh," Anne laughed. "Yeah, I am."
"I can tell. It's been a long day for all of us."
Anne laughed. "I never knew dress shopping could be so exhausting!" she exclaimed. "Had it not been for Andrew I probably would still be there, you know."
"Well, I'm glad you're not," Mark replied.
Anne looked up at him, her blue eyes meeting his once more. She smiled and shook her head. "To think we've only known each other five years is ridiculous."
"Only five years?" Mark asked. "It feels like a lifetime!"
"I know," she replied. "But I guess five years is a long time, isn't it?"
Mark shrugged. "I suppose. But then again, I introduced myself to you in my sophomore year and we started meeting at the coffee shop during our junior year. Senior year we still made the outings to the coffee shop, but after college . . . well we grew distant from each other. Even after your mom passed away . . . we were never in a relationship. Not until only a few months ago come to think of it."
"But the action from the past few months has been enough to span a decade," Anne muttered.
"It's brought us closer together even though we were apart though, Anne. I wouldn't want to trade that for the world."
Anne smiled. "You do make a good point. I don't think it would have only taken a few months for us to go from coffee shop meetings to dancing any other way."
Mark laughed and kissed her forehead. "I love you, Anne."
Anne smiled and leaned back against him, yawning once more. Mark could feel her legs weakening and looked down at her once more, concerned.
"You okay?" he asked, his voice soft.
"I need to sit down," she whispered in reply.
Mark nodded and bent his knees slightly, scooping Anne up in his arms. She laughed feebly and leaned against him, more than appreciating the feeling of being held in his arms. He gently carried her towards the balcony, pushing through the large, thick, blue curtain. The cool air outside blew gently past them, making Anne shiver slightly. Mark sat her down on the wide, white, granite balcony rail, her legs hanging off the edge, and then pulled off his sports jacket, resting it over her shoulders. She smiled and blushed, slipping her arms in the sleeves and pulling it closely around her. The sun had already set, but its light had not faded completely into the dark hue of the night quite yet. Pale yellow still glimmered on the horizon, giving the couple enough light to see around them. All the nature around them seemed to already be asleep though, and made hardly any sound. Mark sat down beside Anne, wrapping an arm around her and once again letting her lean against him. She smiled and closed her eyes.
"Do you think they set us up for tonight?" she asked.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, do you think Brianna set this whole thing up to give us a night together?" Anne repeated, turning her head to look at him.
He shrugged. "I suppose it could have been set up. But if my sister did plan this whole thing, then why didn't she show up?"
"Brie said she wasn't feeling well when Cindy and I went to get dressed. Tracy insisted that she go and lie down for a while. I haven't seen her since."
Mark sighed. "A pity. Andrew was looking forward to dancing with her."
"Andrew?" Anne asked, eyes wide. "As in my cousin Andrew?"
Mark nodded. "He's the one who convinced Brie to actually attend tonight. At least, that's what I've heard. Andrew was asking my father about it earlier. I didn't overhear more than that."
"Well, if she doesn't feel well and Andrew really wants to spend time with her, he should go and see her anyway," Anne whispered, shivering again as the last of the sun's rays disappeared. "That's what you would do for me."
Mark smiled and looked down at her. "Anne, I don't want you to suffer alone. I'll always be here for you."
"I know, Mark. It's not like any guy would take a bullet for me . . . twice."
"I love you. A bullet was nothing if it meant you'd be okay."
Anne laughed and shook her head. "A bullet's nothing?" she asked, looking up at him. "You amaze me."
Mark smiled and kissed her forehead. "And you astound me. When God created you, He created a masterpiece. Every part of you, inside and out, is breathtaking."
Anne looked down at her hands. "Well, He did nothing less when he made you."
"No, Anne. You're special. You've completely captured my heart."
"Mark, I don't know what to-."
"Then don't say anything. You'll ruin the moment."
Anne laughed and looked down at her hands again, closing her eyes. She didn't want the moment to end. She didn't want gunshots to destroy it. She didn't want a bullet in the back of her beloved. She wanted . . . for once . . . to simply just have a moment of peace and quiet.
"Anne," Mark said softly, breaking the stillness around them.
"Yes?" Anne asked.
Mark took a deep breath and then pulled away from her, turning around and standing back up on the balcony floor. Anne turned and squinted at him. "Mark, are you okay?"
"Anne," he said softly turning to her. "Anne, I-." His words choked back. He wanted to slap himself! What was wrong with him! This was it! "Anne, I told you earlier this morning that I'd been up all night and that there was a good reason why," he began again.
Anne's eyes narrowed, confused. "Yes?" she asked slowly.
"And this morning all I knew is that I would probably have the courage to tell you what I was doing last night by tonight. I had no idea that this dance was being prepared."
Anne's head tilted to the side, still confused. "And?" she asked, curiosity mixed with concern in her tone.
"And now I want to tell you what I was doing last night. Anne, I was praying."
"About what?"
Mark took another deep breath, moved closer to her, and, taking her right hand in his, he slowly bent down on a knee. "I was praying about this," he whispered. Then he lifted a small box in his palm, opening it with his thumb to reveal a beautiful silver ring. "Anne, will you marry me?"
Anne's heart started pounding and tears came to her eyes. She squeezed his hand and then dropped into his arms. Mark enveloped her in his embrace and held her close as her joyful sobs broke free and penetrated through her entire body making her shake. "I thought you'd never ask," she whispered. "Yes, Mark. I will marry you!"
And in that moment, Mark felt as though his heart would explode with sheer happiness and relief. He pulled back from her and looked into her happy tearstained eyes, holding out his hand. Anne smiled and gingerly relaid her hand in his, tears still streaming down her face. Mark pulled the ring out of the cushioned box and with an almost trembling hand, he eased the silver band around the third finger of her left hand. As soon as it was in place, Mark laid his free hand over hers and smiled.
"May I kiss you?" he asked.
Anne laughed and shook her head. "As if I'd ever say no. Yes, you may."
Mark laughed in return and then reached for her cheek, tenderly wiping her tears back with his finger. Then he closed his eyes and leaned forward, pressing his lips against hers.
He knew the moment couldn't have been made any more perfect and smiled inwardly. At long last, Anne was his.