Embrace Me by Jo Matthews, Rebecca Turley, Sally Goodwin, Elizabeth Simonton Page A

Charlie,” I replied, suddenly irate. “Is that what all of this is about? You want me to be with someone like Mac?” I questioned.
    “ I just worry you are too deep and can’t see straight. You have so much to deal with this year without Charlie clouding your mind.”
    “ He doesn’t cloud my mind,” I argued. “He is the only thing that makes sense at times.”
    “ I just think you two need to slow down.” My mother looked stressed as she spoke.
    “ I thought you liked Charlie. He saved me…and you, for that matter,” I replied angrily.
    “ That was before he was thinking of taking you away from me!” my mother shouted aggressively.
    “ What are you shouting about?” I asked in confusion. None of this made any sense.
    “ You need to ask Charlie.” She crossed her arms and refused to look at me. I couldn’t believe she was actually sulking.
    “ I’m asking you.”
    “ He wants to marry you,” she finally stated.
    “ I thought you knew in a few years we would…”
    “ Shannon, Charlie wants to marry you sooner than that,” my mother interrupted. “Why else do you think I would be this angry?”
    “ That’s hardly fair, Jennet. Charlie loves Shannon. Of course he would want to marry her. They are in love. Where is the harm in that?” Rachel complained.
    I sat immobile, not really listening to their argument anymore. Why hadn’t Charlie spoken to me about this? What was he playing at?

Chapter Six
    Charlie was in the shower when I got back. It didn’t really help matters when he came out dripping wet with a towel wrapped around his waist. My eyes automatically followed the droplets of water as they waved down his perfect chest. I needed to focus. I was angry with him.
    “ Hi, Sweetheart. How was your meeting?” he smiled, walking towards me.
    “ What the hell have you been saying to my mother?” I blurted out before he even reached me.
    He stopped in his tracks, a worried expression crossing his face. “She told you?” he whispered. “I asked her not to.”
    “ Charlie, she is totally freaked out. What the hell did you say to her?”
    “ I only wanted her approval. I wasn’t expecting her to be offended.” I could see the hurt in his eyes.
    “ Charlie, we talked about marriage. I thought you understood we needed to wait.”
    “ Are you angry with your mother, or me for wanting to marry you sooner?”
    “ Both,” I glared at him. “In six months, my identity becomes public. I have enough to deal with without thinking about a wedding.”
    “ I just wanted to be there for you.”
    “ You’ve just made things ten times worse. My mother was so angry , Charlie. I have never seen her like that before.”
    “ I’m sorry for wanting to be with you,” he moped, moving to get changed.
    “ Why are you making this so difficult?!” I yelled. Why couldn’t he understand?
    “ I think I might go for a drink with Brad,” he stated. It was his only response as he started walking towards his wardrobe to get changed. So angry with the situation, I left him alone to get ready.
    Charlie came out a few minutes later, not even meeting my gaze.
    “ You don’t even want to talk about this?” I asked as he picked up his car keys.
    “ We will, but we both need some time to think. It’s clear we want different things from this relationship.”
    “ What does that mean?”
    “ I want to be with you, Shannon. I would marry you tomorrow if I could, but judging by your reaction, I can see you’re not ready and that hurts a little.” I wanted to cross the room to reassure him but I couldn’t. I knew he was right. Charlie nodded sadly, and my heart stung as I heard the door slam behind him.
    I stood in the apartment alone, wondering what had just happened. I wasn’t ready to marry him now, but that didn’t mean I never would be. My life was going to change so much in the next six months. How could he not realise his timing was all wrong? No matter how much I loved him, I wasn’t ready to