Chapter
26
Two hours
later, Jackie returned home. She found Katelyn and Brian sitting side by side
on the couch, watching Titanic. Katelyn had suggested watching a movie.
She knew it would help Brian take his mind off of Leighanne. It was he who had
suggested Titanic. It was Katelyn's favorite movie, so she didn't mind,
but she didn't think a love story was what Brian needed to watch right then.
But she didn't argue and let him put it in.
"Hey,
Kate, let me show you the new dress I bought for the wedding," Jackie
said, reaching into one of her shopping bags. "Tell me what you
think," she said, holding up a pretty, pale green, summery dress.
"I…uh…it's
beautiful," Katelyn stammered. The dress was nice, but she didn't know how
to tell Jackie that there wasn't going to be a wedding. She knew Jackie had
loved Leighanne and would take this news hard. She looked to Brian for help.
"Uh, mom,
I have something to tell you," he said, nervously clearing his throat.
"Sure,
baby, what is it?" she asked.
"There
isn't gonna be any wedding," Brian said slowly.
"What?!"
Jackie cried. She chuckled. "That's not funny, sweetie," she said.
"No, mom,
it's not a joke," Brian said. "Leighanne and I broke up."
"Oh,
sweetheart," Jackie said, sitting down beside Brian on the couch and
pulling him into her arms. "What happened?" she asked him softly.
"She met
a guy in England, and she likes him better than me. Plus, she thinks Kate and I
are in love or something," Brian said, sounding miserable once again.
"Oh,
Babyduck," Jackie whispered, stroking her son's head gently. "I think
you need to call Leigh and talk to her some more about this. We've put so much
planning into this wedding. I'm not saying I want you to marry her if you two
don't really love each other, but I think you need to talk this over with her.
Sometimes, when people are mad, they say things they don't mean. You just need
to call Leighanne and have a nice long talk before you call off the whole
wedding."
"Okay,"
Brian said reluctantly. "Thanks, mom." He gave his mother another
hug. "Should I call her now?" he asked.
"The
sooner the better," Jackie replied.
"Okay,"
Brian said, sighing. He turned to Katelyn, who was still watching the movie.
"I'm gonna go call her now."
"Okay,"
Katelyn said. "Good luck, Bri."
Brian smiled
at her and went upstairs to use the phone in his bedroom.
He was back
downstairs ten minutes later. Katelyn was still sitting on the couch. Jackie
had gone into the kitchen to start dinner.
"That was
quick," Katelyn said, looking at him, confused.
"She's
not there," Brian whispered, sounding as if he was about to cry again.
"She left."
"What?!"
Katelyn cried.
"I tried
her hotel room and someone else answered. I thought I had the wrong room or
something, so I called down to the main desk at the hotel. They told me she
checked out earlier this afternoon," Brian explained sadly.
"I'm
sorry," Katelyn said, sincerely. She knew he still loved Leighanne,
despite how badly she had hurt him.
"Oh well,
I guess she's decided for sure that she doesn't want to get married. It just
wasn't meant to be," Brian said, sighing. He flopped back down on the
couch with Katelyn. "So, what's been happening?" he asked, motioning
to the TV.
"The ship
hit the iceberg. It's sinking now, and Rose is going to rescue Jack,"
Katelyn filled him in.
Brian nodded
and settled back to watch the rest of the movie.
***
