Free Part Time Marriage by Jessica Steele

expect?'

    Tell her. The words got stuck. It was as if once she had told her parent that she and Noah were going to be married she was committed. `Actually, Mum...' she began hesitantly.

    `What's happened?"

    'Nothing.Well, that is.Um... Elexa took a deep breath. `Actually,' she plunged, `Noah and I are getting married.'And quickly pulled the phone away from her ear at her mother's ear-piercing scream of joy.

    There followed a few minutes of split sentences, her mother pretending she wasn't in tears, and Elexa having burning coals of guilt raining down on her because she was deceiving her parent so.

    'Celia and Helen will be delighted,' Kaye Aston crooned, and Elexa knew that the phone lines from her parents' home would be buzzing the moment she had said goodbye to her. `Have you got your engagement ring yet? Oh, I'm just dying to see it,' her mother rushed on. `Have you decided when the wedding will be? I always think a June wedding is lovely. We'll have to-'

    `Noah,' Elexa cut in, `and I,' she added quickly, `werethinking of sooner than that.' June was next year! Hang it, they'd be closer to divorce than to getting married bythen !

    `Sooner?How much sooner? They'll be a lot to arrange, Elexa.'

    `Actually, we thought we'd marry in about-er-three weeks' time,' Elexa answered- and held the phone away from her ear for a second time. `Three weeks!' her mother shrieked, and Elexa thought she had better let her have the rest of it now rather than later.

    `Noah's going to check the date. You know how busy he is. It will probably be a Saturday, if the-um-r-registrar can ...'

    Elexa was sitting stunned five minutes later, feeling she had just been pulled well and truly through the wringer. When the phone rang again she felt very much, like not answering it. For certain it was going to be either her mother or one of her aunts.

    She stretched out a hand to the instrument, knowing without a question of doubt that should she not answer it, her mother would ring every fifteen minutes until she did. `Hello,' she said, perhaps a shade warily-and discovered it was none of her female relatives.

    `Something wrong?'Noah asked.

    `Oh, it's you,' Elexa answered in relief. But only for that relief to rapidly subside when she thought of what she had to tell him. `You thought it would be someone else? Your mother?' he guessed.

    `I've just been speaking to her. Correction, my mother has just been speaking to me, rather severely.'

    `Snap!' he answered.

    Elexa's eyes shot wide. `My mother rang you!' she gasped, hardly able to believe it.

    `Not your mother, my mother. I thought while she was on that I might as well tell her I was getting married.'

    `She didn't like it?' Elexa guessed-he'd intimated his parent had spoken to him severely.

    `She loved it. She wants to meet you.' `Oh, no!'Elexa exclaimed instinctively. `What excuse did you make?' she asked, knowing for sure he would have got them out of it.

    `I didn't,' he replied coolly. `Once my mother knew I had met your parents, I was sunk.' His mother sounded as forceful as hers. `How does dinner in Sussex next Tuesday suit you?'

    It didn't. `How does a church wedding, choir, church bells and all my relations attending suit you?' she responded.

    `The Register Office deal is off?"

    'My mother went ballistic at that one.'

    `Can she do it all in three weeks? From what I've gathered, these things are a year in the planning.'

    `You don't know my mother. Er-does that mean-you're agreeable-to a church wedding?Me in the white frock?'

    His reply shattered her. 'I'm sure you'll look lovely,' he said. Her mouth fell open- this, from that stern man she knew! But, once more businesslike, he was going on, 'I'd better have the name of the church and the minister.'

    Elexa named the church in her homevillage, though thought if he intended to ring the vicar that night then he might have to wait to get through-her mother was probably on to the vicar right at this minute.

    'I'll call for you around