She looked incredulous and went to remove her hand from their handhold. But Jared was not going to release her hand quite so easily. "But you didn't know me?" She frowned in surprise and blurted out, "I doubt I've ever even registered on your radar. I know I'm..."
"Not in my league?" He asked wryly. She blinked self-consciously and nodded. Jared smiled gently as he told her, "That's what Doug said you'd said. That you weren't in our league. I didn't believe him at the time." Jared brushed a lock of hair off her cheek, "You are in a class of your own." He said softly. "The kind of woman Doug and I could only ever dream of having in our lives, why would you think you weren't in our league? You're way ahead of us!"
"No I'm not. You can have practically any woman you want. You aren't going to tell me you are short of female company!" She chided.
"No." He agreed with a wry smile. "We aren't short of female company. True." He smiled ruefully before admitting somewhat sheepishly. "Doug thinks I'm a romantic!"
"A romantic?"
Jared nodded then said with more conviction. "He's right. I believe in love." He made eye contact, "Not that that's for public consumption. In our neck of the woods you don't go around revealing what could be seen as a weak spot?"
"A weak?"
"Yes. You don't wear your feelings on your sleeve. Survival is tough enough without putting your heart on the line!" But before they took this any further he needed her to know what she was taking on. "Caitlin," He dragged in a lungful of air, "Caitlin I want to marry you. But you need to know what I bring to the table."
She blinked. That was the last thing she had been expecting. "I know you had a rough childhood." Caitlin said quietly. She'd heard a few stories and none of them sounded as if his childhood was a bed of roses. And she remembered their conversation on that one date. "I know that Doug and his brother, and your half-sister are your family. You'd do anything for them. I've heard bits, from other people. Your childhood wasn't easy."
He nodded. "Guess that's one way to describe it."
"How would you describe it?"
"Let's just say that parental role models were in short supply." He poked his tongue in his cheek, considered how to explain that for as long as he could remember, the closest thing he had to family was Doug. He looked at her, "I know it's not the same, as your situation, having no mother around." He reached forward and gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze. "Your father has done an amazing job. Bringing up you and your sister, on his own. I can't begin to understand how tough that must have been. The day your mother was killed must have turned your childhood world on its head." Caitlin nodded. "My mother was alive during my childhood. But that's about all I can say about her. Doug and I were fending for ourselves, and his brother and my sister for most of our school years. Not that any of us spent much time in school." He took a breath. "I want you to know what you'll be getting. I bring no familiarity or knowledge of having experienced good parenting. No familiarity with having a father, let alone what having a good father in your life feels like. I bring no experience of happy families. But I swear I will do everything to make you happy, to provide a good, safe, loving home for our children. I want you to know I..."
It was then that Caitlin genuinely believed that Jared thought he carried an emotion deficit. "Jared! Families aren't always blood related." She interrupted, and leaned forward to place a finger against his lips, "You and Doug are brothers. Sometimes I see the way you two interact and it reminds me of how I am with Georgia." She looked earnestly at him. "You know what family looks like. What it feels like. You and Doug are family. You are protective of each other. You rely on each other. That's family." She smiled as she added, "My dad is a good judge of character. Even if he can be really annoying at times!" She sighed. "He would never have brought me to your doorstep if he didn't trust you to look after me." She added softly, "Georgia and I, and now Sophie and Elias are his heart. He'd never place that in your hands unless he believed you'd take good care of what he considers precious." Caitlin looked over at him and said, "I've never met anyone who understands me as well as you do, and who despite that, loves me!" She told him. She hadn't realized until a few moments ago just how vulnerable Jared was. He genuinely did not believe he came to her as an equal.
Jared blinked as he felt his eyes smart with tears. He felt emotional. She was about make him even more emotional. But before either of them could say anything, the phone rang. Again.
Caitlin looked across at the phone by the bedside. "Your phone always this busy?" When he still did not move, she said, "Aren't you going to get it?" She hoped it wasn't another of his grand plans for people to know she was here! "It had better not be a backup plan!"
Jared grinned at her and reached for the handset. "Jared." He straightened when the voice at the other end registered. "Yes. Right here. Hang on." He handed Caitlin the phone and she could see from his eyes and hear it in his tone that he was concerned. "Your father!"
Caitlin took the phone. It had been a lot longer than ten minutes, so if he had hung around all this time he'd be freezing. That worried her. She should have checked to see that he had gone home.
"Dad? I thought..." Caitlin's eyes went wide as her father interrupted her. "She has?" Caitlin scrambled forward. "Yes. Yes. Meet you there." Her feet hit the bare floorboards, "No. I can get a taxi. It will take you as long to get here as it would take me to get there." She was talking as she moved. She paused. "Yes. Yes Dad!" She scowled at the phone. Then before she forgot she asked, "Can you bring me some clothes? Jeans. Sweatshirt? Yes. Ok." She nodded as if he was in the room and she was conveying her agreement, "See you soon. Bye dad."
Jared looked worried.
She gave Jared the handset as she said, "Georgia's gone into labour!"
"Oh?" He blinked. So that's why she was at the dance and her sister and her brother in law weren't.
"I've got to get to the hospital. I'm her hand scruncher!"
"Hand scruncher?"
Caitlin was tempted to laugh at is puzzled expression. "Never mind. I'll explain later. I need to get going. Can you order a taxi."
"I'll take you." Jared countered instantly.
"You don't have to. I can just as easily take a taxi..."
Jared had already pulled on his shirt. "I'll drive you. Stop arguing Cait. Come on."
"Are you sure?" She shook her head, "I don't want to put you out."
"You aren't." He smiled " Now come on. Unless you want your sister to go through this without you there."
"The last time she took ages!" Caitlin muttered. "Once again, way too early! She's a doctor, you'd think she'd know how far along with her labour she should be before going in to hospital!"
"Is your niece with them?"
"No she's with Eli's parents. Georgia went into hospital a few hours ago apparently." She smiled, "Elias has only just phoned dad as they've been trying to get me on my mobile. Then phoned dad, and he tried my mobile and when that went to voicemail he figured he'd just phone your landline." Jared and Caitlin wondered whether that would have led to a misleading conclusion. "We'd better get going." Caitlin said.
They arrived at the hospital some twenty minutes later, and Caitlin asked Jared to come in with her, he did. They found Jacinto waiting in the family room, just down from the birthing room. He smiled when he saw Caitlin and as she approached he held out the bag of clothes he'd brought for her. While Caitlin went in search of a ladies washroom to change out of her long evening gown and into her jeans, sweatshirt and flat shoes, Jared and Jacinto settled into the surprisingly comfortable seats in the waiting room.
Jacinto wasn't sure it was good form to ask Jared how the evening had gone! Jared wasn't sure whether it was good form to tell Jacinto that he and Caitlin were getting married, before Caitlin said it was ok for him to do so. So for a few seconds they sat in silence.
"How's your daughter doing?" Jared eventually asked.
"Who? Georgia?" Jacinto figured Jared wasn't asking about Caitlin but he felt inclined to tease.
Jared nodded. "Cait said she's in early stages of her labour."
"Typical Georgia really!" Jacinto grinned. "Always gets to places early! Over compensates. So, yes, early stages apparently. Haven't the faintest idea how long we'll be waiting here this time!" he looked closely at Jared, "You plan on keeping us company?"
Jared nodded. "Caitlin asked me to come."
"Good! Good!" Jacinto smiled happily. He coughed, feeling slightly ludicrous, "Erh, you and Cait ironed things out?"
It was Jared's turn to smile happily. "The important stuff. Yes."
"Good! Good!" Jacinto's smile grew. Then he patted Jared's shoulder, "She'll keep you on your toes!" Jacinto looked down the hall, expecting to see Caitlin return any second now. "Guess you've already figured that out!"
Jared chuckled.
"But she's also one in a million. And I would not want to see her with a man who did not love, respect and cherish her." Jacinto added more softly.
Jared looked Jacinto straight in the eyes and his own eyes showed he was serious when Jared said, "I know I haven't given you much cause to believe that she's the most important person in my life. And I imagine you know about my rather colourful family history, which isn't exactly..."
Jacinto's hand on Jared's shoulder gave him a gentle squeeze as he said, "I trust my daughter's judgment. She loves you. That's all I need to know. That and that you love her."
Jared nodded. "I love her."
Jacinto smiled. "Good, because you're going to have to remember that when she's having a strop!" Jacinto told Jared before he burst out laughing. "Cait knows how to have a strop!" And much to Jared's surprise and delight, Jacinto began to share anecdotes that involved Caitlin.