Married 7

EPISODE 7
Even if the heavenly trumpet sounded three times in a row, Jessica was certain that Andy would not have heard anything. He seemed to be glued to the place he was standing beside his father, as he gazed with disbelief in his eyes. Her normally bold personality instantly became self-conscious as she fidgeted beneath his gaze, which was penetrating, despite the distance. The dress she had on was totally modest and good for the occasion which was nothing spectacular other than meet her father-in-law whom she should have met a long time ago. That fact alone made the occasion more spectacular to her in an odd kind of way.
She was putting on a short gown for the first time in a very long time. The short gown was slightly above her knees, though it was not the clinging type; it was sleeveless which left her shoulders and hands bare. She suddenly felt exposed as Andy’s eyes bore into her. Noticing that they had been staring at each other for some time, she quickly moved forward, and notice d the elderly man which was clearly Andy’s father, was looking at them with amused curiosity. Great! And the evening is yet to begin! That Andy got his height and good looks from his father was not to be denied. The man was still very attractive at his age. Andy looked a bit different from him facially and Andy wondered what his mum looked like.
“Sir”, she moved forward quickly, not knowing the proper way of greeting one’s father-in-law.
“Good evening dad” she bent to kneel down but the man held her back.
“C’mon, give your father-in-law a hug” he pulled her into his arms, enveloping her in a bear-like hug and Jessica remembered her father.
“I am so sorry sir” she said as she pulled away. “I feel like I have done something terribly wrong. We never should have gotten married without your esteemed presence” she hurriedly said. “I told Andy severally that we should wait for some time until you are back from your trip before we get married but he refused” Andy was still lost in trance and it bothered Jessica as she was trying her best to cover up.
“Do I blame him? He is a William; we grab opportunities when we see them. Frankly, if I were in his shoes, I would want to take you off the market as soon as possible because you are a rare commodity”
Mr. William was making her look like a product which was for sale but the funny thing is that she did not feel insulted, in fact, she felt flattered.
“I always wondered where Andy got his good look s from, now I know” she smiled.
The man adjusted slightly, seeming pleased with the compliment. “Well, he is a combination of his mum and I, he is one selfish boy, right?”
Referring to Andy as a boy was strange to Jessica’s ears. Andy was not doing anything to help her and she didn’t know if they would be able pull this farce through if he continued to gap at her like a deaf mute. “Yes sir, he can be so selfish” she nudged Andy with her leg.
“Yes, tap him, he seems to be lost in cloud nine” His father said. Jessica hadn’t thought that her father-in-law saw her. The man’s eyes seemed very alert and that alone unnerved her.
She smiled nervously. “He is always like this when I put on this gown, I don’t know why” she shrugged with a strained smile.
The man laughed. “Then make sure you put it on when there is a quarrel, it might save you the stress of apologizing.” Jessica laughed and was relieved when Andy seemed to be back in their midst.
“Come daughter” Andy’s dad put his hand around Jessica’s shoulders as he walked inside, leaving Andy to tag along. “Tell me about yourself”. Jessica noted with alarming clarity that she would be dealing with her temporary father-in-law by herself.
*****
Andy had never been so shocked in his entire life. Jessica had landed him a heavy blow which knocked away his senses. When the door had opened, he had had a mental picture of what he was expecting. He had expected a lady in a long oversized gown with long hands; never in his wildest imagination did he think that she would appear the way she did. It had taken a few seconds to fully accept the fact that he was staring at Jessica.
Her skin glowed under the evening light, everything about her was different. Her hair was not packed the way she used to; she packed half of the hair at the front, leaving the ones at the back to fall of their own accord. The length of the hair was more pronounced and the rich black colour called him to have a touch. Her shoulders and hands were bare before his prying eyes and it glowed like she had just moisturized them. The smoothness was so obvious and it took so much effort to take his eyes off them. He shuddered when he stared at her body. He wondered how she could effectively hide all she had beneath those God-forsaken clothes. Her waist was even slimmer than he had been imagining for weeks, he was sure that his two big hands would circle her waist perfectly. He swallowed hard, blocking his mind to the battle that was going on in him. His eyes skimmed her slim long legs till he got to her feet and almost groaned. It was too much to take in. He always knew she had a very beautiful face but now, it was striking even though she had no makeup or jewelry on. As she talked with his father, he heard nothing as he gazed at her with amazement. She was smiling widely. He couldn’t pinpoint when she ever smiled, apart from the time he had seen her at the beach with that slim guy. He was angry that she was not smiling at him, and that he was not the cause of her laughter.
To be continued