After Eight Years, I Said Yes to Another

Tedd was an absolute master at playing the perfect boyfriend. He remembered every anniversary, never hid me on social media, and introduced me to everyone as his future wife.

Yet when it came to actually marrying me, he invented endless excuses to stall. His startup lacked stability, his mothers health was failing, our dream venue was booked, or the stars were not aligned.

I waited eight years, from twenty-four to thirty-two.

At my best friends wedding reception, the DJ called out the couple who had been together the longest. The room erupted as everyone pushed us onto the dance floor.

A groomsman handed Tedd the microphone. "Come on man, make her a real promise right here in front of everyone!"

Tedd gazed at me, his eyes impossibly soft. "I promise I will spend the rest of my life taking care of her."

It was the same line again. Taking care of me. Providing for me. Never doing me wrong. He had repackaged that promise for eight years, expertly dodging the word marriage.

Later, still laughing with his fraternity brothers, Tedd boasted, "Oh, I spoil the missus rotten. She has me wrapped around her finger."

I calmly picked up a glass of champagne, walked onto the stage, and tapped the microphone.

"Just a quick heads up. I am getting married next month on the sixteenth. Every single one of you is invited, and I fully expect a gift."

Tedd froze, his glass hovering in midair. Red wine sloshed over the rim, soaking his crisp white dress shirt.

From the crowd, someone shouted, asking who the lucky groom was.

I stared directly into Tedds eyes, enunciating every syllable.

"A man who only needed three days to ask me to be his wife."

"Jenna, are you insane?"

Tedd's expensive leather shoes slammed against the concrete of the underground parking garage. The sharp echoes reached my ears before he did.

I didn't turn around. I pressed the button on my key fob twice. The taillights of my SUV flashed in the dim light.

He grabbed my wrist, his grip so tight my bones ached.

"My investors are upstairs right now. Do you have any idea what kind of stunt you just pulled in front of them?"

I looked down at his hand. His nails were perfectly manicured. The custom silver cufflinks at his wrists were the ones I bought him for his birthday last year. The front of his tailored shirt was stained with a massive, dark map of spilled wine.

The very first thing out of his mouth after chasing me down wasn't to ask why I did it. It was to remind me his business partners were upstairs.

"I know." I slowly lifted my head. "I was just making sure everyone saved the date for my wedding."

"Who exactly are you marrying?"

He let go of my wrist, taking a half step back. His voice carried this arrogant, absolute certainty, like he genuinely believed the entire concept was physically impossible.

I didn't answer him.

"Some guy you met three days ago? Jenna, listen to yourself." He let out a cold, sharp laugh. I knew that exact laugh. It was the condescending smirk he always used to shut down our arguments whenever I brought up a ring.

"Did Brian put you up to this?"

"This has absolutely nothing to do with Brian."

"She just eloped, and now she is dragging you down with her. Look at couples who rush into marriage. How many of them actually survive?" He shoved his hands into the pockets of his dress pants, tilting his chin up. His tone shifted into that familiar, patronizing lecture mode. "You need to calm down."

I pulled the car door open.

He slammed his hand flat against the door, leaning in close. His voice suddenly dropped into that velvety, gentle tone I had listened to for eight long years.

"What do you really want? Just tell me."

"Take a wild guess."

"You want to get married. Fine." He let out a heavy sigh, acting as if he was making the ultimate, agonizing sacrifice. "Once we close this Series B funding round, we will do it. By the end of the year at the latest. You have already waited eight years. A few more months will not kill you."

Eight years.

He actually said it out loud. His tone was totally flat, like he was reading the terms and conditions of a corporate lease.

"Tedd. The first time you told me not to rush, I had just celebrated my twenty fifth birthday."

I reached up to the sun visor, pulled out the prepaid gas card clipped there, and held it out to him.

"This is your card."

He didn't take it.

"The second time, you said we had to wait because your mom was sick. The third time, you said the country club did not have our dates available. I believed every single word. Then you claimed our astrological signs were clashing so we had to wait for the new year. I secretly booked a session with a psychic who read our charts. She said it was the perfect time to tie the knot. I just never told you."

"What exactly is your point?"

"Do you want to know the funniest part of all this?" I shoved the plastic gas card directly into the wine soaked breast pocket of his shirt. "Every single time you rejected me, you bought me a designer bag. Or booked a surprise trip to Aspen. You called that compensation."

"When have I ever rejected you?" His voice spiked, defensive and sharp. "I said the timing was not right."

"Eight years of bad timing."

"Jenna!" His voice bounced off the concrete pillars, echoing loudly. "Do you honestly think backing me into a corner like this is going to work? I am in the most critical stage of my funding round, and you are throwing a tantrum just because you are desperate for a ring?"

Desperate.

The word hung in the damp air of the garage, sharp and incredibly cruel.

He had never used a word that ugly before. In the past, he would just wrap his arms around me, kiss my forehead, and whisper 'Baby, do not rush, I am not going anywhere.' And I would slowly unclench my fists, telling myself to just hold on a little longer.

But for some reason, hearing him call me desperate actually made me let out a breath of relief.

"You are absolutely right." I slid into the driver's seat and buckled my seatbelt. "I am completely desperate to get married. That is exactly why I am marrying him."

The heavy car door slammed shut, cutting off the chill of the garage.

He slapped the glass window twice, his knuckles rapping hard against the tint. His voice was muffled from the outside.

"Cool off for a couple of days. Once you are thinking straight, we will sit down and talk."

I shifted into reverse. The SUV backed out smoothly.

In the rearview mirror, Tedd stood dead center in the empty parking spot. His hands were planted firmly on his hips, his chin tilted up.

It was the exact same posture he took after every single fight we ever had. He wasn't angry. He was just waiting. Waiting for me to turn the car around. Waiting for my inevitable apology text, saying I was sorry for making a scene.

As I drove up the ramp into the city lights, my phone buzzed in the cup holder.

"Text me when you are ready to be reasonable."

I didn't even open it.

"Hey Jenna, the buyer signed the paperwork. The condo title will be officially transferred next week."

Ben, my real estate agent, sounded perfectly crisp and professional over the phone.

"Perfect. Wire the final funds directly to my Chase account."

"Are you absolutely sure you do not want to reconsider? The property value is great, and since the deed is under two names, the other owner..."

"I do not need to reconsider."

I hung up the phone and stared at the calendar on my kitchen island. It had been exactly six days since Brian's wedding reception.

Six full days. Tedd had not called me once. He had not sent a single text.

He thought he was teaching me a lesson.

I thought the silence was a blessing.

I canceled the memberships we shared. I transferred my assets. I sat at the bank on Wednesday to close our joint checking account. The teller asked if I needed to notify the secondary account holder. I smiled and said no.

Brian helped me pack up the last of my things from the apartment, loading it all into a moving van in two trips. She squatted on the floor, taping up the final cardboard box, and looked up at me.

"Do you feel even a little bit of regret?"

"Brian, help me unscrew that coat rack."

She didn't ask again.

Day seven. Tedd's investor contracts were still sitting on my desk. Three thick binders, stamped and ready for the final signatures he needed. His assistant texted Brian, asking if 'Jenna could drop the files off at Mr. Rawlings's bachelor pad.'

I could have just paid a courier to do it.

But I wanted to walk this final mile myself.

His luxury apartment was on the thirty second floor. The hallway was lined with plush grey carpeting that swallowed my footsteps completely. I didn't hear the voices until I was standing right outside his heavy oak door.

He wasn't alone.

Valerie's voice slipped through the crack in the door. Her tone curled upward at the end, dripping with that perfectly calculated, flirty whine.

"Tedd, everyone at the office is gossiping about those flowers you bought me. You really need to clear those rumors up for me."

A man laughed. It wasn't Tedd.

"Clear what up? Are you really complaining about getting roses, Val?"

The room erupted into teasing laughter.

"Shut up, you guys are the worst." Valerie's voice was practically drowning in the attention.

Tedd didn't say a single word to stop it.

A few seconds later, another guy spoke up, his voice a bit raspy.

"So what is the game plan with Jenna? I got her wedding invitation in the mail. White cardstock, gold foil. It looked pretty damn legitimate."

Tedd finally spoke.

"Let her tire herself out."

Six words.

His tone was completely flat, like he was casually predicting the weather.

"I spoil her too much on a daily basis. This time, she needs to figure out on her own that throwing a tantrum is not going to magically get her what she wants."

Someone hesitated. "You do not think... this has anything to do with Valerie, right?"

Valerie let out a soft, breathy giggle, light as air.

"Oh, Tedd knows exactly what he is doing."

No one argued with her.

And absolutely no one defended me.

My mind flashed back to two years ago. A coworker had texted the company group chat saying, 'The boss's girlfriend is here,' attached to a blurry candid photo of me waiting in the lobby. That exact same afternoon, Tedd sent a mass email: 'Focus on your work. Gossip will not be tolerated.' The tone was absolute ice.

I had never stepped foot in his corporate office since that day.

But Valerie? How long had she been orbiting around him, playing these little games? Had he ever once told her to act like a professional?

Someone inside spoke up again.

"What does Jenna even bring to the table besides drama? She is not like Val. Val is sharp. She actually steps up when the company needs her."

I placed the stack of investor contracts quietly on the welcome mat.

My knees felt a little weak when I bent down.

I used my index finger to nudge the thick manila envelope right against the crack of the door.

The motion sensor lights in the hallway timed out, plunging the corridor into total darkness.

"Tedd, I think someone dropped something outside."

"Jenna, sweetheart, what on earth is going on with you two?"

Tedd's mother called me right as I was standing in the bridal boutique, trying on my second dress.

Her voice sounded a little hoarse.

"Tedd told me it was no big deal. When I pressed him, he claimed you two were just giving each other the silent treatment. But he moved back into his bachelor pad a week ago. Jenna, I am not taking sides, but please just tell me what happened."

"Mrs. Rawlings, it really is not a big deal. Please do not stress yourself out over it."

"If it is not a big deal, why did he move out? Did you have a massive blowout?"

I stared at my reflection in the floor to ceiling mirror. The delicate silk straps rested perfectly above my collarbones. The boutique's warm, golden lighting made everything look flawless.

"Mrs. Rawlings, the weather is getting cold. Please make sure you rest and stay warm. I will come visit you soon."

She fell silent for a few seconds.

"Jenna, are you trying to force his hand?"

My fingers froze against the silk fabric.

"I have no idea what you mean."

"Tedd has always been like this since he was a little boy. The harder you push him, the harder he pulls away. Just soften up a little. Reach out to him first and talk it out. You know he acts tough but has a soft heart."

Acts tough but has a soft heart.

For eight years, everyone used that exact phrase to excuse him. He remembered anniversaries, he showed me off online, he called me his wife, he threw elaborate birthday parties.

Everyone always told me I had won the absolute lottery with him.

But the girl who won the lottery had waited eight years and still couldn't get a wedding ring.

"I understand, Mrs. Rawlings."

I hung up the phone. Brian popped her head out from behind the velvet curtain.

"Was that his mom?"

I nodded.

"What did she say? Let me guess. Told you to apologize first because he is just 'stubborn but sweet'?"

"How did you know."

"Because that is exactly what she told you after your last fight. And the fight before that. The man messes up, but the woman has to stroke his ego to fix it. Classic."

Brian stepped out and helped me smooth the long, sweeping train of the dress.

"Ignore her. Dress number two is stunning. Do you want me to take a picture for the aesthetic?"

Before I could answer, my phone buzzed again.

Noah. Tedd's oldest frat brother.

"Hey, can we grab dinner tonight? Just me and you. I really want to talk."

I knew exactly why he was calling.

I said yes.

We met at an upscale sushi lounge. Noah sat across from me, ordering a carafe of hot sake, barely touching his spicy tuna roll.

"Look, do not be too hard on Tedd. He is genuinely stressed out of his mind. Closing this funding round is killing him."

I picked up a piece of sashimi with my chopsticks.

"Right."

"And about the marriage thing. It is not that he does not want to do it. You know his personality. He hates being backed into a corner. If you just give him a little more time..."

"Noah, when you met your wife, how long did it take you to propose?"

He blinked, caught completely off guard.

"Three months, I guess. We signed the papers at six months."

"Did you feel like you needed more time?"

"I... well, my situation was different."

"How was it different?"

He opened his mouth, but no sound came out.

I picked up the sake carafe and refilled his tiny ceramic cup.

"Do not stress yourself out trying to lie to me. Tedd sent you, didn't he?"

Noah rubbed the back of his neck, refusing to deny it.

"What were his exact words?"

Noah hesitated for two agonizing seconds.

"He said... he told me to talk some sense into you. He said you have been acting completely irrational lately."

Irrational.

I let out a soft laugh.

"What else did he say?"

"He said if push comes to shove, he will just marry you by the end of the year. He told me to tell you to stop making such a fuss."

Marry me by the end of the year.

Stop making a fuss.

That was Tedd's grand compromise. He genuinely believed he was falling on his sword, making the ultimate sacrifice by throwing out a vague end of year timeline.

But the way he said it. The way he used Noah as a messenger boy. The fact that he was too arrogant to even dial my number himself. It all pointed to the exact same truth.

He didn't want to marry me. He just wanted me to sit down and be quiet.

"Noah, do me a favor. Tell him I said thank you."

"Wait, so does that mean you are..."

"It means you need to drink that sake for me. I am cutting out alcohol."

He stopped with the cup halfway to his mouth.

"Jenna, who the hell are you actually marrying?"

"You will find out soon enough."