That's Amore! - Janelle Denison [25]
Nick barked out a laugh. "Are you out of your flippin' mind?"
The question startled Jason, mainly because he wasn't sure if his friend meant his comment in a good or bad way. "Maybe I am," he muttered.
"We started this Internet design business together, in the small spare room in your first apartment and we built it into the successful company it is today. The two of us, Jason," Nick said adamantly. "We're partners, and the fact that you're getting married and moving to Maui isn't going to change that."
Jason's relief was profound. "I wasn't sure how you'd feel about not having daily contact."
"That's what a phone is for, and a fax, and e-mail—"
Jason held up a hand, laughing. "I get your point."
"Good, because the beauty of our Internet business is that location isn't an issue. All we need is a computer. Besides, here in Hawaii, you can tap into a whole new territory we haven't even begun to cover yet."
Jason agreed the potential to grow and expand their company's net worth was huge, and it was exciting to think they'd have that chance.
Now that he'd settled business with Nick, Jason had one more thing left to do before he married Leila tomorrow, to secure his future with her and to convince her parents of his sincerity when it came to their daughter's welfare.
Unfortunately, he didn't think that Nyla and Keneke would be as easy to persuade as Nick had just been.
"DON'T YOU KNOW you're not supposed to see the bride before the wedding? It's bad luck."
As soon as Leila heard her mother's biting remark to the person who'd knocked on the door of her parents' house, she knew the visitor was Jason. Her first instinct was to rush out and see him, to smooth over her mother's less than pleasant greeting to the man who was going to become her husband in a few short hours. But she was standing in the back bedroom wearing just a white, lacy slip, and her mother's comment about seeing the bride before the wedding kept her rooted to the spot.
"Don't worry, I didn't come by to see Leila," she heard Jason tell her mother. "I'm here to speak to you and Keneke. What I have to say shouldn't take long."
That certainly grabbed Leila's attention and aroused her curiosity. It also brought on a swell of apprehension that made her insides twist into a huge, gigantic knot of anxiety.
It was obvious that Jason thought she was down at the cottage getting ready for the wedding, when in fact she'd spent the past few hours with her mother up at the house. She'd needed her mother's help to style her long hair into a softly-curled top knot. But there had been an emotional price to pay for her mother's assistance, since Nyla had taken advantage of their time alone together to ask her if she was certain that marrying Jason was what she truly wanted, and to make sure Leila knew that it wasn't too late to change her mind, despite the baby.
Angered that her mother would still be so uncaring, Leila made it very clear that she wasn't backing out of the wedding. She'd also made it painfully clear that if she was forced to make a choice between marrying Jason, or pleasing her parents, Nyla wouldn't be happy with her decision.
And now, on the heels of that heated conversation, Jason was here to speak to her mother and father, less than two hours before the ceremony. For all she knew, Jason had decided dealing with her parents and their attitude toward him wasn't worth the effort, and he was here to issue them an ultimatum.
Her stomach churned with dread, and she took deep breaths to calm her jittery nerves. Moments before Jason had arrived she'd been just about to leave to meet up with her maid-of-honor and bridesmaids, but she wasn't going anywhere until she heard what Jason had to say.
"You know I love Leila, and while I'm well aware of the fact that I'm not what you expected for your daughter, I want this marriage to work, in every way," Jason began,