The Pioneer Woman by Ree Drummond Read Free Book Online Page B

Sorry.” My mouth could form no words beyond that.
    I expected a sudden change in atmosphere, absolutely certain the words old boyfriend would cause a drastic drop in ambient temperature and Marlboro Man would simply say good-bye, get in his pickup, and drive away. And he would have had good reason. After all, he really hadn’t known me very long. Beyond some good conversation and a few fiery kisses, he didn’t know much about me. It would have been easy for him to put up his guard and step back until he had a little time to assess the situation.
    Instead, he wrapped his solid arms around my waist and picked me up off the ground, healing the awkward moment with a warm, reassuring hug. Then, touching his forehead to mine, he said, simply, “Good night.”
    I climbed back into my car just in time to watch Marlboro Man drive away. Pulling out onto the highway, I took a deep breath and sighed…then I picked up my still-ringing phone. It was J, calling from a depressing airport hotel to say he was crushed, and that he’d brought a ring—and a marriage proposal—with him.
    I’d suspected this. He’d been so urgent about wanting to see me when he arrived earlier that day, I knew he must have had a concrete objectivein mind. In that sense, I was glad I hadn’t given in to his requests for me to come to the airport to see him in person. It would have been terrible: an awkward hug, limited eye contact, the presentation of the Last-Ditch Diamond, the uncomfortable silence, the inevitable no, the tears, humiliation, and pain.
    â€œI’m sorry,” I said after spending the next forty-five minutes listening to J say everything he wanted to say. “I really am. I hate that today happened like it did.”
    â€œI just wanted to see you,” J replied. “I think you would have changed your mind.”
    â€œWhy do you think that?” I asked.
    â€œI think once you saw the ring, you would have realized everything we could have had together.”
    I didn’t say what I was thinking. That, in fact, I would have seen the ring for what it was: a tangible, albeit expensive, symbol of the panic J felt at the prospect of facing change. We’d been so comfortable with each other for so long. I’d always been so available to him, so easy for him to be with—losing me would mean the end of that source of comfort.
    â€œI’m sorry, J,” I repeated. It was simply all I could say. He hung up without responding.
    My phone didn’t ring the rest of the night. When I arrived back at my parents’ house, I fell onto my bed, collapsing in an exhausted heap. Staring at my dark ceiling, I twiddled my hair and found myself, strangely, unable to sleep. Thoughts raced through my mind—of my beloved Puggy Sue—that she wouldn’t be greeting me with a playful bark the next morning. Of J—that he was hurting. Of our relationship, which was finally, after so many years, over for good. Of Chicago and all I had left to do to prepare for my move.
    Of Marlboro Man…
    Marlboro Man…
    Marlboro Man…
    I awoke early the next morning to the sound of my phone ringing. My phone had rung so much over the past twenty-four hours, I wasn’t sure whether to welcome it or run screaming from my bedroom. Groggy, eyes closed, I felt around in the dark until my hand found the receiver. Rubbing my eyes in an effort to awaken myself, I said, softly and with great trepidation, “Hello?”
    â€œYou’re not asleep, are you?” Marlboro Man said with his signature chuckle.
    I opened my eyes and smiled.

Chapter Five
BEGONE, DESTINY!
    T HE WEEK following the grisly driveway death of Puggy Sue, the ill-fated surprise visit from J, and my colossal meltdown in Marlboro Man’s kitchen was marked by intermittent are-you-sure-it’s-over phone calls from J and nightly dates with my new boyfriend. Each moment I spent with him was more wonderful than