Consequences

own amazement, she really did love him! She couldn’t contain her smile; this revelation was so astounding!
    Claire wrapped herself in a thick long robe and walked downstairs to the dining room. As she approached, the rich poignant aroma of fresh coffee filled her lungs and brought her senses to life. Jan had coffee warm and ready for Claire. Tony wasn’t there either. “Mr. Rawlings is in his office, Ms. Claire. And if I may? Congratulations.”
    “Thank you, Jan. I’m sorry you have to work on Thanksgiving,” Claire offered as Jan poured her coffee.
    “It is all right, miss. I am looking forward to having guests this afternoon for dinner. We rarely entertain here.”
    “Guests? I am sorry. If Mr. Rawlings mentioned guests, with the excitement of our engagement, I’ve forgotten. Do you remember who is joining us for Thanksgiving dinner?”
    “I am sorry. I don’t believe he told me names. I know there will be two, and they are scheduled to arrive at one thirty.”
    Jan convinced Claire to eat an English muffin and grapefruit. After breakfast, Claire went to Tony’s office. She could hear him speaking behind the closed door. She may be his fiancée, but interrupting him uninvited in his office didn’t seem like a good idea. Perhaps some rules would change, but she decided that he would choose which ones. She went back to their bedroom, showered, and thought about how glad she was she’d bought new clothes. If she needed to be the perfect companion for some business associates, she felt better in well-fitting clothes. She decided on a black pair of wool slacks and a pink knit sweater that came from Neiman Marcus. The black boots had high heels, Tony wouldn’t seem as tall. Dreamily, she thought about fuzzy socks and her new hoodie—being Mrs. Rawlings would teach her to keep up appearances. Actually, being Claire Nichols had taught her that.
    As she straightened her hair, she marveled at the new even lighter shade. The auburn showed through enough to be considered low lights, but she was definitely a caramel blonde now. Although Catherine packed many pieces of Claire’s new jewelry, she wanted to wear her grandmother’s necklace and the O earrings Tony brought her from Europe. She shook her head; that seemed so long ago. Once she was completely dressed, she relaxed on the bed and let her mind wander.
    Internal monologue: I’m going to marry Tony. I’m going to marry Tony in four weeks. I need a wedding dress. I need to call Emily. There were guests coming to dinner. Perhaps after dinner I can approach the Emily subject with Tony. Where will we marry? Who will we invite? Suddenly, a nice destination wedding anywhere seemed like a good idea.
    Then her mind went from the wedding to Thanksgiving. She could hardly believe it truly was Thanksgiving. She’d arrived at Tony’s house on March 20. Now she’d be eating Thanksgiving dinner with him and some associates and planning her wedding. She imagined drowning in chocolate sauce, too much of a good thing!
    As a means of escape she let her mind float to childhood Thanksgivings. They usually went to her grandparents’ home, where Grandma made all the traditional foods. She remembered helping her grandma and mother bake pies. At Thanksgiving they usually had pumpkin, apple, and sometimes pecan pie, and always too much food. Even when she lived with Emily and John she baked pies and helped Emily with cooking. Part of her wanted to go down to the kitchen and offer to help. But she knew that wouldn’t be appropriate.
    She was somewhere deep in her memories when Tony entered the bedroom. He wore slacks and a burgundy ribbed turtleneck sweater which looked wonderful stretched across his broad shoulders and chest. He wore suits so often. Claire liked seeing him in something other than a jacket and tie. He smiled and joined her. “Good morning, my fiancée.” He kissed her lips. “How are you feeling today?”
    Claire propped herself up. “Good morning, to my fiancé, I feel well. I was just thinking about Thanksgivings when I was young. Did you eat all the traditional Thanksgiving foods when you were young?”
    He sat next to her on the edge of the bed. “Claire, don’t talk about the past. We have a future ahead of us, let’s look ahead.”
    “I’m sorry, I guess I’m reminiscing.” She touched his arm. “Tony? Who is coming to dinner?”
    “First, let me tell you . . .” his voice was brimming with excitement, “I have been on the