"Dude, if he thinks it's weird, you have my permission to dump him."

After work, I start planning. Phillip planned all that stuff for our engagement, and I think this will be my little engagement gift to him.

A series of naughty events.

A little trip down memory lane of my own.

I wish wedding planning was this fun.

We can't do it all in one night, so I think it'll be a weeklong event.

I'm going to have fun with this. Okay, let's brainstorm. We'll do the baseball field. Maybe the swings at the elementary school. Camping in a little tent. His mother's kitchen island. And maybe it would be fun to have a prom night redo. The same room, the hot tub. Hmmm.

My phone chimes. There's an email offering me last minute deals on airfare. I click through it and see Cancun on the list.

OMG!! That's it.

It's like fate!

I call Phillip and tell him he's mine every night next week and not to make any weekend plans.

He's like, "Why?"

And I'm like, "Maybe I have a few surprises of my own."

My phone vibrates with another text from Danny.

Danny :)  Done with practice. Guys LOVE your idea and think a hot nurse bridesmaid is in order.

I book flights to Cancun and make reservations at the resort where we stayed for Danny and Lori's wedding. The lowest point in my relationship with Phillip. Time to make some happy memories there. Oh, I hope he likes this!!!

Vibrate.

Danny :)  And a dirty cop. They also think if all women would plan XXX weddings, guys would be much more excited about the planning process. You might be on to something.

I ignore Danny's text because I need to finish planning. I grab my purse and head out to my car. I'm gonna run to the sporting goods store and find a little baseball shirt, and then I'm gonna hit Victoria's Secret for one of those bombshell bras. I think that should give me the look Danny had in mind.

I'm running late to meet Phillip. We're going out for a nice dinner, and then we're meeting some friends at the bar.

Danny calls me. "What are you doing? Why aren't you replying to my brilliant texts?"

"Your XXX wedding ideas are brilliant, and I appreciate your help. And I didn't reply because I've been busy trying to plan naughty dream week. Phillip's gonna love it. I mean, I think he will. I hope so anyway. I'm taking him to Cancun next weekend! We're gonna have a Cancun redo! And right now, I'm rushing to meet Phillip for dinner."

"Let me guess, you're late as usual?"

"A bit. And I shouldn't be. It's our second date!"

"So, Jaybaby, speaking of dates, have you set one yet?"

"Oh my gosh, Danny, fuck off."

I hang up on him, but my phone immediately vibrates. He's calling me back.

I answer with, "Eff off, baby!"

I'm totally making fun of Danny, and he knows it. Since he started in the NFL, practically every other word out of his mouth is baby. Which is hilarious because even with all the girls Danny dated, he never called a girl that. He always remembered their names.

I hear a voice, a voice that is not Danny's, say, "Hello? Is this Jadyn Reynolds?"

"Uh, yes, this is her." Oh my gosh, who is this? Who the hell did I just tell to eff off??

"JJ, this is Pastor John. I was hoping to set up a time for us to get together and talk."

Oh. Shit.

I'm probably going to hell for this.

Can you get sent to hell for telling a pastor to fuck off?

"Uh, I'm sorry about that. I thought you were someone else. Um, Mrs. Mac said something about couple's counseling, but we aren't getting married for quite awhile, so there's really no rush."

"I'd still like to talk to you. Could you come see me tomorrow morning before the Husker game?"

I want to say no, but I feel like a little kid that's in trouble. It'd be like telling the principal, Sorry, I'm not going to your office. "Uh, sure."

"Great. See you then."

Pastor John is sitting behind his desk when I walk in. He stands up to greet me. Pastor John is about the same age as Mr. and Mrs. Mac. He's not that tall, but what he lacks for in height, he makes up for in attitude. He's really a great guy and makes going to church both fun and a learning experience. He baptized Phillip and I, taught our confirmation classes, took a group of us on a mission trip one summer, and was really nice when my parents died. I've known the man my whole life.

He hugs me and says, "So, you and Phillip are engaged."

"Yeah, you were at our engagement party," I say as I sit in one of the two blue checkered chairs in front of his desk.

He slides into the chair behind his desk. "I'm curious, did you say no on stage just for a dramatic effect?"

"Not really. I was thinking about saying no. I told him I was gonna say no."

"I wondered about that. His parents had told everyone he was asking you at dinner, and that when you came down, it meant you'd said yes. I noticed when he went up on stage with you that he put the ring on your finger. I thought he would've done that before."

"He did. I said yes at dinner, but I got mad at him when I figured out it was an engagement party."

"Why?"

"He had just agreed we wouldn't tell people yet."

"Why wouldn't you want to tell people such happy news?"

I roll my eyes at him. "Pastor, you know we got engaged on our first date. You've been marrying people for a long time, ever seen that?"

"Actually, no. That's part of why I wanted to talk with you. But first, tell me why you said yes."

"That's easy. I said yes because I love him."

Pastor nods.

"And you don't have to worry. We're not rushing into things. We're gonna have a very long engagement."

"I see," he says.

He seems frustratingly noncommittal. I thought he'd agree that's a good idea. "Do you think that's bad or something?"

"I'm not here to judge you, JJ."

"Then why am I here? Why did you wanna talk to me? I know getting engaged on your first date is a little unusual, but it'll be a great story to tell our kids someday."

"Would you want your children to do the same?"

"Well, no, but I've known Phillip my whole life. It's not like I just met him."

"Yes, but being friends with someone is different from being in a relationship with them."

I wanna say, Damn right, sex makes it a whole lot more fun, but I don't. I'm in church. And hell doesn't sound like much fun. I'm just saying.

He says, "I'll be honest with you. Phillip's parents are a little concerned about this."

"Are you serious? Mrs. Mac keeps pushing me to plan the wedding."

"It's not the planning part, or the fact that you're marrying their son. They love you. They're just a little worried that you've never dealt with your parents' death and are afraid it might affect your future with Phillip."

That comment sorta gets my panties in a wad, so I have a hard time keeping the smart ass out of my tone. "I dealt with it."

"If I recall, you refused counseling," he says with an equally snippy voice. "At least from me. Did you talk to someone that I don't know about?"