CHAPTER 25 #2
He looked maddeningly good. Effortless. Confident. The kind of handsome that made her stomach dip. Beth expected to feel uncomfortable with how easily her eyes drank him in…but she didn’t.
That, more than anything, rattled her.
“How did she get your number?”
Bryce shrugged. “No clue.”
“You ready?” he asked.
Beth hesitated. “Actually… can we talk for a sec?”
Bryce gave a playful groan. “That’s never a comforting phrase coming from a woman.”
Beth rolled her eyes but smiled. “It’s nothing bad.
I’m nervous about the unknown of people at work finding out we’re married and want to have a plan in place for when questions come up.
So I don’t feel taken off guard or put on the spot like last Sunday.
And now I know people are going to assume things, I don’t want to lie, but it’s not like we can tell them the truth. ”
“And we can’t tell them the truth why?”
“Bryce, I’m serious. Just thinking about what people might ask has had my stomach in knots all week.”
“Do you really want to know what I think?”
“Uh, I think so?” Beth said hesitantly.
“Sweetheart, I think most of your stress comes from trying to find a narrative to spin the fact that you got married without admitting how we got married. Like you have to find the one perfect way of telling people that tiptoes around the line of honesty.”
He paused, then continued, “You don’t have to tell people anything.
You can tell people we wanted to keep our relationship quiet because of the gossip mill.
They should get it. Or tell them the truth: three years of pent-up attraction for one another led us to the altar.
Darlin’, tell them it took two drinks for me to convince you to marry me. ”
“I think it took four,” Beth interrupted with a smile.
“Well shoot, I must not be as charming as I think I am.”
“You’re really not,” Beth quipped.
Bryce moved to sit next to her on the edge of the bed.
“I’m going to pretend you didn’t say that.” He winked. “I get why you’re not eager to tell people we got drunk and married. But trying to find ways to hide it or gloss over what happened—or borderline lies—is just trying to cover up a sin Christ has already wiped clean.”
With his knuckle, Bryce brushed away the tear that slipped down Beth’s cheek.
“You don’t have to hide. We don’t have to hide.
Sunday—the way you were treated—would make anyone want to hide.
But Christ tells us to bring our brokenness to Him.
He doesn’t want us to sweep it under the rug, hide our mistakes to save face with others, or worst of all, convince ourselves that if people really knew us or our struggles, that it would somehow weaken our witness as Christians.
God’s character—who He is—is not reliant in any shape or form on our actions.
He’s plenty strong enough to handle our mistakes. Rely on His strength.”
Beth exhaled, the weight of his words still pressing gently on her heart.
Then, in an effort to lighten the mood, she teased, “Thank you, Pastor Bryce, for that heavy sermon.”
Smiling tenderly, Bryce leaned in and pressed his lips to the stitches along her hairline—absently noting they would need to come out soon.
“One last thing?” At Beth’s nod, he continued.
“You look at our marriage—at me, to an extent—and feel shame and wonder how you could have done something so foolish.”
Beth lowered her gaze as the truth of his words registered.
“I look at our marriage—and you—and feel an overwhelming sense of gratitude that the miracle God used to bring me back to Him…” Tilting her chin up so she would look at him, he finished softly, “… was you.”
He winked. “And tequila.”
Overwhelmed, Beth let out a long sigh and rested her head against his shoulder.
After a few moments, Bryce’s next words were spoken softly in a low, sultry tone.
“As much as I would love to spend all day in bed with you…” He kissed the top of her head. “… and believe me, I would. If you don’t want to be late for work, we’d better get going.”
“OH!” Beth exclaimed as she bolted off the bed, having lost all track of time. “Aaaand he’s back.”
Laughing, she grabbed his hand and started toward the elevator, making sure she had everything she needed.
On the ride down, she told him she wanted to get married at her parents’ house.
“On the porch swing?” Bryce deadpanned.
She gave him a teasing look. “Obviously that’s where the reception will be. The ceremony would be in the yard.”
Bryce turned his head to look at her and hesitated, wondering if this was just because she was still struggling with embarrassment.
Beth blinked. “It’s something I’ve always wanted.”
“Well… in that case.” He leaned his head back. “What do you think about June 29th?”
Beth nodded, quickly thinking through everything. “If we do it in the backyard… simple, pretty. Cater some food. Email or text the invitations instead of mailing them… I think that would work.”
“I see I underplayed my hand with that one. I didn’t think you would agree,” Bryce said, sliding into the driver’s seat.
“What does that mean?”
He reached for her hand, drawing it to his lips. “It means, my love, I should have asked for June 1st.”
The rest of the week unfolded in a blur. She had worked herself up for nothing. The ER was its usual blur of chaos—too fast-paced for anything beyond clipped conversations and interrupted thoughts.
There was gossip, sure. There always was. But if anyone whispered about her and Bryce, Beth didn’t catch it.
Still, she was hyper-aware of how close they stood, how long they held eye contact, the way his voice dipped when he said her name.
Bryce, meanwhile, seemed to move through the week like nothing had changed—steady, focused, and just flirty enough to make the nurses giggle behind their clipboards.
Once, she glanced up from charting just in time to catch him wink as he passed the nurse’s station. Tasha, walking by, followed Beth’s gaze and gave a slow, knowing “hmm” before vanishing down the hall.
Beth stared a minute and went back to her paperwork.
Evenings were spent packing up her old apartment, sorting boxes, and preparing for Kim to drop off the keys on Monday. It was bittersweet, but they made the most of it. One final free pizza from Kim’s not-so-secret admirer sealed the goodbye.
Before she knew it, Friday had ended.
Tomorrow, her family would arrive.
Then she’d be shopping for a wedding dress.
As she drifted to sleep between the soft sheets, she asked God to help her remember that what started as one mistake was also one huge blessing.