“It’s your family Mel.”
“Which you’re a part of, as both you and they very well know. So were you using your trick shots to pick up girls again?”
“Naturally, plus using the fact that I know the two hottest pool players in the world. Including the newest winner of the Champs Tournament.”
“Shh, I have a reputation to protect Tate,” she said in a stage whisper to him.
“You just want to win the tourney here. They’re not going to know what hit them Mel,” he grinned at her.
Their class had set up a pool tournament to raise money for the senior trip, prom, and graduation activities and she was determined to show the others a thing or two. First, she had to get through Alana’s wedding and the next two weeks of school.
The wedding was beautiful, though she preferred her and Jordan’s ceremony to the crowded and rigid schedule of Alana’s. Her favorite part was finding Jordan’s gaze on her throughout most of it, and she didn’t care if it was for show because it made her heart flutter. The reception was elaborate, and she enjoyed dancing with Grant and Jake but mostly she enjoyed being in Jordan’s arms.
People were surprised to learn they were married but much as Jordan had predicted no one said a word about it. He introduced her to several people he knew, including one of the engineering professors at the college in town.
“Mel, this is Dwight Myers. He’s the associate dean with the engineering department. Dwight, my wife Melinda,” he said shaking the other man’s hand.
“The rumors are true then,” Dwight said with a warm smile. “I heard you’d married a beauty, but I’ve also heard she had brains too.”
“She does,” Jordan agreed.
“Ford mentioned that you’re looking into colleges. What sort of career are you interested in?” Dwight asked.
“I haven’t fully decided. I already have my application to Whitmore ready to go, I’m just trying to narrow down the field.”
“I think she should go for engineering personally, throw in an architectural degree too that way no one can steal her from me,” Jordan stated hugging her to his side. “Mel was the one who brought up the structural deficiencies with the load capacity of Tracks’ new structure, after I’d stolen her from him and she learned that I wasn’t just a dummy with a construction company.”
“I’d say Whitmore would be lucky to have you then; have you taken the SAT and gotten your scores?” Dwight asked.
“I have,” she admitted.
“You have?” Jordan asked surprised.
“I wanted to celebrate them later, with everything that’s gone on this week I figured they deserved their own night,” she explained to him.
“Do you mind me asking what they were?” Dwight inquired.
“Fifteen-fifty,” she answered from behind her water glass.
“Mel that’s amazing,” Jordan stated brightly before dropping a kiss on her surprised lips.
“It is, you should stop by the campus, and I’ll give you a tour. Unless you’d rather do it Jordan,” he said with a smile.
“Actually you should take Tate with you,” Jordan suggested. “Maybe you could convince him to go for a degree in the field as well.”
“Tate?” Dwight asked.
“My best friend, we call him Tate most others call him Tatum,” she explained. “He helped out this summer on one of the construction teams and he surprised Jordan by being so brilliant.”
“Give me a call and we’ll set something up; I’m sure your school will let you out for an afternoon…what?” he said as the two of them smiled.
“I do work study in the afternoons; I run the office for Jordan’s company.”
“Ah…still, give me a call. It was nice seeing you again Jordan, take care,” he said shaking their hands before heading off into the crowd.
“So what should we do to celebrate your brilliant test scores?” Jordan inquired once they were alone.
“I don’t know; I’m sure we’ll think of something.”
