Romancing The Waitress

Three years later. "The city is in an uproar. Drew McBride, heir to the McBride Foods, finally appears." Britt Shelby, Anchor 24 Tv news reporter, nearly bounced on her chair. Her eyes shone with glee. "After three years of silence and absence." Maddie rolled her eyes. Oh the life of the rich. To have the whole world practically living on the things you did and didn't do. Who cared about a twenty-two year old young lady, who was waitressing to make needs met for herself and a sixty year old lazy scumbag, who was unfortunately her father? No one. But when an entitled, pompous, profligate millionaire walks into the city? Hold up everyone! The rapture was near. "Rumor has it that not even his uncle and cousin knew where he disappeared to after burying both parents." Kris, Britt's co-anchor, chipped in. "The question is why now?" To say the hot Blondie reporter was excited was an understatement. Bored, she turned off the TV and gulped down her soggy cereals. She shouted a goodbye to

Maddie was literally dead on her two feet. Andrea, one of the waitresses came down with flu that afternoon, and she had to substitute. Then Rache, the flighty blond that waitressed the night shift, had a "special dinner" with her boyfriend, and she couldn't cancel because she believed "he just might propose." Even though they had only been seeing each other for three weeks. In simple words, Maddie had been on her feet since seven in the morning. She was sweaty, tired, incapable of producing a sentence that consisted of more than four to five words, and had no patience for snotty customers — hence the reason why she had walked out on the voluptuous brunette who with a shrill voice had made her displeasure about their "soggy fries" and "too oily" hamburgers known. Times like this, she wished she had a social life. Even a teensy tiny one. But, alas, her life consisted of working to make ends meet, caring for her father, and taking college classes online. The good part is that she was

Stupid tears sliding down her nose bridge, Maddie knelt and stuffed her strewn clothes into the ratty suitcase that had been hers since she was sixteen. She swiped angrily at the tears. What was she? Five? She shouldn't be surprised by her father's actions. They shouldn't hurt her. And yet, here she was, tears and mucus running down her face. She didn't know which she mourned the most. The chance to fulfill her promise to her mother or the money — her savings — tucked under her bed. When the box couldn't contain any more clothes, she sat on the old box and forced the zipper close. She looked down at the remaining clothes that were left. Well, she wouldn't be needing these much clothes out in the streets. At the thought of having to live on the streets, the tears came rushing back. She sprang to her feet, pulled the box up to stand on its wheels and began to think of her options of a place to sleep this night. She wasn't really close to Andrea and Rache, plus she had no idea where

The coffee went down the wrong way and Maddie immediately choked. When Drew made to stand up, she shook her head. She shut her eyes and tried to bring her irritated throat under control. It seemed she was destined to die from mortification."Are you okay?" Drew asked when she didn't cough for a full minute."Yes." She whispered and cleared her throat. She pushed the offending cup of coffee away. "Did you just ask me to marry you?"His eyes held hers, unwavering. "Yes.""Why?" Panic clawed at her chest. "You don't know me for Christ sake." What game was he playing?"Calm down.""Don't tell me to calm down." She snapped. "Marriage is not something to entered into lightly. No matter how many people are doing exactly that. Marriage is…sacred.""Are you done?" He nodded at the half eaten sticky buns remaining on her plate. She nodded. She didn't think she could stomach any food right now."Let's go then."Go where? He must have read the question and fear in her eyes because he reached out

"Do you, Madeline Taylor, take Drew McBride to be your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and cherish and obey till death do you both part?” Judge Martins — who was unsurprisingly a friend of Drew's parents — looked up from the book of vows to smile at her.Maddie paused, looking into Drew's eyes. On the way to Judge Martins' office, she and Drew got talking about what exactly this marriage would entail, and he mentioned that even though the marriage was not real in the true sense that a marriage should be, the vows were binding.She pointed out the impossibility of that happening since they were not in love and she was not going to be wrapping her arms around him in a burst of affection, and told him point blank that if he had been nursing a hope for that to happen, he could forget about it.He replied that even though there was no hope for romance ever developing betwee