It wasn't too entirely implausible, as the third wife lived out of town. Lief didn't blame her.
Lief bit his lip as he walked up the steps. She was, after all, an ex-wife.
He was prepared for the worst, started from the moment she opened the door.
"No!" Lara had not even given Lief a chance to speak when she saw him.
"What?"
"You heard me! No! I'm not going down that road again!"
"Lara, please! Hear me out. I'm not here for that."
Lara was surprised. But it appeared she decided to give Lief a chance to explain himself.
"I'm here for...Well, I guess I want to make peace with you. I..."
"What kind of peace? That's kind of a stupid reason for you to show up after all this time!"
"Come on, Lara. I don't know how else I can show what I'm doing besides getting on my knees. I just...I really don't want us to be bitter towards each other anymore."
"I'm not asking for you to be married to me again. I just...Well, it's hard to put it into words." Lara glared at Lief for a few moments. Her gaze then softened.
"Lief...I had to...I had to move back in with my mother. And...and I had to leave Kristin with you. Do you know how much Kristin means to me?!"
"Yes, Lara. Yes, I do." Lief's youngest often had an expression that indicated she had no idea where her mother was. He was never sure what to tell her.
"I know she's the most important part of your life. I know your worst fear is her growing up to hate you. I know you still want to be a part of her life as much as you can." Lief paused to give Lara a chance to speak.
"Lief...Are you getting married again?" One thing Lief liked about Lara was her way of picking up on signs.
"I am. I guess that's part of the reason I came out here. I didn't think my fourth marriage would seem right without confronting the exes of the first three."
"I guess that seems like a good enough reason. Just promise me something?"
"You name it, Lara."
"Make sure you bring Kristin with you next time you visit here, okay? I want to see how big she's getting."
"Done." Lief was about to turn to go when Lara stopped him.
"One more thing, Lief? Don't mess up this marriage. If she's the one for you, make sure she knows it."
"I will, Lara. I promise."
The two smiled, and bid farewell. As Lief set foot off the property, he felt as if the weight upon his shoulders was finally, completely gone.
But at the same time, he felt immense worry, and responsibility.
Lief knew he had to take the advice he was given, and make sure Josefin was truly the one for him.
He knew that she was. He simply hoped she felt the same. Lief didn't want to feel as if he were trapping Josefin. At the same time, he resolved to not mistreat her in any way.
Lief could only hope he learned from his mistakes from the first three times. He was older, and hopefully wiser.
This time, he was done playing the marriage game, and ready to settle down for good.
It was already well into nightfall by the time Lief returned home. As if waiting for him all this time, Josefin was standing in the main room.
"Welcome home, Lief," Josefin said with a smile as she greeted her future husband. "Did you manage to get all you needed to do finished?"
"You bet I did. Are the kids in bed?"
"Yes, they are. Kristin was a bit fussy, but Edvin got her to calm down and get to sleep."
"That's good." The engaged couple decided it was high time to get ready for bed themselves. As soon as both of them were ready to do so, a thought occurred to Lief.
"Hey, Josefin?" He asked before getting into bed with her. "If I screw up at any point, -and it's extremely likely I will-, will you let me know?"
"Of course, Lief."
"I just, you know. I don't want to make you so mad you'll leave me-"
"You know I won't, Lief."
"Yeah, but I have to make sure. I tend to be kind of a blockhead at times." Josefin seemed a bit amused at his self-depreciation.
"Well, nobody's perfect, Lief. We all make mistakes. I highly doubt you'd intentionally anger me. But yes, I will let you know when you're doing something wrong."
"Thanks, beautiful." The two settled under the blankets before turning the lights off. "I really shouldn't worry about this sort of thing before the wedding. I mean, what's the worst that could happen?"
(End of Chapter 18.)
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