The Wedding Plan

by Melissa Shirley

  The Wedding Plan

  Ranger’s End, Book Four

  Melissa Shirley

  After Glows Publishing

  The Wedding Plan

  Copyright 2018 © Melissa Shirley

  * * *

  Published by After Glows Publishing

  PO Box 224

  Middleburg, FL. 32050

  * * *

  Cover by: AG Cover Design & Formatting

  Formatting by: AG Cover Design & Formatting

  * * *

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Contents

  Introduction

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  About the Author

  Note from the Publisher

  The Wedding Plan

  Ranger’s End, Book Four

  * * *

  DESPERATE in Rangers End.

  * * *

  Three-hundred sixty-five days ago, Natasha Quinn married Jacob Henry. She went in with only the promise of the $250K payoff as her motivation, but it's been a long year. From the first dance in the rain, to the town vigil to pray for her fertility, camera crews have caught it all, and Nat and Jacob are surrounded by every resident of Rangers End as they watch the past year play out in perfectly edited snippets of their time together. While Rangers End isn't what she grew up thinking it was from her side of the tracks, she can't stay here without Jacob. But they haven't talked about the future, and she can't take the chance with her heart. Not now with so much riding on making the right choice.

  * * *

  MARRIED in Rangers End

  * * *

  Dr. Jacob Henry can't lose his wife now, especially since he loves her, since he's put himself out there as much as a man can to show her how much she means to him. He organized a parade, built her a house, loved her until he couldn't see straight. It took a while, but she'd said she loved him. Why won't she stay? He's running out of time as they watch the moments that brought them to where they are—the good, the bad, the tragic. His happily ever after will only be happy with Nat by his side. He can't lose her now.

  1

  One year of marriage down. Contract fulfilled. Natasha Henry gazed at her sleeping husband. She loved that one curl—he had several, but only the one made her heart flutter. The one that flopped over his forehead no matter how many times he pushed it back. She would miss that curl if things didn’t go her way, if she couldn’t convince him… Though he’d spent the night at home last night—the first time in eight days—she wasn’t sure what it meant since he’d slept in one room and she’d slept in another.

  They’d done most of their interviews, given the network plenty of sound bites, and now they were headed to a town viewing of the reality show that brought them together, Deal with the Devil.

  She wondered these last weeks, as the clock wound down on their contractual obligations, what the first episode would look like. Would they actually show everything? Tell the whole story? Certainly not the boring seven o’clock dinners where she asked about his day and he chatted about old lady medical issues. No. Who cared about those, right?

  These would be the down and dirty arguments, the kisses, the events they’d gone to. The everydayness of their lives wouldn’t make the screen, but those were the days Nat cherished the most. The simple hand-holding, cuddling to watch a movie, the way he so properly cut his food into perfect little squares…she had a lot to cherish, even if it was all coming to an end. Dammit.

  She should wake him, but she wanted another minute of watching his eyelids flutter in sleep, the upturn of one corner of his lips, the hand that reached for her as he slept.

  There were parts of this year she didn’t want to relive, but the contract gave her no choice about production of the packages shown. She might need to claim her check and get the hell out of town anyway, go back to the original plan to leave Rangers End behind. Her nerves bundled in her stomach at the thought.

  The plan. The one that would send them their separate ways.

  She stood over their bed, saw the sheet curled around one leg leaving his foot hanging out, saw the comforter she’d helped him pick out, the pillow they’d ordered after the TV promised him a better sleep experience, the headboard they’d bought together. And her favorite part, the man.

  “Jacob?” Never Jake, Jakey, or Jay. Always Jacob.

  He stirred but kept his eyes closed. In fairness, he’d worked most of the night. Midnight house calls were more the rule than the exception for the town’s only doctor. Some things even TV couldn’t direct.

  “Hey.”

  Oh, God. His voice was one of the best things about him unless she counted the shoulders, the bright blue eyes, that smile. He had a thousand of them, and while she didn’t have a particular favorite—they were all great—his first one of the morning had set her heart fluttering since their first sunrise together.

  “We have to leave soon.”

  He sat up and the blanket slipped to his waist. Woah. There were a lot of muscles—abs, shoulders, biceps—for her to memorize. Oh goodness. She had to stop looking or they’d never get on the road.

  “So, this is it, huh?”

  “I guess.” Their entire history—the short one that felt like they’d known each other forever—would be on display, all the things they’d said, and the things they’d done. Their reality show romance. When the cameras rolled they were arm in arm, all smiles and sweet kisses. But at wrap time, all bets…well, there wasn’t ever a safe bet. Not with Nat and Jacob.

  * * *

  VOICE OVER: Rangers End, California is a small town, unencumbered by the hustle and bustle of its big city neighbors. This is a place of quiet country nights, family owned businesses, festivals, and the occasional fireworks extravaganza. And that doesn’t always mean rocket’s red glare, but it’s something powerful just the same.

  The camera must have been attached to a car or something and driven down the main street, past the barber shop, Kelly’s diner, the candle shop.

  * * *

  NAT: There was a time I couldn’t wait to get out of Rangers End. I wanted to disappear in a place where everybody didn’t know everybody else. I hated the striped awnings, the…everything. I’m sure living in the trailer park outside of town was a different experience than if I’d grown up inside of Rangers End. But once I moved, I learned there was a lot to appreciate here.

  JACOB: I have always loved everything about Rangers End, but I think what I love most is the way we all work together for each other, the way no favor is too big to ask.

  * * *

  The camera panned around the town square. Her wedding day. One of the biggest days of her life. Wow. They were jumping right in. Of course, that was the beginning so it was the most logical start, she supposed. She’d stood at the end of the aisle, waited two beats longer than she’d been meant to, stared at him until her mind had memorized the fit of his jacket, the way his Adam’s apple bobbed up and down twice when he saw her, the way his smile made the world outside take on a new shade of color.

  But even in the
interview playing right then, she’d not gone on about it at all. Those memories belonged to her. No one else. On the screen in front of her, she watched Jacob walk to the gazebo, stand on the steps and stare at the back of the crowd. That man in a tuxedo was the definition of lethal.

  * * *

  NAT: I was shaking so hard I almost couldn’t walk. Then…when I was about halfway down the aisle, I thought about running, just stopping right there and turning around, but he smiled and winked maybe, crooked his finger at me…I don’t remember exactly, but I knew it would be okay then.

  * * *

  The music hit a swell, and the crowd on the screen stood.

  “It was a good day,” she whispered and flicked away the tear that slipped down her cheek. “Just one of so many good days.”

  365 days earlier

  Nat looked out the window. She could see the gazebo. The Spanish lace curtains had been removed and replaced with silky, sheer ribbons that danced while a hundred or so candles flickered in the breeze. The pink and ivory roses made an archway over the door where she would stand in T-minus fifteen minutes to pledge her next year to some doctor she hadn’t even met.

  The white plastic folding chairs made perfect lines in the grass and even the threat of rain, the thunder rolling in the clouds above, hadn’t stopped every single person from Rangers End from filling those seats. This was a pretty big deal for the trailer park girl who hadn’t even finished high school. Not as big a deal as the two-hundred fifty thousand she was being paid for this one year of marriage. Oh, and one reunion show two months after the year contract expired. For the chance to leave this town, she had promised to provide an Emmy winning performance and by God, she had every intention of delivering on that promise. No breach of contract for the youngest Quinn daughter.

  Oh, the contract. One-hundred nineteen pages, and she’d read most of them. It said for one year—365 fun-filled days—they would be filmed at work and in private from dawn until midnight. There were stipulations—of course, there were—of things they had to do, events they must take part in and a certain progression of events that must take place. She could do anything for two hundred fifty-thousand dollars. Hell, she’d done a whole lot of things for free with rock star Rick. This would be a walk in the park.

  Karen adjusted her veil for the hundredth time. “Where’s Mama?”

  Natasha shook her head which only led to more adjusting. “Probably at the Rusty Hinge.” Not that Ellen Quinn had a drinking problem, but…she had a drinking problem, one that had ruined Karen’s wedding and would probably have her MIA for Nat’s.

  “Have you seen him yet?”

  Natasha ignored the whir of the camera motor as the tiny blond camera girl adjusted her lens to focus in on her. “No. I wouldn’t know him if I did see him.” Not unless he hadn’t changed from the twelve-year-old boy she only vaguely remembered. Since she’d signed the contract and had to quit her job to prevent running into him, she’d spent her days at Karen’s, hidden in the guestroom/screened porch, reading, watching TV, playing video games. She hadn’t seen anyone but Karen and her husband in more than two months.

  “He could be gross.” Gee, thanks, Kar.

  “A nose picker, maybe.” Assume the worst, expect the best.

  “And you have to kiss that mouth.”

  “I said picker not eater. Sicko.” Nat shook her head. “Have you seen him?” She watched Karen, who’d never been a good liar. Her skin flushed and suddenly veil adjusting wasn’t busy enough work. She’d become a dress fluffing machine. “You did! What’s he like?”

  Karen looked up, tried to wipe the grin off her face. “Nose picker. Definitely.”

  Oh, so much to look forward to.

  JACOB: I was so nervous, I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t think. I couldn’t even tie my own damned tie. But then I saw her, so beautiful, so much more than I imagined, and I thought I would die when she stopped in the middle of the aisle. Not because it was TV and the whole world was about to see me jilted at the altar, but because I really wanted to…God, she was beautiful.

  * * *

  Jacob’s body hummed, and his fingers hadn’t stopped trembling since he sloshed coffee on his pants that morning. In less than ten minutes, he would be standing at the front of a crowd—and if that wasn’t enough—getting married to a woman he’d never so much as laid eyes on. And he couldn’t get his damned tie right.

  He shook out his hands and tried again, but his thoughts weren’t so easily dispelled. What if she didn’t find him attractive? Or him her? What if they hated each other? Or worse, what if she took one look at him and ran the other way? Hopefully, the money they were paying her would be enough to propel her to his end of the aisle. God, he really hoped so.

  For the thousandth time he wondered why he’d agreed to this. Not the money he planned to donate to the hospital. Not even the badgering by his friend, the mayor, to help put Rangers End on the map, help tourism, make the town prosper. No. It was the loneliness, the countless, bad blind dates.

  His grandmother, Lucia, pushed the cameraman back and handed Jacob a glass. “Whiskey to soothe those nerves.” As soon as he drained the glass, she ran her hands up and down from his shoulders to his elbows as if she was trying to help the drink circulate through his blood.

  At ninety-five, Lucia Gilden still had a lot of life left to live. And most of it involved whiskey, wine and the adventures of a woman much younger. But, as she batted his hand away and retied the tie, he was glad to have her.

  “Have you seen her?” He kept his voice low, didn’t want the microphone to pick up the shallow question.

  Lucia nodded. “She’s lovely. Has always been lovely.”

  That provided little comfort. Every woman his grandmother had set him up with in the last three months—and there had been around twenty or so—had been “lovely” and by the fifth or sixth date, he’d decided their definitions of the word were quite different.

  He looked out the window. Quite the crowd. Apparently no one wanted to miss their chance to be on TV. What was five minutes of fame worth these days?

  The producer, a thirty-something cool dude with his round sunglasses, neck scarf and skinny jeans stood in front of Jacob. “In about three minutes, when you’re set on the gazebo, we’re going to pan in tight on your face as she comes to the aisle. Try not to be making any weird faces or we’ll have to reset and start again.” He nodded as if he expected some sort of response, but all Jacob could do was stand and stare out the window. The words he heard penetrated his consciousness, but he was absolutely incapable of producing speech.

  Married. Three minutes. No weird faces. Got it. He’d reduced all the information he had whirling in his mind to simple syllables and concentrated on those.

  Without prodding or another word, he turned, ready to take his place on the gazebo and marry his bride.

  2

  The screen faded to black where a commercial would go. Nat turned to look at Jacob who’d had the same idea about getting a cup of coffee and stood hogging it all with two cups in front of him. “Well, what do you think, so far?” She had her own opinions, but before she shared, she wanted to hear his.

  He grinned, and her heart started its normal erratic-because-he-smiled-at-her thrum.

  “I think you should wear that wedding dress every day.”

  It wasn’t the dress. That wasn’t why she’d looked the way she looked—not quite beautiful, but not bad enough to scare people out of their seats either. It was him. It was the way he’d put her at ease, let her know it was going to be okay, the way he’d held her hand.

  Jacob handed her one of his two cups. “I feel like we should be drinking something stronger.”

  She grinned at the eye wiggle, the hand he dropped to her hip and used to pull her closer. “Coffee’s about as strong as I get these days.” She concentrated on the hot liquid, burning her throat, the bitter taste on her tongue. If she let anything else in, she would be throwing him down, jumping on top, and it had
been a long time since either one of them had been down for that.

  He grinned. “What happened to the party girl who insisted on moonshine for our wedding toast? The girl who…” He stopped, and she wasn’t sure why. All she knew was that he had that dreamy smile, the far-off look in his eyes when she could never tell what he was thinking, but was glad it made him happy. This man and his beautiful smiles…but this one was her favorite. It made her think of the first time she’d seen it. And what a dance it had been. Nat hoped they showed it—she’d given them a soundbyte for it anyway—because that was a memory she wouldn’t mind sharing with the world.

  Clara Miller called for silence and started the video once more. Nat was hardly in her seat before her face was back on the TV.

  * * *

  VOICE OVER: For Natasha Quinn and Jacob Henry, the wedding was just the beginning of a year long journey that saw them stand together and fall apart.

  NAT: Back then…you know, a whole year ago, I don’t think I was quite ready for a marriage. There were so many things I didn’t expect. From the first minute. Like the dance in the rain. It was a fairy tale, the dress, Jacob in a tuxedo…all the candles and flowers. I didn’t even mind the rain. I would have stood out in a hurricane for that dance. But I didn’t expect it. I played it off like I was just acting, but I kept getting lost in the moment, wondering if he was acting or if he felt the same connection I did.