Rocky Mountain Wedding

by Sara Richardson

  “Now, there’s the first good idea I’ve heard in three hours,” Ben agreed. “Let’s hit my in-laws’ café.”

  Sawyer pushed off the bench. They’d already paraded through the majority of the stores anyway. They were out of options. “Sounds good.” He never turned down the chance to eat at the High Altitude Café. Paige’s parents had owned it for years, and even though the place was a dive, they served the best burgers in Aspen.

  Hands shoved into his pockets, Sawyer followed the others down the block, and for the first time since they’d walked into the cigar shop a shot of energy zipped into his step. They should’ve stayed there for an hour and half enjoying the expensive Cubans.

  “You sure you have time for dinner?” Bryce asked, pausing to wait for him.

  “Yeah. Ruby’s busy with last-minute wedding stuff.” At least that’s what she’d told him on the phone. She’d also said Aunt Elsie was picking up Brookie from school and taking her to get a manicure and pedicure. Which meant he had more time to come up with an idea for the perfect gift.

  But the three blocks to the café didn’t expand his creativity. He followed Bryce past the restaurant’s shoddy hand-painted sign.

  If it hadn’t earned the reputation for serving up the best meat in town, everyone would pass right on by the High Altitude Café. The red bricks were old and crumbling, and the whole building seemed to lean slightly to the left. But once you got past the dingy windows and the ancient facade, you didn’t worry so much about the walls falling in. You were too busy cleaning your plate.

  “Man, I love the smell of charred meat.” Ben held open the door.

  Sawyer sauntered past him, stomach already growling. He had to admit, a burger and beer were exactly what he needed right now.

  The place sat empty, seeing as how it was too early for the dinner rush. He followed Ben to a large round booth in the center of the room, which happened to be red vinyl. Because what small-town café was complete without a red vinyl booth?

  “Well, well, well.” Pete Harper, Ben’s father-in-law, sauntered out from the back. He and Ben had gotten off to a rocky start, but once Ben had put that ring on Paige’s finger, he’d suddenly turned into the son the Harpers had never had. Except for their other two.

  “Sorry, boys, this table’s reserved for paying customers,” Pete boomed, ornery as ever.

  “Hey, Pops.” Ben greeted the man with a firm handshake and half a hug. “We’re payin’. You know I’m good for it.”

  The older man waved him off. “Like hell you are. What can I getcha?”

  One by one they all slid into the booth.

  “Bring us a round of the IPA. Coke for Bryce,” Ben answered for everyone. This wasn’t their first rodeo at the High Altitude Café.

  “You got it, kid.” Pete Senior lumbered past the bar and disappeared into the kitchen.

  Ben handed out menus.

  “Bet that guy scared the shit out of you when you first started dating Paige,” Isaac said, nodding toward the kitchen door.

  Sawyer laughed. That was an understatement. “I don’t remember you really dating Paige.”

  “Yeah. As far I remember, there weren’t many dates involved,” Bryce agreed.

  “What can I say?” Ben shot back. “She was totally into me.”

  “That’s not what Julia said,” Isaac threw in. “I believe she described you as one hundred percent whipped.”

  “Can you blame me? My wife is hot,” he insisted. Not that Sawyer could think of Paige that way. Too much like his little sis. Which meant he’d best change the subject before Ben started in on how good she was in bed.

  “You’d think one of you married guys could help me come up with a gift for my fiancée.” They should be better at this than him. “What’d you get Paige for a wedding present?” he asked Ben.

  “A horse,” he answered, as though it were a no-brainer.

  Yeah, that wouldn’t work. He glanced at Bryce.

  His cousin shrugged. “A new baseball bat.” If Sawyer hadn’t known how much Avery loved baseball, he might’ve been gawking at him the way Isaac was right now.

  “A baseball bat? Why, so she could keep you in line?”

  “Nah, she doesn’t need any help with that,” he admitted. Talk about one hundred percent whipped. “It’s for our team with the town league. And she loved it. Trust me.”

  Sawyer had no doubt; he’d seen her hit a grand slam with that bat. But a bat wouldn’t mean much to Ruby. “Isaac, tell me you’ve got something better than a horse and a baseball bat.”

  He shrugged like he couldn’t make any promises. “I booked Julia a spa day while we were in Tahiti.”

  “There ya go.” Ben clapped him on the back. “What woman wouldn’t want a spa day?”

  “A spa day doesn’t last.” He could do that for her birthday. Or even for Mother’s Day. But this was their wedding. This was the start of their life together. “It has to be something memorable. Something she can hold on to.”

  Silence settled again as they all traded clueless stares.

  “First round is on me, boys,” Pete Senior called, balancing the bottles on a tray like he’d been waiting on people his whole life. He lumbered over to the table. “Next one’s on my son-in-law.”

  Everyone laughed as he set the bottles in front of them.

  “Hey, Dad.” Ben took a swig. “What’d you get Mom for a wedding present?”

  Pete Senior sipped his own beer. “A grill. Not one of the fancy numbers, either. It was charcoal.” He leaned in. “Then I cooked her a steak. Best roll in the hay we’ve ever had, that night was. I still remember it like it was yesterday.”

  “Thanks for that,” Ben muttered, then guzzled more beer as though trying to chase away the mental picture.

  His father-in-law guffawed. “You asked.” He left his beer sitting on the table like he planned to come back and join them. “Now, what can I getcha to eat?”

  “I might not be hungry anymore,” Ben said.

  “Well, I’ll take the Heart Attack Burger,” Sawyer countered. After the day he’d had, he deserved it.

  “Sounds good to me,” Bryce said.

  “I’ll do the Blue Cheese Burger,” Isaac added, handing the menu back.

  “I’ll bring you a Hot and Spicy, kid,” Pete said to Ben before plodding away.

  “So I don’t think Ruby would appreciate a grill.” She got in enough kitchen time with her job as the baker at the Walker Mountain Ranch. Sawyer kneaded his forehead. Who would’ve thought this would be so hard?

  “What about a honeymoon?” Isaac asked. “That was really all Julia wanted. Time away. A beach…”

  “We’re not going on the honeymoon until February. Want to give Brookie a chance to get more settled before we take off for a week. It’s already booked. Besides—”

  The door opened and a rush of cold wind fluttered the checkered curtains that draped the windows. In walked Paige, followed by Julia, Avery, and…“Ruby.”

  Every time he saw her, his heart sighed with a warm rush of longing. He still couldn’t believe he’d found someone like Ruby. Someone so compassionate and warmhearted. Not to mention stunning, with that long reddish hair and her sweet heart-shaped face. Those luminous green eyes that hinted at a deep tenderness.

  “What’re you ladies doing here?” Ben asked, rising to give his wife a hearty kiss on the lips.

  “We got hungry,” Julia answered for Paige as she wheeled herself to the open end of the booth. “You gentlemen aren’t the only ones who can eat meat.”

  No lie there. He’s seen Julia put down a burger before. Girl could eat. She’d grown up on a cattle ranch.

  Avery wedged herself in next to Bryce, but Ruby hung back by the door. Why didn’t she come and sit next to him? His eyes questioned her, but she quickly looked away.

  A cold stone dropped straight to the pit of his stomach. Something was up.

  “We figured we’d find you guys here,” Avery said, stealing a sip of her husband’s b
eer. “Didn’t last very long out in the shops, huh?”

  “What do you mean?” Bryce demanded as though he took exception to that. “We were out there for at least an hour and a half. That might be a record for me.”

  “What were you shopping for, anyway?” Paige broke in. “I mean, the last time Ben went shopping, he called me from the store in a panic because he didn’t know which credit card to use.”

  Sawyer tuned out the razzing comments from the rest of the wives and tried to analyze that bewildered expression on Ruby’s face. She’d edged closer to the group, but still clung to the outskirts…

  “It’s no secret shopping isn’t our thing,” Isaac said. He threw an arm around Julia and gathered her to his side. “Is that why you came? To rescue us?”

  Sawyer’s gaze still held Ruby. Her face had lowered and she was staring at the floor.

  A cold dread seeped in and spread all through him. Was she angry? Upset? Having second thoughts about the wedding?

  The rest of her friends traded awkward glances.

  “Um. We…were hungry,” Paige said, seeming to widen her eyes in Ruby’s direction. Giving her silent cue?

  What the hell was going on?

  “Really hungry,” Julia added.

  Avery turned to peer at Sawyer, her blue eyes wider than normal. “Maybe you and Ruby should get your own table, though,” she suggested with a counterfeit innocence, obviously trying to disguise an agenda.

  “Uh.” His heart picked up. He looked at Ruby for reassurance, but she wouldn’t let her gaze connect with his. “Okay.”

  A heaviness weighted his body as he scooted out of the booth and headed toward Ruby. She quickly turned away from him and ducked into a booth in the corner. He slid in across from her, his heart feeling exactly like a punching bag in a boxer’s gym. “What’s going on?” He could hardly squeeze the words past the fear that constricted his throat. Please don’t say you’re having second thoughts about the wedding…

  Tears reddened the rims of her eyes. “There’s something I have to tell you, Sawyer.”

  The possibilities flickered in his mind. Had she cheated on him?

  No. This was Ruby. He’d been betrayed before, but he refused to let that color his life now. As a cop he’d been trained to think through worst-case scenarios, but it didn’t matter. Whatever she said would not rip their happiness away. He wouldn’t let it. “It’s okay.” Instinctively he reached for her hands, gripping them tightly in his over the table. “Whatever it is, we can make it okay.” She’d been through hell, but that was over for her. He’d make sure. Whatever was wrong—whatever had her so upset—he’d fix it. He’d protect her from it. No matter what.

  Her eyes finally rose to his, but they didn’t seem sad. Somehow the tears made them seem brighter, more alive. “My wedding dress doesn’t fit me anymore,” she uttered, her voice barely stronger than a whisper.

  Relief rushed in, purging the fear. “What’d you mean?” He tried not to smile. While Ruby had been complaining about her weight for the last month, she’d never looked more beautiful. Sure, her body may have been a little softer, but he loved her that way.

  “I’ve gained weight, Sawyer,” she insisted.

  “No you haven’t.” He squeezed her hands again. “You’ve never looked sexier.” He was pretty sure he’d proved that to her yesterday when he’d stopped by her place for lunch. And couldn’t keep his hands off of her. Never got around to eating, but he hadn’t missed it a bit. Now that Brookie lived with Ruby full-time they had to be creative and steal time alone when they could get it.

  According to the slight dimple in her cheek, she did recall the afternoon as fondly as he did. “Trust me, Sawyer. I’ve put on a couple pounds.”

  He let go of her hands and caressed her cheek in his palm. “You can buy a new dress. Maybe the sizing was off,” he said, thinking how much better she would look once he got her out of that dress, anyway. Maybe wearing the new lingerie he’d gotten her. “Who needs a dress?” he murmured so the others wouldn’t hear.

  “It’s not the dress,” Ruby whispered, and the somberness in her gaze snagged his attention back from drifting toward thoughts of their wedding night.

  “I’m pregnant.”

  The room dimmed and then everything seemed to get brighter. “What?” His head shook. He must not have heard her right. She’d already told him it’d be hard for her to get pregnant. She had that condition…

  But she was smiling at him, this big, happy, beautiful smile with tears spilling from of her eyes.

  God. Oh God. Hope clamored for release from his heart, but he kept it caged because she couldn’t be pregnant. “What, Ruby?” he gasped. Suddenly it was hard to breathe.

  This time she took his hand in hers, squeezing it tightly, forging that connection they’d developed until he felt it spark in his gut. “We’re going to have a baby.”

  A baby. Letting that word—that life-changing word—sink in, he eased in a measured breath, then let it sigh out. Elation rose up and overpowered him, made his head dizzy. He couldn’t speak, couldn’t say one damn thing. He could only stare back at his fiancée with this ridiculous openmouthed grin, letting that news shine all through him.

  “I took a pregnancy test.” Ruby went on cautiously, like she wasn’t sure how he was taking everything. “And we stopped by the clinic on the way here. The doctor said he thinks I’m about eighteen weeks along.”

  “Eighteen weeks?” he choked out. That was almost halfway…

  “Everything looks fine. The doctor’s not concerned,” rushed out, as though she was worried about him.

  Because she knew. She knew about Matthew. That he and his ex-wife had lost a baby right around this same time…

  “I’m scheduled for an ultrasound next week.”

  An ultrasound. A baby. They were having a baby. In less than five months!

  Finally, sense came back to him, and he was not the same man he had been two minutes ago. Not even close. Her words had changed everything. The life and light inside of her had changed everything.

  “I know this isn’t the best place to tell you,” Ruby whispered, tears cascading again. “But I didn’t want to wait. Oh, Sawyer, I’m so worried about how Brookie will feel…”

  “No.” He pushed out of his chair. He would not let her worry, her fear, steal this moment from her. From them. Easing to his knees in front of her, he placed his hands on the softness of her stomach—that place that would protect him or her, that would nurture their baby into life. “There can’t be any worrying, Ruby,” he said, peering up into her emerald eyes. “This is a gift. And we’ll accept it. And we’ll let ourselves enjoy it.” No matter what happened. They’d both lost so much, and this new life inside of her was their restoration. “Brookie will be ecstatic.” They’d never wanted her to be an only child. They’d wanted their house filled with chatter and laughter and the stampeding of little feet. “She will love this baby,” he said, nodding until Ruby started to nod with him. “And so will we.” Hell, he already did. He loved Brookie and this baby and Ruby more than he ever thought he could love.

  On the outskirts of his vision, he became aware that everything else had stopped. All the conversation and laughter from across the room. He glanced over, and sure enough, everyone stared at him and Ruby.

  He shot to his feet and pulled Ruby up, bringing her in against him, holding her, letting his own tears free. “We’re having a baby,” he hollered like a fool, laughing and crying.

  The room broke into a concert of squeals and congratulations.

  “We need a bottle of champagne, Pops!” Ben called to his father-in-law.

  Ruby clung to him. “I don’t think we should tell Brookie until after the wedding,” she whispered in his ear. “Maybe after the ultrasound.”

  “Okay, but I can’t wait too long.” Brookie would be excited. It would be a lot of change, but they would get her through it. Together. “Everything will be fine. Amazing. We’ll prove to her that she’s the
daughter we’ve always wanted. Both of our kids are what we’ve always wanted.” Ever since they’d gotten engaged, this was what they’d talked about, planned for. A family.

  After everything they’d been through, this was their new beginning.

  Chapter Three

  She hadn’t known it would feel like this. Being a mom.

  A mom. Love the likes of which she’d never felt pierced Ruby’s heart until warmth bled all through her, until the all-too-familiar tears saturated her eyes.

  From her car, she watched children spill out the doors of Aspen Elementary School, their voices and giggles a sweet melody that made her belly glow with a fervent longing, as if she could actually feel the baby growing, second by second, cell by cell. She rested her hand there, watching for Brookie to come skipping toward her, backpack askew, that dark, curly hair she’d pulled into a ponytail this morning in beautiful disarray. Sawyer was right. Brookie was everything they’d ever wanted. And now this new baby would knit the four of them together as a family. Brookie and her sibling would always have each other. Always. Even after Ruby and Sawyer were gone.

  The thought, the blessing of that knowledge, filled the cracks in her confidence. She’d been so worried since Brookie had come to live with her as they waited to formalize the adoption. Technically, right now, she was only the girl’s foster mom—not according to her heart, but according to the state. Everything had been an adjustment for both of them. But Sawyer was right. This was good news. And ever since she’d dropped her off at school earlier that morning, Ruby couldn’t wait to share it with Brookie.

  She straightened, eagerly straining to see over the bobbing heads of the kids that bounded toward the crowded parking lot.

  There she was! The sight of her daughter sent her heart soaring, but as the girl neared the car, the scowl on her face spiraled it into a crash. While all of the other kids walked in small groups, grinning and giggling, Brookie walked alone. She’d been at the school for only a month, and she wasn’t having an easy time.

  Attempting to cleanse the worry from her expression, Ruby inched the car forward in the carpool line. Brookie looked up and saw the car, but she didn’t smile and her eyes didn’t light. Every once in a while they would, and Ruby would see a glimpse of hope, but bringing a foster child to live with you didn’t result in a sudden happy fairy-tale ending.