She smiled at his laugh. She noticed his eyes soften. "I'm sorry I wasn't a better brother."
She set her coffee on the floor and then hugged him. "You were a perfectly fine brother."
"Sending things to you was a poor replacement to being there."
"The gifts themselves weren't the treasure. Their arrival meant the world to me. They said you were still alive."
"Let me give you one more gift."
"What's that?"
"Let me pay for your wedding. Let me give you a wedding like lasses with their parents have. All right?"
"Do you promise to stop being my parent and be my brother?"
"I promise."
Maggie beamed at Sloan. "All right, then. I accept your gift. And thank you."
"Excellent. Please call Abigail. She's fretting over your dress."
Maggie laughed. "As a good matron of honor should."
Sloan grinned at her as he took a sip of coffee. Maggie dug in her purse for her cell phone and called Abbey. Within minutes, she pressed a kiss to her brother’s cheek in farewell as she dashed to her car for an evening of dress shopping.
»»•««
Abbey wiped her hands on the dishtowel and then set it next to the sink. She looked out of the kitchen as the warm spring sunshine melted the snow. She had just laid Amelia down for her nap. Maybe she could catch a quick nap of her own before she had to pack.
To her amazement, everything was ready for the wedding. Everyone had pitched in and helped, including Sloan. He had licked a few envelopes and stuck a few stamps on invitations. He had written the checks when things needed to be paid for. He had even gone dress shopping, smiling in pride when Maggie emerged from the dressing room in the one she chose. His proud smile had quickly dissipated into a gaze of smoldering lust when Abbey had stepped out in her bridesmaid dress.
She smiled. The relationship between Sloan and Maggie had definitely changed. Paying for the wedding was the only time when Sloan played Maggie’s guardian and protector. Everywhere else, they became cohorts in crime. It was a blessing that quickly became a curse for Abbey and Bartholomew.
The two siblings often made the loves of their lives the targets of their practical jokes. Neither of them minded. They were so happy to see them laughing together, being brother and sister, that they could never get angry at their pranks.
Abbey bit her lower lip as she strode to the living room and sunk onto the couch. Even with the upcoming wedding on the horizon, Bartholomew and Maggie weren’t the couple on her mind. Her thoughts were consumed with Mary and Gordon.
Mary and Gordon now spent nearly every waking moment together that Mary wasn’t at the library working. Yet, their time together wasn’t the friendly social gatherings they used to have. It was flirting glances, gentle touches, soft kisses, and the quiet whispers of lovers.
They turned down invitations for family meals so that they could have intimate dinners together. Mary was a woman who hated technology. Yet when they had gone cake tasting, she had been lost in a text message conversation with Gordon. It had been nearly impossible to get her to try a bite of the delicious desserts.
The new spark Mary had in her eyes was nothing Abbey had ever seen before. Mary certainly didn’t have it for Abbey’s father. Even though it had been only Mary and Abbey for years, it was fine with Abbey that she was losing her mother to the Irishman. She was ecstatic to see Mary so much in love. And in the two years Abbey knew Gordon, he was more of a father than Walter had ever been.
Abbey looked up as she heard the front door open and close. Sloan stepped into the living room, slipping his black wool trench coat off and tossing it onto a chair.
“The gallery is closed?” Abbey asked.
“Yes. I’ve hung notification that it will be closed for a week due to the wedding,” Sloan answered as he sat beside Abbey. “And the bride and groom have safely arrived in Montana. The jet is on its way back here so we can leave in the morning. Have you packed?”
Abbey cuddled against her husband, wrapping her arms around him, allowing her hands to caress the hard planes of his muscles. She pressed soft kisses across the hard ridge of his jawline. “Not quite yet. I will in a little bit.”
She smiled as she listened to him moan softly at her touch. “Where’s Amelia?”
“Napping.” She cupped his cheek in her hand and turned his face toward hers. She gazed into his ice blue eyes for a moment before she raised herself up, kissing him long and hard. She slid her hand down his chest to his thigh to brace herself against him.
He growled as he took control, devouring her lips with his, leaving her breathless. His hands roamed through her hair and down her back until they reached the hem of her soft, pink T-shirt. He tugged it up and pulled it off.
“We should go upstairs and pack,” he growled as he tossed the garment on the floor. He stood, taking Abbey’s hand and leading her toward the stairs.
Abbey giggled. “Packing? Is that what we call it now?”
»»•««
Gordon shuffled through the grass as he watched the guests arrive. The big Montana sky was clear blue. The day was warm. The plush green grass was lined with white chairs draped in gauze material. The gazebo Bartholomew’s father had made for his mother soon after they were married was decorated in pale pink and white roses.
A beautiful day for a wedding. Only the luck of the Irish could bring this. And luck was something Maggie had always had in abundance.
Gordon always enjoyed visiting Montana. It was peaceful. Peace wasn’t something Gordon experienced much. He would soak in as much as he could.
Gordon turned as he heard his name called. Bartholomew’s father weaved through the guests toward him.
“Gordon, why aren’t you with Maggie preparing for the wedding?” Bartholomew’s father asked.
“Why would I be?” Gordon questioned.
“Shouldn’t you be giving the bride away?’
“No. That’s not my place.”
“Who will, then? I thought you would be in a fatherly role.”
Gordon looked past Bartholomew’s father as a smile spread across his face. He reached out, his hand wrapping around Mary’s delicate fingers. His eyes raked over her slim figure dressed in a baby blue dress, and then he smiled as they met the baby balancing on her hip. He kissed the back of Mary’s free hand gently.
“There is someone far better than I,” he responded, his brogue soft. “I was only waiting for this beautiful vision to arrive so we could take our seats.” He nodded farewell to Bartholomew’s father and then took Mary’s free arm in his. He led her and Amelia to the front row of seats.
Once the guests had taken their seats, the musicians gathered beside the gazebo. The strains of the string quartet drifted on the breeze through the guests.
Gordon wrapped his arm around Mary as they watched the door to the ranch house open. Bartholomew and the minister stepped from the house, striding together down the aisle formed by the wooden chairs to the gazebo. Bartholomew turned to meet the others.
Next to emerge from the house was Rachel, dressed in a pale pink cotton eyelet sundress. Her arm was wrapped around Robert’s. Rachel gazed with fascination at the large foreboding man escorting her down the aisle. Robert’s eyes smoldered as he returned her look with one of his own. Gordon chuckled as Robert released Rachel’s arm and passed Bartholomew, reading the word “no” coming from the groom’s lips toward Robert.
The door to the house opened again. Abbey stepped out, holding a bouquet of roses tightly to her own pale pink eyelet cotton sundress. Gordon glanced around the guests, listening to the murmurs questioning why the young woman was walking down the aisle alone. She smiled excitedly as she passed by and stood beside Rachel.
Gordon grinned at Bartholomew’s father as the musicians’ melody rose to a crescendo. The door to the house opened one final time. Maggie stood in the doorway, her snug white satin gown flowing to the train pooling at her feet. The neck of the dress scooped low against
her breasts, and the short sleeves accented her toned arms.
One of those arms was wrapped tightly around Sloan’s. He beamed at his little sister in pride. Maggie pressed a kiss to her brother’s cheek before they stepped out into the lush grass.
They walked slowly as all eyes in the crowd watched them approach the gazebo. The minister motioned for the crowd to sit. “Who gives this woman to this man?” he inquired.
Sloan gently laid Maggie’s hand in Bartholomew’s. “I, her brother, do. As does Papa, Mama, and Ethan through me.”
Maggie’s eyes glistened with tears at her brother’s words. Sloan gave Maggie a peck on the cheek and then took his place beside Bartholomew as his best man.
Bartholomew and Maggie joined the minister in the gazebo. Gordon watched the minister deliver his words of love and peace to the couple as little Amelia grasped his finger. As the minister ended his sermon, he led Maggie in her vows. She took a deep breath to say her words with conviction. But still, her voice came out a weak squeak. Maggie’s face flushed bright pink as she finished. Bartholomew’s lips twisted into an amused smile as he followed suit.
Next, the minister looked up from his Bible to ask for the rings. Sloan ascended a step of the gazebo to hand Bartholomew the ring in his hand. His head turned slightly as Abbey also took a step to hand Maggie the one she held. Sloan grasped Abbey’s hand in his before she could return to her place on the grass below. Abbey’s eyes opened wide in shock, and then she smiled coyly at him.
Once the rings were exchanged, the minister addressed the crowd. “By the power vested in me by the State of Montana, I pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss the bride.”
Bartholomew gathered Maggie in his arms and parted her lips in a long, sweet kiss. Maggie wrapped her arms around his shoulders. The guests cheered as their embrace ended and they smiled at each other in complete bliss.
»»•««
The Evans family had done an incredible job converting their machine shed into a reception hall. Gordon glanced around the shed, observing the strings of lights suspended from the ceiling to give the area a romantic glow.
He set his bottle of Guinness on the linen tablecloth as he studied the rose and daisy centerpiece. The band began the next song, a soft haunting melody. He turned his attention to the dance floor.
Bartholomew and Maggie swayed to the music, focused solely on each other. Their eyes sparkled in excitement of their love and their future together. They laughed and chatted, the noise level making the conversation entirely their own.
His eyes trailed to the other side of the room. Sloan stood near the edge of the floor, barely moving. His arms were protectively wrapped around Abbey. Abbey gazed, love-struck, into his eyes while she cradled Amelia to her shoulder. They were not dancing. They were reveling in the love they shared.
Gordon smiled at the two couples that were so dear to him. Then he noticed something missing. Mary wasn’t at their table. She also wasn’t in the shed. His brow knitted in instinctive concern as he rose, grabbed his beer, and strode outside.
The yard seemed endless as he wandered the vast land around the ranch house looking for Mary. He let go a sigh of relief as he found her sitting on the gazebo steps, the structure still decorated in the flowers from the wedding. He slowly approached her as he cradled the neck of the bottle in his fingers.
“What brings you out here?” he questioned.
She looked up in surprise. He leaned against the railing of the gazebo steps as he watched her.
“How did you know I was out here?” she asked incredulously.
“I returned to our table, and you were gone. Some guests nearby indicated that you had stepped outside.”
Mary wrapped her arms around her knees. “I just needed a break from all the happily-ever-afters. Both of the happy couples are precious to me, but I’m sick and tired of young everlasting love.”
“Isn’t that the core idea of a wedding? The bride and groom living happily ever after?”
“Not my wedding.”
“Ah.” He chuckled. “So, I am sensing a little jealousy.”
She flushed red at the truth. “A little.”
He set his beer on the ground and then sat next to her. He cupped her cheek in his palm and drew her lips to his. Mary sank into his kiss, surrendering to him.
His lips brushed hers lightly as they parted. “And you’re just too old for a happily ever after. Is that what you are saying?”
“Yes.”
“Bullshit.”
She stared into his eyes. “It’s not like there’s some guy out there who wants to marry me.”
“Yes, there is.”
“Who?”
“Me.”
Her eyes opened wide with surprise. “Gordon, I’m not a young woman. I can’t have any more kids.”
He laughed. “I’ve been raising a temperamental hothead. I don’t need kids. Plus, don’t I get a daughter in the deal?”
“But I—”
Gordon locked gazes with her as he cradled the side of her face in his hand. “Marry me, Mary Wright. I love you.”
He watched the tears pool in her eyes as she nodded slowly. She started to laugh as her head bobbed quicker. “Yes. Yes, Gordon Fionnain. I will marry you.”
Gordon placed a triumphant kiss on Mary’s lips. As they parted, she whispered, “Just promise me something?’
“Anything.”
“Let’s not wait too long.”
»»•««
Gordon held Mary’s hand in his as he took a sip of coffee. He set his mug down and gazed deeply in her eyes. He sighed. He never thought he could be this much in love. But he was. And it was wonderful.
The kitchen of the ranch house was dimly lit by the newborn rays of the rising sun. No one else was up. Yet. He chuckled to himself as he typed a message on his cell phone and hit Send. They’d be up soon enough. It was time for a family meeting.
Gordon and Mary looked at each other as they heard the front door open and close. They watched the hallway waiting for whoever had just snuck into the house. Bartholomew and Maggie quietly slipped down the hall. Ah, to get their luggage for their honeymoon, no doubt. The young couple froze hand-in-hand at the sight of Gordon and Mary, like two deer in headlights.
“Glad you both could join us,” Gordon greeted as he laughed. “You look like two teenagers getting busted for breaking curfew.”
“We just didn’t expect anyone up yet,” Bartholomew stammered.
“Mary and I wanted to talk to you all before you and Maggie left for St. Thomas. I’m just surprised you are the first here.”
The four of them were distracted by the sound of heavy footsteps. “All right, old man. What’s so important that you woke us up?”
Sloan strode into the dark kitchen, his powerful hands gently cupping his infant daughter to his bare, sculpted chest. Abbey shuffled behind him, yawning as she followed.
“Where’s Robert?” Gordon demanded.
“I was told to screw off when I informed him to get up.” Sloan pulled free a kitchen chair and motioned for Abbey to sit. She plopped down on it with another yawn.
“He’s a member of this family.”
“I’ll tell him later. So, why are we up before the sun?”
Gordon squeezed Mary’s hand and then kissed the back of it. “Last night, I asked Mary to be my wife. She said yes.”
Abbey’s sleepy eyes grew wide. Maggie squealed in surprise. “Congratulations!”
“Thank you,” Mary accepted as her cheeks tinted pink. “We don’t want a big wedding. We want to be together.” She looked eagerly at Gordon.
“So,” Gordon continued, “two weeks from today, we are going to Las Vegas to get married. And we want all of you and Robert to come with us.”
Bartholomew chuckled. “And you gave us crap about six weeks?”
Mary winked at him. “You young lovebirds inspired us.”
Sloan smiled. “If that’s what you wish, that’s what we’ll do.”<
br />
Mary looked at her daughter. Abbey stared at them silently. “What do you think, Abbey? You haven’t said anything.”
Abbey stood up and dashed behind them. She flung an arm around her mom and then wrapped the other around Gordon’s broad shoulders. “Of all the men in the world I could have for a father, I can’t think of anyone I would want more than Gordon. This is incredible news, Mom. Congratulations! I am so happy for both of you.”
Sloan chuckled. “If there’s any down side to this, it’s that you’ll be my da by law now, Gordon.”
Gordon winked at him. “Yes. The thought doesn’t appeal to me either, young one. Your beautiful wife as my daughter, yes. You as my son, maybe not.”
They all laughed in chorus. Bartholomew pulled Maggie into his arms and held her close. After a quick final squeeze, Abbey returned to Sloan and snuggled close to him and Amelia. Mary let go a content sigh as Gordon hugged her. Then he looked around the kitchen to survey his family.
It had only been a couple years ago that the four of them—Sloan, Gordon, Bartholomew, and Robert—had wandered the world. Life had been cold. It had been meaningless.
Only a couple of years had passed.
Now here they were—Sloan, Gordon, and Bartholomew—on an early morning in a ranch house in Montana. One was newly engaged. One was a newlywed. One was a new father with his beautiful daughter in his arms and his wife at his side. They had found the missing puzzle pieces they had searched their whole lives for.
Family.
Life couldn’t get more perfect than this.
About the Author
Tricia Andersen lives in Iowa with her husband, Brian, and her childrensons, Jake and Jon, and daughter. Ali. She graduated from the University of Iowa with a Bachelor of Arts in English and from Kirkwood Community College with an Associate of Arts degree in Communications Media/Public Relations. When she’s not writing (which she loves to do), Tricia practices mixed martial arts, coaches and participates in track and field, reads, and is involved in many of her children's activities.
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