The Academic Bride

by Lucy McConnell

  “Mind if I sit? The knee …” He gestured to his leg.

  “Sure.” She scooted over.

  He settled in as best as he could, his leg angled off to the side to accommodate the brace. He put his arm over the back of the lift. Mia found herself leaning towards him.

  “You followed your heart—just like your dad would have wanted,” he said.

  She nodded thoughtfully. “It brought me right back here.”

  “The place we met.”

  She smiled sadly. “Yeah.”

  “I knew right then I wanted to marry you.”

  Mia ran her fingernail down the seam in the seat. “You know you hit your head, right?”

  Ryder laughed, tucking her close. “Mia! When I fell off that lift, my pathetic little life flashed before my eyes and I hated myself for being a chicken and never asking you out. I woke up to your beautiful brown eyes and I knew I couldn’t waste another day. I wanted to marry you right then.”

  Mia stared at him in shock. He meant it—all this time he’d meant every word, every touch, every kiss. “You kind of skipped over something important. Like asking me.” She smacked his side.

  He scooted closer on the seat. “I couldn’t ask you while in a neck brace. That is so unromantic. And then there was the hospital gown.” He made a face. “Pajamas, sweats … And there you were, all stunning every time I saw you.” He ran his hand through her hair, sending warm waves through her body. “Can you see my dilemma?”

  Mia laughed, thinking of the way her heart pounded seeing him in his snow coat or a simple T-shirt. She couldn’t imagine that she had half the effect on him that he had on her. “Not at all.”

  “Just ask her already!” yelled Bonnie.

  Mia whipped around to see the Montgomery clan on the deck of the lodge. Roy and Amos were in the back, folding their arms and nodding their heads as guys do when they’re proud of one of their own. Bonnie and Isabelle clasped hands, their faces full of excitement. Carter stood apart, his half grin in place.

  She waved. They waved back. Bonnie bounced. Somehow, it was more perfect having them be there, knowing they loved her and Ryder enough to want to be a part of their coming together. She blinked against the tears that threatened to overflow just like her heart bursting with love.

  “I have a question.” Ryder cupped her head and leaned close so only she could hear.

  Her heart pounded away, the boom-boom shaking her frame. She grabbed Ryder’s sweater and hung on.

  He looked down at her hands. “You okay?”

  “I think I’m going to melt right off this chair,” she admitted.

  He pulled her closer and nudged her cheek with his own, his words whispering across her skin. “Marry me?”

  “Yes.” She grinned just before their lips met and could hardly stop long enough to kiss him back.

  The Montgomerys erupted in cheers.

  “I love you,” Ryder said against her lips.

  “I love you back.” She wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her lips to his.

  Epilogue

  Eight months later

  Mia carried the green beans into the private dining room, where the Montgomery crew gathered for Thanksgiving dinner.

  “I’ve got something to say.” Roy clanked his knife against his glass.

  Mia set the serving dish in front of her place and sat next to Ryder, who squeezed her knee, making her jump. “Just making sure this isn’t a dream,” he whispered in her ear.

  “You’re supposed to pinch yourself,” she admonished him playfully.

  “Not as much fun.” Ryder kissed her cheek.

  “No, it’s not,” she agreed, and returned his kiss.

  Roy cleared his throat. “I want everyone to go around the table and say something they’re thankful for.”

  Groans erupted. “Pops.” Carter waved his hand over the turkey. “The food’s getting cold.”

  “Then talk fast.” Roy turned to Ryder. “You start.”

  Ryder put his arm around Mia’s shoulders. “I’m thankful for my beautiful wife.”

  Mia blushed. Ryan had wanted to keep their original wedding date, which would have been two days after their official engagement and only one day after they picked out the ring, but Mia had insisted on a traditional wedding. She wanted the dress, the flowers, and most especially as many family members as possible—which meant giving them fair notice to make travel arrangements. They were married in the gazebo that Carter built on July 19th. Her grandpa and grandma made it, and Amos walked her down the aisle. Carter stood up as Ryder’s best man and Isabelle was a charming maid of honor ever.

  As if giving her the wedding of her dreams wasn’t enough, Ryder took her to New Zealand to ski for their honeymoon. It was, in a word, heaven.

  “Aww.” Isabelle’s hands went to her chest.

  “They’re so sweet,” said Bonnie. “Aren’t they so sweet, Roy?”

  He nodded, and Mia took a deep breath, rubbing her baby bump. “I’m thankful for babies.”

  “I can’t wait to be an aunt!” Isabelle fluttered her hands. “Can I babysit?”

  Mia smiled. “You’ll have to bring a friend so you can both hold a baby.”

  Ryder’s arm dropped off her shoulders and his hand went to her belly. “Twins?”

  Mia bit her lip. “I found out yesterday.”

  There was another round of squeals and congratulations.

  “I’m going shopping tomorrow,” announced Bonnie.

  “I’ll build them a double swing for that tree in your front yard,” offered Carter.

  “I’ll help,” said Ryder. They leaned across the table to talk design, Ryder’s hand never leaving Mia’s belly.

  As everyone discussed the possibilities ahead for the family, Mia’s eyes met Amos’s. “This is that perfect moment, Amos.”

  “Yes it is.” Amos winked.

  Ryder kissed her temple. “When exactly did you fall in love with me?” he asked as everyone forgot about listing their blessings and began passing food.

  Mia grinned. “It was while you were skiing.”

  He kissed her once more, then again for good measure.

  “Hey, lovebirds—take some turkey,” groused Roy.

  She and Ryder laughed as they broke apart.

  Mia took in the family around her, all talking over one another, and her eyes misted over. Her dad had been right—love felt like a matter of life and death. She rubbed her ever-expanding stomach. Life.

  The best life.

  Ready to escape to Echo Ridge once again? The second book in The Echo Ridge Series will release on July 17th. BUT if you can’t wait, you can pick up the whole series in The Echo Ridge Romance Collection for just $4.99 or FREE in KU right now.

  CLICK HERE to start reading now!

  Now Available

  Read on to discover more sweet romances from

  bestselling author Lucy McConnell.

  Billionaire Marriage Brokers

  The Academic Bride

  The Organized Bride

  The Professional Bride

  The Country Bride

  The Protective Groom

  The Resilient Bride

  The Athletic Groom

  The Snow Valley Series

  Welcome to Snow Valley, Montana, where romance is always in season.

  Blue Christmas

  Love in Light and Shadow

  Romancing Her Husband

  Wedding Fever

  One Date Deal

  The Destination Billionaire Romance Series

  Beautiful locations, handsome heroes, and romance.

  The Reclusive Billionaire

  Royal Distraction

  Marrying Miss Kringle

  Ginger

  Lux

  Sneak Peak

  A Brand New Second Chance

  “I mean, what does that say about me? I love those salads. And I just walked away from them because he made one comment.” Abigail waved her spoon around as she ranted and the
n shoved the giant bite of chocolate lasagna in her mouth.

  Tae took smaller bites, her head tipping this way and that as she considered the question. “First off, it means that you loved Jace more than you loved the salad.”

  Abigail plopped next to her on the second-hand couch. Her studio apartment was clean to the possibility of sparse. She’d been mad about that today too, since she’d put off settling in on the hope of buying a house with Jace one day. To be fair, he had talked about those things just as excitedly as she had—at least when they first came to the city. For the last few years, he’d talked excitedly about his net income, stock growth, and 401K. “Thanks. But what ticks me off is that nothing he did bothered me enough to say something to him. Am I a push over?”

  Tae laughed. “Why don’t you ask Freddie? The poor host didn’t stand a chance against you.”

  A seed of satisfaction sprouted as she remembered charging past the host that afternoon.

  “I think you loved Jace like you would have a member of your own family. Sure they do things that annoy you, but you don’t write them off because of a personality flaw.” Tae patted her knee. “That’s one of the things that I love about you. You treat everyone like that. It makes it very easy to be your friend.”

  Abigail laid her head on Tae’s shoulder. “Thanks. But does it make me a crappy girlfriend?”

  Tae shook her head. “It makes Jace a complete idiot for letting you go. There will be a day when he realizes what he passed up and he’ll regret it right down to his stupid shiny shoes.”

  Abigail took another bite of lasagna as she considered Tae’s prophesy. The chocolate and cream melted over her tongue and she swallowed. “It’s weird, but all afternoon I had this feeling that there was a loss in the universe.” She held up a hand. “I know, the world doesn’t revolve around me—there’s just this void out there.” She made a circular motion in front of her with her spoon.

  “Makes sense—you need to mourn the loss of the relationship—especially since you’d been together for so long.”

  “That’s part of it—I guess. But there’s also this sense that I missed out on things because I was with him. It makes me mad.”

  “Like what?”

  She sucked in through her teeth. “This is hard.”

  Tae lifted her palm. “Anything you say will be kept confidential by the best friend confidentiality clause.”

  “I know.” Abigail nudged her with her foot. “It’s hard like—naked honest hard.”

  “Go on.”

  “My mom called this afternoon, right after I quit. I didn’t tell her about any of this.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because—we just didn’t talk like that. I mean, I always thought we were close but when I looked back, if I needed someone to talk to, I went to Jace. He and I did everything. He even took me dress shopping for prom. And I’m bummed that I don’t have that memory with my mom.”

  Tae nodded. “Why did she call?”

  “Mmm.” Abigail gulped down a bite. “She wants some help on this float she’s doing for Homecoming.”

  “That’s perfect. You should do it.” Tae settled into the couch a little deeper. “Sounds like she wants to spend time with you—sans Jace. Go, talk to her about all this. See where it takes you. What else did you miss out on?”

  Abigail shrugged. “I don’t know. Singing in the choir, kissing random boys, hanging out at Fay’s after a football game. Just regular teen stuff. Asking a boy to a dance in one of those creative ways.” She shrugged. “Jace wasn’t into all that—we just always knew we were going together.”

  “So go home for a while. Be a kid again. This is your chance to recapture some of that.”

  “Homecoming is sort of a big deal and there’s all sorts of activities going on.” A sense of adventure mingled with the dread of facing the home-town crowd without Jace by her side.

  “Go find Abigail—the whole woman,” encouraged Tae.

  Abigail turned to look out the small window. She’d always hated staring at the brick wall of the building next door. In her mind, she could see beyond that building, and the next and the next to the small town filled with familiarity—the place that had nurtured her as she went from gangly teen too adult.

  Echo Ridge was calling her home.

  Want more? Pick up the Echo Ridge Romance Collection (All 4 books in the Echo Ridge Romance series in one book) by clicking here.

  About the Author

  Lucy McConnell has always been a reader and a writer. She writes fantasy, clean romance, Christian romance, historical fiction, and cookbooks under the name Christina Dymock.

  When she’s not writing, you can find her volunteering at the elementary school or the church; shuttling kids to baseball, soccer, basketball, or rodeo, depending on the time of year; skiing with her family; wake boarding; cycling; or curled up with a good book.

  You can sign up for her newsletter by clicking here and can check out here website here: http://lucymcconnell.wordpress.com/