by Regina Duke
“Yes. He’s downstairs, introducing himself around. You know your dad.”
Megan nodded. “Never at a loss for words.”
“Now come on,” said Glenda. “We have work to do. I’ll start your hair. You do your makeup. And we’ll talk as we work. Now let’s see. Where to begin. Okay, Monday dad and I got a phone call from a very nice Mr. Garcia who then put a man named Zach on the phone. And he told us you were getting married, and we were going to come as a special surprise. He gave your dad no chance to say no. I can’t wait to meet that Zach fellow. He had your dad sputtering on the phone! And when he told us he was sending a private jet and we’d better get our keesters to Guate to meet the plane at La Aurora, you bet your father got moving! No one ever sent a private plane for us before.”
“Guate?”
“That’s what the locals call Guatemala City, the capital.”
“When did you get to Colorado?”
“Yesterday afternoon. That nice Mr. Garcia was waiting for us when we landed, and he took us out to dinner and we stayed in a nice hotel, then up bright and early this morning to get here in time for the ceremony! Oh, your father grumbled, you know. And it’s smack in the middle of the rainy season in Guatemala, and your father’s old Jeep got mired in the mud on the way to the airport, because the only place that would have his mission is out in the boonies. You know, he thinks everyone needs him and he forgets that this is a modern nation with their own pride and their own churches. We mainly do volunteer work with orphans but it really gets your father’s goat that he has to work under a local clergyman and can’t take off on his own. And of course, he’s not giving sermons, because his Spanish isn’t good enough, and he’s not ordained in that church.”
“Enough, enough,” said Megan, staying her mother’s hand with the hairspray in it. “Mom, you’re getting really excited. Let’s save the missionary stories for after the wedding, okay? I want to hear it all, but I want to tell you about Kevin.”
“Oh, of course you do! Silly me, I’m just so thrilled to see you, my little Meggers.”
Megan stood and they embraced again. “Me, too, mama. This makes today officially the best day of my life. I’m so sorry I couldn’t get hold of you to tell you I was out of the hospital.”
“Thank God you’re okay. That’s the only way I was able to leave you. I had to go back when I did, because—well, that story can wait. Let’s just say, your father was in a pickle with the Guatemalan government. I couldn’t let him go to jail.”
Megan’s eyes popped. “Okay, then,” she said. “We will have some interesting stories to share at the reception.”
“Are you expecting many guests, dear?”
“I have no idea. It was too short a notice for my college friends. And actually, you know, I wasn’t that close to many people. I was working all the time.”
“I know, dear.” Glenda’s face fell. “I’m so sorry we couldn’t help you out.”
“Don’t be silly! You gave me five thousand dollars! And it made all the difference. You instilled in me a desire to stay debt free.” She hesitated. “In fact, that’s how I met Kevin.” She changed the subject. “Here, help me get into this dress. It fit me day before yesterday. Let’s just hope it still does. Ever since I left the hospital, I’ve wanted to taste everything.”
“Hospital food can do that to you. Makes you want to eat everything that is not hospital food.”
They laughed together.
The dress still fit. It zipped up easily.
“This is beautiful,” said Glenda. “Very simple and elegant, and yet so extravagant.”
“You mean the pearls and lace? Yes, I know. I absolutely adore it.”
“Where ever did you find it? It looks like something you’d see in a New York bridal shop.”
Megan cleared her throat. “Well, now, there’s an interesting story behind the dress,” she said, once again staring her marriage bargain in the face. How to explain in twenty minutes or less how she and Kevin met, then actually fell in love? And what if Krystal was right? What if the walls did have ears?
Then she clamped her mouth shut. She wouldn’t put anything past Douglas Wake. She wouldn’t chance giving him any ammunition, even if he seemed to know everything already. Besides, she didn’t have time to explain it all to her mother at the moment.
Instead she said, “Kevin’s mother Krystal gave me the gown as a gift. It was very sweet and thoughtful. Help me with my veil, mom.”
“Oh, look, more lace and pearls! And these tiny artificial roses! Are those silk?”
“I think so, yes.”
“My, my, my.” Glenda looked wistful. “Do you want to know a secret?” She leaned close. “When your father and I had our church wedding, I couldn’t afford a gown. I went to a costume shop and rented one! That’s why I couldn’t save it for your wedding day. Besides, it would have been two sizes two big. Because I was five months pregnant that day!”
“Mom! You never told me that!”
“Some things are better left unsaid, dear. I told you your father was a lot more persuasive in his youth? Well, he used quite a bit of that on me.” Her eyes were round and held a you-know-what-I-mean look. “And after the blood test, I used quite a bit on him. I told him it wouldn’t look good for a young pastor starting out to have an unwed mother haunting him every where he went.”
“You didn’t?!” Megan didn’t know whether to laugh or be horrified. “You are amazing, mama.”
“I did what I had to do, my dear. Just like always.” She smiled with satisfaction, then changed the subject. “Where did you meet Kevin, dear?”
“In Seattle,” said Megan, biting off her tendency to run on at the mouth with her mother and tell her everything. “He went to school there.”
“Oh, I can’t wait to meet him and learn all about his family!”
Megan smiled at herself in the mirror. I’ll try to stay one step ahead, she thought.
CHAPTER FIFTY-ONE
At ten to eleven, Krystal knocked on the dressing room door.
“Come in,” called Megan.
Krystal’s eyes lit up when she saw Megan in her dress.
“Mom, this is Kevin’s mother, Krystal Fineman Wake. Krystal, this is my mom, Glenda.”
“So happy to meet you,” gushed Glenda. “Megan said her dress was a gift from you. What a wonderful thing to do for my little girl!”
Krystal maintained her reserve, but her gray eyes now held a glint of amusement. “She is the most deserving young woman I have ever met. She has made my Kevin a very happy man.” Before Glenda could rush on, Krystal held up a hand. “Megan, dear, the minister is here. Your father is trying to talk him into sharing the ceremony.”
Megan looked horrified. “Mom! Stop him, please!”
“I’m on my way,” said Glenda, and she rushed out of the room.
Krystal smiled softly at Megan. “Your mother is lovely.”
“Good, because my father is not.”
Krystal laughed.
Megan had never heard her laugh before.
Krystal stepped forward and gave Megan an impulsive hug. “We seem to have more in common than I ever guessed,” she said, returning to her reserved self. “Take a few moments to compose yourself, dear. We will not start without you.” She turned to leave, then paused. “By the way, thank you for helping Karla. She just told her father she was dressing exactly as the bride requested. I wouldn’t have missed that moment for anything.” She left, closing the door silently behind her.
Megan stood in the quiet and examined her reflection in the mirror. Not bad for a last minute bride. Not bad for a well prepared bride. Not bad, period. Her mother had swooped her hair into a French twist and left a few tendrils loose to soften the effect.
She pulled the veil down over her face. Her heart skipped a beat. She looked like a fairytale bride. Time to go downstairs.
She left the room and walked to the end of the hall. She could hear voices below, and she could hear someone playi
ng the organ. The sound of the Wurlitzer took her back many years to Sundays before her father’s sermons when her mother would entertain the congregation with renditions of popular hymns. She listened more carefully, then smiled. It was her mother playing now, she would bet money on it! She heard her flub the same key change in “Blessed Assurance” that she had been flubbing since Megan was a child.
She headed down the stairs.
Zachary waited for her on the landing.
And so did her father.
Megan stopped cold.
Zach said softly, “We came to an agreement. One of us on each arm.”
Vernon Mully did not look pleased, but he never looked pleased, so Megan nodded. “That’s perfect.”
She continued down the stairs with her escort. At the foot of the stairs, they stopped.
The double doors to the parlor were open and the room was full of people. Some of them were familiar, but at least twenty were unknown to her. She guessed that the dozen or so children were the offspring of the ranch employees. But the six men in dark blue suits were a mystery. Three of them were huddled in a corner with Kevin. She was pleased to see Jeffrey Wong at Kevin’s elbow. The other three suits stood soldier-like behind Douglas Wake. None of them looked happy or comfortable.
Megan had no time to determine what was transpiring. Her mother glanced around when the first ooohs and aaaahs rose from the gathering. Everyone was admiring her dress, and she couldn’t blame them. As soon as Glenda Mully saw her daughter standing between her escorts, she began playing the Wedding March. A murmur of anticipation swept through the ladies in the room. Those who were standing quickly took their chairs. When they did so, a lovely tapestry was revealed. It wasn’t a red carpet, but the embroidered flowers, hearts and birds in flight depicted there provided an idyllic runway for the bride.
Kevin shoved papers at the blue suits in his corner, and strode to the front of the room where the minister awaited him. Once there, he turned and caught Megan’s eye, and they shared a private smile. Then he gave her a tiny nod of encouragement.
Megan Mully Wake began her walk down the aisle.
CHAPTER FIFTY-TWO
“Hold it! Hold everything!” Douglas Wake, flanked by his lawyers, raised an open hand to halt the proceedings.
Krystal’s gray eyes flashed fire. “Sit down, Douglas! This day belongs to Kevin and Megan.”
Douglas turned and glared at her. “You and I both know this is about a lot more than a wedding party. I have information that will affect everything that happens here, and everything that happens afterward.”
Krystal raised herself carefully from her chair. “You are such a drama queen,” she snapped. “Let these young people have their wedding!”
Douglas held up three pages of legal-sized paper. “This wedding is a farce! I have evidence here that proves it!”
Megan’s insides ached with tension.
Kevin spread his hands. “Dad, for the love of God, you don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“I’m talking about this prenuptial agreement my people uncovered.”
Kevin bristled. “You mean, your spies. I know all about them. Jeffrey told me everything.”
Douglas dismissed Kevin’s words. “Jeffrey? That wimp? He had nothing to do with this.”
“I know,” said Kevin. “But you’ve been paying his cousin Patrick for years to spy on me through Jeff.”
Krystal’s voice cut through the room. “Silence!”
Everyone turned to look at her.
Krystal straightened her spine. “Douglas, this is not the time or place for one of your theatrical tantrums. Kevin and Megan are not the first young couple to sign a prenup.”
Douglas’s complexion reddened with anger. “This prenup spells out that this whole thing is a marriage of convenience!” He pointed his empty hand at Megan. “That money-grubbing gold digger spelled out exactly how Kevin is to pay off her medical bills.”
Vernon Mully needed only three long strides to reach Douglas and one short, sharp jab to break his nose.
Blood spurted down the front of Douglas’s white shirt.
“What the hell?! You son of a bitch!” Douglas pulled his arm back, telegraphing his intentions to the whole room.
Kevin had plenty of time to step between them and grab his father’s arm before he could retaliate.
“Stop it!” warned Kevin quietly.
“I’ll sue that man!”
Glenda Mully gasped and moved to stand beside her husband.
Krystal’s tone cut like a knife. “No one is being sued. You’re making a fool of yourself, Douglas. Do you think you’re the only one with a team of lawyers?” She glanced about and caught the eye of one of the three suits who had been huddling with Kevin in the corner. “Mr. Ratigan? Will you please put an end to this display so these young people can get on with their wedding?”
The eldest of the group of lawyers stepped forward and cleared his throat.
“I am not quite sure which point of the situation you wish me to comment upon, Mrs. Wake.”
“Oh, cut the lawyer crap and tell them what you told me this morning,” said Krystal.
Ratigan’s brows shot up. “Very well, then. For the benefit of Mr. Wake the younger and his bride, let me say first that Mr. Douglas Wake is objecting to today’s nuptials based on the existence of a prenuptial agreement that spells out certain financial arrangements and obligations that both signees agreed to prior to their marriage. Such agreements are not uncommon, and in fact in most cases I wholeheartedly advocate—”
“Dennis! Spit it out,” said Krystal.
“Yes, yes, of course. To the crux of the matter. Mr. Wake the elder is objecting because he believes the existence of said prenup violates the requirement of the Fineman family trust.”
Douglas was pressing a blood-soaked handkerchief to his nose. His voice was muffled. “Of course it does! The trust demands a legitimate marriage prior to the heir’s twenty-fifth birthday. The prenup proves they didn’t love each other. They entered into this arrangement for the sole purpose of acquiring possession of the trust.”
Dennis Ratigan’s narrow mouth twitched in a small smile of triumph. “Considering the admirable team of legal advisors you have assembled, I find it hard to believe that they have not explained this situation to you in very clear terms.”
Megan moved forward to stand by Krystal.
“Mrs. Wake, please sit down,” she said softly. “I’ll stand for both of us.”
Krystal balanced herself on Megan’s arm and sat gratefully.
Megan continued, “Mr. Ratigan, for those of us who do not have a team of lawyers, please explain what you’re talking about.”
Ratigan cleared his throat again. “Very well. The requirements of this trust were established long ago. At that time, it was common for—”
Kevin and Krystal chorused, “Get to the point!”
Ratigan looked miffed, but he complied. “There is no requirement that the bride and groom be in love. Merely that they be married.”
Douglas dabbed at his nose. The bleeding had stopped. He sounded like a man with a bad cold. “Well, they aren’t going to make that deadline either. By marrying today, a Friday, that license won’t be filed until Monday. Am I right?” He looked to his legal trio for support.
“Wrong,” said Kevin. He pulled a folded paper out of his inside coat pocket and held it in the air. “You were betting against me, dad. You wanted me to fail. You were counting on my dislike of your business practices and our personal differences to keep me from taking action. Well, I’m not eighteen anymore. And I’m not single anymore either. Megan and I were married in Nevada four days ago.”
Glenda Mully cried out in surprise and clapped her hands.
Krystal allowed herself a satisfied twinge of a smile.
Zach stepped forward and shook Kevin’s hand. “Congratulations four days late.”
Kevin grinned.
Douglas’s color now matched his no
se. He looked ready to pop. At last he blustered, “I need a doctor! You three, come with me!” He ushered his legal team toward the door, but one of them turned long enough to address Ratigan.
“Just so you know, we’ve been telling him all along that he didn’t have a leg to stand on.”
Douglas’s voice boomed, “You’re fired!”
The guests were buzzing.
Krystal tugged at Megan’s arm.
“Yes, Mrs. Wake?”
“My dear, I think it’s time for you to marry your true love.”
Megan beamed. “I agree.” She held her elbows akimbo. “Dad? Zach? Are you ready to walk me down the aisle?”
Glenda returned to the Wurlitzer with an, “Oh, goody!” She began playing the “Wedding March” again.
Kevin put the marriage certificate back in his pocket and took his place before the minister. Jeffrey stood nearby as his best man.
Kevin’s mouth dropped open and he slapped his forehead.
“Rings!” he cried. “I never had time to buy the rings!”
Keegan appeared with a black velvet box.
“They’re right here,” he said. “Zach gave’em to me.”
Kevin turned a questioning glance toward Zach, who raised his eyes to the ceiling and said nothing.
Krystal smiled softly. “I wondered for years if you’d taken them back for a refund.”
“No, ma’am,” said Zach. “I figured if I waited long enough, they would come in handy.”
The ceremony was brief, but Megan was sure there was no one in the room who would ever forget her wedding day.
CHAPTER FIFTY-THREE
Two months later, Kevin hung up the phone. Megan waited at the kitchen table to hear the news. Cookie tried to pretend she wasn’t listening.
“The check cleared the bank,” he said. “Your medical bills are history!”
“Yay!” Megan threw her arms around his neck. “Thank you so much,” she whispered.
Karla and Keegan tramped into the room, followed by Chunky and Creamy, who were nearly twice as large at five months as they’d been at three.
