Married in Montana

by Kirsten Osbourne

"Yes, I am. It was hard at first, because he's—well he's a man, and he doesn't understand women at all. But he's getting better."

  "I'm just glad he hasn't killed you in your sleep!"

  Savannah laughed. She'd been waiting for her mother to say that to her. "If he was going to do that, I think he'd have done it long ago."

  "Probably. Okay, well, we'll do dinner before your show on Saturday, but that's the only time we can work you in. You don't mind if I bring Joe, do you?" Mrs. Blyton sounded almost nervous at the idea of taking him to a family dinner.

  "Not at all. I'll be happy to see him again." Savannah couldn't have been happier for her mother. "You should marry him. He's been in love with you for years."

  "We're talking about it," Mrs. Blyton admitted.

  "That's wonderful! I love the idea."

  "I can tell. Okay, well, he's on his way, and I need to get changed for our date. I'll see you next week."

  "Bye, Mom. Tell my new daddy 'hi' for me."

  Mrs. Blyton laughed as she disconnected the call.

  Savannah went looking for Scott, dying to tell him her news. She found him in his office, frowning at his computer. "What's wrong?" she asked, worried about his frown.

  "Just having some trouble negotiating a good price for a bull I want to bring in for breeding." He grabbed her around the waist and pulled her down onto his lap. "A kiss from my wife will fix everything."

  Savannah stared at him in mock dismay. "I can't kiss a man just so he'll sell you the bull you want! I'm a married woman!"

  Scott laughed, pulling her down for a kiss. "You can kiss your husband and make everything better that way, though."

  She smiled, happy to be with him. She was thrilled at the changes their marriage had gone through in the two months they'd been together. "I just got off the phone with my mom."

  "Oh, good. Did you make plans to see her in New York?"

  "She can only work us in for dinner on Saturday night. She has plans for the rest of the weekend." Savannah's eyes danced with excitement.

  "Who does she have plans with?" he asked. He'd gotten the impression her mother had no real social life, so he was surprised to hear she didn't have time to see Savannah while she was in town.

  "Joseph Fordman."

  Scott shrugged, needing more information. "Who is Joseph Fordman?"

  Savannah grinned, grabbing Scott's shoulders in her excitement. "Do you remember me telling you that there was a nice man at church who I thought my mom should date? Because he'd been in love with her for years?"

  "Yeah...is that him?"

  She nodded. "Yes, it is! They spend every possible moment together, and they've been talking about marriage!" She was all but bouncing up and down.

  "That's wonderful! I guess you don't mind the idea of him as a step-father?"

  "I wanted her to marry him fifteen years ago," she told him. "He's been in love with her for that long."

  "I guess he thought she was worth waiting for." He nuzzled her neck. "Like her daughter."

  "You didn't wait fifteen years for me, and don't even pretend you did." She shook her head at him.

  He shrugged. "I did wait for you, because no one else was quite right."

  "No one else was willing to put up with your nonsense, you mean?"

  "That too. But think about this, I didn't think anyone else was worth stopping my nonsense for. I've only ever bought a hot tub for one woman, and she's sitting on my lap right now." He nuzzled her neck affectionately.

  Savannah laughed at that. "Well, I hope that's the case. You can't just run around buying hot tubs for every woman you treat badly on a date. Why, half the women in Montana would have hot tubs in their yards if you'd done that."

  He glared at her. "I wasn't that bad on dates."

  She simply raised an eyebrow and looked at him.

  "Okay, maybe I was that bad on dates, but I didn't care that I was that bad on dates until I met you. And I've gotten better. Admit it."

  "You're a million times better than you were." She brushed her lips against his. "I'd have run for the hills otherwise."

  He grimaced. "I'm glad you stuck it out. Lachele did a good job with us, didn't she?"

  "I hate to admit it, but she did. You know, we should see her while we're there. Maybe have dinner with her and Sam. He was so sweet about giving me away."

  "I'd like that. We'll have to meet up with them."

  *****

  By the time they left for New York the following Friday, Savannah had a loose itinerary in mind. She knew the things she wanted to show him, and she was excited to have the opportunity. The only hard thing would be hiding her morning sickness from him, but he probably wouldn't notice if she threw up on his feet. The man wasn't known for his attentiveness.

  During the flight she kept thinking that she needed to tell him about the baby, but she just couldn't bring herself to do it. She needed to be more sure of him first. Hopefully this weekend would draw them closer together. They'd never had three days off in a row where neither of them had to work before.

  "I want to take you to Central Park tomorrow, and I thought we could have a picnic. Okay?" she asked. She thought Central Park was one of the most romantic places in the world, and she wanted to share it with him.

  He nodded. "Whatever you want to do. I'm just along for the ride. You're the one who knows the city." He didn't want to sound uncaring, but he really did want to leave it up to her.

  "I talked to Mom and we're going to have dinner at an Italian place in Little Italy tomorrow. We'll have an early meal because the show starts at seven-thirty. Of course, that's going to feel like five-thirty to us." She found it strange that she'd adjusted to the new time zone so easily. Eastern Standard had always felt like the right time to her.

  He nodded. "It was weird when I flew in last time, but I wasn't even there for twenty-four hours." He stifled a yawn. It had been a long hard day, and they had hours to go before they'd be able to climb in bed.

  "We won't have a lot longer this time, but at least we can do a few things." She knew they wouldn't be making a lot of trips to New York in the near future with a baby on the way. She didn't think she'd want to fly a lot with a small child either, so this could be their only chance for a long while.

  She'd made reservations at The Plaza Hotel, because most of the things she wanted to do were right there in Manhattan. She'd never had the opportunity to stay there before, but it had always been a dream of hers. When he hadn't balked at the cost, she'd booked it.

  Once they were in the cab on the way to the hotel, she felt energized. She'd gotten a bit of a nap on the plane, and it helped her. She'd been exhausted for the past couple of weeks and had felt incapable of ever having any energy again. She knew it was a combination of the baby sapping her energy and the new job, but between the two, it was all she could do to get out of bed in the morning.

  She leaned forward as far as the seatbelt would allow, looking at everything around her as if she'd never seen New York before. She pointed out things that would be of interest as they passed, talking softly to Scott in the back seat.

  "The Plaza Hotel, where we're staying, has an incredible amount of history if you're interested in that. We'll be close to everything we want to see. We're within walking distance of Central Park, Broadway, Rockefeller Center, Times Square and even the Empire State Building." She hugged his arm to her, getting more excited by the moment. "Are you hungry? We should probably get something to eat tonight."

  "We can't just do room service?" Scott asked. He knew he sounded cranky, but he hadn't been able to nap on the plane. He was tired. He needed sleep more than he needed food or anything else.

  "Oh, sure. If you're tired we can do that." Savannah was disappointed. She knew she wouldn't be able to eat much for breakfast, so having a nice dinner that night was appealing. No matter though. They could eat in their room, and she would just deal wit
h her morning sickness the following morning. She wished she'd had the forethought to pack some crackers.

  "I'd like that, if you don't mind." He studied her face, worried that he'd offended her. He needed to remember not to be so blunt all the time. If she really wanted to go out, he'd do it. He just wouldn't be very happy about it.

  After they'd checked into the hotel, he sat down in the room to peruse the room service menu. "Are you sure you're okay with eating in the room? I don't want to disappoint you."

  She smiled. "We have all weekend. We can eat here. It's really not a problem."

  Scott smiled at her. "Thank you for understanding. I don't know what I did to deserve you, but I thank God for you every day."

  How could she be angry with him? He still slipped up, but at least he was learning the right things to say when he did. He was shaping up to be a better husband than she'd dreamed he could be.

  *****

  Saturday morning was difficult for Savannah. It was the first time they'd been in such close quarters in the morning. Usually Scott milked the cows while she emptied her stomach, but that day he was just in the other room, listening to her.

  When she came out of the bathroom, his face was concerned. "Are you all right? Do we need to cancel our plans and stay in?" He wasn't sure if he should touch her to make her feel better or run far away so he wouldn't catch whatever she had.

  She shook her head. "I'll be fine. I think something we ate last night must not have agreed with my stomach." It was kind of true. The food was disagreeing with her now, but it was only because she was having morning sickness.

  "Do you want breakfast? I can order room service."

  Savannah couldn't help but be impressed with the way Scott was doing everything he could to make her feel better. "I think some tea and some dry toast would help a lot."

  He hurried to the phone and ordered himself a huge breakfast and requested toast and tea for her.

  She lay still on the bed while she waited for her stomach to settle. When the food arrived, the smell of his bacon sent her back into the bathroom with another bout of nausea. She wasn't sure how much longer she could hide her pregnancy without him getting overly worried.

  When she came out of the bathroom, he had the table set with her toast and her tea on one side and his meal on the other. He was hovering beside the table, obviously concerned. "Savannah, do we need to find a doctor? I mean, I know it's a holiday weekend, but surely someone would be open."

  "I'll be fine." She sat down at the table and slowly ate her toast, her stomach rolling a couple of times but thankfully not fighting her too much.

  After they'd had breakfast, she was feeling fine again. "I was thinking we could go to Central Park for a picnic today. Would you like that?" She had seen the carriage rides a million times, and never taken one. To her it was something romantic you did with your significant other, so she'd never been willing to do it with her mother or a friend.

  "If you're sure you can handle it. I'm worried about you."

  "I'll be fine. Let's stop at a deli on the way, and we'll get some sandwiches and some potato salad." Now that her stomach had calmed down, she was ravenous.

  He shrugged, not sure why she was so intent on having a picnic when she was clearly sick, but he'd learned not to question the things she did that made no sense to him.

  Once they got to the park, she sat down in the grass, wishing she'd had the foresight to bring a blanket. He looked around him in wonder. "You'd never know you were in the middle of a huge city."

  "I think that's my favorite thing about Central Park. It's just like this hidden little paradise in the middle of a concrete jungle. I love it here. Mom and I rode the subway here every Sunday afternoon after church. We'd pack a lunch and just sit and soak up nature. Central Park and Broadway are the two things I miss most about the city."

  He watched her skeptically as she took a huge bite of a sandwich and then ate chips as well as pickles. Obviously she was feeling better. "I'm glad you're not sick anymore."

  Savannah almost blurted out about the baby then, but she wanted to wait at least a little longer. She would never be able to trust his feelings if he didn't say anything until after she told him she was expecting. "Me too. I wouldn't want to ruin our time here."

  After lunch, they threw away their trash and walked along the sidewalk. "How would you feel about a carriage ride?" she asked.

  He nodded. "We can do that." As soon as they were in the carriage, he slipped his arm around her. "You know what? I have an old sleigh in the stable that my grandfather built. When it snows, I'll hitch up a couple of the horses, and we'll go for a sleigh ride. If you enjoy this, you'll love that."

  She smiled. "That sounds very romantic."

  He kissed the top of her head. "I want to do things that make you happy. You're the most important person in the world to me."

  She looked at him, waiting for him to follow that with a declaration of love, and her heart fell when it didn't happen. She hoped it happened soon, because she couldn't hide her pregnancy for long.

  *****

  They took a cab to Little Italy to eat at one of the restaurants there. It had been a favorite of hers growing up, and she'd always chosen to eat there on her birthday. Her mother was waiting out front with a tall, dark haired man she recognized immediately. "Mr. Fordman!" She ran to him hugging him tightly. "You finally talked her into going out with you!"

  He laughed. "I've been trying for years, but I finally wore her down." His gaze was on her mother, who blushed.

  "I'm so glad. Make her happy, would you?" Savannah desperately wanted to see her mother happy. It was one of the reasons she'd married Scott.

  "I'll do my best." He winked at her mother over her head.

  Savannah turned and hugged her mother tightly. "I'm still alive, see?"

  Mrs. Blyton nodded. "I see. You look well. You've got some color in your cheeks. I think Montana agrees with you." She looked at Scott over Savannah's head. "Thanks for not killing her."

  Scott shook her head sadly. "Why do you think I'm an evil beast? I love your daughter."

  Savannah's heart skipped a beat, but he'd said it so casually, he couldn't have meant it. Surely he was just trying to get her mother to feel better. Even Scott wouldn't tell her he loved her for the first time by telling her mother. Would he?

  After they were seated, Savannah looked to her left at Mr. Fordman. "How did you finally talk her into dating you? I need every detail."

  Her mother blushed, which intrigued Savannah even more. What could he have done to make her mother look that way?

  "Well, I may have told her that if she was bent on being a spinster, she needed to start collecting cats. I offered to go to the animal shelter with her and find five or six for her to adopt."

  Savannah laughed. "You didn't!"

  "And when she got offended, I kissed her."

  Savannah's eyes grew wide, and she looked back and forth between them. "Well, it worked! I'm thrilled. Now, when will I hear wedding bells?"

  Through the meal, Scott was aware of Mrs. Blyton's watchful gaze. She seemed to be waiting for him to jump up and do something stupid at any moment. While they were waiting on dessert, he excused himself to go to the bathroom, just to get away from her stare.

  He stood up too quickly, not noticing a waiter hovering behind him with a pitcher of tea. He bumped into the waiter and watched, as if in slow motion, as the waiter poured the entire pitcher down the front of his mother-in-law's shirt.

  He was mortified. Looking at Savannah, he saw her face, and rushed off for the bathroom. He knew she had to be angry with him. Why couldn't he do anything right around her? He loved her so much, and he acted like a big clumsy oaf.

  Chapter Ten

  By the time Scott returned to the table, the mess had been cleaned up, and Mrs. Blyton had been dried as well as possible. Scott looked at her. "I'm so
sorry. I didn't know the waiter was behind me."

  Mrs. Blyton smiled at him. "I know that, Scott. Don't worry about it. Accidents happen."

  "But I know you had plans for after dinner. Let me buy you a new shirt so you have something to wear."

  She shook her head. "My apartment isn't far. I'll go home and change. It's really not a problem."

  Scott couldn't meet Savannah's eyes. He was certain she'd be furious with him.

  When they were in the cab on the way to the play, he stared out the opposite window.

  Savannah finally had enough. She took his hand in hers and pressed her lips to his shoulder. "Stop worrying about it. It could have happened to anyone."

  "Yes, it could have, but the thing is, it always seems to happen to me. Why is that?" His voice was bitter and full of self-loathing.

  Savannah didn't have an answer for him, so she stayed quiet for a moment. "This isn't like the other things that happened, you know. This was no big deal. My mother wasn't upset at all."

  "How could she not be upset? She's already convinced I'm going to kill you at any moment. Of course, she's upset."

  She smiled. "She doesn't think that anymore."

  "Well, something good came out of the night then. Now she just thinks that I'll dump pitchers of ice tea all over you?"

  "I'm glad I married you," she said softly. "If I could go back and do it all over again, I would."

  "Please, don't say things you don't mean just to make me feel better. Somehow it just makes me feel worse." He'd really felt like he was improving, and becoming a better husband, and now he'd ruined everything again.

  "Have I ever said anything just to make you feel better? Did I lie to you about how I felt about the mixer? Or about you accusing me of having PMS? Or any of the other silly things you'd done? No, I haven't, because I don't do that." She sighed. "I mean what I say. If I were to go back in time, and know exactly what would happen between us, I would marry you again, and I wouldn't hesitate."

  He looked at her, his eyes filled with remorse. "Why?"

  "Because you really are the right man for me. I don't know how she did it, but Dr. Simpson was exactly right. We belong together."

  "You really believe that, don't you?" He paused while the taxi driver stopped to yell at a pedestrian who was jaywalking. He'd never seen anything like the taxi drivers there. "I think that's what I love most about you. Your ability to forgive. By all rights you should have left me within two weeks of our marriage."