Rocky Mountain Wedding

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W
hoever coined the term blushing bride had it all wrong.

Ruby James studied herself in the full-length mirror that hung over the door in her friend Avery Walker's bedroom. In front of an audience that included her bridesmaids, Avery and Julia; her soon-to-be aunt-in-law, Elsie Walker; and her matron of honor, Paige, Ruby'd been attempting to squeeze herself into her wedding dress for the last ten minutes. It was supposed to be a prewedding tea, one more girls' celebration before she officially became Mrs. Hawkins.

But now her hair, which had been neatly piled on top of her head, had broken free, frizzing around her face as if she'd just spent an hour out in the humidity. Speaking of her face…her forehead looked like it might pop a vein.

Blushing bride? More like gasping, heaving, red-faced bride.

“Come on,” Paige said, clutching either side of the gaping zipper. “Suck it in, Ruby. We can do this.” If anyone could do it, Paige could. The woman actually had biceps. As a mountain guide, she'd climbed most of the cliffs within a thirty-mile radius of Aspen. You'd never know it just looking at her on the street, what with her petite frame, gleaming hazel eyes, and wavy streaked hair, but Paige was pretty much a badass. “Suck it in,” she commanded.

“I
am
sucking it in,” Ruby wheezed. Lordy! She'd been sucking it in for the last decade. Not that she was overweight, just a bit curvy, which her faithful fiancé, Sawyer, insisted he loved.
Don't you dare lose a pound
, he's say when she'd mention a diet she might like to try.
You're perfect.
Then he'd grab her ass and tell her he liked having something to hold on to. She directed her gaze to the mirror again and ran it down her body in a critical assessment. Lately, though, it seemed like he'd had a whole lot more to hold on to. Obviously. The wedding was four days away and her dress didn't fit.

Grunting, Paige yanked on the fabric. “Okay, on the count of three you'll inhale and clench that stomach,” she instructed. “Then I'll jerk up that damn zipper before it knows what hit it.”

“Good idea,” Paige's sister-in-law, Julia, chimed in, wheeling her chair closer to the spectacle like she wanted a front-row seat. Julia had recently gotten back from her own wedding in Tahiti, where she'd married her childhood sweetheart, Isaac. And wow, the woman looked good—the tanned and glowing new bride. Her long dark hair was sun-streaked and lovely, and those exotic brown eyes of hers seemed to glisten in a way they hadn't before.

Ruby would bet that the woman hadn't had any problem fitting into
her
wedding dress.

Then there were Avery and Elsie. They'd probably
never
sucked it in. Though she had a seven-month-old, Avery had one of those naturally lean bodies. Along with her blond hair and ice-blue eyes, she could still walk the runway somewhere. Elsie may have been a bit plump, but she was still petite and graceful—the typical grandma-to-everyone.

Cheeks puffed out in a sigh, Ruby checked herself in the mirror again. “I don't know what I'm going to do.” It was Thursday. The wedding was on Sunday. “I'll have to find a new dress.” Which would break her heart. After she'd bought this dress, she'd had Elsie make a matching dress for Brookie. In just a few short months, she and Sawyer would be officially adopting the sweet foster girl they'd both come to love and they'd wanted to make sure she was an integral part of the ceremony.

“Like hell you will,” Paige grunted. She'd always had a slight competitive streak, and this dress had just become her nemesis.

“We'll get it this time, dear,” Elsie soothed. “Don't you worry.”

“It'll fit fine,” Avery agreed, but concern rounded her eyes and Ruby could practically see her thinking through a plan b.

“Here goes,” Paige said, getting a tighter grip on the material. “One, two, three.”

Straightening, Ruby inhaled and held her breath, cinching her ribs so tight she swore they touched her spine.

Behind her, Paige cursed with the passion of a sailor and jerked the two edges of the satiny material together.

Blood pounded in Ruby's head. Her fingertips tingled.

“Come on!” Paige groaned. “Avery, pull up the zipper!”

Avery jumped into action and tugged.

Ruby's body jolted. She swayed. Whoa…she was going to pass out. The air whooshed from her mouth with hurricane force. Her body slumped forward. “God, I feel like I'm going to break a rib!”

Paige stood behind her, eyeing that zipper. “I'm sweating,” her friend complained. “I'm actually sweating right now.”

The others looked at Ruby with varying degrees of concern.

She turned back to the mirror, shifting to the side to study the profile view. It was such a beautiful dress. Satin with a sheer layer over it, fitted across the bodice and down over the curve of her hips with a slight fan in the skirt. “It fit me perfectly when I bought it,” she wailed. It had made her feel exactly like a princess. Now she felt like a hog ready for spring.

How could she have gained that much weight in three weeks?

Elsie knelt on the floor in front of her and gathered one of the seams in her hand, inspecting it closely. “Oh, I can fix this,” she murmured. “It'll be nothing for me to take it out a bit. There's plenty of room in the seams.”

“Thanks, Elsie.” She patted the older woman's hand. “But that doesn't fix the problem. I don't understand how I could've outgrown a dress in three weeks.” Sure she was a baker at the ranch, but she never sampled more than one of everything. Of course, all of the stress lately had fooled her into believing she was hungry most of the time. But she still watched what she ate…

“Don't worry about it,” Paige said, falling back to a leather chaise like she was spent. “That last month before my wedding, I stress-ate everything in sight.”

“But you didn't have to have your dress altered days before,” she pointed out.

“No, but the dress didn't stay on long, I'll tell you that much.” Paige laughed, elbowing Avery.

“Can we not hear the story about what you and my brother did in the limo again?” Julia begged. “Please?”

Paige grinned at her sister-in-law. “I'm just trying to make the point that the dress doesn't matter all that much.” She stood and threw an arm around Ruby. “Sawyer loves
you
.”

“I know.” But she still wanted to be beautiful for him…

“Oh!” Avery popped up and jogged to the dresser. “I have the perfect thing!” She dug through the top drawer and snatched out some nude-colored elasticy thing. “Spanx!”

She tossed it to Ruby.

A laugh tumbled out. She'd heard about these things but didn't realize they actually existed. Holding it up, she inspected the contraption. “Is this supposed to fit around my arm?” she asked. Actually, it might be too tight for her arm…

“No one wants to wear those things.” Julia snatched the Spanx out of her hand and tossed it aside. “Maybe you're just bloated. Are you PMSing?”

“Not that I know of.” She slumped to the bed, suddenly feeling like she could sleep for a year. “My period is all over the place. No idea when it'll hit next.”

“Oh my God.” Avery clapped a hand over her mouth. “When's the last time you
had
your period?”

“Oh…well…” Her mind jogged back through the months. When nothing turned up, her thoughts evolved to a frantic sprint. “I'm not sure.” She didn't like the way everyone's eyes grew rounder and rounder. They all knew well and good she'd likely never have children. “It's never been regular. I have endometriosis,” she reminded them.

“That doesn't mean it's impossible for you to get pregnant, right?” Julia asked.

Her ribs cranked tight. “I…don't know.” She'd always tried not to think about it—to let that possibility remain in her heart. Over the years, she'd scrubbed out all of that hope.

She couldn't be pregnant. She just couldn't be.

“Have you and Sawyer done the deed?” Julia demanded to know. Seeing as how she'd seen the woman only a couple of times in the last six months, they hadn't had the sex discussion.

“Excuse me?” Heat boiled inside, rising to her face.

“You know, have you made love, had a quickie in the shower, taken a roll in the hay?”

Yes.
To all of those. But Elsie—
Sawyer's aunt
—was sitting right there!

“Of course they've had sex,” Paige answered for her. “This isn't 1950.”

Elsie chuckled. “Oh, please. As if we weren't having sex in the fifties. You girls talk like I'm a prude!”

Ruby fanned herself. “No, it's just weird for me to discuss how many times your nephew and I have made love.” Not to mention the manner in which they'd made love…

The woman smiled. “It only takes once, dear.”

Sure. For women with healthy, functioning reproductive systems. But she'd given up on that dream a long time ago…

Avery clamped a hand on to her knee and peered into her eyes like she was trying to make a diagnosis. “Have you been more emotional lately?”

“Uh…” Did crying at a particularly sentimental toilet paper commercial count? That sweet mama bear and her little cub…she teared up just thinking about it.

“Bloated?” Avery asked before she could expand.

“Well…” She rested a hand on the pouch that had formed low on her stomach.

“Overly hungry?” Avery fired off, as if taking that as a yes.

“Oh my God.” She'd been famished. All the time. Sometimes she'd wake up at two thirty in the morning and find herself wandering to the kitchen…

The answer was met with chatters and squeals and flapping arms.

“I knew you were glowing!” Elsie chirped. “I just knew it!”

Her heart seemed to strike her ribs. “I'm not glowing. I'm not…”
Pregnant.
That was ridiculous! “It's just the wedding. Bringing Brookie home. The stress of all the changes.”

A knowing gleam lit Avery's blue eyes. “Have you been peeing a lot?”

Now that she mentioned it…Ruby crossed her legs.

“What about your breasts? Any tenderness?” Her friend reached over and honked the left one.

“Ow!” A stab of pain radiated and she flinched, swatting Avery's hand away.

A collective gasp hushed the room.

“Yep. Preggers,” Paige confirmed with a nod.

“I'm not pregnant!” She couldn't be. It wasn't possible. The tiniest seed of hope burrowed deep, but she mentally tried to pluck it out. Hot tears zigzagged down her cheeks. A laugh sputtered out.
Damn it!

“I have a pregnancy test left over!” Avery squealed as she bounded out of the room.

She rushed back in and thrust the box into Ruby's hands.

“Go!” Julia said, nudging her off the bed. “Come on. What are you waiting for? If you take the test, you'll know for sure.”

Her hands clasped the box tight. She stared down at it. What if she was pregnant? How would that affect Brookie? They'd only just brought her home…

“Move it, woman.” Paige grabbed her hand and yanked her to her feet.

Swallowing the bubbles her stomach had churned into her throat, Ruby slogged toward the bathroom, legs teetering the whole way.

“We'll be right here,” Paige said, squeezing her shoulder.

“Make sure you follow the instructions,” Avery advised.

“Oh, this is so exciting!” Elsie sang.

“Hurry, go,” Julia said, prodding her to the bathroom door.

Her hand felt like ice as she turned the knob. Once inside, she shimmied off her dress and left it in a puddle on the floor. Carefully, she read the instructions, then completed each step as detached as possible so she could distance herself from the hope that hammered in her heart.

A knock sounded on the door. “How's it going in there?”

Not caring that she wore only her skimpy slip, Ruby opened it. She couldn't do this alone.

Her friends all crowded in, huddling around the small stick that lay on the countertop. Seconds dragged into eons as she stared at the tiny plastic window.

“I think that's two lines,” Paige announced. “Has it been two minutes?”

“It's only been thirty seconds,” Julia said, eyes focused on the stick. “But that's definitely two lines.”

Breaths stuttering in and out of her withering lungs, Ruby picked it up. Two lines. Two very distinct pink lines.

“Lordy. Oh, Lordy,” she choked out, with a sob between the words. Who would've thought that two tiny lines could change her life forever? She swayed. Hands steadied her, but she couldn't see whose. Someone guided her back to the bed and sat her down.

“I can't believe I'm pregnant.” The words started a fresh round of sobs. Gasping breaths burned her lungs. Tears flooded her eyes. “I can't be pregnant.”

Elsie scooted in next to her, gathering her into a hug. “There, now. It's a bit of a shock, but it's wonderful news.”

“What about Brookie?” she blubbered. “She just came home.” She was still adjusting to a new life. A new school. She'd already had some issues with the other kids at school accepting her. How would she deal with this news?

Elsie took her shoulders in her hands and steadied Ruby with that loving gaze of hers. “You listen to me, dear one,” she said with that perfect blend of authority and compassion. “Sawyer and Brookie will be thrilled. This is
good
news, Ruby. Let the joy in.”

“Yes!” Julia agreed, squeezing her hands. “This is so exciting! You're having a baby!”

“We have to celebrate,” Paige added.

“Great idea!” Avery clapped her hands and led the way to the kitchen. “Let's get out the ice cream.”

Ruby followed behind them, resting a hand on her stomach. There was a life in there, growing and beating and becoming a little person.