Ryley's Revenge (Gloves Off #2)(70)

“I’m sure your grandfather would love to take the role,” I offered gently.

Ryley sighed and held me closer. “Yes, he would. Every time I see him, he talks about how pretty you are and how lucky I am.”

“He’s right, you are lucky,” I laughed, elbowing him in the side. “However, Gabby brought up a good point today. We’ve talked about anything and everything, except the main thing . . . the wedding date.”

“I wanted to leave that up to you. I know we haven’t been together long and there’s still so many things about each other we don’t know. If you want to wait another couple of years, that’s fine too. We can have a huge wedding or a small one. I’ll give you anything you want.”

Ever since I was a little girl I knew exactly what I wanted as far as a wedding. It just so happened that I was living in the right place for that dream. “Ryley, have you ever seen the Robin Hood movie? You know, the one with Kevin Costner?”

He glanced down at me, furrowing his brow. “Yeah, a long time ago. I actually have the DVD inside. What does that have to do with our wedding?”

“Well, at the end Robin and Marion get married, right?”

“Yeah?” he said slowly.

“Well, their wedding is how I want mine.” I pointed to the meadow, the same place where he proposed and made love to me. “Our meadow is the perfect place. The way the autumn leaves will blow in the air in the fall, blanketing the grass. We wouldn’t even need to decorate because the fall colors would make it perfect.”

I could see it all play out before me. Me, dressed in a flowing white gown and a vine headdress, just like Marion’s. Our families would be surrounding us, smiling as we said our vows. It was perfect.

“So I take it you want to get married soon?” he asked. “It’s almost fall, angel.”

As much as I wanted to do it now, I knew it wasn’t a good idea to jump into it. “I think we should wait until next fall,” I answered. “We have so much to learn about each other, and a lot of upcoming responsibilities. I’m afraid of rushing into it. Besides, with these pregnancy hormones, I’d probably be a bridezilla. I don’t want to do that to you.”

He chuckled. “Me either. If you want it next fall, it’s settled. Hopefully, your dad won’t hate me when he finds out we’re living in sin.”

Rolling my eyes, I smacked him in the arm. “Oh, whatever, he’s not going to hate you. Speaking of which, I need to call my parents and tell them. I wish I could see their faces when I say that not only am I getting married, but I’m pregnant with twins.”

Picking up my phone, I started to dial, but Ryley swiped it out of my hands.

“What are you doing?” I asked incredulously.

Grinning from ear to ear, he stood up and pulled me with him. “I have a better idea. Let’s fly out to Aspen and tell them together. It’ll be a good time for me to meet them. Plus, you wouldn’t have to handle them on your own.”

“You would do that? Even if there’s the slightest possibility my dad might pull his gun out on you?” He wouldn’t do that, but I could see him getting pretty pissed off that his little girl got knocked up and wasn’t married.

“I would do anything for you, angel. And facing the wrath of your father is one of them.”

Lifting up on my tiptoes, I wrapped my arms around his neck, breathing him in. “I think you’re grandfather has it all wrong. I think I’m the lucky one.”

Ryley bent down and pressed his lips ever so gently to mine. “We’re lucky to have each other. I love you, angel.”

“And I love you too.”

Always.





Eight Weeks Later




THE VISIT WITH my family went better than expected. Ryley and my father got along great, and my parents were excited about being grandparents. I had to say, things were finally looking up for us. Ryley hadn’t spoken to his brother, nor had anyone seen him in a while. Even their mother hadn’t heard from him. I guess it was safe to say he was gone indefinitely.

“Miss Warren?” the nurse called.

Her name was Julie and she had seen me the last time I’d been in to hear the babies’ heartbeats. She had the most beautiful long, red hair I’d ever seen, with freckles all over her peachy skin. The pink scrubs made her look like a strawberry puff. Speaking of which, I want some strawberry puffs.

I smiled up at Ryley and placed my hand over his, as it rested on my belly. Ever since he felt the babies kick for the first time, he’d barely kept his hands off of me. “Are you ready for this?”

The whole time we were in the waiting room, his leg bounced up and down making the chair squeak. Some of the other pregnant ladies in the room thought it was funny. We were both nervous, but I think he was more nervous than me. He nodded and smiled nervously. “I think so. Let’s go.”

When we approached the nurse, she held the door open and grinned. “I bet you’re excited, aren’t you?”

I nodded. “More than excited. It’s not every day you get to see your children for the first time.”

She pointed to the scale and I hopped on, cringing when Ryley stood there looking at it. I don’t know if there would ever be a time when I’d feel comfortable with him knowing my weight. There were just some things I wanted to keep secret. I guess it was a girl thing.