The Sheriff's Mail-Order Bride (The Watson Brothers #2)(49)

“Yeah, he sure has. Been charming the ladies like you wouldn’t believe.” Rory leaned down and gave her a smoldering kiss.

“Taking after your daddy already.”

Rory grinned and puffed out his chest. “Been showing him a thing or two. Little fella is a keen learner. So, I see by the parcels that you had a successful shop.”

“Yes we did, thank you. I have my dress and shoes and Callie even made me buy new underwear.” She sighed. “And she wouldn’t let me see how much money I spent either.”

“Get over it, Gina. It’s for your wedding day so make the most of it.”

“Exactly what I said when I told her to go with you.” Rory winked at his sister-in-law. “You don’t need to know. We got the license too. Should be ready to pick up later today so I’ll get it on the way home and then we can set the date.”

Gina closed her eyes for a moment, blinking to clear her mind.

“You okay?” Rory had his hand on her shoulder and looked into her eyes.

“Yes. It just got real. Silly of me I know. Before it was a possibility, now we have a license and a dress.”

“And shoes and sexy underwear.” Callie nudged her arm. “And now we have to organize the food and you know how good I am at that.”

“Call into the diner, ask for Paige. I’m sure they can put together a spread of finger food or something. If she can’t do it, I’ll call the Long River Cookhouse and talk to them. You’re not doing it, ladies. You’re having the day off from cooking.”

“I can do that, though.” Gina watched helplessly as her future husband and sister-in-law organized the rest of the wedding. Callie offered to deal with the flowers as well and suggested a new suit for Fisher.

“He should be dressed the same as you, Rory. Show me what you’re wearing and I’ll get onto it.”

“There’s no holding you back, is there?” Her enthusiasm made Gina pale as more nerves set in.

“Gotta make up for what I missed out on. Not saying it wasn’t fun or anything, but there’s a big difference with Elvis marrying you and that guy across the street with the Irish accent.”

“What about your family, Rory? Do you want to ask them to come?” Gina knew they were all close, and the next youngest brother, Evan was still living away from the town. She wanted to give him time to come as well.

“I’ll call, but I really don’t think we have the time to wait according to Layla. Don’t worry about it. It’s not the end of the world. Getting married to you and making a home for this little man is more important.”

“You say the sweetest things, Rory Watson. Is it any wonder I’m head over heels in love with you?”





Chapter Twenty





Rory watched the girls drive away and headed back into his office. He had a pile of paperwork to sift through before the end of the day and needed to get stuck into it. He poured a mug of coffee and sat down at his desk, reaching for the first task. The phone ringing startled him and he glanced at his watch. For over three hours he’d been sitting at his desk and the soreness in his shoulders could attest to that.

Rory picked up the phone. “Deputy Watson.”

“Hey, Rory, it’s Layla. Listen I want to run something past you before I call Gina.”

“Sure, I appreciate this. She’s kind of flustered over the wedding at the moment.”

“Okay, here’s the thing. I went in with guns blazing like I said I would. The way I see it, and I hope you agree, is that Aden basically used her as a means to an end. Not a pretty thing to say but there’s no point beating about the bush here. I want to win this before it goes to court.”

“I agree. Do what you have to do to bring this to a close.” He leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes listening to the lawyer.

“Right, so I had a meeting with the other side’s lawyers. I know them from different cases and we managed to have a fairly honest chat about it all. I did point out that she was the innocent party here and had no idea what Aden was up to or who he was. His driver’s license, which the police held, proves that he was using another name.” She took a breath. “I also pointed out that with the evidence we have, including Gina’s drug test which came back negative, they don’t have a case worth dragging through the courts. It’s fairly obvious he was doing everything to get away from his family and that isn’t her fault, and I refuse to let them punish her for that.”

“Thank goodness for that. Did they agree?” He pinched the skin between his eyes, hoping this would turn out right.

“No and I didn’t expect them too, either. We have to play the game here, it’s how it’s done. What they did offer is this: visiting arrangements in the holidays and alternate Christmases if she agrees to hand Fisher over now without dragging it through court.”

“What? No way!” His stomach clenched, he gripped the phone tight. “That’s ridiculous. No way will either Gina or I agree to that.”

“Not your call, Rory. I’m only telling you this because you are the one that hired me initially. I have to put the offer to Gina.”

“I can tell you what she’s going to say. Can you give me a day or two to try to sort something out on my end? There has to be a way to stop this. I don’t want her upset more than she already is.”