by Candace Camp
Victoria and Slater were pinned in place, greeting all the guests and receiving their congratulations. Both looked longingly at the line stretching beside the pit, getting slices of beef, but it was a long time before they were freed. Even after that, they were caught by guests, gradually pulled away from each other into conversations.
Victoria managed to extricate herself from a detailed description from Mrs. Childers of all the food preparations, and she looked around the yard for Slater. Seeing no sign of him, she began to go in search. Unable to find him outside, she went into the house, where she was immediately greeted by some of the older people who had stayed inside the comfort of the house.
As she started down the hall, a hand reached out and grabbed her by the wrist, jerking her into Ed Stafford’s office. “Slater! I’ve been—“
Hastily he covered her mouth with his hand, whispering, “Shh…” as he closed the door behind her, then wedged a chair underneath the handle. “There. Thank God.”
“Slater, what in the world are you doing?”
“Getting you to myself for a minute,” he replied. Slater kissed her, his arms tight around her, his body pressing into hers. When at last they ended their kiss, his breath was laboring in his chest, his eyes bright. “Half the county must be here—hell, half of Texas, and before that Mrs. Childers has been bulldogging me like I was going to run off with you. I wanted to, believe me.”
Victoria laughed. “She took her duties as a chaperone very seriously.”
He made a comical groan and dropped his head to hers. “Why did we ever decide to wait four months to get married? Brody and Amy had it right; we should have just found a justice of the peace in San Antonio.”
“Well…” She tilted her head to one side, considering. “There was the little matter of legal issues to be settled.”
“A lot of lies to be told, you mean,” he corrected.
“One could choose to look at it that way, I suppose.” She leaned back against a glass-fronted bookcase. “I like to think of it as settling everything the way it should be.”
“Of course you do.” Slater grinned, his eyes roaming over her face, his hands sliding up and down her arms as if he could not keep from touching her.
“And, as I remember, you thought it necessary to wait until you’d fixed up your house.”
“It wasn’t fit for a lady.”
“Mhmm. You know I require luxurious surroundings to sleep in.”
He chuckled and kissed her, quick and hard. “Ah, Victoria…I’ve missed that sharp tongue of yours. I’ve missed, oh, hell, everything about you.”
She went up on tip-toe and returned his kiss, her lips moving softly, enticingly on his. “And I missed you. I don’t like going to sleep alone. Or waking up that way.”
“I know.” He cupped her face in his hands. “I know you could sleep on a mattress on the floor. But I wanted to offer you a place worthy of you. Well, I couldn’t do that; you deserve a lot more than anything I could ever give you. But I wanted a proper bed with a down mattress and embroidered linens. I wanted to bring you to a home.”
“Slater.” Victoria’s gaze was tender. “Wherever you are is home to me.”
“I love you, Victoria. And I’m not ever letting go of you again.”
“That’s good. Because you’re never getting rid of me.” She curled her arms around his neck. “Now, are you going to waste time talking or are you going to kiss me?”
***
Amy and Brody strolled along, hand in hand, moving away from the crowd. “Victoria looked so pretty in her wedding gown. It was a beautiful ceremony, wasn’t it?”
“Yes.” Brody looked down at her. “Do you wish you had had one like that? I’m sorry.”
“No. Don’t be silly.” Amy smiled. “I wouldn’t ever want to stand there in front of all those people. Just the idea of it is terrifying. Our wedding was private and special and memorable.”
“At that one-eyed justice of the peace’s house?”
“Yes! He was funny. I thought he looked like a pirate.”
Brody laughed. “He did.”
“And his wife was so sweet and sang that hymn for us.”
“Off-key.”
“Stop.” Amy poked him in the ribs. “They didn’t say a word about how bedraggled we looked or how we didn’t have a ring.”
“True. I’ve got to respect them for that. I just…I just wish everything had been perfect for you.”
“It was perfect,” Amy protested. “Sam, all I’ve wanted from the moment I met you was to be with you.” She stopped and took both his hands, gazing up earnestly into his eyes. “I love you.”
“I love you, too.” He bent his head and kissed her softly. “I more than love you. You changed my life. You changed me. I’d probably be dead if it wasn’t for you. I know I’d be dead inside.”
They walked past the corral. The path curved around a live oak, ending at a small blue pool. A cluster of trees grew at the water’s edge, and beside them lay a large flat rock. They stood for a moment, admiring the tranquil view.
“I used to come sit here a lot; it was one of my favorite spots.” Amy turned to him. “Sam, I have something to tell you.”
“What?” He looked at her curiously. “You look—Amy, what is it?”
“We’re going to have a baby.” He stared at her in stunned amazement so long that she went on, a little tentatively, “Sam? Aren’t you happy?”
“Happy! Oh, my God, Amy!” Brody let out a laugh and picked her up, swinging her around. “Yes, yes, I’m happy. I never—I—” He stopped and set her down, his expression suddenly anxious. “Are you all right? Come over here and sit down.”
“Sam, I’m fine,” Amy protested, laughing, as he led her over to the rock. “I’m not tired.”
“What if all this traveling hurt you? We shouldn’t have come this far.”
“It didn’t hurt me. But I’ll sit down if it makes you feel better.”
“I’m not sure what would make me feel better.” His face was suddenly pale beneath his tan. “Women die in childbirth.”
“That doesn’t mean I will.”
“I don’t know what I’d do if something happened to you. You’re everything to me.” Sam pulled her into his lap and sat cradling her to him. He kissed her temple, then rested his head against hers.
“It’ll be all right, Sam.” Amy stroked his arm. “You’ll see.”
“I never even thought about having a family until I met you. But now…it seems the sweetest thing in the world. I can’t tell you how it makes me feel, knowing you’re carrying my baby inside you.” He spread his palm across her abdomen.
“It’s going to be wonderful,” Amy told him.
“Love’s a fearsome thing,” he said softly. “It can save you or kill you. Makes you crazy and jumpy, but you never want to stop feeling that way. It turns everything upside down. I’m so proud and happy, I might explode. But it scares the hell out of me to think anything might happen to you.” He squeezed her to him. “You’re my world, Amy. I know I don’t deserve you, but I’m never going to stop trying to. I swear, I’m going to build a good life for you. For you and our baby.”
“I know you will.” Amy leaned away from him a little to look into his eyes. “And my life is more than good already—it’s perfect. Because you’re in it. I love you, Sam. And I know you’ll love our baby just as fiercely as you love me.”
“Always, my love. Always.”
Candace Camp is the NY Times best-selling author of over 70 novels, including the popular Mad Moreland series, The Rainbow Season, and A Momentary Marriage. Her books have been published in twenty-three countries and 17 languages. She wrote her first novel while in law school and happily gave up her work as an attorney to pursue her lifelong dream of writing books. Born in Amarillo, Texas, she now lives in Austin, Texas with her husband, Pete Hopcus. Her daughter is young adult author Anastasia Hopcus.
Visit Candace
at facebook.com/candacecampauthor/; @campcandace on Twitter; and @candacecampauthor on Instagram. For a complete list of her books, go to candace-camp.com.
Other titles by Candace Camp
Before the Dawn
A Perfect Gentleman
A Momentary Marriage
The Rainbow Season
The Rainbow Promise
Mad Morelands series
Mesmerized
Beyond Compare
Winterset
An Unexpected Pleasure
His Sinful Touch
His Wicked Charm
Her Scandalous Pursuit
Lost Heirs Series
A Stolen Heart
Promise Me Tomorrow
No Other Love
Matchmaker Series
The Marriage Wager
The Bridal Quest
The Wedding Challenge
The Courtship Dance
St. Dwynwen Series
A Winter Scandal
A Summer Seduction
The Marrying Season
Secrets of the Loch Series
Treasured
Pleasured
Enraptured