“Well, I’m just glad Robyn was able to fit Roxie in this morning to give her a checkup. Honestly, with Andrew and Rachel’s wedding coming up on Friday night, I think Roxie has made it her own personal mission to make sure everything is perfect. Even though she has other people on staff who can take care of it all. I think she forgets she’s pregnant sometimes.” Ciran shook his head in concern for his pregnant wife. “Hopefully Robyn will talk some sense into her today.”
Ben was only half-listening as Joel and Ciran talked about Roxie and the upcoming wedding. Until he heard them say something about the entire Quinn family being there.
“So, this is a family wedding coming up? Robyn never mentioned anything about it.” He wasn’t sure why he felt a little twinge of disappointment that Robyn would have to be at the wedding, and he wouldn’t get to spend Friday evening with her working at the house. He knew it was silly to be feeling that way considering his job was to work on the house, and that didn’t require her to be around all the time.
“Robyn isn’t looking too forward to it. She mentioned to me that with all of us finding partners and getting married, Grams has now started harping on her to get married. Any of the single Quinns have now become fair game to Grams who is determined we all must be married and having our five children immediately.” Joel grinned over at him. “And now that both Brooke and I have taken the plunge, Robyn is next on the chopping block in our grandmother’s eyes.”
“You mean you actually found someone to agree to marry you?”
Ben laughed at Joel’s attempt to act like he’d been mortally wounded when Ben asked him the question.
“Well, we aren’t married yet. But we will be soon. I just need to find a tux for my best man Stanley here.” He reached down and scratched the dog behind the ears. Then he looked back up at Ben and cocked his head to the side. “You know, a good friend would help poor Robyn out and take her to the wedding, so maybe Grams will stay out of her hair.”
Ben laughed as he chewed the last bite of his taco. “I don’t know if Robyn would want me escorting her anywhere. The last time I did that, I was a bit of a pouty jerk. Besides, I’ve already asked her to marry me and she said no.”
Both Joel and Ciran started choking as Ben smiled innocently at them. Joel’s face was turning a reddish shade of purple before he was finally able to speak again.
“You did what? Why would you do that?” His voice was much higher pitched than before.
“Because we signed a contract when we were kids. She’s not agreeing to follow through on it, though.” He explained what they’d uncovered in the time capsule and how he’d jokingly tried to make her agree to marrying him.
But every time he thought about it, or talked about it like he was now, the more he realized he might not have been joking as much as he’d believed.
With a slam to his chest, he realized, he did want to marry Robyn. With absolute clarity, he knew it was the one thing he’d always wanted.
And what bothered him the most was the fact that he’d never figured it out until now.
Chapter Nine
“He did what?” Roxie’s head lifted up from the table as she pinned Robyn’s gaze with her own. “Just like that? He said you guys should get married?”
“Roxie, I’m serious. If you don’t just lie back and relax, I’m going to call Ciran right now and tell him I’m putting you on complete bed rest for the remainder of this pregnancy. Then you can deal with him hovering over you for the next few weeks. I need to check everything over so I can tell him you’re fine, but it’s a bit hard when your blood pressure is going through the roof.”
“Well, excuse me if I’m a bit in shock over my cousin nonchalantly mentioning to me that her old friend from school just told her they should get married. Even though they haven’t seen each other in over a decade.”
Their other cousin, Alyssa, was in the room with them and she just laughed. “You’re one to talk, Roxie. Ciran showed up back in town and you guys were getting married in no time. Why would this be any different?”
Alyssa was a doula who worked with Robyn in the clinic. They rented space from Brooke’s medical office, taking care of the pregnant women of Quinn Valley. Alyssa was hoping to take her training to become a full midwife like Robyn, so she spent as much time as she could learning from her.
“It’s different because Ciran and I actually dated when we were in high school. Robyn and Ben were friends in elementary school and haven’t even seen each other in years. Plus, when Ciran came back, we actually dated again before getting married. It’s just crazy to think it’s a good idea to get married to someone you only really knew as a child.”
Robyn laughed and rolled her eyes over at Alyssa. They were enjoying teasing Roxie, knowing her hormones were a bit out of whack at the moment.
“Roxie, relax. I’m not going to marry Ben. It was just kind of fun finding that time capsule last night. It brought up a lot of great memories.” She grinned over at Alyssa while she took Roxie’s pulse. “Although for the record, I have to admit Ben has grown up to be very easy on the eyes. He’s not the scrawny boy I was friends with as a kid, that’s for sure.”
Roxie didn’t lift her head up this time, but she did swat her hand over at Robyn. “Robyn, if Grams was listening to you right now, she’d have you both walking down the aisle behind Andrew and Rachel this weekend.”
Robyn reached her hand out to help Roxie sit up on the table. “Oh, I have no doubt Grams will be working overtime now to find someone for me. And she’s already got poor Ben in her sights, even though she hasn’t seen him since he’s been back in town.”
“You better hope Ben doesn’t get to her and let her know about the marriage pact you guys made. In her eyes, that will likely be enough to be legally binding.” The women all laughed as they thought about their grandma and how much she believed it was her duty to help her grandchildren find love.
“Are you bringing him to the wedding? I’m sure having one extra won’t be too much trouble for Roxie to add into the catering budget.” Roxie worked at the Quinn Hotel & Spa which was owned by her father, and she was making sure that everything was organized for the wedding they were planning in the ballroom.
“I’m not taking him to the wedding. Grams would likely fall over with joy thinking I’d taken her advice and gone out with Ben. That’s all I’d hear about all night.”
Roxie shrugged as she pulled her sweater over her shoulders. “I don’t know. I think I’d rather listen to that than the alternative. You know she’ll spend all night scouting for potential prospects for you, or talking about how you need to hurry up if you want to find someone, or patting you on the shoulder and comforting you because you’re alone, or…”
Robyn put her hand up to stop her cousin from continuing. “Okay, okay. I get it. Trust me, I’ve been dreading this wedding ever since I heard about it. Now that Joel and Brooke have found someone, Grams has been insistent it’s my turn. And it’s not just her. I hear it from Mom and Dad, all the aunts and uncles, and even some of you cousins who can’t seem to keep your noses out of anyone else’s business.”
“Oh, Robyn, you know it’s in our genes. You’re just as bad, and you know it.”
It was true. The Quinn cousins were all very much involved in each other’s lives, and they tended to sometimes think they had permission to stick their noses in even when they weren’t needed. But they only did it because they all cared about each other.
“I guess it wouldn’t hurt to see if Ben wants to come to the wedding with me. I mean, it can’t be any worse than showing up alone, can it?”
“Hey! I’m going alone. Well, with Jerm, but not with a date. And thanks a lot, because now that means everyone will be on my case.”
Alyssa pretended to be annoyed, knowing she was going to the wedding with just her son, Jeremiah and not a date.
They laughed as both Alyssa and Robyn took one of Roxie’s hands and helped her step down from the exam table. “I just don’t wan
t to lead Ben on, that’s all. I mean, I don’t even know much about his life over the past few years. So I don’t know if anything would ever go further between us or not. I’d hate to ruin the chances of us having our friendship back over a misunderstanding.”
Alyssa brought her eyebrows together and shook her head. “Robyn, can’t you just go and have some fun? Tell him it’s a no-strings attached date. Besides, you’re always the one who does things without thinking them through. So why are you suddenly so hung up on overanalyzing this to death?”
“I’m not! I’m just being careful. There’s nothing wrong with that. I don’t want to do anything that might ruin my chances…”
Roxie gasped and shared a knowing glance with Alyssa as they both started to grin. “You like him! You don’t want to ruin your chances with him by rushing into a real date at a family wedding. Because you really do like him!”
Robyn crossed her arms over her chest and glared at the other two women who were giggling like school girls. “We’re not twelve, you guys. Next thing you know, I’m going to have you saying you’ll ask him if he likes me back.”
“Well, I can if you want.” Alyssa snickered to herself at the comment. Robyn had to smile, knowing how much Alyssa was going through with her son Jeremiah at home. Being here like this with her cousins, enjoying a chance to relax and have some fun teasing was likely a welcome break. So Robyn wouldn’t be too upset with her right now.
“No, I think I can look after things on my own. But so help me, if either of you do anything to embarrass me in front of Ben on Friday night…” She let her threat trail off to keep them wondering.
Now she just had to convince Ben to come to the wedding with her. She knew he wasn’t really serious about the whole getting married thing, but she didn’t want to make him think she was thinking of him in that way.
Even if she really was.
Chapter Ten
Ben leaned back in his chair and focused his eyes on the couple at the front. They were saying their thank-you’s before their first dance as man and wife. He didn’t really know the people around them very well, except for some of Robyn’s closest family. Some of the cousins he remembered vaguely from when they were kids, but seeing them all here like this, in one room, was slightly overwhelming.
They’d been seated at a table with Robyn’s younger siblings, Travis and Vicki, along with her cousins Ivy and Jess. There had been speculation during their meal that the family was keeping all the single ones together to make them see the error of their ways.
“I still feel like I’m somehow being punished, and we’re being left at the kids table. Seriously, I’m a grown man.”
Ben looked over at Travis and laughed. “Travis, I’m sure you guys are making this into a much bigger deal than it really is. I doubt anyone is punishing you for being alone. Besides, Robyn is at the table and she has a date, so your theory doesn’t add up.”
“Well, until just this week, Robyn was going to be coming alone, and it was likely too late to move her to a grown-up table with the couples.”
Robyn laughed at Vicki’s comment and rolled her eyes in Ben’s direction. “Can you believe we got stuck here at the kids table with these whiny children?”
Thankfully, the music started for everyone to stand and watch the new couple take to the dance floor. The song played as they swayed in each other’s arms, looking lovingly into the other’s eyes. Ben couldn’t help but get caught up in the moment and wonder if he’d ever have a woman in his arms, looking at him the way the bride looked at Andrew.
His eyes moved down to the back of Robyn’s head as she stood in front of him watching her cousin dance. She was standing so close to him he could smell the hint of perfume she was wearing. Before he knew it, his hands had moved and were resting on her shoulders.
He could feel her skin against the roughness of his palms, and he had to swallow hard to try and get his heart beating at a normal rate again. What he’d meant as a nonchalant gesture of affection had left him feeling like an awkward teenage boy who didn’t know where to put his hands now. He couldn’t just pull them away like he’d been burned.
By the time the song ended, he needed to be away from the stares he knew they were getting from everyone else at the table. They’d all witnessed how uncomfortable he’d been when he placed his hands on her bare shoulders. When the DJ invited anyone else who wanted to join them up to dance, he quickly reached down and took Robyn’s hand, dragging her onto the floor.
“What are you doing? I thought you hated dancing.”
He pulled her into his arms and smiled down into her confused face. “Robyn, I hated dancing when I was a teenage boy. What makes you think I don’t love dancing now?”
She raised an eyebrow in suspicion and let him lead her around the dance floor in time with the slow music blaring from the speakers. His eyes caught the table where the others were all watching them with wide grins on their faces.
When he stepped on her foot, she gave a little yelp of pain and scowled at him. “That’s why. I can tell you don’t like dancing. Likely the last time you danced was during the disastrous one you took me to in eighth grade.”
“Will I never live that down? I was thirteen, for crying out loud. My brain wasn’t fully developed yet.”
Her head tilted to the side and she grinned up at him. If he’d ever questioned it before, he knew now without a doubt that Robyn was the most beautiful woman on the planet. The way her eyes sparkled with that hint of mischief that had got him in so much trouble over the years, and the way her lips curled up in a smile that lit up her entire face…
“So, have you danced since then?”
He’d been so lost in his thoughts that he forgot what they were talking about. It took him a moment to recover his senses.
“Well, no. But that’s not the point. Maybe it’s just because I only like dancing with you.”
He was certain every word of that was true. Now that he thought about it, he didn’t think he had ever wanted to dance with anyone else but her.
The song ended and led into a lively two-step. He grinned down at her terrified face and wiggled his eyebrows. “How hard can it be?” He remembered having to learn the two-step in their junior high PE classes, so he was sure it would all come back to him eventually. He started moving, dragging Robyn with him whether she wanted to or not.
He couldn’t remember the last time he’d had this much fun. As they spun around the dance floor, laughing and stepping on each other’s toes until he was sure hers were no doubt bleeding, it hit him just how much he enjoyed having her in his arms.
In less than a week, she’d worked her way back into his heart. Except this time, he knew he’d never be able to leave her again. Now he just needed to figure out a way to get her to see him as the man he was now and not that scrawny little friend she’d known all those years ago.
When his gaze fell onto the table where Robyn’s parents were sitting, it locked onto Grandma Gertie who was watching them with a smile on her face. She winked at him, and he knew exactly who he needed to help him with his plan. There was only one other person who probably wanted to see Robyn end up falling for him as much as he did, and that was Grandma Gertie.
By the time the song ended, they were both breathing heavily and laughing at their sorry performance. Robyn started to walk back toward their table and looked at him with a confused expression as he took her hand and led her instead over to the table where Gertie was still watching their every move.
“Why are you going this way?”
“I haven’t had a chance to say hello to your grandma since I’ve been back. I want to ask her if she’s planning on making me any of her cookies she knows I love.”
Robyn rolled her eyes and followed him. “Grams will make cookies for anyone, even if they don’t ask. I’m actually surprised she hasn’t already dropped by to bring you some.”
“Well, Ben, I can see you haven’t been taking dance lessons while you were away. But I give yo
u an A for effort.” Robyn’s dad laughed as he stuck his hand out to shake Ben’s. “Sorry for not getting around to the house to say hello, but with the end of tax season it just seems to take us weeks to climb back out of the backlog of work we have to do.”
“That’s okay. I’ve been so busy trying to follow all the plans Robyn has for the house that I probably wouldn’t have had time to stop and visit anyway.”
He smiled over at her as she huffed and scowled at him. “You make it sound like I’m making unreasonable requests. And it’s not like I haven’t been there helping you when I can.”
She was so easy to tease and when her cheeks got red like this from dancing, he couldn’t keep his eyes off her. The truth was, everything she was asking him to do at the house had been easy enough. They hadn’t gotten much done other than demolition and planning, but she’d been around every day to help. It was the part of the day he looked forward to the most.
When he looked back over at the table, his eyes met Gertie’s again. She was looking at him with that all-knowing look that only grandmas can do. She knew he was already hopelessly falling for her granddaughter.
“I was so glad to hear you were back in town, Ben. I was planning to stop by with some cookies one day next week to say hello. I didn’t realize you’d be coming to the wedding with Robyn.”
“Oh, it was kind of a last-minute thing, Grams.” Robyn shot him one of those don’t-you-dare-tell-her-the-truth glares as she spoke to her grandma. “I figured since Ben was here and didn’t have anything else to do, he might want to come for the free food.”
He grinned at Robyn and nodded. “Yes, the free food was definitely enticing. Plus, when Robyn asked me so sweetly, I just couldn’t say no.”
She was scowling at him so hard now, he was sure her eyebrows had gotten stuck in that position. She knew full well that her invitation had been less than sweet. In fact, she’d told him flat out she only wanted him to come to keep her grandma and other family members off her back about being single.
Remembering Romance: Quinn Valley Ranch Book 17 Page 4