Rocky Mountain Nights (Roberts of Silver Springs #6)

by Kirsten Osbourne

  “His last name is Frank.” Bri pulled out a box of chocolate, sharing a piece with everyone. “I think we’re going to start putting some of his chocolate in welcome baskets for all the guests. This stuff is amazing!”

  Erin took a bite of hers, her eyes closing in ecstasy. “This is amazing. I don’t know what’s different, but this is the best chocolate I’ve ever eaten.”

  “I know!” Bekah said, taking a bite of hers. “What kind is this, Bri?”

  “It says ‘The Erin’ on the box. It seems to be milk chocolate, caramel, and sea salt. Erin is Al’s wife,” Bri told the others, who hadn’t met the couple. “But you could claim to Jack that it’s your very own chocolate, and you need to always have a supply since your name is Erin as well!”

  Hunter walked back into the room then, looking around. “I leave for five minutes and everyone stops working and eats chocolate?”

  Bekah shrugged. “It’s Frank’s Fudge. We couldn’t resist.”

  He shook his head, walked to Bekah, and dropped a ring box in her lap. “Consider yourself engaged.”

  Bekah glared at him. “Just like that? You’re not going to get down on one knee or declare your undying love for me?”

  He shook his head. “Nope. You said I’d throw the ring box at you. I dropped it in your lap. That’s nicer than you expected, right?”

  She sighed, opening the box to find a diamond surrounded by small emeralds. “How did you know I love emeralds?”

  He shrugged. “I asked Bri. You should talk to her about running off at the mouth about you. I’m glad she told me what I wanted to know, but you might not want her to do that with all the guests.”

  Bekah looked over at Bri, who had conveniently needed to turn her back to everyone so she could stir the sauce. Her shoulders were shaking with mirth. “I don’t know if I should thank her or tell her to zip her lips.”

  Bri smiled over her should. “You’re welcome.”

  Erin grinned. “Bekah, you know what this means?”

  “That I’m marrying a lunatic, who got my crazed cousin to spill her guts about me?” Bekah slipped the ring on her finger, smiling when it fit perfectly. “The ring does look nice, though, doesn’t it?”

  “Beautiful,” Erin told her. “But do you know what this means?”

  Bekah shrugged at Erin. “Something other than what I’m thinking, obviously.”

  “It means we can have a double wedding on Saturday!” Erin told her.

  Bekah stared at Erin for a minute. “I don’t even have a dress.”

  “You can wear mine!” Bri said. “I just got it back from the cleaners last week. It’s all pressed and ready to go. Hunter has a suit for the wedding already, and he can wear that.” Bri clapped excitedly. “We can totally make this work!”

  Bekah looked at Hunter, expecting him to argue. Instead he said, “Sounds good to me. That’s why I went and got the ring today. I don’t want to have to go through the hassle of arranging a wedding. This way it’s done quick.”

  “But…I can’t take any time off for the honeymoon!”

  Jennifer shook her head at Bekah. “Take a week. I’m not needed at the hotel, and I can come and work with Bri. It’ll be my wedding gift to you.”

  Bekah looked at Bri, expecting to get some help from her. “Bri?”

  “I think you should do it. Jennifer’s gotten good at helping, and I’ll find someone to mow the lawn for you. We have a riding lawnmower. It’s not that difficult.” Bri smiled at Jennifer. “As long as you really will help me.”

  Jennifer nodded. “It’s nice to feel needed for a change.”

  Bekah frowned. “I…I can’t just decide today to get married on Saturday, can I?”

  Erin nodded. “You sure can. There’s no waiting period in Colorado. Go get a marriage license tomorrow, and wear Bri’s dress. We’ll be the center of attention together.”

  “Everyone will think I’m pregnant!” Bekah exclaimed.

  Bri laughed. “I think people will know you just wanted to have a cheap wedding by sharing with your cousin. No biggie.”

  Bekah finished cutting up the sausage rolls she was working on, her mind racing. “I think I need to talk to the man alone for a minute. Make sure he’s in his right mind and hasn’t freaked himself out with this yet.” She walked to the sink, washed her greasy hands, grabbed Hunter by the hand, and dragged him outside before anyone said anything. She heard the girls laughing behind her. “What are you thinking?”

  He shrugged. “You said you’d like to just tell a cousin they were going to have a double wedding with you. I thought it would make things easier for you.”

  She shook her head, trying to clear it. “Are you serious? You’ve been against us getting married since we met.”

  “I have not!” He caught her by the waist and pulled her to him. “I had to make sure you were the right woman for me, and sometimes deciding who you’re going to spend forever with takes more than a few minutes. I know that’s how quickly you decided, but I couldn’t. Now that I’ve gotten to know you, I want forever with you. And kids. Let’s have a dozen kids or so, and then when they have kids, they’ll all have cousins to tease and have fun with.”

  Bekah rested her forehead against his shoulder. “Are you sure? I want you to be sure. If I tell people I’m getting married on Saturday, I don’t want a runaway groom. I need to be able to go through with it. Some people think I’m flighty, and I don’t want anyone thinking that any longer.”

  He rubbed her back, holding her close. “No one will think that ever again. I want to get married on Saturday.” He cupped her face in his hands, looking deeply into her eyes. “Bekah? Will you be my wife? Please?”

  She nodded slowly. “My mom is going to have a fit!”

  He laughed. “I thought she liked me!”

  “Oh, she does. But she’s not expecting me to marry quickly. She thinks she should get to help plan the wedding.”

  “All the more reason to do it fast. Call your mom and tell her.”

  “Right now?”

  “Well, in a minute.”

  “Okay…what are we waiting for?” she asked, her brows drawn together in confusion.

  “Well, I thought we needed this first.” He lowered his head and kissed her, giving her what she considered a toe-curling kiss—a kiss that made her want to hold on and never let go. When he pulled away she was out of breath. “Now call your mama. The date is non-negotiable.”

  He waited as she dug her phone out of her pocket. “Mom?”

  “Hey, Bekah. I thought you were helping get stuff ready for the wedding this afternoon.” Her mom sounded distracted.

  “Are you with a client?” Bekah asked.

  “No, but I’m on my way to meet one. What’s going on?”

  “I’m getting married on Saturday. You should probably pick out a mother-of-the-bride dress. I’ll see you then.” Bekah ended the call as her mother started sputtering. “That was fun! Who else can I call?”

  He laughed softly. “Call anyone you want. We’re getting married on Saturday. I couldn’t be happier.”

  Chapter Ten

  The next two days passed in a whirl. Bekah and Hunter got their marriage license on Thursday afternoon, and had lunch out. They had eaten a lot of meals together, but never in a restaurant oddly enough. Most had been at the B&B, with the occasional picnic. And the one crazy meal with her family at her parents’ house.

  Hunter was in the mood for Italian food, so they went to the Italian Bistro there in Silver Springs. They were halfway through the meal when she saw her brother approaching her, a determined look on his face. He sat down adjacent to her and said, “Dad told me to find out if you’re pregnant.”

  Bekah looked at Hunter. “I told you people would assume that!” She kicked him under the table.

  Hunter shook his head at Spike. “She’s not pregnant. I just don’t want to wait. Is that so hard to believe?”

  “Not to me,” Spike said, reaching for a breadstick. “I don’t
even want to think about my baby sister doing anything to get pregnant, because she’s so sweet and virginal and will be til the day she dies. Any babies will be immaculate conception for sure.”

  Bekah rolled her eyes. “So even after we’re married we’re not allowed to do each other?”

  Spike choked on his breadstick, taking her water and gulping down half of it in one swallow. “Not even then. And you shouldn’t be talking about that in front of him. He might think something…”

  She looked at Hunter. “Aren’t you glad I don’t have the same ideas about things my brother does.”

  “Very.” Hunter brought her fingers to his lips. “Go away, Spike.”

  Spike stood up. “Well, I never!”

  “Me neither, but I’m going to after I’m married!” Bekah told him, waving her hand in a shooing motion.

  Hunter watched as his future brother-in-law left the restaurant. “What was that all about?”

  “Spike’s an idiot. I haven’t mentioned that to you before?”

  He grinned. “I thought you just said that because he’s your brother.”

  “That’s only a small part of it…”

  *****

  Bekah woke earlier than usual on Saturday morning. She wanted to sleep in, but the wedding was at ten, and she was usually still sleeping then. She quickly showered, putting on her undergarments and a robe. She knew her family would be up there any minute. She and Bri had done the same thing they did for Bri’s wedding. They’d discounted the price of the room for the night before the wedding, because they had no intention of serving breakfast on a wedding day of one of their own.

  At shortly after eight, there was a knock on her door, and all of the female relatives came in, carrying wedding dresses, and bridesmaid dresses, and make-up and curling irons, and everything else they could possibly need for a wedding.

  Bri handed her wedding gown to Bekah. “I’ll help you put it on.”

  Bekah had tried it on, but she’d wanted Bri to keep it until she was ready to wear it. She didn’t trust herself not to show it to Hunter, and he wasn’t supposed to see the dress until the wedding day.

  Her two-bedroom suite was filled with family. Erin was in the other room getting ready, helped by Emma, and Bri pushed Bekah down onto her bed, immediately fixing her hair. “Just think…it was only seven or eight months ago when you were fixing my hair for my first date with Anthony. Now I’m an old married woman and you are getting married. Life is so strange!”

  The door opened again, and Jennifer slipped inside. “How can I help?”

  Bekah looked at Jennifer. “No idea! Unless you want to work on cleaning rooms and start early?”

  Jennifer nodded. “I will. I know just how you like to have them cleaned.” She put her hand on the door to leave and then turned back. “Best wishes, Bekah. I hope you’re happy. You deserve to be.”

  “Thank you.” Bekah watched Jennifer go, seeing her cousin Molly’s shocked look. “Hey, people can change.”

  Molly was a pretty brunette, who had come early, already dressed for the wedding. She sat on Bekah’s bed watching everyone rushing around. “I didn’t think she could.”

  Bekah shrugged. “Neither did the rest of us.”

  Bri poked Bekah’s shoulder. “Hold still! You’re going to mess up your hair!”

  Bekah sighed, staring straight ahead. “Is Amy here? Amy should be here getting ready with us.”

  Her mom shrugged. “Spike said she was staying home to get Ethan ready, but they’ll be at the wedding.”

  “I hate it that Mike isn’t here,” Bekah said sadly.

  “Me too. But you didn’t give anyone time. And now that she’s hurt herself…” Mom let the words trail off, obviously upset that her oldest daughter was injured.

  “I should have waited to marry. Maybe I’ll go tell Hunter that we should wait until December…”

  “Why December?” Bri asked.

  Bekah shrugged. “Because today seems awfully scary at the moment.”

  “I have a feeling Hunter would not accept your line of reasoning,” Bri said with a laugh.

  There was a knock on the door, and Jennifer stepped in. “Hunter asked me to give you this.” She handed a small box to Bekah.

  “Thank you!” Bekah said, tearing into the cardboard box. It wasn’t wrapped, but that didn’t surprise her a bit. Not when it was coming from Hunter. When she was finally into the box, she found a small box of chocolates labeled, “Frank’s Fudge,” and she smiled. “He’s so good to me.” She kept digging and found a small jewelry box. In it was a gold necklace with a laptop pendant. She grinned, pulling out the note that was at the bottom of the box. “You inspire me—Hunter.”

  Bekah handed the necklace to Molly who was sitting behind her. Her cousin put it around her neck and fastened it. “Thanks for bringing that to me, Jennifer.”

  Jennifer nodded, grinning. “I’ll just go finish working.”

  Bekah touched the pendant, a smile on her face. He hadn’t said he loved her yet, but she knew he did. He wouldn’t have given her such a sweet gift otherwise. Would he?

  *****

  Hunter was sitting in his room completely ready for the wedding when he realized he hadn’t told his parents he’d be getting married. They weren’t a tight-knit family like the Roberts, but they still had a right to know he was marrying. He grabbed his phone and called his mother’s cell phone. “Hey, Mom.”

  “Hunter? Are you okay? It’s not my birthday…or Mother’s Day…”

  “I wanted to tell you I’m getting married.” Her comment cut him to the quick. Did he really only call on her birthday and Mother’s Day? He thought back to the last time he’d called her, and realized she was probably right. Of course, she hadn’t called him since his birthday either.

  “Married? Do you need us to help pay for the wedding?”

  “No, I just thought you’d want to know.”

  “Of course I want to know! What’s her name?” He heard some background noise, and it sounded like she’d just sat down.

  “It’s Bekah. Short for Rebekah. She runs a bed and breakfast in Silver Springs.”

  “Isn’t that a ski town?”

  “Yeah. It’s really nice here.”

  “You’re there now? What are you doing in Silver Springs?”

  He needed to talk to his mother more often. It was that simple. “I was having trouble with a book, so I came here to finish it, hoping that a change of scenery would inspire me. It did, and I finished the book.”

  “Oh, that’s nice. So how long have you known this Becky?”

  “I met her three and a half weeks ago.” He waited for her to tell him he hadn’t known her long enough to be engaged, and ignored the fact that she used the wrong name.

  “That’s not very long…” She said softly. “Are you sure about this, Hunter? Is she just marrying you for your money?”

  He laughed. “No, Mom, I don’t think she has any idea how much money I have. I don’t think it’s even occurred to her to wonder about my financial situation.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “The thing is we’re getting married in about twenty minutes.”

  “Today? You’re marrying her today, and you’re just now telling me?”

  He sighed. Phones worked both ways, but he didn’t tell her that. “Sorry, Mom. Yeah, we’re getting married today. We just decided on Wednesday, so it’s been kind of quick.”

  “She’s not pregnant, is she?”

  Hunter stifled a groan. “No, Mom. She’s not pregnant. I love her, and I want to marry her.”

  “Okay. What do you want for a wedding gift?” She sounded disappointed, but she wouldn’t argue with him about it. His family never argued. They didn’t have enough emotion inside them to argue or tease like Bekah’s family did.

  Half the reason he wanted to marry her was for her family. Well, not half. A small part of it, though. He wanted to have a loving boisterous family who teased him and called him Puddin’ Pop. Why not? “I don’t need a gif
t, Mom. I just thought you’d want to know.”

  “When will you be back in Denver?” she asked. “I’d like to meet her.”

  “We’ll be there next week. I’ll be moving to Silver Springs. Her business is here.” And my heart is here. I need to be able to write well, and this seems to be the place for me to do it.

  “Have a good wedding. Maybe you could come by while you’re in town.”

  “I’d like that. Bye, Mom. I love you.”

  There was silence from the phone for a moment. “I love you too.”

  He didn’t remember ever hearing his mother say that, but he didn’t remember ever saying it to her either. What did that say about his family?

  As Hunter put the phone down, he jumped at a knock on his door. Who would be bugging him right before the wedding? He opened the door to see Spike and his future father-in-law, Bob Roberts. He couldn’t look at him without thinking his full name. He loved it.

  “I’m here to escort you to the gazebo for the wedding,” Spike said. “I want to make sure you’re not a flight risk.”

  “Why would I be a flight risk? Have you seen your sister? She’s beautiful and about to be all mine.”

  Spike stuck his fingers in his ears. “Lalalalala…I can’t hear you!”

  Bob laughed, putting his arm around Hunter’s shoulders. “Just make sure to give my wife grandbabies soon, son. We need dozens of them.”

  Hunter grinned. “I love the idea of kids. We’ll start trying right away for you.”

  “You’re going to be my favorite son-in-law. Have I told you that yet?”

  “No…but I’m sure you’ll say that to two other men as well. Maybe not this week, but you’ll say it…”

  “You’re already figuring me out. How could you not be my favorite?”

  Hunter walked over to stand beside Jack. “I hope you don’t mind me horning in on your wedding.”

  “Erin is happy, so I’m happy. It’s that simple.”

  “I hope I can make Bekah happy,” Hunter said softly. He knew his parents barely tolerated one another. There was no love lost between them. Would he and Bekah take after her family who had love to spare? Or his, who couldn’t find love if it whacked them over the head with a baseball bat?