The Wedding Wager

by Regina Duke

  “Speaking of which,” said Megan, “last night Krystal said that after the wedding on Friday, I will be the lady of the house.”

  Cookie drew inward and started to get up from the table. “Yes, ma’am.”

  “No, no, please sit! I was surprised by her announcement. Surely she will always be the lady of the house, not me.”

  Cookie relaxed and reached for a slice of toast. “Oh, that. Yes, in a way she’ll always be head of this household. But she’s been waiting for years for Kevin to get married so he can inherit the place, take over the trust, and run the ranch. And his wife will legally be the lady of the house. Mrs. Krystal’s parents wrote that into the trust. They never figured that their male heirs would die before the property could be transferred. They never made arrangements for a female heir, except that she could hold the property and the estate for safekeeping until her son was old enough to inherit. And then, of course, there was the famous marriage requirement. Kevin has to marry before his twenty-fifth birthday, or the property and the estate both go to Mrs. Krystal, which she deserves, but she’s afraid her husband will get his hands on it if that happens.” Her inflection on the word “husband” told Megan how she felt about that idea.

  “Wow. That’s barbaric.”

  “It’s very Victorian,” said Cookie. “They didn’t figure a woman could run a place like this. Mrs. Krystal is a trustee, but Zach is really in charge of the ranch. But of course, he defers to Mrs. Krystal.”

  “And Mr. Wake never tried to install his own man as foreman?”

  Cookie threw her head back and laughed. “You are a very bright young lady. As a matter of fact, he has tried, three times that I know of. But the biggest power Mrs. Krystal has is being able to choose her foreman.”

  “That poor woman.”

  “Well, she has a lot upstairs herself. She got you and Kevin here for a wedding, didn’t she?” She picked up a napkin and reached over to wipe peanut butter off Keegan’s face. “Mr. Keegan, please don’t leave the table with peanut butter smeared all over your face and fingers.”

  “Okay.” Without looking up, he grabbed the napkin and smeared the peanut butter over a wider swath than before.

  Cookie shook her head in mock disgust. “I’d better get a wash cloth. And you, Miss Megan, eat your toast. You have a full morning of fittings ahead of you. Mrs. Krystal’s seamstress is a perfectionist.”

  Three hours later, Megan decided that Cookie’s definition of perfectionist matched other people’s definition of sadist. Her leg throbbed from spending most of the morning standing up as Genevieve’s fingers flew, tugging here, loosening there, hemming, trimming, and stitching away. At last, Megan begged for mercy.

  “Maybe we can continue later,” she said. “I’m recovering from a traumatic injury, and I simply cannot stand here any longer.” She moved toward a chair.

  “Don’t sit! This dress is not for sitting!” Genevieve straightened up and cracked her back. “No one told me you were convalescing. Let me help you out of that dress. I can finish the rest on the dummy.” She patted Megan’s arm. “You’ve been an absolute dream to work with. And you’ll be a gorgeous bride.”

  As Megan left the parlor, she decided she needed to be more open about her injury. She could have saved herself at least an hour of torture by speaking up earlier.

  She found herself heading for the kitchen again, not for food or coffee, but for Cookie’s comforting presence. She no sooner entered from the dining room when a stern, blond man with angry green eyes came through the back door.

  “Who the hell are you!?” he bellowed. “Where is everybody? Are you the trollop my son is trying to pass off as a legitimate bride? I saw the pictures of you two swilling champagne on the beach at Lake Tahoe. Get out! Get out of my house!”

  Megan had thought she was strong enough to face him down, but he reminded her so much of her own father in a temper that she turned and ran, just like she used to do as a child.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX

  KEVIN FOUND MEGAN in her room, face pressed into her pillow. When he touched her shoulder, she jumped.

  “Oh, Kevin! Your father is worse than mine. What a horrid beast of a man. You win again.” She tried to make a joke, but her tears garbled the sound.

  Kevin pulled her close. “He’s such a jerk,” he grumbled. “He’s getting an earful from Krystal right now.”

  “I should have stood up to him! He made me feel like a helpless little girl again. And I’m really pissed about that. I’m going down there right now, and tell him this isn’t his house. It stopped being his house yesterday.” She tried to pull free, but Kevin held tight.

  “Let’s not rush,” he said. “We don’t want him to be forewarned. There are still a couple of days for him to come up with strategies. I would rather have him cracking the whip over the backs of his lawyers than turning his rage on you.”

  Relieved, Megan slumped against him. “Okay. Thanks.” She took a breath and realized that Kevin’s manly scent was more than comforting. It was also stirring feelings deep inside. Not only was he devastatingly handsome and buff, but she’d realized since arriving that he was giving up his life of freedom in Seattle for the good of his crazy, funny, attention-deprived siblings. At that moment, Megan was filled with love for him.

  But she still didn’t want to get intimate next door to his mother’s bedroom, even if he were so inclined. There it was again, that twinge of disappointment.

  “Let’s take a break,” said Kevin. “Let’s go into town for a while. I’ll buy you lunch.”

  “That sounds great,” said Megan, hastily wiping her eyes. “Let me run a brush through my hair.”

  “I’ll be standing guard right outside your door.” He planted a kiss on her cheek.

  Leaving the ranch for a few hours was a huge relief. Kevin drove the battered old pickup as if he were in it every day.

  Hanging onto the dash, Megan said, “I thought we’d be taking the rental car.”

  Kevin laughed. “Zach and one of the hands had to go into Eagle’s Toe this morning so they dropped the rental off while they were there. No point paying for it if we don’t need it. I learned to drive in this truck. It’s more fun than the rental anyway. Zach said if I could drive this baby, I could drive anything.”

  “Zach taught you to drive?”

  “Yep. He’s trying to coax Karla behind the wheel as well. I think she needs one more year, and then she’ll jump at the opportunity.”

  “They’re great kids,” said Megan. “Oh, look! A toy store! We have to go in. I want to get the kids a surprise.”

  Kevin watched as Megan kept adding to the stash of toys in her cart. Outdoor chalk, several cars and trucks, a dump truck, and a road grader. She even picked up a few action figures, including Hollywood’s most recent action heroes and some soldiers. Then she went down the aisle for costumes and theatrical makeup. She included a book on the artistry of stage makeup. Then she found an aisle with Halloween props.

  “Karla has to have a skull that lights up, don’t you think?”

  Kevin scratched his head. “I’m impressed with your insight, but don’t you think Keegan would like one of those new electronic games?”

  Megan pinned him with a look. “He already sneaks those things to the table and never goes outside. I’m getting him toys he can appreciate at the ranch. He needs a sandbox, by the way. A big one, so he can play with his dump truck.”

  “And Karla needs more face paint?”

  “She’s very talented! Who knows what she will become next. I’m just encouraging her strengths. And besides, she’ll need all of this to do our makeup for the second set of wedding photos.”

  Kevin’s face screwed into a question. “What are you talking about?”

  Megan pushed the cart toward the checkout. “Your mother told her she couldn’t come to the wedding as a vampire. Since it’s my wedding, I told her she could. I hope Krystal understands, but either way I want Karla in the wedding photos, and if she wants to be
a vampire, I told her to camp it up. Do some poses. And I thought it would be great fun if we keep the photographer around and let her do our makeup afterward, so we can have a whole group picture of a vampire wedding! Don’t you think that would be fun?”

  Kevin was speechless.

  “It would go a long way to bringing Karla out of her isolation,” said Megan.

  Kevin tilted his head to one side. “You know, I think it could work. All right, I’m in.” He pulled out his credit card.

  “No, wait. These are my gifts to the kids.” She took her wallet out of her purse. “Allow me the illusion of using my own money.”

  Kevin slipped an arm around her and squeezed her gently. “I don’t mean to destroy your illusion, but as of day before yesterday, this is your money.”

  Megan paused, thought for a moment, then tucked her wallet away. She took the credit card out of his hand and said lightly, “That’s right! Thanks, honey.” With a big smile, she handed the card to the cashier.

  She did use her cash at the little restaurant where they stopped for lunch. She couldn’t let Kevin use his credit card for everything.

  “You know how I feel about credit cards and debt.” Her hand clutched her purse as she spoke.

  “As soon as I inherit,” said Kevin, interpreting her concern, “I’ll pay off those medical bills. Don’t worry.”

  Megan made a face. “You can already read my mind?”

  “Of course. We’ve known each other a whole five days. Plenty of time for mind reading.”

  The gifts were a big hit.

  Karla growled, “Thank you, One Called Megan.” She already had the book open as she climbed the stairs.

  Keegan raised his action figures in the air. “My favorites! How did you know?”

  Kevin said, “Bro, they’re plastered all over your door.”

  “Oh, right. Look, they fit in the trucks! Come on!”

  Megan and Kevin helped him carry his trucks and action figures outside.

  “We need dirt,” said Keegan.

  “The horseshoe pit,” said Kevin. “It’s filled with sand. How’s that?”

  “Perfect!” Keegan ran ahead, and plopped down in the sand, already pushing it around with his grader.

  Megan lowered herself carefully to the ground and began placing action figures inside vehicles. “Build me some roads,” she said, “so these guys will have places to go.”

  Kevin knelt beside her on one knee and began scooping dirt with the dump truck. He winked at her and mouthed the word, “Brilliant.”

  Megan tapped her temple with one finger and mouthed back, “Genius.” Then she glanced around them. “Umm, I didn’t see your father inside. And I don’t see any other vehicles. Did he leave?”

  Krystal’s voice came from behind her.

  “Unfortunately, no. Douglas went into town to meet with his lawyers. They’re staying at a hotel there.”

  Megan turned. “Oh, hi, Krystal. I couldn’t resist buying some gifts for Keegan and Karla.”

  Krystal’s expression remained stern, but her eyes softened. “So I see. Did they teach you this in college?”

  Megan shrugged. “My concentration was in Youth Development, so in a way, yes.”

  “Hmph.” Krystal watched her youngest crawling through the sand, building roads with on-ramps and off-ramps. “What do you know,” she said. “Well, well. Please see to it that he cleans up before dinner.”

  Megan nodded. “I will.”

  One corner of Krystal’s mouth turned up. “And you, too.” She turned and moved carefully toward the house.

  Kevin sat down in the sand and grabbed a toy car. “Well, well, indeed. Mother is pleased.”

  CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN

  IT WAS A TALKATIVE, happy group that gathered around the dinner table. Keegan was freshly scrubbed. Instead of an electronic toy, he perched two of his action figures on the edge of the table. He was full of information about highway construction.

  “I need a bulldozer,” he said at last.

  Kevin said to Megan, “Didn’t you get him a bulldozer?”

  “You were there,” said Megan. “You might have mentioned it.”

  Kevin grinned. “Maybe for your birthday, Kee.”

  Karla came to the table in full face paint. She had tried some shadow effects, and her vampire face looked gaunt and haunting.

  Krystal’s eyes widened ever so slightly. “Karla, my dear, you look positively ghastly.”

  In vampire voice, Karla said, “Thank you, mother. The One Called Megan gave me a very useful book. Lots of good tips.”

  Krystal fluffed her napkin over her lap and murmured, “Lovely.”

  Cookie came in with a delicious smelling stew. She set the pot on the table, then stood waiting behind Megan’s chair. Finally, she cleared her throat, loudly.

  Karla looked up.

  Cookie turned her hands over and asked, “Well?”

  Karla raked the air with her black fingernails and hissed.

  Cookie said, “That’s more like it. Hold on, everyone, I made rolls to go with the stew.”

  Kevin said to Karla, “Distracted?”

  Karla used her normal voice to answer. “I’m just thinking about the next chapter and how to add more color to my face. Don’t you think bruising would be cool?”

  Krystal lifted her wine glass. “Will you wear bruises to the wedding?”

  Megan said softly, “I thought it would be wise to clear it with your mom.”

  Karla said, “Not at the wedding. That would be a bad omen. I’ll save the bruises for a different occasion.”

  “You can make me decomposition green for the wedding photos,” said Kevin.

  “Cool!”

  “Dreadful!”

  “Sick!” But Keegan was grinning. “Can I be a vampire, too? For the wedding pictures?”

  Karla sniffed the air. In vampire voice, she teased, “Did someone forget his garlic?”

  Keegan pulled it out of his pocket and rubbed it on his head. “Safe now.”

  Cookie returned with a basketful of warm rolls.

  “They smell heavenly,” said Megan.

  Cookie beamed as she returned to the kitchen.

  Krystal dabbed at her lips with her napkin.

  “Karla, Megan tells me your ability to apply theatrical makeup is quite an unusual talent.”

  Karla froze.

  Megan could practically see the girl’s wheels turning. It was clear that Krystal had never before considered her daughter’s behavior in the light of creative expression.

  At last Karla mumbled, “Thanks.”

  It was equally clear that the next few words stretched Krystal’s maternal instincts to the max.

  “If we’re going to get creative with wedding photos, I would very much like to resemble Morticia Addams.”

  Karla’s eyes flew open in disbelief. “Are you kidding me?” Her vampire voice dissolved into a teenage squeal.

  “I’m quite serious,” said Krystal. “I always enjoyed that program, and the cartoon series before that, and Morticia was an excellent mother and role model.”

  “Oh, my God! That would be totally awesome! Do I have a budget?”

  Krystal allowed herself a small smile. “You may consider yourself funded.”

  CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT

  MEGAN AND KEVIN exchanged glances of shared appreciation during the rest of the meal as Karla bubbled over with ideas. It had taken Kevin half an hour to convince his mother that trying a different tactic with Karla might produce different results.

  By the end of dinner, it was also clear that Krystal’s seamstress would require reinforcements. But Krystal didn’t seem to mind.

  After dinner, Kevin took Megan for a stroll through the stables.

  Megan smiled to herself when he took her hand. His broad shoulders and handsome features seemed completely at home on the ranch.

  Kevin stopped by a stall where a pale palomino nickered a greeting.

  “Hello, Honeybun. Yes, I h
ave some sugar cubes for you.” He held his hand out flat and Honeybun nuzzled his palm. The sugar cubes were gone.

  “Here,” said Kevin, pulling Megan’s hand up. “Make friends.” He set two sugar cubes on Megan’s palm.

  Honeybun’s lips tickled Megan’s fingers as she accepted the sugar.

  “Her lips are so soft,” marveled Megan.

  “I take it you haven’t had much experience around horses.”

  “None. I used to pray for one when I was a little girl. The closest I got was a toy barn and some plastic animals for Christmas one year.” She stroked Honeybun’s nose.

  “You’ll have time to learn as much as you want here.”

  Megan cupped Honeybun’s chin in her palm. “Kevin, your mother said that after the wedding I would be the lady of the house. Does that mean you plan an extended stay here on the ranch?”

  “It’s necessary,” he said. “Once I inherit, I’ll have to get much more involved in the running of the place. Zach has kept me posted over the years, even when I didn’t want him to. I think Zach was the only one who ever really expected me to fulfill the terms of the trust.”

  “But your mother arranged a wedding for you!”

  “For us,” said Kevin softly. “You know, a week ago I didn’t think I could do it. I thought we were going to lose it all to my father’s moneymaking schemes and Wall Street wagers. I’d been looking for someone who could basically just stand next to me and say, ‘I do.’ And then you walked into the office.” He paused to move a lock of her hair behind her ear. “You were a vision, with your angelic beauty. You practically glowed.”

  Megan blushed at the compliment. “I probably did glow,” she said. “Six months in the hospital leaves a girl rather pale.”

  Kevin’s smile loosed an internal flock of butterflies.

  “I’m just saying,” he continued, “when I placed that ad in the paper, I never expected I would actually find someone I could love.”

  Megan’s heart pounded and her lips parted.

  “Love?” she whispered.

  Kevin leaned in and kissed her warmly.