Married In Montana (At The Altar Book 1) (11 page)

"Oh, sure.  If you're tired we can do that."  Savannah was disappointed.  She knew she wouldn't be able to eat much for breakfast, so having a nice dinner that night was appealing.  No matter though.  They could eat in their room, and she would just deal with her morning sickness the following morning.  She wished she'd had the forethought to pack some crackers.

"I'd like that, if you don't mind."  He studied her face, worried that he'd offended her.  He needed to remember not to be so blunt all the time.  If she really wanted to go out, he'd do it.  He just wouldn't be very happy about it.

After they'd checked into the hotel, he sat down in the room to peruse the room service menu.  "Are you sure you're okay with eating in the room?  I don't want to disappoint you."

She smiled.  "We have all weekend.  We can eat here.  It's really not a problem."

Scott smiled at her.  "Thank you for understanding.  I don't know what I did to deserve you, but I thank God for you every day." 

How could she be angry with him?  He still slipped up, but at least he was learning the right things to say when he did.  He was shaping up to be a better husband than she'd dreamed he could be.

*****

Saturday morning was difficult for Savannah.  It was the first time they'd been in such close quarters in the morning.  Usually Scott milked the cows while she emptied her stomach, but that day he was just in the other room, listening to her.

When she came out of the bathroom, his face was concerned.  "Are you all right?  Do we need to cancel our plans and stay in?"  He wasn't sure if he should touch her to make her feel better or run far away so he wouldn't catch whatever she had.

She shook her head.  "I'll be fine.  I think something we ate last night must not have agreed with my stomach."  It was kind of true.  The food was disagreeing with her now, but it was only because she was having morning sickness.

"Do you want breakfast?  I can order room service." 

Savannah couldn't help but be impressed with the way Scott was doing everything he could to make her feel better.  "I think some tea and some dry toast would help a lot."

He hurried to the phone and ordered himself a huge breakfast and requested toast and tea for her.

She lay still on the bed while she waited for her stomach to settle.  When the food arrived, the smell of his bacon sent her back into the bathroom with another bout of nausea.  She wasn't sure how much longer she could hide her pregnancy without him getting overly worried.

When she came out of the bathroom, he had the table set with her toast and her tea on one side and his meal on the other.  He was hovering beside the table, obviously concerned.  "Savannah, do we need to find a doctor?  I mean, I know it's a holiday weekend, but surely someone would be open."

"I'll be fine."  She sat down at the table and slowly ate her toast, her stomach rolling a couple of times but thankfully not fighting her too much. 

After they'd had breakfast, she was feeling fine again.  "I was thinking we could go to Central Park for a picnic today.  Would you like that?"  She had seen the carriage rides a million times, and never taken one.  To her it was something romantic you did with your significant other, so she'd never been willing to do it with her mother or a friend.

"If you're sure you can handle it.  I'm worried about you."

"I'll be fine.  Let's stop at a deli on the way, and we'll get some sandwiches and some potato salad."  Now that her stomach had calmed down, she was ravenous.

He shrugged, not sure why she was so intent on having a picnic when she was clearly sick, but he'd learned not to question the things she did that made no sense to him.

Once they got to the park, she sat down in the grass, wishing she'd had the foresight to bring a blanket.  He looked around him in wonder.  "You'd never know you were in the middle of a huge city."

"I think that's my favorite thing about Central Park.  It's just like this hidden little paradise in the middle of a concrete jungle.  I love it here.  Mom and I rode the subway here every Sunday afternoon after church.  We'd pack a lunch and just sit and soak up nature.  Central Park and Broadway are the two things I miss most about the city."

He watched her skeptically as she took a huge bite of a sandwich and then ate chips as well as pickles.  Obviously she was feeling better.  "I'm glad you're not sick anymore."

Savannah almost blurted out about the baby then, but she wanted to wait at least a little longer.  She would never be able to trust his feelings if he didn't say anything until after she told him she was expecting.  "Me too.  I wouldn't want to ruin our time here."

After lunch, they threw away their trash and walked along the sidewalk.  "How would you feel about a carriage ride?" she asked.

He nodded.  "We can do that."  As soon as they were in the carriage, he slipped his arm around her.  "You know what?  I have an old sleigh in the stable that my grandfather built.  When it snows, I'll hitch up a couple of the horses, and we'll go for a sleigh ride.  If you enjoy this, you'll love that."

She smiled.  "That sounds very romantic."

He kissed the top of her head.  "I want to do things that make you happy.  You're the most important person in the world to me."

She looked at him, waiting for him to follow that with a declaration of love, and her heart fell when it didn't happen.  She hoped it happened soon, because she couldn't hide her pregnancy for long.

*****

They took a cab to Little Italy to eat at one of the restaurants there.  It had been a favorite of hers growing up, and she'd always chosen to eat there on her birthday.  Her mother was waiting out front with a tall, dark haired man she recognized immediately.  "Mr. Fordman!"  She ran to him hugging him tightly.  "You finally talked her into going out with you!"

He laughed.  "I've been trying for years, but I finally wore her down."  His gaze was on her mother, who blushed.

"I'm so glad.  Make her happy, would you?"  Savannah desperately wanted to see her mother happy.  It was one of the reasons she'd married Scott.

"I'll do my best."  He winked at her mother over her head. 

Savannah turned and hugged her mother tightly.  "I'm still alive, see?"

Mrs. Blyton nodded.  "I see.  You look well.  You've got some color in your cheeks.  I think Montana agrees with you."  She looked at Scott over Savannah's head.  "Thanks for not killing her."

Scott shook her head sadly.  "Why do you think I'm an evil beast?  I love your daughter."

Savannah's heart skipped a beat, but he'd said it so casually, he couldn't have meant it.  Surely he was just trying to get her mother to feel better.  Even Scott wouldn't tell her he loved her for the first time by telling her mother.  Would he?

After they were seated, Savannah looked to her left at Mr. Fordman.  "How did you finally talk her into dating you?  I need every detail."

Her mother blushed, which intrigued Savannah even more.  What could he have done to make her mother look that way?

"Well, I may have told her that if she was bent on being a spinster, she needed to start collecting cats.  I offered to go to the animal shelter with her and find five or six for her to adopt."

Savannah laughed.  "You didn't!"

"And when she got offended, I kissed her."

Savannah's eyes grew wide, and she looked back and forth between them.  "Well, it worked!  I'm thrilled.  Now, when will I hear wedding bells?"

Through the meal, Scott was aware of Mrs. Blyton's watchful gaze.  She seemed to be waiting for him to jump up and do something stupid at any moment.  While they were waiting on dessert, he excused himself to go to the bathroom, just to get away from her stare.

He stood up too quickly, not noticing a waiter hovering behind him with a pitcher of tea.  He bumped into the waiter and watched, as if in slow motion, as the waiter poured the entire pitcher down the front of his mother-in-law's shirt.

He was mortified.  Looking at Savannah, he saw her face, and rushed off for the bathroom.  He knew she had to be angry with him.  Why couldn't he do anything right around her?  He loved her so much, and he acted like a big clumsy oaf. 

Chapter Ten

By the time Scott returned to the table, the mess had been cleaned up, and Mrs. Blyton had been dried as well as possible.  Scott looked at her.  "I'm so sorry.  I didn't know the waiter was behind me."

Mrs. Blyton smiled at him.  "I know that, Scott.  Don't worry about it.  Accidents happen."

"But I know you had plans for after dinner.  Let me buy you a new shirt so you have something to wear."

She shook her head.  "My apartment isn't far.  I'll go home and change. It's really not a problem."

Scott couldn't meet Savannah's eyes.  He was certain she'd be furious with him.

When they were in the cab on the way to the play, he stared out the opposite window.

Savannah finally had enough.  She took his hand in hers and pressed her lips to his shoulder.  "Stop worrying about it.  It could have happened to anyone."

"Yes, it could have, but the thing is, it always seems to happen to me.  Why is that?"  His voice was bitter and full of self-loathing.

Savannah didn't have an answer for him, so she stayed quiet for a moment.  "This isn't like the other things that happened, you know.  This was no big deal.  My mother wasn't upset at all."

"How could she not be upset?  She's already convinced I'm going to kill you at any moment.  Of course, she's upset."

She smiled.  "She doesn't think that anymore."

"Well, something good came out of the night then.  Now she just thinks that I'll dump pitchers of ice tea all over you?"

"I'm glad I married you," she said softly.  "If I could go back and do it all over again, I would."

"Please, don't say things you don't mean just to make me feel better.  Somehow it just makes me feel worse."  He'd really felt like he was improving, and becoming a better husband, and now he'd ruined everything again.

"Have I ever said anything just to make you feel better?  Did I lie to you about how I felt about the mixer?  Or about you accusing me of having PMS?  Or any of the other silly things you'd done?  No, I haven't, because I don't do that."  She sighed.  "I mean what I say.  If I were to go back in time, and know exactly what would happen between us, I would marry you again, and I wouldn't hesitate."

He looked at her, his eyes filled with remorse.  "Why?"

"Because you really are the right man for me.  I don't know how she did it, but Dr. Simpson was exactly right.  We belong together."

"You really believe that, don't you?"  He paused while the taxi driver stopped to yell at a pedestrian who was jaywalking.  He'd never seen anything like the taxi drivers there.  "I think that's what I love most about you.  Your ability to forgive.  By all rights you should have left me within two weeks of our marriage."

She looked at him, studying his face carefully.  "Do you really mean that?  You love me?"

"How could you not know that?" He was baffled by her question.  "Do you really think I'd have worked so hard to be a better husband if I didn't?  That I'd have cared at all about how you felt about me?"

"I never really thought about it that way.  I just...well, I know we didn't marry for love, so I was afraid I'd never have your love."

He hugged her as close as he could in the backseat of the cab.  "How could you not have my love?  You're practically perfect!  I'm the one lacking...in every way!"

She shook her head at him.  "You
were
lacking in one way, but you're so much better now.  I wish you could see yourself through my eyes.  You're a strong, confident man.  You give of yourself to everyone around you.  Do you have any idea how many people speak highly of you?"

He shrugged.  "I just do what's right."

"You do!  And that's something most people don't care about.  I love you, Scott.  I even love your ability to drive me crazy."

"You can't love me."  He shook his head in disbelief.  "Maybe in a few years, when I stop being so dumb about things..."

She put her finger over his lips to shush him.  "I love you now."  She drew his head down for a kiss, forgetting all about the driver in the front.  The car stopped, and she jerked away from her husband.  "We're at the theater."

He jumped out of the car and took her hand as she got out behind him.  "Where do we go?" he asked.

She indicated the line they needed to stand in, and stood beside him, staring up into his face.  "Thank you for bringing me to see my favorite musical.  I hope you like it half as much as I do."

*****

Hours later when they got back to the hotel, Savannah was nervous.  It was time for her to tell Scott about the baby, but she wasn't certain if he'd be angry that she hadn't told him sooner.  Of course, she was still in the afterglow of his declaration of love, so she felt safer telling him then than she would later. 

After he closed the door and locked it, she took his hand and led him to the small couch in their room.  "I need to tell you something."

He raised an eyebrow.  "Are you going to tell me you don't really love me, and you made it all up?"

She laughed.  "Of course not."

"Nothing else will make me mad.  I can see you're worried, but you don't need to be."  He tilted her chin up with one forefinger, so he could look into her eyes.  "Tell me what's wrong."

"Well, nothing is really wrong..."  She took a deep breath, knowing she just needed to get it over with.  There was no reason for her to be afraid to tell him.  He loved her, and she loved him.  They both wanted children.  "You know how I got so sick this morning?"

He nodded.  "Are you feeling bad again?"

She shook her head.  "No, but I will be in the morning."  At his blank look, she smiled.  "I've been feeling sick every morning for over a week now."

"We need to get you to a doctor then.  Why didn't you say anything?  What if something is seriously wrong?"

She wanted to laugh.  The man really was clueless about a lot of things, but it only made him more precious to her.  "Nothing is seriously wrong."  She took his hand and placed it over her flat stomach.  "We're having a baby."

His eyes widened.  "Are you sure?"

She shrugged.  "As sure as I can be.  All the symptoms are there.  I took a test, and it was positive."

"When did you take a test?"  He was truly surprised.  She hadn't given any indication that anything was going on.

"A little over a week ago," she said honestly, waiting for him to get angry.

Instead, Scott was merely confused.  "Why didn't you tell me sooner then?  It's what we both wanted."

She shrugged.  "I didn't want to tell you about the baby before I knew that you loved me.  I was afraid you'd tell me you loved me, simply because I was pregnant, and then I'd never know how you really felt."

He frowned.  "So if I hadn't told you I love you today, you'd have just told me you were eating a little too much for nine months?"

"No, I would have told you."  She looked down at her hands, wishing she could explain better.  "I needed to know that you loved me for me, though.  Not for my ability to bear children."

"Of course, I love you for you!  That baby means nothing to me at this point.  Why would it?  I've never met it.  I have met you, and you mean everything to me."  He shook his head.  "I can't believe you didn't realize I loved you when I started trying so hard to do everything right.  What kind of man would agree to court a woman he was already married to if he didn't love her?  Did you ever think of that?"

"I guess I didn't.  Most of the things you do don't make a whole lot of sense to me.  How would I have guessed that?"

"Well, from now on, you won't have to guess it.  I'll tell you every day for the rest of our lives."

She smiled.  "Can we fly to New York every year to see Wicked?"

"I guess?  It was good, but was it really that good?"  He'd enjoyed the musical, and wouldn't mind seeing it again, but every year?

She nodded.  "Yes, it was that good.  Every year?  An annual pilgrimage to New York?"

"If it would make you happy, we'd do it every month."

Savannah smiled, throwing herself into his arms.  "I don't know how she could have done it, but Dr. Simpson was right.  We are right for each other.  We'll have to send her a birth announcement."

"We're having lunch with her and Sam tomorrow, remember?"

"Oh, that's right!  I can't wait to talk to her about everything."

*****

The older couple was already seated when Scott and Savannah made it to the restaurant the following day.  As soon as she spotted Dr. Simpson, Savannah started moving around the tables so she could hug her. 

Dr. Simpson had her arms wide before she got there.  "It's so good to see you!"

Savannah smiled, pulling back from the embrace.  "Thank you so much for everything.  Scott and I would never have made it through without your help." 

"I'm glad to hear things are going better for you.  He's a good man, like I said.  He just has his...quirks."

Savannah laughed.  "That's putting it kindly, and I appreciate that." 

Scott had just caught up with his wife and was shaking Sam's hand.  "Good to see you again, Sam."

Sam nodded.  "You too."  The two men took their seats looking at the women as if they wondered if they'd ever take theirs.  "You're happy."  It wasn't a question Sam was asking.  He was announcing that the young couple was happy.

Scott nodded.  "We are.  Savannah has been very good for me."

"You've been good for her too.  She's got a glow about her now she didn't have back in June before you married."

Scott studied Savannah and realized the other man was right.  "Are you two ever going to sit down?" he asked.

Both women laughed.  "I guess we should, shouldn't we?" Lachele asked.  Once they were seated, she looked at Savannah.  "So tell me everything. When are you due?"

Savannah looked at Lachele in shock.  "How did you know?"

"You have a glow that I've only ever seen on the faces of pregnant women.  There's a special beauty."

"Baby's should be here at the beginning of April," Savannah said with a smile.  "I only told Scott last night."

Lachele looked at Scott.  "Congratulations, Daddy."

Scott grinned, his eyes drifting to Savannah.  "Thank you.  I can't wait."

Sam laughed.  "So that's the difference in her face.  It's not that she's in love, which of course she is, but it's the baby.  I understand now."

Savannah looked at Scott.  "We have to see my mom one more time while we're here.  We need to tell her about the baby in person.  I don't think she'd forgive us otherwise."

"Do you think she's home?  We could go by after lunch."

"I'll text her and see."  Savannah quickly texted, ignoring the conversation around her for a moment.  "She said we can come by in an hour or two."

Scott nodded.  "We'll go straight to her place from lunch then."

Savannah looked at Lachele, telling her excitedly about her mother's new man friend.

"She just needed you to be settled, so she'd feel comfortable dating again.  She should have done it years ago."

"She should have, but she didn't.  I'm just glad Mr. Fordman waited for her.  He probably shouldn't have."  Savannah briefly explained about the number of years Mr. Fordman had waited.  He's a good man, and he's perfect for my mother."

"It sounds like it."  Lachele smiled at Sam.  "Looks like my work here is done."

Savannah looked at Lachele.  "Do you have any other matches in the works?"

Lachele grinned.  "I always have matches in the works.  I wouldn't be a matchmaker if I didn't."

*****

Savannah knocked on her mother's door, her hand in Scott's.  "Are you going to tell her or should I?" she asked.

Scott shook his head.  "With the way your mother feels about me?  I'm not telling her!"

She laughed.  "She doesn't hate you as much as you think she does."

When the door opened, her mother stood there with a smile.  "Come in.  I didn't think we were going to see each other again while you were here."

"I know."  Savannah walked into the living room and took a seat on the familiar sofa.  Her mother's apartment was tiny even by New York standards.  "I just needed to tell you something, and I thought it was best if I said it in person."

Mrs. Blyton put her hands on her hips looking back and forth between Scott and Savannah.  "You two aren't getting a divorce, are you?  Now that I've decided to like Scott, I'll have to protest if that's what you want to tell me."

Savannah chuckled, shaking her head.  "No, that's not it, but I'm sure Scott is pleased to hear that you like him now."

"Well, what do you want to tell me then?  I only have twenty minutes before Joe arrives."

Savannah wasn't sure if she should be thrilled or offended with the way her mother was always ready to push her away now, so she could be with Joe.  "You're going to be a grandmother."