More Than He Expected (14 page)

Gwen pulled back, the irritation on her face poorly disguised.
“Now, what makes you think that telling me you love me gives you any more right
to boss me around than before?”

“You’re right,” he conceded. “You’re a grown woman who makes
her own decisions. But I would very much like you to come stay with me. My
apartment has felt cold and lonely since I got home. The memories of the weeks
we’d spent there together were like ghosts, haunting me. I’d like us to make
some new memories there. Unless you’d rather stay with Will and Adrienne… .” He
smiled.

At that, Gwen knew her argument was lost. It was one thing to
be forced into staying with someone because they felt you couldn’t take care of
yourself. It was another entirely when they loved you and wanted to keep you
safe and healthy. And she wanted to be with Alex. Just not as a burden. Her soft
groan of defeat was enough encouragement for him.

“You’re going to have the most comfortable and luxurious bed
rest any pregnant woman has ever had. I’m not taking any chances with your
health and welfare. The whole flight back here, I worried that I’d almost lost
my chance. That because I was afraid to chase after you, you might never know
how much I loved you.”

“I knew,” she whispered, a small smile curling her lips. “I was
just waiting for you to get with the program.”

Alex returned her smile. “I wish you would’ve told me that and
saved me the last few weeks of angst.”

“You wouldn’t have listened. You needed to figure it out for
yourself.”

He nodded. “You’re probably right. Does this mean that you’ll
agree to come stay at my place until the baby is born and possibly never move
out?”

“Yes. I don’t care if I ever see my miserable little apartment
again.”

“And you forgive me for letting a woman as great as you almost
slip through my fingers?”

“Yes.”

“And does it mean that you still love me, too? A little birdie
told me that you did, but I want to hear it from the source.”

“Yes. I do love you.”

His hazel gaze searched her face for a moment, absorbing her
answer before he spoke again. “Then I have one last question. And I hope that
the answer to it will be yes, as well.”

Gwen’s breath caught in her throat. Just a minute earlier he’d
mentioned marriage and children, but those were abstract plans for the future
from a man who had just started wading into the commitment pool. If he was about
to say what it sounded like he was going to say, some very concrete plans were
about to be put in place.

Alex reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a small red
box. “Will you, Miss Gwen Wright, do me the honor of being my wife?”

The top opened to a most unexpected find. The ring had a large
yellow stone, surrounded by tiny diamonds and set into an intricate two-tone
band with more tiny diamonds inset. It was beautiful. And unique. It had an
antique feel about it, which made her think it was probably very old. Maybe a
family heirloom. She would’ve been happy with any ring he gave her, but she
appreciated him making the effort to give her something different.

Gwen knew in that moment that he really did love her and had
for even longer than he knew. He’d paid attention to her, noticed the details,
knew what she liked, put her needs first, bought her things to make her happy…
It had just taken him this long to realize all those things were the actions of
a man in love.

Tears filled her eyes again, but at last, they were happy
tears. He wanted to marry her. Alex Stanton—the man who made her laugh, made her
smile, made her feel like the sexiest woman on earth—was going to settle down
with her. A nobody from Tennessee who had wondered, not two days earlier, if she
might be lonely her whole life. “Yes.”

Alex grinned wide and leaned in to gently embrace her again.
Gwen closed her eyes and relished the feel of being in his arms—the warm scent
of his skin and cologne mingling, the heat of his body scalding her through the
thin cotton of her hospital gown. When he pulled away, it was only to slip the
ring on her finger and kiss her properly.

On her long, lonely bus ride back to the city, Gwen had
searched her mind for their last kiss. It had been nothing but a quick peck
before they’d fallen asleep in his room. It pained her to know that might be the
last kiss she ever shared with Alex. Now, with his lips against hers and their
futures intertwined, she no longer needed to worry. They would have many kisses
to fill her memory for years to come.

She never wanted to let him out of her arms’ reach again. And
soon, she wouldn’t have to.

“Now, I hate to go, but there’s so much for me to do before
you’re discharged. I’m going to go back to my place and get it ready for you. If
you give me your keys, I’ll have movers boxing up everything you own before the
end of the day. I’ll handle everything, including talking to your landlord. I
also have to make a very important trip to my insurance agent to get that ring
properly protected.”

Gwen looked down at her engagement ring in a moment of
confusion. It was beautiful, but was an insurance policy really necessary? Then
it hit her. She examined it more closely and shook her head. “I suppose this
isn’t a really nice golden topaz, is it?”

Alex grinned and shook his head. “Would it make you feel better
if I told you it was?”

Gwen shook her head and gazed at her ring again in amazement. A
giant canary diamond. So typically Alex.

“Before I go, is there anything else I can do for you?”

“Loving me is enough.” She smiled, then Peanut kicked at her.
Gwen felt the relief wash over her, feeling the baby move again after the last
twenty-four hours. Everything was going to be okay. She knew it now.

“But, if you don’t mind smuggling in a hot fudge sundae…”

Epilogue

“I’
m really starting to hate this car.”

Alex frowned as he reached down to help Gwen out of the
convertible. She was no longer pregnant, but only a couple weeks out from
delivery, she was still too sore to climb out of the low bucket seats of his
Corvette without help.

“We’re getting married and having children. I am throwing away
my little black book and putting my salacious ways behind me. But I draw the
line at getting rid of this car. I will buy you a more sensible car of your own,
if you insist.”

Gwen eased up and planted a kiss on his pouty mouth. “I would
never ask you to get rid of your baby. Maybe we could just put some monster
truck wheels on it.” She patted his shoulder playfully and the light sparkled
off her engagement ring. The yellow oval diamond was dazzling in its antique
setting, hit by the sunlight as it peeked through the bare branches and falling
autumn leaves.

Alex took her hand and led her to the fellowship hall of the
Trinity Wall Street Episcopal Church, where they were holding the belated baby
shower. “I feel like I should’ve brought a gift,” Gwen said, as they slipped
through the heavy oak doors.

“I think you brought the baby, honey.”

Gwen laughed and shook her head. “I still should’ve picked up
something.”

The hall was decorated in white and pink for a combined welcome
celebration and baby shower. When Gwen was hospitalized, Robert and Susan had
decided to hold out on having a shower. Now that Abigail was a healthy, happy,
fifteen-day-old girl, party time had arrived.

The hall was filled with round tables, each alternating with
pink or white tablecloths and centerpieces with bottles or candles. A spread of
catered food lined one long table and ended in an adorable three-tiered diaper
cake that had “Welcome Abby” in alphabet blocks along the bottom. Beside it was
a large sheet cake with “Congratulations!” written on it in pink icing.

“Gwen!” Susan shouted from across the hall.

The crowd of people milling around all stopped to look in her
direction. She had no doubt that they all knew who she was. Susan had been
touting her as some sort of sacred vessel to anyone who would listen. It made
Gwen a little uncomfortable, but one look into Susan’s excited face melted it
all away.

Susan came through the crowd with a white bundle in her arms.
Abby was dressed in a pale pink and lace gown that had been in Susan’s family
for generations. Through the last few weeks of Gwen’s bed rest, Susan had spent
a lot of time with her. They’d chatted for hours about her plans for the
nursery, her excitement about motherhood and details of Gwen’s upcoming wedding.
One day, Susan had brought the gown with her so Gwen could see it.

Gwen gently reached across the baby to hug Susan and smiled
down at the tiny ivory-and-pink face of the most beautiful baby girl in the
world. Despite the excitement, she was out cold in her mother’s arms.

“Would you like to hold her? I feel bad that you haven’t gotten
to see her since you were discharged.”

“Susan, she’s your baby, not mine. You don’t have to share
custody with me.”

Gwen stroked her finger along Abby’s fat little cheek and
whispered, “Hello, my Peanut.” The baby stirred slightly at the sound of her
voice, smiling sweetly in her sleep.

“What about you, Alex? You can get a little practice in for all
those babies you’ll be having soon.”

Alex’s eyes grew wide with panic, but before he could argue,
the tiny infant was thrust into his uncertain arms. Gwen watched with amusement
as he looked down at the baby as if she might sprout another head or start
leaking something on him. But then, after a few moments, his expression softened
and he watched Abby with a sense of newfound wonder.

Gwen felt the tiny prickle of tears as he gently swayed with
her and hoped that one day soon, she would see him holding their own child just
like this. “You’re a natural.”

“I’ve got a surprise for you,” Susan said, pulling her away
from the touching sight.

“For me? Why?”

“Robert and I talked about it, and we thought this would be a
wonderful way to say thank-you.”

Robert came over to them with a copy of the freshly issued
birth certificate in his hands. After the adoption was finalized, it had to be
redone with Susan’s name as the legal mother. Gwen looked at it and was
surprised to find the name
Abigail Gwendolyn
Thatcher
written there.

“I thought you were naming her Abigail Rose?”

“We were, but we thought naming her after you would make it
more meaningful. We always want Abby to know how special she is and how a
wonderful person sacrificed so much to give her to us.”

Now the tears were rolling in earnest. Gwen embraced Susan and
then gave a hug to the reluctant Robert.

“They’re crying again,” he said to Alex. Apparently he had
gotten his fill of crying women at the hospital the day Abby was born.

Alex shrugged. “They do that. As the father to a daughter, I
suggest you get prepared. Here,” he said, holding out Abby. “Hand one of them
the baby. That will distract them.”

Robert gave Abby over to Susan, who immediately stopped crying
and started smiling again at the sight of her little girl.

Alex came up beside Gwen and wrapped his arm around her waist.
“I never knew your name was Gwendolyn,” he admitted.

“That’s okay,” she said with a smile as she stood on her toes
to give him a kiss. “We’ve got our whole lives to learn everything we need to
know about each other.”

Alex gave her a sly grin and bent down to kiss her again. “I’m
looking forward to every minute of it.”

* * * * *

Keep reading for an excerpt of
His
Marriage to Remember
by Kathie DeNosky!

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One

S
tanding in the hospital waiting room, Bria
wrapped her arms around herself as she tried to chase away the chills. It did no
good. In spite of the fact that it was early June in Texas and already extremely
warm, she couldn’t seem to stop shivering.

Terror like nothing she had ever known had clawed at her
insides as she’d helplessly watched the angry bull slam Sam into the fence, then
pummel his limp body repeatedly with its large head. Thankfully, the bull didn’t
have horns and therefore Sam hadn’t sustained any puncture wounds, nor had he
been stepped on by the massive animal. Nate and Sam’s foster brothers had
immediately jumped into action and diverted the bull’s attention as quickly as
they could. But it seemed as if they’d all moved in slow motion and took forever
to get the beast away from him so the emergency medical crew could move in and
take over.

She drew in a shuddering breath. There was no getting around
it, she was responsible for Sam’s accident. If she had only waited for another
day, another time to bring the divorce papers for him to sign or if he hadn’t
seen her and been distracted, she wouldn’t be standing in the waiting room while
he underwent tests to see just how badly he was injured.

But the rodeo was only a two-hour drive from her new home in
Dallas and she had wanted to get the papers signed and everything finalized
before she started her new job as a marketing consultant for one of the major
department stores. If she hadn’t run into a traffic jam on the interstate, she
would have arrived with plenty of time to get things taken care of and left
before the dangerous bull-riding event even started.

Her breath caught on a sob. It didn’t matter why she had been
running late or that she had wanted to get on with her life. Sam was the one
having to pay the price for her impatience.

“Have you heard anything, Bria?” Nate called from somewhere
behind her.

Turning around, she watched Nate and his brothers hurrying down
the hall toward the waiting-room entrance. Tall and ruggedly handsome, all five
men were cowboys from the top of their wide-brimmed Resistol hats to their
scuffed Justin boots. All six of the boys Hank Calvert had fostered had grown up
to be extremely wealthy men, but to the outward eye, they were down to earth,
hardworking cowboys who passed up designer clothing in favor of chambray shirts
and jeans. Nate was Sam’s only biological sibling, but the other four men they
called brothers couldn’t have meant more to them if they’d had the same blood
flowing through their veins.

“Th-They just took him…to the imaging department…for X-rays and
a scan of his head,” she said, unable to keep her voice from cracking.

Nate stepped forward and, putting his arms around her, pulled
her to his broad chest. “He’s going to be all right, Bria.”

“Sam’s as tough as nails,” Lane Donaldson added. The same age
as Sam, Lane had a master’s degree in psychology that he used quite successfully
as a professional poker player. Bria didn’t think she had ever seen the man look
less confident.

Ryder McClain, the most easygoing of the group, nodded. “Sam’s
probably already being a pain in the butt about getting out of here.”

“I hope all of you are right,” she said, feeling helpless.

“Can I get you something, Bria? A cup of coffee or some water?”
T. J. Malloy asked solicitously. He was the most thoughtful of the brothers, so
she wasn’t the least bit surprised that T.J.’s concern extended to her.

“Get some coffee for all of us, T.J.,” Nate commanded, without
waiting for her to respond.

“I’ll go with you to help carry everything,” Jaron Lambert
offered, turning to follow T.J. Stopping, he turned back to ask, “Do you want
anything else, Bria. Maybe something to eat?”

“Thanks, Jaron, but I’m not hungry. I doubt that I could eat
anything even if I was,” she said, thankful to have Sam’s brothers with her.
They treated her like a sister and she was going to miss them terribly once the
divorce was final and she was no longer part of their family.

“Come on and sit down,” Nate said, guiding her over to a bank
of chairs along the far wall. When she sat, he asked, “Did Sam regain
consciousness in the ambulance on the way over here?”

She shook her head. “I think he was starting to come around
when they took him back to the examination room, but they told me I couldn’t
stay with him and that the doctor would come out and talk to me when he knew
something.”

Unable to leave the rodeo they had coordinated to honor their
late foster father, the men had sent her to the hospital with Sam, while they
attended to dispatching the livestock Sam’s company had provided for the various
events to the next rodeo on the schedule. She knew it had to be extremely hard
for them not to have dropped everything to go with their brother to the
hospital, but they had done their duty and seen to Sam’s interests when he
couldn’t.

“Is everything over with for this year’s memorial rodeo?” she
asked, knowing the bull riding was usually the last scheduled event.

“Yup, we got everything taken care of,” Lane said, lowering his
lanky frame into one of the chairs. “There’s nothing for you to worry about
right now, except being here for Sam.”

“I wish they would come out and tell us something,” Bria said,
unable to sit still any longer. She walked over to look down the hall toward the
room where they had taken Sam.

What could be taking so long? she wondered as she spotted T.J.
and Jaron returning with several cups of coffee. The longer it took to hear
something, the more worried she became.

“Still no word?” T.J. asked as he stopped to hand her a cup. He
had no sooner gotten the words out, when a man in blue scrubs and a white lab
coat entered the waiting area.

“Mrs. Rafferty?” he asked, walking over to her.

As she braced herself for whatever news he came to deliver,
Sam’s brothers rose to stand with her. “I’m Brianna Rafferty,” she said,
surprised that her voice sounded strong when her nerves were anything but
steady. “Is my hus…is Sam going to be all right?”

“I’m Dr. Bailey, the neurologist on call this evening.” His
expression gave no indication of what kind of news he had to tell them. “Let’s
sit down and I’ll explain what’s going on with your husband.” Once they were all
seated, he pulled up a chair to sit across from them. “Sam regained
consciousness just before we took him to Imaging for the CT scan and X-rays,
which is a good sign. And there was no evidence of broken bones.”

Apparently sensing she needed support, Nate took her hand in
his and asked the question that she couldn’t. “Why do I hear a ‘but’ in your
voice, Doc?”

“The scan showed that Sam suffered a severe concussion, but
there were no signs of bleeding in his brain, which is good,” Dr. Bailey
explained. “There is, however, some swelling.”

“What does that mean?” Jaron demanded. With his raven hair and
dark demeanor, Jaron was the type of man other men rarely had the nerve to
cross.

“There may or may not be complications.” Dr. Bailey met their
worried gazes as he continued, “The next twenty-four hours should tell us if the
cerebral edema will get worse. If that happens, we may have to take him into
surgery to remove a section of his scull to relieve the pressure.”

Bria covered her horrified gasp with her hand.

“I really don’t think that’s something we’ll have to do, Mrs.
Rafferty,” Dr. Bailey hastily added. “I’ve been monitoring his condition since
he was brought into the E.R. and the swelling doesn’t show signs of worsening.
But even if that isn’t an issue, we’ll have to watch for other neurological
problems that wouldn’t show up on a scan.”

“What kinds of problems are we talking about here?” Ryder
asked, looking as if he would like to punch something. A rodeo bull rider,
normally the man was absolutely fearless. But Bria knew his frustration was a
mask for the fear they all felt for Sam.

“With brain injuries there’s always the possibility of memory
loss, problems with reasoning abilities or a personality change,” the doctor
answered. “I’m not saying any of those things are inevitable or that they would
be permanent if they do present, just that there are those possibilities.”

“Dear God, this can’t be happening,” she said as tears spilled
down her cheeks. Sam was so strong, so self-assured, it was impossible to think
that he might end up having problems. That she had played a part in his being
injured in any way was almost more than she could bear. But she couldn’t live
with herself if he had long-lasting problems because she’d chosen today to end
their marriage.

Nate protectively put his arm around her shoulders. “When will
we be able to see him, Doc?”

“We’ve put him in the Intensive Care Unit for closer
observation and he’s resting comfortably. But two of you can go in to see him
for a few minutes now, then again every two hours or so.” The doctor stood up
and shook their hands. “I’ll let you know more after I assess his condition in
the morning. For now, I’ll have one of the nurses direct you to the ICU waiting
room upstairs.”

As the man walked away, Jaron patted her arm. “It’s going to be
okay, Bria. Sam will get through this without any of those problems.”

“Sam’s tougher than anyone I’ve ever seen,” T.J. added. “I have
no doubt he’ll be up and around in no time.”

Lane took a deep breath. “Why don’t you and Nate go on up to
see him, while the rest of us stake a claim on some space in the ICU waiting
area.”

On the elevator ride to the third floor, Bria couldn’t help
wondering how much Sam had told his brothers about their divorce. Knowing him
the way she did, he probably hadn’t told them any more than he had to.

Bria sighed. She might have decided that she couldn’t be his
wife anymore, but she wanted to be with him tonight, wanted to help see him
through whatever he was facing. But she wasn’t entirely certain she should stay
either. After all, they were so close to being divorced, she wasn’t sure she had
the right.

“Nate, maybe I shouldn’t be here,” she said uncertainly.

Her brother-in-law looked at her as if she might be losing her
mind. “Why the hell would you say something like that, Bria?”

“Sam and I are one signature away from being divorced,” she
said, hating the word. “I’m not sure he will even want me to be here.”

Nate shook his head. “It doesn’t matter. You don’t have that
signature yet and until you do, as far as I’m concerned, and I’m pretty sure the
state of Texas is in agreement on this, the two of you are still married.”

“But—”

“But nothing,” he cut her off. “You’re still his wife, and
until this is over with and Sam is back on his feet, this is where you belong.
After that, it will be up to the two of you to sort it out.”

She supposed Nate was right. Until the dissolution of their
marriage was final and the documents filed at the courthouse, they were still
legally married. If medical decisions had to be made on Sam’s behalf, she would
be the one they turned to for answers. Besides, she wanted to be with him until
she knew for certain he was going to be all right.

As they stepped off the elevator and turned to go through the
Intensive Care Unit doors, Bria bit her lower lip to keep it from trembling.
Even though they were ending their relationship, she still cared deeply for him.
She just couldn’t live with him anymore. Not after what he had done almost five
months ago. She had needed him with her when she lost their baby, not his
excuses for being unable to leave his stock-contracting company during a
rodeo.

When they checked in at the nurse’s desk and were directed to
Sam’s room, a tear slid down Bria’s cheek at the sight of him. There was a
swollen lump at his right temple and an ugly bruise ran along his jaw, but to
her relief his eyes were open, clear, and she knew immediately that he
recognized her and Nate.

“Will you tell these people to give me my clothes back so I can
get dressed and get out of here?” he asked impatiently.

“Well, some things never change,” Nate said, his smile
reflecting the relief Bria felt. “I see that bull didn’t knock any of the
orneriness out of your sorry hide.”

Bria approached the side of the bed and, unable to stop herself
from touching him, gently brushed Sam’s dark blond hair from his brow. “Does
your head hurt, Sam?”

He reached for her hand. “Don’t worry, sweetheart. I’m going to
be just fine. Just find me some clothes, I’ll get dressed and we can go
home.”

“You really need to stay here for a day or two so they can take
care of you and make sure you’re going to be all right,” she said, taking his
hand. The moment her palm touched his, a deep sadness for what could have been
tightened her chest.

“I’ll rest better in our bed at home,” he insisted. “Hell, I’ll
even let you play nurse if that’s what it takes to get me out of here.”

Bria silently met Nate’s questioning gaze. Why did Sam keep
insisting that they go home together? She had moved out of the ranch house three
months ago. And if that hadn’t been enough to convince her that something was
wrong, his concession to let her nurse him back to health was. Another reason
she had felt there was no hope for their marriage was the fact that he had so
much pride and self-confidence, he never made her feel as if he truly needed her
for anything but making love. If he were himself, he wouldn’t even consider
allowing her to “play nurse.”

“Sam, do you know what month this is?” she asked
cautiously.

He frowned as if he thought she might be the one with problems.
“It’s January. Don’t you remember, we celebrated New Year’s together just before
I left to take a string of bulls to the event in Oklahoma. That was last week.
Now, will you stop asking me questions and get me something to wear?”

Her heart felt as if it came up in her throat. The bull-riding
event he mentioned had taken place six months ago.