One year later
It was lunchtime at the winery with all the usual pomp and circumstance. Lanie had Sam on one side and Sierra on the other, both of them digging into their cupcake dessert. Across from her sat River with Delaney in her lap, surrounded by Mia and Alyssa and the rest of the gang.
So much had changed in a year. For instance, it was Sierra who recounted the story of Great-Uncle Jack farting in the employee room and then yelling “Who stepped on a frog?”
Another change, Mia was texting someone who was making her smile softly. She was dating a woman who owned a horse ranch not too far from here, and while everyone was surprised at this change, no one had blinked an eye.
“You’re doing it again,” Lanie said.
Mia looked up, her eyes alight. “Grinning stupidly?”
“Well, maybe not stupidly . . .”
Mia shook her head and laughed. “I know. It’s crazy, right? Me being ridiculously happy?”
“It’s beautiful,” Alyssa chimed in with. “We’re all happy for you.”
Someone came through the gate and River’s head came up and froze in shock.
Lanie twisted around and saw it was Holden. Shorter hair, his body more leanly muscled than it’d been, but there was no mistaking the man who stepped onto the patio. He wore dark sunglasses, his face carefully blank, but Lanie knew his gaze went straight to River.
Cora, who’d been standing at the head of the table pouring wine, was the closest to him. She stepped in front of him, cupped his face, and said something softly, for his ears only. He nodded and she pulled him in for a warm hug.
Holden dropped his duffle bag and returned the hug. Then he pulled away and turned to River.
She’d dropped her fork onto her plate with a loud clatter at the first sight of him and stood up. She had a napping Delaney strapped to her chest as she just stared at the man in front of her.
He took a step and then hesitated, clearly unsure of his welcome.
But River didn’t look unsure at all as she closed the distance between them and reached for him. She slid her hands up his chest and into his hair and pulled his head down for a kiss.
“That’ll make things pretty clear to him,” Mia said. “And if not, her tongue down his throat should do it.”
“It’s so romantic,” Alyssa said. “I talked to him last week and he didn’t mention he was coming home. I’m guessing by the tears streaming down River’s face that she didn’t know either.”
“They’ve talked on the phone and via e-mail a lot this past year,” Lanie said. “She knew he would be coming soon, but he kept it a surprise.” Lanie watched, a little choked up as Holden and River stopped kissing long enough to laugh and talk at the same time, soft words no one could catch.
“Damn,” Mia said. “The least they could do is speak up and let us in on it.”
River took Holden’s big hands in hers and set them on Delaney, clearly introducing them.
Holden lowered his head and brushed a kiss over Delaney’s cheek. Then he met River’s gaze again, his own serious until River smiled through shimmery eyes.
And then he pulled her in as close as he could with Delaney between them, pressing his jaw to the top of River’s head, closing his eyes, his arms tight around her like she was the most precious cargo he’d ever held.
Lanie sighed, her heart happy. But not the rest of her. Nope, the rest of her was twitchy and sweaty. She shifted and fidgeted there at the table, fanning her overheated face, blowing out a long breath, which lifted some of the hair off her face—until it fell back into her eyes.
She was miserable and it was time to share some of that misery. Pulling out her phone, she texted Mark.
I’M HOT.
“Yeah, you are hot,” said a sexy familiar voice right behind her.
“Oh my God,” Mia complained. “Overshare.”
Lanie craned her neck to find Mark standing right behind her. He wore his uniform stretched taut over his broad shoulders, his impossibly long legs bringing him up against her, and her entire body gave a hungry little quiver.
“Daddy, Daddy, Daddy!” the girls yelled in unison as Mark slid his arms around Lanie and rubbed his scruffy jaw to her face before claiming her mouth in a hungry kiss.
“Hey,” Mia complained. “Enough’s enough. I want to be the next person kissed!”
This didn’t stop Mark. He crouched at Lanie’s side and kissed her again, softly, languidly, his lips gentle against hers.
In the meantime, Sierra ran around the table and kissed her aunt Mia, who laughed and pulled Sierra onto her lap. “Thanks, munchkin, I can always count on you.”
Mark’s hands slid down Lanie’s arms to cup her eight-months-pregnant belly. “How are all of my girls?”
“We’re good, Daddy!” Sierra yelled.
Sam nodded.
Mark smiled and turned to Lanie. “And you two?”
“Baby’s good. But me . . .” Lanie stretched into his hands. “I’m feeling like an overinflated balloon, like I’m under a lot of pressure right now.”
He smiled. “Don’t worry. You’ve done some of your best work under pressure.”