Kristen Ashley - The Gamble

The Charlie in Max’s lap twisted so he was facing his father, his little baby legs pumping and his little baby fists banging now on his Dad’s shoulders. Max didn’t try to control Charlie’s fists; he just wrapped his son in his arms and bent his neck so his face was in Charlie’s. Therefore Charlie took that as his cue to grab Max’s ear and I heard the wind carry my husband’s chuckle mingled with my son’s baby laughter back to me.

I felt my lips smile.

Leave them be, Charlie repeated.

“Okay,” I whispered.

Love you, Neenee Bean, Charlie said to me.

“Love you too, Charlie,” I replied.

Then I turned the ATV around and headed home.

***

“When we get home, babe, we’ll be talkin’ about you goin’ out on the ATV,” Max growled into my ear and I turned my head to him just as Charlie launched himself out of my lap and at his father’s chest.

With practiced ease, Max caught the ever-active Charlie and pulled him close.

“What?” I asked with feigned innocence.

“Went to lock up the barn and saw one of the ATVs wasn’t where I left it. Since Charlie can’t sit astride one yet that leaves you and, like I said, when we get home we’ll be talkin’ about you goin’ out on an ATV.”

My eyes left Max’s to look over his shoulder and they skidded through the church pews that were full to bursting. I could see the entire church since we were beside Barb and Brody in the front pew. As I did this, I was thinking that I should have taken note of where the ATV was when I took it and I should have put it back where I found it.

“Duchess, look at me,” Max called and I knew he wouldn’t let up until I did as I was told so I did as I was told. “No more ATV,” he finished.

“I got home and you guys were gone,” I explained.

“I left a note,” Max told me.

“Yes, but we needed to start getting ready,” I told him.

“We’re here, aren’t we?” he asked.

“Yes,” I replied.

“And we ain’t late.”

“No, but we were close and you may have the memory of an elephant but you lose track of time especially when you’re out on the mountain with Charlie.”

“Babe… we’re… here, ” Max repeated. “And we’re not late so I didn’t lose track of time. You know I wouldn’t miss this so you shouldn’t have worried and in your condition you should not, under any circumstances, be on an ATV.”

I waved my hand between us and stated, “I’m good on an ATV and I should be, you taught me how to ride one and, furthermore, I don’t have a condition. I’m only ten weeks and even if I wasn’t, I’m perfectly fine .”

Max’s hand shot out and wrapped around mine tight as he, taking Charlie with him, leaned in and returned, “You’re pregnant with my child. I get that you’re still my Nina and you think you can do as you please even with my baby inside you but what you need to get is that you’re my Nina and you got my baby inside you and I want you and our baby to be perfectly fine for the next six and a half months and then some and I’m gonna make it so and part of me makin’ that so is not lettin’ you put your ass on an ATV.”

“He’s right,” my mother butted in on a whisper, leaning toward us from the pew she was sitting in right behind us.

“Nellie,” Steve, sitting beside her, growled warningly.

Max ignored this and decreed, “No ATV.”

I stopped scowling at my mother, my gaze passed through Steve then Linda then Kami, all of whom were in the pew with Mom and all of whom were looking at Max and me with amusement (except Kami who rolled her eyes and mouthed, “bossy” at me) then I looked at my husband and started, “Max –”

His hand in mine pulled both to his chest so they were tucked between him and Charlie and Charlie took that opportunity to latch onto my hair.

But I only had eyes for Max mainly because he was the only thing I could see.

“Duchess, no…A… T… V. ”

I glared at him and he didn’t even blink so I knew Mr. Overprotective was going to get his way. I also knew Mr. Overprotective was partly Mr. Overprotective because his first wife heartbreakingly lost a number of children before they took their first breath in this world and even though Charlie was a breeze, Max had lost enough that my easy pregnancy wasn’t going to change his perspective. He was also Mr. Overprotective because his first wife had been killed in a car accident that was beyond his control. And lastly, he was Mr. Overprotective because his second (soon-to-be) wife had been kidnapped by a mountain man stalker and then drugged and kidnapped by a mountain man gone bad and nearly shot to death in the snow.

So I gave in.

“Oh, all right,” I forced out, grabbed my son and pulled him from Max’s arms into mine.

Max’s answer to this gesture was to slide his arm along the pew, curl it around my shoulders and pull me snug and tight into his side.

The side door to the sanctuary opened and Jeff, looking handsome in his tux, and Pete, his best man, walked out to line up at the front of the church.

I felt my insides melt.

Then I felt Max’s lips at my ear. “That new dress is sweet, baby,” he whispered, my lips started curling up but they froze when he finished, “But we’ll also be talkin’ about that when we get home.”

I turned my head and Max lifted his, our eyes locked whereupon I informed him, “I’ll remind you that you were the one who wanted me to move out here before you really knew me and I shop. It’s what I do. It’s what I’ve always done. I work hard. I shop hard. And furthermore, I’m not coming to this event, of all events, in anything other than a fabulous new dress. So, you win on the ATV but no, we are not talking about this new dress when we get home.”

Though, we might be having a discussion about the new duds I’d bought Charlie. I really didn’t need the dress but Charlie really, really didn’t need any new clothes. I should never veer into the baby store but my feet always took me there. There was no way to fight it so I had long since stopped trying.

The good news was, Max didn’t know about Charlie’s new clothes yet. The bad news was, I didn’t keep anything from him so eventually I’d have to tell him.

I decided as I stared into his beautiful gray eyes that I’d tell him tomorrow.

“All right, I get the win on the ATV, you get the win on the dress,” Max allowed, I grinned then leaned in and touched my mouth to his.

I didn’t move my lips away when I whispered, “Thank you, darling.”

Then I watched as his eyes did what his eyes always did for three years every time I called him darling. They got heated and they got intense. Then his hand curled around the back of my head, he tipped it down and kissed my forehead before he let me go.

I pulled away, Charlie collapsed into my chest and snuggled close in a rare but always treasured moment of cuddly, baby affection. I wrapped my arms around my son and I took that moment as I’d taken many moments to congratulate myself for rolling the dice, taking a gamble on life and heading off for my timeout adventure in the Colorado mountains where my gamble paid off every second of every day and it did this in spades.

I looked back to the front of the church then looked to Brody as his head turned toward me and I caught his amused blue eyes to which I rolled mine to which his amusement became audible.

Then the music struck up and we all straightened and twisted in our seats to watch Becca walk down the aisle.

Then we stood and I held my son tight to me as Max’s arm around me, hand resting protective at my belly, held us both tight to his body and me and my family watched a beautiful, glowing, smiling, happy Mindy walk down the aisle.