Nine Months Part 3 (36 Hours) Read online

  “No, you told me this morning, before I went to sleep.” Paige kissed his chin, then his neck. “When you told me that I was so much a part of you that you’d die without me, I knew you loved me.” And she knew that he loved her for who she was and not the woman he’d once wanted her to be.

  “I’ve been a slow learner when it came to the most important lesson of my life.”

  At that moment, Walt Summers cleared his throat. Jared and Paige glanced at the open doorway where Dora and Walt stood, arm in arm, both of them smiling.

  “How did you know I was in the hospital?” Paige asked. “Jared, you didn’t call them, did you?”

  “Now, don’t go blaming Jared.” Dora came bustling into the room. “When we called around this morning and couldn’t find you two anywhere, I checked with Dr. Petrocelli.”

  “I didn’t want you and Daddy to worry,” Paige said. “I’m doing much better. I haven’t had a contraction in over eight hours.”

  Jared kissed Paige quickly, then stood, allowing Dora access to her daughter, but he kept a tight grasp on Paige’s hand.

  “You were probably too little to remember, but the same thing happened with me when I was nearly seven months along with Bryant. I had to spend the next two months in bed, and your father wasn’t allowed to touch me.” Dora blushed. Walt cleared his throat. “But Bryant and I made it just fine, and so will you and your baby.”

  “Jared and I are going to get married,” Paige told her parents.

  “Just as soon as the doctor says Paige is well enough.” Jared squeezed her hand.

  “So you finally realized that you loved our daughter.” Walt slapped Jared on the back. “I was beginning to wonder if you’d ever come to your senses.”

  “Is that what we walked in on?” Dora asked. “Did he finally propose to you again?”

  “No. I proposed to him. And he said yes.” Smiling with a happiness that made her radiant, Paige gazed adoringly at Jared. “He loves me, Mama. He really, truly loves me.”

  Epilogue

  Although disappointed that the wedding couldn’t be a large, elaborate affair at St. Veronica’s, Dora enthusiastically threw herself into preparations for a small, private ceremony on New Year’s Eve, working tirelessly with the wedding director Jared had flown in from Denver.

  The living room in Jared and Paige’s condo had been stripped bare and decorated to resemble a tiny chapel. Gold and white dominated the scene, with touches of forest green and hints of deep red. Candlelight illuminated the setting, and fresh flowers scented the air. A string quartet created a romantic atmosphere with their classical selections.

  Reverend Archibald, in his impressive ecclesiastical robes, held an open white Bible in his hands. Looking out over the small assembly, he smiled. The guest list included Paige’s brothers and their dates, Dora’s sister and her family, flown by private jet from Mississippi, half a dozen Grand Springs’s Montgomery Real Estate and Land Development employees and Dr. Tony Petrocelli, his wife Bethany and their young son Christopher.

  Greg Addison, handsome and debonair in his black tuxedo, stood at Jared’s side.

  “Do you have the ring?” Jared asked his best man for the fourth time in five minutes.

  “Yes, I have the ring.” Greg laughed. “I’ve never seen you so nervous. Calm down.”

  “I’ve never gotten married before. Nothing has ever been this important to me. I want everything to be perfect for Paige.”

  He had made a vow to God, one that he would gladly keep. For as long as he lived, he would love Paige and devote his life to her happiness.

  Bryant and Austen escorted their mother down the aisle and to her seat. Dora wiped away her tears with a lace handkerchief Jared had presented to her that morning.

  Kay Thompson preceded the bride down the aisle. Her off-the-shoulder, formfitting sheath of forest green shimmered in the candlelight.

  The string quartet played the wedding march as her father led Paige down the aisle. Tears glazed the eyes of big, macho, retired Sergeant Major Walt Summers.

  Happiness glistened in Paige’s eyes as she looked at her groom, perfectly attired in his black tuxedo. The double-breasted jacket, with satin lapels, and matching trousers had been tailored for an exact fit on Jared’s long, lean, powerful body.

  Jared smiled at Paige, that devastating smile that always turned her knees to jelly. She loved this man with all her heart and soul, and God in his goodness had seen fit to bless them not only with their mutual love, but with the gift of their little Angela’s life.

  Jared could not take his eyes off his bride. To him, she was the most beautiful creature on earth. Rare. Precious. A treasure without price.

  Paige’s empire-waist, scoop-neck gown of cream silk duchess satin featured detailed embroidery of gold bullion, pearls, crystals, bugle beads and threadwork of varying textures. Heavy beadwork accented the elbow-length sleeves and the embroidered bodice.

  “Dearly beloved,” Reverend Archibald said. Paige and Jared gazed lovingly into each other’s eyes. “We are gathered here today to join this man and this woman in the bonds of holy matrimony.”

  The brief ceremony ended with a passionate kiss, then Jared swooped his bride up into his arms and carried her into the dining room, where a local caterer had set up the reception. Jared placed Paige on a cream-and-gold brocade chaise lounge and stood beside her, protective and possessive, as they greeted their guests.

  Since Paige wasn’t allowed to travel and the couple would have to abstain from sex until after Angela’s birth, they had postponed their honeymoon.

  Paige had taught Jared how to love, opening his heart to the wonder of life. And on their wedding night, alone in their home, Jared taught Paige a hundred and one ways a man and woman can make love.

  * * *

  Angela Dora Montgomery arrived at 9:15 a.m. on Wednesday, March 11, measuring twenty and a half inches and weighing eight pounds, two ounces. Except for the red fuzz covering her little round head, she was a carbon copy of her father. His eyes. His chin. His mouth, which promised a smile Paige said would one day be as devastating as his. Even her small hands and feet were replicas of Jared’s.

  The delivery went smoothly, resulting in a tired but happy mother, an exhausted but exuberant father and a beautiful, healthy baby.

  From the moment Angela wrapped her tiny hand around Jared’s big index finger, she captured his heart. She was the living, breathing proof of the passionate love that he and Paige shared. He had denied his feelings from the moment he and Paige met because he hadn’t believed emotions so powerful truly existed. But so fierce was the love he now felt for his wife and daughter that he wondered how he had ever lived without them.

  While Paige held their newborn daughter to her breast, Jared wrapped his arm around his wife’s shoulder, his big body a primitive symbol of his protection. Words were unnecessary. They exchanged a loving glance that said everything.

  As Grand Springs, Colorado, deals with the aftermath of that phenomenal June storm, one thing is clear: no one will be the same. It was 36 hours of chaos, bringing people together at an alarming rate. Loved ones found each other, others were lost forever. As residents start rebuilding their homes and their lives, they start to examine what’s really important to them. Dr. Karen Sloane’s daughter was trapped in a cave. Once her daughter was saved, Karen thought everything would go back to normal. Instead Karen is about to face another storm, this one revolving around the state of her marriage. And the forecast doesn’t look good…

  Up next, The Parent Plan by Paula Detmer Riggs.

  A pounding rainstorm hits the town of Grand Springs, Colorado, causing blackouts and mudslides. As the people of Grand Springs are forced to come together, find out who will find love, family and each other.

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  eISBN: 9781460331088

  NINE MONTHS PART 3

  This is the revised text of a portion of a work first published by Harlequin Enterprises Limited in 1998.

  Copyright © 1998 by Harlequin Books S.A.

  Third part of revised text Copyright © 2014 by Harlequin Books S.A.

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  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental. This edition published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.

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