Chapter Seventeen

"I woke up to the sun streaming in the windows and sound of voices drifting up from downstairs. I rolled over and looked at the clock—it was nearly 9:00 am, and the surgery had already opened for the day. Why hadn't Martin woken me? I hauled myself out of bed and into the bathroom for a quick shower, and then down the stairs. To my surprise, Morwenna Newcross was sitting behind the reception desk.

"Mornin', Anna!" she said brightly.

"Good morning…" I replied, confused. "What's going on?"

"Well, the Doc is in with Mrs. Rix, and I'm working on learning the computer program."

"Right." I stood in front of the desk for a second. "Morwenna, I don't mean to be rude, but what are you doing here?"

Just then, Mrs. Rix came out of the consulting room, followed by Martin. "Good morning," he told me.

"Had a little lie-in, did you, Anna?" Mrs. Rix commented, smiling.

"Yes, an unexpected one," I answered. Turning to Martin, I asked, "What's Morwenna doing here?"

He glanced at her, then at Mrs. Rix. "You need breakfast," he said, and walked in the direction of the kitchen. I followed him.

Once we were out of earshot of the waiting area, I asked him again, "Martin…about Morwenna?"

"With the wedding and the baby coming, you have enough on your plate right now without having to work in the surgery on top of it," he answered. "And after the baby is born, you will have your hands full for a while. So I thought now was a good time to find a replacement."

I blinked at him. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I don't know," he said, "was I supposed to?"

I sighed. "Well, it would have been nice to know I no longer have a job!" I said testily.

"It's for the best, Anna. It's time for you to get more rest and stay off your feet as much as possible."

"I can be off my feet and still work, all I do is sit behind a desk most of the time anyway," I protested. "I thought I would be working at least another month."

He pursed his lips at me. "Well, I've hired Morwenna now, so you don't have to."

I sighed. "You could have at least discussed it with me first, Martin!" I said heatedly, "As it does solely have to do with me."

"Right. Yes. Sorry." He didn't look the least bit repentant. I sighed again, rolling my eyes. I didn't want to admit it, but the idea of being able to relax without many responsibilities sounded like heaven. I just wish he'd remember to include me in these things.

It was two days before the wedding, and even with such a small, uncomplicated ceremony, I was still feeling the stress. It didn't help that I was now seven months pregnant and exhausted most of the time. Martin had been very supportive and attentive, making sure I ate properly and was getting enough rest, even rubbing my feet in the evenings to help me relax. And any time I was within arm's distance from him, his hand would almost unconsciously rest on my growing belly. It was incredibly sweet how fascinated he was with feeling our baby move and roll inside me.

I put my arms around his neck and gave him a kiss. "I suppose I'll forgive you this time. But please, if there is a decision to be made that in any way involves me, could you talk to me about it?"

"Yes, of course," he nodded, and this time, I knew he had understood. "I'm sorry I didn't mention Morwenna to you before." I kissed him again, a truce.

"All right, now we have to talk about tomorrow's agenda," I said. "I'm going to pick up my dress at two and then I stop at the train station to pick up the family…are you going to meet me there?"

"Yes," Martin said. "I told you I would."

"Good, because we'll need an extra car for all the luggage. Are you sure we shouldn't rent a van? There will be six of us once they get here…"

"The two cars will be sufficient." He stopped and frowned at me. "Anna, you're pacing. Please sit down and put your feet up."

I looked at him like he was crazy. "I can't sit down, Martin, there's too much to do," I told him. "I have to call Jenny about the cake, and I have to run out to Joan's…"

"It's only 9:00 in the morning and you haven't had breakfast. At least come and let me fix you something."

I dutifully sat at the kitchen table Martin scrambled me an egg and made some toast. My mind was still running a mile a minute. "What if the dress doesn't fit?" I worried. "I mean, look at me…I can barely see my toes anymore."

"Then you'll wear something else," Martin answered calmly.

"I only have one other dress that fits and it's black! I'm not going to wear a black dress to my wedding!" I laughed.

"Why not?"

Was he serious? "Sorry, why not?" I exclaimed.

"We'll still be just as married, whether you wear a black dress or a white dress or your pajamas…" Martin sat the plate of food in front of me, and I looked up at him, one eyebrow raised.

"I'll tell you what…let's both just wear our pajamas, then!" I said sarcastically. "I especially like your light blue pair…"

"Don't be ridiculous!"

"Well, you don't be ridiculous," I told him petulantly. "I feel as big as a house, and I just want to look nice on my wedding day, if it's okay with you."

He blinked at me. I knew I was being crabby, but I couldn't help it. "Anna, you would look lovely wearing a bin bag," he said, exasperated. He sat down in the chair beside me. "And I'm sure you have nothing to worry about, the dress is going to be fine. You just had the final fitting last week and your weight hasn't changed much since then." I sighed, but stopped myself from making another snarky remark.

"Thank you for saying that, about the bin bag," I told him, patting his knee. "I'm glad you still think I'm lovely."

"Of course I do." He sat down beside me and stroked my cheek. "Now, please eat your breakfast and try to stop worrying."

Just then, Morwenna appeared in the kitchen doorway. "Sorry to bother you, Doc, but you have patients waiting."

Xxxxxxxxx

It was after 10 pm that night when Mom called, and Martin and I were already cuddled up together in bed, my back spooned against his chest. I sleepily reached for the phone, but when I saw who it was, I quickly disentangled myself from Martin's arm and sat up.

"Who is it?" he mumbled.

"It's my Mom," I answered. "Mom, what's the matter? Is everyone okay?" I knew she wouldn't be calling this late unless there was a problem.

"Everyone is fine…" she said, and then hesitated. "But I'm afraid we have some bad news."

"What is it? What's wrong?"

She sighed. "Oh, Anna, we've been waiting just to make sure, waited till the last possible minute, but it looks like there's no avoiding it…"

"MOM. Tell me what is going on!" I practically shouted. Martin looked at me, alarmed.

"I'm sure you haven't been watching our weather…I mean, why should you be…but we've got a hurricane coming."

I was silent for a few seconds. "You're kidding."

"I wish I was, honey. It's supposed to make landfall early tomorrow morning, and it looks like it's coming right up the bay. Now, it's only a category two…"

"That's still not good! Are you going to evacuate?" I asked anxiously.

"No, your Daddy has everything secured and Granny will come over here for the night, we will be fine. I'm not worried about that. But the flights are all going to be cancelled, Anna…which means we aren't going to make it for the wedding."

I felt a sinking in the pit of my stomach. "Oh, no!"

"Honey, I am so sorry! We are so disappointed we can't be there…"

I tried to put on a brave face, but inside, I was devastated. "It's not your fault, Mom…I know you would be here if you possibly could. I'm disappointed too though…I'm going to miss you." I could feel my eyes filling with tears. "Just promise me you'll stay safe."

"I promise, we'll be okay here. Oh, baby, don't cry…you're going to make me cry too!" For the next few minutes, all we did was cry with each other on the phone, while Martin stared at me, trying to figure out what in the world was going on. When I finally hung up, he pulled me into his arms.

I never once thought that my family wouldn't be able to be there, and I had already built up the day in my mind with them all surrounding me. How could it ever be the same without them there? But I felt a twisting in my heart when I thought of waiting any longer to marry the man I loved.

"Tell me what the matter is," Martin murmured, stroking my hair, and I relayed the message from my Mom. He held me and let me cry until I was completely wrung out and exhausted. "Shh. We don't have to do it yet-we can just postpone the wedding until they can come."

"I thought of that, but the vicar is booked for nearly two months. And I really want to be married before the baby comes…"

"But I know how much your family means to you, Anna…"

"I know. I hate the idea of them not being here with us… but I feel like if we don't do it now we may not get the opportunity again for a long time. Once the baby is here, we're going to be so busy. What should we do?"

"I will do whatever will make you happy."

"I know you will…but what will make you happy?" I asked. "Tell me what you want to do."

He paused, and then said, "I want to be married to you, the sooner the better. I would do it right this minute, if it was possible."

I smiled, and he kissed me deeply. "Right, then—the wedding is still on," I sighed.

"Now, are you positively sure you still want to?" Martin asked.

I looked into those green-gray eyes I loved so much. "I want to be married to you, the sooner the better," I repeated back to him. His eyes softened, and he kissed me again, long and slow. He made love to me then, so gently and sweetly, knowing instinctively what I needed to make me feel completely loved and cherished. How lucky I felt to have someone who would do anything to make me happy. I couldn't wait to marry this man—my Martin.