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The next morning Claire and Alex woke up to their daughter crying. Claire groaned and looked on the alarm clock and when she realized how late it already was she was wide awake in a heartbeat.
"Alex! You gotta leave…NOW!"
"Good morning Claire, I love you too. Yes, a good morning kiss would be really nice…" Alex mumbled.
"I mean it! It's already 7:30 and Tess could walk in here any minute now! She's gonna rip your head off when she sees you here and I'd like to have you in one piece later!"
"You're my wife Claire, I have a right to be here!"
"Right, do you wanna go and tell Tess?"
Alex laughed "Ok, you won…I'm out of here." He gave Claire one last kiss and jumped out of the bed to get dressed while Claire put on her bathrobe and went over to the nursery to feed Charlotte.
As Alex left the bedroom he almost pushed Edna down the stairs because he was in a hurry to get outside before anybody saw him or Chester.
"Oh…sorry Edna…"
"Aren't you supposed to be at your brother's?"
"I…well…yes…but I couldn't sleep and…" Alex felt his face turn red.
Edna smiled and petted his back. "It's all right Alex, I understand that. But you should hurry up now, I don't think your sister-in-law will be very happy to see you here…"
Alex felt relieved because he was sure now that Edna wouldn't tell Tess about him sneaking in last night "Thanks Edna, you're the best" He kissed the old lady on the cheek and hurried down the stairs and practically ran to the stables to saddle up Chester and ride back to Wilgul.
A few hours later Claire looked in the mirror in her bedroom. Alex had given her a hickey last night and she was trying to cover it with make up but didn't really succeed. She had successfully hidden it from Tess while having breakfast which hadn't been really hard because her sister had been too excited to notice anything. But both Edna and Meg had spotted it, Claire had seen their smiles and the looks they had exchanged.
Now Claire was sitting in her bedroom and waited for Tess to do her hair and make up.
"Damn…damn, damn, damn" she muttered as she put another layer of make up on the hickey. Just then Tess flew in and asked "What's up? You don't look as happy as you should be at the moment…"
"Tess…you love me right?"
"Sure, you're my sister!"
"And you wouldn't do anything to set this wedding off, would you? I mean like ripping my head off?"
"No, of course not! What's up Claire? You might as well tell me…I promise I'll leave you in one piece!"
Claire ducked her head as a precaution and spoke her next words as fast as she could "Alex was here last night and now I have a hickey on my neck…"
"You have WHAT? I'm gonna kill that husband of yours…once this day is over!"
"I'm sorry Tess…he couldn't sleep so he came over and one thing led to the next…"
"I really don't wanna know the details of your hickey Claire…come on, we should start on your make up and cover this thing up…I could kill Alex! MEN! They never think!"
When Tess was finished with Claire's hair and make up Meg poked her head through the bedroom door.
"Got that hickey covered?" she asked with a smile and added "Claire, Charlotte's hungry, I think it's time to feed her…"
So Claire breastfed her daughter one last time before she had to put up with the bottle for the rest of the day…there was no way Claire could breastfeed her daughter in her wedding dress…
On Wilgul things were a lot more relaxed. Alex had come back just in time for Nick to wake up who was wondering why his brother was already up but blamed it on the nerves. They had breakfast together and talked till it was time for them to get ready and drive back to Drovers. Alex had a little problem tying his bow tie and after about 10 tries he shouted for Nick's help.
"Nervous Al?"
"Nah, not really, just not good with those things…why do I have to wear this anyway? Or rather…why am I doing this whole thing? I AM already married…"
"Because you love Claire and you wanna do her a favour. And admit it, you can't wait to see her walking down the aisle in a wedding dress!"
"Ok, I admit…I wonder what the dress will look like…"
"From what Tess told me she'll look great. Come on Alex, we should get going or we'll be late for your wedding…"
"Nick…did you tell the boys at Killarney to have Thunder ready to bring him to Drovers?"
"Everything's sorted...Now move your butt before I kick it!"
On Drovers Claire once again looked in the mirror and couldn't believe what she saw. Was this really her? Could Claire McLeod really look that good?
She was fully dressed now in her wedding dress and wearing the shoes they had bought and that she had practiced walking in every day after Alex had left the house.
"You look amazing Claire!" Tess said "Turn around so I can see if there's anything missing…Nope, everything's just fine.
After a light knock on the door Jodi, Becky and Meg came inside the bedroom and were all speechless when they saw Claire. It was the first time they saw the wedding dress.
"You are soooo beautiful Claire! You're gonna knock Alex off his feet when he sees you like this" Jodi said as she looked at Claire up and down and got a heavy nod from Becky and Meg.
"Are you ready to go?" Meg asked "Edna has already taken Charlotte downstairs. Everybody's waiting for you…"
"Yes, I'm as ready as I'll ever get…" Claire replied with a rather shy smile. She would never admit it but she was actually nervous.
The ceremony itself would take place outside in the back garden of the main house with the guests and the bride and groom looking out over the wide pastures of the beautiful land. Since Claire and Alex were already married and didn't need an official celebrant they had asked Terry to perform the ceremony for them and he had been honoured to agree.
Since Claire didn't have any relative but Tess left she had asked Meg to take her down the aisle as she was the closest to a parent that Claire still had.
Alex and Nick were waiting at the arch that had been put up and under which the bride and groom would renew their vows.
Tess gave Terry a sign that they were ready to start and he put on the CD player. As the music started to play the Drovers girls one by one walked down the aisle and it was finally time for Claire and Meg to follow them
"Ready?" Meg asked and Claire nodded as they slowly stepped out of the house into the bright sunshine…
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Alex stood under the arch and saw first Jodi then Becky and finally Tess walk down the aisle slowly and line up opposite to him and Nick.
Then he turned his face back towards the house and the sight he got took his breath away. There was Claire in the most beautiful dress he had ever seen, wearing gloves that went all the way up over her elbows. Her hair was put up and the little make up she wore made her face look even more beautiful.
'I am truly the luckiest man on earth!' he thought as Claire walked slowly down the aisle and the smile he had already had on his face turned into a huge grin.
When she had reached him Meg placed a kiss on her cheek and put Claire's hand in Alex's.
"You look amazing…" Alex whispered and looked Claire deep in the eyes. Then they turned towards Terry together.
"We're here today because Claire and Alex invited us all to relive their wedding that took place in secret 10 years ago and that we all didn't know of till only a few weeks ago. Even the two of them didn't know they were married all this time although all of us that lived and worked with them over the years could always see that special bond between them. So much has changed over this time but even the worst family tragedies could not break their love for each other. The best and most beautiful prove for that is their daughter Charlotte. Today Claire and Alex have decided to renew their vows given 10 years ago in all our presence. I wanna close my speech with the words of the famous Aristotle that I find very fitting for you two 'Love is composed of a single soul inhabiting two bodies.' And you two are truly one soul…"
When Terry was finished everybody had tears in their eyes and Alex had to swallow twice before he could go on with his vow to Claire. He took her hands in his and looked her deep in the eyes as he started to speak.
"Claire…words can not express what I feel for you today. When I said 'I do' all those years ago I really meant it when I said I would love you for the rest of my life. After the tragedy that happened on the day after we got married I thought I had lost you forever but we somehow pulled our act together and today you are my best friend, my lover, my wife and the mother of our beautiful daughter. Thank you for always believing in me Claire, through the good and the bad times. I love you more than you'll ever know…"
With their hands still holding each other and their gazes still locked Claire continued.
"Alex…you are the one person that never fails to make me laugh when I most need it. You are my best friend and you are the most wonderful father to our daughter. I'm sorry I robbed us of all the happy years we could have shared together but maybe we both needed to know what true love meant before we could really appreciate what we have today. I love you more than my life and I wouldn't know where I'd be today if it wasn't for you. Thank you for our daughter. I love you…"
After that Terry turned to the guests again and said "Now that we've heard Claire and Alex renew their vows in front of all those witnesses it is a great honour for me to present you Mr and Mrs Ryan…or McLeod-Ryan in Claire's case…" and he then whispered to the happy couple "I think it's time for a kiss now!"
Alex didn't need to be told twice and pulled Claire in for a long, passionate kiss under the eyes of all their family and friends who then broke into a huge applause.
When Alex finally let go of Claire she smiled at him and said "That's done…can we go over to the fun part of this now?"
Soon everybody lined up to congratulate Claire and Alex before they'd all sit down to eat together and get the party started.
When it was time to hand over the presents everybody argued who'd be the first in line till Tess just grabbed her sister and Alex to hand them her presents for them. Claire and Alex each got a flat package and as they both unwrapped it they saw that both of them were framed papers.
"I couldn't buy you 'your' star but I thought that it would still be nice for you to have a star named after you so I bought a star for each member of your family. One of them is now named Claire McLeod-Ryan, one Alexander Ryan and a third one is named Charlotte McLeod-Ryan. Where you can find them is written down on each of these papers and in order for you to really see them I have this here as well…" she reached down the table and pulled a telescope out "It was a little hard to wrap so I just hid it…"
Claire loved the present her sister had given her and so did Alex. After Tess had gotten a huge hug it was time for the next presents.
From Harry and probably Sandra as well the young couple got a new sign for Drovers Run and another one for their horse training business. On Nick's advice Harry had gotten two signs, the Drovers Run sign had Claire's and Tess's names on it, the sign for the horse services had Alex's and Claire's name.
Bryce and Liz had gotten two brand new saddles for Claire and Alex with matching headgear. Liz had complained to Bryce that that was not really her style for a wedding present but Bryce had convinced her that both Claire and Alex would love the saddles and the headgear and that it was the perfect wedding present.
Edna gave them a beautiful hand sewn quilt for their bed and a little one for Charlotte's.
Nick had set up a trust fund for his little niece and would send Claire and Alex out to a romantic dinner whenever they wanted while he would babysit Charlotte.
Meg, Becky, Jodi and Terry had put all their money together and were sending Claire and Alex on a honeymoon to a small hotel on the outskirts of Adelaide. They could take Charlotte with them and the hotel offered a babysitting service so they could have some private time, too.
"But the horses are coming next week and there's so much to do…" Claire said.
"That's all taken care of Claire" Meg insured her "We'll finish the work that needs to be done and you'll be back before the horses arrive. We've arranged everything. You'll be leaving tonight and will be back on Tuesday evening. Your last honeymoon was not very happy so we all wanted to give you two the opportunity to make new memories…"
Claire and Alex were moved by the thoughts of their friends. Meg was probably the only person that really understood what they had gone through 10 years ago because she had been the one to take pick up the pieces and take care of Claire.
"Thank you…" Claire whispered as she first hug Meg and then the others.
Claire's and Alex's wedding presents for each other went off with a storm…
Claire couldn't believe it when one of the Killarney hands drove a horse trailer into the Drovers yard and unloaded the beautiful stallion.
"Where did you get the money from? He must have cost a fortune!"
Alex smiled "I got a little more for my apartment than I expected and thought I'd invest it in our business…"
Claire was close to tears "Thank you Alex…he's wonderful"
"Ah, I'd wait with that comment till you have to break him in…So where's my present?"
Claire led Alex back into the house and down into the cellar.
"The fact that I don't have as much on me as you seem to have my gift for you required a little work and a lot of help from our siblings. I know you felt a little lost when you first got back here so I wanted to give you your very own place at Drovers…" Claire said and opened the door to the party room.
"Wow…Claire…that is…wow!" Alex was speechless. He would have never expected something like that. "Thank you Claire…I love you!"
"I love you, too." Claire replied. Then Alex kissed her before claiming his party room for the first time…
After the presents were all handed over it was time for the bride and groom to have their wedding dance and soon everybody joined them on the dance floor in the living room.
Everything would have been perfect if it hadn't been for Liz and Sandra. While Liz already knew that Sandra was now living on Killarney with Harry Sandra had still made sure that everybody heard her remarks as she told Edna about all the changes she had made in the house. That and seeing Nick and Tess happily dancing together got Liz so furious that she just couldn't bear it anymore and exploded…
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"Who the hell do you think you are?" Liz shouted and grabbed Sandra's arm. "You've barely moved into the place and claim it as yours already? I've lived there for 20 years and no matter what Harry told you they were good years. It took a lot of hard work to make the place what it is and now you little…bitch come in and change everything…" she then turned to Tess "…and while I'm at it…I think I told you to stay away from Nick. You're not the right woman for him! You'll go back to the city and you'll break his heart…"
Bryce went over to Liz and tried to pull her away from both Sandra and Tess. Claire was fuming up after the first wave of shock over Liz's outburst had disappeared "How can you dare to talk to my sister like that? Didn't she prove already that she has no intentions on going back to the city? I know you're Alex's mother but I really can't have you talk to Tess like this so I want you to leave. NOW!"
"But Claire…" Liz started but Bryce interrupted her.
"Come on Liz, let's get outside…I think you've said enough at the moment…we'll leave so you can calm down and then apologize to everybody."
"I'm not going to…"
"Yes you are…now come on or you will be very sorry for yourself…" Bryce dragged Liz outside. He was really mad at her. He had just gotten a relationship with his son and was about to lose that if Liz went on like that.
"What the hell is up with you Liz? I can understand you're mad about Harry moving Sandra into Killarney but what is your problem with Tess?"
"She'll hurt him…"
"I don't think so, Liz. Have you taken a look at them? They are deeply in love with each other! Even I as a man can see that. I really don't think Tess has any intention of hurting Nick."
"Maybe not on purpose…but she'll get fed up living out here and go back to the city…"
"Are we talking about Tess here or you? I remember that you originally weren't very happy when Harry bought Killarney because it was so far away from your friends. But from what I know about Tess she's different. She has plans for Drovers and plans for her and Nick. If you can't see that I'm really sorry and I guarantee you if you go on like that you're not only going to lose me but both of your sons and your granddaughter as well. Do you want that? Do you really want that?"
"No…I…how did my life get so out of hand?" Liz sat down on one of the chairs and started crying.
"Well, I may not be totally innocent in this because I got you pregnant and left you but I'd say the rest of the mess was caused by all your lies and manipulations over the years. Don't get me wrong Liz, I still love you and am very thankful I can stay with you but you need to stop this now because if you don't I will have to leave. I've had enough drama in my life lately, I really don't need any more. Are you willing to go back inside and apologize to everybody and make a new start?"
Liz nodded so Bryce handed her a handkerchief so she could clean herself up before they went back inside the house.
After Bryce had pulled Liz away from the group Sandra had tried to take advantage of her outburst and had started to say "Suits her we…" but Harry had interrupted her with a rude "Will you shut up Sandra?"
Nick had been surprised by his mother's words towards Tess. Tess had told him many times that Liz hated her but he had never wanted to see it. Now that the truth had been practically thrown into his face he felt really sorry for the way he had treated Tess. She had been right when she had told him that he never really listened to her.
"I'm sorry Tess…" he whispered to the woman he was still holding in his arms "I should have believed you when you said she hated you. I guess I was too blind to see it…"
"It's all right Nick…I've been over that for quite a while now. I don't need Liz to like me…though I have always hoped that she could at least accept me in your life one day…guess that won't happen now."
Suddenly something dawned on Nick "Was Mum the reason you left back then when we were about to make love?"
Tess could only nod. She felt really sorry for Nick. She knew he loved his mother and being with her put him right in the middle.
"God, I'm going to kill her!" he pressed through his teeth.
"Don't Nick…you'll only regret it if you part with her. She is and always will be your mother. I can live with her not liking me and it's not like she's living round the corner, right? We don't need to see her every day…"
"You are too good for me Tess…you know that? How can you be so forgiving after all Mum did to you?"
"Because I've learned that life is too short for being resentful…she's only human and if she doesn't like me it's her own fault."
"I love you Tess…I should have told you that a long time ago…I really love you and I don't deserve you…"
"Yes you do Nick Ryan! Because I love you, too!"
Nick lowered his head and gently kissed Tess. Both of them were totally oblivious of the people around them till Claire shouted out "Finally! Took you long enough!" and the whole room broke into shouts and applause.
Liz had heard the last few sentences Tess and Nick had said and after her talk with Bryce she was finally able for the first time ever to see what Tess and Nick meant to each other. Bryce had been right, Tess was different from her and the way she looked at her son should have told her a long time ago that Tess truly loved Nick and that she could make him very happy.
All of a sudden she was ashamed of all the things she had said and done.
When the applause slowly came to an end Liz cleared her throat and got everybody's attention with it.
"Nick, Tess…I'm really sorry for what I said earlier…or for what I've done to you both over the years. I wasn't thinking straight and I can understand it if you don't want me in your life anymore. I wish you all the best for your future."
With that she turned around and walked away.
Tess took a look at Nick first and then at Claire before she ran after Liz.
"Liz, come back please…like I said life is too short to be resentful. You're Nick's and Alex's mother and the grandmother of any children they might have…you've made mistakes and some bad choices but nothing can change that. So please come back and don't leave your family behind. I know what it means to be without one and no matter what you've done you don't deserve that."
"But the boys are so angry with me…"
"They'll get around…"
After Tess had persuaded Liz to come back and give the family a chance the wedding party went on without any further interruptions.
When it was time for Claire and Alex to leave for their short honeymoon Meg helped Claire get changed and handed her three completely packed bags.
"When did you have time to pack for us?" Claire was really surprised.
"Yesterday, while you and Alex were out doing chores. I hope you don't mind. Everything else you'll need is already in the chopper that'll be here soon…"
"Thanks Meg…and no, I don't think we mind!"
When the chopper arrived that would take the young family down to their hotel in Adelaide Claire and Alex said goodbye to everybody and as the helicopter lifted off Alex squeezed Claire's hand and said "Life's perfect, isn't it?"
Claire could only agree and they leaned over for a long passionate kiss….
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Epilogue
Claire and Alex spent 3 wonderful days in Adelaide and when they got back they were happier than they had ever been.
Their horse training business quickly became on of the most successful in South Australia and they were already getting a name outside the state boarders. And thanks to Alex's wedding present to Claire the breeding programme was beginning to run as well and everything looked great.
Since the horses took up most of Claire's time with Alex still working on Killarney Tess had almost completely taken over any other business on Drovers and loved it.
Becky had won the fairness price of the young farmers competition and had left Drovers with Jake shortly after Claire's and Alex's wedding to go to college.
Meg had been offered a job in Melbourne and as much as she hated to leave Claire and Drovers she had taken the job.
Jodi had decided to stay on Drovers much to her own surprise.
Edna had stayed on Drovers for four weeks after the wedding and had managed to teach both Claire and Alex the basics of cooking which came in really handy after Meg left for the city. Now she was a frequent visitor on Drovers Run and Alex and Claire flew down to Melbourne with Charlotte once a month so the little girl could see both Edna and her grandparents.
Liz and Bryce were still living together and seemed to be very happy and Harry and Sandra were at this stage planning their own wedding. Lord knows what they saw in each other.
Alex had contacted Ashley a few days after the wedding and soon after that the three sisters met up with their brother on one of the times Alex was down in Melbourne. The first meeting had been a bit odd but the 4 siblings quickly formed a bond of mutual respect and friendship and the special connection between Alex and Ashley that had been there even before Ashley knew the truth had turned into a deep love for each other.
10 months after Claire and Alex had renewed their vows there was a huge party tent set up on Drovers for another wedding.
Claire leaned against one of the veranda posts as she watched everybody swarm around like bees. Today her little sister would marry the man she loved and Claire was happy for her.
After they had confessed their love for each other at the reception of Claire's wedding it hadn't taken Tess long to move into Wilgul and shortly after that Nick had proposed.
"Hey, shouldn't you be getting ready by now?" She heard a voice behind her and then felt two arms reach around her from behind.
"You know me…I don't need all that long to get finished. And besides…don't you know better than to stress out a pregnant woman?"
When Claire had found out she was pregnant again she couldn't believe that she of all people would have two children barely a year apart. She was 7 months pregnant now and they had just celebrated Charlotte's first birthday.
"Ok, you won…how is junior today?"
"She's kicking her Mummy and letting me know she's ok…"
"Claire, I'm sure we'll have a boy this time…"
Claire just smiled. She had the same feeling that she had had with Charlotte that this baby would be another girl and although Alex would never admit it he was secretly hoping for that.
"Come on Ryan, let's get inside and get ready for Tess's big day…"
"Have I told you that I love you today?"
"Yes you have, but a woman can never hear that often enough" Claire answered and turned around in Alex's arms. They shared a deep kiss and Claire smiled afterwards. "I love you too Alex. Thanks for giving me the life I've always dreamed of…"
"Any time McLeod, any time…" Alex said and the two of them walked into the house arm in arm.
THE END
A/N: Well...this is it. I really hope you liked my story...it was the first fanfiction I ever wrote. Thanks to everybody that reviewed! It's much appreciated!