Author's Note: So all of a sudden I don't like this chapter very much. But you get to meet Diego's friends, who know the real Diego. It would be a shame if they let something slip…

Zzz

Diego waited a long time before he opened the carriage door, saying a silent prayer that he hadn't just made the biggest mistake of his life. He shook his mood off and embraced his friend as he stepped out of the carriage.

"Diego, my friend! You are certainly full of surprises."

Diego had to chuckle as Rebecca pushed her husband out of the way. "Nonsense. He's been talking about Victoria forever." She reached up and put her hands on Diego's cheeks, grinning up at the man who was not that much taller than she was before she pulled him down for a hug. She released him just as quickly, slapping him on the arm. "I can't believe you didn't tell us! No note, no invitation. This is unacceptable."

She pointed a finger at Diego, but smiled before she turned to Victoria, who stood there stunned. Diego came to Victoria's side and put a gentle hand on her back to bring her closer. "Rebecca, I want you to meet Victoria…my wife."

Victoria managed to find her voice. "Please don't be upset with him. Our wedding was rather…unexpected," Victoria added with a blush and a glance sideways.

Rebecca put a hand to Victoria's cheek and chuckled. "Hardly." Rebecca pulled her forward into a hug, and left her arm around Victoria as she looked back up at Diego. "Every time Diego comes we ask why he's not married yet. Every time his answer was the same, that he was waiting for you to be ready." Rebecca smiled at Victoria again, who turned wide eyes to her embarrassed husband. "Welcome to the family. I'm so glad you came. You and I will have lots of time to chat."

Diego didn't like the expression on Rebecca's face. "Rebecca, behave. You're supposed to tell her how wonderful I am and that she shouldn't worry that I convinced her to elope."

Rebecca wasn't bothered, and she tucked Victoria's arm into hers and started pulling her toward the house. "I can't believe you did that. You deserve everything I tell her."

Luis crossed his arms as he stood beside his friend and looked after their wives. "Suddenly I feel outnumbered. What have you done? Eloped?"

Diego shrugged and reached in to the carriage to grab the basket. He glanced at it, thinking of the cookies they hadn't finished left inside. "She made me cookies this morning. I decided I didn't want to wait any longer."

"Cookies?" Luis asked as they started walking inside.

Diego sighed, some of his worry creeping back. "I pushed her. I was going to Monterey, and all of a sudden I was afraid something would happen…that someone else might come along if I didn't do something. So I pushed. My father wasn't happy, either. Victoria still seems a little stunned. I hope I didn't make a mistake."

"Why stunned? Why would you worry someone else would come along? I don't understand."

"I haven't exactly been honest with you. I never told her I loved her till today. We were just friends."

Luis stumbled and Diego looked back and tossed his friend the basket, but he didn't want to let Rebecca get too far away with Victoria. "What can I say? I'm shy." Luis caught up with him and Diego entered the kitchen with a little help from his friend.

"Rebecca, Diego says he's shy," Luis announced as he pushed Diego out of the doorway. Rebecca gaped at Diego. "Apparently Diego's been keeping secrets from Victoria. You're not going to let him get away with that are you?"

Diego held out a hand to Victoria, and some of the tension inside him released when she took it after only a second's hesitation. "Please be nice. Yes, this is all a surprise to Victoria. Maybe a little overwhelming." He pulled her to his side and took her other hand to garner her full attention. "There were reasons we weren't ready before today. Now she knows I love her, that I'll do anything to keep her happy. We're married. And we're going to be happy."

When Victoria took a step forward and wrapped her arms around his waist, Diego finally started to feel sure-footed again. His arms gently touched her back before he returned her embrace, kissing her hair before resting his head on top of hers. Luis wrapped an arm around his own wife's waist and they shared a look of concern.

Diego enjoyed holding her for a moment, then he turned his head to face his friends. Rebecca forced a confident smile. "Well, I was just cleaning up from dinner." Rebecca saw the basket her husband had set on the counter. "I guess you're not hungry?"

Diego left his arms around his wife as she turned to face his friends. Diego set his chin on her shoulder, and smiled when she let him. "You didn't eat. Are you hungry?"

Rebecca saw her turn a little pink at being the center of attention. "You've always been impulsive, Diego." She shook her head a little and reached a hand out to Victoria. "You men go get her settled. I'll feed her and we can talk. Give her some space."

Diego frowned as he stood and stared down his friend. Or tried to, but Rebecca was just as strong-willed as Victoria. His shoulders slumped and he took a small step toward the door. "You know how important this is to me."

Rebecca smiled and came around the counter to touch his shoulder. "I know. So let me help. Men…she's probably thought about her wedding her whole life, and you just took her away from her friends and family."

Diego glanced back at Luis, feeling some of his friend's fear at seeing the women join forces. He grinned charmingly at Rebecca. "Are you going to say nice things about me?"

Diego protested when Rebecca shoved him toward the door. "Wouldn't you like to know."

Victoria followed Diego's exit with wide eyes, then grinned as Luis side-stepped carefully past his wife and followed. Rebecca brushed her hands together as if she'd just thrown out the trash, then grinned smugly at Victoria. "First lesson in being a wife: you're in charge."

Rebecca laughed at Victoria's wide eyes. "Come sit down. Did Diego let you eat anything while he was dragging you to church?"

Victoria cleared her throat to find her voice, glancing around the kitchen and starting to feel at home as she sat down on one of the stools pulled up to the counter. "I wasn't very hungry."

Rebecca went to the stove and dipped out some soup. "You try this and tell me what you think. Diego says you're the best cook in the territory, so I'm terrified to let you taste it, but Diego likes it."

"I'm not…" Victoria shook her head as she accepted the bowl.

"Hush. Let him have his fun, he likes to brag about you. It's not much, but it's light enough it should give you some strength without making you sick. You're looking a little ragged."

Victoria smiled at the woman, happy for a new friend as she wrapped her hands around the warm bowl. The hot bread Rebecca sliced and buttered for her smelled divine, but she didn't think she could eat anything. "You're very kind. I'm sure it's wonderful."

Rebecca pulled out a bag of string beans and drew up her own stool to sit near Victoria as she started snapping ends. "Welcome to the family. Diego is like my brother. I'm happy you finally married the boy and put him out of his misery."

Victoria frowned as she poked at her soup.

Rebecca dropped her beans and put a hand on Victoria's arm. "Victoria, you can talk to me. He didn't…you wanted to marry him, didn't you? I know Diego can be impulsive, sometimes pushy, but Luis will suffer the pain of challenging him again if Diego's acted in any way inappropriate."

Victoria shook her head, grinning at the idea of Diego being impulsive or pushy. She never would have believed it before today. Still, she set the bowl down and folded her hands in her lap. Her gaze was drawn to the sound of people climbing up the stairs beyond the wall, and she wondered if that was Diego. "I'm confused."

"I hope we can be like sisters. I always wanted one," Rebecca said with a smile. "I've wanted to meet you for a while. If you're worried about something, please talk to me. I want us to be family."

Victoria looked up at this kind woman who was offering her friendship. "Diego says he's loved me for a long time. Why did he want to get married so fast?"

"Victoria if you've…" Rebecca sighed, disappointed in Diego. "If he was worried about a baby…"

Rebecca trailed off when Victoria's eyes grew wide and her cheeks turned scarlet. "Okay, so not worried about a baby. You haven't…" She smiled, reassured when Victoria shook her head vehemently.

Rebecca patted Victoria's hand with a grin. "Well, you're a better woman than me." She laughed at Victoria's reaction, loving this woman who had such an expressive face. "That's another story. Why are you confused? Surely you've talked about marriage before. You must know what changed."

"Rebecca—" Victoria swallowed the lump in her throat. "He never said anything before today. I didn't know he cared about me at all. We took a walk this morning, and he took me to the church, told me he loved me and wanted to marry me. Said we should marry before his trip to Monterey."

Rebecca stared hard at Victoria for a moment, her eyebrows lifted in surprise. "Never…" Victoria shook her head. "So that's why he said you're surprised and overwhelmed."

The kettle whistled and Rebecca soon set a cup of hot tea in front of Victoria. They were both quiet for several moments, and Victoria was grateful for the tea. She still didn't think she could eat anything.

"Diego stood up for me at my wedding. Did he tell you that?"

Victoria glanced up in curiosity and shook her head. She was starting to wonder if Diego ever told her anything.

Rebecca took a sip of her tea as well, trying to wrap her mind around a man like Diego eloping. "I'm afraid I don't have any answers for you. Diego's the best man I know. He loves his father, loves the land. Appreciates the world in a way most people don't. My wedding was rushed for a reason. Luis was so…different. We were swept away. He was the blacksmith on my father's ranch."

Victoria regretted bringing such a sad, faraway look to this kind woman's face, and put her hand on Rebecca's arm to offer her own comfort.

Rebecca shook herself and smiled weakly at Victoria. "My father didn't approve, actually tried to kill him for what Luis had done to his daughter, as if Luis alone had gotten me pregnant." Rebecca shook her head. "Diego tried for two weeks to convince my family to sanction the marriage. I loved my brothers, and he knew it hurt that they weren't there for my wedding. I wasn't strong like you…my family was all I knew."

She took a long swallow of tea and shrugged away the memories. "Diego told me your parents are dead, I'm sorry. I don't know why he was in a hurry, but he must have had a reason. I'm guessing if you didn't have any warning, your brothers weren't there."

"My brothers?" Victoria asked in surprise. "How do you…"

Rebecca gave a half smile and shrugged one shoulder, confused herself. "Luis and I wanted to come to California, there was nothing left for us in England. I was ruined, Luis was hunted. We wanted to come." Rebecca shook her head. "Diego didn't want to leave Spain when his father called him home. When he arrived, though…Victoria, he's talked about you since he returned." She gestured at the cup in Victoria's hands. "He gave up coffee, said you preferred tea."

Victoria glanced down at the cup as if it were a foreign substance. Diego always drank tea. He often shared new flavors which arrived from Europe or he made himself. That didn't make any sense. Victoria shook her head. "I don't understand."

"Diego likes your brothers. It didn't sound like they would object to the wedding." Rebecca pondered for a moment. "Was there something else standing in the way? Maybe Diego's father?"

"His father is a good man. I overheard him arguing with Diego about the rush. Don Alejandro didn't understand either." Victoria bit her lip, her heart sinking again. "There might have been someone…" Victoria blinked as her vision clouded. "I didn't know. There was another man. I thought I wanted…I'm not sure what I wanted. But I didn't know Diego thought about me at all."

Rebecca pulled Victoria's fingers away from the nearly empty cup of tea before it shattered in her tense fingers. Victoria glanced up and now she saw reserve in Rebecca's eyes as Rebecca squeezed her hand. "What do you want now? Who? If you're in trouble…if you married Diego for any other reason…tell me now. I'll help you. Diego would help you. Diego deserves a wife who will love him faithfully for who he is, not because of his land or title."

Victoria shook her head and wiped the moisture from her eyes, not cowing from Rebecca's penetrating stare. "No. The other man…it was nothing." She smiled, helpless against the crazy waves of emotion which were hitting her today. "Diego's my best friend. My friend Alicia thought he…she said he loved me. I never imagined...It's all like a dream. It doesn't seem real."

Rebecca smiled and brushed hair out of Victoria's face, reassured somewhat.

Victoria took a few deep breaths. "I'm glad he has friends like you. He's so reserved in Los Angeles. I want to know his friends, to know him. I want to have a partner, someone who loves me and that I can love. I want to take care of him."

Rebecca chuckled and pushed away the oppressive mood which had settled over the kitchen. "Reserved? If you say so. You might be surprised to find you married a giant child. Men and their toys." Rebecca stood to go to the door when someone knocked. "I think he'll spare Luis this time and play with you tonight instead," Rebecca said with a wink. She laughed loudly when Victoria's eyes grew round and her face lit on fire again.

Victoria's eyes fell to the child on the other side of the door, standing out of habit when someone knocked. This wasn't her kitchen, though. The boy was probably about five years old, and Rebecca reached down and snagged the back of his shirt before he got two steps in the door. Rebecca calmly set him outside again and crossed her arms.

The little boy scratched his hair, eyed the space between Rebecca and the door, and looked up at the woman towering over him. The boy quietly stepped to the side and brushed at his clothes, since he was covered in dirt. He bent to a bucket beside the door and splashed water on his face, not really cleaning much of anything. Rebecca smiled and bent to wipe the boy's face, and this time she missed when the boy slipped past her. The boy's feet were loud on the stairs before she called after him to stop running.

Rebecca glanced at Victoria, who was staring at the open door, as if still seeing the child there. Victoria's hands came up to cover her stomach for a brief second, and Rebecca lost her smile as Victoria wrapped her arms tight around herself. Victoria looked around the kitchen, and Rebecca thought she looked like a child herself, lost and frightened and alone.

She'd be nice to Victoria, but she had some choice words for Diego right about now.

Zzz

Author's Note: Remember I'm making up Diego's backstory, though I will keep the larger points the same. The timing is not so perfect of the backstory… but hope you forgive me.

Hope you enjoyed, hope you review.