Page 49 of A Baby to Make Her His Bride

They were a startling neon blue with icy diamonds surrounding them.

“I love them!” she gasped. “I’m definitely wearing them.” She removed the simple diamond studs she had put in her lobes. “We’ll call it an early Christmas present.”

“Actually, I have something else for under the tree.” He scratched beneath his beard.

“Wedding gift?”

“Same.”

“Jasper. Do you buy these for me? Or for yourself?” she asked with teasing suspicion. He had told her once that he was single because he had a small obsession with rocks. He seemed to take a lot of pleasure in finding rare and beautiful gemstones for her, not that she minded in the least.

“Little of both,” he admitted ruefully. “I get to look at them when you wear them, so that’s definitely a win for me. Did you know there’s something called a push present?”

“You’re incorrigible,” she chuckled.

For a moment, he seemed to have shed whatever heavy mood he’d been wearing. They were smiling and lost in each other’s eyes and the words were right there.I love you.

The doorman buzzed.

“That will be the car,” he said and crooked his arm in invitation. “Come on. I want to show you off.”

“Me, or these earrings?”

“You,” he insisted, lifting her spirits even more.

The party was a crush, filled with pro-athletes, Canadian film and music stars, and executives from various corporations.

For the first time in memory, Vienna was completely relaxed as she circulated with Jasper. She felt as though she had rewritten her life with a far better ending. She was in love with her fiancé, expecting his baby. In two days they would marry. Everything was finally going right for her.

As the party reached its height, Hunter gave a toast. First, he thanked his guests for coming, and thanked Amelia for putting together such a wonderful bash. They shared a look of naked adoration that had Vienna swallowing a lump of emotion.

“Finally, I’d like to offer a toast to my brother-in-law, Jasper, who is soon to be my brother-in-law.” Hunter cleared his throat and waited for the chuckles to subside. “And my sister, Vienna, who kept me sane through some very rough years. I’m so proud of you for going after the love and happiness you so rightly deserve. To Jasper and Vienna.”

Vienna felt Jasper’s arm come around her as he raised his champagne and she lifted her sparkling cranberry juice. His lips touched her temple and she made herself smile, but Hunter’s words were echoing in her ears like a death knell.

The love and happiness you so rightly deserve...

Did she have that, though?

Vienna was still trying to shake off her doubts the next afternoon. She and Jasper had a great relationship, one that built her confidence and gave her the other things she had so wanted in her life—art, a baby.

But the other vital thing she had wanted was love.

Jasper went out for the morning, joining college friends for coffee since they couldn’t make the wedding, but he wanted to see them while he was in town.

Vienna had needed a quiet morning anyway. She woke feeling headachy and vaguely nauseous, which she put down to the late night at Hunter’s party and grazing all that rich and sugary food. Maybe she had picked up a bug from travel. Her cheeks felt hot while the rest of her was chilled, but she told herself her pregnant body was having trouble adjusting to the switch from summer warmth to subzero winter and relentless central heat. A quick text to her maternity nurse, who had returned to Vancouver for the holidays, told Vienna she could have an over-the-counter headache tablet if she wanted one.

Vienna took one and it seemed to help. She felt less touchy when Jasper returned and they left for the hotel. They were having their final meeting with the wedding planner and touring the rooms where the wedding ceremony and reception would be held. Soon, the wedding party would arrive for the rehearsal, then they would all have dinner.

Due to the short notice, their guest list was only three hundred, but they had spared no expense, starting with booking this venue. It was stunning. The Renaissance architecture featured arched windows and high, ornate ceilings, imposing columns, and polished brass rails. They would marry in a gallery where a bower had been set up against heavy wooden doors. After the vows, while they were having their photos taken in the vault turned wine cellar, the guests would enter the main hall where they would be entertained by bartenders who spun and juggled bottles while serving cocktails at the long bar.

The reception ballroom was decorated in a winter theme with frosted red roses in tall crystal vases standing like icicles in circles of holly. Tartan throw blankets were draped over the backs of chairs as gifts for the guests. Handwritten calligraphy place cards were propped up in pine cones, and sparkling snowflakes hung from the ceiling. Candles in lanterns were waiting to be lit.

“I’ll leave you to enjoy this while I check on the gift bags. I know everything arrived, but staff may still be assembling them. This is genius, by the way. I will be stealing this idea for future guests.” The specialist touched a button on her way out the door, lowering the lights.

A projection of the night sky appeared on the ceiling with the aurora borealis flickering in streaks of green and purple dancing across it.

“Wow.” Jasper tilted back his head so Vienna couldn’t see his expression, but he sounded awed. “You made all of this happen in a few weeks?”

---