with both hands.
'Here you go, then.' Gently Maris urged Nick forward, into the center aisle. The church glowed with candlelight, and hundreds of smiling faces were turned toward them, it seemed.
Nick stepped out into the limelight like a Miss America taking her victory walk. She bestowed smiles to the left and the right, and she daintily reached into the basket for a rose petal. One. She held it out and let it drift downward. Then she reached for another. One by one she distributed the rose petals on the carpet with dainty precision, taking her time, even stooping once to adjust a petal that had fallen too close to another one.
'Oh, God.' Beside her, Maris could feel Wolf shaking with laughter. 'She's enjoying this too much. At this rate, you won't get to walk down the aisle until midnight.'
People were turning and looking, and laughing at Nick's concentration on the task. Barrie buried her head in Zane's shoulder, lost in a helpless fit of giggling. Zane was grinning, and Chance was laughing out loud. Mac, standing at the altar, was beaming at the little imp who had so won his heart. The pianist, looking around, saw what was taking so long and gamely continued playing.
Tickled to be the center of attention, Nick began improvising. The next rose petal was tossed backward, over her shoulder. The minister choked, and his face turned red as he tried to hold back his guffaws.
She twirled on her tiptoes, flinging rose petals in a circle. Several flew out of the basket, and she frowned, stooping to pick them up and return them to the basket.
I can't laugh, Maris thought, feeling it bubbling inexorably upward. If laugh, I'll laugh until I cry, and it'll ruin my makeup. She put her hand over her mouth to hold the mirth inside, but it didn't work. Her chest constricted, her throat worked and suddenly laughter burst joyously out of control.
Nick stopped and turned to look, beaming at them, waiting for them to tell her what a good job she was doing.
'Fwow, I mean, throw them,' Maris managed to say between whoops.
The little head lilted to one side. 'Wike dis?' she asked, taking a handful of petals from the basket and flinging them upward.
At least it was a handful, and not just one. 'Like that,' Maris said in approval, hoping it would speed the procedure.
It did. Another handful followed the first one, and Nick's progress down the aisle picked up speed. At last she reached the end, and bestowed an absolutely radiant smile on Mac. 'I fwowed dem all,' she told him.
'You did it just right,' he said, barely able to speak for laughing. Her mission accomplished, she strutted to the pew where Zane and Barrie sat, and held up her arms to be lifted to the seat.
Relieved, the pianist launched into the familiar strains of 'Here Comes the Bride,' and at last Wolf and Maris began their stately walk down the aisle. Everyone rose to their feet and turned to watch, smiling.
Because time had been so short, there were no Bridesmaids or groomsmen, no maid of honor or best man, so only Mac awaited Maris at the altar. He watched her approach, his hard face relaxed in a tender expression, his blue eyes still shining from his laughter. As soon as she stopped beside him, he gently took her hand in his, and behind them, they heard his mother give a teary, joyful little gasp.
Because Maris and Mac were already married, they had decided to skip the part about 'who gives this woman.' Wolf leaned down and kissed his daughter's cheek, hugged her tenderly, then shook hands with Mac and took a seat beside Mary.
'Dearly beloved,' the minister began; then there was another gasp behind them. Recognizing Barrie's voice, Maris wasn't surprised when a little body slithered between her and Mac, taking a stance directly in front of them.
'I do it, too,' Nick chirped, her little voice audible in every corner of the church.
Glancing over her shoulder, Maris saw Zane start to rise to retrieve his errant offspring. She shook her head, smiling. He winked and sank back into his seat.
So Nick stood pressed against their legs while the minister performed the service. They could feel her quivering with excitement, and Mac subtly gathered her closer to him so he would have a better chance of grabbing her if she started to do something startling, such as peek under the minister's cassock. She was already eyeing the garment with some curiosity. But she was content for the moment, completely taken with the ceremony, the candles, the twinkling Christmas tree, the beautiful clothes. When the minister said, 'You may now kiss the bride,' and Mac did so, Nick merely tilted her head back to watch.
'What's the best way to handle her when we leave?' Mac whispered against Maris's lips.
'Pick her up and hand her to Zane as we pass,' she whispered back. 'He'll be expecting it.'
The pianist launched into the familiar stirring strains. Mac swooped Nick up with one arm, put the other around Maris, and they hurried up the aisle to the accompaniment of music, laughter, tears and a round of applause. As they passed the second pew, a tiny girl in a long dress was deftly passed from one pair of strong arms to another.
The reception was a long, glorious party. Maris danced endlessly with her husband, her father, all her brothers, several of her nephews, her brothers-in-law and an assortment of old friends. She danced with the sheriff, Clay Armstrong. She danced with Ambassador Lovejoy, Barrie's father. She danced with Shea's father and grandfather, with the ranchers and merchants and gas station attendants. Finally Mac claimed her again, holding her close and swaying to the music as he rested his cheek against hers.
'What did Zane say to you?' she demanded suddenly.
She felt him grin, though he didn't lift his head. 'He said you'd know.'
'Never mind that. What did he say?'
'You already know what he said.'
'Then what did you say?'
'That I'm interested.'
She growled. 'I don't want you to spend months out of the country. I'm willing, barely, to let the FBI use you on investigations, but I don't like it. I want you with me every night, not thousands of miles away.'
'That's exactly what I told Zane. Remember, I don't have to do what Chance does.' He held her closer, dropping his voice to an intimate murmur. 'Has your period started yet?'
'No.' She was only two days late, but two days was two days, and she was normally very regular. It was possible her system had been disrupted by the concussion and the stress of everything that had happened, so she wasn't making any announcements yet. 'Would you mind if I am pregnant so soon?'
'Mind?' He kissed her ear. 'When we might get our own Nick?' His shoulders quivered under her embrace. 'I didn't think she was ever going to get rid of those damn flower petals.'
'She's one of a kind, I hope.' But she leaned against him, feeling her breasts, her entire body, tighten with desire. If she wasn't already pregnant, she likely would be soon, given how often he made love to her.
They danced in silence for a moment, then Mac said, 'Pleasure should have arrived by now.'
