Chapter Eleven
“Just go and get one,” Leah said.
Peyton looked toward the pharmacy. They had just taken Shae’s truck to the local grocery store, where she was loaded up on lots of food in order to start taking care of the ranch and the ranchers.
Since the bakery had been burned, the fire investigation indicated it had to be completely stripped from the inside.
The structure was sound, but a lot of work needed to be done.
Shae was in the process of dealing with it.
She believed the insurance people had already paid him a visit and were handling whatever needed to be dealt with.
As for her and Leah, she talked with Shae and he didn’t mind her taking random orders, using his kitchen, while at the same time feeding the ranchers.
It was a job she actually loved. Leah had been helping.
This woman had lost her job with the fire, but she imagined Shae was still paying for her help.
She was thankful for it, as well as her company.
Of course, it also meant Leah had come to notice certain smells were starting to affect her.
The scent of coffee repulsed her, and she spent a lot of time running to the bathroom.
There were also the hormones and the fact one of the cakes came out sunken, and she just started to cry.
A lot of changes were happening. Leah had just come right out and asked Peyton if she was pregnant, to which she responded she didn’t know.
Now, they had a truck full of food and were parked at the pharmacy.
“I can go in,” Leah said.
She reached out and stopped the other woman. “No, then people are going to be gossiping about you, and there is no reason for that to happen. I’ll go.”
Peyton wanted to run away, but instead she climbed out of the truck and made her way inside the pharmacy. She could do this.
Making her way down the aisles, she saw Frances, and waved at the woman. The other woman gave her a smile. Peyton had hoped that would be the end of it, only Frances was a talker and came toward her.
“Hey, Peyton, I am so sorry to hear what happened. Halloween was not the same without you,” she said.
“Thanks.”
For the first time since she was a teenager, she and Shae had gone to town and enjoyed Halloween night.
They hadn’t dressed up, just gone as themselves.
They had played some games. Shae had won her a huge teddy bear by shooting his gun at a target.
The man was a machine. They had skipped out on winning fish, gone into a haunted house and eaten way too much candy and donuts.
When they got back to the ranch, they had made love in the sitting room, in front of a roaring fire, and that was where they had fallen asleep, until Leah had woken them up by knocking on the door the following day.
Yes, life had been good. She kept expecting the regret to sink in, but at no point did it. There was no regret, no nothing. Just peace.
She and Shae never talked about what happened that day. There was no need to keep talking about the past.
“So, how are you?” Peyton asked, looking at the aisles. She did notice all of the Band-Aid supplies, and she grabbed several boxes. The ranchers were always hurting themselves, Shae included, and she noticed the supplies were starting to get limited.
“Oh, you know, I can’t complain. We are so busy.
One of the Mitchell brothers decided he needed to start hanging his decorations and fell from the porch roof.
Yeah, he banged his head, but I swear that thing is made of steel.
He got up, laughed, and tried not to go to the hospital, but you know his wife made him go and get checked out, and I don’t know how he is able to do it, but he is more than fine. ”
She listened as she made her way down the aisles, aware that they were getting close to the pregnancy tests.
Frances told her tales of several of the locals, including the antics of some of the younger boys, who were experimenting with some of their dad’s equipment, and decided it was fun to shoot with a nail gun. It kept going, over and over again.
Frances was still talking about everything when they got to the pregnancy tests, and she hoped the woman wouldn’t stop, but it was like she became aware of where they were.
Peyton didn’t make a sound, but she reached out, grabbing the test she knew had the best reviews online.
That is what she had searched for that very morning.
To see which test would be the best one.
There was no reason to buy three or four.
She turned to Frances and the woman’s mouth was partially open.
Peyton didn’t see the point in telling her not to tell anyone.
No one could keep Frances quiet. She was the town gossip.
She was the reason news traveled fast. With her few supplies, she turned to the other woman and offered her a smile.
“This is all I need,” she said.
She paid, and Frances stayed quiet, and then she left, joining Leah back in the truck. “Is everything okay? You look ... pale?”
“Oh, I’m fine. The whole town is going to know that I bought a pregnancy test.”
“How are you feeling?”
“Fine.” She was a little shaky.
“I can’t believe Frances was there. That was unlucky.”
“It’s fine. If Shae finds out, well, he is going to find out one way or another.”
Leah was silent for several minutes. “Do you want to talk about it?”
“No,” Peyton said.
“You know, Shae will love the news.”
“I don’t know how he is going to feel.”
“Well, take it from someone who has seen and knows all. He is in love with you, and he is going to be excited about this if you are,” Leah said.
She wished she could be as excited.
They arrived back at the ranch, and while Leah unloaded the truck, Peyton took the test to one of the spare bedrooms. After reading the instructions, she went through the whole thing, peeing on a stick, washing her hands, and then waiting for the results.
While she waited, she looked at her reflection and wondered if there was anything different.
Was there a way of noticing a difference?
She didn’t feel any changes. Her body was the same.
Although, she was pretty sure her pants were starting to feel tight, and she had begun to opt for elasticized skirts and some dresses.
She was struggling to keep food down in the morning. Subtle changes.
There was no way she could pin it to stress, and there was nothing else going on, so the only thing she could account it to was possible pregnancy.
She glanced down at the sink, and there were two red lines. Peyton lifted it up, checked the results on the leaflet, and yes, it was there, plain to see. She was carrying Shae’s baby.
Putting the pregnancy test down, she put her hands to her stomach and tried not to panic.
She was pregnant with his baby. She was going to be a mom.
This was a lot to take in. Scrunching up the leaflet, she put it into the trash bin, then made her way downstairs to find Leah already in the process of putting things away.
“Well?” Leah asked.
Peyton looked at her friend, and she tucked some hair behind her ears. “I’m ... pregnant.”
Leah let out a scream and then ran toward her. “This is so amazing, and congratulations, I am so happy for you!”
She hugged her friend and smiled.
Now, she had to find a way to tell Shae. She had no idea how he was going to take the news. How should she tell him?
She had no idea what to do.
****
It had been a long time since Shae had guests at the ranch. Part of him wanted to tell them all to fuck off. At the same time, he saw how happy his woman was.
Wade, Carla, and their kids were there. Hank and Lucy, along with their kids had arrived.
Several of the ranchers were there. Leah was also there.
She had become part of his world. The young woman was so sweet, and he trusted her to keep a constant eye on Peyton.
He also wanted her to be able to talk to someone.
This life was hard. He recalled his mom rarely had another woman to talk to.
His father had said he wished he had encouraged his mother to have that kind of friendship.
The house was already decorated for Christmas and the smells of turkey and baking filled the house. It smelled so good. His mouth watered as he took a sip of his beer.
Wade came over to him. “Well, well, well, I never thought I would see the day you would invite me and my hungry lot for dinner.”
“I told Peyton to get three turkeys. Enough for the adults and your kids.”
Wade laughed. In his arms was his newborn son.
Shae couldn’t help but glance over toward Peyton, who smiled at him. She was a natural ranching wife.
The guys absolutely adored her, and in the time she and Leah had taken over, this place once again felt like a home. He didn’t realize it before, that it had just given him a place to exist, whereas now it felt like home. This felt real to him. He loved it.
He loved Peyton, and he felt like a fucking loser, because he still hadn’t gotten around to fucking proposing.
Ranch work for the winter was hard. He needed to make sure he had enough hay and the fences were all secure.
It would seem this year the fences had decided to take on minds of their own, and to piss him the fuck off by not being reliable.
It annoyed the fuck out of him. This meant long days, early mornings, late evenings, and barely any time with his woman.
At least he got to fall asleep with her in his arms.
“You know, I heard congratulations are in order,” Wade said.
Peyton had left to go into the kitchen.
“Congratulations?”
Wade frowned and looked at him. “You do know what Frances is telling everyone, don’t you?”
Shae hadn’t even taken a trip into town. He ended up sending Leah and Peyton to load up on food and supplies, as the work at the ranch dominated his time.
Shae winced. “What is Frances telling everyone?”
“Uh, I don’t think it’s my—”
“For fuck’s sake, Wade, you are the one that brought it up, so why don’t you cut the bullshit and just tell me?”
His friend looked at him and clearly knew not to play around, as he held his free hand up. “Fine, fine, but don’t shoot the messenger.”
Shae ignored him and instead went straight to the kitchen, where he found his woman, alone. It looked like the turkeys had already come out of the oven and were standing under some aluminum foil.
“Hey,” he said, moving closer to her.
She looked up and offered him a smile. She glanced over his shoulder toward everyone. This was not the most ideal of situations as he didn’t want witnesses. Thankfully, their friends would know to look the other way.
“We need to talk,” he said.
“I know.” She rubbed her temple. “There’s something I’ve been meaning to tell you, and the truth is, I don’t know how to tell you.”
Shae saw the fear in her eyes. This was the best time.
Reaching into his jacket pocket, he sunk to his knees and opened the small red box he had kept his mother’s ring in.
His father had given it to him, just as his grandfather had given it to his father.
The Marino line had an heirloom, and seeing as none of his line ever got divorced, the ring forever stayed.
When the time was right, and if he had a son, the ring would go to him.
“Marry me, Peyton. Marry me and make me the happiest man in the fucking world, because ... I’m in love with you.
I’ve been in love with you for a long damn time, and I’m done pretending this is nothing more than two people enjoying each other.
I love you and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. ”
Her eyes had gone wide, and he even saw the glisten of tears as she stared right back at him in shock.
“I’m pregnant,” she said.
“I know.”
“You’re—”
“Happy. So fucking happy. There’s nothing I want more than to spend the rest of my life with you. I want to grow old with you. Fill this house with kids, and make memories.”
“I love you,” Peyton said. “I really do.”
“So, is that a yes?” he asked.
“Yes, that’s a yes.”
He took the ring out of the box and slid it right onto her finger, and lo and behold it was a perfect fit. Getting to his feet, he cupped her face and kissed her. Behind him, he heard the applause, but he didn’t give a shit that they were clapping their hands and congratulating them.
There was only one person he was interested in, and she was in his arms, and he looked into her eyes. The smile on her lips was the one he had dreamed about for what felt like a lifetime.
“Am I dreaming?” she asked.
“I hope not, but you know what, let’s not wake up from this dream.”
“Shae, anyone ever tell you, you’re a romantic?” she asked.
“They wouldn’t fucking dare.”
And then he kissed her, but this time they didn’t get chance to just enjoy one another, as their guests took it upon themselves to come and congratulate them.
Wade shook his hand, along with Hank, and several of his men.
Peyton was swallowed up by the women, hugging her, and seeing the engagement ring.
That was his woman. And he was going to fucking cherish her for the rest of his life.