And she was.
“Okay, that is not a good sign,” Jill said, peeking into the bathroom and immediately stepping away as Mia emptied the morning coffee and toast from her stomach.
It took several minutes, but once she was able to stand, she looked at Sydney and groaned. “This is not how I envisioned my wedding day starting.” With her hand on her head, she walked over to the sink and splashed some cold water on her face.
“What can I get you? Tea? Crackers? Ginger ale?”
“I don’t have any of those things,” she murmured with a weary sigh. “I’ll be okay in a few minutes. This has happened a few times in the last couple of weeks. My nerves are getting the best of me.”
Sydney studied her. “Your nerves never made you sick before.” Pausing, she paced a bit in the confines of the bathroom. “Are you sure you want to marry Austin? Because if you don’t, just say the word and I’ll get you out of it right now!”
“Sydney! What in the world? Why would you even suggest that?”
“You have to admit, it seems odd that your own wedding makes you want to vomit.”
She groaned again. “I don’t want to vomit, I just…it just happens! Sheesh! Are you telling me you weren’t nervous before marrying Kyle? Because I know you were and you threw up too!”
“Yes, but I was pregnant, so I knew why I was throwing up. You, on the other hand…” Her words trailed off as she softly gasped. “Oh, Mia…do you think…?”
“What? Do I think what?”
An eye roll was the first response, quickly followed by Sydney whispering, “Pregnant. Do you think you could be pregnant?”
“Oh my God…” And then she was back to heaving over the toilet again. There wasn’t a thing left in her, but now she had a whole lot of information to process.
“Should we take her to a doctor?” Jill asked from the other room when she heard Mia getting sick again. “You know…maybe she needs something to keep her from…you know…doing that in the middle of the ceremony.”
“I don’t think we need a doctor, but we do have to make a stop on our way back to the B&B, so…”
Mia got up and rinsed out her mouth and leaned against the vanity for a moment. “Okay, this is what’s going to happen…I’m going to take a shower while the two of you get all my stuff loaded in the car. We will definitely be stopping at a pharmacy to pick up a few things, but I don’t want to think about it or talk about it right now because I really, really, really don’t want to throw up again. Deal?”
They both nodded and left her to take her shower.
Pregnant.
For someone who was consistently told how brilliant she was, she couldn’t believe how stupid she felt at not even considering the possibility of a pregnancy being the reason for her getting sick. Her periods had never been regular, and she had attributed the length of time between them to stress. She and Austin had talked a lot about how they wanted to have kids, but they never said when. Maybe he wasn’t ready for that right now.
Am I?
She knew it was possibly too late to even consider not being ready, but…it seemed crazy that she would find out today–the day of her surprise wedding.
And yeah, that was a lot to take in, too.
Never before had Mia experienced that kind of love and generosity from family members before, and while she knew there was a lot more to the story, she intended to hear all about it once they were at the B&B and getting ready.
Right now, all she could do was focus on breathing and not getting sick again.
As soon as she was out of the shower and back in her robe, she called Austin.
“Are you mad?” he asked. “Is this too much? I don’t want you to be overwhelmed.”
“Aren’t you overwhelmed?” she asked with a small laugh. “We had just resigned ourselves to not getting married, and…now we are!”
“I’ll admit that it took me by surprise, but…once everyone told me the plan, I was on board. You know how much I wanted this, but if you’re not comfortable with it just basically being my family, then…”
“Then we’ll have another ceremony up in Boston after the New Year to appease my parents,” she quickly interrupted. “If they even want that. At this point, it doesn’t matter to me just as long as I get to marry you today.” Tears were blurring her vision and she really wished he were there with her.
“I don’t know what I ever did to deserve you,” he said, his voice low and gruff. “But I am thankful for you every day.”
“Me too,” she said, her own voice a little shaky. “Okay, I’ve got to go. The girls are pacing and waiting to get me over to the B&B. So…I guess I’ll see you this afternoon.”
“I’ll be the guy in the suit at the front of the room,” he teased.
“And I’ll be the one in the white gown.”
“God, I can’t wait to see you in it.”
“You already did,” she murmured.
“No, I never saw you like you’ll be today,” he said softly. “I love you.”
“I love you too.”
As soon as she hung up, Sydney took the phone from her. “You ready?”
Looking at her makeup-free reflection, it was hard to imagine she was getting married in a few hours. But with a steadying breath, she said, “Let’s do this!”
The room was packed, and Austin stood at the front of it with Pastor Steve to his right and his brothers to his left. Two guitarists sat in the back of the room and played an acoustic version of the “Wedding March.” When everyone stood, he found himself standing a little straighter and feeling more at peace than he’d felt in a long time.
Jill–a new addition to the bridal party–walked up the makeshift aisle and gave him a thumbs up. Once she took her place, Sydney made her way toward them, smiling brightly.
And then…there she was.
His girl.
His future.
His everything.
Austin felt his smile grow the closer she got because this moment was so much more than he ever imagined it would be. Mia Kingsley–the most beautiful woman in the world–was walking toward him, arm in arm with his mother. The two women who meant the most to him; it seemed a little odd when his mother told him her idea earlier, but now? Now it just seemed right and exactly as it should be.
Her gown was gorgeous and looked like it was made especially for her, and her hair was done up with a mass of curls that looked ready to fall if he even looked at them for too long. Austin always knew Mia would make a beautiful bride, but he wasn’t prepared for just how beautiful.
Pastor Steve started speaking, but Austin had a hard time tearing his attention away from Mia.
And luckily, she seemed to be just as focused on him.
It wasn’t until Steve nudged him–twice–that Austin realized it was time for him to say his vows.
He watched as Mia handed her bouquet to Sydney before taking both her hands in his. For most of his life, he was never comfortable with public displays of affection. With Mia, he loved kissing her, hugging her, and holding her hand, but saying the words out loud?
This was new.