Stay (Wild Creek Ranch Series Book 6)

Chapter Fifty-Seven

In the evening, Anastasia’s dad and grandparents came over and they all sat down to plan their wedding. It was like a party with delicious food and drinks, laughter, jokes, gossip. 

“Since we’re all here, let us prepare the guest list,” suggested aunt Kathy. Everyone agreed and they sat down to prepare it. 

“Anastasia’s brother and his girl will also come down,” informed Ryder with a knowing smile at Anastasia. She smiled back. Who knew if Anson would be able to woo her in a month or not? But they could always hope for the best. 

“What are you saying? My crazy rebellious son now has a girlfriend? This really calls for a celebration!” said her dad, grinning ear to ear.

“Dad, please, don’t go and embarrass him already. He’s in the process of wooing her,” said Anastasia. So it was planned that the wedding would take place on the grounds of Wildcreek Ranch. Renée took up the responsibilities of her organizing everything as the matron of honor. The rest of the girls, Adelaide, Ember, Rihanna and Raine would be her bridesmaids. Rihanna who had come over too with her little family also planned the bridesmaids dresses. They decided on the invites to be sent out. There was excitement in the air and everyone was suddenly very busy. After dinner Anastasia’s family returned home while Ryder whisked Anastasia outside.

“Where are we going? Isn’t it a little late to go out?” asked Anastasia. Ryder caught her hand in his and they walked slowly along the path. 

“We can always take a stroll under the twinkling stars. Are you sleepy?” he asked, drawing her closer to his side. 

“Not at all. How about you?” asked Anastasia. 

“I’m too excited to sleep. When we were younger, Sawyer and Renée always used to walk around here after dinner. I used to pray to God that some day I could walk with you as well. There’s something magical and romantic about this place. Don’t you feel it?” asked Ryder. 

“Yeah, that’s why I wanted to get married here,” said Anastasia. The moon was shining brightly and the stars strewn all across the sky sparkled like a jeweled necklace. The air was cooler and more occasional cries of wild animals near the Bearhead Creek echoed around. Everything added to the magic of the place, the magical ambiance of home. 

“Do you want a boy or a girl?” asked Anastasia eagerly. Ryder smiled and thought for a while. 

“It’s difficult to answer since I want both. If we have a daughter now, we’ll try for a son and vice versa,” said Ryder. “But actually its up to God what wants to shower upon us. What do you want?” asked Ryder. 

“Same as you,” smiled Anastasia. “But I think I have a baby girl inside me. She’s so caring that she doesn’t bother me at all. I’m not at all nauseous like the other moms are and neither am I terribly exhausted all the time,” said Anastasia. Ryder smiled at her with indulgence.

“I’d love to have a baby daughter with eyes just like yours,” said Ryder. 

“I prefer your eyes, Blue,” said Anastasia with a smile. 

“I know, you’re the only one who calls me Blue. The first time you called me that, you took my breath away,” he admitted. Anastasia smiled. 

“That was the only name that came to me when I looked at you,” she told him. 

“So let’s keep a name that denotes a color for our daughter. We’ll keep her name later after she’s born based on the color of her eyes and hair. What do you think?” asked Ryder. 

“Sure,” agreed Anastasia. 

“Would you have any objections if I manage granny and grandpa’s bakery shop like I used to?” asked Anastasia. 

“Why should I? I know how much you love doing that. You can do whatever you want to, Annie. There’s no need to be formal with me. You don’t need mg permission to do what your heart desires. We both love one another. There’s no compulsion, no restraint, nothing,” said Ryder.

“It’ll take me a while to get used to the idea since I have never been free all my life,” said Anastasia. 

They kissed under the moonlit sky and returned back to their room to spend their first night with each other at Wildcreek Ranch. Ryder made love to her for the first time on his bed. Each and every moment had a significance in their lives. Everything they did together was more or less a first time for them. Although they had known one another for ages, they couldn’t do what normally all couples did. Yet their true love won against the test of time. As the days passed by, Ryder tried his best to make her experience everything that a couple in love should. He took her out on dates, he took her shopping. They bought their wedding rings. He took her out to movies, to romantic evening walks.

Anastasia and Ryder learned more and more about one another and it seemed as if a lifetime wasn’t enough to fulfill the promises of love towards one another. The wedding preparations were shaping up well. Renée, Ryder’s mom, aunt Kathy looked into everything while aunt Charlotte looked into the wedding trousseau. The bridesmaids had already arranged for blush pink strapless gowns for themselves. They had planned the theme as a combination of white, blush pink, carnation and fuchsia. The bridal bouquet, the decorations would have the same color combinations. 

The wedding dresses had already arrived and everyone tried on theirs. Raine rushed into the room where they were trying on the dresses. She closed the door and clutched at her heart to calm her rapidly beating heart. They all turned to look at her.

“What happened?” asked Adelaide. She shook her head vehemently. 

“N-nothing at all,” she stammered. 

A month ago when she had gone to Las Vegas, she had accidentally damaged an expensive car. Ever since the man had been stalking her around in the city. So, she had thought that he might let it go when she returned to Fordsville but today while returning from her best friend, Eve's house, her eyes popped out seeing the same man at the marketplace. He seemed to be asking for some directions. Was he hunting for her? Had he come all the way to Fordsville to demand compensation?

Her heartbeats raced like crazy even to think about it. She had no idea that her rude remark before she escaped would have such an effect upon him. He looked filthy rich so can he be so desperately after her for compensation? Or maybe he wanted to punish her! She couldn’t tell anyone and stayed hidden in the house for the next two days. 

Anastasia nicely settled down to manage the bakery shop like she used to before. With Anson sending her lots of her investment money, she planned renovations and planned to expand the business. Her dad and grandparents as well as Ryder pitched in with their ideas. It brought a sparkle to her eyes, a glow to her face. At last she was able to do what she had always wanted to. At last she was living her dream life. 

Days passed by into weeks. Everyday they made each other feel precious with little gifts and treats. Anastasia cooked dinner for the whole family many times and they were bowled over by her culinary skills. She was good with the kids as well. They went to the doctor’s visits together and with Anastasia’s pregnancy progressing well, there wasn’t any reason to worry about. Just before the wedding Ryder took her to her first ultrasound and for the first time he heard his baby’s heartbeat. It brought tears of happiness to his eyes. Just as they had guessed, Anastasia was indeed expecting a baby girl. 

Ryder couldn’t wait to hold her in his arms. They kept thinking of names for her. If her eyes would be as blue as Ryder’s, they would name her Sapphire and if she had hazel eyes, they would name her Hazel. Her grandparents gave her a bridal shower, loading her with gifts and treating her like a princess. Anastasia wasn’t used to receiving so much love and she was overwhelmed by it all. Ryder was whisked away to a pub the night before to celebrate his last day of freedom. Although he didn’t drink much, the others were totally drunk and unmanageable. It was no big deal for them as they knew granny Jenny’s wonderful concoction would make them all fit and fine the next day. Finally they were kicked out of the pub and returned back home but they were all happy, excited and looked forward to the wedding the next day.