Happily This Christmas (Happily Inc #6) - Susan Mallery Page 0,45
and a caring soul. Somewhere out there was a teenage girl who was going to marry a great guy.
She looked at the snowmen she’d made that morning and the stacks of paper waiting to be put together. While she wanted to earn the money, maybe the snowmen could wait.
She stood. “I probably won’t like it,” she grumbled.
Hunter only laughed.
* * *
WYNN WAS SHOCKED when Hunter reappeared, Joylyn at his side. Later she would ask him what happened, but for now she did her best to act casual as she introduced Silver and Autumn.
“It gets hectic in an hour,” she told them, then turned to Joylyn. “The men are watching football in the family room. You’re welcome to join them or hang out with us.”
Autumn walked over to join Hunter. “There’s too much adult talk here,” she said. “I’d rather watch football.”
Joylyn elected to join the kitchen conversation. Wynn poured her juice, and they all gathered around the kitchen table.
“What weddings do you have this weekend?” Wynn asked.
“It’s busy after today,” Renee said. “A traditional wedding tomorrow night, a full-on princess wedding on Saturday, then a small bird wedding on Sunday.”
Joylyn stared at her. “Birds getting married?”
“Shades of the big dog wedding from last year,” Silver said with a laugh. “Not birds. People getting married and their theme is birds. Bird everything.”
“She’s right,” Renee said brightly. “The invitations, the decorations, the cookies. The centerpieces are a play on a bird nest. It’s beautiful and still kind of weird.”
“So are they having chicken for dinner?” Wynn asked.
Renee glared at her. “Of course not. They’re vegetarian.”
“Egg drop soup?” Joylyn asked with a grin.
“Stop. They are not eating any bird products.” Renee frowned. “Although now that I think about it, I’m pretty sure the bride’s train has feathers in it.”
“Why birds?” Wynn asked.
“I didn’t ask.” Renee sighed. “I am so looking forward to our three weeks off. No birds, no snowmen, no action figure–costumed grooms.”
Silver turned to Joylyn. “What was your wedding like?”
“It was very traditional. No birds.” She smiled. “Chandler and I got married in a church, and the reception was in my mom’s backyard.” Her tone turned wistful. “I was just watching a video of the wedding. Everything turned out perfectly.”
“That’s nice,” Renee said. “Do you have a lot of family?”
“Not as much as Chandler. He’s one of six kids, and there are tons of aunts and uncles and cousins. My dad and my stepdad walked me down the aisle, so that was nice. And all our friends were there.”
“This will be your mom’s first grandchild, won’t it?” Wynn asked.
Joylyn nodded. “My mother-in-law has three already. But this is the first boy, so she’s really excited. She offered to let me stay with her when Chandler was deployed. I would have gone, but she lives all the way in North Carolina. That seemed so far.”
“I can see why you’d want to stay close,” Silver said. “Is she going to come be with you when the baby’s born?”
“Uh-huh. She said she’ll come out the second month and stay for a few weeks. My mom says she’ll be around for the first couple of weeks.” Her mouth twisted. “At least I hope she will.” She dropped her gaze. “She’s really busy with stuff.”
“Having family around will be a big help,” Wynn said, hoping to deflect her from potentially difficult subjects. “Babies are a challenge.”
“I couldn’t have done it,” Silver said. “I had Autumn right out of high school. I hadn’t been pregnant very long when I realized I was in no way prepared to be a mom.”
Joylyn stared at her. “You gave her up for adoption?”
“I did. I found the family and they were great. I ended up living with them for a while. Autumn and I have always been close.” She smiled. “It’s complicated, but we’re all a family and it’s pretty wonderful.”
Wynn stood. “All right, ladies. We’ve left the men alone for too long. Why don’t we join them until it’s close to dinnertime?”
Everyone stood and headed for the living room. Wynn was pleased to see Renee link arms with Joylyn, making sure she stayed with the group. Wynn checked the turkey and did a quick time calculation in her head, mentally figuring out how long it would take to get everything ready once the main oven was free.
Once she confirmed her calculations, she made a quick review of the dining room, then turned to go to the family room, only to nearly run into Garrick.