Annie's Answer (20 page)

“I wanted to
see what two of my favorite women are up to.”

“I’m up to
going home before the weather gets any worse,” Mattie said. “It wouldn’t do for
me to be catching a cold when your wedding is only eleven days away.”

“That soon?”
Nathan asked with mock concern. “My mother hasn’t found her mother-of-the-groom
dress yet, but she’s working her way through New York shops like a snow plow
clearing the roads.”

“Probably has
ten dresses in her closet that would do just fine,” Mattie muttered. “Maybe she
should shop there.”

“Now Mattie.”
Nathan cautioned. “You promised to make nice with her.”

“Only until
the wedding is over. In all my days, I’ve only been to one wedding at Christmas
time. Seems to me our little church in Iowa was so cold everyone except those
in the wedding party wore overcoats. Didn’t matter then what anyone was
wearing.”

“What about
the reception?” Annie asked.

“Cake and
punch in the church basement,” Mattie said. “In those days people didn’t
mortgage the family farm to pay for a wedding.”

It was one of
the elderly woman’s favorite themes. Nathan and Annie only smiled and waited
for her to get her coat and leave.

“The shop
looks gorgeous,” he said when his great aunt had left. “Did you make all those
wreaths?”

“I did,
thanks,” Annie said, looking at the Christmas decorations hanging on a wall of
pegs put installed for that purpose. “They’ve been selling so fast, I might
have to make more.”

“When you’re
not running the shop, helping your mother make your wedding gown.…”

“I know,”
Annie said laughing. “I’m working more than when I had multiple jobs. But it
doesn’t seem like work now that I have my own shop—mine and Mattie’s.”

“Is that
working out all right for you?” he asked, unbuttoning his “lawyer” garment, a
long black wool coat with broad lapels. A colorful red plaid scarf made him
look more approachable.

“Splendidly,”
Annie said, stepping out from behind the counter and into his arms, his kiss
more than worth getting slightly damp from melting snow.

“The weather
is so bad I thought you might want to close early,” he said.

“Maybe I will
as soon as I show you my plans for our wedding flowers.”

“I’d love to
see them, but I’m not going to pretend they’ll be more beautiful than my bride.
The twenty-seventh seems a year away. Are you sure you don’t want to elope?”

Annie laughed.
“My mother is spending every possible minute working on my dress, and Gramps
has already written his homily for the ceremony. He’s thrilled to be able to
give the bride away and still be in charge of the nuptials.”

Nathan
followed her to the workroom at the back of the shop to see her sketches.

“Since my
bridesmaids are wearing red velvet, I thought white flowers would be best for
their bouquets. I love red, but it can be overdone. My bouquet will be white
roses, lace, and baby’s breath.”

She quickly
noticed Nathan watching her instead of paying attention to her designs.

“You’re not
looking!” she playfully accused him.

“I’m looking
at my beautiful bride-to-be.”

Annie couldn’t
fault him for that. She put aside her sketches and cuddled against the sweater
vest he was wearing under his coat.

“You’ll have a
long time to do that,” she said, tilting her head for the kiss she knew was
coming.

“Annie,” he
said before his lips met hers.

How could the
sound of her name hold so much love? She silently thanked the Lord for bringing
this kind, wonderful man into her life and for the future they would share
together.

THE END