Waking Up Married
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Reese Ryan
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One
Zora Abbott sat in the nursery at her brother and sister-in-law’s home, holding her new niece, who was barely a week old.
Remington Renee Abbott—Blake and Savannah’s baby girl—was the newest addition to their growing family. And Zora was already obsessed.
Zora smoothed down her niece’s headful of soft, shiny black curls as she stared into the girl’s wide, dark, expressive eyes. She gently tapped Remi’s adorable button nose. Baby girl blinked in response, her mouth opening slightly.
Remi stared at Zora as if she was both slightly amused and mildly disinterested at the same time.
Zora glanced over to where Savannah had suddenly appeared in the doorway. “Remi’s facial expressions crack me up. She definitely has her mama’s no-nonsense fierceness.”
“And her aunt ZoZo’s ability to look right through you and make you question yourself,” Savannah added, smiling.
“True.” Zora grinned. “You and Blake are going to have your hands full with this one.”
“I don’t doubt that,” Savannah agreed. “And I hate to break up the lovefest, but your brother asked me to remind you that you need to leave for the airport soon or you’ll miss your flight to Vegas.”
“I know.” Zora brushed the backs of her fingers against the baby’s rosy cheeks. Remi’s skin was the same soft brown as her mother’s. “I just hate to be away from her for three whole days.”
“Remi will be right here waiting for her aunt ZoZo when you get back.” Savannah stepped into the room with its mauve-painted walls and straightened the dusty-rose bedding draped across Remi’s crib.
Zora kissed her young niece’s forehead, then reluctantly handed the baby to her mother. A hint of a smile ghosted over Remi’s little face as her eyes lit up with recognition. Savannah cooed softly in the baby’s ear, then nuzzled her forehead.
Zora bit back the envy that knotted her gut the tiniest bit. More than anything, she wanted children of her own. A startling realization she’d made nearly two and a half years ago—the moment she’d first held Remi’s older brother, Davis. Zora had been sure it was a hormonal phase. A passing mood she’d get over once she’d had her fill of changing dirty diapers.
But the feeling hadn’t passed.
Her desire to be a mother grew with each additional child born into their family. Davis. Her cousin Benji’s twins, Beau and Bailey. Now Remi. Each wedding or baby shower she’d attended made her painfully aware of her deepening desire. Made her ache with a sense of loss over something she’d never even had.
The night after Remi was born, Zora had lain in bed, staring at the ceiling, preoccupied with her growing desire to be a mom. She’d climbed out of bed in the middle of the night, opened her laptop and researched the idea that’d been brewing in her brain for months.
Who said she needed to wait for Prince Charming to come along to become a mother?
Zora was the sales VP at their world-renowned family-owned distillery, King’s Finest. Her family was among the wealthiest in the region. She certainly had the financial means to raise a child alone. And her grandfather, parents, brothers, and their significant others were all the village she’d need to raise a child.
She was days away from her thirty-second birthday. Why should she wait for some phantom husband who might never come along?
“Everything okay, Zo?” Savannah laid Remi down.
“Of course.” Zora’s cheeks burned, as if her sister-in-law had been privy to her thoughts. “Going over a few things in my head before the trip.”
“Well, I’ll go let your brother and nephew know you’ll be ready to leave shortly.” Savannah squeezed her arm. “That’ll give you two a few more minutes.”
Zora nodded at her sister-in-law gratefully, then returned her attention to her niece, whose heavy eyelids drooped as she drifted off to sleep.
She glided her fingertips over the signature burned into the wood of the crib. It was a gorgeous original piece, handcrafted by Zora’s longtime best friend—premier furniture maker Dallas Hamilton. The reason for her Las Vegas trip.
Dallas was being honored with an award for innovation, thanks to a stunning line of furniture he’d designed the previous year. He’d spent months in Thailand working with native furniture artists, studying their designs and learning their craft.
He’d designed breathtaking pieces that were a marriage of Western and Eastern aesthetics, inspired by intricate Thai designs. And the award-winning collection included pieces designed by native artists.
Zora couldn’t be happier for her best friend.
The award presentation in Vegas capped a whirlwind year in which Dallas had graced the cover of high-profile magazines, been asked to design furniture pieces for a growing number of celebrities and done a handful of television interviews.
Since they were both currently single, he’d invited Zora to Vegas as his plus-one for the award ceremony. Afterward, they would spend their final forty-eight hours in Vegas partying—an early nod to her impending thirty-second birthday.
It was nothing unusual for them. Dallas had been her plus-one at countless weddings and business or family events. And whenever they were both single, which was far more often than she liked to admit, they vacationed together at least once a year.
Dal still owned the cabin his grandfather had left him years ago, complete with a workshop where he handcrafted pieces—like Remi’s crib—or developed new designs. It was the workshop where his grandfather had taught him how to make furniture and cabinetry when he was just a little boy. Dallas still considered Magnolia Lake home, but he spent most of the year at various places around the world, opening new showrooms for his company, Hamilton Haus, teaching workshops and being inspired by the unique furniture designs of various cultures.
Zora tucked the soft blanket beneath her niece’s chin and smoothed down her hair. “Goodbye, sweet pea. Auntie ZoZo will be back soon,” she whispered to the sleeping newborn before slipping out of the room and quietly closing the door behind her.
Zora hated to leave her niece behind, but she was eager to see Dallas. She’d made an important decision, and she needed to ask a huge favor of him. Her stomach twisted in a knot when she imagined how he would react.
