The Accidental Mrs. Mackenzie by Bonnie K. Winn

so glad you two found each other,” Ruth murmured. “I always worried about Gregory.... But, now, I know at least he found the right partner in life.” With visible effort, she brightened. “The pictures are wonderful, ladies. But I’ll let Brynn take you through them.”
    Ruth closed the album before passing it along. Miranda accepted the album from her sister-in-law and gave Brynn an encouraging pat as she handed her the book. Brynn took a deep breath, remembering all the scenarios she had created in her mind since she’d had the album made. She had told the photographer that she wanted to create an album since she and Gregory had eloped.
    Of course, Brynn could hardly confide that she’d chosen the casual wedding photos because the more formal ones required group—especially family—sittings. This way there were no gaps where parents and siblings should be, where the best man and maid of honor would be missed.
    Brynn wondered how she would explain this odd choice, the casual poses. Then an unbidden thought popped into her head. What would her strip’s heroine do? Fearless Stephanie wouldn’t let a bunch of curious women intimidate her. No, she’d invent a story that would make her “wedding” seem like the ideal ceremony, one all these hard-core romantics would sigh over.
    She’d had a huge selection of computer-enhanced locations to choose from—everything from the nondescript to the wildly exotic. The images were taken from genuine photos and the resulting pictures of the bride and groom looked equally genuine.
    For Brynn, the choice of locations had been easy. All of her life she’d dreamed of the land of her ancestors. The stories of Ireland that her grandmother Magee had told her as a child had never been forgotten. Losing her grandmother when she’d been only ten years old had been the most traumatic event of her young life. But while her loving presence was gone, her stories had never been forgotten.
    And Brynn had imagined a wedding set somewhere between the green fields and windswept moors of Ireland. Amid thatched cottages and stone-cobbled roads. For a moment, Brynn stared down at the album that she had lovingly studied for so many hours.
    Clearing her throat, she opened the first page. “As you all know, Gregory and I eloped.”
    Matt settled in to listen, anticipating the details. But just then one of the clerks caught his attention, needing his decision on a tour reservation, a group that wanted to book nearly the entire lodge.
    While Matt was diverted, several heads nodded and Brynn tried to regain Stephanie’s courage.
    “A lot of people don’t understand why a couple elopes—the magic, the spirit of romance that captures them.”
    The heads that nodded were now sighing.
    Brynn held up the album, showing them the first page—just her face and Gregory’s in cutout ovals. “And I wanted a record of our courtship, so that’s the kind of album we have. It’s not traditional, but it tells our story. And this is us when we first met.”
    There was a chorus of oohs and aahs.
    Taking a deep breath, Brynn turned the page. She and Gregory were aloft in a balloon that soared over the mountains in Park City. “And this is...when Gregory proposed” A bit of impish Stephanie crept in. “He knew I wasn’t likely to refuse at those heights.”
    Laughter greeted her words, and emboldened, Brynn turned the next page, warming to the dream wedding she’d always wanted.
    She and Gregory stood in the forefront of the picture, but an ancient stone church dominated the background. “This is the place we chose to exchange our vows.”
    “Where is that?” Wilma asked. “Doesn’t look like any place I’m familiar with.”
    Brynn smiled. “It’s in Ireland.”
    “Ireland?” Wilma questioned along with most of the other women. Matt turned back at that moment and the expression on his face echoed the others’ sentiments. “Why did you get married in Ireland?” Wilma asked, as though Brynn had