I called Bobby to let him know what time we would be there, so he would be expecting us. We arrived and exited the SUV, as the front door opened and Bobby and his new girlfriend approached us.
"Hey Brother!" I exclaimed, as we shook hands and gave each other a hug.
"Hey yourself!" he said enthusiastically. "This is Amalie; my girlfriend."
"Hi Amalie." I introduced myself. "I'm Jack. This is my wife, Tiffany."
"Your WHAT?!" Bobby asked incredulously.
I had told him I had succeeded in taming her temper, but he had no idea we'd gotten married. I grinned and motioned to Tiffany.
"Show him." I said with a smile.
Tiffany nodded and reached into her purse, retrieving the pregnancy test and holding it out.
"I meant the other thing," I said through clenched teeth, as I rubbed my fingers across my forehead,"although they now know the second surprise."
"Oh, sorry." she apologized. "I'm still just so excited about it!"
She put the test back and proudly displayed her "Sheriff's Wife" badge.
"Hey, that's a nice gesture." Bobby acknowledged. "Congrats! I'm glad things have worked out for you; I really am."
"Thank you." Tiffany said politely. "That means a lot to me."
"You know, I'm getting kinda hungry." I said suggestively. "How about if we call Mom and Pop and have them meet us at the Beef Barn for dinner?"
"Sounds good to me!" my former brother-in-law responded. "They'd love to see you again."
"They won't want to see me again, though, I'll bet." Tiffany added. "I understand though."
"You're my wife now. It'll be fine." I replied. "I'm sure Bobby's told them how you've changed."
"I have, but they're still a little skeptical." he said. "Sorry, Tiff."
"It's okay." she said quietly. "I understand, believe me. I wouldn't want to see me either. I can't believe who I used to be."
"Come on." I said encouragingly, as I put my arm around her. "We can talk about it over dinner."
Around forty five minutes later, we arrived at my favorite restaurant in the area. It was built like an old barn, with wide open spaces and quite a Western flavor. Wagon wheels and cowhides decorated the walls, along with a myriad of other cowboy kitsch. They were famous for their steaks, but my favorite was always the prime rib.
"Hi Mom! Hey Pop!" I greeted them enthusiastically, as we all hugged.
Tiffany was standing awkwardly to the side, and I motioned for her to join us.
"I'd like you guys to meet my wife." I said with a smile. "I know you used to know someone with her name that looked just like her, but trust me; that person no longer exists."
"It's very nice to see you again." she said respectfully. "Please accept my deepest apologies for who I may have been before. I am very ashamed for the things I have done and said, and I hope that you will forgive me. I know it's a lot to ask of you, but perhaps one day we can be friends again."
Bob Sr. and Lynn stared at one another in stunned disbelief. There was no way that this was the same bitch that had once been engaged to their son.
"Who are you, and what have you done with Tiffany?" Lynn inquired, as she reached out and hugged my wife. "Bobby told us you were a different person, but we didn't think it was possible."
"Neither did I." their son admitted. "Jack must have had the patience of a leopard."
"More like cheetahs." I replied, and Tiffany and I both laughed at the inside joke. "C'mon, let's go in and see if we can get a table for six."
We were seated at a round table on one end of the dining area, and the hostess left menus for us.
"I don't even need to look at mine!" I exclaimed, casting it to one side.
Bob laughed.
"Let me guess, the prime rib?"
"You know me too well." I admitted.
"So Tiffany, how have you been these past few months?" Lynn inquired, as our waitress arrived with glasses of water for everyone.
"Very well, thank you for asking." she replied politely. "It was a pretty hard transition at first, but Jack had a lot of faith in me. He worked very hard on my manners and attitude. I feel horrible for the way I used to act. I am so ashamed of what I have said and done to all of you over the years. I hope you find it in your hearts to forgive me at some point.
"It took a few months, but I was finally able to overcome most of my hate and frustrations with life. Oh, speaking of life, there's a little one on the way! We're going to be a mommy and daddy!"
"That's wonderful!" Lynn burst out. "Isn't it Bob?"
He nodded grudgingly, still not fully convinced this wasn't some sort of elaborate act on her part. The waitress took our orders and left, so we continued our conversation.
"Jack was so patient with me." Tiffany continued. "He's taught me a lot about country living and how to work with other people. They have this whole collective thing going, where a not of people in the community raise meat and vegetables and trade for stuff. It's a whole life I never knew existed, until he introduced me to it. Now, I can't think of anything else I'd rather do, or a place to be."
"Well, I'm glad you like living there." Bob responded, reaching out for the whole wheat loaf of bread and accompanying jar of real butter on the cutting board in the middle of the tasble.
Instead, he accidentally knocked Tiffany's glass of ice water over, causing it to run onto her lap. She yelped and stood up, looking at her wet jeans.
"I am so sorry!" Bob apologized, fully expecting her to fly off the handle and make a scene. "I must need new eyeglasses or something."
Tiffany reached out and picked up one of the cloth napkins, and tried to soak up as much of the liquid as she could.
"It's okay." she replied, as she daubed her waist with the absorbent material. "Lucky it wasn't red wine or tomato juice."
"Right now, it just looks like you peed your pants." I responded dryly. "Tomato juice would have looked much more embarrassing."
My wife let out a giggle and set the napkin down.
"Why don't you go to the Ladies Room and take your jeans off and use the hand dryer on them?" I suggested. "You should be back before dinner arrives. If not, we'll send Amalie to get you."
"I'll just go with her." Amalie said. "I need to use it anyway, and wash my hands."
The two women left for the restroom, and I glared at my former father-in-law.
"You did that on purpose, Pop!" I said accusingly. "That wasn't very nice."
He shrugged.
"There were a lot of times over the years I didn't want to just spill it on her, I wanted to throw it in her face." he explained. "I really thought she was putting on a show, and that she'd jump up and start screaming at me. Not only did she not throw a fit, she actually laughed at your comment! I've never seen her smile before, let alone laugh like that. I guess she really has changed."
"She has." I replied, as she and Amalie returned and sat down.
"All better?" I inquired. "Got your bladder issue all fixed?"
