Forever And A Day (Montana Brides, Book #7) (12 page)

She’d spent most of last night cutting out footprints, adding up how many she’d need to fill a room longer than the living room on Alex’s ranch. It had taken ages, but she’d figured Jordan was worth it.

But the more Kermit sang, the less sure she was about anything. Jordan started humming along with the song and Sarah relaxed. If a green frog could sing about rainbows, then she could forgive Jordan’s little white lie. And he thought she was pretty. That had to count for something.

“Are you all right?”

Sarah smiled. “Why?”

“You’re not talking.”

She pinched his back.

Jordan laughed and spun her in a fast unwaltz like circle. “You need to try harder than that to annoy me. Do you want to know why I thought you wouldn’t be impressed with me?”

“Not really,” she muttered. “But you're going to tell me anyway.”

Jordan kissed the side of her head. “Because you don’t trust easily and I might have slightly exaggerated my lack of dancing expertise.” And just to prove his point he spun her into a three-quarter turn.

“I should be annoyed with you.” She tried to sound grumpy, but her voice refused to budge out of happy mode.

“You mean you’re not?”

“Don’t get your hopes up. There’s a reason why I’m not annoyed. I happen to like ballroom dancing, but it’s hard to find a partner. You can be my friend for as long as you’re prepared to dance with me.”

Jordan laughed. “You’re using me?”

Sarah snuggled against his chest. “Only in the nicest possible way.”

Kermit kept singing and Jordan’s feet kept sliding across the floor. His hand slipped around Sarah’s waist and his fingers started moving in slow circles against her cotton shirt.

“You’ve relaxed so much that it feels like your body’s part of mine.”

Sarah let his words drift inside her head, then frowned when she worked out what he’d said. She would have stepped out of Jordan’s arms, but she was already moving backward. Only it wasn’t intentional or planned. Jordan kept hold of her, tipping her into territory she didn’t want to go.

“You can’t say things like that.”

“Why not?” Jordan’s voice had an edge to it, a heaviness that hadn’t been there before.

Sarah took her hand off his shoulder and stopped dancing. Kermit’s song had come to an end and so had their waltz. “We can be friends, but I’m not going to fall in love with you. I thought I loved a man once and he stomped on my heart so hard that I couldn’t think straight.”

“I don’t want you to fall in love with me.” Jordan crossed his arms in front of his chest and glared at her.

“You could have fooled me.” Sarah threw her arms in the air and glared at the sound system. “You chose Kermit, the same song your friends waltzed to on their wedding day. You had a shower and changed your clothes before I got here. You even smell nice.”

“You think I did all of that because I want you to fall in love with me? Jeez, Legs. You’ve really outdone yourself this time. I’ve been mending fences for most of the day. I needed a shower whether you were coming here or not. And you didn’t have a problem with the way I smelled the other night.”

Sarah felt her eyes fill with tears. “I can’t help it if I like the way you smell.”

Jordan muttered something before pulling her into his arms. “I’m sorry. I’ll try harder not to say what I’m thinking.”

“You shouldn’t even be thinking things like that.”

“Why not?”

Sarah took a deep breath and rested her head on his shoulder. “I haven’t known you for very long and I won’t be staying in Bozeman forever.”

“You think time has anything to do with what’s happening?”

“No.” Sarah sighed and stepped out of his arms. “I think Kermit’s got a lot to answer for.”

“You’ve got something against green frogs?”

“I’ve got something against tall, dark haired men with dimples in their cheeks.”

“Nice to know I’m making an impression.” Jordan pulled a smile out of somewhere and looked around the room. “You want to give me a hand to move everything back before I make a pot of coffee?”

Sarah stared at him. After letting him know how she felt he still wanted to spend time with her? She thought he would have run a mile, left her wallowing in self-pity.

“Don’t look so worried.” He picked up a cushion that had fallen on the floor and dropped it onto the sofa. “I’m your friend. Friends share coffee, even a cookie or two if Pete and Tim haven’t cleaned me out.”

“Are you sure you don’t have any expectations about where our friendship might be heading?”

“Straight onto the dance floor at Emily and Alex’s wedding if you’ll have me?” Jordan walked across to the sound system and ejected the CD. “What do you say? Do you want to give friendship a go?”

She watched him pick up the plastic case and position the CD inside of it. He turned toward her, concern and something more shadowing his eyes.

He held the case in his hands, weighed up whatever was in his mind, then passed it to her. “You hold onto this. If you decide you don’t want to give me dance lessons, then mail it back and I won’t annoy you again.”

Sarah looked down at the picture of Kermit. “You don’t annoy me, Jordan. Especially when you offer to make me coffee.” She left the CD on a side table and moved a chair back to where it belonged. “And just for the record, I think your choice in waltz music was great. I didn’t know Kermit was so talented.”

“It’s a male thing. We have hidden depths that can take a while to figure out.”

Jordan’s shirt pulled tight against his back as he moved the coffee table back to the center of the room. Sarah gave his muscles one last glance before pushing the sofa against the wall. She didn’t know what other hidden depths Jordan had, but she liked what she’d seen so far.

He was funny, handsome, and kind. Everything she wasn’t looking for.

CHAPTER SIX

“I still don’t know why we have to wear suits to your bachelor party.” Jordan wrestled with the tie at his neck then gave up in disgust.

Alex was standing in the doorway of Jordan’s bedroom. He didn’t look worried about what was in store for him, but he should have been. Ben and Adam had combined their bachelor intelligence to come up with the pre-wedding party of the decade.

“Where did you say we’re going again?” Alex asked.

“I didn’t.” Jordan pulled the tie off his neck. “Do you know how to knot these things?”

Alex walked across the room and took the tie out of his hands. “You need to get off the ranch more often.”

“Easier said than done.” Jordan was impressed with Alex’s tie knotting ability. In less time than it would have taken him to brush his teeth, Alex had the knot secure and the tie dangling from his hand.

“If you get stuck next time, use Google.”

“I thought roping bulls gave you inside knowledge on the whole knot thing?”

“A half Windsor isn’t helpful when you’ve got two thousand pounds of bull staring you in the eyeballs. Unless you’re taking him out for his bachelor party, and in that case, I’d be worried about your sanity.”

“You might still be worried by the end of the night,” Jordan muttered. “I don’t know what Ben and Adam have got planned, but if I were you, I’d prepare for the worst.”

Alex passed Jordan his black socks. “As long as there aren’t any women in skimpy outfits I’ll be fine.”

Jordan shook his head. “You’re forgetting that you’re dealing with two desperate bachelors. It wouldn’t matter what the women were wearing. Ben and Adam will be there to enjoy all the perks of the party.”

“Last I heard you’re single too.”

Jordan pulled his black boots on and stood in front of his mirror. He had one suit to his name and this was it. He’d worn it to weddings, funerals, and the odd baby christening. But never to a bachelor party. He gave his tie a final tweak and straightened the black pinstripe jacket before turning to Alex.

“I’ve got other things on my mind.” He grabbed his wallet and headed into the living room.

Alex followed him. “One of those things wouldn’t be Sarah, would it?”

“You got a problem with me seeing her?”

“I’ve got a problem when she’s my friend and employee. I know what you’re like.”

Jordan turned and stared at his friend. “And what exactly am I like?”

“You flirt with everyone.”

“I’m not flirting with Sarah,” he said. “Not much anyway.”

“What are your intentions?”

“What is this? The dark ages?” Jordan couldn’t believe Alex was standing in the middle of the living room asking about his intentions toward Sarah. “She’s an adult. She can make her own mind up about who she wants to spend time with.”

“All I’m saying is think carefully before you do anything.”

Jordan grabbed his keys off the hook by the back door. “And this pearl of wisdom is coming from a man about to leave for his bachelor party?”

“Yeah. I’m not that good at practicing what I preach.”

“No kidding, Einstein. You’d better get in my truck before I change my mind and leave you here.”

“You can’t do that.” Alex grinned. “Then who would you have to look after?”

“Let me remind you that I’m not your best man. Jacob’s got that dubious pleasure.”

“But you’re driving the truck that’s bringing me back here. There’s a certain amount of responsibility involved.”

Jordan opened the back door of the house. “If you don’t get your sorry ass into my truck there’ll be no need for responsibility. Everyone will be enjoying your party without you.”

Alex looked outside and frowned. “You don’t think they’ve hired strippers, do you?”

“Anything is possible.” Jordan sighed. “Now get in the truck before Dan sends the Highway Patrol on a search and rescue mission.”

Alex walked down the stairs like a man about to be rocketed to the moon. A few years ago both of them would have been primed and ready for anything Ben and Adam could throw at them. But not tonight. Alex had an excuse. Emily would kill him.

Jordan knew what his excuse was. Except Alex would be the one doing the killing if he realized how much Sarah had gotten under his skin.

***

Jordan stared at the inside of the Powder Kegg, a new bar that had opened on the outskirts of Bozeman. He’d been in here once before, but that hadn’t been on a Saturday night. The bar was packed and the dance floor wasn’t much better. A band pounded out the latest tune to rock the airwaves and the twenty-something crowd were going wild.

“You thinking the same thing as me?” Alex said from beside him.

“Depends. If you feel like a dinosaur in a penguin suit, then you’d be about right.” Jordan scanned the bar. It was as good a place as any to find Ben and Adam. Jacob, Greg, and Chris didn’t look as if they’d arrived either.

“We’re attracting attention standing here. I feel like a stuffed animal,” Alex muttered. “Let’s go and buy a drink before we get arrested for being exhibitionists.”

Jordan laughed. “You need to be naked for that to apply.”

“Or look so hot that it’s making all the other guys in here seem like country hicks.”

“I think you’ve got a confidence problem,” Jordan scoffed. “Too much of something can be a bad thing.”

Alex shoved him from behind. “I might be getting married next weekend, but I’m not dead.”

Jordan glanced at his friend before looking around the bar. Alex wasn’t the most handsome dude to walk the planet. Riding bulls for most of his life had knocked him about, left him a little ragged around the edges. But some girls liked their guys rough, and one in particular had fallen for him big time. “I’m glad your brother’s looking after you tonight. And talking about brothers, yours has just arrived.” Jordan nodded toward another door. “He looks pissed about something.”

Jacob marched across the room with a scowl plastered across his face. “Who the hell agreed to let Ben and Adam organize the bachelor party?”

“That would have been all of us,” Alex said. “What’s wrong?”

“All I’ll say is that you’d better ban all cell phones if you want to be walking down the aisle next Saturday.”

“
Shit
.” Alex followed his brother and Jordan followed Alex.

It must be pretty bad for Jacob to warn them. There wasn’t much that fazed the property developer. He had nerves of steel and pockets deep enough to overcome most obstacles. Unless those obstacles came with low cut tops and tight jeans, then he was just as gullible as the next guy.

Jacob stopped before he opened a door into a private room. “What you’re about to see may blow your mind. I don’t know what they were thinking, but it’s not what I would have done.” He held onto the doorknob. “Are you ready?”

“I should run now,” Alex muttered. “Emily made me promise not to let any woman near my body. If it’s as bad as what you say, I’m in trouble.”

“They’ve all been waiting for you.”

Alex’s arm shot out. He grabbed hold of Jacob’s hand and stopped him from opening the door. “All? How many women are in there?”