Forever Cowboy (Montana Brides Book 5) (21 page)

“I’m not going.”

She glanced at him quickly. Tried to figure out what was going through his head. “I thought you were looking forward to it?”

“The thing is, I’ve been thinking about what I’m going to do. With my life.”
 

Emily was glad she was sitting down. If he pulled out of their partnership agreement she didn’t know what she’d do. She couldn’t afford to buy his share out, not straight away. “I know the remodel cost a lot of money. But we kept to budget and the building looks incredible.”

“It’s not the boutique.”

She waited for him to continue, to tell her what was on his mind. It was like waiting for a day of sunshine in the middle of winter. A noise in the corridor pulled her attention away from Alex and straight onto Nicky.
 

“Is Gracie all right?” Emily asked.

Nicky’s eyes filled with tears. “She’s had her baby. It’s a girl,” she choked out. “She’s got bright red hair and a cute dimple on her chin.”

Emily jumped up and hugged Nicky. Alex wasn’t far behind.
 

“What’s happened?” Trent stood in the doorway. His skin had turned as white as the walls either side of him.

“It’s a girl,” Nicky cried. “A beautiful daughter.” She ran across to Trent and gave him a big hug. “Congratulations, daddy.”

He swung her in the air. “I’ve got a daughter.”

Alex laughed. “If she’s anything like her mom you’re in trouble.”

“How’s Gracie?” Trent asked.

“Everything went fine.” Nicky pulled out a tissue and wiped her eyes. “The nurses were about to move her into the recovery room when I left. I’ll show you were she’s going.” Trent followed Nicky out of the room, grinning from ear to ear.

Emily leaned against the wide windowsill, smiling at Alex. “How does it feel to be an Uncle?”

“Pretty good. Mom’s going to be happy that it’s a girl. She’s been knitting baby clothes for the last six months.”

“Did I hear the word ‘girl’?” Kristina Green, Gracie’s step-mom, walked into the room with a big bouquet of roses clutched in her hands. “Has Gracie had her baby?”

“A few minutes ago.” Alex walked to his mom and gave her a hug. “You’ve got a granddaughter.”

“That’s wonderful. How’s Gracie?”
 

“She’s in recovery. Trent’s just gone in with Nicky.”

“What have I missed?” Jacob appeared in the doorway.
 

“Gracie’s had her baby,” Alex repeated. “It’s a girl.”

“Is Gracie all right?”

“She’s fine,” Alex sighed. “And before you ask, Nicky and Trent have gone through to see her and dad hasn’t arrived.”

Jacob loosened the tie at his neck. “I’ll go and see Gracie. Are you coming, mom?”

“You go ahead. I’ll wait for your dad here.” Jacob left the room and Kristina smiled at Emily. “I had a look through the boutique window the other day. It looks wonderful. If you need a hand with anything, let me know and I’ll be there.”

“Thanks, Mrs. Green. We’re on the last stretch now. Are you able to be at the opening?”

“I wouldn’t miss it for the world. Have you seen Gracie’s baby?”
 

Emily shook her head. “Family first. I’ll give you time to have a cuddle before I have my turn.”

“In that case, I’ll wait by the nurse’s station for Jim. Gracie might need help with the baby.” Kristina gave them both a quick hug and headed down the corridor.
 

Alex sat on one of the sofas. “I knew mom wouldn’t be able to stay away for long. I’m surprised she’s waiting for dad.”

“When Christopher was born, mom said that all grandchildren are special, but the first makes your heart burst with pride.”

“From the look on my mom’s face I’d say she was right.” Alex pulled his cell phone out of his pocket. “I bought a new phone the other day. I’d better work out how to take photos in case dad forgot his camera.”
 

Emily watched him push a few buttons, slide a screen across and frown at the screen. “Alex…?”

“Hmmm?”

“Before we saw Nicky, you said you were thinking about what to do with your life. What did you mean?”

Alex stopped pushing buttons and looked up. “Do you think more family are going to arrive?”

“Only if someone rung your cousins.”

“They’re miles away so we’re safe.” He put his cell phone beside his hat and stared out the window. He looked so lost that Emily wanted to give him a hug.
 

“I’m thinking about not going back.”

Emily was confused. “To the recovery room to see Gracie?”

“No.” Alex closed his eyes as if what he was about to say was painful. “To bull riding.”

Emily sat perfectly still. “But it’s what you’ve always wanted. It’s who you are.”

Alex shook his head. “I’m more than a bull rider. Some of the guys have been on the circuit for years. They don’t know when to stop. I don’t want to be one of those guys, the ones that go down hard and never recover.”

“What would you do?”

“I’ve started breeding high performance bulls. It’s a million dollar industry and we’ve got the right DNA to make a difference.”

“Like your dad?”

“For dad it’s a sideline business. I want it to be my focus. Mac will keep the cattle side of our ranch operating. We’ll figure everything else out between us.”

“Will you be happy doing that?”

“It’s better than being stomped on at every rodeo.”
 

His half-hearted attempt to make Emily smile didn’t work. She was worried about him. Worried that he’d regret leaving behind a career that had been the center of his life.

She sat down beside him. “Is it really what you want to do?”

“I’d be a bull rider for the rest of my life if I could. But I can’t. Old age and a good dose of common sense has finally kicked in. This is the next best thing. I can make a difference to the next generation of bull riders. Maybe create a stir amongst the stock contractors with a bull that outshines everyone else’s.”

Emily knew that if anyone could make a successful career from breeding bucking bulls it was Alex. She just hoped it would be enough to replace the most important thing in his life.

CHAPTER TWELVE

Alex stared at his tiny niece. She looked too small, too fragile to be passed from one person to the next. But she didn’t seem to mind. She slept through the noise, the gentle hands stroking her soft skin, and the tears that filled most of the eyes in the room.

“She’s beautiful, Gracie. What are you going to call her?”

“Jessica Rose McKenzie.”

Alex rubbed his little finger against Jessica’s palm and smiled when her tiny fingers held on tight. “She’ll make a good barrel rider. What do you think, dad?”

Jim looked up from his digital camera. “If she takes after the Green side of the family she’ll be a pocket rocket around the arena.”

Jessica started making sucking noises, screwing her face into the cutest scowl Alex had seen. “I think she’s hungry.” He walked toward Gracie, angling Jessica so that his sister could see her baby’s face.

“She looks okay to me. What do you think, Kristina?”
 

Gracie’s step-mom smiled. “She’s fine, just working out how to use that mouth of hers.”

Alex went back across the room to Emily. “Do you want a hold?”

Emily stepped forward and held her hands out. “I never thought you’d ask.”

He gently held Jessica toward Emily, scared that he’d drop her. Emily slid her hands along his niece’s back, supported her head and held her close.

“She’s so tiny,” Emily said with surprise. “I’m sure she’s smaller than Christopher was.”

“Most babies are smaller than Christopher.” Nicky laughed. “And he hasn’t stopped growing.”

Emily rubbed Jessica’s cheek and smiled. Something inside Alex stuttered, then sped up, shooting through his body faster than he could breathe. “You look good holding a baby.”
 

He clamped his lips tight. You could have heard a pin drop, the room was so quiet. Everyone stared at him with looks that ranged from mild amusement to horror. It was plain bad luck that Emily was the one that looked as though she was going to be sick.

“I’m just saying, that’s all.” He rubbed the back of his neck, felt the heat of embarrassment snake along his skin and decided he’d better leave. “I’ll go and get the office furniture.”

Jacob moved away from the wall. For some reason the smirk on his face irritated Alex more than usual. “I’ll come with you.”
 

As soon as they were out of earshot, Jacob said, “You’ll need a bucket of solvent from the hardware store as well.”

“What for?”

“To unstick the boot that’s permanently stuck in your mouth.”

“And that makes perfect sense from someone who hasn’t had a girlfriend in years.”

Jacob didn’t even bother to look insulted. “I’ve got other things keeping me busy.”

“You mean those million dollar deals I keep hearing about?”

“Could be.”

Alex wasn’t sure what his brother was hiding, but it definitely didn’t involve a woman or their family. Either of those two things would have set alarm bells off and he would have heard about it from their dad.
 

Subtlety had never worked with his older brother, so he got straight to the point. “Why are you in Bozeman?”

“I told you. Someone has to make sure you keep yourself out of trouble.”

“I’m not in trouble. Not the type you mean anyway.”

“When has any type of trouble not included a woman? You’re in love with Emily. Why aren’t you doing something about it?”

For the second time in as many minutes Alex’s face flamed brighter than the setting sun.

“You mean you have done something about it?”
 

“Mind your own business.” Alex looked around the main reception area of the hospital. The antiseptic smell of the ward had followed them downstairs, mingling with the sick people waiting for attention, making his stomach turn into a ball of knots.

Jacob grabbed his elbow. “You’ve gone as white as a sheet. Let’s get out of here.” He pushed him toward the entrance, not letting go until they were standing outside.

“How the hell did you manage to stay in the hospital for two weeks in Vegas?”

Alex sat on the grass with his head between his knees. “Didn’t have a choice.” He concentrated on sucking as much oxygen into his lungs as he could. Thank God he hadn’t panicked when he’d been holding Jessica. Dropping his new niece wouldn’t have gone down too well with his sister. He took a few more deep breaths, clearing the last of the antiseptic out of his body.

“How do you feel now?”

Alex lifted his head. “Better. You still haven’t told me why you came home early. What’s going on?”

Jacob looked around, then sat beside Alex.

“You’ll get grass stains on your fancy suit.”

“Smart ass.” Jacob grinned. “I’m not that far gone that I’ve forgotten how to get down and dirty.”

“You’ve been here a week and all you’ve been wearing are suits. Where’s the cowboy gone?”

“He might come home quicker than you think,” Jacob muttered.

“What’s going on?”

Jacob stared across the parking lot. “You see those mountains over there?”

“Hard not to,” Alex said.
 

Jacob was looking toward Big Sky, the winter tourist hot spot of Montana. “I’m going to buy three thousand acres of land just west of the Big Sky Resort with four other guys.”

Alex turned toward his brother. “Are you serious?”

“When haven’t I been?”

“Oh, I don’t know. What about when you brought that blonde lawyer home? Mom and dad nearly had a heart attack when you told them you were getting married.”

“I wasn’t joking.”

“I know you weren’t. But considering she didn’t last more than a week before the engagement was over, I’d say you have an issue with knowing when other people are being serious.”

“Do you want to know about the land or not?”

Alex pulled his hat low and laughed. “Keep talking.”

“I heard through a friend that a couple of parcels of land were about to be put on the market. I’ve spent the last few weeks going over everything. I showed the other investors the land this week.”

“It must have passed the Jacob Green tests if you’re going to buy it.”

“Almost. We’ve still got to confirm a few details, but it’s looking good.”

Alex glanced at his brother. “What are you going to do with three thousand acres?”

“Divide it into smaller parcels and build luxury homes.”

“Sounds like a lot of money tied up in one investment.”

Jacob frowned. “By the time we pay all of the legal expenses, we’re looking at about eleven million dollars worth of land.”

“Shit. Are you mad?”

“It’s a good deal. Three of the investors are ready to sign. The fourth is still thinking about it.”

“It’s a big risk building in the mountains. The cost of getting contractors and their supplies up there is huge. And then you’ve got the weather to consider. Power tools don’t work so well in a snowstorm.”

“No kidding, Sherlock. When have you ever been risk adverse? I thought you’d say it’s a great plan.”

Alex looked back at the mountains. They glowed with a purple fire in the evening light, casting deep shadows across the plains.
 

Jacob was right. He’d always thrown himself into life and thought about the consequences later. When they’d been kids, Big Sky Resort had been one of their favorite places to ski. They’d swooped down the slopes like reckless idiots, following their noses into more trouble than they knew what to do with.

As an adult, Alex had taken his brother’s advice, investing money into buildings and property that he knew next to nothing about. He didn’t consider himself a slouch when it came to managing money and he trusted Jacob. But he had been reckless. If it had been Emily’s father that he’d been taking advice from he’d be bankrupt by now.
 

And if he really wanted to get into the deep and meaningful stuff, he’d probably say that he’d chosen bull riding as a career because it kept him overdosed on adrenaline.
 

“I guess I’m growing up.” He stared at Jacob’s bent head. He’d never seen his brother worried about a deal. “Have you signed anything?”