Honey Kisses (Romance on the Ranch Series #2)
Read Honey Kisses (Romance on the Ranch Series #2) Online
Authors: Verna Clay
Honey Kisses
Romance
on the Ranch Series
By
Verna
Clay
This book is dedicated to
everyone who has a secret.
Honey Kisses
Romance on the Ranch Series
Copyright © 2012 by Verna Clay
All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this
book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever.
For information contact:
Website: www.VernaClay.com
Published by:
M.O.I.
Publishing
"Mirrors of Imagination"
Cover Designer: Elaina Lee (For the Muse)
Pictures: Dreamstime
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places,
and incidents either are products of the author's imagination or are used
fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or
dead, is entirely coincidental.
Dear
Readers,
I'm very happy with the way
Honey Kisse
s
unfolded. Although unusual, I went with the flow. I think Ann Hackstetter's
secret is going to surprise everyone. I know it certainly surprised me. As for
Jackson's reaction, well…that's unveiled in the story.
The next book in the series is the love story
between Tooty Townsend and Miles Brightman in
Baby Kisses.
Miles is eighteen
years older than Tooty and confined to a wheelchair. Harris, Tooty's four year
old son, born when she was sixteen, is always looking to find himself a daddy. Needless
to say, these star-crossed lovers have much to overcome. Of course, the more
conflicts and challenges, the more fun the story is to write.
Verna
Clay
Sequence of books in Romance on the Ranch Series:
Dream Kisses
Honey Kisses
Baby Kisses
Table
of Contents
Chapter 8: Someone for Jackson
Chapter 20: Flirting with the Enemy
Chapter 22: Jackson to the Rescue
Pastor Porter boomed, "I now pronounce you
husband and wife. You may kiss your bride."
Ann lifted a tissue to blot tears as she watched
her only child, Jacob, kiss Julie Tanner, now Julie Hackstetter. Across the
aisle, Julie's father and stepmother, Sage and Sarah, lovingly held hands. Sage
lifted Sarah's hand to his lips and kissed it.
Pastor Porter asked the newlyweds to face the
congregation. To everyone's delight, Jacob sneaked another kiss as the portly
pastor announced, "I now present Mr. and Mrs. Hackstetter. Please
congratulate our newlyweds in the foyer and then head on over to Lazy M Ranch
for the reception. Everyone's invited!"
There was a little crackle over the speaker
system and then Shania Twain sang,
From this Moment.
The happy couple
descended the few steps of the chancel platform, followed by Julie's maid of
honor, Tooty Townsend, and Jacob's best man, Bobby Joe Banyon. Julie's gown, a
simple strapless A-line with lace overlay, matched her easy going personality,
and Jacob, in a gray cowboy tux with black vest, looked striking. The pair had
insisted on a small wedding, so there were no bridesmaids or groomsmen.
Beaner, a ranch hand from the Lazy M, and now an
usher in the wedding, stepped to the first aisle and offered his arm to Ann.
She placed her hand in the crook of his elbow. Sarah and Sage stepped into the
aisle behind Tooty and Bobby, and Beaner led Ann behind them. The bride and
groom waited just outside the entrance to the sanctuary ready to greet their
guests. Ann took a position beside her son, and Sage and Sarah stood next to
her.
Mr. and Mrs. Mercer, the parents of Julie's dead
mother, and Mr. and Mrs. Carter, Sarah's parents, exited the sanctuary followed
by Sarah's sister, Libby, on the arm of another ranch hand, Ned Waldo. Next,
Ann's parents, Abby and Bert Baxter, and her grandmother, Molly Baxter, entered
the foyer. The old cowpoke, Newt Tucker, escorted Molly, who was talking a
mile-a-minute and gesturing with her hands to emphasize her words. He'd craned
his bony neck downward so he could hear. Ann grinned at the sight of granny
talking Newt's ear off. Of course, Newt could hold his own in spinning a tale.
Between the two of them, they could probably talk nonstop for days.
Ann returned her attention to accepting
congratulations from guests and tried to keep her emotions at bay. Her son was
married. She blinked rapidly, wishing Jerry had lived long enough to see their
son wed, and dabbed at her eyes again. Jacob bent and whispered, "You
okay, Mom?"
"Oh, yes, Jacob."
He looked into her eyes and read her unspoken
thoughts. "I know. I wish he was here, too."
Julie stepped around Jacob and hugged her.
"I love you, Mom," she said to her new mother-in-law.
"I love you, too, Julie."
For the next half hour the bride and groom and
family members greeted guests. Ann was exchanging pleasantries with Sally
Higginbotham, a vocalist in the wedding, when she heard a familiar voice that shifted
her heartbeat into triple rhythm. She wanted to look in the direction of the
voice, but kept her gaze riveted on Mrs. Higginbotham's red lipstick teeth. She
smoothed a hand down her pale green chiffon-over-satin, form fitting dress,
with satin bolero jacket, and hoped it didn't make her look too matronly. Sarah
and Julie had assured her the color contrasted beautifully with her olive
complexion and set off her hazel eyes. She hoped so.
Jackson Martinez continued speaking, "Julie
and Jacob. You're a fine looking couple. After you're back from your honeymoon
and settled in, I'd like to invite you to the Triple T for dinner."
Jacob responded, "We'd like that Jackson.
By the way, congratulations are in order for you, too, now that you own the
Triple T."
"Thanks. Tommy always said he'd give me
first dibs if he ever put it up for sale, and when he did, I didn't have to
think twice."
Mrs. Higginbotham moved on and Ann chanced a
glance upward at Jackson. He was looking at her with a little smile. Her face
flooded with color. He continued talking to Jacob while still looking at her.
"I'll check back in about a month. Give you time to get settled. I'd like
you to come too, Annie, if you're still in town."
Ann smiled and nodded; afraid her voice would sound
breathless if she spoke.
"Sounds good," said Jacob.
"It's a date," Julie agreed.
Jackson leaned over and kissed Julie's cheek.
"You done good, baby girl."
"Thanks, Jackson."
The tall cowboy stepped in front of Ann.
"Hello, Annie," he said, low and deep.
"Hello, Jackson. Thank you for coming to
the wedding."
Stupid thing to say, and damn, you do sound breathless.
His little smile turned into a grin. "I
wouldn't have missed it." For a second he just looked at her. "Hey, I
like your hair that darker color."
Self consciously, Ann lifted a hand to a soft
curl on her shoulder. "Thank you."
"Hello, my name is Pritzy Purvis." A
beautiful young blond stepped up beside Jackson and possessively snuggled her
hand under his elbow, interrupting the moment. She stuck her other hand out
toward Ann."
Ann accepted the woman's gesture. "I'm
happy to meet you Pritzy."
Pritzy said, "How does it feel being the
mother of a grown man who has just gotten married?"
"It feels wonderful. And now I have a grown
daughter, too."
There was an uneasy silence and then Jackson
said, "Well, I guess we'll see you at the reception."
Pritzy gave her a sugar-coated smile and then
looked up at Jackson, turning it into a sexy one. They moved on and the
pastor's plus-sized wife stepped into their position squeezing Ann in a bear
hug that swallowed her in folds of taffeta.
After the last guest bid best wishes, the
wedding party headed back to the Lazy M in the ranch's shuttle van. They
couldn't have asked for a more perfect spring day for the festivities. Most of
the guests had already arrived when they reached the dorm, and the moment the
newlyweds stepped inside, the crowd hooted.
The great room had been hung with paper bells
and draped with blue and yellow crepe paper, the colors the bride and groom had
selected. Furniture had been pushed against the walls to make space for a dance
floor in one corner and dining in the rest of the room. Taking center stage on
a round table with a sky blue table cloth was an eight-tier wedding cake, the
pride and joy of Cowgirl Confections. Blue and yellow flowers danced up the
sides of the frosting to the top tier where a cowboy groom and cowgirl bride,
both wearing white cowboy hats and leaning toward each other for a kiss,
created the perfect effect. Scattered throughout the room were more round
tables, some with blue tablecloths and some with yellow, inviting guests to sit
and take a load off.
Tooty, who had left the church right after the
ceremony to make sure everything was prepared, rushed to Jacob and Julie as
soon as they entered. Her strawberry blond hair contrasted beautifully with a
pale blue strapless, mid-calf gown set off with dainty yellow flowers at the
empire waist that crossed to one side of the bosom. While she was giving
instructions to the bride and groom, Ann glanced down at Harris, Tooty's four
year old son, trying to get his mother's attention by pulling on her skirt.
When that didn't work, he yelled, "Mommy, I gotta go to the
bathroom!"
Ann rushed to assist. "Tooty, I'll take
him."
"Thanks, Ann, I've got to get the band
lined out."
Ann grabbed Harris' hand. "Come on, little
man."
Poor Harris. Holding the front of his pants, he
tried to waddle to the bathroom. The strain on his impish face showed the
effort he was making to keep from having an accident. Ann swooped him up and
practically ran to the ladies room. When he'd finished, he said, "Thanks,
Aunty Ann. I almost pooped and peed my pants."
Ann tried to keep a straight face. "Harris,
you did real good. Now let's go back to the party."
"Yeah. I like parties. Maybe Mommy'll find
me a Daddy and get married like Jacob and Julie."
Ann's heart broke at Harris' statement spoken
with so much longing. Tooty was the same age as Julie, twenty, and already had
a four year old son. She'd dropped out of high school late in her pregnancy and
then gotten her GED later. Ann admired the girl. From what Julie had told her,
Tooty's family had just about disowned her, but after Harris was born, he'd
wiggled his way into everyone's hearts. Although Ann had never asked, she had
heard Julie telling Sage and Sarah that the father wasn't someone Tooty wanted
to be saddled with.