Two Nights with His Bride (20 page)

“Did you?”

“No. Too embarrassed. I preferred watching him from a distance.”

Faye leaned back in her chair, tipping her head to the side as she watched Nancy. “Why isn’t he here now?”

“I asked him not to come.” A yawning bleakness opened up inside her. “I’ve been so stupid, Faye. I miss him. I want him here, but I’m terrified. You know what, though? He understands—just like he did when I made up those orphans. That’s what kills me. He understands, and he’s not telling
me I’m stupid or crazy for being cautious, no matter how much it must hurt. He’s not pressuring me to be anyone different than who I really am.”

Before Faye could respond, Nancy’s cell phone rang. Her mom’s name lit the screen, and she was a little disappointed it wasn’t Wyatt. Hopeful her phone would work again, she tapped the screen. “Mom?”

“Hi, darling. How’s it going?”

“Okay. Tough but
survivable. How are you guys?”

“Worried about you, but we had some amazing news this morning.”

Nancy gripped the phone and leaned forward. “What is it?”

“A couple contacted us because they want to start a camp for kids with disabilities. They’re looking for something in Paradise Valley because they live in town, and we told them about our horses and the woods and river and old bunkhouses. They
were so excited they came to visit and just left a minute ago.” Her voice quickened with excitement. “Honey, they want to rent some of our land and pay us to teach the kids how to ride. They’ll give us a monthly retainer and pay expenses on top of that.”

Nancy could hardly speak she was breathing so hard. “How much?”

Her mom named a figure, and Nancy dropped her phone. Faye was at her side in
an instant. “What’s wrong?”

Nancy shook her head, numb with shock. Her mom’s voice called up to her from somewhere in the couch cushions. Faye picked up the phone and handed it to her, forcing her to take it. Something didn’t make sense, but she was struggling to think. “Mom? That’s a little more than what I pay for the mortgage.”

“I know. We can’t believe it. We’re so excited. And a project
like this? Oh, honey, it feels like a way we can give back to the community.”

Her eyes burned. “Who are they?”

“The woman’s named Molly Dekker. I think you went to school with her. She was Molly Peabody before she married—”

“Greg Dekker. Yeah, I remember her. She was nice.”

“She’s incredible. Her son had a horrible accident last year—”

“I remember you telling me.” Nancy swallowed hard. “But
he’s okay now?”

“Paraplegic, poor little thing. Not that it slows him down any. Liveliest boy I’ve ever seen, so I can understand why Molly and her fiancé want to do this. What that woman’s been through…” Her mom clucked her tongue. “I’m so honored we’ll get to be part of this.”

Nancy’s skin felt alive, hope and excitement and the incredible serendipity of life meshing into one huge ball of
relief. She could hardly get the words out, choking as she said, “That’s wonderful. Unbelievable.”

“Oh, believe it! It’s true, honey. Every word of it.”

With an earsplitting
clang
, Nancy’s bullshit alarm rang. Her eyes narrowed and she cast her mind back over the conversation, searching it for holes. “Funny that they called you this morning of all mornings.”

“I—I don’t think it’s funny.”

“Mom, you’re a terrible liar.”

“I’m not lying!”

Suddenly her mom’s voice was replaced by her dad’s. “Your mother’s not lying. It happened just the way she said.”

A question itched in the back of her brain, but she couldn’t pin it down. Something about…about… “Why did they think
our
ranch would be the right place?”

“They…they said something about seeing pictures in a magazine recently. Probably
something to do with that wedding of yours.”

“We didn’t release any early pictures of the ranch to any magazines.”

“One of those blog things, then.”

“Try again, Dad.”

“Jesus, Nancylynn, your stubborn voice is back with a vengeance. Like we said, Molly and her fiancé came over and we ironed out the details. End of story.”

Bingo.
The information she knew was missing exploded in her head. “Who
did you say her fiancé is?”

“Uh…don’t recall his name.”

“Try, Dad. I legally own the place, remember? I need to know who’s renting part of it.”

He sighed. “Gabriel Morales.”

“Gab—” She bolted upright. “Wyatt’s brother?”

“No, the other Gabriel Morales in town.” Her dad’s voice dripped with sarcasm.

“Wyatt set this up.”

“Because he cares about you, baby. He—”

“I gotta go. I’ll talk to you
later.” She hung up and turned to Faye, who was sitting close enough that she had to have heard. “Can you book me on the latest flight home tonight?”

Faye blinked. “Yeah, but why don’t I get you on a sooner flight?”

Nancy stood and crossed to the door. “Because I’m about to be the best damn leper anyone’s ever seen.”

‡

“There is a place you can touch a woman that will drive her crazy. Her heart.”

—Melanie Griffith

W
yatt nearly wore
out the floor of Bozeman Airport’s terminal waiting for Nancy’s flight to arrive, his footsteps echoing in the high-ceilinged wood and stone building. Her parents had warned him that she’d sniffed out
his involvement, and he’d gotten a text from Faye right afterwards with Nancy’s flight details.

That had been yesterday afternoon. He hadn’t heard from her at all since then.

He’d lined up all his excuses, but he didn’t have to look very deep down to know he’d messed up. He’d known it the whole time he was doing it, dread making his gut curdle.

But he would do it all over again in an instant.

A few passengers wandered into the terminal building, loaded down with carry-ons and wearing identical sleepy expressions. Since Nancy had flown via Denver and that was the only flight scheduled to arrive right now, he stopped pacing and forced himself to stand still.

And there she was, wearing sunglasses and a floppy hat and rolling a bag behind her. He strode to her. When she saw him coming,
she stopped and pulled the glasses off, letting them dangle by her side.

Exhaustion etched her face, and guilt hit him hard for adding to her troubles. “How was your flight?”

“You went behind my back and helped me.”

He cringed. “So I guess we’re talking about this, are we?”

She drew in a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I need to know why you did it when I specifically asked you not to.”

Shit.
He was in it deep. “I figured out a way to help, and I wanted to take away at least one of the threats he was holding over you.”

“Why?”

“So you could make the decision about whether to shoot those scenes without having to worry about your parents—or about me taking the ranch from you.”

Guilt flickered in her eyes, and he breached the distance between them to cup her soft cheek. All the
words he’d practiced flew out of his head, all the reasoned arguments dissolving in his fear that she wouldn’t understand. The words that came out instead were laden with emotion. “I would never do that.
Ever.
The fact you thought I could shows me we have a hell of a lot to learn about each other, but everything I know about you makes me eager to put in the hard yards and find out more.”

Her
eyes glistened, the hope that sprang to them breaking his heart for all the promises others had made her and failed to keep. His throat felt like it was lined with glass shards as he swallowed hard. “It’s not easy for me to talk about things like feelings, but here it goes. I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you since you came back to town. I’ve never been so terrified as when I heard that
asshole vowing to love, honor and protect you—because I knew he wouldn’t. And that’s what you deserve, sweetheart. A man who cherishes you. Who knows how to love you. Who honors you with his whole heart, his whole mind, his whole body. A man worthy of telling all your secrets because he would never judge you for them. A man you can be yourself with, not a version of yourself you think he wants to
see.”

“Oh, Wyatt.”

He let out a deep breath. “I want to be careful not to make any promises I can’t keep. I don’t know where this is going, and you’ve just been through the wringer. I get that. I love an adrenaline rush, but I spent my childhood being hurt by two people who rushed into marriage and found it crumbling beneath their feet. I want to go slow with you. I want us to take our time.
I’m pacing myself for a marathon, sweetheart—not a sprint.”

A tear spilled over her cheek, and the whites of her eyes turned pink. He brushed the wetness away with the pad of his thumb.

“I haven’t always been a good man, Nancy. In fact, my biggest regrets are the times I hurt the people I should’ve loved. I guess I’m telling you this because I need to admit my motives weren’t purely selfless
at your wedding, and they definitely weren’t when I went against your wishes yesterday. But please know I didn’t do it out of lack of respect for you. I did it because I knew I had it in my power to make something easier for you—and I will never turn my back on opportunities to do that. Ever. I never expected to start falling for you, but I can’t seem to do anything to make these damn feelings go
away, so I hope you can live with me helping you out every now and then.”

*

His precious face
blurred as tears filled her eyes. Words failed her. Her eyes stung, her throat swelled closed, and every fiber of her being screamed,
This is what a good man looks like.

Brushing her fingers over his rough cheek and into his hair, she pulled him closer. His
body stilled for a second, but then he tangled his fingers in the hair at her nape, tilted her head back and pressed his lips to hers.

Her fears dissolved under his tender touch, and she pressed closer as he held her like he would never let go. When she finally pulled away for breath, he slowly stroked his big hands over her back, sending shivers of recognition through her.
You. Always you.

“Is that a yes?”

The corner of her mouth quirked up. “Depends. What question are you asking?”

“Will you start this adventure with me and see where it takes us?”

Nuzzling his nose with hers, she said, “Yes. With all my heart,
yes
.”

His lips found hers, his big hands stroking her back, her ribs, her hips. The
click
of camera phones wormed its way into her love haze, but she ignored them. Let
the bloggers and paparazzi and gossip columnists say what they wanted. She was done living her life for them. She’d buried her desire to be superficially known by millions alongside that ghastly wedding gown. How much better was it to be completely known by one?

The years of anguished puppy love were swept away. The rough veneer he’d taken on as her tarnished childhood hero smoothed out. He may
have shattered her hopes once long ago, but he gave her new hope.

Didn’t mean she couldn’t point out his obvious failing, though. She ran her fingertip down the bridge of his nose and tapped his lips. “Never in a million years, huh?”

He had the grace to look sheepish. “So I was wrong once. Big deal.”

She laughed. “It’s happened to me once or twice, too. Don’t worry. You get used to it.”

Shaking
his head, he rested his forehead against hers and gave her a look that shot longing through her like lightning. “I don’t think so. I’ve never felt more right.”

Just like that, she melted. “Take me home.”

“Your home?”

“No. Yours.” She wasn’t ready to see her parents, wasn’t ready for their questions. More than that, though, she wanted Wyatt to herself for a little while longer.

He picked up
her bag and slipped his arm around her waist, matching her stride as they crossed the wide-open terminal building. When they got to his truck, he opened the door and held his hand out so she could climb up. She did it slowly, brushing suggestively against him before settling in the passenger seat. His lips curled with the promise of future pleasure.