“Great idea,” Iris agreed. “Are you in agreement with that, Paxton?”
Pax put the pen to paper and scrawled out his name. “Yes, ma’am, I am.”
“Good, then when y’all get back from your honeymoon, I’ll have all the papers ready to do the transfers. I’ll wait until the excitement of today is over before I tell Maverick, so keep this a secret between us until then.” She gave Paxton’s arm a gentle squeeze. “Now that we’ve got the property settlement done, let’s go get ready for the wedding of the century.”
* * *
Alana’s blond hair flowed in soft curls down to her shoulders. Bridget and Dixie had done her makeup, and all she had to do was apply a little lipstick to her full lips, slip into her dress, and put on her boots. In one hour the wedding would start, but first the photographer wanted to take some candid pictures in the living room of the ranch house.
She stood in front of the floor-length mirror attached to the back of her bedroom door and held out her hands. Not even a tremor. This whole affair had surely started out on the wrong foot, but it was ending perfectly.
“My wedding.” She smiled at her reflection. “Not daddy’s wedding or even a fake one with intentions of divorce or annulment in a few weeks.”
“Hey, are you ready for some help getting into that gorgeous dress?” Emily called from the other side of the door.
Alana took a step back and opened it wide. “I sure am. Is the photographer here?”
“Oh, yeah, and chompin’ at the bit for you to come downstairs,” Emily said. “But, honey, this is your day. My grandmother made me understand that on my wedding day. She said, ‘Emily, I don’t care if the elastic in your panty hose pops and your stockings fall down around your ankles. Kick them off to the side and remember that it’s your day. Don’t let anyone rush you or make you nervous. You want good memories.’ I listened to her and so should you.” She lowered her voice. “I didn’t tell her that I wasn’t wearing panty hose, but that I was wearing a little white lace thong with BRIDE embroidered across the front.”
Alana slipped off her robe to show that she was wearing the same style thong.
Emily giggled and removed the dress from the bag and slipped it over Alana’s head. “Who would have thought when we were little girls that we’d be marrying good friends?”
“I think I always knew I’d marry Pax someday,” Alana said. “I’m glad that we finally came to our senses and realized that we were supposed to be together.”
“Amen,” Emily said.
At fifteen minutes until time to walk down the aisle, Alana watched six sparkling clean trucks drive up in front of the house. Each of the five groomsmen got out of his vehicle and escorted a bridesmaid across the lawn. Dixie and Landon were already at the barn. She was sitting at the guest table, and Landon was serving as usher until the ceremony began and it was time to do the scripture reading.
“Oh, darlin’,” Matt’s said from her doorway.
Alana turned around slowly.
“You look like an angel,” her father whispered. “Your mama is smiling up there in heaven for sure tonight.”
“I hope so, Daddy.” She crossed the room and hugged him. “I’m so happy that I could cry.”
“Don’t you dare.” Matt held out an envelope. “I want you to put this in your suitcase and don’t read it until tonight or maybe you should wait until after the honeymoon. Your mama told me to give it to you on your wedding day. I’ve done my part, and now you can choose when to open it.”
Tears welled up in Alana’s eyes, but she kept them at bay as she tucked the envelope into the outside pocket of her suitcase. “Thank you, Daddy—for everything.”
“Right backatcha, kid.” He bent his arm, and she slipped hers into it.
Crystal was waiting for them when Matt parked his truck in the spot reserved for the bride. She put the bridal bouquet into Alana’s hand and said, “Five minutes, and then the music will begin. The groom and the preacher will go up the aisle, like we practiced last night, then each bridesmaid will be escorted in by her husband. When you hear the first strands of the song you picked to come down the aisle to, I will part the filmy curtain, and you’ll step into the barn. I’m giving you a brief rundown, so you won’t forget.”
“Thanks.” Alana remembered telling Crystal that her dad’s short-term memory was suffering and appreciated how she’d handled the issue.
“I’m going to step up to the front of this line and set things in motion. Two minutes, now,” she said and hurried off.
“Nervous?” Matt asked.
“Not anymore,” Alana answered. “You’re right here with me, and Pax is waiting for me inside.”
“That’s my girl.” Matt patted her hand and asked, “Aren’t you walking down the aisle to the traditional wedding song?”
“No, Daddy, I’m not.” Alana kissed him on the cheek. “This part is my surprise for Pax—and maybe for you as well.”
Piano music started, and Crystal opened the curtains. Matt and Alana took their first step into the barn to “Bless the Broken Road” by Rascal Flatts. All of the words to the old song fit her and Pax perfectly, especially the words that said that every sign pointed her straight to him.
Everyone in the bleachers stood, but Alana didn’t even hear the rustling. All she could see was Pax waiting for her at the end of the aisle. He wore a black tux, white shirt, peach-colored tie, a black cowboy hat, and his best boots. His eyes locked with hers and his smile made her feel beautiful. Like the words said, all the dreams she ever had were leading her straight to him.
“Perfect song,” Matt whispered when he put her hand into Pax’s. “Take care of her son, and I expect you to keep the promises you made to me about loving her.”
“Yes, sir,” Pax said as he helped her climb the three steps up onto the stage.
Alana handed her bouquet to Emily, faced Pax, and took both of his hands in hers. Landon stood up from the front pew, combed his scraggly blond hair with his fingertips, and took his place behind a lectern that had been set up over to one side. His deep voice carried throughout the barn as he read, “From Corinthians thirteen, love is kind. Love is patient. Love does not want its own way…”
Alana’s eyes were still locked with Pax’s, and as Landon read, they vowed to always love each other without uttering a single word. Later, they would say other vows out loud for the benefit of friends and family who’d come to help them celebrate the day, but what they were expressing with their eyes right then came from their hearts and went down deep into their souls.
When it came time to say those other vows, Pax didn’t have to take notes from his vest pocket like Alana thought he might. Instead, he looked right into her eyes again and said, “It takes about two seconds to say ‘I love you,’ maybe five to ask ‘Will you marry me?’ but it will take a lifetime to show you how much I love you. We’re getting married right now, and today is wonderful, but I intend to try to make every day of our lives together as great as this moment. When we’re old and gray and we look back on our lives, I don’t ever want you to have a single regret that you decided to ride this river of life with me.”
With tears in her eyes, Alana said, “I believe I have loved you my whole life, Paxton, from as far back as I can remember. I’m glad that you asked me to marry you and that we can journey through life together. I want to grow old with you by my side and not only to spend the years we will have in this life with you, but to be with you for all of eternity, because it will take me that long to prove to you how much I really, really love you.”
“And with that said, I think I can add a hearty amen,” the preacher said. “I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss your bride, Paxton.”
Pax didn’t have to be told twice. He drew Alana to him, and said, “I love you,” before their lips met in a long kiss that had some of the spectators whistling and yelling.
“I will love you, forever and ever, amen,” she said softly when the kiss ended.
“Funny, you should say that,” he whispered as a Randy Travis song by that title began to play. Instead of taking her by the hand and leading her down the aisle, he two-stepped with her all the way into the reception area.
“Perfect!” She smiled up at him when they were standing behind the wedding cake table. “Just like this whole day.”
“Amen, darlin’.” He pulled her against his side and kissed her on the forehead.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Eighteen months later
Pax came through the back door, removed his coat, gloves, and hat and rushed across the floor to take Alana in his arms. “Merry Christmas, darlin’. It’s spittin’ snow out there. I don’t think it’s enough for a white Christmas, but it gives us the holiday spirit.”
“That sounds like something Daddy would say.” She slipped her arms around his neck and brought his lips to hers for a long kiss.
“Merry Christmas to all!” Lucas and Landon pushed their way through the door. “I smell cinnamon rolls. Reminds me of all the past Christmases in this house.”
Landon shed his coat and went straight to the highchair. “How’s my favorite nephew this morning?” he asked the ten-month old baby. “Are you ready for your mama’s famous Christmas breakfast? Is your daddy going to let me take you outside so you can catch some snowflakes on your tongue?”
“Not on your life,” Pax answered him. “It’s a daddy’s job to get to take his son outside to experience his first snow.”
“And of course, he’s your favorite nephew, since he’s your only one. Bridget and Maverick have two girls.” Alana removed the pan of cinnamon rolls from the oven, dumped them upside down on a tray, and then spread butter cream frosting on the top. When she finished, she set the whole thing in the middle of the table.
“I’ll pour coffee for everyone,” Pax said.
Alana patted Lucas on the shoulder as they all took their seats. “Lucas, will you say grace for us?”
All four heads bowed, but Alana didn’t pay much attention to the words. She kept one eye on her son sitting beside her in the same highchair she’d sat in as a baby. When she found out that she was pregnant, she remembered laying her hand on her stomach and promising her unborn child that she would bring her grandfather to life for her through stories—or for him, whichever the case might be.
“Amen,” Lucas said.
“Your grandpa used to say grace for us,” Alana told Tommy as she separated the cinnamon rolls and put them on plates. “He was a lot like your daddy, and you have his smile and his eyes. Your grandma would have loved you so much. She left me a letter to be read on my wedding day. It made me cry a little bit, but it also reminded me what strong parents I had. You’ve got the same, baby boy, and someday you will be like your grandpa and your daddy.”
Landon held out his plate for a cinnamon roll. “I have no doubt about that. I only knew your grandpa for a little while, buddy, but he was a fantastic guy. If you grow up to be half the rancher and cowboy he was, then you’ll do well.”
After breakfast Paxton cleaned Tommy’s face, took him out of the high chair, and carried him into the living room. Pax picked up a picture of Alana, Matt, and himself taken on the wedding day and showed it to the baby.
“Mama, Daddy, and Poppa,” he said as he pointed to the individuals.
“And you were already in Mama’s tummy,” Alana said as she slipped up behind them. Having Pax beside her after losing her father a few weeks after the wedding had softened the sorrow. She and Pax had made an agreement to make sure that Thomas Matthew knew what a great man his grandpa was. Pax had begun showing the baby the pictures from the day he was born.
“Yes, you were,” Pax said.
“So, there’s your whole family right there in the picture,” Landon said.
“Yep, it is.” Lucas nodded.
Pax’s smile lit up the whole room. Alana could read his mind and nodded. After all it was Christmas, and what better time to tell their close friends and family the news.
“It’s not our whole family,” Pax said. “Next Christmas we’ll have a five-month-old baby to add to the family. Alana is pregnant and due in July.”
Lucas had carried his hat into the room, but suddenly it was flying through the air, finally landing on the presents under the tree. “Merry Christmas to us all. That’s the best news ever. I hope we get twin girls.”
Alana air slapped him on the arm. “There’s only going to be seventeen months between Tommy and the new baby. Don’t wish twins on me.”
“I wouldn’t mind one bit.” Pax kissed her on the cheek. “This is a big house, and your dad told me he’d love to see it filled with children.”
“And love,” Alana said. “He said that he wanted lots of love and grandkids in this place.”
“Looks like we’re making his wishes—and mine—come true.” Pax looked up at the ceiling. “So Merry Christmas, Matt and Joy, and”—he slipped his free arm around Alana’s shoulders—“to you, my darlin’. Life with you is the best present ever.”
“Right back at you,” she said. “I love you, Pax.”
“I love you,” he said.
Lucas wiped a tear from his cheek. “Y’all are making me cry.”
Alana blinked away tears of her own as she leaned against Paxton and took Tommy’s hand in hers. What had started out as a farce had sure turned out to be a blessing and a miracle, and she looked forward to fulfilling that dream she’d had—the one where she and Pax were sitting on the porch watching their grandchildren play on the front lawn of the Bar C Ranch.
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Don’t miss Dixie and Landon, whose hearts begin to feel more than the holiday spirit, in
A Little Country Christmas
Coming in Fall 2020
Sunrise Ranch
A Daisies in the Canyon Novella
Carolyn Brown
One determined woman must wait out her sexy, cowboy competitor if she wants to inherit the ranch they’re both vying for…
Chapter One
Three little monkeys jumping on a bed.
The song echoed through Bonnie’s head, but it brought about a good memory. Her mother had read that book about the little monkeys to her so many times that Bonnie had memorized it before she was three years old and knew when Vivien left out a single word. Maybe the memory was so strong because her mama soon left off reading to her, and there weren’t many other books in their trailer house.
Bonnie smiled as she picked up her bottle of beer and took a long drink from it. “Three sassy sisters livin’ on a ranch,” she singsonged. “One got married and went away. Two sassy sisters livin’ on a ranch, one got married and went away. One sassy sister livin’ on a ranch”—she paused—“it’s mine now. All I have to do is sit still for another six months and it’s mine, and then I can sell it and go wherever I want. Whatever I decide I’ll never have to get up at five o’clock in the morning to feed cows in the cold or heat again. Do I go east or west? Both have a beach. All I need is a sign to point me in the right direction.”
The sun dipped below the crest of the Palo Duro Canyon, leaving streaks of purple, red, pink, and orange in its wake. Black Angus cattle grazed in the pasture between the Malloy ranch house and the horizon. A gentle breeze wafted the scent of red roses and honeysuckle across the porch.
The sun set every evening. Cattle roamed around the pastures in search of green grass every day. Flowers bloomed in June in the panhandle of Texas. Not a single sign in any of that.
“Hey, we’re here,” Abby Joy and Shiloh yelled at the same time as they came around the end of the house.
Bonnie looked up toward the fluffy white clouds moving slowly as the breeze shifted them across the sky. “Is this my sign?”
Six months before, the three half-sisters had showed up at the Malloy Ranch to attend Ezra Malloy’s funeral. He
was the father they’d never met, the one who’d sent each of their mothers away when she’d given birth to a daughter instead of a son. Then he’d left a will saying that all three daughters had to come back to the Palo Duro Canyon and live together on his ranch for a year if they wanted a share of the Malloy Ranch. If one of them moved away for any reason—love, misery, contention with the other two sisters—then she got a small lump sum of money, but not a share of his prized two thousand acres of land at the bottom of the Palo Duro Canyon.
With both sisters now married and moved away in the last six months, Bonnie was the last one standing. All she had to do was live on the ranch until the end of the year, and every bit of the red dirt, cactus, wildflowers, and scrub oak trees belonged to her. If she moved away from the ranch early, for any reason, then the whole shebang went to Rusty Dawson, the ranch foreman and evidently the closest thing to a son that Ezra ever had. Unless that cowboy had enough money in his pocket or credit at the bank, he could forget owning the ranch, because Bonnie had full intentions of selling it to the highest bidder.
She’d liked Rusty from the first time she laid eyes on him. He’d taught her and her sisters how to run a ranch—at least what he could in six months. At first, he’d seemed resigned to the fact that one or all of Ezra’s daughters would own the place and had voiced his wishes to stay on as foreman at the end of a year. That had been the fun Rusty. After Abby Joy had married and left the ranch, Bonnie had seen a slight change in him—nothing so visible or even verbal, except for a hungry look in his eyes. Now that Shiloh had married Waylon and moved across the road to his ranch, he had changed even more.
Tall and just a little on the lanky side, he had dark hair, mossy green eyes that seemed even bigger behind his black-framed glasses, and a real nice smile. It didn’t matter how handsome he was, he was out of luck if he thought he could get rid of Bonnie and inherit the ranch. No, sir! She’d already given up six months of her life and was willing to give up six more to have the money to reclaim her wings. She’d never planned to stay in this god-forsaken place to begin with, and now that her sisters were gone, she and Rusty were about to lock horns when it came to the ranch.
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