“Do you even have to ask?”
“Are you planning on staying in this place?” his father asked, glancing around at the shabby furnishings, the tiny coffee shop that had only a handful of scarred tables.
“That depends.”
“On?”
“What happens this Sunday.”
His father regarded him with exasperation. “Stop talking in riddles. Are you back here to stay or not?”
“I’ll keep you posted.”
For just an instant his father looked older than his years. He looked defeated. “I suppose I might as well put the ranch on the market. I can’t manage it anymore on my own.”
Cole scowled at him. “Don’t pull that with me. You recovered from that heart attack years ago. You could run the whole state if you were of a mind to, never mind one little cattle ranch.”
“Fifty thousand acres isn’t little,” his father said heatedly. “It’s a demanding job, and I just don’t have the heart for it anymore. Not if there’s no one to leave it to.”
“Leave it to your grandson.”
“How am I supposed to do that? The boy doesn’t even know we’re related. If it’s left up to his mother, he never will.”
“That will change,” Cole said grimly. One way or another.
“Oh?” His father’s expression brightened. “You going after custody?”
“No. Not the way you mean, anyway.”
“What then?”
“I’ll tell you on Sunday.” He would know how this was going to play out by then.
His father struggled to his feet, looking disgusted. “You’re wasting time, Son. I would have had this settled long ago.”
“Probably so,” Cole agreed. “But for once I’m doing things my way.”
And they’d better work out, he thought, or he’d never hear the end of it.
For once Cassie wished the preacher’s sermon would go on and on. Instead, Pastor Kirkland spoke for only a few minutes, citing the late-August heat and lack of air-conditioning as the reason for his brevity.
“No point in talking if no one can hear me over the fluttering of those fans you’re waving,” he said. “You can all give thanks to the Lord for that and we’ll call it a day.”
The congregation laughed appreciatively, sang one final, rousing hymn, then began to file out. Cassie was one of the last to go. When she reached the church steps, she spotted Cole at once, leaning against the fender of his car, his eyes shaded by sunglasses and the brim of his Stetson.
“You’ve made up your mind, then?” her mother asked, clinging to her hand. “There’s nothing I can say to change it?”
“Nothing,” Cassie said grimly. “This is what I have to do.”
As she crossed the street, she wished she could feel one tiny little surge of joy, one little spark of hope, but Cole’s somber expression wasn’t encouraging. He was there to make a deal, not a love match.
He opened the car door for her without speaking, then got into the driver’s side and started the engine. He glanced her way once, then focused on the road. Not until they were parked in a secluded spot along the river did he face her.
“Well?”
“I’ll do it,” she said. “I’ll marry you.”
He responded with little more than a nod of satisfaction. “Will next weekend suit you?”
Cassie bit back a cry of dismay. What had she thought, that he would allow her time to plan something lavish? Had she honestly expected him to let her carry out the charade that this was the wedding of her dreams, the start of a happy life for two people deeply in love?
“Fine,” she said tersely.
“At the church or at town hall?”
Cassie didn’t think she could bear either one. “At home, in the garden,” she said, ready to fight for that much at least. “I’ll speak to Pastor Kirkland about it.”
“What time?”
She had always dreamed of a wedding at sunset with color splashed across the western sky. “Seven-thirty,” she said, allowing herself this one romantic touch, even if it would mean nothing at all to the man beside her. She hesitated, then asked, “Will you be inviting your father?”
Cole nodded. “I can’t see any way around it.”
“Anyone else?”
“No.”
“I’ll want my friends there.”
“Whatever,” he said, looking completely uninterested in the details now that the decision had been made.
It seemed as if there was nothing else to discuss, not about the ceremony itself, anyway. But there was one thing—the most important thing—that couldn’t be ignored.
“Cole, how do I explain this to Jake?”
His hands tightened on the steering wheel until his knuckles turned white. “Why not try the truth? It’s about time, don’t you think?”
“He’s nine. He won’t understand the truth, not all of it, anyway.”
Cole sighed. “No, I suppose not.” He turned slightly toward her, removed his sunglasses and met her gaze directly for the first time all afternoon. “He needs to know I’m his father. We can tell him together, if you’d like.”
She nodded. “That would be good, I think. And I want him to know that we loved each other back then,” she said fiercely, regarding Cole defiantly, prepared to fight for that, too. “I don’t want him to think for a single second that he was a mistake. Nor do I want him to figure out that this marriage is nothing more than a bargain I made with the devil.”
“The devil, am I? I’ve been called worse.” For an instant Cole’s expression softened. “I suppose it won’t be much of a lie, telling him that we loved each other. Back then what we had was pretty special.”
Her heart flipped over at the wistfulness in his voice. “Do you think…? Can we get that back again?”
He didn’t answer right away. Eventually he slid his sunglasses back into place and looked away. “I honestly don’t know,” he said in a voice devoid of emotion.
Determined now, she put her hand on his arm, felt his muscle jerk beneath her touch. “We have to try, Cole,” she said urgently. “For Jake’s sake, if not our own.”
Cole’s only response was to reach for the key and start the car, his gaze straight ahead. His silence told her all she needed to know. He was nowhere close to forgiving her. In fact, it seemed as if he might not even intend to try.
Saturday dawned under a blazing sun. As wedding days went, Cole supposed this one was picture perfect, but there was none of the joy he’d once expected, none of the anticipation. In fact, all he felt was an aching sense of loneliness, accompanied by the certainty that a few words spoken today at sunset were unlikely to alter that feeling in any way.
Refusing to dwell on his dark mood, he spent the morning working at his computer, then headed for Cassie’s. To her mother’s dismay, they had dismissed the traditional superstition about the groom not seeing his bride before the wedding and agreed that today was the perfect time to tell Jake the truth about Cole being his father. At least he would have a few hours to get used to the idea before the ceremony. Cole also intended to ask his son to be his best man.
When he arrived at the house, he was surprised by the whirl of activity going on. Flowers and chairs were being carried into the backyard, a small tent was being set up with tables beneath it. Lauren, wearing shorts, a T-shirt and rollers in her hair, was directing traffic. Cole grinned despite himself.
“You’d better hope there are no paparazzi around,” he teased. “The tabloids would pay a fortune for this picture. You are not at your glamorous best.”
“If you only came over here to harass me and get in the way, you can leave,” she said, frowning at him. “Why anybody would insist on having a wedding in less than a week is beyond me.”
“We didn’t want a lot of hoopla,” he said defensively, aware that she must not know the whole story.
“Maybe you didn’t, but Cassie deserves a lot of hoopla, and, by golly, she’s going to have as much of it as we can pull of
f on short notice.”
Cole withstood the icy glint in her eyes and the barely concealed criticism. One of the things he’d always admired about Lauren and the others was their fierce loyalty to each other. He’d never had friends like that…except for Cassie. Somewhere along the way, through no fault of his own, he’d lost that. Among the regrets in his life, that one was right at the top of the list.
He sighed at the thought and went in search of his bride-to-be. He found her in the kitchen getting a manicure. Pink flooded her cheeks when he walked in, but Gina barely spared him a glance.
“You’re not supposed to be here,” she said, and went right on painting Cassie’s neatly filed nails a pale shade of pink.
Cassie cleared her throat. “Actually, he is. We’re supposed to talk to Jake, explain things.”
“Well, you can’t do it now,” Gina said briskly. “I’m not finished.” She waved Cole away. “Go in the living room or out back and make yourself useful. I’ll let you know when she’s free.”
Cassie shrugged. “Better do as she says. I’ve given up fighting with them.”
Amused despite himself, he nodded. “Yes, I can see why it would be a waste of breath. Where’s Jake?”
“Hiding out in his room, if he’s smart,” she said dryly. “Lauren brought him a tuxedo.”
So that’s the way it was going to be, then, Cole concluded. They were going to make this wedding into a special occasion for Cassie’s sake, or die trying.
“I’ll look for him,” he said.
Alarm flared in Cassie’s eyes. “You won’t say anything, though, not till I can get up there?”
“No,” he promised. “I won’t say anything.”
He found Jake in his room, staring not at the computer screen as Cole had expected, but out the window at the frenzied activity down below. He glanced up when Cole came in, but his expression was bleak.
“Hey, kiddo,” Cole said, joining him at the window. “What’s up?”
“You and Mom are gonna get married today, right?”
“That’s right.” Something in Jake’s voice alerted him that the boy found the news troubling in some way. He studied him intently, then asked, “Is that okay with you?”
“I guess,” Jake said, then regarded Cole with a serious expression. “How come I didn’t know anything about it till practically the last minute?”
“That’s when we decided,” Cole said. “I thought you might be happy about it.”
He regarded Cole earnestly. “I think it’s pretty cool that you’re going to be around all the time,” he admitted, then added, “but there’s something I don’t get.”
“What’s that?”
“Nobody seems really excited, not even Mom. In fact, she looks kinda sad.”
Cole winced. “I think maybe it’s just a little overwhelming,” he said. “It all happened so fast, and there was a lot to do.”
“But Grandma keeps crying. I heard her tell Mom that this was all her fault.” His brow puckered with a frown. “But I don’t know what that means. How can having a wedding be anybody’s fault?”
Cole put his hands on the boy’s shoulders and gave him a reassuring squeeze. “It’s just some grown-up stuff. It’s nothing for you to worry about, pal.”
“You love my mom, though, right? I mean that’s why you’re getting married, isn’t it?”
Cole closed his eyes against the tide of pain that that innocent question sent through him. There was no easy answer. A part of him, a part he had worked like the dickens to bury, did love Cassie.
“Yes,” he said, giving Jake the answer he needed to hear, even if it was only half-true, even if the whole truth was far more complicated. If he couldn’t understand it, how could this nine-year-old boy?
Jake nodded, looking relieved. “I thought so.” Suddenly he threw his arms around Cole and hugged him. “I can’t wait till we’re a real family.”
Cole sighed. Would the bond being formed a few hours from now ever be that clear and that simple?
“Cole, can I ask you something else?”
“Anything, pal.”
“Do you think maybe I could have a baby brother? I guess it wouldn’t be my real brother, but almost, right? That would be so cool. I’d even take a sister.”
For the first time since he’d put this plan into motion, Cole realized the full ramifications. Jake, if no one else, was expecting a real marriage, complete with brothers and sisters. How in heaven’s name was he supposed to get around that? For the last week he’d been moving ahead with caution, taking one day at a time. Now with a single innocent question Jake had forced him to gaze into the future.
“I think maybe we’d better discuss that another time,” Cole said, aware that his voice sounded vaguely choked up. He cleared his throat. “It’s a little soon to be talking about babies.”
He heard Cassie’s muffled gasp and realized she had arrived just in time to hear his comment. Even out of context, she had obviously guessed the general direction of the conversation.
“It certainly is,” she said, stepping into the room and giving Cole a questioning look.
“Jake’s looking ahead.”
“Obviously.” She sat on the edge of the bed and beckoned her son over. “Sit with me. We want to talk to you.”
Jake went to her readily. “What about?”
“There’s something you need to know before Cole and I get married today.” Her gaze sought Cole’s and held. “A long time ago he and I were very good friends.”
“When you were kids, right?” Jake asked.
“Exactly. We were very young and for a long time we were just good friends, but then we fell in love.”
Jake’s eyes widened. “Really?”
“That’s right,” Cole said. “But then some things happened and we were separated. I didn’t know that your mom was having a baby.”
“You mean me,” Jake guessed.
“Exactly.” He took a deep breath, then added, “I didn’t know that she was going to have my son.”
For a minute Cole’s words hung in the air. Jake looked from Cole to his mother and back again, a puzzled look on his face.
“Cole is your father,” Cassie explained quietly. “But he never knew that until a few weeks ago.”
Cole reached out to touch his son’s cheek, but pulled back before making contact. “Nothing could have made me happier, Jake. I am very proud that you’re my boy.”
Jake swallowed hard, clearly struggling to comprehend the announcement. “You’re my real dad?” he whispered at last. He looked at Cassie. “He is? For real?”
She nodded. “He really is.”
“Oh, wow,” Jake said, awestruck. “Then we really are gonna be a family. I’m gonna have my mom and my dad.” He bounced up. “Does Grandma know? I’ve gotta tell her.”
He raced out the door, then turned around and ran back, throwing himself at Cole before taking off again.
Cole met Cassie’s gaze and allowed himself a faint smile. “He seems to be taking it well.”
“You’ve just made his dream come true. He’s finally got his real dad in his life.”
But, gazing into her despondent eyes, Cole had to ask himself if the price he and Cassie were paying for uniting Jake’s family was too high.
Chapter Thirteen
The ceremony went off without a hitch. Cassie actually managed to say her vows around the lump in her throat. She hadn’t been able to meet Cole’s gaze, though. It would have been too hard to look in his eyes and not see the love shining there that every bride had a right to expect on her wedding day. Just thinking about what was lacking had her blinking back tears as the minister pronounced them man and wife.
Then there was that awkward moment when Pastor Kirkland had announced that Cole could kiss the bride. She had stood there waiting, panicked that he would refuse and embarrass them both. But finally he had lowered his head and touched his lips to hers. It hadn’t been a passionate kiss, but it had lingered, and there had bee
n heat in it, more than she’d had any right to expect.
Her friends made every effort to pretend that this was a perfectly normal wedding. Lauren had outdone herself to turn the garden into a perfect setting. She had had exotic flowers flown in, along with a designer wedding dress. Cassie had almost wept when she’d seen the delicate lace and organza confection. Never in her wildest dreams had she ever imagined wearing such a gown.
But then, never in her wildest dreams had she imagined a wedding day that was such a sham.
Not that anyone was acknowledging that. Everyone was painfully polite, determinedly upbeat. Frank Davis was acting as if he’d been looking forward to Cassie’s marriage to his son for years. Her mother’s tears could be dismissed as typical of the mother of the bride. If her proud smile seemed a little forced, no one commented on it. And exhilarated by the discovery that Cole was his real father, Jake scooted from one guest to another to share that incredible news.
Meanwhile, her friends were offering up toasts with French champagne and snapping pictures as she and Cole cut the gorgeous three-tiered wedding cake that Lauren had had flown in from Beverly Hills along with the caterer himself. The man had moaned when he’d seen her mother’s kitchen, then gone to work whipping up the most amazing hors d’oeuvres under Gina’s watchful gaze. Though Gina grumbled at not being allowed to do the job herself, Cassie noted that she seemed happy enough taking surreptitious notes on the recipes. It was the first interest she’d shown in anything related to her restaurant business since arriving in Winding River weeks ago.
Studying the small gathering, Cassie concluded that everyone except the bride and groom seemed to be having a blast. They were all happily caught up in the illusion of happily-ever-after that weddings always evoked.
When she could stand it no longer, she went looking for her new husband. She found him all alone on the front porch, an untouched glass of champagne dangling from his fingers and an unreadable expression on his handsome face.
“Quite a day,” he said without looking up when she joined him.
“It was a dream wedding,” she said, unable to keep the wistful note out of her voice. If only the bride and groom had been happy, she thought.
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