“Oh, shoot. I didn’t mean to remind you of him.” Zoey handed her the shoes to try on.
“You mean Ken? The guy who dumped me when my dad was going through cancer treatment? The one who couldn’t say goodbye fast enough because he didn’t come first?”
“Yeah. Him.”
“You know my dad had very strong opinions on every guy I dated. Not like he hated them all, but he knew the good ones from the bad. And he didn’t like Ken Michaelson from the moment they met.”
“And he was right on the money. That jerk deserted you when you needed him most,” Zoey commented.
“Yet another example that men aren’t especially loyal. Even my brother, Jack.”
“He’s in the military,” Zoey reminded her.
“I know. The thing is he joined right after my mom died when I was just a little girl. Dad and I hardly ever saw him and he barely made it home for my father’s funeral. So he’s pretty much disappeared and that doesn’t meet my definition of loyal.” She stepped into the pale lavender shoes. “They’re a little big.”
“Stuff tissues in the toes. They’ll be fine,” Zoey said. “And I’ve got a strapless bra, so don’t worry about that. I think you’re good to go.”
“You are a life saver. Dependable and true blue.” Merry hugged her. “Unlike most men. Although Hunter’s devotion to his daughter is refreshing. I like that.”
“Oh, really?”
“Please. Don’t start. For crying out loud it’s just a weekend.”
And now that she had a wedding outfit, it was a weekend she was looking forward to.
* * *
Hunter slowed the SUV until he found the address Merry had given him and came to a stop in front of her small yellow house with white trim. There was an old truck in the driveway with Matthews Electrical written on the side of it. He’d promised to pick her up for the flight to Colorado that would take them to his brother’s wedding.
“Well,” he said to Wren, “this is the place.”
“Daddy, I’m going to get Miss Merry.” Wren was out of the car before he could stop her.
Hunter turned off the engine, jumped out of the vehicle and followed his daughter up the sidewalk to the porch. He noticed a for sale sign on a sturdy white post prominently displayed in the neatly trimmed front grass. That bothered him a little and it shouldn’t because he barely knew the woman. But Wren liked her and he wasn’t in favor of any changes that could potentially affect her happiness.
The door opened before he could knock and Merry was there, a smile on her face as bright as the cheery yellow paint on her house. Hunter felt a thump in his chest, one hard whack that seemed to jump-start his heart.
“Good morning, Wren. Hunter.”
“Hi, Miss Merry. We’re goin’ on Gramps’s jet. He’s taking the whole family on it. Have you ever been on a jet?”
“Yes. Once. But it was a commercial flight, not private. This is very exciting.”
“I can’t wait.” His daughter was practically quivering with anticipation.
“We’re running late,” Hunter said. “But if you need a little more time, I guarantee they’ll hold the plane for the flower girl. Maximilian Crawford will make sure of that.”
Merry smiled up at him. “I’m ready to go. My suitcase is right here by the door. My dress is in a garment bag. Is that okay?”
Before he could say it was fine, Wren jumped in.
“Daddy and me have that, too. My dress is so pretty. I’m gonna look like a princess. Right, Daddy?”
“Honey, you look like a princess to me no matter what you wear.”
Love expanded inside him when she smiled up at him like that, as if he was her hero. Then he looked at Merry and felt that whack in his chest again. Her blond hair was a mass of curls, and enthusiasm sparkled in her hazel eyes. There was a flush of pink on her cheeks that could be about the chill in the air or the beginning of an adventure. Whatever the cause, he was oddly reluctant to stop looking at her.
“Should we get going?” Merry asked.
That snapped him out of it. They were late. “I’ll get your suitcase.”
“Thanks.” She backed up and let him reach inside to grab the handle of the bag that had seen better days. “I’ll get my dress.”
“What can I carry?” Wren asked.
Merry thought for a moment. “Why don’t you hold my purse while I lock the door?”
“Okay.” The little girl took the big bag. “This is heavy.”
“It is. Set it on the porch, sweetie.” She locked up, then took her purse for the walk to the car.
Hunter hit a button on his key fob and the SUV hatch slowly lifted. He put her bag in the back with the other two, then took her dress and settled it on the rear passenger hook. “Okay, ladies. Let’s roll.”
“I have to sit in the back in my car seat, Miss Merry. Daddy says so.”
“It’s safer for you, sweetie.”
“That’s what he says, too.”
“Do you want me to sit back there with you?”
Wren thought for a moment then said, “No. It’s nice for him to have someone to talk to until I’m big enough to sit in the front with him.”
That settled that. They all got in and buckled up. It wasn’t often there was a woman—a beautiful woman—riding in his front passenger seat. This was different—not bad different, just enough for him to feel a little tongue-tied. Fortunately his daughter picked up the conversation slack.
“We’re goin’ to Billings. That’s where the airport is. I brought my princess bride doll with me.”
“That seems very appropriate for this occasion,” Merry said.
“My dress is prettier than hers. But she has a tiara. I asked Aunt Avery if I could wear one and she said she didn’t think it would go with my dress.”
“It was a diplomatic no,” Hunter said so only Merry could hear. She laughed, then covered it with a cough.
“I wish I could wear one.” Wren sighed and it was loud enough to be heard over the road noise. “Daddy says I’m his princess and everyone knows princesses wear tiaras.”
“That makes sense,” Merry said thoughtfully. “But a princess is always sensitive to the feelings of people around her. And this is going to be your aunt Avery’s special day when she marries your uncle Finn. A princess would never do anything to spoil a bride’s wedding day. Don’t you think so, Wren?”
That got a grudging “I guess so” and Hunter was impressed by the way Merry handled that situation. When they arrived at the airport he parked at the terminal where they would board his father’s Gulfstream jet. The crew met them and took their luggage before Hunter, Merry and Wren walked up the steps and into the aircraft.
Hunter waved to everyone on board and a quick head count indicated they were the last ones to arrive. He started to make introductions but was interrupted by an announcement to take their seats and fasten seat belts in preparation for takeoff. The plush leather and teak-trimmed cabin was configured with individual seats of four with a table in between to form a conversation area. There were also a couple of couches that would accommodate three and only one was left. His daughter plopped herself down on one end. That meant he and Merry would be sitting side by side. Unlike the front seat of his SUV, there would be no console between them.
“Sit next to me, Miss Merry.”
“Okay.”
Hunter took the empty space beside her and their shoulders brushed, their legs touched. He was grateful the stretchy pants she wore tucked into shin-high black boots meant her skin was not bare. When he fastened his seat belt, his fingers brushed her thigh, or more accurately the cream-colored sweater that covered her hips and butt. She smelled disarmingly female and sweet, a thought that sent a tsunami of testosterone crashing over him.
When everyone was secured, they received permission from the control to
wer to taxi down the runway and in seconds they were off. As soon as the seat belt sign was turned off, Wren bounced up and said she was going to talk to Aunt Avery and tell her she didn’t mind not wearing a tiara.
More than almost anything Hunter wanted to move away from Merry but he didn’t feel right about leaving her alone. They all knew he’d hired a nanny for the weekend but the noisy jet made introductions awkward. So, for the duration of the flight, he felt obligated to stay put and introduce her when they were on the ground.
Merry was looking around the interior, eyes wide. “I wonder where they keep the barf bags.”
“You don’t feel well?”
“I’m fine actually.” She laughed but there was a little uncertainty on her face. “It’s just nerves. When I get this way, I say weird things. Helps break the tension.”
“Okay.”
“In fact they probably don’t even have barf bags. Most likely there’s a rule against getting sick on the expensive leather seats.”
“Let them try to enforce that one,” Hunter said.
“I know, right?” She glanced a little anxiously at the rest of his family, chatting together in groups. “There are a lot of Crawfords on this plane.”
“Yeah. I’m sorry about not introducing you to all of them. I’ll take care of that when we land.”
“No problem. I’m just the hired help, after all.” She was still looking around the luxurious interior with an expression of awe that made her eyes look more green than brown.
“If we weren’t in such a rush, I’d have made sure they all met you. It’s my fault we were running late.”
She looked skeptical. “Something tells me your daughter was responsible for that. I know her from school, remember?”
“Yeah.” It was one of the reasons he’d hired her.
“I feel like I need to pinch myself. Maybe I should be paying you. I can’t believe I’m flying in a private jet. If anyone had told me I’d be doing this, I’d have said they were crazy. People with money really do live differently.”
“I suppose.”
His gaze drifted to his daughter, the child he’d raised alone almost from the day she was born. Money didn’t guarantee you wouldn’t lose the mother of your baby girl. He would give up everything he had in a heartbeat if it could bring Lara back.
“I’m sorry.”
“Hmm?” He looked at Merry.
“That was unprofessional of me. It was tactless to say that.”
He thought her comments were honest and charming. “Why would you think so?”
“It seems as if I’ve heard you should never discuss money and politics.” She tucked her hair behind her ear. “Again, I plead nerves. Apparently getting up at the crack of dawn has disengaged the filter between my brain and my mouth. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.”
He smiled, but the movement felt rusty when directed at a woman. It seemed wrong somehow, but he couldn’t seem to stop. “Your unfiltered frankness is refreshing.”
It seemed her condition was contagious because things were popping out of his mouth, too. Was that crossing a line between employer and employee? If Merry was a ranch hand, he would know where the line was. And it wasn’t as if he hadn’t had child care before. When Wren was a baby, he’d hired help from time to time. He had to work the ranch, after all. But with Merry he felt strongly about keeping boundaries firmly in place.
“Calling what I said frankness is generous of you,” she said. “I always thought of the word decadent in terms of dessert. But this experience has broadened the definition for me. However, I will, at some point, get over how special it feels to fly in a private jet.”
“You can thank my dad.”
“I will, of course.”
He laughed. “I didn’t mean that literally. Just that it was important to him that this be a fun family event from start to finish.”
“You can count on me. I’ll take good care of Wren so you can enjoy yourself this weekend.”
He already was. With her. And that realization surprised and bothered him. It was almost a relief when the captain announced they were starting their descent into the airport in Rustler’s Notch, Colorado. The flight time had, no pun intended, flown. Talking to Merry was pleasant. And distracting. More than he’d expected. Definitely more than he wanted.
It was disconcerting and uncomfortable when he realized he was caught between not wanting the flight to end and being grateful that it had been so short. That was the classic definition of conflict. He didn’t like conflict, especially when a woman was involved.
Chapter Three
Merry was a little nervous when the plane landed, then taxied closer to the terminal. Her responsibilities were going to kick in and part of that would be interacting with the Crawfords. Time to put on her big girl panties and a friendly smile. The seat belt sign dinged off and everyone in the cabin stood to gather their belongings. They filed down the stairs and stood in a group not far from the plane.
“Listen up, everyone,” Hunter said. “Before we all split up, I want to introduce you to Meredith Matthews—”
“She’s Miss Merry,” Wren interjected.
Merry lifted her hand to wave everyone a friendly greeting, at the same time hating all the focus on her. “Hi.”
Hunter introduced his brothers and their wives one by one. She had already guessed who Avery and Finn were because Wren had spent a good portion of the flight talking princess with the bride. Max, the tall, handsome, silver-haired patriarch, was impossible to forget. But everyone else sort of blurred together.
“There are a lot of you,” she said ruefully. “I think you need to wear name tags.”
Everyone laughed and assured her there would be no hard feelings for a name mix-up. Then Hunter’s father directed the group to the three limousines waiting to take them to Rustler’s Notch Resort.
“Don’t we need to get our luggage?” Merry asked when they all started to move.
“It will be delivered to our rooms,” Hunter assured her. The doubt must have shown on her face because he added, “I promise it will be fine. And yes, rich people do live differently.”
“You took the words right out of my mouth. But if I don’t have my pajamas—”
“I will buy you whatever you need if I’m wrong.”
“Fair enough.”
Following Max’s instructions, the process was smooth and efficient. He and his youngest son, Wilder, climbed into the car with Hunter, Wren and Merry.
“Mr. Crawford,” she said to the family patriarch, “I would like to thank you for this weekend. I will take excellent care of your granddaughter.”
The man winked at the little girl, who’d insisted on sitting beside him. “Wrennie is very special to me.”
“I can see that, sir.”
“It will go to his head if you call him that,” Wilder teased her. He looked like a charming rogue, handsome with longish brown hair and piercing dark eyes.
Merry could picture him breaking hearts everywhere he went. He was one of those men most women would be attracted to. Although she wasn’t. Glancing sideways at Hunter, she felt a little flutter in her chest that indicated she couldn’t say the same about his older brother.
The scenery on the short drive to the hotel was breathtaking. Trees, rugged mountains and blue sky added up to a spectacularly beautiful day. They passed ski slopes but it was early November and there wasn’t enough snow yet for them to open. Before long the resort buildings came into view and the car stopped in front. The hotel tower was tall, all wood and beams with a peaked roof that looked chalet-like and just right for this environment.
Merry had never been anywhere like this. Not ever. She was speechless, but Wren did enough chattering for both of them. Following behind the Crawford clan she was able to observe Hunter with his daughter. The trusting way the little gi
rl slipped her small hand into his bigger one. He teased her before effortlessly lifting her onto his broad shoulders as they walked into the spectacular lobby with its wood floors and huge fireplace, where logs cheerfully burned and crackled.
Apparently having money also made check-in a breeze because room keys were waiting and bags had indeed been delivered to the suites. Max instructed everyone to go have fun and they would meet later in the afternoon for the wedding rehearsal followed by dinner. Hunter had already assured Merry she would have her own room, but she wasn’t clear on how that would logistically work with a suite. After an elevator ride to the top floor, he unlocked the door and they walked in.
There was a beautifully decorated living room that separated the master and auxiliary bedrooms from the one on the opposite side of the suite. She would have her privacy and still be available to Wren if needed. And, as Hunter had promised, her suitcase was there on the bench at the end of the king bed. Her borrowed dress was hanging in the closet. Quite possibly this hotel suite was bigger than her entire house back in Rust Creek Falls.
Wren ran into Merry’s room and grabbed her hand. “Come and see where I’m going to sleep.”
Merry let herself be tugged into the room. The puffy mattress was high and the white bedding looked pristine. “This is beautiful. Fit for a princess.”
“Come and see Daddy’s room. It’s way bigger.”
That seemed too intimate, too much an invasion of his privacy. Too tempting to think about him and what he wore, or didn’t wear, to bed. And her heart was beating just a little too fast, a sure sign doing this would be a bad idea.
“Why don’t we unpack your suitcase? And I want to see your dress. It’s probably hanging in the closet.” Merry saw Hunter in the doorway and wondered what he was thinking with that brooding look on his face.
Wren folded her arms over her thin chest. “You can’t see my dress until the wedding. Like the bride.”
Merry laughed. “Fair enough. But we should still get your things unpacked. Make sure you have your shoes, tights and everything you need. There are good surprises and bad ones.”
Maverick Holiday Magic (Montana Mavericks: Six Brides For Six Brothers Book 5) Page 3