The Bride's Cowboy

by Sophia Summers

  “What working?”

  “Are you dying in anticipation while you wait for me to slowly get into the water?” His eyebrows rose, and he stepped in another step, closer.

  “Oh, stop. Come sit by me.”

  “Yes! See, tactics imagined up in seventh grade still work on beautiful successful women now.”

  “I don’t want to know your imagined seventh-grade tactics.” She lowered herself further into the water until it covered her chin in warmth. “This is just what I needed.” Her limbs relaxed, and her muscles soaked it in.

  He lowered himself next to her. Not touching, but close enough that suddenly the water between them felt warmer. After a moment, his deep voice rumbled quietly beside her, “You look amazing on a horse.”

  Her eyes whipped open, a smile growing before she could even try to play it cool. “I do?”

  He nodded and then closed his eyes again. “I’ve never seen anything so beautiful.”

  Stunned, she let his words sink in.

  “Until…”

  She eyed him, suddenly suspicious.

  “Until you walked in here in that little thing you call a swimsuit.” He shook his head. “And that became the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.” His eyes sparkled, his grin crooked; she wanted to dunk him and kiss him at the same time, caught between his playful and his sincere moments.

  “I bet you think that about all the girls walking in here in their swimsuits.” She shook her head, not ready to believe his nonsense.

  He reached for her hand, his hot, wet fingers playing with hers. “First of all, no other women come walking in here next to naked.”

  She swallowed.

  “And if they did, I just can’t imagine they’d have the same effect.” He raised her hand to his lips and kissed the tips of a couple fingers.

  Tingles spread down her arms. “Wow, Jed.”

  His eyes darkened, and he shifted so he sat closer, facing her. Then he rubbed her palms, massaging pressure points into each finger. “You’re special, AnnaMae. I don’t know what it is, but we have something.” He raised her palm and kissed the center and then leaned back against the stone behind them. “Tell me more. Why are you my perfect swing-dance partner, look like you were made to ride across my land on a horse, and do crazy things to my head sitting here in this hot tub?” He glanced over at her and winked.

  Maybe he thought he was keeping things light, but she had never been so thoroughly impressed with the honesty in a conversation. And it was doing things to her.

  “I don’t know what to tell you. I do love the land. I love the earth’s beauty. I’ve seen places, been to parts of the world very few bother to explore.” She sat forward. “And I love that I can preserve them for future generations. A hundred years from now, the earth will look just as beautiful in some places.” As she said it to Jed, who she knew appreciated and loved the land as much as she did, the strength of her convictions sank deeper inside.

  “And Thayer Falls?”

  She wanted to groan, but instead she just shrugged. “First of all, Thayer Falls is not nearly as beautiful as everything you see around you.”

  “I don’t think anything is as beautiful.” His eyes shone, and while he had a point: few parts of the world could boast the exquisite beauty all around them, she suspected his love of the land ran much deeper.

  “But also, Thayer Falls wasn’t good to me.”

  “Do you want to talk about it?” His eyes were open, honest, kind.

  She felt like maybe she could trust him with a small bit of the story. “I messed up a little bit in high school. Not really a lot, kissed too many guys, stayed out too late, maybe snuck into the football stadium in the middle of the night and wrote my name in big letters across the field.” She winced as she said it.

  “You what?” He laughed and then stopped and searched her face. “That’s crazy. I love it, but crazy. Why did you do that?”

  “I don’t know. It was a dare. I was hurt. The guys put me up to it. But some of the moms grabbed onto the story and it stuck like sap on a Christmas tree. Even on my graduation day, I heard the whispers, the talk, and saw the knowing glances they all shared with each other. I left as soon as I could.”

  “When you say kissed a bunch of boys…” He tried to keep his face neutral, but she saw it, a twinge of something protective.

  “Oh, stop. They were just kisses. That’s all. I was looking for the spark.” She sucked in her breath and sat very still, hoping, pleading silently that he’d let it go, that he hadn’t noticed.

  “The spark?”

  She groaned. “Yeah, it’s just something that’s important to me.” And sounds completely juvenile to any adult in the world.

  “Tell me.” His eyes were earnest, caring.

  She wanted to tell him. If he wasn’t so involved in the story, she’d have told him right away, but no way was she going to reveal her search for the spark to this hot man who was its first originator, who was the only one who could finally solve the mystery. “Don’t worry about it. Maybe I’ll tell you some day.”

  Disappointment flashed across his face, but he nodded. “Fair. I can respect that. So, when you go back to visit, like at the wedding, did you still feel some of the same gossip going on around you?”

  She considered his question. “I don’t think so. For the first time, I wasn’t looking for it either. Maybe they’ve finally let it go.” She shifted so that the jets powered into her back. “This is so nice. I’m gonna turn into a prune in a minute, and I don’t even care.”

  “People can be unkind. I suspect half the time they don’t even realize just how far-reaching their small reactions can find themselves. I’m sorry about your experiences in Thayer Falls.”

  The jets were massaging out the tension; her body floated forward, the hot water swirling around her. A caring, handsome man sat next to her. Everything in the world would have felt right and aligned if she didn’t have to figure out work. Miles was pressuring her to steal land from the very man she was learning to respect and care for.

  She pushed the stress away. First, she would explore all other options, all potential solutions. But before that, she was going to enjoy time with Jed. The more she was with him, the more she felt little glimmers of that same spark at the Kissing Bridge. She suspected with wonder that something powerful could possibly have begun way back when she was only thirteen years old.

  If only she didn’t ruin it now.

  Chapter 8

  Jed changed into dry clothes. They’d planned dinner and a movie later in his theater room. He pulled on his favorite teal sweatshirt, a pair of clean white socks, and jeans. He’d never felt more comfortable around a woman. His mouth quirked up. Nor had he ever felt more uncomfortable, in a good way. Every time he saw her, his hands longed to wrap around her tiny hips, to pull her close, to press his lips to hers. He shook his head. Thoughts like those didn’t aid in his effort to be patient, to get to know her, take things slow.

  His phone dinged and then rang. “Hello.”

  The man in Washington who kept an eye on his property and interests said, “Jed, we need to talk.”

  “Shoot. What’s up?”

  “They’ve got their eye on your spread.”

  His heart sank. “Who?”

  “Devlin. They’re looking to pipe oil through here. First step, get you off your space.”

  “We’re almost surrounded by park as it is.” He didn’t mind. It kept things private, but his roads in and out of the property were vital.

  “You’re the perfect pathway up to Canada. There’s no other straightway. Looks like Synergy Group consulting has been hired to make a recommendation. From the talk, they’ve already got it in the bag.”

  Jed ran a hand through his hair. He’d heard that whatever Synergy Group recommended, the government usually followed. They were a well-respected company. But he’d also heard they weren’t above being bought or having their opinions influenced. “What should we do?”

&
nbsp; “I don’t know what we can do. I’ve reached out to Synergy Group. I heard from an inside man that they have an agent in your neck of the woods right now, snooping around. Might want to find them, get to know them. Do your own bit of influence.”

  What a nightmare. A deep fear settled in his stomach. He would not lose his land. Whatever it took, whatever money he needed to spend, whoever he needed to fight, he would not let the final resting place of his ancestors, the land they’d worked so hard for, be stripped from him by some unfriendly Synergy Group takeover motivated by an oil-piping company.

  Tomorrow. He’d start his search tomorrow. Tonight, though, he would enjoy the company of this new intriguing woman in his life. He hung up and went to find her.

  Dinner was delicious. His Aunt Julie had outdone herself with his favorite chili, bread bowls, a heaping salad, and cobbler for dessert.

  “Mmm. Thank you, Aunt Julie.” AnnaMae’s smiling face warmed him. She had such an openness, a friendly vulnerability that drew him closer.

  “Movie night it is. You ready to relax by a warm fire and watch every Harry Potter movie?”

  Her mouth dropped open. “Every Harry Potter?”

  “Don’t you like Harry?”

  “Well, of course, but…”

  “I’m just kidding. We can watch whatever you want.”

  They settled on the first Harry Potter and cozied up in the corner of a large sectional. He reached behind her across the back of the couch and pulled a fuzzy blanket down around them. As the music started up, he remembered something else he’d seen on his phone. “AnnaMae, they’re expecting some crazy weather at the end of this week: surprise ice and snow.”

  She leaned forward from her spot resting against him in the crook of his arm. “What? In March?”

  “Oh sure. We don’t get consistent warm weather until May around here. I double-checked the weather, and the predictions are solid enough that you might want to consider your flights and your schedule.”

  Her brow wrinkled, which he found amusing on her sweet, pert face. “I think I need to spend some time doing actual work tomorrow. Would you mind if I rode out on your property and around the area? Do you have a vehicle I could borrow?”

  “Sure. Take any one of the trucks in the big garage. I would go with you, but I have a bit of work myself to do tomorrow. Have to go into town. So maybe we can meet up later?”

  She nodded and then leaned back against him. “When I remember I’m here for work, it takes all the fun out.”

  “True. Let’s watch how baby Harry came to be at the Dursleys’ instead.”

  She laughed. “We don’t have to watch this.”

  “Are you kidding? It’s my favorite.”

  “I mean, I love it too. Came out when we were in seventh grade…”

  He stopped; she was so right. “I can’t believe that.”

  “I know. We’re doomed to a reenactment of one of the worst, most awkward years of our lives.”

  “Except for a few key moments.”

  “True.”

  “The Kissing Bridge being one.”

  She nodded. “I’ll give you that.”

  He ran his fingers through her hair, gently, so the curls bounced and wrapped around his fingers.

  They stayed close, curled together, and he’d never experienced a more enjoyable movie without seeing hardly anything that happened. Everything about AnnaMae was fascinating to him. He watched her instead of the screen, her reactions to the movie, to him, and his heart pounded every time their eyes met. By the end of the movie, her hair was twice as large around her head and her curls mussed from all his attention. He loved every bit of it.

  They sat still, watching the credits, and he ran a finger across her neckline and down her shoulder and back. Mostly absentmindedly, but he noticed she sat very still, and he smiled. He brought his hand around to the back of her neck, fingers lightly running up and down her soft skin.

  “Mmm.”

  Ah, a reaction. His soft chuckle shook them both.

  She snuggled closer to him and rested a hand on his thigh. It dropped there as if on accident but she left it, her fingers resting near his kneecap, and the area burned with awareness. She splayed her fingers out and then rubbed downward toward his knee in a soft, repetitive motion, working out the muscles right there. Then one finger ran circles and crosses absentmindedly around on his skin. He swallowed. The simple movement fascinated him, and his skin lit with anticipation, every touch sending a flurry of energy through him. Wow, this woman was doing things to him.

  He cleared his throat. “Uh, Anna?”

  “Mmm?” She turned to him, leaning closer, eyes wide and suggestive, mouth parted.

  He wrapped a hand around her back, pulling her closer across him on the couch. “You are something.”

  They stared, and he tried to memorize the flecks in her eyes. Her lips were full, soft, ready for him. He could wait not longer. He tipped his head, leaning in. She lifted her chin, and he pressed his mouth to hers. Her lips quivered against his, and he covered them with his own. His arm pulled her closer up against him while he explored his feelings. Explosions filled him, emotional surges of happiness, rightness, oneness. How could this be? So caught up in the feeling of once again being with someone special, someone right, possibly even meant for him, his kisses became more urgent, more insistent, wanting more, feeling more, hoping for completion.

  Until she made a noise. Happy, sad, he couldn’t tell, but it brought him back to where they were, to what he was doing, and he slowed down, way down, softly kissing her twice more and then pulling away. “Wow, woman.”

  He searched her face, seeing tears. “Oh no, I’m sorry. What have I done?”

  She wiped at her face. “The spark. Jed. It’s you. After all these years.” She looked away and laughed. “You’re going to think I’m silly.”

  “No, what is it? Is that what you call this? The spark?”

  “It’s so much more, I know, but in seventh grade, I didn’t know what else to call it. I didn’t think I’d ever feel it again.” Her smile was full of light, her eyes sparkling back at him.

  “We’ve come a long ways since seventh grade. I’ve never felt anything like that.”

  She shook her head. “But the spark is the same. I think it’s you.”

  He shook his head. “It’s us. I knew it when we danced. There’s a connection here I’ve never felt with anyone else.”

  Her eyes widened, and she leaned into him, resting her head on his shoulder.

  What did he do with these feelings? He would never be the same, ever, after a kiss like that. Not after the connection he felt with her. But he didn’t know the woman, not nearly enough, not yet. “Stay longer.”

  “Hmm?”

  “Stay. Can you stretch your week to two?”

  She sat up, and he felt the loss of her closeness against him. “I can’t. I have so much work to do and a recommendation to make.” Her eyes clouded. “I have to get back.” She stood.

  “Whoa, wait, I won’t talk about leaving, just get back down here on the couch where you belong.”

  She smiled, but the moment was gone. “I think I’ll turn in, and I’ll head out early, at first light, to do some exploring.”

  He eyed her, the discomfort obvious, her face almost guilty, and he nodded. She did what these other companies did, tried to steal land. Call it what she would, that’s essentially what happened sometimes with these seizures for land monuments or park use. “I’ll be doing the same. Maybe I’ll see you for breakfast at around seven?”

  “Sounds good. And thank you, Jed.” She waved her fingers.

  “Goodnight.”

  Chapter 9

  Anna walked back to her room, hardly seeing the wood paneling all around her. Her whole body hummed with desire. In a daze, she relived every moment of their kiss, his lips searching hers, his growing insistence, the fire that spread through her as he wrapped his arm around her back. The safe feeling of being close to him. And
the spark. Maybe in seventh grade it was a spark, but not anymore. She shook her head in wonder. She had been ablaze. So much goodness, like she’d been carried away on a cloud. And right now, all she wanted to do was run back into his arms. But at the mention of work, at the thought of her purpose in the area, her gut twitched with angst. She had to find a way out of this. She had to work a deal. Somehow. Because she couldn’t force Jed from his land.

  She closed her bedroom door behind her and, when she had washed her face and brushed her teeth, fell into bed, ready for the sleepless night she knew would come.

  Morning came slowly, after many tosses and turns, much agonizing, and several moments of scrambling for her phone to write notes of inspiration. When light finally made its way up over the ridge, a stunning array of rich golds, lemons, and maroon welcomed her to the day as though it were a celebration of a glorious night instead of a rescue from the agony of troubled sleep. She pulled the covers back and inched her way to the shower. As the hot water beat down upon her, she reviewed in her mind her thoughts from the night and determined to move forward with the goal of rescue. She would find a way to keep the powerful grasping hands away from Jed’s land. If she didn’t recommend it, the takeover would be stalled, but they could get someone else who would. And, depending on the powers at play, they could be just as powerful as if she, at Synergy Group, were to recommend his land or the land around him for preservation. What they needed was a more permanent solution.

  Breakfast smelled wonderful. Did Aunt Julie rise early for their schedule? Gratitude filled her for that nice woman.

  But Jed stood alone at the stove, his back to her, humming The Battle Hymn of the Republic. She laughed to herself. Smells of bacon, ham, eggs, and something sweet filled the air around them. “So you cook too?”

  He tipped his head and eyed her over his shoulder. “Yes, ma’am. Eggs, anything with eggs. I got you.”

  “I love eggs. Fresh from the chickens?”

  “Of course, is there any other egg?”

  She laughed. Wow, she was going to miss this life when she headed back to New York. Somehow the hastily grabbed pastry at the nearest coffee shop was not going to compare favorably. “And what’s this? Muffins too?”