COWBOY ROMANCE: Justin (Western Contemporary Alpha Male Bride Romance) (The Steele Brothers Book 1)

by Amanda Boone

  “Hey beautiful,” he grinned. She smiled, but unlike his mother there were no tears in her eyes, only joy and appreciation.

  “Hey yourself soldier,” she said. She reached her arms up to wrap them around his neck and Brody bent to meet her waiting lips with his own. The kiss was brief because of the public setting, but Brody still took his time soaking in the flavor of her. He’d missed the heat of her and this first sampling wasn’t going to be nearly enough.

  They all drove back to Camp Lejeune, where Brody was stationed. He went through his dismissal ceremony with the other troops in his unit and finally was able to spend some much needed quality time with his family. His parents took him and Allison to dinner at his favorite restaurant before they headed back to the base.

  “I’m so glad that in less than six months’ time you’ll finally be out of the Marine Corps,” Jennifer Crowley said, her face beaming with happiness. “This mother is ready for you to settle down with this pretty lady and make some beautiful grandbabies, buy a house, find a hobby.”

  “Well babies may have to wait a little while, but buying a house and finding a hobby sound good to me,” Brody chuckled. “You still like to fish pop?”

  “You know it,” Roger Crowley said, looking at his son in the rearview mirror. “Still go out every Sunday afternoon, as long as the weather permits.”

  “Ice fishing?”

  “Never miss a winter,” he smiled. “You get through this six months’ and we’ll take an entire week up at the cabin to do nothing but shoot the shit and fish.”

  “A week my butt,” Jennifer said. “Take two and Allison and I can take some time to shop for the wedding.”

  Brody sat back and pulled Allison close to him. As his parent’s bantered on, Brody smiled down at his fiancé. He bent his head and met her warm lips halfway, sinking into the kiss so that every nerve in his body woke to the incredible need that had been waiting below the surface since he’d seen her at the airport. Pulling away he leaned closer to her. “I want you naked and writhing under me.”

  “Lucky for you I’m feeling pretty damn jovial about that idea myself.”

  Brody and Allison said their goodnight’s to his parents who were staying at the hotel on base before they headed home the next afternoon. When they were out of earshot, Brody turned to Allison. “Shall we?”

  “Absolutely,” Allison smiled. She wrapped her arms around Brody’s neck and giggled when he lifted her off her feet.

  “Good,” he grinned before kissing her. They spent their first night together making love and talking about their future. The wedding was planned for two weeks after Brody’s official discharge date.

  “How’s it all going then?” Brody asked as they cuddled, their naked bodies covered by his thick comforter.

  “I’ve still got time to finalize the details like seating arrangements and such, but all the larger elements are taken care of, thankfully.”

  “And my mom hasn’t been too overbearing?”

  “She’s been wonderful. She’s opinionated for sure and our opinions don’t always jive, but for the most part she’s deferred to me for the big decisions.”

  “Your dress?”

  “You’ll love it,” Allison smiled. “Better yet, you’ll love what I’ll be wearing when I take it off.”

  “I can hardly wait,” Brody smiled. “Speaking of not waiting.” Brody ran his hand over her warm thigh and cupped her silky mound, applying just enough pressure to make Allison moan. She took him in willingly and together they made love while the sun streaked its first light across the horizon, spreading deep purples, blues, and pinks as the day greeted them.

  ***

  She had watched them tonight, during dinner, when they’d been so cuddly it’d made her want to vomit. She’d overheard snippets of conversation, something about a wedding and the happy couple. She could only assume the couple was them. How convenient for her. He was handsome, at least Allison had that going for her. Apparently he was good in the sack to, because neither of them had emerged from his apartment and it was well past breakfast time. Maybe they were getting in some last minute nookie before her parent’s showed up.

  Either way, she’d have her chance today and she wasn’t letting it pass her by this time. This time she’d be the one who came out on top with all the finer things in life. She’d step into a loving set of parents, a handsome and viral fiancé, money and a life she’d always dreamed of and had never had the opportunity to enjoy.

  Putting her binoculars away, she went to her stash of clothes and headed for the shower. She had some serious prepping to do. Showering came first and foremost. She shaved everything, creamed her body with lotion and brushed her hair and teeth. She headed for the salon next. She took pictures out of her wallet and held them up. “Can you make my hair look like hers?”

  “Sure thing honey,” the salon woman said, taking the photo from her. “You look just like her.”

  “She’s actually a close relation, but she’s too stubborn and proprietary to share her hairdo secrets so I had to get devious.”

  “Ah, well, once a good hair cut gets out, everyone wants it so I can’t blame her,” the woman chuckled. An hour later, she turned around and didn’t recognize herself at first. Her hair was to her shoulders now, straight and a beautiful blonde color that reminded her of spun gold. She’d had it styled just like Allison’s and the resemblance was astonishing. She’d never looked more like Allison in her entire life.

  Smiling from ear to ear, she headed toward her car with a new and strong purpose. Allison’s time in the spotlight was shortly coming to an end.

  ***

  Chapter Two: Complications

  Allison started her car and pulled out of the parking lot. Her weekend pass was up and she had to drive to the main office outside the gates to receive a new one. She knew she wouldn’t be able to stay forever, but maybe a few more days with Brody would sustain her until they were married. Or until her next weekend pass became available.

  After securing her new pass, Allison drove to town to do some grocery shopping. Brody didn’t have much to snack on and she wanted to buy him some of his favorites. He’d be in PT or physical training, until that afternoon so she had a while to work with. She pulled into the closest Aldi and with a smile on her face, headed toward the store. She shopped smart, buying things that would stand the heat as she shopped for more things. She took the the mix, chips, crackers, nuts and other goodies back to her car for safe keeping and then drove down to a small retail boutique she’d seen on the way in. She’d wanted to check on some special items for the wedding.

  By the time Allison got done with all of her shopping and going back and forth to Brody’s apartment, it was dark outside and she couldn’t wait to get back to him. She pulled up to a jiffy store and pumped gas before she went in and asked for the bathroom key. “It’s just outside and around the corner.” The clerk handed her the key and Allison headed to the bathroom.

  She rounded the corner and didn’t have time to scream before a hand clamped over her mouth. “Hello Allison.” The key was yanked from her hand and slid into the lock. Allison backed into the bathroom, the shock so numbing that she didn’t even think to fight or run.

  “What are you doing here and who are you?”

  “I’m your sister darling, your twin to be exact,” the woman said, a wicked smile on her face. “We didn’t exactly have the same cushy home life. You grew up with parent’s who loved you, pampered you and gave you the things you wanted and needed. I grew up in foster care, jumping from home to home, school to school. I had parents who tried to love me and others who couldn’t do enough to shower me with hate. When I found out about you I knew I had to find you. Imagine my surprise when I realized just how happy you were. Your man is quite a decent guy it seems and your parents are lovely.”

  “Those were Brody’s parents,” Allison said, correcting the woman’s assumptions. “What’s your name?”

  “I’ve had many, but my latest
one is Karen.” The woman said. “Listen Allison I really hate to do this, but I am tired of living my life in the shadows. I’m tired of trying to dig a life out of the shithole I was left with. It’s so much easier to borrow what someone else already has up and running.”

  “What do you mean borrow?” Allison asked, but before she could even fathom an answer, she felt the hard crunch of the woman’s fist across her face. The first blow was stunning, knocking her back against the wall. It was the second blow that had her seeing stars and a sick black haze shooting in front of her eyes. She slumped against the wall, her knees weak and unsteady. She tried to protect her head, but the third blow totally undid her, sinking her body and mind down into a dark abyss.

  “I mean darling, that now I’m Allison and you’re just a nameless and faceless nobody. Good luck sweetie.” The woman who called herself Karen, stripped Allison of her identification and her shoes. The clothes she had on were identical to the one’s Allison was wearing and within minutes, Karen had transformed herself into her twin sister, for better or worse.

  She took the bathroom key to the clerk, said a quick, “Thank you,” and headed out again. She enjoyed sliding onto the leather seats in Allison’s car and gunned the engine to head back to Fort Lejeune. She wanted to get a load of Brody and see if he was as sexy up close as he had been with Allison. ***

  “Hey you,” Brody said when Allison finally showed up. “I was about to call some friends to start a search.

  “Sorry about that,” Karen said, feeling awkward. “I got a little caught up shopping so I had to stop and get gas.”

  “Understandable,” Brody smiled. He pulled the woman he thought was Allison close and pressed a kiss to her brow. “Next time call though okay? I won’t worry so much then.”

  “Alright,” she agreed. “Did you like all the snacks?”

  “Huh, you bought enough for my entire floor darling.”

  “You can never have too much trail mix,” Karen laughed. “Let’s eat, I’m ready to drop after shopping so much.”

  “Sounds good to me,” Brody said. They made subs and finally sat down to eat. “So tell me more about shopping.”

  “Oh you know,” Karen smiled. “It’s shopping. After I picked up the snacks for your room I headed over to see about some specialty items for the wedding and then by the time I got done it was dark and my gas tank was on fumes.”

  “I’m glad you made it to a jiffy before you ran out of gas. You’ve got to plan better than that if you don’t want your husband to have a heart attack after we’re married.”

  “I’ve got it covered,” Karen said, her blue eyes taking on a hard edge. “But in the future I’ll be more careful.”

  “Good,” Brody smiled. After they ate, he suggested they take a walk.

  ***

  Like she wanted to stroll with some guy she didn’t know and talk as if life had handed her a billion dollars on a silver platter. Pasting a smile on her face, Karen played along. “Six months and two weeks to go and you’ll officially be Mrs. Crowley.”

  “I’m already counting down,” Karen lied, putting more pep in her voice than she obviously felt. She turned away and rolled her eyes. It was all she could do to look at this man her sister was so in love with. She hadn’t thought about that when she’d decided to steal her sister’s identity. Now she was fitting herself into a life she didn’t want, all because she’d never had it easy and was so tired of working her ass off to have anything worth having. She wanted for once to know what is what like to be loved and accepted. To be successful and wanted. She couldn’t say the prospect of sleeping with Brody was a nice one, but it was obvious that he was crazy about Allison. If Karen could feel that for once, maybe it’d be the turning point in her life.

  “I’m already picturing you in your dress. What’s it like?”

  “Like a wedding dress. It’s beautiful and that’s all I’m saying about it mister,” Karen said, pouting as if she was offended he’d asked. In truth she couldn’t give two shits about a wedding dress or anything pertaining to a wedding. She wasn’t going to walk down the aisle and say “I do,” to a perfect stranger. He might be what Allison wanted, but Karen had different ideas about sex and the type of man she wanted.

  Karen had no doubt though, that she could easily find a man on post who was her idea of nice and available. She wasn’t a homewrecker, well not for the most part. She, however, was not attracted to Brody in the least and keeping up the charade wasn’t something that intrigued her enough, especially when the benefits ran out.

  “Are you staying with me tonight?”

  “Actually I thought I’d head home. I’m exhausted from shopping and I’m already sleeping, I’m just good at talking and walking while I do it.”

  Brody laughed, but something wasn’t quite right. Allison looked and smelled and felt the same, but Brody had a feeling that something was wrong. Whether or not she’d discuss it right now was the question. “Alright.”

  “Really? I was prepared for more of a fight.”

  “I can see the tiredness in your eyes. I’m not going to beg you to stay when you obviously need sleep. I’ll see you again tomorrow morning.”

  “Thanks,” Allison smiled. Then there were the answers and expressions that weren’t quite right either. She was too blasé about everything. For a woman who’d been waiting nearly a year to get married, Allison was ecstatic to be down to the final six months. Now she seemed as if she couldn’t care less about any of it.

  “Are you okay sweetheart?” Brody asked, befuddled by her seemingly Que Sera, Sera attitude about everything. The Allison he knew wanted everything down to the finest detail in writing. Now she seemed as if it wouldn’t matter to her if they eloped and married at a cheesy chapel in Las Vegas.

  “I’m fine,” Karen smiled. She worked hard through the rest of their walk to be as close to what Allison had been, feeling as if Brody felt the difference even if he couldn’t figure it all out. She walked with him back to his apartment before saying goodnight. “I’ll see you tomorrow afternoon.”

  “Alright,” Brody smiled. “Sleep well.”

  “Thank you,” Karen said, turning to go. Brody caught her hand and pulled her close. His lips took hers sinking into a pool of cool water. Unlike the heat he’d expected, Allison seemed aloof. Pulling back he eyed her suspiciously before deciding he was obviously reading into her relaxed state too much. “Good night Brody.”

  Chapter Three: Memories

  Allison woke to find herself in the hospital. She bolted upright and instantly felt the room spin around her. She lost the little bit that was left in her stomach and fell back on her pillow again. “Miss Dubarry?”

  Allison turned her head toward the voice but didn’t respond. “You were found in a bathroom at a Citgo station. Do you remember anything about your attack?”

  Allison couldn’t comprehend what the doctor was saying to her. Nothing sounded right. They were calling her Miss Dubarry and it sounded weird, but she couldn’t quite remember what her actual name was. She had no idea why her face felt so odd or hurt so bad. What had happened to her? “I don’t remember anything.”

  “Your identification says your name is Karen Dubarry. You live about an hour and a half from here but there’s no emergency contact or important persons listed anywhere that we can find.”

  “My name isn’t Karen Dubarry,” Allison said, her emotions all over the place.

  “Do you know your name?”

  “No, but Karen Dubarry isn’t it.”

  “Okay,” the doctor said, her eyes sympathetic, even though Allison could tell she wasn’t making much progress in getting anyone to believe her. “I’m going to go over your diagnosis and report with you, then we’ll see about your discharge and aftercare.”

  “Alright,” Allison said.

  “You suffered a concussion and massive swelling to your cheek and eye socket structure. The swelling, which was left unattended caused severe pressure to the optic nerve in your left eye.
Unfortunately we weren’t able to undo that damage. We need to have you see an ophthalmologist to confirm the diagnosis, but I’m afraid at this point you’ll be permanently blind in that eye.”

  “What?” Allison said, already disbelieving. “I can’t be blind doctor.” The laugh was full of bitterness and unrelenting anger. “You don’t understand I…” Tears welled in her eyes and spilled onto her cheeks as sobs began to shake through her body. They didn’t subside for a full five minutes as Allison tried to sort everything out.

  “I understand that this is a lot to take in, especially in one night,” The doctor smiled. “We’re keeping you overnight for observation. Tomorrow you’ll see the eye doctor and we’ll run another series of scans to be absolutely sure of the results. Tonight the best thing you can do is try and get some sleep. Tomorrow will be a long day, especially if you need to be discharged.”

  Allison tossed and turned through the night, barely getting more than an hour of sleep at a time. Images flashed through her mind as her nightmare dragged on. By the time the sun came up though she had a plan. “I need a sketch artist. Someone who can take my ramblings and turn them into a picture.”

  “I’ve got a friend who does that,” one of the nurses that was passing by Allison’s room said. “I’ll call him and see if he can come by.”

  “Thank you,” Allison smiled. Two hours later she was describing a young man to the guy who was sketching for her. “He’s tall, maybe six foot, two inches or so. He’s got a crew cut and all I keep seeing is a white uniform cap and deep blue vest with a bunch of colored blocks on it. Allison touched her left shoulder and chest to indicate the placement of the blocks she saw.

  “Do you think this man was a soldier?” the man asked.