Always A Will And A Way_Western Romance

by Barbara Gee

  Kelly felt her knees getting rubbery and she sank down onto the grass, kneeling before him, tears spilling down her cheeks. She pulled her hands free of his grasp and took his face between her palms, her whole body trembling with the most profound emotion she’d ever experienced.

  “Oh, Will, I love you so much my heart can hardly hold it all. Of course I’ll marry you.” She pressed her lips to his, sighing blissfully as his arms came around her and pulled her tightly against him. “I love you. I adore you. I crave you,” she said, punctuating each statement with a kiss. “You’re a blessing to me and I thank God every single day for bringing you into my life.”

  Will stood and drew her up with him, never breaking their kiss.

  “James is going to be so thrilled,” Kelly said against his lips.

  Lifting his head slightly, Will grinned. “He already knows. I mean, he doesn’t know you said yes, obviously, but he knew I was going to ask you today.”

  “Did you tell him before we left?” Kelly wondered.

  “No, yesterday when we went to Dallas. He helped me pick out the ring.” Suddenly Will looked stricken. “The ring! I forgot to give you the ring!”

  He quickly jogged down the hill to the horses and dug in his saddlebag, then hurried back up to where Kelly was waiting, still wiping away happy tears.

  “Do you want me to get back down on my knee?” he asked sheepishly, holding up the little black velvet box.

  Kelly shook her head, smiling through the tears that just wouldn’t stop flowing. Honestly, she hadn’t even noticed the lack of ring, and now she felt overwhelmed all over again.

  He opened the box and took out the ring, then reached for her hand and slid it slowly onto her finger.

  “Do you like it?” he asked hopefully.

  Eyes wide, Kelly turned her hand from side to side, watching the ring sparkle in the sunlight. The large center diamond was an emerald cut, surrounded by a beautiful array of smaller diamonds, and more diamonds gleamed all along the delicate platinum band.

  “It’s so beautiful, Will, and yes, I love it, but I think I might be afraid to wear it.”

  He chuckled. “You should’ve seen the one James picked out first,” he said. “I know you tend to be on the conservative side so I was looking at some pretty sensible rings, but James fell in love with the gaudiest ring in the place. We ended up compromising somewhere in the middle. And I’m glad, because now that I see that ring on your finger, I think it’s perfect. Nothing wrong with a little extra bling, Kelly, not when it’s an engagement ring.”

  “How did you get James to keep your secret? He didn’t say a word to me—he didn’t even act any different!”

  “I explained that proposals are really special when they’re a surprise, and I told him I wanted yours to be extra special. I knew there was a risk that he’d let it slip, but I really wanted him to be involved, and picking out the ring was a lot of fun.”

  “It’s perfect, because my two favorite men chose it for me.” Kelly hugged him, resting her hand over his heart. “I love it, Will. Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome.” Will grinned down at her, kissing her hard once, then again. “So can we set a date yet?” he asked hopefully.

  Kelly pressed a hand to her forehead. “A date? For the wedding? I’m still getting used to the idea of being engaged, Will. I can’t even think straight right now.”

  “Well how long does it usually take to plan a wedding?” he persisted, putting his arm around her shoulder and walking her back toward the horses.

  “Depends on how big of a wedding you want, I guess,” Kelly said.

  “How big I want? I think that’s probably your call.”

  Kelly shrugged. “I can go either way. I don’t know if it’s appropriate to bring this up, but I had a pretty big wedding with Jamie. I would be fine with something small and informal, but this will be your first time, Will, so if you want to go big that’s great with me.”

  “If we go small and informal, can it happen soon? Like, really soon?”

  They stopped at the horses and Kelly turned to face him, smiling. “How soon is soon?”

  “Next week?” he said hopefully.

  She laughed and he loved the sound.

  “Not next week, but maybe, I don’t know, a month or two?”

  “A month then,” Will declared. “Small, just family and a few friends. I’ll fly all your Virginia friends out, and of course your parents. Oh, speaking of your parents--” he chuckled. “We’d better get back to the Wild Rose. Gran and Pops are probably wondering what’s taking us so long.”

  It took a moment for Kelly to realize what he was saying. “You didn’t!” she breathed, her eyes wide. “My parents are here?”

  Will nodded. “I had to ask your dad for your hand. I called last week and had a good talk with him, and got his blessing. I told them my plans for today, and they called me back a little while later and said they wanted to fly out and add to your surprise. So as soon as church was out, Chad and I drove to the airport and picked them up. They hung out at Chad’s until you left to come over here, then Chad was going to take them over to meet Senior and Maggie and James.”

  Smiling at her dismay, Will gave her a quick kiss. “So, my pretty little fiancé, we should get going.”

  Kelly hugged him. “Did James know they were coming?”

  “Nope, I figured one secret was enough for him to keep. So he got a nice surprise himself right after you left.”

  “He’s probably dragging them all over the ranch,” Kelly mounted her horse and grinned over at her future husband. “You’re awesome, Will. See you back at the stable!”

  “Mom! Mom!” James ran out the kitchen door as soon as Will parked his truck by the house. “Mom! Gran and Pops are here! They surprised us! Did you get engaged?”

  Kelly stepped down out of the truck and caught her boy as he jumped into her arms.

  “I sure did, James. Thanks for helping Will pick out my beautiful ring. I can’t believe you were so good at keeping the secret!”

  “I promised Will I would. Come show your ring to everyone. I have two grandpas and two grandmas here now, Mom. It’s great! I’ve never had that many before.”

  “You’re a lucky boy, that’s for sure.” Kelly smiled widely and held her hand out to Will. “And I’m a lucky girl. Come on, Will C, let’s go share the love.”

  Chapter 37

  The ensuing weeks were incredible for Kelly. Her parents stayed at the ranch for five fun filled days after the engagement. James was beside himself, surrounded by so many family members who loved him, and the promise of a dad in the very near future. He eagerly introduced his east coast grandparents to all things Wild Rose, and to Kelly’s delight they took to the place almost as fast as she and James had.

  When they left, they informed Kelly that when they returned for the wedding, they planned to stay for at least a month, and would be thrilled to help all the others with little James during the honeymoon. Kelly wasn’t sure who was happier to hear the news of their extended stay, James and herself, or Senior and Maggie, who had thoroughly enjoyed having them around

  Will hadn’t changed his mind about having the wedding as soon as possible, but Kelly talked him in to giving her six weeks instead of only a month, just to make sure things wouldn’t be too rushed and stressful. Luckily everything in the planning department had gone smoothly. The wedding was to be a small, intimate affair, and Kelly couldn’t be happier about it. All of Will’s family would attend, along with the Mathersons, Sarah, Kelly’s parents, and her six best friends forever. Will had chartered a private jet to get the Virginians to the wedding, and they were all counting the days.

  The day after he proposed, Will had gotten things moving on the house on the hill. He’d actually had plans drawn up over a year ago, but hadn’t had the motivation to start the project. When Kelly said yes, he pulled out all the stops. Kelly loved the house plans and had only a few suggestions, which Will had been happy to incorporate. The
main change they had made was to add a spacious in-law quarters to the walk-out basement. Kelly’s parents had been thrilled to hear about that part, and Kelly was pretty sure that before too long they would be spending more time in Texas than in Virginia.

  The house wouldn’t be ready for another few months, but Kelly was actually looking forward to the three of them starting out in Will’s cozy cabin for a while.

  And now, the six week wait was finally concluding. It was the eve of her wedding, and Kelly was anxiously waiting for the limo holding her friends and parents to arrive at the Wild Rose. The limo was another extravagance that Will had insisted on, and Kelly knew the group was enjoying being spoiled.

  Kelly was attending to the final details for their “Wedding Eve” party. The event was being held in the back yard at the Wild Rose, in the same tent where the wedding would be the next day. They’d invited their families and of course the Virginia friends, as well as all the ranch hands from the Wild Rose and Triple Creek, Yvonne and Principal Harris, and a few of Will’s close friends in the area. Although they’d both been fine with having a small wedding, when it came down to it they realized they wanted to include others in their celebration somehow, and the Wedding Eve party idea had been born.

  Sarah and several of her friends had been eager to take care of the food, and Amy and Kelly had taken care of the decorations, in between long periods of ogling little Tanner Steele, the newest Matherson grandchild and James’ beloved cousin.

  Will had hired a band for the party, headed up by one of his high school friends, and they were currently setting up while Kelly put vases of fresh cut flowers on the tables and eagerly watched the lane for the limo. Sharing this happy time with her friends was incredibly important to Kelly, and she couldn’t wait for them to arrive.

  “Hey, Mom, can I have a little bit of barbeque before everyone gets here? I’m starving. Sarah said it’s okay with her, but she made me ask you first.”

  Kelly looked up to see James running her way, the ever present Dodger at his heels.

  “Sure, James. But do me a favor first and take a bottle of water over to each of the guys setting up for the band, okay? It’s hot out here and I’m sure they’ll be happy for something to drink.”

  “Okay,” James said agreeably, heading over to the tubs where bottled drinks were buried in mounds of ice, ensuring they’d be cold and delicious when the guests arrived in another hour or so.

  Amy entered the tent, cuddling her little guy and smiling her approval at how things were taking shape.

  “It looks great in here, Kelly. This is going to be such a fun night. Just good friends and family celebrating a match made in heaven.”

  Kelly blinked back sudden tears, the happy kind. “That’s exactly how I feel, Amy. I still have to pinch myself sometimes. I’m not sure how I ended up with a man like Will. I keep waiting for him to reveal some horrible flaw, but it doesn’t happen. I’m so blessed.”

  “You’re both blessed. Oh, I think your friends are here,” Amy said, nodding her head toward the lane.

  Turning to look, Kelly smiled widely. “Brace yourself, Amy. There are three highly excitable women in that limo, and we haven’t seen each other for quite a while. It could get a little crazy.”

  The limo doors burst open and Natalie, Jordan and Heather emerged, squealing and laughing as they ran toward the tent to embrace their friend.

  “Oh my GOSH, Kelly,” Jordan exclaimed after she’d gotten her hug. “This place is fantastic. And we have been treated like royalty all day! Limos to and from the airport, and you wouldn’t believe the jet Will got for us. It was so luxurious I almost hated to leave it.”

  “And it was full of the most delectable food and champagne, and I’m talking really, really good champagne.” Natalie added. “Even Stephan was impressed!”

  Kelly chuckled. Although Will hadn’t confessed to her the extent of his splurging on her friends, she wasn’t surprised.

  “I’m glad you enjoyed it, and I’m so glad you’re here,” she said, turning to hold her arms out to the men and her parents, who had given the girls some time, but now made their way into the tent.

  “Thanks for coming, guys. Oh man, I missed you so much,” Kelly said, hugging them all and wiping at more happy tears. “Come on, let’s go in the house so I can introduce you to James Sr. and Maggie. James is in there too, sampling barbeque and who knows what else. Then we can freshen up and change clothes and head back out here. Will and his family should be here soon, and then we’ll do another round of introductions and get the party started.”

  “It’s so beautiful here, Kelly. Seriously, I love it,” Heather exclaimed. “What a perfect place for a wedding.”

  Everyone agreed, and Kelly’s heart sang as they all happily made their way toward the house. She took a moment to hug her parents again before going inside with the others.

  “I’m so happy,” she told them. “I never thought I could be so happy.”

  “You’re glowing, Kelly,” her mother said. “I couldn’t be happier for you. There’s nothing more fulfilling for a parent than seeing their child so excited for the future.”

  “I know what you mean,” Kelly said. “I watch James and Will together, and I see how happy and content James is with the man who will be his dad, and I just couldn’t ask for anything more.”

  They went inside, where her friends were all hugging James in spite of his giggling protests. James Sr. and Maggie warmly greeted each and every person, welcoming them to Texas and the Wild Rose. Eventually the couples all made their way to their rooms to change. With Kelly and James bunking together, there were enough bedrooms for everyone. A short while later the men were in fresh jeans and shirts, and the ladies were in beautiful summer dresses, even tomboy Jordan, and ready to party the beautiful Texas evening away.

  Shortly after they had all returned to the tent and helped themselves to cold drinks, the Connor clan arrived. Will handled introductions, and then he and Kelly simply stood back for a while, arms wrapped around each other, watching as the various groups chattered and laughed as if they’d known each other for years.

  Soon the ranch hands and other friends started dribbling in, and Will and Kelly greeted each one, thanking them for coming and inviting them to help themselves to drinks and the plentiful food which Sarah and her cronies were setting out on long tables at the end of the tent.

  The band started playing, and as soon as there was a lull in the arrival of guests, Will grabbed Kelly’s hand and led her to the wooden dance floor that had been laid out in front of the band. Other couples immediately joined them there, and Kelly laughed up at Will as he led her through some dance steps that she decided must be unique to Texas. When the band moved smoothly into a slower number, Will pulled her close, one hand at the small of her back and the other holding her own hand against his chest. He leaned down and Kelly raised her face so they were cheek to cheek, enjoying the closeness for a brief moment before their hosting duties would need to be resumed.

  “I love you, Kelly.” he said in her ear, his voice low and stirring. “I love that we’re having this party with our family and friends, and I can’t wait to see you walk down the aisle to me tomorrow. But I’d be lying if I didn’t admit I’m looking more forward to when it’s over. I want to take you away and have you all to myself. I want to kiss you and not have to stop. I want to hold you and not have to stop. Then I want to wake up with you beside me, and do it all over again.” He raised his head and looked down at her, his blue gaze intense. “I hope you’re as ready for that as I am.”

  Kelly shivered at his words. “You know I am, Will. I’ve wanted it for so long. But I’m glad we waited. It’s the way it should be.”

  Will gave her a lingering kiss. “Less than twenty four hours from now, we’ll be starting our life as Mr. and Mrs. Will Connor. Knowing you’ll finally be my wife almost brings me to my knees, Kelly. You and James are everything I’ve ever wanted.”

  Kelly breathed in his clean mal
e scent and smiled dreamily. “I love you, Will. I can’t wait to be Mrs. Will Connor.”

  “Tomorrow can’t come soon enough,” he declared. “We’ll finally be a family. No more going our separate ways every evening. It’ll be you, me, James, and eventually our babies. Together. Forever.”

  Forever? Without warning, Kelly felt herself freeze. What did forever mean? How long would it be this time? Oh, dear God, she knew all too well how quickly forever could be cut short and she couldn’t lose him. Not Will. She couldn’t come back from that again. The thought terrified her and she clung to him, her heart pounding.

  Somehow he knew what she was thinking. Understanding her sudden fear, he pulled her more tightly against his strong, warm body, stroking her back soothingly. “Shhh, it’s okay. Just breathe, baby, I’ve got you,” he said, calming her with his voice and his touch.

  She looked up at him, drinking in the love and reassurance in his blue eyes.

  “I can’t lose you, Will,” she whispered.

  He slid his hand into her hair and settled her cheek against his chest, kissing the top of her head in the way she loved.

  “We don’t know what the future holds, Kelly, but here’s the way I look at it. No matter how long or short our forever is, spending it together is way better than being apart.”