The Cowboy’s Outlaw Bride

by Cora Seton

  “Thank you,” Noah had said. “For saving Olivia.”

  “Couldn’t have done it without your help.”

  “And for helping with the fundraiser. We wouldn’t even have a shot at the prize if it wasn’t for Olivia’s idea.”

  “Ideas aren’t worth much without actions.”

  Noah had studied him, wondering how much there was he didn’t know about Steel. Despite the mystery, he thought Steel could be counted on. The man wasn’t quite the outlaw Noah had thought he might be. Which was a good thing, considering he would be family soon.

  Family.

  “We’re even, then?” he had said at last.

  “As long as there are no more tricks, no more letters or sabotage—” Steel had extended his hand, and Noah had clasped it firmly. “Then may the best family win.”

  Noah kissed the side of Olivia’s head, glad to be with her tonight. “I’m not worried about what happens between our families. I’m just glad you’re safe.”

  “I am, too. I’m glad Caroline’s long gone and that so many witnesses saw Devon attack me. That’s got to help her case.”

  “I’m sure it will.” He kissed her again. He couldn’t get enough of her. He was so thankful she was back in his arms. When he thought he might have lost her today—

  “Noah, you’re squeezing me.”

  “Sorry.” He let her go.

  “I’m going to miss Caroline. She’s been my only real friend for a long time. First woman I’ve ever been able to trust since…” She cleared her throat. “Well, since Maya.”

  “That must have hurt when she betrayed you.”

  “It did.”

  He thought back. “Maya mooned around a long time after Mom left. I wonder if at least part of that was because she was missing you.” He realized that all of them had suffered in silence when his family broke apart. He and his siblings had unanimously decided to stay at the Flying W instead of moving to Ohio with his mother, but he couldn’t remember ever talking about it.

  Now he wondered if they somehow collectively thought that if they acted as one she’d change her mind and stay in Chance Creek, too—or better yet, patch things up with their dad. He found he couldn’t remember much about the day she’d left, as if the images and words they must have spoken had vanished from his mind.

  He’d blocked it out.

  Noah swallowed. He’d been more affected by his mother’s defection than he’d realized. Were Liam, Stella and Maya scarred by his parents’ split-up, too?

  “Maya sicced the sheriff on us,” Olivia said bullishly.

  “She might not have realized the repercussions. She was just a kid—like you.” Noah’s chest tightened when he realized Maya really had been a kid back then. William had been busy running the ranch. She’d effectively raised herself.

  “Maybe so. I sure didn’t realize what I was doing when I went to the sheriff,” Olivia mused. Her face was tight with remembered pain, and Noah wished he could ease it. He’d need to think more about Maya later. Right now Olivia needed his attention.

  “You both tried to do what was right,” he told her.

  “And Dad ended up in jail.”

  Noah chose his words carefully. “You know poaching doesn’t carry jail time.” He didn’t want to add to her misery, but he didn’t want to keep secrets from her either.

  She snorted. “Not unless you’re a Cooper.”

  “That’s not what happened.” Gently, he relayed everything Mahoney had told him.

  When he was finished, she looked resigned. “Gun trafficking. I would have never thought it. I guess he really did deserve to be in jail. I’m beginning to think I didn’t know my father at all—or my mother.”

  “We don’t know what the circumstances were.” Not that he could think of any good reason to smuggle weapons over the border.

  “I feel like I’ve lost almost everyone I ever cared about,” Olivia said tiredly.

  “But you’ve got me,” Noah said, tugging her closer. “And I’m not going anywhere.”

  “Do you promise? Because I don’t think I could take it—”

  Noah wrapped his arms around her. Knew he couldn’t go on without asking. “Olivia Cooper, will you marry me?”

  She stared at him. “Noah, don’t—not if you—”

  “I’ve never been more serious in my life. We had our date. Now I want more. I want you—forever. I want you to be my wife.”

  “Why?”

  She looked so surprised Noah nearly laughed.

  “Because you’re you.”

  “What does that mean?”

  Noah took both her hands. “It means you’re brave and you’re caring and you’re reckless and you’re maddening and you’re wonderful, and I haven’t been able to think about another woman since I saw you cuddling puppies in front of the hardware store.”

  Olivia smiled. “I forgot about that.”

  “I’ll never forget it. That’s the day I knew you were going to become my wife.”

  “Really?”

  “Really. I’ve been patiently stalking you ever since.”

  “Noah Turner, you are the strangest man I’ve ever met.”

  “Here’s the thing. I want my life to change. I want to build up the Flying W, not let it fall apart. I want to forget this feud between our families and move forward, without carrying the past along. I want to be part of Chance Creek’s renaissance, not part of the forces holding it back. I feel like I can do that if you’ll be by my side. You make me better, Olivia.”

  Olivia’s eyes filled. “You make me better, too. That’s everything I want. A new future. A better one. I’m ready to work, Noah. To build something. Fix something. To grow up and get it together.”

  “Exactly.” She understood him. “So will you marry me?”

  She took a deep, rough breath, and Noah waited in agony until she finally nodded. “Yes, I’ll marry you.”

  Noah swallowed. She’d said yes.

  She’d said—

  Noah kissed her with everything he had, but that wasn’t enough, and when he moved to pull her down on the bed beside him, the food and drinks got in the way. Olivia gathered them up and set them aside. Noah pitched in, scooping things off the bed as quickly as he could.

  “Where were we?” he asked when they were done. His hands went to the buttons on her shirt, and she lay on her back, allowing him to undress her. When he’d exposed her bra to view, she tugged on his T-shirt, and he pulled it up over his head. Tossing it aside, he pulled her to him, brushing kisses over her breasts before reaching around to undo the clasp on her bra. When he managed to peel it off her, Noah took a moment to drink her in.

  “What did I ever do without you?” he asked her.

  “I’m sure you were miserable every second,” she teased.

  “I was. I was missing you.”

  “Noah—”

  “I mean it,” he said, cupping a breast and running his thumb over her nipple. She sighed, and he did it again. “I knew something was missing. It was you. I need you, Olivia.”

  She leaned into his touch and reached to kiss him, already tugging at the button on her jeans. When they were both naked, Noah rolled over and pulled her on top of him. “I want to see you.” He ran his hands up to caress her breasts. As she straddled him, he thought he’d never seen anyone so lovely. Olivia was fully herself and fully open to being with him. He couldn’t ask for more.

  She rose on her knees and sank down around him. As Noah pushed into her, he wondered if his life could get any better than this. He suddenly understood the power of sex in a visceral way: two people joining as one. An act so intimate and so binding with the right person.

  Olivia was the right person. Noah was sure of that. He hoped to God she was as sure of him.

  As she rocked above him, her breasts swaying with their movements, the heat building between them, Noah touched her cheek.

  “Forever?” He hadn’t known he needed to ask the question, but he thought Olivia understood.


  “Forever,” she agreed and then moved with him until her cries brought him over the edge. As his climax crashed through him, Noah held on to Olivia, giving himself over to the sensations—to what they’d built together.

  Olivia collapsed on top of him, and he crushed her to his chest, breathing in her scent, kissing her hair, her face, then catching her mouth. He wrapped his arms around her, not wanting to let go.

  A life with Olivia was worth fighting for. Worth standing up for.

  He would make it his first priority.

  Everything else had to wait in line.

  Surrounded by Noah’s embrace, Olivia had never felt so safe. She knew to the bottom of her soul if she protested with a breath, he’d release her. Noah had no need to control her—let alone hurt her the way Devon had hurt Caroline. Every action he took showed just how much he cared.

  He was right; she had him, and she had other friends in Chance Creek, too. The Hall women had rallied around her to make the gala a huge success. Camila, Fila and Mia Matheson were friendly, too, and she’d done a great job at the food tent during the tubing fundraiser—she had a feeling they’d ask her to fill in again in the future.

  Marta was one of her staunchest allies in town, and soon she’d have a new job. One she’d always wanted—a position that would earn her respect over time.

  Maybe someday she’d go back to school, get a degree and be able to take over running the library when Marta was ready to retire. She wasn’t ready to speak that desire out loud yet, but somehow it seemed possible in a way it never had before.

  Maybe someday she’d patch things up with Maya.

  Maybe.

  Maya and Stella would be her sisters-in-law.

  Crazy.

  She and Noah talked and slept and woke to make love again in the middle of the night and then slept again. Now a streak of sunlight splashed across the bed, and she knew they’d need to get up soon.

  She wished she could stay in Noah’s arms, but they had work to do, jobs to go to, family to bicker with…

  Life with Noah would be interesting, and she had a million questions about their marriage, but one in particular had lodged in her heart and made her stomach twist.

  When Noah shifted, she turned in his arms to face him.

  “Hey, beautiful,” he said.

  “Hey, yourself, handsome.”

  He surveyed her a moment. “You’re thinking about something. What is it?”

  He knew her so well already. She had a feeling it would be hard to hide things from him.

  “Did you mean what you said? About getting married?”

  “Hell, yeah.” He pushed up on his elbow, fully awake. “Didn’t you?”

  “Of course, but—where are we going to live?” She held her breath.

  Noah nodded and thought about it. “Where do you want to live?” he asked finally. “I mean, it’s easy enough to go from one ranch to the other. We both have obligations to our families.”

  She supposed that wouldn’t change, but they’d need a home. “Noah, I can’t… I can’t leave my family. Not now. Not when we’re just pulling it together again.”

  She saw a flash of pain cross his face, but he quickly nodded again. “I can see that.”

  “Nothing against the Flying W. I know you love it—”

  “But Thorn Hill needs all hands on deck,” he finished for her.

  “Exactly.”

  “The thing is… so does the Flying W.” He thought some more. “How about this.” He lifted one of her hands to his mouth and kissed it. “If you agree to take my name, I’ll agree to live on your ranch. Doesn’t really matter where I sleep at night. I’ll be working both spreads.”

  Olivia’s heart constricted. His offer was fiendishly clever, but she supposed she could make that compromise, especially if her husband-to-be meant to care for Thorn Hill the way he did his own home. “Okay,” she said slowly. “I can agree to that.”

  “One more stipulation,” he added.

  “What?” she asked suspiciously.

  “We go get your ring soon. I want this deal sealed for all to see.”

  Olivia smiled. “I guess I can live with that, too.”

  “Good. We’re going to have to make a lot of these compromises, you know,” he added.

  “I know, but we’re strong enough to handle that. We’ll be fine,” she told him.

  “You bet we will.”

  When Noah walked into the diner that afternoon, Brandon was already at their usual table, waiting for him. For a moment Noah wondered if he’d lost track of time, but when he checked his phone he found it was just as he’d thought: the man was ten minutes early.

  That was a change.

  Brandon looked up and spotted him, then waved and broke into a broad grin. A mug of coffee stood on the table in front of him, and another stood in front of Noah’s place, prepared just the way he liked it.

  “What’s all this?”

  Brandon ducked his head. “I’ve got some news.”

  “Shoot.”

  “It has to do with Christie.”

  Noah figured he should have guessed that.

  “I know you didn’t want me hanging around her,” Brandon hurried to add. “I get it, too. You didn’t want me to drag her into something bad for her, but you underestimated her, you know. She pulled me up rather than the other way around. She gave me a reason to get up in the morning when I didn’t have one. Hey, you still with me, man?”

  Noah snapped to attention. “Yeah, sorry.” He’d gotten lost thinking about himself and Olivia. His whole family had acted like Olivia would poison him just because she was a Cooper, but instead she’d proven she was the strong, caring woman he’d always known she would be. He should have given Brandon more credit. “It really does look like she’s been good for you.”

  Brandon lit up. “You don’t know the half of it.”

  Noah laughed. “Got something you’d like to share?”

  “I finally got a job, for one thing.” Noah started to congratulate him, but Brandon, caught up in his excitement, plowed on. “It was the darnedest thing. I thought about what you said, about giving my folks a break, and I asked my mom if she needed any help. She didn’t, but she knew some other people who did. She started loaning me out to her friends. I did all kinds of things: errands, yard work, home repairs. A couple of days ago, Mom asked me to run and pick up snacks for her knitting circle. Most of her friends were in it, so I got to see everyone again. It was kind of embarrassing to walk into that frilly knitting place with a box of cupcakes, but those ladies were as happy as if I was delivering gold.

  “Then Mom introduced me to a new member who’d just moved to town. We got to talking, and I asked what brought her to Chance Creek—turns out she’s the wife of the new owner of the Simmons place. Hilltop Acres. When she asked what I did, I told her I was looking for work. She offered me a job on the spot as a hand on her new spread.”

  “Brandon, that’s great!” Noah said. “Really, I’m impressed.”

  “Before you ask, yes—I told her I’d been in jail. Told her everything that happened, and how I wanted to make a new start. Mom vouched for me. So did all the other ladies I’d helped. The best part is the job comes with room and board on the ranch.” He laughed. “That’ll give the folks a little space.”

  Noah nodded. “Sounds like they’ll have a lot of space. Hilltop Acres is pretty far out of town.”

  “I like it. Seems like a good place to get away from it all. Do some good hard thinking.”

  “What are you doing all that thinking about?” Noah spread his hands and clarified, “Not asking as your parole officer. Just curious what direction you’re going to go with your life.”

  Instead of answering Brandon rummaged in his pockets for a few moments and brought out a brochure. Noah’s eyebrows shot up when he saw it. “Firefighter training?”

  “I realized it feels good to help people. I’m hoping I can do a lot more of that before my life is over.”

/>   “Sounds like a good way to give back.”

  “Anyway, that’s not even the kicker,” Brandon said. “Now that I’ve got a steady income, Christie and I are moving in together. We worked out a fair way to split expenses. Since she can bunk with me free of charge, she won’t have to pay rent anymore, which means she can help cover some of the other bills. Together we’ll be able to save some money. Maybe it’s not our dream house, but by this time next year, we’ll have enough for our wedding.”

  “You’re getting married?”

  Brandon called Christie over to their table. “Show Noah your ring.”

  She held out her hand to Noah, showing him a silver band with a modest diamond.

  “It’s a placeholder ring,” Brandon explained. “One of these days I’ll be able to buy her a real one.”

  Christine shushed him with a kiss. “I told you, this is the only one I’ll ever need.”

  “Looks good on your finger,” Noah told her.

  Olivia entered the restaurant and joined them, giving Noah a kiss of her own. “Hey, guys—you having a party?”

  “Brandon and Christie are getting married,” Noah told her. “Coincidentally, we’re off to pick out our ring right now,” he added.

  Brandon broke out into a wide grin. “Congratulations.” He shook Noah’s hand, then Olivia’s. “Looks like things are looking up for all of us.”

  Noah couldn’t help but agree.

  A short time later he and Olivia pulled up out front of Thayer’s Jewelers. When they went inside, Rose Johnson greeted them with surprise. Noah couldn’t blame her. A Turner and Cooper looking for an engagement ring? He was sure the news would be all over town soon.

  “What kind of ring do you want?” Rose asked Olivia.

  “Something simple,” Olivia said.

  “Something beautiful,” Noah told Rose. “For my beautiful bride.”

  “Try on as many as you like.” Rose pulled out some trays and set them on the counter. “Take your time, you two.”

  Olivia did just that, but there was one she kept coming back to, a beautiful square diamond on a white-gold band.

  “Is that the one?” he asked.

  “I… think so,” she said. “I like it a lot. But… is it too expensive?”

  “Absolutely not. This is an investment, like our marriage. An investment in our future. Together we’re going to be so much more than we ever could be apart.” He kissed her. “I’m going to do everything I can to make your life wonderful, you know that?”