Wooing In Wyoming (At The Altar #11)

by Kirsten Osbourne

  He raised an eyebrow at her. “Exactly how many blind dates have you been on?”

  She shrugged. “Only a couple, but you never forget that look!”

  She nodded to someone else, a young woman sitting alone who had a box of chocolate cookies beside her and a Kindle in her hands. “She’s reading a romance,” Erin told Al.

  “How do you know?”

  “You only eat chocolate if you’re reading romance. If you’re reading mystery, you eat chips. If you’re reading horror, you don’t eat, because ew.”

  Al shook his head at her. “You have some very interesting ideas about life, don’t you?”

  She shrugged. “Doesn’t everyone?”

  “I guess. Maybe most just aren’t as vocal about it as you are.”

  “I believe in calling a spade a spade. If a person is insane, I’m going to come right out and say it. There are crazy people out there!”

  “Okay. I’m not arguing with you.”

  “That’s because you’re a little afraid of me, aren’t you?”

  He wanted to laugh. How could anyone be afraid of his tiny little cute-as-a-button wife? “Isn’t every man a little afraid of his wife?”

  “Only if he’s smart.” Erin leaned over him to get a better view of the monitor to see if their flight had been delayed, getting twitchier by the minute. “We still have thirty minutes before we board. I’m going to go find some chocolate.”

  He frowned. “I think they might have my fudge at the candy store a couple of gates from here.”

  “You think?”

  He shrugged. “They tell me they run out a lot. We sent them a delivery a couple of days ago, but it’s Christmas, so you never know if they’ll still have some.”

  “I’m going to see!” She jumped up, grabbing her purse. “Are you coming or staying here by yourself?”

  “If I stay alone, will people stare at me and say my wife left me before our honeymoon, and now have to go on it all alone?”

  “Probably. And then they’ll say they’re shocked you found anyone willing to marry you, and you must be really rich or something.”

  “That’s just mean, Erin!”

  She shrugged. “I never claimed that I was always nice, did I?”

  “I don’t know what you told Dr. Lachele!”

  “Not that. I promise you!” She put her hands on her hips and glared down at him. “Are you coming or not?”

  “I shouldn’t, but I will.” He got up and took her hand, smiling down at her. “You’re starting to grow on me.”

  “Like a fungus?”

  He blinked a couple of times. “Where did that come from?”

  “Well, you said I was starting to grow on you…what else could you possibly mean?”

  “Are you always going to be this difficult?”

  “It’s my job. It’s a tough one, but I try to keep everyone around me humble and aware. Don’t you think that’s good of me?”

  “Sure…” He pointed to the candy store, and they went in together.

  “Do you have any Frank’s Fudge?” Erin asked the cashier after a cursory glance around the store.

  “We’re down to our last bit,” the cashier responded. “We can’t keep this stuff in the store. It’s the best there is. Have you tried it yet?”

  “Yes, I love it! What flavors do you have?”

  “We have some orange, some peanut butter, and some caramel twist.”

  “Caramel twist please. Do you have any with sea salt?”

  The cashier frowned. “I don’t believe Frank’s Fudge makes that, but it sounds good, doesn’t it?”

  “It sounds delicious. Someone should complain to Frank!” Erin said, her face filled with disappointment.

  “Oh, the man’s name isn’t really Frank. He’s Al Frank. You have to admit Frank’s Fudge sounds a whole lot better than Al’s Fudge.”

  Erin nodded. “It sure does!”

  The cashier gave her a small sack with her fudge wrapped up in it. “Can I get anything else for you?”

  Erin shook her head, noting the girl’s name on her nametag. “I’d love a bottle of water, Sophia. Al, do you want anything?”

  He shook his head. “Not now. I’ll just take a pinch of your fudge later.”

  “You will not! This is Frank’s Fudge. Do you have any idea how much I love this stuff?”

  “More than your husband of one day?”

  Erin laughed. “Not even a contest…”

  Chapter Five

  During the seven-hour flight from New York to Geneva, Erin entertained herself with a book by Jolene Gold. She’d never been a huge romance reader, but her sister had sold Jolene and her husband a house in Culpepper, Wyoming, so she had to give her a try. She also watched a couple of movies on her iPad and eventually fell asleep.

  Her head drifted onto Al’s shoulder as soon as she nodded off, and he smiled, pleased that she trusted him completely in her sleep. It was a good foreshadowing of the future, he hoped. He watched her sleep for a few minutes before he pulled his pillow from the back of the seat in front of him, tucked it behind his head, and fell asleep himself. There were worse ways to travel than snuggling with his beautiful new wife, and they would arrive early in the morning on Monday, so they would be losing a night of sleep unless they took advantage of the time on the plane.

  They were groggy when the plane landed, but they dutifully got out of their seats, gathering all the things they’d strewn around them.

  An hour and a half later, they were in their rental car and headed up into the mountains. Erin was tired, and a little cranky, but she was fascinated by the scenery. She was used to mountains having lived in Wyoming her entire life, but the mountains of Switzerland were like nothing she’d ever seen.

  “Do you cook?” he asked as they got to the little village closest to the cabin where they’d stay.

  She shrugged. “I cook for myself a lot. I’m not great, but I haven’t starved so I must not be terrible.”

  “I figured we’ll eat breakfast and dinner in the chalet and have lunch out. I have activities planned for most days while we’re here.”

  “Activities?” she asked. He’d mentioned some sight-seeing adventures, but she wanted more details.

  “Yeah. I figured while we were here it might be fun to do some sightseeing.” He pulled into the parking lot of a store with a giant orange M on the sign. “I’ve been told this is the place to grocery shop here.”

  Erin shrugged. “Are you going to share the cooking?”

  “Of course I am. I wouldn’t ask you to do more than ninety-percent of the cooking on our honeymoon!”

  “Funny. You think you’re so funny.”

  He smiled, reaching for her hand. “Of course we’ll share the work. Let’s go figure out what we need.”

  Once they were inside, they were both surprised by how familiar the supermarket was. Many of the items being sold were different, but the basic layout was the same as back home.

  “What do you have planned for the week?” she asked.

  “That’s a surprise!” Al winked at her, and she shook her head.

  When they reached the display of chocolate, she went a little crazy. “Switzerland is supposed to have the best chocolate in the whole wide world!”

  “I’m beginning to think that Dr. Lachele chose you for me because of your love of chocolate.”

  Erin laughed, linking her arm through his. “She’s a smart woman that Dr. Lachele!”

  “She is at that.” Al shook his head as he watched his new wife choose multiple candy bars, all different variations of chocolate and caramel. “How long do you think we’ll be here?”

  “Oh, this is only a couple days’ supply. Do you want some?” She put several bags and bars into the grocery cart.

  He sighed. “Yeah, I need a couple as well.” He was very interested in tasting the difference between Switzerland’s chocolate and US chocolate. Improving his product was always on his mind.

  An hour later, she was unpa
cking groceries into the refrigerator in the small kitchen. She hadn’t taken the time to explore yet, but what she had seen was beautiful. Someone had put up a Christmas tree in the living room, and it was nice to have it there. She’d thought she’d have to do without a tree this Christmas.

  Al carried the last bag inside, leaning against the counter to watch her put things away. “What do you think of this place? Did I do good?”

  “I love what I’ve seen of it, but I’ve barely looked around. I’ve been concentrating on getting everything put away.” Erin took the bag he’d just brought in and found places for everything in it. “There. Done.”

  “I’m hungry.”

  She sighed. “I’ll make breakfast, but supper’s on you.” Opening the fridge again, she took out the ingredients for scrambled eggs and bacon. If he wanted something else, he could fix it himself.

  While she cooked, he wandered through the chalet, looking in every closet. When he got back to the kitchen, he grinned at her. “Wait until you see the bedroom. It’s absolutely amazing!”

  “Are you just trying to lure me there? I thought you wanted breakfast.”

  He laughed. “Not trying to lure you until after you finish cooking, but then yes, I’d love to take you in there and do what newlyweds do best.”

  She shook her head. “You said we’d wait.”

  Al sighed. “I did wait. We’ve been married a whole…” He looked at the clock. “I don’t even want to think about the time difference. We’ve been married a day and a half or so.”

  Erin smiled. “I’m a little confused about the time difference myself. Do we get free Wi-Fi here? I should message my mom and tell her you didn’t murder me in my sleep.”

  “We do have free Wi-Fi. Aren’t you glad you brought your tablet?”

  She shrugged. “I guess so. I’m going to try not to focus on electronics much while we’re here. This is our time to get to know each other before we have to head back to the real world.”

  “Are you already missing the real world?”

  “Not at all. It’s nice to get away, and the view is absolutely amazing.” From the dining room, she could see mountains and more mountains. She was thankful not to have to see a lot of people or anything but the beauty of the area they were in.

  After breakfast, she cleared the table. “I made a simple breakfast, so there weren’t a lot of dishes. I’m going to do the dishes myself, and then you can do the supper dishes.” In her experience, when a man cooked, he messed up every dish in the kitchen and then expected someone to clean up after him. She was going to make it clear that wasn’t happening in their marriage from the get-go.

  He shrugged. “I can handle that. There’s a dishwasher.”

  She nodded, getting to work. “There is. Should be easy to keep clean if we both work at it.” She realized he was leaning on the counter watching her do the dishes. “What time do we need to be out of the house tomorrow?”

  He pulled out his phone and tapped at something. “Tomorrow’s Christmas, but we need to leave by about eight the following day. Will that work?”

  She shrugged. “I’m feeling pretty jet lagged, but I think if we have a quiet day tomorrow it will work.” She walked to the window and watched as snow fell lightly. “I feel like a walk. Do you want to go for a walk?”

  Al smiled. “You like to walk in the snow?”

  “Of course I do. I’m human after all.”

  He reached for the coat he’d hung up when they’d arrived. “Let’s do it!”

  Erin got her winter gear on. “Are we going to go sledding? Or skiing while we’re here?”

  “You know, I hadn’t planned on it, but I saw a sled outside. We could go play in the snow if you want.”

  She nodded eagerly. “I love the snow, but I’m always busy and never take the time to really enjoy it.”

  “Let’s do it then!”

  The snow was wet and perfectly packable. They made a snowman and then took turns sledding down a steep part of the yard of the house. “I don’t know that I’m ready to do this on a mountain,” she said with a laugh.

  “Well, I think we’re good with our slope here. Let’s just not go up to the top and try it!”

  By the time they went into the house, they were both soaked to the skin and shivering. “I’m putting my coat in front of the fireplace to dry,” she said. “And then I’m going to go and take a long hot bath.”

  “I’ll start the fire. And if you need me to wash your back, I’ll come and do that after.” He winked at her.

  Erin responded by wrinkling her nose. “I’ve been bathing myself for a year or two. I think I can handle it.”

  “I’m here to help if you need me. Just call out!”

  She shook her head as she walked away, going in the direction he’d taken the suitcases when he brought them in from the car. When she stepped into the bedroom, she stopped and just stared. The view was more beautiful than anything she’d ever seen, and the bed was right underneath windows that looked out over the mountains. The windows were in a triangular shape, and she felt like she could reach out and touch the snow.

  Living in Wyoming, she was used to snow. It got dirty after a day or two, but here, it looked pristine. She’d brought a small Christmas gift for her future husband, not knowing who he would be. If felt strange to give him the gift she’d picked out for a man she’d never met. He was more than just a random stranger now. He was Al, and he was starting to… She didn’t know what he was starting to do. But she was beginning to develop feelings for him, which was odd. She’d truly believed she’d spend the rest of her life with no feelings for the man she married. How could feelings be developing so quickly?

  After her bath, she put on sweats and a T-shirt, joining him in the living room, where he was sitting in front of the fire, a movie on the TV in front of him. “What are you watching?” she asked, cuddling up beside him, with her legs tucked beside her.

  He slipped his arm around her casually, as if this was something they’d done a thousand times before, and she smiled. Hopefully they would do it a thousand times or more. She was married to this man, and they were going to make it to forever…at least!

  Al smiled at the way she immediately came to him and got close. Maybe she wasn’t ready for sex yet, but she was getting used to him, and she obviously enjoyed his touch. They were going to make it. He was sure of it.

  “Do you want me to make us some hot chocolate?” he asked. When she didn’t answer, he looked over and saw that she was sleeping. He pulled the throw from the back of the couch and draped it over them both. He’d never met a woman who could fall asleep as easily as Erin could. Why he found that so endearing, he’d never know.

  When Erin woke an hour later, she was disoriented for a moment. She looked over to find Al watching her sleep. She’d had a suitemate who did that once in college, and it had been incredibly creepy, but Al doing it…well, she found it sweet! “How long did I sleep?” she asked, covering her mouth as she yawned.

  “Only about an hour.” He stroked her cheek softly. “You can sleep more if you’d like.”

  She shook her head. “No, I’m fine.” His brown eyes stared down into hers, making her again think of chocolate. “You know what I want more than anything else in the whole wide world?” she asked, her voice soft and sexy.

  He shook his head, mesmerized by her. “What do you want?” Please let her say it’s me.

  “Chocolate.”

  He sighed. “I’ll go get you some. Want me to make some of my famous hot chocolate? I have all the ingredients.”

  She nodded. “I’ve never tried the hot chocolate you sell in your store, but I hear it’s absolutely amazing. I want to try it.”

  He leaned down and kissed her softy. “I’m on my way.” He got up walking into the kitchen, and she couldn’t help but think about how good his butt looked in his jeans. Al made her heart beat faster.

  After watching him for a moment, she got up to follow. “I want to see how you make it.�
�� She perched on a barstool and watched him as he poured a bit of milk into a small pot and then broke a chocolate bar into pieces. “I always just use a powdered mix.”

  “And there are some good ones, but nothing is quite as good as melting milk chocolate into milk.” Al stirred the milk and chocolate together with the stove at a low heat. “You don’t want to boil it, because it will be nasty. It’s a slow process, but so much better this way.”

  “I’ve heard that, but it seems like so much work when I can just zap some hot water and stir in some powder.” Erin liked how efficient he looked as he stood over a pot with a wooden spoon. “You can be barefoot in my kitchen anytime.” She had to fight not to clap her hand over her mouth. She was used to saying what she thought, but she hadn’t meant to say that!

  “Oh, really?” He raised an eyebrow at her, enjoying the blush. “Want me to wear an apron?”

  She stuck her tongue out at him. Yes, she’d said something silly, but he didn’t have to enjoy it so much! “I need chocolate.”

  He picked up a bar from the counter and tossed it to her. “I want to know which of these your favorite is. You’re obviously a connoisseur of fine chocolate.”

  “If by that you mean I love to eat it all the time, and don’t think any other food should be served, you’re right. Chocolate for the win!”

  She unwrapped the candy and took a bite, savoring the taste. “Yours is better.”

  “Really?”

  She nodded. “This is excellent. It’s a good creamy milk chocolate. The caramel is soft and smooth. The chocolate you gave me yesterday, though…or was it two days ago? I’m so confused with the time change! That chocolate was perfect. Just the right amount of chewiness to the caramel. This is too creamy and smooth.”

  “Let me know if one of the others is better.”

  “Oh, don’t worry. I’ll make sure you know all of my opinions of all the chocolate.”

  He laughed softly as he poured her hot chocolate into a mug for her. “I’m sure you will. No doubt in my mind at all.”

  Chapter Six

  Christmas Day was quiet for Erin and Al. As soon as they woke, they exchanged gifts. She felt uncomfortable giving him what she’d picked out, but she had nothing else to give. He opened her box and found a tie and a CD she’d burned of all her favorite songs. “I know it’s lame, but I didn’t know you at all…not even your size!”