Dearest Cowboys Box Set

by Mia Brown

  He held me tight. Alex crashed his lips to mine to swallow up my screams and having us connected in that way really built up our bond. I felt like I knew him more in that moment than I had ever done before. We were giving ourselves over to one another wholly and I absolutely adored it. This was the only person who I could trust, who I didn’t feel vulnerable with. After all the issues I’d had with trust, this was everything.

  “Fucking hell…” The post orgasmic bliss swam around me. I couldn’t hear anything aside from the hammering of my heart as it slammed against my rib cage at a much too rapid pace. “Alex, that was…”

  “I’m not done with you yet.” He grabbed my hips and span me around, leaving me breathless on my hands and knees. It wasn’t until he rested his hands on the bottom of my back and he slid in to me from this angle that I realized I could see our reflection in the television screen. Me on all fours in front of him while he slammed in behind me over and over again. The sound of our bodies slapping together echoing through the room only made the whole thing even hotter. I could feel that strange creeping sensation curling over my toes once more.

  Not again, I thought desperately as I started to lose control. It can’t be happening again can it?

  Admittedly, I wasn’t an expert when it came to sex, but it didn’t seem like a mind blowing orgasm would come around twice in such a quick succession, but as Alex slammed in to me over and over, the impossible happened. It fizzed through my veins and burned at my core rapidly reaching my brain. The pleasure had come for me again, a second time, a multiple orgasm and it was everything. I was already weary from the last one, drained emotionally and physically, so this one rocked my body so much harder. It was earth shattering to say the least. My arms couldn’t hold me upright any longer, so I collapsed in a heap on the bed, screaming in to the duvet cover beneath me.

  I couldn’t keep my eyes off the television screen though, even as I fell forwards. I really wanted to see Alex as he collapsed and fell apart. I wanted to watch him lose his damn mind. He’d seen me crumble, but I never really got the chance to watch him go through the same. After my first time with him, I was too busy seeing stars.

  As he leaned against me and his face crumpled, I felt a warmth in my chest, and intense love for this man who managed to remain handsome even as he exploded inside of me. In that moment, I saw everything that he wanted, and me too. The wonderful family life that I knew would keep us satisfied.

  I didn’t want the jet setting city life for my child, that much I was certain of. I loved my life in the country side, aside from my other of course. But the open spaces, the fresh air, the freedom… I wanted that for our child too and I knew it was the same for Alex. He visited the city for me, but it wouldn’t be his choice.

  I saw a farm house, kids running around us, me and Alex living a much more simple life than we had been since we’d known one another. It was something that I ever would have believed that I wanted, but now I craved it. I wasn’t ready to hang up the modeling crown forever just yet, not while I was enjoying it, but it wasn’t my happy ever after anymore. It was simply a career, a stepping stone to getting everything that I wanted.

  I hadn’t ever been lucky enough to have a family before, so now I had my shot I wasn’t going to screw it up. It was going to be the best thing that ever happened to me and I was thrilled.

  I didn’t know that happy ever after’s existed but living in the middle of one was wonderful.

  Thirty-Nine

  Alex (a few months later, August, afternoon)

  “A celebrity power couple?” I laughed at the interviewer’s way of wording me and Emily. “I don’t know about that. We don’t think of ourselves in that way at all. We’re just two normal people in love.”

  But as I held Emily’s hand in mine tightly and I looked towards the camera, reminding me that this was a live morning show, I knew that couldn’t be further from the truth. We might have been normal when we were in Wyoming, drinking a beer with Kenzie and Jeff, laughing and having a good time just like we’d always done… but things like this always reminded me that we were in the lime light and people were interested in us.

  The news that we’d got married spread like wild fire and it was crazy for a bit, but over the last couple of months it had calmed down a little bit. What was about to happen today would change all of that again.

  “But, Emily, you can’t be classed as normal,” the interviewer laughed. “Not only is your face on all the major campaigns at the moment, you’re impossible to avoid, you’ve also kicked up a storm at Fashion Week and you have been a judge on the reality show hunting for new models. You are everywhere. Definitely not normal!”

  Emily laughed modestly. As always, she honestly didn’t see how incredible she was, how much of a power house. I knew that she was nervous to be on TV when she was asked to judge that program, but she had made herself known to be wonderful. She was the kind, supportive judge who everyone loved, growing increasingly popular every day.

  “I might be everywhere, but I really am just a normal person most of the time. I don’t see myself as a celebrity.”

  “And Alex, you are predicted to win yet another world championship. That must be exciting.”

  “Well, I don’t know if I’m going to win this year if I’m totally honest with you,” I answered truthfully. “There are some incredible people out there, the level of the riders this year is amazing. What will happen, will happen.”

  Another deciding factor this year would be where my head was at. Last year, I was more focused, more determined. I put so much of my time in to winning, but this year I had a wonderfully beautiful distraction on my arm. I wanted to be around Emily more than I wanted to be on the back of a bull.

  I didn’t know what that meant for my future. Right now, it was wide open, but I was happy. I didn’t need the certainty when it came to my career when I had this incredible person beside me.

  “Everyone is following your career. They are all excited for you. I’m sure you will do well.”

  “It’s easier to do well with this woman supporting me.” I pulled Emily closer to me. “She’s incredible.”

  “Aw, that’s so sweet,” the interviewer cooed. “To see you two so in love… well, it’s inspirational. To see you two making it work in a world where most people fall apart is wonderful.”

  Me and Emily smiled at one another, and I could see in her eyes that she was gearing herself up, preparing to say what she really needed to. My pulse raced quicker, a smiled so widely it was like I had a coat hanger pressed between my lips, the intense love flowed through me. Everything that I thought made me happier before paled in to insignificance compared to this wonderful, life changing news. This was the best thing to ever happen.

  “So, actually, I have something to say.” Her voice shook just a little bit. “And this is massive news.”

  “Ooh.” The interviews eyes lit up. She could see herself and this segment gong viral online, which of course was the main thing that people cared about these days. “Are we about to get an exclusive here?”

  “You are.” Emily’s hands fluttered to her belly and she rested them there. To me, it was already completely obvious what she was going to say… but that was because I already knew. “Me and Alex are going to have a baby.”

  I slid my eyes closed for just a moment and remembered the moment we got that positive pregnancy test. Emily hadn’t been feeling her best, she was a little sick and dizzy, but I didn’t want to get my hopes too high. I didn’t want to be disappointed when we weren’t already instantly pregnant. Surely, we weren’t going to be that lucky… but much to my surprise, the blue cross appeared and me and Emily cheered. There wasn’t a moment of nerves or hesitation, we were just immediately ecstatic. We yelled and jumped around like crazy.

  The same sounds surrounded us now as the interviewer and the audience screamed and yelled for us. The whole world was happy for me and Emily which was amazing. I loved being surrounded by all the love.


  “This is just wonderful.” Oh my God, the interviewer had tears in her eyes, this was insane. “We are so happy for you. You two get even more inspirational every single day. You’re going to be fab parents.”

  I turned to look at Emily who also had tears in her eyes. Everyone was getting all emotional, it was even starting to choke me up. I couldn’t weep though, not in public. Not with Jeff watching and taking the mick out of me, that was something I had done enough of in private. That test had really tipped me over the edge. Learning that I was going to be a father for the very first time was the best thing ever. I couldn’t wait. Nine months felt like a very long time to wait to meet my little son or daughter. Either would be incredible.

  I grabbed her and hugged her, allowing Emily to collapse against me for a moment as she gathered herself up.

  “So, what are you going to do?” the interviewer asked, trying to bring us back in to the conversation, to remind us where we were. “How are you going to balance your careers and family life?”

  We shared a look again but this time I took the reins. “After this world championship, I am going to be hanging up my chaps for a while to focus on family life. I want to be a very present father.”

  I shuddered, the idea of being a father was incredible. It was magic. I could feel the intense love flowing through my veins already. I couldn’t wait until we got to see our child on the ultra sound in a couple of days.

  “I will also be taking a step back from modeling.” Emily nodded determinedly. “This is something that me and Alex have talked about a lot and we want to retreat for a while, to be parents.”

  “But you two are doing so well. You’re at the top of your game.” The interviewer’s eyes almost popped out of her head. “If you take a step back then you risk someone else rising up in your place. There are always new bull riders, new cowboys, new models showing their faces. Not being rude, but people easily forget. I don’t know if you two will be forgettable, but at the same time, that’s the fast paced way the world works.”

  “We both know that,” I confirmed. “But that’s a risk we are willing to take for our child. Our priorities will be with our family. We want to be around. Our careers will always be there… but even if they aren’t, we will be fine.”

  We weren’t hurting for money; we lived a modest life where we didn’t need much. The cash we had from our careers so far would be fine. We really were in our own little bubble and it was perfect for us.

  “Wow, that’s a really big statement. It’s crazy to see you two changing your lives completely. But at the same time, it’s just more of the same. You’re inspirational. You always are and you always will be.”

  The conversation then turned to fashion, which was something I tried to understand but I didn’t quite get, so I tuned out for a moment and watched Emily as she answered in her animated fashion. I loved it when her face lit up like that, it was wonderful. I just knew that even when she wasn’t modeling, even if she changed her career path, she would always work with fashion somehow. She just had it in her blood. Maybe she went in to fashion because a model scout found her, but it was evident that was what she was supposed to do with her life.

  That would be something that I would always encourage her to do if she wanted to. I would even be her assistant when not on the ranch if that was what it took… not that I would be a good one.

  “I love you,” I suddenly blurted out, interrupting the pair of them. For a moment, I forgot that I was on stage. I glanced towards the camera and made a snap decision to make something of this. “I love Emily Fancy so much. She is the best woman ever.” I rose to my feet and walked towards the front of the stage. “I might be the bull riding world champion, but I have the champion wife. Most people have seen Emily and they know what she is like, but they don’t know just how wonderful she is. She’s perfect, she’s wonderful, she’s everything to me.”

  I could hear someone crying behind me. I wasn’t sure if it was the interviewer or Emily, but I couldn’t stop. I was on a roll now. I had so much love for this woman and I didn’t often get to express it, so this was the time.

  “The day that Emily agreed to marry me was the best day of my life… especially because that was the day that we also got married. I don’t know if everyone was aware of that, it seems we couldn’t wait.” Laughter tittered around me. “And now she’s going to be the mother of my child. I must be the luckiest son of bitch in the world.”

  “Language!” the interviewer snapped, reminding me that we were on TV. But she didn’t sound mad about it. Just thick with emotion. She probably had someone in her ear yelling at her about me right now.

  “Sorry, son of a… gun, I don’t know.” I laughed. “I’m just so happy. I want the world to be this happy. It’s wonderful. And now, I want to take my wife’s hand and lead her out of here because I want to take her home to our amazing life. I hope the audience understand.” I leaned back and grabbed Emily’s hand. Yep, this confirmed the truth. She was the one crying. “We love you all, but we love each other the most.”

  I leaned down and kissed my wife, to more cheers and yells from the audience. Then I took her with me, leaving the interviewer gob smacked and alone. But she would be fine, she had her exclusive, she was a professional. I was done talking to the media, I was done talking to everyone aside from Emily. We had our new futures to plan because much as nine months was a long time, it wasn’t that long.

  “You’re crazy,” Emily giggled, while shaking her head amused. “But I do love you.”

  “Yeah, I love you too.” I leaned down and kissed her again. “So, let’s get home, shall we? Back to our normal life my gorgeous model wife.”

  “Oh sure, my crazy ass world champion, let’s get out of here.”

  God, I loved our normal life. Our home, our normal boring existence in the countryside. It was all that I didn’t know I wanted and more.

  Epilogue

  “Alex,” I cried out as the heat in the kitchen got a little too much for me. “I need some help over here.”

  “Yes, Mummy?” my gorgeous little brown eyed girl replied with a big smile on her face. “Can I help?”

  “Oh, darling, you are so wonderful.” I leaned down and kissed her head. “But you’re only two…”

  “Nearly three!” she insisted proudly, holding up three fingers in case I didn’t get it.

  “Yes, you are, Alexis, but I need Daddy for this one. Do you think that you could grab him for me?”

  She nodded and raced off to get her father. I chuckled as I watched her go. This was exactly the sort of issue I told my husband we would face if he insisted on calling his daughter after him, but of course he wouldn’t have it. He wanted to carry on his name, even though I told him that ‘Fancy’ was enough. But I gave in. just like I always did with that man. He had this magical way of making me give in to him all the time.

  His daughter had inherited that too… luckily, I loved the pair of them so much.

  “Hey there, wifey.” He circled his arms around my waist. “You need some help? That surprises me because you normally have Thanksgiving dinner completely under control. You’re usually kicking me out!”

  “I know.” I wiped the sweat from my forehead. “But this is the first year your parents have come to eat with us, so I want everything to be perfect. I need it all to be perfect because I want them to love me.”

  They liked me; I knew that much. We had spent enough time together for me to know that they certainly didn’t have any bad feelings towards me, even though I basically stole their son by marrying him in secret, but I needed them to love me. I guess it was still some of the left over hurt from my issues with my own mother. I was terrified that I would never be able to please them enough, that I couldn’t be good enough for them no matter what I did.

  I didn’t even know what was happening with my own mother these days. It was sad. I tried to call her when Alexis was born to let her know that she had a grand child, but she had blocked my number. She had cut m
e out completely. I guess that was her choice and there wasn’t anything that I could do about it… but I had issues because of it.

  At least I was secure in my husband’s love and Alexis’s as well. At least I had learned a number of lessons from my mother, and they were all about how not to be a parent… but it didn’t make it any less sad.

  “Mom and Dad love you already, Emily. You know because they rave about you all the time. They are completely in love with you and us as a couple. You have calmed me, made me the best version of myself, and they know it. They love you for it. You’re a daughter to them. Never mind that you gave them Alexis as well!”

  Alexis who they doted on. I guess in a way she helped them with their loss of Cassie. Now that I had a child of my own, I couldn’t even begin to imagine the sheer agony that must have put them through.

  “You say that, but I don’t know if I will ever be able to fully accept it.”

  Alex nodded, knowing that he couldn’t make my issues go away, I couldn’t be ‘fixed’ so instead he always helped me with he current issue causing my anxiety which I had to admit was so much better for me. I didn’t even realize that was the sort of help I needed, he just figured that out on his own because he was so perfect. The more I opened up to him, the more I showed him of me, even the bits I never thought that I would share with someone else, the more he accepted me and treated me in the way that I needed to be treated. It was crazy, he had climbed in to my brain at some point and he understood me much better than I understood myself.

  Not only was love not a lie but it was also the truth that had saved me.

  Having Alex there as my rock, supporting me no matter what happened, was all that I needed. I knew that I could weather anything with his love, that no storm or tornado would knock me down because he was there holding me up. To think there was a time when I wasn’t sure that I could trust a man like Alex was crazy. I had no idea what he was like with the women that came before me and I never wanted to, but with me, he was my life.