Little sniffling sounds came over the wire.
“Oh no, that’s not the effect I was hoping from you.”
She sniffed and said haltingly, “That…is the most wonderful…sniff…and intimate thing anyone has ever said to me. Cowboys are special, aren’t they?”
“… I’ve always thought so.”
“I also have a nice welcoming gift for you. I got a suite here, you know.”
They talked another half hour about the ranch, Jesse, school, Sam, Jeanne and everything else. Finally she said, “I have to go, Sandy. I wish you were here. I miss being with you.”
“Tomorrow, sweetheart. I’ll be at your hotel about noon. I want to stay for another day, would that be all right? Let’s see your town, your way. Pretend I’m a visiting sailor in port for the day.”
“Aye, aye, skipper. I love you. See you tomorrow.”
“I love you, sweet Lily Cable. Tomorrow.”
They clicked off their phones and both sat there looking off into space.
What’s that people say about something being too good to be true? Don’t believe it because love is too good, period. Sandy kissed his phone and stuck it in his pocket. Then he went out to find Jesse. Where is everybody? He was feeling pretty good, at long last.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
The Fairmont Hotel had a spacious, elegant lobby filled with brocade-covered furniture, comfortable chairs, marble floors and decorative flowers. The soft lighting created a welcoming and relaxed atmosphere for guests. Page and Lily had had a light lunch in one of the colorful dining rooms and were sitting in the busy lobby awaiting Sandy. Page said she wanted a quick look and then would scoot.
“I know what he looks like, so I’ll play look-out,” she teased Lily.
“Okay, Page, I’ll wait for your signal…”
“Should I start a smoke signal or whistle or…oh, my!” Page gasped.
“I think that’s my signal,” grinned Lily as she happily closed her eyes.
Page watched this handsome, fair-haired cowboy wearing jeans, boots and cowboy hat walk into the lobby. He was carrying a bouquet of beautiful red roses and honestly, looked incredible. The cowboy stood out from the other men wearing expensive business suits, so everyone turned to look at him.
“Whew, Lily! Are you kidding me? That’s him?”
“Breathe, Page. He does that to me too.” She laughed out loud.
That did it – her laugh. He heard her and made straight for where they were sitting.
“He’s coming over, Lily.”
“Thanks. I can take it from here.” Lily kept her eyes closed.
As he got closer, she could hear his boots talking to her as they clicked on the marble floor. She soon smelled his familiar aftershave and could feel his strong presence. Lily opened her eyes and there her Sandy was…indeed, delicious was the right word. She smiled at him and he grinned back.
“Hi, there.”
“Hi, yourself.” They gazed at one another for a long minute. Lily’s eyes slid over to Page.
“… Sandy Johnson, this is my friend, Page Warren, who lives in the City. We were teachers together once upon a time.”
He reluctantly moved his eyes from Lily to Page, “Nice to meet you.” He leaned over to shake her hand and Page shook it, seeming immobilized. They shook hands lightly and Page jumped up.
“Well, Lily, I’ve got to go. Call me later.” She hurriedly gathered her purse and started to leave. “Very nice to meet you, Mr. Johnson.”
Lily smiled at her. He did that to women, she knew.
He tipped his cowboy hat. “Ma’am.”
Page beat a hasty retreat to the front door, but couldn’t resist turning around to look before she left.
Sandy handed Lily the bouquet of roses. “These are from your father, sweetheart.”
She leaned in for a deep sniff. “They smell wonderful. That was nice of him, wasn’t it?” A long look passed between them, an understanding.
Lily’s lips parted in surprise as he got down on one knee. Everything stopped and everyone in the Fairmont lobby stared at the cowboy down on one knee before the black-haired beauty. Total silence… Sandy held his big cowboy hat in one hand and Lily’s hand in the other.
Although it was a large lobby with lots of people present, Sandy’s words could be heard in the quiet. “You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you. Will you marry me, Lily Cable, and be my wife?”
Lily gave him a shy smile, raised his hand to her lips and softly kissed it.
“Well, then,” she said gazing deeply into his blue, blue eyes. Playfully she kissed his hand again and finally said, “Yes, yes, a thousand times yes.”
Sandy took the flowers from her, laid them on the couch and brought Lily to her feet and into his arms. The kiss was warm and sweet, and oh, so familiar. It was sweet and wonderful, yet hardly intimate. The whole Fairmont lobby burst into spontaneous applause and they realized they were on stage. Page applauded from the front door, wiping tears away. “Way to go, Lily!” she said mostly to herself and went out the front door, still sniffling.
“I think we need a little privacy, sweetheart,” Sandy whispered into her sweet-smelling hair. “Could we go up to your room?”
Lily kissed him lightly again and took his hand to lead him to the elevator. Men said, “Well done” and “Good job” to him as they passed by. People gathered in little groups around the lobby discussing what they had just seen. This story would circulate around the City tonight.
Once in her room, Sandy threw his hat on the floor and grabbed her. This time his kissing became more insistent, urgent. His desire for her was forefront and he didn’t even try to hide how much he needed her. Lily returned kiss for kiss just as urgently. She didn’t realize how much he really meant to her until he was gone and so were the kisses, the embraces…the love.
Inching their way to her bed, they kissed while wildly throwing shirts, pants, underwear on the floor everywhere…table, chair… lampshade… The room was littered with clothes by the time Lily and Sandy breathlessly fell on the bed in a heap, still locked together.
No words were needed. He had dreamed of this moment for a week now. Here she was in his arms—and all was right with the world again. Sandy brushed his lips on her face and throat, arms and chest again and again. Sandy wanted more and took more. Lily’s breath stopped as he explored her lines and angles with the softest touch. He moaned when her gentle fingers circled his chest, his belly. He reached over to find the condom in his jeans as Lily applied her lips to the business at hand. She took the condom from him and gave him a sexy smile as she slipped it on him so, so…slowly.
They made love like never before. The thrill of being together again, the sexy hotel room. He couldn’t get enough of her curvaceous body, her sensuous lips and silky hair. Not much sleep occurred that night – they made love, slept and woke up to move purposefully toward one another again. And again…
* * *
The sun was shining in from the open patio door. Lily opened her eyes, smiled and stretched. She circled her arms around the neck of the cute cowboy tracing her lips with his finger.
“Wait a minute. I need a bathroom break.”
Sandy laughed. He had already been up and had ordered some breakfast.
“We have to eat to maintain our strength, you know.” he called after her. “This is my only day in port, ma’am. Where can you take a lusty sailor, I mean, besides to your bed, which he appreciated very much, by the way.”
She peeked out the door at him with her toothbrush in her mouth, “Oh, ha ha. You’re a regular riot this morning.” She gave him a sexy smile and swayed her hips at him. “You were somewhat different last night and early this morning, however. Singing a different tune, you were.”
How he had missed this…laughing, talking, kidding, making love. There wasn’t anything else in the world that he wanted or needed—but her.
There was a knock at the door. “Stay in there for a few minutes, breakfast has arr
ived,” Sandy called to her.
A muted “okay” came out the doorway. He could hear water running.
Sandy had breakfast laid out on the little table out on the patio by a young waiter wearing a crisp, white jacket. He tipped the man and stood back to look over the balcony.
Wow! What an incredible view of the city. Maybe he would come to love San Francisco as much as Lily did. Sandy fussed with the place settings, making sure everything looked perfect. He took a small black box out of his pocket and placed in on Lily’s plate. Admiring the scene, he said softly, “Can you die from happiness?” then caught himself. That was another line from Pride and Prejudice. My God, he was becoming obsessed with that book.
She came out of the bathroom with wet, shining hair, whistling and wearing his shirt.
“Miss Cable, don’t you have any of your own clothes to wear?”
“Yours are much more fun, Mr. Johnson. And where’s my breakfast? I’m famished. We need to call Sam and Jeanne and Jesse today and…” She stopped abruptly by the pretty table and pointed at her plate. “What’s that?”
“I wanted to make it official.”
He opened the box to show her a large, square-cut diamond ring. Sandy plucked it out and took her hand. When he placed the shiny ring on her finger, her breathing halted momentarily and her mouth opened in surprise. Tears pooled in her eyes.
“Sweetheart, that’s not the reaction I was hoping for… Don’t you like it?” Her face glistened with tears. “I want the world to know we’re engaged.”
“Did you buy a book somewhere on romance? You are probably the most romantic man in the universe. How did I ever get so lucky?” Still holding his hand, she kissed it and slid happily into his arms.
“Now that’s more of the reaction I was hoping for. You like it?”
“It’s gorgeous! Page will be so jealous…”
“I thought we could pick out matching wedding bands together. Would you like that? Oh, no. Don’t start crying again.” He took a napkin from the table and handed it to her. “I seem to be doing that to you a lot this trip.”
Lily blew her nose on the napkin, not ladylike she knew, but it was an emergency. Could he really be any more wonderful?
“I’m ok-k-kay,” she stammered. “Really, just very surprised and extremely happy.”
“Good, then let’s eat. Look at this view!”
They took in much of San Francisco that day – Fisherman’s Wharf, Pier 39 and the Cannery. Walking through the park on the water, they shopped at the local street vendors. At Ghirardelli, they had sumptuous chocolate ice cream. Lily sneaked glances all morning at her beautiful new ring sparkling in the sun. Riding on a cable car, the lady next to her complemented her on it. While eating her ice cream, Lily posed her hand on the table and tilted her head to take another look.
Sandy grinned at her. “I guess I did okay with ring selection.”
“Yes, indeed. I’ll never take it off.” She slanted her hand one way and then another, admiring it.
He was quiet for a moment. “… Never?”
“Never.”
“What about if you’re washing dishes?”
“No.”
“… Slopping the hogs?”
“You have hogs?” She gave him a wide-eyed look. He laughed and became more serious.
“What if you were changing diapers? Would you take it off then?” Sandy’s eyes focused on hers.
She glanced up at him. “Um…where are we going with this?” The couple at the next table was listening in.
“Let’s take a walk, sweetheart.”
“S-sandy….” she stammered.
Once they had left the restaurant and were walking, he started again. “We’ve never spoken about having children. Shouldn’t we? Would you like to have any?” He was a bit nervous, so she took his arm as they walked.
“This is a strange conversation for a lusty sailor to be having on his one day in port.” By the look on his face, he wanted a real answer, so she said, “Hey, I’m just joking. I do want children, several if possible. Do you?”
He let out the breath he was holding. “Good. Wonderful, I just…ah…we needed to discuss it.”
“…Did you think I didn’t? What’s this about?”
“My wife couldn’t have any more children after having Jesse. I thought it was such a shame. You know I love kids and have always wanted a noisy house filled with kids and dogs.” The lines on his forehead smoothed and she reached up to touch his handsome face.
“We’ll be all right, you know. I don’t think I have any problems with conceiving and obviously, you don’t.”
“Let’s take a cab back to the hotel, Lily. All right?”
“… In a hurry, sailor? The ship sails at midnight or something?”
“Something like that.” Sandy caught the next cab and they had dinner in the suite. “We need to get to bed early, since we’re leaving tomorrow,” he winked at her.
“Aye, aye, sir. Anything the captain says.”
“Well, the captain requires your attention in bed.”
Lily discovered he needed much attention in bed.
* * *
CHAPTER NINETEEN
No one came to the door when Sandy and Lily arrived back at the ranch.
“Where is everyone?”
They dropped their suitcases in the hallway and went looking. The big ranch house seemed eerily empty as they walked through the homey family room with the stone fireplace sending out warmth, the good aromas in the kitchen and on out to the chilly backyard.
Jesse was playing by the barn with the dogs, while Sam and Jeanne were looking cozy walking arm-in-arm in a circular pattern, talking softly to one another. Lily thought they leaned dangerously close too.
“What’s up here, Sandy?” She slyly smiled.
“I told you something was up when I left. Apparently, whatever it is has progressed. Come on,” he took her hand. “Let’s tell everyone the good news.”
Jesse saw them and a big grin brightened his face. He rushed up breathlessly. “Dad! Lily!” They both gave him big hugs. “We missed you at school, Lily. Are you coming back soon?”
“Yes, sweetie,” she leaned down to kiss his cheek. “I’ll be there on Monday. Is that soon enough?”
“Yeah,” Jesse shouted, as he ran inside with the dogs on his heels.
“Dad!” Lily cupped her hands and called out.
Sam hurried to meet his daughter. He kissed both her cheeks and they hugged each other tightly.
“Honey, I’m sorry about all of this. My mind apparently went away for a while. Hopefully, I’m back now.”
“Dad, I’m so happy to see you again. It seems like my dearest father is back in residence again. I understand you and Sandy talked things out.”
“… We did, sweetie, with Jeanne’s help.”
At that, Jeanne came up to Lily and gave her a big hug as well. Sam reached a hand out to Sandy. “Well done, young man. Thank you for bringing my daughter home safe and sound.”
Sandy nodded. “It was absolutely my pleasure, Sam.”
Meanwhile, Jeanne grabbed Lily’s left hand. “And what is this, my darling son? Just what happened up in San Francisco?” She was dazzled by the diamond ring, as was Sam.
“That’s a beaut!”
Sandy put his arm around Lily’s waist. “We want you to know that I asked Lily to marry me, officially, and she said yes…” Sandy brushed his lips on Lily’s.
Lily giggled. “It was not only official, it was very public. He proposed on one knee in the lobby of the Fairmont Hotel. Everyone applauded at the end.”
“That sounds so romantic, just like my wonderful son,” crooned Jeanne smiling at them both. She warmly embraced Lily and then Sandy.
Sam patted Sandy’s shoulder. “Congratulations, son. My daughter couldn’t want for a better choice of a husband.”
“Then we have your approval, Sam? This time?” Sandy laughed.
“… You don’t need it, but
you certainly have it.”
Jeanne took Sam’s arm. “Good. You didn’t screw it up, this time.”
* * *
“She’s back, isn’t she?”
Jason grinned knowingly. Sandy was a new man, puffed up like a peacock. It had to be Lily. “You’re smiling all the time. What’s up?”
“Yeah, I went up to San Francisco to get her. That’s where she went to recharge her batteries, her dad said. Speaking of Sam, he flew in a few nights ago and is getting pretty chummy with my mother.”
They sat astride their horses, gazing into the sunset. Officially, they were checking reports of coyotes in the area. Unofficially, they were enjoying the coming night. The Nevada sun with streaks of pink and orange finally set in the horizon. The big sky had a chest full of stars in it tonight and the smell of sage filled the air.
“We’re getting married, Jason, and I’d like you to be best man. What do you think?”
“Absolutely. Yes. Thanks, that’s quite an honor.”
“We’ve been doing some planning the last few days and we want to have it here at the ranch in two months. Lily wants us in tuxedoes, though. Can you handle it?” He leaned back on his horse.
“Yep. No problem.” Jason spit on the ground. “I’m gonna wear my boots, though, Sandy. Can’t wear those wing-tip things. Too uncomfortable.”
“I totally agree. It’s a small compromise.”
The cowboys were still for a long time, basking in long-time friendship and the fresh earthen smells around them. Their horses nibbled and swatted away offending flies.
“… Mind if I bring Amy to the wedding?”
“You’re kidding,” Sandy blinked. “You and Amy?”
“Yeah, I seem to stuck with your leftovers,” Jason teased.
“I wish you guys well. Love is the best. I wish you some.”
“Thanks, buddy.” And then they sat still listening to the coyotes yipping in the far away distance, thinking their own individual thoughts. The horses shifted gracefully, loudly munching and chewing the moist grass.
* * *
Half the town milled and socialized in Sandy’s backyard. Fragrant flowers were everywhere, giving the air a mixed smell of roses, hyacinth and lilac. An archway had been built out in the huge grassy area. Earlier, Jeanne, Page and a few friends had been busy putting lace all over it, plus more flowers and decorative art. An area was set aside for the cowboy band that would play later at the reception. Of course, drinks and food were set up in another area with tables and chairs. It looked to be a blowout of a party.
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