Her Uniform Cowboy (Harland County Series Book 3)

by Donna Michaels

  As Brandi drove down the drive, she couldn’t help but wonder if her mother would’ve been that happy, and that happily married, if she’d still been alive.

  “Well now, maybe getting Kade and Brandi together won’t be as hard as my sons,” Leeann McCall exclaimed, walking back into her friend’s great room for another cup of coffee.

  Hannah Masters followed close by. “I don’t know. I get the impression Brandi has just discovered her backbone and is not going to be so easy to budge.”

  “True,” she said, retaking her seat on the couch, smoothing a hand over her blue dress. “But we’ve faced adversity before, and prevailed. Twice.”

  Hannah sat down across from her and nodded. “So we have.” Her friend lifted her cup in a salute.

  “Brandi is in for a big shock if she thinks we won’t give her and Kade a little push,” she said, pouring coffee into her cup. Her sons were a lot more stubborn, and a lot harder to handle, although Kade had a much tougher childhood than her boys.

  Her best friend set her mug on the table and sat back. “If we managed to help Jordan along, there’s no way we can fail Brandi. Jordan’s stronger willed than a bull.”

  She hoped that were true. In the short time they’d gotten to know the designer, Hannah and her husband, and she and Alex were all in agreement. Brandi was a good-hearted woman who liked to help others, and was loyal to a fault. Exactly what poor Kade deserved. Besides, anyone with eyes could see the two were attracted to each other. They just needed a push. That’s all. A bit of a push.

  “Of course, there is a problem,” she felt inclined to point out. “Your daughter readily admitted she loved my thick-headed son practically from the get go. Both Brandi and Kade are closer to the opposite.”

  Her friend nodded. “Kind of like Kerri and Connor were in the beginning.”

  “Except I think Kade will be a lot harder. The poor guy was left behind by everyone he loved. I fear he won’t take a chance.” Her heart ached for the boy. Always had. Ten years ago, she’d made a vow to Sarah Dalton, his dying aunt, that she’d make sure Kade, Kevin and Jen were looked after, and she was not about to break it.

  “Well, we’ll just have to help him,” Hannah stated with a firm nod.

  Exactly what she’d been thinking. They’d helped her son, Connor, who was too stubborn at times to get out of his own way. And her son, Cole, who’d practically been unreachable. No. Getting Kade and Brandi together was definitely doable.

  “You’re right,” she said, several plans forming in her head. “And I know just the couple to help.”

  A half hour later, Brandi’s gas tank was full, but her stomach was empty. She pulled into the Texas-Republic lot hoping to rectify that and talk business with Jordan at the same time. Parking next to a familiar red pick-up, she smiled. Connor McCall was no doubt there to have lunch with her friend Kerri—his fiancée.

  She turned off the ignition and sat back. Since she seemed to have left her house without her smarts that day, she was now faced with the dilemma of her shoes. Which was worse? Going into the restaurant barefoot, or with gas on her shoes? Neither seemed sanitary or acceptable. She glanced around her truck. Nope. Nothing. An empty, low-cal snack wrapper was not going to work. Her cottage wasn’t too far away; maybe she could just run home quick.

  The muffled buzz of her cell phone jarred her thoughts, and she quickly pulled the vibrating device from her purse.

  Where are you?

  Sighing, she answered Kerri. Outside. Was just about to go home to change shoes. Pulled a Lucy. Spilled gas on shoe and don’t want to come inside restaurant with it.

  No, meet me upstairs.

  Kerri used to live in the apartment above the restaurant. Though she now lived at Wild Creek with Connor, maybe her friend still had a few things upstairs.

  Okay.

  Ten minutes later, Brandi walked into the restaurant with Kerri, wearing the only thing they could find. A pair of pink bunny slippers with big ears. Yeah, fashionable. Went well with her white, short-sleeved silk blouse and black pencil skirt. Which would’ve been only mildly embarrassing if it was just Jordan, Kerri and Connor in the pub. But sometime during her rummaging session upstairs, another costumer had arrived.

  The Harland County Sheriff.

  Chapter Three

  Just kill me now…

  Brandi’s day just kept getting worse. Of course the guy was here. It wouldn’t be the day from hell if he wasn’t, now would it? Having learned long ago to roll with the punches, she continued to walk next to Kerri as if wearing normal, big girl shoes. Which, of course, she wasn’t. No. Her feet were shoved into bright pink, fuzzy slippers with a smiling, white, over-sized bunny head and large pink ears leading the way.

  “Way to rock the slippers, girl.” Jordan winked, giving her two thumbs up from the table where she sat with Connor and Kade.

  The tall cowboy rose to his feet, along with the silent sheriff, and looked from her feet to her rapidly heating face as she approached with his fiancée. “I want to ask…I really do…but I won’t.”

  She smiled despite herself. “What? You don’t like my big bunnies?”

  Well, his fiancée’s bunnies. After all, they were Kerri’s slippers. And it was somewhere in between that thought and the men’s widening eyes that Brandi realized what she’d said. Then blushed accordingly.

  “I…um…I’m sure your bunnies are just fine, darlin’,” Connor drawled, slipping an arm around his fiancée’s shoulders and drawing her near. “But I prefer Kerri’s.”

  “Actually, they are hers. She let me borrow them because I spilled gas on my shoe,” she babbled.

  “Okay. Makes perfect sense,” he said with a laugh that signaled otherwise. “Why don’t we all have lunch? I’m starved.”

  She chanced a glance at the sheriff. Amusement flittered through his eyes, turning them a light gray. An emotion she hadn’t seen there in quite a while. Her heart did that stupid rocking thing in her chest, so she quickly turned her attention back to her friend. Rocking was dangerous. The sheriff was dangerous. Dangerous to her pulse. She didn’t need danger in her life. No. Calm, strong and steady were more her speed and what she sought in the new lifestyle she’d worked hard to achieve. Entertaining thoughts about the sheriff was hazardous.

  “You’re always starved,” Kerri said, patting Connor’s stomach as she looked adoringly up at the cowboy.

  Watching the pair interact, Brandi noted their relaxed, confident demeanor exuded strong and steady. Not normally one to envy, she felt the faint tug just the same. Kerri and Connor had the strong and steady, but also managed the dangerous. The two had taken risks, put it all on the line for the other, and had come out on top. Not a common feat. Although, from what she’d heard, Jordan and her husband Cole had risked it all, too. Twice. Married twice. Lost a spouse and found the courage to take a chance again.

  Brandi wasn’t that strong. She couldn’t do it, and she’d never even lost a lover in that way.

  The tall cowboy displayed his trademark lopsided grin. “Of course I’m starved. Especially when I know I’m about to eat your delectables.”

  “Okay.” Jordan stood, coming to the rescue of her blushing sister. “On that note, I think it’s a good time for the three of us to go fetch lunch from the kitchen. Excuse us, gentlemen.”

  Looping an arm through hers and Kerri’s, the former cop ushered them out of the dining room with lightening speed. Which was a real feat considering Brandi’s skirt only allowed baby steps. She had the feeling she wasn’t the only one glad the Texas-Pub didn’t open to the public until four in the afternoon. Embarrassment could’ve had a much larger audience.

  “Alrighty.” The dark-haired beauty let go once safely inside the kitchen. “While my sister heats up the lunch she made for everyone, you and I can sit at the table in the corner over there and discuss my master suite.”

  “Sounds good to me,” Kerri said, face a nice shade of crimson as she headed for the stove, not looking either of them
in the eye.

  With a wink and a smile, Jordan motioned toward the corner table. “Shall we?”

  Brandi nodded, an answering smile forming on her lips as she took a seat and pulled a notepad from her briefcase/purse. She knew her friend’s house was under construction and scheduled to be completed within the month. And she also knew her friend was eager to start her life alone with her husband in their own place. “Is Cole joining us, or did he give you a list of things he wants?”

  “No.” The woman shook her head, still smiling. “He’s working, but I know what he wants.”

  Okay, she was not going to touch that sentence. Clearing her throat, Brandi looked across the table at her friend. “Why don’t we start with what you both want, then we’ll schedule a walk-through so I can take measurements, and in a few days, I’ll draw up a tentative plan and we can tweak from there.”

  “Great,” Jordan said, setting her folded hands on the table. “I know Cole would like a stone fireplace, the chimney’s already in place. You might be able to use some of the rocks we’ve excavated on our land.”

  “I’ll check them out. That would save on your budget.”

  Her friend nodded and continued. “We’d also like a stand up shower, a soaker tub big enough for two, double sinks, long counter space, his and hers walk in closets…which are already framed out.”

  “Oh really? Again that could save on your budget. Provided the walls are in the right spot and don’t need to be moved,” she added.

  “Sweet.” The former cop smiled. “Even though Cole says money is no object, I can’t just spend and spend. That isn’t me. Not by a long shot.”

  Brandi couldn’t agree more. That was one of the things she liked most about the Masters sisters, one of the reasons they’d become fast friends. They held the same ideals she believed in. Spending time with family was more important than spending money. Helping others instead of helping themselves.

  And whatever it was Kerri was stirring in the pot on the stove... Damn, it smelled like heaven. Her stomach dutifully growled, echoed by Jordan’s. They looked at each other and laughed. Kerri’s ability to out-cook anyone and satisfy her stomach while keeping the calories low enough for Brandi’s hypothyroidism was an extra bonus.

  “I hope that’s ready,” Jordan said. “Because if our stomachs are grumbling, I shudder to think what’s happening with those two strapping men out there.”

  Kerri snickered as she spooned out five dishes. “Yeah, it’s ready. Brandi, I hope it’s okay that I put the stroganoff over rice for you? It’s around four hundred calories.”

  “Yes,” she replied. “That’s great. Thanks, Kerri.”

  To have something that smelled that good be under her five hundred calorie meal limit was sweet. Her stomach rumbled in agreement. There were times when keeping her metabolism going was a chore, especially when she had to eat every two to three hours, yet stay under fifteen hundred calories a day or she’d balloon up. Yeah, meals like the one Kerri was making made life so much easier for Brandi. And today, she was all about easy.

  Jordan turned back to face her. “Did you need anything else from me?”

  “No,” she replied, jotting down a final note before slipping the pad back in her purse. Even though the general rule of thumb was to never do work for family or friends, she knew this was going to be a fun job. She’d worked for Jordan on this very restaurant and looked forward to having her friend as a client again. “We just need to set up a time for me to come out and look at the rooms and discuss an appropriate budget once I do a walkthrough.”

  “What’s good for you? Is tomorrow too soon?” the brunette asked as they stood.

  “Tomorrow’s good. How about around noon?”

  The former cop smiled. “Perfect. Now, if you don’t mind helping my sister, I’ll go out and get the drinks so the cowboys don’t wither away.”

  “Sure thing,” she said, turning to her other friend placing dishes on two trays. “What do you need me to do?”

  The pretty cook pointed to the food. “Just carry one of these.”

  Tray in hand, Brandi followed Kerri out of the kitchen, and applauded herself for making it to the table without tripping. Given her day, it was a true miracle. One she didn’t dare question. It wasn’t until the others took their seats that she realized she’d been forced to occupy the spot across from Kade. Of course. Why would fate start behaving now?

  That the sheriff was silent through most of lunch was no surprise to Brandi. The others, however, kept giving them strange glances. Okay, not Connor. No. The handsome cowboy just wore a constant smile. Even while eating. But Jordan? Kerri? Oh, the Masters sisters were blatantly curious. Their brown eyes were bright with interest. It was eating them alive.

  Too bad.

  She had no intention of enlightening them. Although, she would like to try to apologize to the sheriff again. Just not with an audience. So she remained quiet and ate.

  As she slipped the last mouthful of deliciously seasoned meat, carrots and rice into her mouth, disaster struck.

  “Brandi,” Jordan said, placing her fork down. “I just realized I forgot to mention we want something bigger than a bench seat in the master shower, for…you know…when we do more than shower.”

  Rice really stuck to the back of the throat when swallowed the wrong way. Kerri slapped her back. Connor chuckled. Kade…no way in hell would she look.

  “And at least one sturdy wall that isn’t glass,” her soon-to-be-dead client added.

  Brandi continued to cough. Kerri continued to pound. Connor continued to chuckle. And Kade…she still wasn’t going there. But the good sheriff did hand her a glass of water. Which she sipped and sputtered, but eventually she gained the upper hand on the stray piece of rice.

  Feeling obligated, she nodded briefly at him, then turned to Jordan. “Okay,” she croaked while wiping her eyes with a napkin Kade also pushed her way. Another sweet gesture considering their early morning fiasco.

  “I’m sorry,” her friend said, brown eyes dark with concern. “I didn’t mean to make you choke.”

  She shook her head. “No worries. It just went down the wrong way.” Due to your blatant request and my inability to curb a reaction. She would’ve asked more about the shower design, but Jordan’s phone rang.

  “Excuse me, I have to take this, but I also have to go. Thanks for lunch, Kerri. Bye, everyone,” the woman said in a rush, already halfway to the door before anyone could respond.

  “You know, darlin’...” Connor smiled as he brought Kerri’s hand to his lips. “I think my brother got that shower idea from the one in your apartment.”

  A picture of her friend’s shower flashed through Brandi’s mind. The cowboy was probably right. The master shower in her friend’s old apartment was very similar to what Jordan had requested. And she had to admit, would be big enough to have sex in. Several ways.

  Heat rushed through her body, and increased when her gaze found its way to the still silent sheriff with smoldering eyes.

  Wait…smoldering?

  She blinked, her mouth bone dry. A second later, the blaze was gone. Had she imagined it? Maybe. Yeah. Probably. For goodness sakes. Mrs. Masters and Mrs. McCall planted that darn seed and she fell for it. Idiot.

  “Could be, sweetheart,” Kerri said. “I miss that shower.”

  “Me, too.” Connor glanced up at the ceiling, presumably to the apartment above, then to his fiancée, a grin tugging his lips.

  But Kerri shook her head and waved a hand in Brandi’s direction. “Forget it, cowboy. Now is a good time to do some asking, don’t you think?”

  Confusion flittered through his mocha eyes before it cleared and he straightened in his seat. “Yeah, you’re right. Now’s the perfect time. You go ahead, darlin’.”

  Kerri nodded, alternating her smiling gaze between her and the sheriff. “Brandi. Kade. We’d very much like you both to be in our wedding.”

  The request shocked the hell out of Brandi. Not that they’d
asked Kade, but because they’d asked her. She was new to the county, and their lives. Despite her lack of history with the couple, she did consider them dear friends, but...

  “Of course I would,” Kade said, surging to his feet, and they all followed.

  He went to shake his friend’s hand, but the tall cowboy pulled him into a back-slapping embrace, then stiffened.

  “Ah hell. What’d you do, buddy? Bathe in skunk today?” Connor grimaced as he drew back.

  Kade rolled his eyes. “No, but my deputy got a good soaking. Sorry, I tried to stay upwind of the poor kid.”

  She hadn’t noticed the smell until they all stood. The slight odor did nothing to detract from the sheriff’s sex appeal. Damn him. She turned to the smiling bride-to-be.

  “I’m so very happy for you both,” Brandi said, hugging her teary-eyed friend. “Thank you for asking me to be a part of your special day.

  Kerri’s hold increased. “You were there for me on many occasions, Brandi. It’d mean the world to me to have you in my wedding.”

  Okay, now the tears were dripping from her own eyes. Dammit. “I’m blessed to be welcomed into your circle of friends.”

  Although she had lots of family and friends in Pennsylvania, Brandi never truly felt the peace she’d encountered here. Not like in Texas. No. She felt a oneness with Harland County and its residents, especially the dear friend in her embrace.

  She’d barely stepped back when two big, strong arms surrounded her and pulled her in. “You are a good friend, Brandi Wyne,” Connor said. “Thank you for taking care of my girl when I was an ass.”

  Her face brushed the soft T-shirt covering the cowboy’s broad chest as she chuckled. “My pleasure, but I do appreciate that you’ve kept your ass-tendencies to a minimum.”

  “And I’m glad you’re finally going to make an honest man of him, Kerri,” Kade said.

  She stepped back to see the sheriff hug the blushing bride-to-be.

  “Yes, it’s a tough job, but someone has to do it,” her friend replied with a grin.