by Jillian Hart
His Montana Bride
Jillian Hart
Contents
Copyright
Preface
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Epilogue
Also by Jillian Hart
Copyright © 2019 by Jill Strickler
Original Copyright © 2010 by Jill Strickler. Not previously published.
Cover Art by The Killion Group.
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Preface
For everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven.
Ecclesiastes 3:1
1
Would you like to meet? Cord Armstrong considered himself Montana man tough, but his hands shook so hard he could barely type.
He hit send and his heartbeat, which had always been steady and predictable, kicked into overdrive. Surprising. Each and every contraction of his cardiac muscles arced sharp pain through his chest.
At thirty-one, it wasn't as if he had to worry about angina or heart attacks, he was fit and active, but it sure gave him pause.
Apparently being sweet on a woman was rough on a man, even a big, tough cowboy.
Worse, she wasn't answering right away. He stared at the computer screen while the walls of his bedroom shrank with every passing second. His muscled strength couldn't help him, not when it came to this one vulnerable question.
Being vulnerable panicked him and he couldn't draw in air. He felt like a fish out of water gasping hopelessly. Along with the pain in his chest, a definite crushing tightness set in, too.
Great. Just great.
Probably a mistake to have asked her, he thought, remembering his last bout with romance, which was a disaster. That was the way romance always went for him, so why was he doing this?
Considering the time it was taking her to answer, chances were good she would turn him down flat. He could try to pretend it didn't matter. He squared his shoulders and fisted his hands. He could take rejection, no problem.
But he couldn't lie to himself. He liked her, but maybe he'd misread things. Maybe she'd started up an online relationship with him to just pass the time.
Or maybe she found it interesting to know someone who lived on a Montana ranch. Could be that's all this was.
Once again, he was looking at relationship doom. He could calm an irate bull and stack hay bales faster than anyone he knew, but relationships? He didn't have the knack for them.
Emily was so wonderful. He hadn't been able to stop himself from caring about her, and look what that was doing to him. His stomach twisted up in a knot. Sweat broke out on his palms.
He reached for the cup of chai tea cooling on his desk, but his hands shook too hard. Afraid of spilling it, he left it be.
Lord, please don't let her say no. He stared at his vulnerable question on the screen, fighting a sinking feeling in his stomach. He knew just how to handle rejection because he'd gotten good at it over the years.
Just in case, he'd think of a good reply.
He shrugged one iron shoulder and raked a lock of brown hair out of his eyes. He'd handle this with steely determination, just like he did everything. There was a lot of work this time of year and he would be busy in the fields, he'd tell her, so no big deal.
The last thing he'd want her to know was how much her no would hurt. The truth? During these past two weeks corresponding online, she'd grabbed hold of his heart. He may be Montana-strong, but his heart was a vulnerable as anyone's.
Minutes ticked by without an answer. What were the chances she wasn't going to answer him at all?
Maybe it was best to end the online session and turn off the computer. He had enough to do in the barn to keep him busy for a lifetime. Somehow, he would find a way to stop caring about Emily Nichols.
Right, like that was going to happen. He shoved away from the desk. Well, he couldn’t sit a second longer staring at the screen. He had work calling him.
He bounded to his feet and grabbed his hat from the bedpost. Well, he knew what it was like to sit and ponder your response before you sent it.
They'd met on a country lifestyle's website and her funny comments about the way she'd grown up and missed living rural had caught his attention. He'd felt the same way, torn between his family's hope and expectations that he would choose ranching over the software engineering job he'd once had near Sacramento.
She had chosen her life as an executive. He'd liked her intelligent answers and gentle humor, so he'd messaged her. She answered back. After saying yes to her friend invitation, he'd gathered up his courage and gave her his email addy.
The instant he'd spotted her picture, he'd been beyond hooked. She was a beauty with softly curling light hair and gentle eyes and a delicate porcelain face. Her personality and character had come across in her messages and had gotten to him. Soon she became all he thought about.
He plopped his Stetson on his head and chanced one look at the screen. Still nothing. His question sat there, way too revealing. What if she said no?
Well, it had been worth a shot.
Fighting back disappointment, he headed for the door, his socks whispering on the hardwood. A different pain ratcheted through his chest feeling suspiciously like heartbreak.
Silly, because how could you get your heart broken by someone you never met?
The floorboards groaned beneath his weight as he took the first step into the hallway. He wasn't sure what made him look back, he liked to think it was hope.
Was there another line of typing on his computer screen? His pulse kicked up, thudding crazily as he retraced his steps, straining to see what her answer was. After all her hesitation, it might be best to brace for the worst.
I would love to, she'd written.
The starch went out of his knees. He gripped the back of his chair, blinked three times, and the words were still there. She'd said yes. She wanted to meet him. No, make that she would love to meet him.
With a shout of victory, he dropped onto the ladder-back chair.
Can you come to Seattle? Her question marched across his screen.
Yes. He managed to hit those three letters. He could face a charging bull without batting an eye, but the thought of romancing a woman made a thousand pound weight settle on his ribs. Fearing she would reject him was nothing compared to the stress of her acceptance.
I know you have animals to take care of, Emily wrote.
I do, he typed. She was a thoughtful lady. He liked that about her. He could think of a lot of women who wouldn't take the time to see anything from another's perspective. My brother can look after things for a few days.
Then it wouldn’t be too much of a hardship?
Not for the chance to see you. He hesitated, not quite sure if he should hit send. Too revealing, and he didn't want to rush things.
There was a good chance she still might dump him after meeting him face to face. He grinned. Best to rein in his affections so the humiliation wouldn't be so great when she realized he wasn't any more dashing in real life.
Steeling his spine, he hit d
elete and tried again.
It will be fine, he typed. When did you want me to come? What's good for you?
Any weekend. You pick, since you're coming all this way. Her answer came quick, without hesitation. That had to be a good sign.
I'll talk with my brother and see what weekend is better for him, since he'll be solo taking care of the cattle. Will that work? He hit send.
Absolutely.
He imagined her sitting at her laptop smiling. She wanted him to come see her, she really did. That put the biggest grin on his face, too. To meet her in person would be the best thing he could think of. As long as it went okay and he didn't embarrass himself or trip over his own feet.
Wait a minute. What if he did? What if everything that could go wrong went worse? Sweat broke out on his palms. He was crazy, giving her the chance to reject him in person.
Instead of long distance.
Lord, why do I keep seeing doom? He shook his head. Personal experience, that's why. He'd have to work on that.
He and his brother both ran two of the biggest operations this side of the county, but his track record with romance was abyssal. That was a proven fact.
Well, this time think positive. He set his jaw, moseying his way through the house. Just because every other venture down the romantic path had ended in disaster, didn't mean this one would. This time, with Emily, felt more important than all the others combined.
Besides, he'd taken a lot of care to make sure she was the right lady. Emily was down to earth and compassionate toward everyone, including kids and animals. She'd shown great interest in his way of life, as if she truly valued it. Now, he'd see in person.
"Cord!" The front door squeaked open and his older brother's boots stomped on the hardwood floor. "You're late. What's keeping you?"
"I'm coming." He tapped at the keys. Time to do barn work. I hate to say it, but I've got to go.
Well, time has zipped by too fast. Her words popped onto the screen. Give the calves a pat from me, oh, and Kate, too.
Will do. He couldn't quite make his fingers punch in the word 'goodbye.'
"Are you on that computer again?" Alexander's bellow echoed through the house. "The cattle are waiting and I'm not taking your turn at the chores. We do this together, remember?"
"Coming." Maybe he had another two seconds before Alex came barreling down the hallway. His brother had a high curiosity about how Cord spent his time. Alex didn't trust the cyber world or chatting with a woman Cord had never met.
Bye. He hit send.
Bye. He really disliked that word, but he put his laptop to sleep with just enough time to spare. He hopped out the door to face his brother in the hallway.
"You were talking to her, weren't you?" Alex resembled a grizzly more than he did a man, well, in temperament as opposed to hairiness.
"I was chatting with a new friend." He tossed out a grin, choosing the positive side because it was his only hope to slow down his brother's curiosity.
"Her again?" With a scowl, Alex headed back down the hallway, following a trail of sunshine through the house. "She's going to make you sorry. That's what women do."
"She's a nice." He looked around his sprawling but not luxurious house. Roomy, cozy. Upscale. "She's too nice. My big worry is that I'm not good enough for her."
"Innocent people get scammed all the time, just like you." Alex threw open the door and marched onto the porch. "She's probably a gold digger."
"Seriously? Are you kidding me? No way. Impossible." He dismissed his brother's dire concerns with an eye roll.
"Remember Jennifer?" Alex grumbled.
"I'm trying to forget. That's been so long ago." Cord pulled on his barn boots. While he refused to admit it, he still wasn't entirely over what happened. Hurt like that stuck with a man. That's how deep the wound had gone. He'd cared. She'd turned out to be much different from what she'd first seemed.
But Emily? What he knew about her was this. She was gentle and he suspected that she was shy like he was, holding back when others would be more forthright. She spent a great deal of time with her nose in a book, just the way he did. Nothing wrong with that.
He hopped down the steps and landed in the grass with a thud and headed toward the road that trailed through daisy-studded grass.
"Tomorrow I'm going to water this grass." Alex led the way toward the barn. "That reminds me. Someone's got to go ride the irrigation lines before tonight's watering. Got to figure out where the leak is. You might as well do it."
"Me?" Amused, Cord squinted against the lowering rays of the sun. Larks and robins sang all around him, flying and darting in the pasture.
He stopped to wait for the dog to lope up to him. He gave Kate a scrub on the head. Rubbed her ears good. "I might have important things to do with my evening. Like spend it with Kate. She's the girl who comes first in my life."
"The only one, by the way you're going. And who could compare to your Kate?" Alex stopped to give the dog a gentle, caring pet. "We both know you are gonna be on that laptop and I'm gonna stop you tonight. Think of it this way. I'm saving you from getting heartbroken."
"Then I guess I owe you a great big thanks?" Cord kept a loving hand on the dog who trotted at his side.
"Sure you do. She's probably figured out you own land, and you know what that means to some people. Money." Alex veered down the turn in the path that led beyond the barn. His horse waited, saddled and drowsing in the shade. "I'm not about to let you get taken."
"I'm grateful for it, Really. Glad you're keeping an eye out."
"Hey, don't laugh at me. You don't see me getting fleeced by a woman."
"No woman would get within ten feet of you."
"And that's the way I like it. It's why I growl. It keeps them away. That's what you want to do. Keep them away, not go see them intentionally."
"I'll try and keep that sage advise in mind." Cord chuckled. His brother's dim view of the world was going to catch up with him one day. It was a view Cord didn't happen to share. "I'm just gonna go feed the herd."
"Okay. See you in a few. I've got to unsaddle my horse and I'll hop in the truck."
"I'll be waiting with bells on."
Doing his best to bite back a chuckle, Alex marched away, and Cord stayed left, heading toward the meadow with Kate at his knee.
"Let Alex have his strange and unpopular opinions," he quipped, confiding in the dog. "But the last few weeks I've spent online and texting with this lady have been a highlight."
A few of the more social cows were waiting along the fence line, their eyes bright with a friendly hello and mooing out happy greetings.
"Hey, ladies." His boots clomped on the cement as he trudged up to the second barn, where the double doors were thrown open wide.
Kate gave a woof and ran up to the pickup, a heavy duty flatbed truck, windows down, bed barred, already loaded with grain sacks. Alex had been busy. The sun shone in the open doors, exposing dust motes dancing in the air.
"Get up, girl." Cord flung open the truck door, waited for the dog to leap onto the seat. All felt right in his world when he climbed up right beside her.
Alex came striding in, hefting a saddle easily, and swung it onto a nearby saddle rack and kept going.
"All right, let's get this work started." He hopped into the truck, and winked.
"It's feeding time," Cord called out, slamming his door shut. "Yahoo. Let's roll."
* * *
Emily Nichols frowned the instant she heard a key jiggle in the lock. Not again. She grimaced, remembered exactly why she needed to get her town home key back from her mother and closed her laptop. No way did she want her loving but enmeshed and over-involved but fantastic family to know about Cord. Some things were best kept as a surprise for later, if a relationship worked out.
That was a very big if, since they had been writing back and forth for about two weeks, give or take a couple of days.
But right away, she'd liked him.
"Emily, dear, there yo
u are. Just as I suspected. You haven't been answering your phone. Why did you unplug it?" Mom sashayed in, shopping bags rattling. "I worried all through tea at the club."
"Sorry about that. I was busy, I didn't mean to ignore you." She pushed away from the dining room table that looked out over Lake Washington. Sunlight played on blue waters as she walked by the window. She glanced at the mantel clock. "I've had the phone off for two hours and twelve minutes. Not a decade."
No sense trying to get her mother to smile. Her mother didn't approve of humor in this situation.
"You're coming to dinner. I'm making a noodle casserole your father likes." Mom marched into the kitchen and plunked one of her shopping bags on the counter. "I picked up a casserole dish, one of those shallow ones. You liked mine, so here you are. Did you hear back about that job interview?"
"Not yet, but I'm on pins and needles. I want it so bad." She gritted her teeth to keep every emotion locked inside. "Who did you go shopping with?"
"Your sister. What have you been up to? You've been on the computer. I saw you had a new friend on your Facebook page. A man friend. Not a work colleague."
"You have too much time on your hands," Emily teased, hugged her mom, kissed her cheek and went to her handbag on the table. "How much do I owe you for the casserole dish?"
"Not a thing. I got your sister and your brother one, too. I'm on my way home, you come over in an hour. It's good to see you, dear."
"I will, I won't be late. Thanks, Mom."
"Anytime." She paraded back the way she came, opened and closed the front door, and the key turned in the lock with a click.
Whew, finally alone again. Emily risked a glance at the screen. It was from Cord. The sweetest feelings came to life, more than hope, it was simply recognition. Like she'd found a kindred soul, as if they had much more in common than they would ever know.
I've got a flight booked for next weekend, he'd written.
Great! Why, joy just jumped through her, and she laughed at herself. As if! She was far from desperate and had actually answered him on the country site for horse lovers on a whim. Being shy, it wasn't easy for her, but there had been something about his post.