by Jillian Hart
"It's definitely beautiful." Just beyond the small town limits he saw nothing but towering evergreens and rising hillsides. A cozy little island community. He felt right at home. "I can see why you like it."
She caught another drip. "My grandparents live a quarter of a mile from here. They have a house on the cliffs overlooking the water. In college, I spent summers here with them. My grandparents are hilarious. They still tromp through the woods and call it hiking. They are the ones who introduced me to the ice cream shop."
"It hard not to respect ice cream eaters."
"That's how I've always felt." She scooted over on the sidewalk to let other day trippers by. "I think that was one reason my last relationship didn't work out. Skip put in long hours, and so did I. We never saw each other, toward the end, we were both too exhausted from our jobs. He was climbing the corporate ladder. And he didn't adore my grandparents."
"Definitely not a good trait in an almost fiancé." He looked thoughtful as he rotated his ice cream cone to work on the other side.
"No, it's not. It was more important than I realized at first. And dismissing it as something that might work out better in the future didn't work."
"No, that usually doesn't." A muscle jumped along his steely jaw, the only sign of emotion. "My grandparents are still as physically fit as they could possibly be."
"That's great. My grandparents are treasured, too. My gram warned me how easy it is to fall into a dangerously okay relationship. Do you know what I mean?"
"I've been in one of those. Nothing's bad, nothing's spectacular, but it's okay." He paused at the curb, waiting for a pickup truck to rumble by on the street. "I fell victim to that before. Jennifer and I dated for three years. We got along, but it just never felt right, never worked out."
"Yes, that's it exactly. You have to work at things so hard and no matter what you do, it's never anything better than all right." The truck passed and they headed over to the small waterside park.
Seagulls squawked nearby, a few picnic tables faced the water and the Seattle skyline rose in the distance, framed by flawless mountains marching along the horizon. "What happened with you and Jennifer?"
"She moved to Los Angeles. Seems she missed a more interesting life."
"That had to hurt."
"That's what happens when a relationship doesn't work out. It can knock you down hard." He shrugged, looking like a man who didn't let anything bother him. But she wasn't fooled. "What about you and Skip?"
"In the end, I realized we were both settling for something short of what should be." She led the way to one of the tables. She stopped to take in the view of diamond-studded waters stretching peacefully for miles and the skyscraper skyline of the city shining in the distance. This view got to her every time. "My mom says never settle, so there you go."
"Easier said than done." The deep notes of his voice resonated with feeling. "I think love ought to be right. It's too important to be anything less."
"So, you believe in fairy tales?"
"Me?" He eased onto one of the empty benches. "No way, men don't believe in fairy tales. It's an issue of manliness."
"Of course." She rolled her eyes and settled down beside him. "Silly of me."
"But a happily-ever-after? I'd like one of those." He took a bite of ice cream and fell silent while it melted in his mouth.
The wind tousled his thick locks, and it was easy to imagine him on the back of his horse driving the cows in.
Her heart gave a little flutter. Oh, she definitely had it bad for this handsome man.
"I haven't found any happily-ever-afters personally, but I believe in them." He took another bite of ice cream.
"Me too." As she gave her cone a turn, Cord's gaze locked on hers. The flutter in her chest turned into frantic winged-beats.
Without the need for words, she knew he was wondering, was this our chance for one? Something tugged between them, an invisible bond so strong it made the world fade away and there was only Cord, wind-swept and mighty, sitting straight and strong. Like a man who could be her future.
I want him to be, Lord, she couldn't help praying. He was everything she'd hoped he would be.
"There is no denying the feelings between us." He reached out, slow and sweet, his fingertips grazing her forehead. He tucked a shock of hair behind her ear, and the gesture made her feel taken care of, as if this man was strong enough to never let her down.
Her entire heart rode on the outcome of this visit. Already half in love with him, she smiled up into his eyes. And it felt as if their spirits met.
Love was a long journey with so many pitfalls on the way, and she was afraid to believe. But staring into Cord's caring eyes, she'd never wanted anything as much as getting to know him better.
It truly felt as if he could be the one she'd been praying for, a man who would keep his promises, a man whose love would never fade.
4
The rented kayak bobbed in the water, and the oar made little splashes. Cord couldn't say this was what he'd expected a day to be like spent with Emily. For a country-turned-city-girl, he expected maybe a trip to a museum or something date-like, like a movie. Not that he didn't like movies, but this was a pleasant surprise.
He dipped the oar into the water and stroked lightly, and the kayak buoyed along the waters at the edge of Lake Washington. Water birds kept them company. He had a perfect view of the floating bridge spanning the lake and, if he turned around, the University of Washington's football stadium gleaming in the sun.
"Uh, oh." Emily pulled her cell from her small handbag. It buzzed, vibrating away. "I was afraid this would happen."
"Don't tell me. That's your emergency back-up." He let the current carry the boat and tucked the oar against the gunwale.
"Emergency back-up?" She arched a delicate brow with the question. "Wait, you mean like a friend who calls with an emergency to get me out of this, if things are going badly?"
"Yep. That's what I mean." He chuckled. He'd been doing a lot of laughing lately. Emily was to blame.
"I didn't think I would need rescuing, so I didn't set anything up." She tossed her hair, looking amazing in the sun and wind. Just picture perfect. So much more than he'd been hoping for. What were the chances?
"It's my mother." She squinted at the screen in the direct sunlight and slipped it back into her pocket. "I'm choosing to ignore her, which will drive her absolutely insane."
"And you enjoy doing that?"
"It's our way." She laughed like music, lightening his soul. "Her radar is on. She must be able to sense when I'm thinking about doing something she doesn't know about."
"Sitting in a boat with me?"
"It's not the boat, and she doesn't know about you at all. You're a well-kept secret because I know she can't keep it to herself. The next thing you know, this isn't between you and me anymore, but my entire family. You don't want that. They know how to text. They know how to email. And my sister is on the same horse site."
"So, that's what's wrong." Cord quipped. "I'm a secret. I knew there had to be something."
"I'm just trying to enjoy this right here, with no interference. No one texting, 'how's it going? Oh, when I talked to him about horses, he sounded so nice. I want you to tell him this.' And the list would go on and on." Unguarded eyes twinkled, her forehead furrowing, and she tilted her head to one side waiting for his answer.
"I made the mistake of letting my brother find out. I didn't guard you from him enough, and now it's all I hear about. You're not wrong."
"Good, I like being right. It's a nice change for me." Her laughter rang like quiet, merry bells that held him captivated, unable to look away.
This is the woman for me, he thought. She was everything she'd seemed to be, except in person she was even more wonderful with each passing moment, leaving him sure. Absolutely certain.
His heart was caught.
"When I don't have my nose in a book or I'm working, I have to confess that I'm off tromping across the go
lf course with my brother and dad, biking to Portland or out with family on the lake. I put aside my tomboy ways most of the time, but they tend to come out now and again and drive my mother mad."
"My sister is a tomboy, so I understand. Mom was always upset that she would rather drive a tractor instead of get a manicure."
"I think I would like your sister."
"I know you would. Not that she knows about you."
"Only your brother?"
"Yes, and I try not to tell Alex anything. If I do, then I gotta hear his opinion on it." Chuckling, Cord caught himself wondering, would Emily like the ranch?
If things continued to stay this serious, would she give up the life she had here? It didn't look likely.
"That's the way it is with my sister." She gazed into the water as the current tugged them along. "She thinks she knows everything, especially how I should be living my life. She has an opinion on everything."
"And it never matches yours?"
"Even if it does, I don't let her know."
"That's important to make sure she knows she isn't always right," Cord agreed, thinking of his brother's dire predictions. "Alex wants to look out for me, but he's coming from an entirely different perspective. He thought me coming here was a bad idea."
"It probably was. I could have told you all sorts of fibs about my life."
"You don't seem like the fibbing type." Nothing but honesty in her incredible eyes so blue, they put the waters to shame.
"Neither do you." She was luminous. Unconscious of her beauty, she swiped flyaway strands from her eyes, drawing his attention.
He was struck again by the experience of being with her in person.
She shrugged her slender shoulders. "It's either easier for someone to hide who they are, or it's easier to show who they are. It depends on the person you are getting to know. At first, all I had were your words to get to know you by. I'm glad to know I wasn't wrong."
How about that? His throat closed up and he had to clear it to push aside the emotion lodging there. She'd touched him. "I thought highly of you before I got on that plane. Now I think even more so."
"You're making me blush."
"Then I must be doing something right." Feeling as if he'd revealed his heart too much, he turned his attention to taking charge of the oars and dipped both back into the water. Rowing was a piece of cake for him, he did heavy lifting on a daily basis. But the opening up his heart part? Not so easy.
Could an ordinary country cowboy could win the heart of a fine city girl?
Likely not. That was his fear here. The kayak bobbed along, and if he looked farther out across the enormous blue expanse of the lake, he saw the farther away side, a hillside dotted with trees and glorious waterfront homes. Happiness warmed the air between, bright with sunshine.
He turned his gaze to Emily, sitting adorably on the bench across from him, outlined by rippling water and cloudless sky.
You and your little ranch were always second choice. Jennifer's words rippled back to him, as cruel in memory as they'd been on the day he'd caught her in town in front of her former-fiancé's Porsche. Now I don't have to settle for you. I've got something better and I'm taking it.
He swallowed hard, forcing away the memory, words he'd heard one too many times. That was the past, it was over, but the healing over it had left a scar. An insecurity that haunted him now.
"Well, I need to ask, what do you think of ranching life? I mean, this feels pretty serious between us, at least to me. Is that how you feel?"
"Absolutely I do." She blushed a little, shy of her feelings. He liked that about her, that she was so transparent. You knew where you stood with her. And she was tender-hearted.
"So, that means I have a chance with you?"
"We'll see." The spread of pink across her cheeks brightened endearingly.
"Then I hope you will let me take you to dinner."
"Sure, I'd be happy to."
He grinned. It was too hard to say all that he meant to.
Her gentle understanding only made him want to care about her more.
"Where do you want to go?"
"I've got a few suggestions. Some of the best seafood you'll ever get is not too far from here. Or we could zip back over to the pier and get surf and turf there." It was hard revealing her heart again.
She'd been disillusioned by love. Was she foolish to pray for true love? Did it really exist for her? She gathered the strength to meet Cord's gaze.
"You pick," he said quietly, earnestly.
His entire soul shone in his eyes, such a stunning color, such a stunning man. Affection she was not ready for lifted through her, so strongly it brought tears to her eyes.
It was as if she'd always known him. As if when she breathed, he exhaled. As if their hearts beat together in perfect synchrony.
It felt like something out of a book, like the way true love should begin.
* * *
The wind tossed her hair as she angled out of her car, brushing so close to him that Cord could feel the shift of the air as she whirled away. He closed her door and joined her on the sidewalk.
"This is one of my favorite places," she said, so he glanced down the shop-lined street.
Everything looked new. Awnings, flower planters, even the street lights were above average. He loved it. He caught sight of a few gourmet restaurants down the way, looking like something he'd be uncomfortable in. He grinned.
Nerves gripped his stomach again, knowing their lifestyles were too different for them to ever be a romantic match, and that was a proven fact now.
"With you being a rancher, I didn't think you were a sushi kind of man. Not that I prefer that, and in fact, I've never had it." She hit the remote on her key bob, locking the doors.
"Good call." He chuckled. "Sorry, but I've never eaten raw fish. Don't intend to."
"I've watched many a person do it, and I can't say you're wrong." She laughed, too.
Every movement she made was elegant, as if set to music, with unconscious grace and he appreciated it. What loveliness. The more time he spent with her, the more he liked her.
But he could see her fitting in with ranch life, with the Montana breeze in her hair and the country sunshine on her face?
She sparkled up at him, pure wholesome sweetness. "I prefer my fish battered and deep fried."
"Add some french fries and tartar, and I'm a happy man." He caught their reflection in a store front window.
He saw a slender light-haired beauty alongside a plain Montana man.
Well, she knew what he was, he thought as she smiled up at him. It seems she was a little sweet on him. How about that. Good to know he wasn't the only one feeling vulnerable. Or knowing that it could never really work.
She gestured toward a little brick building with white trim. It was tucked at the end of the block next to a ritzy antique store and looked as if it had been standing there for decades, refusing to give in to the pressure to go upscale and fit in with the rest of the buildings.
Emily flashed a smile at him, probably the sweetest thing he'd ever seen. "The fish and chips are scrumptious. You don't mind eating outside?"
"Sounds good to me. Couldn't have a better view." The lake across the street glimmered as if in agreement as they ambled up to the window.
His biggest problem was that he'd let down the guards around his heart and affection kept ebbing in.
He held out his hand, and she slipped her slender one in his. A sense of well-being filled him. Not to mention the little zing of connection that zapped all the way to his soul.
That was a problem. But he twined his fingers around hers, holding on when he should have let go. He knew it as surely as if God had laid a comforting hand on his shoulder.
"Hi, Len." Emily smiled in at the middle-aged man behind the counter. "How are things?"
"I'm keeping busy." Humor flashed in kind brown eyes and something else. Familiarity. "Your dad and brother stopped by last night. Your dad must not ha
ve wanted your mom to know he was eating fried food. I promised word wouldn’t get back to her."
"Got it. I won't say a thing. How about two orders of your house specialty?"
"Sure. You want drinks with that?" The man reached for his order pad and scribbled away.
"Two Cokes," Cord answered, raising one brow in a silent question.
Emily agreed with a cute little head bob. Yep, he had it right. Then again, everything she did was as cute as could be, he thought as he slipped his hand from hers to open his wallet. He tossed a twenty on the counter.
"I hear your dad and brother are heading out on another water adventure." Len took the twenty, punched numbers into an old-fashioned register. Ka-ching. The drawer opened. "If I had a luxury yacht like your family's, you couldn't get me off it."
"It is pretty nice," Emily admitted shyly. She said something else, but he couldn't register what. His mind was still hung up on the yacht.
Her family had a yacht? No, surely he'd heard that wrong. "You mean like a sailboat?"
"Hardly. I'm talking a yacht. Man, she's a beauty." Len whistled as he counted back change, full of admiration. "Makes my little fishing boat look like a stick of driftwood. Then again, I can fish better in it, and that makes me happier."
"I like little boats, too," Emily answered with a casual shrug.
The wind gusted, tossing a strand of blond-brown hair across her face. She brushed it back with slender fingers, perfectly manicured.
In fact, now that he really looked, he could see a lot of details he'd missed before. The designer handbag. Her sandals were designer, too. And her clothes? That might be the prettiest summer outfit he'd ever set eyes on, but it was highly expensive.
This was the lifestyle that would never mesh with his. He might have a high income and a higher income potential over time, but he was a down-to-earth type, as was his life. He simply could not change that.
Neither should she give up what she loved and had worked so hard to achieve. Especially her family's well-to-do status here, in this lovely city full of charm, beautiful vistas and stunning scenery.