The Last Single Maverick

by Christine Rimmer

  “Oh, my,” she said so softly, as he filled her for the second time.

  He captured her lips in a long, sweet, wet kiss as he took her over the moon again.

  By two in the morning, they had used the last condom. They were back in the bed by then.

  She cuddled up close to him and whispered, “I don’t want to go to sleep. I don’t want to waste a moment of the time we have left.”

  They spoke of their childhoods. He told her more about his brothers, about the battles between them and also the good times growing up.

  She told him about her best friend when she was twelve. “Her name was Jane Ackerman. She dumped me our freshman year to get in with the popular kids.”

  “You weren’t popular in high school?” He shook his head. “I don’t believe it.”

  “I was shy.”

  “No way.”

  “Oh, yeah. And lonely—I told you that the first night I met you.”

  He answered tenderly. “That’s right. I remember.”

  “I never felt like I fit in, you know? I was something of a misfit, I guess you could say.”

  “And just look at you now.”

  She rested her head on his warm, strong chest, where she could hear the steady beating of his generous heart. “You always make me feel so good about myself. Like I could do anything I wanted to do.”

  “Because you could.” His lips brushed her hair.

  Her eyelids felt heavy. She let them droop shut. Just for a minute or two…

  * * *

  Joss opened her eyes to sunlight streaming in between the half-drawn curtains.

  And to Jason, his strong arms around her, smiling at her sleepily. “Looks like we fell asleep after all.”

  She snuggled in closer, feeling really good, really relaxed. And really satisfied. “What time is it?”

  “Quarter after nine.”

  “Yikes.” She sat straight up and raked her hand back through her tangled hair. “I’ve got to get moving, get packed. My plane takes off from Bozeman at ten after twelve.”

  “I’ll order room service. You pack. I’ll drive you to the airport.”

  “No need to drive me. I have a rental car.”

  He looked surprised. “You do?”

  She shrugged. “I know. I have taken shameless advantage of you, had you chauffeur me everywhere since that first day we met.” She didn’t know whether to grab him and hold on for dear life, or burst into tears. “What will I do without you?”

  He was braced up on an elbow, looking sleepy and way too sexy. Low and rough, he suggested, “Stay.”

  Yes! her heart cried.

  But then she thought of her mother, of her marriage that hadn’t happened, of everything that was so totally up in the air for her. She couldn’t run away from her life forever. “Oh, Jace, I wish.”

  He studied her face for a long, tender moment. And then he said gently, “Well, then you’d better get moving.”

  She had so much to say to him, but when she opened her mouth, no words came. In the end, she only cleared her throat and answered sheepishly, “Yeah, I guess I’d better.” She pushed back the covers. “I’ll just grab a quick shower.”

  “I’ll get us some food.” He picked up the phone by the bed.

  Half an hour later, she was showered and dressed and running back and forth from the closet in the bedroom to the living area, where she had her suitcases spread out on the sofa.

  Jace sat at the table by the window, wearing his trousers from the night before and his dress shirt, unbuttoned, in bare feet, putting away a plateful of bacon and eggs. “Come on, Joss. Your food will get cold. Sit down and eat.”

  She glanced at him, at his beautiful, tanned bare chest between the open sides of his slightly wrinkled shirt. Was there ever a guy as great in every way as Jace? He was smart and fun, thoughtful, kind and generous. Not to mention, superhot and amazing in bed.

  Her arms were full of shoes. She wanted to drop them and run to him, grab him, drag him back to her bed and keep him there all day.

  He prompted, “I mean it. Come and eat.”

  That broke the spell. She couldn’t run away from her life anymore. She needed to get back to reality. She was going home to Sacramento today. As planned.

  He patted the chair beside him.

  She promised, “I will, just a minute,” as she dumped the shoes into the biggest of the suitcases and then raced back into the bedroom.

  Her wedding gown confronted her. She stopped in the open door of the closet and stared at it, so white, so beautiful— a Cinderella fantasy in the classic ballroom style, with a strapless crisscross bodice sparkling with crystal beading and rhinestones, with endless acres of tulle and glitter net over taffeta that made up the fluffy, cloudlike layers of the skirt.

  It was her dream dress.

  The one that went with her dream wedding—the wedding she’d run from as fast as she could.

  She should just ignore it. Just pack the rest of her things and walk away, leave it hanging there for the maid to find.

  But somehow, she couldn’t. Somehow, it represented way too much that she hadn’t really relinquished. She’d got a great deal on it. But still, it had cost what to her was a small fortune.

  She wanted it. She…coveted it. She wanted what it seemed to represent, the life she had planned for herself to which her beautiful, perfect wedding was supposed to be the gateway.

  The life she would probably never have after all.

  She heard knocking from the other end of the suite. Someone at the door.

  Jace called, “I’ll get it. It’s room service with my extra toast.”

  She took the dress off the hanger and tossed the bodice over her shoulder, far enough that the acres of skirt were well clear of the floor. Then she took the veil. Cathedral length, it was sprinkled with diamante and edged in lace. She folded it in half and laid it over her other shoulder, so the folded end and the hem end each came almost to the floor in front and in back.

  She heard voices in the other room and assumed that Jace was probably overtipping the room service guy.

  With one arm wrapped around the dress and the other holding the veil in place, she had all the layers of taffeta and tulle out of the way so that she could see where she was going. She aimed herself at the door to the living area.

  She was so busy trying not to trip over all that fluffy fabric that she didn’t register Claudia Wexler’s voice until she was almost to the sofa and the open suitcases.

  “Well, I’m sorry, Jason,” she heard his mother say. “I didn’t mean to…interrupt.”

  Joss froze in midstep and glanced toward the arch to the foyer. From where she stood, she could see Jace’s back in the open door to the hall and the side of Claudia’s face.

  Jace said, “Joss is kind of busy, Ma. She’s got to get to the airport and she’s still trying to pack.”

  “I only want a word with her.”

  A word? Oh, Lord. What kind of word? She wasn’t up for dealing with Jace’s mom. Not right now. Not this morning.

  It wasn’t even so much that Jace had answered the door barefoot, with his wrinkled shirt wide open, which meant that Claudia had to know he’d spent the night. It was more that Jace’s mom would be bound to read more into it than there was—to see it as another proof that Joss and Jace were serious about each other.

  And that made Joss feel really bad. Last night had been so beautiful. But look at her now: packing to go. What was she doing with her life? Seriously. Two weeks ago, she’d been about to marry one guy. And last night, she’d done all kinds of naughty, intimate things with another.

  Even if he was Jace, who just happened to be the greatest guy she’d ever known.

  She’d never been the type to go for casual sex.

  And last night hadn’t been casual.

  Not exactly.

  But it hadn’t been the beginning of forever either.

  Don’t let her see you—or the dress. There was simply no way to exp
lain the dress.

  Retreat. Do it now. Joss started to turn.

  And Claudia spotted her. “Jocelyn.” She craned to the side and put on a too-bright smile. “There you are.”

  Jace glanced over his shoulder and saw her, too. “Sorry.” He mouthed the word.

  Joss sucked in a fortifying breath and tried not to think how absurd she must look, buried in a fluffy mountain of taffeta and tulle, frozen in mid-stride just as she was turning to hide. “It’s okay, Jace. Really. Claudia, come in.”

  Now Jace’s mom hesitated. Who could blame her? “I honestly didn’t mean to butt in.”

  Jace muttered something under his breath.

  His mother glared him. “Well, Jason, I had no idea that you would be here.” She aimed her chin high and announced, “Not that there’s anything wrong with your being here. You young people have your own ways of doing things. I understand that. I grew up in the seventies. I’m not a complete fuddy-duddy, you know.”

  Jace stepped aside. “It’s all right, Ma,” he said resignedly. “Come on in.” Looking very uncomfortable, Claudia stepped forward. He asked, “Want some coffee?”

  “Oh, no. I won’t stay. I have to meet Pete at the Grubstake in ten minutes.” Pasting on another smile, she walked past her son and came straight for Joss. “Jocelyn, I only wanted to say—again—that we would love to see you in Midland anytime you care to visit. I have so enjoyed getting to know you. And I’m hoping that even though you’re going back to Sacramento, you won’t be a stranger. You’ll return to see us again and maybe you and Jason…” By then, the fake smile had faded once more. Claudia’s voice trailed off. She blinked. “Oh, my goodness.” And she stretched out a hesitant hand to lightly brush the frothy skirt of the wedding dress Joss still had draped over her shoulder.

  Jace, clearly bewildered at the whole situation, lingered in the arch to the foyer. Joss’s frantic gaze skipped from him back to his mother again.

  Claudia’s face was transfixed. “Is that…” Tears filled her eyes. “Oh, I knew it.” She let out a glad cry. And then she was reaching out, grabbing Joss and the Cinderella wedding gown and the endless yards of veil in a hug. “Oh, Jocelyn,” Claudia whispered tearfully, her face buried in the dress. “I’m so happy. You two are so right for each other….”

  Joss made a sputtering sound. “I, um, well…”

  And then Claudia was drawing back, somehow managing to find and clasp Joss by the shoulders, even with the dress and veil in her way. Joss blinked and met the older woman’s eyes, which were diamond-bright with happy tears.

  “It’s a beautiful gown,” said Claudia fervently. “Stunning. And I don’t really believe in that old superstition that it’s bad luck for the groom to see the dress ahead of time. Whatever works, is what I always say. And the two of you…you work together. Perfectly. I’m thrilled that you two have realized so quickly how right you are for each other. Jason has been looking for you, Jocelyn—you realize that, don’t you? He’s been looking for you for much too long now. I think he was giving up hope, if you want to know the sad truth. But now, here you are. Together. In love. Ready to marry and get on with your lives.”

  “I…uh…” What could she say? How to even begin? No, see, this is the dress I was going to wear to marry that other guy. As a matter of fact, I’ve been here on my honeymoon, my un-honeymoon. Maybe you noticed I’m in the Honeymoon Suite….

  “Thanks, Ma,” Jace said out of nowhere. He sounded sincere. Joss sent him another wild glance. He met her eyes. Held them. And he smiled. The bewildered look was gone. Now he was totally confident. Utterly sure. “We’re pretty excited, too.”

  We are?

  This wasn’t happening, not really. It wasn’t real. Actually, she was still fast asleep in the bed in the other room.

  A dream. Yes, it had to be. She wanted to pinch herself, but the dress and the veil and Claudia were all in the way.

  Claudia hauled her close and hugged her again. “Have a safe flight to Sacramento. And hurry back. You must come to Midland soon. I can’t wait to show you around.”

  “We’re not living in Midland, Ma,” Jace said firmly.

  We aren’t? Joss blinked three times in rapid succession.

  He added, “And I’m out of the oil business for good.”

  Claudia let Joss go and turned to her son. “We’ll talk about that.”

  “No, we won’t. There’s nothing to talk about. I’m looking into another line of work. And we’re staying here in Thunder Canyon.”

  Claudia sighed. “Oh, Jason…”

  “Be happy for us, Ma.” He went to his mother and grabbed her in a hug.

  Claudia let out another cry and hugged him back. “Well, all right,” she said in a tear-clogged voice. “All right. If that’s what you really want….”

  “It is.” He gave Joss another steady, determined look over his mother’s shoulder. Joss gaped back at him and didn’t say a word. Why speak? None of this was real anyway.

  “Then I’m happy for you,” Claudia cried. “I am. So very, very happy.”

  “Thanks, Ma.” He stepped back, releasing her.

  Still reasonably certain she’d slipped into a dream world, Joss stayed rooted in place, draped in her wedding finery, and went on gaping at the pair of them.

  Claudia pulled a tissue from her pocket and dabbed at her eyes. “Oh, I am just so pleased. So very pleased. I can’t want to tell Pete.” With a delicate little sniffle, she asked Joss, “The wedding will be in Sacramento, then?”

  “We’re…still in the planning stages,” Jace answered for her.

  Claudia waved her tissue. “Of course you are.” She laughed, a teary, soggy, happy sound. “And look at me. Butting in like this. I can see you were trying to enjoy your breakfast.”

  “Well, yeah, we were,” Jace confessed.

  She stepped close to him again and lifted on tiptoe to kiss his beard-shadowed cheek. “I’ll leave you two alone, then.”

  “Thanks, Ma.”

  She grabbed his hands. “Just…be happy. That’s all I want for you. All I’ve ever wanted for each of my children.”

  “We will,” he answered solemnly. “I promise.”

  “That’s the spirit.” She gave his hands a final squeeze and released them. And then she aimed a jaunty wave at Joss. “See you very soon, dear.” She was beaming.

  “Ahem. Yes. Bye.”

  Still beaming, Claudia headed for the door, Jace right behind her.

  Joss remained where she was, buried in wedding finery, wondering if she was going to wake up soon.

  But then she heard the door click shut and the privacy chain sliding into place.

  Jace returned and stood in the arch from the foyer again. “Don’t say a word.”

  She didn’t, but she did manage a wild, confused sputtering sound.

  He put up hand. “I swear to you, Joss. I have a plan. I think it’s a good one. Let me explain.”

  She found her voice and demanded, still not believing that this could be happening, “A plan? You have…a plan?”

  “Don’t look at me like that. Please. Give me a chance. Hear me out.”

  About then, she realized she wasn’t going to wake up. It wasn’t a dream.

  Jace had told his mother that they were getting married and moving to Thunder Canyon.

  And Joss had just stood there and let it happen.

  Chapter Ten

  Jace looked into those big amber-brown eyes of hers and knew she wasn’t going for it. He felt like a total fool.

  But so what? He wasn’t giving up yet.

  “Come on,” he coaxed. “Put the dress down. Eat your breakfast. We’ll talk.”

  She blinked and stared. “I don’t have time for talking. I have a plane to catch.”

  “No, you don’t. You don’t have to go. You can stay here. With me.”

  She wrinkled her nose and shook her head in disbelief. “What planet are you from? I can’t believe that you… I don’t… You just…”

&nbs
p; He took a step toward her. “Joss…”

  “Don’t.” She lurched away, almost tripping on the veil that hung down her back, but then she stopped. She stared at him, clutching that giant dress, her slim shoulders drooping. And then, out of nowhere she started to cry. “Oh, Jace.” Fat tears trailed down her soft cheeks. “What are we doing? Are we going crazy? What’s happening here?”

  He felt crappy. Bad. Rotten. And really, for a minute there, he’d thought he’d had a great idea….

  And wait. Hold on just a minute. It was a great idea. He just needed to convince her of how really perfect it was. “Joss, come on. Don’t cry. Please don’t cry….” He took another step. She didn’t jump away that time, but only stood there, tears dripping from her chin, her nose turning red. “Here,” he said gently, “give me all that.”

  A tiny sob escaped her. “M-my dress, you mean?”

  “Yeah. Come on. Give it here….”

  She continued to cry, making sad little snuffling sounds, as he eased the big white dress off her shoulder and gently laid it over her suitcases. With a sniffle of pure misery, she asked, “Why did you do that—lie to your mother? It’s bad. Very bad. To lie to your mother.”

  “Give me that, too,” he said, and took the giant veil and set it down on top of the dress. He whipped a couple of tissues from the box on the side table and returned to her. “Here, dry your eyes.”

  She frowned at the tissues, but then she took them. She blew her nose and wiped away the tears. And then she gazed up at him, wearing a shattered expression that somehow managed to be trusting, too. “Now are you going to talk to me?”

  He took her smooth, slim hand and thought how right it felt in his. She didn’t pull away, so he led her to the table and guided her down into the chair in front of her plate. He poured her some coffee, took the warming lid off the plate. “Eat,” he said.

  She picked up her fork.

  And there was another knock at the door.

  She stiffened, whimpered, “What now?”

  He put his hands on her shoulders, gentling her. “It’s nothing. Just the toast I ordered. Eat.”

  He went to the door, got his toast, tipped the attendant and returned to the living area where Joss was sipping her coffee and staring out the window at the snow-capped peak of Thunder Mountain.