“It was pretty quick, don’t you think? I mean—they only met in the summer.”
She shrugged. “I guess when you know, you know.”
He wondered if that was true—if that was the real reason he hadn’t stopped thinking about Kayla since the night they spent together. He’d never believed there was one woman who was the right woman for him—why would he want to narrow down his options when there were so many women in the world? But since the summer, he hadn’t thought about anyone but Kayla; he hadn’t wanted anyone but Kayla.
“Okay, so now that Hadley and Tessa are taken care of—what about Claire?”
“I’ve got that one covered,” he told her. “Grandma and Grandpa have booked a weekend at the Thunder Canyon Resort for Claire and Levi, and I got Claire a gift certificate for the spa.”
“She’ll love that,” Kayla said, sounding surprised by his insight and thoughtfulness.
“That’s what my grandmother said when she suggested it.”
She laughed, then stopped abruptly in front of the display window of a store called Christmas Memories. She tapped a finger on the glass. “Speaking of your grandmother.”
His gaze followed to where she was pointing. “Um...that’s a Christmas tree.”
She rolled her eyes. “What’s on the tree?” she prompted.
“Ornaments,” he realized.
She nodded, already heading into the store.
There weren’t just ornaments displayed on trees but boxes of them stacked high and baskets overflowing. There were classic ornaments and fun ornaments, sports-themed and movie-themed decorations, baubles that lit up or played music—or lit up and played music. And there was even a selection of imported mouth-blown glass ornaments.
She held up a delicate clear glass sphere with a gold angel figurine inside. “What do you think?”
“I think I’ll be the favorite grandchild this Christmas,” he told her, grinning. “She’ll love it so much that she’ll probably rearrange all of the other ornaments on the tree so that it’s hanging front and center.”
“I doubt she has that much time on her hands.”
“You’re right—she’ll make my grandfather do it.”
Kayla chuckled as he took the ornament to the register to pay for it.
“Now you’re all done except for the wrapping,” she told him, as they exited the store.
“Oh, yeah.” He made a face. “I forgot about the wrapping part.”
“Do you have paper? Bows?”
“My grandmother has all of that stuff.”
“You can’t wrap your grandmother’s gift in paper that she bought,” Kayla protested.
“Why not?”
“Because you can’t.”
“That’s not a reason.”
“Yes, it is,” she insisted.
“Okay, so I’ll pay for the gift-wrapping service down the hall for her gift and use her paper for the rest.”
Kayla shook her head. “You can bring the gifts to the ranch and I’ll help you wrap them.”
“Really? You’ll help me?”
“I’ll fold your corners—you’re in charge of the tape.”
* * *
He didn’t manage to avoid Derek at the Circle D later that day. When they got back from shopping, Kayla sent him to the kitchen to set up at the table while she went to get her wrapping supplies. His steps faltered when he saw his friend standing at the counter, filling his thermos with coffee from the carafe.
“What are you doing here?” Derek asked, his tone more curious than concerned.
He held up the bags of gifts in his hands. “Kayla offered to help me with my wrapping.”
“When did she do that?”
“When we were shopping.”
“My sister went shopping with you? How did that come about?”
“I asked her.”
“Why?”
“Because I needed some help figuring out what to buy for my cousins.” Although that was partly true, the real truth was that he’d used the shopping as an excuse to spend time with her, and he was deliberately tiptoeing around that fact. He didn’t want to tiptoe around it—he didn’t want to keep his relationship a secret from anyone, especially his best friend. “And because I like her.”
Derek frowned. “What do you mean—you like her?”
“I mean she’s smart and fun and I enjoy spending time with her.”
“How much time have you been spending with her?” Kayla’s brother wanted to know.
“As much as possible,” he admitted.
“I thought you were seeing someone in Thunder Canyon.”
“I only said I was seeing someone,” Trey pointed out. “You assumed that someone was in Thunder Canyon.”
Derek’s scowl deepened. “Are you telling me that you’re dating my sister?”
He nodded.
“Dammit, Trey. I thought we were friends.”
“We are friends.”
“You can’t date a friend’s sister—it makes everything awkward.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Sorry enough to back off?” Derek challenged.
“No,” he replied without any hesitation.
“How long has this been going on?”
Trey thought back to the night of the wedding but decided that didn’t count—or even if it did, he had no intention of mentioning it to Kayla’s brother. “A couple of weeks.”
Derek shook his head as he capped his thermos. “I suppose I should be glad you didn’t hook up with the blonde that night we were at the bar,” he said, and walked out the door.
“What blonde in the bar?”
He winced at the sound of Kayla’s voice from behind him. “Heard that, did you?”
“And I’m still waiting for an explanation,” she told him.
“I mentioned that I went to the Ace in the Hole with your brother last week,” he reminded her.
She nodded.
“Well, there were a couple of girls who invited us to join them,” he explained. “Derek went to their table. I went home.”
“Why didn’t you go to their table?” she asked, sounding—to his surprise—more curious than annoyed.
“Because,” he said honestly, “I didn’t—I don’t—want to be with anyone but you.”
* * *
Kayla was so confused.
Trey was saying and doing all of the right things to make her believe that he wanted a real relationship with her. He’d even told her brother that they were dating. But he was only in town for the holidays, after which he would be going back to Thunder Canyon, and he hadn’t said a word about what would happen between them after that.
Did she want a long-distance relationship? Did long-distance relationships ever work or were they just extended breakups? What were their other options?
If Trey asked, she would move to Thunder Canyon to be with him. She wasn’t a schoolgirl with a crush anymore but a woman with a woman’s feelings and desires. And she wanted a life with Trey and their baby—the baby he still didn’t know anything about.
“That didn’t take as long as I thought,” Trey said, when she’d affixed a bow to the final gift.
“Doesn’t it feel good—to have your shopping and wrapping done?”
“I can think of something that would feel even better,” he said, leaning across the table to brush his lips to hers. “Why don’t we go down to the barn, saddle up a couple of horses and go for a ride?”
She wasn’t sure whether she was relieved or disappointed by his suggestion. “Actually, I have to go into town.”
“For what?”
“I’ve got some things to do at the newspaper office.”
“We don’t have to go out fo
r very long,” Trey said.
“I’m sorry, but I really don’t know how much time I’m going to need. I probably should have gone into the office first thing, but I promised to help you.”
“I didn’t mean to impose on your time,” he said, just a little stiffly.
“You didn’t,” she assured him, reaching across the table to touch his hand. “I wanted to help, but now I need to go into town.”
She wasn’t surprised that he looked disappointed. He was probably accustomed to spending several hours a day on horseback in addition to the several more that he spent training horses at the Thunder Canyon Resort, and he likely missed the exercise and the routine.
“But there’s no reason you can’t go down to the barn and ask Derek—or Eli—” she added, not certain of the status of things between her youngest brother and his friend “—to give you a mount to saddle up.”
“I didn’t want to ride as much as I wanted to ride with you,” Trey told her.
“I’m sorry,” she said again, and she meant it. Not just because she couldn’t accept his invitation but because she couldn’t tell him the real reason why.
“Okay, we’ll do it another time,” he said. “For today, why don’t I give you a ride into town?”
“Then I’d need a ride back again,” she pointed out.
“And I was hoping you wouldn’t see through my nefarious plan.”
“That was your nefarious plan? Don’t you have better things to do than play chauffeur for me?”
“Actually, I don’t,” he said. “There’s nothing I want more than to be with you.”
“Then I will accept your offer,” she agreed.
* * *
It didn’t take her very long at all to read and edit the copy for the next edition of the paper, but Kayla lingered in the office to give credence to her claim that it was a major task. She felt guilty about lying to Trey—and she’d panicked when he mentioned riding.
She hadn’t been on a horse in almost two months. She’d read a lot of conflicting advice about the safety of riding during pregnancy. Many doctors said a clear and unequivocal no. In Montana, though, where most kids were put on the back of a horse before they started kindergarten, doctors were a little less strict. Kayla’s own doctor had assured her that while it was usually safe for a pregnant woman to ride during her first trimester, because the baby was small and adequately protected by the mother’s pelvic bone, after twelve weeks, the risks to both mother and child were increased.
Kayla had decided that she wasn’t willing to take the risk. She might not have planned to have a baby at this point in her life, but as soon as she became aware of the tiny life growing inside her, she’d been determined to do everything in her power to protect that life. Of course, it was a little awkward to invent new and credible excuses to explain why she wasn’t participating in an activity she’d always loved, but the busyness of the holiday season had supplied her with many reasons.
She was sure she would love riding with Trey, because she enjoyed everything they did together. At the same time, it was hard to be with him with such a huge—and growing—secret between them. Contrary to what her sister believed, she wanted to tell him about their baby, but she knew that revelation would change everything. She was enjoying the flirting and kissing, and she wanted to bask in the glow of his attention just a little while longer.
Surely there wasn’t anything wrong with that—was there?
* * *
“Did Grandma run out of coffee?” Trey asked, sitting down across from his grandfather at Daisy’s Donuts.
“She wanted me out of the house,” Gene said. “Something about a fancy tea for her girls. But what are you doing here?”
“I wasn’t invited to the fancy tea for the girls, either.”
His grandfather barked out a laugh. “I don’t imagine you were—but I was more interested in why you aren’t with a certain pretty lady who has been keeping you company of late.”
Trey didn’t see any point in pretending he didn’t know who his grandfather was talking about. “Kayla had some things to do at the newspaper.”
“I forgot she worked there,” Gene said. “Things getting serious between you two?”
He tried not to squirm. “I don’t know.”
Gene’s bushy white brows lifted. “What the hell kind of response is that?”
“An honest one,” Trey told him.
“She’s not the type of girl you toy with. She’s the type you settle down with.”
He shifted uneasily. “I’m not ready to settle down, Grandpa.”
“Why not?”
“I’m only twenty-eight years old.”
Gene nodded. “You’re twenty-eight years old, you’ve got a good job and a solid future. Why wouldn’t you want to add a wife and a family to that picture?”
“Because I like the picture exactly as it is right now.”
“Sometimes we don’t really know what we want until we’ve lost it,” his grandfather warned.
“And sometimes people rush into things that they later regret,” Trey countered. “Like Claire and Levi.”
“What do you think they regret?”
“Getting married so young, having a baby so soon.”
“Do you really think so?”
He couldn’t believe his grandfather had to ask that question. “Claire was barely twenty-two when she got married, and then she had a baby less than a year after that.”
“And she’s thriving as a wife and mother.”
“Was she thriving when she packed up her baby and left her husband?”
“She was frustrated,” Gene acknowledged. “Being married isn’t always easy, but even though they hit a rough patch, they’re still together, aren’t they? Not just committed to one another and the vows they exchanged, but actually happy together.”
Trey couldn’t deny that they seemed happy and devoted to one another and their little girl. But that didn’t mean he was eager to head down the same path.
“And I couldn’t help but notice that you seem happy with Kayla,” his grandfather continued.
“I enjoy being with her,” he agreed cautiously.
“What’s going to happen when the holidays are over and you go back to Thunder Canyon?”
“I haven’t thought that far ahead,” he admitted.
“Well, maybe you should, because if you think a girl as pretty and sweet as Kayla Dalton will still be waiting around for you when you finally come back again next summer, you might find yourself in for a nasty surprise.”
The possibility made him scowl. “If she finds someone else and wants to be with someone else, then that’s her choice, isn’t it?”
“It is,” Gene agreed. “I just wanted to be sure that you could live with those consequences.”
“Besides, she doesn’t give the impression of a woman chomping at the bit for marriage.”
“Maybe she’s not. On the other hand, her twin sister just got engaged and is starting to plan her wedding. That kind of thing tends to make other women think about their own hopes and dreams.” Gene pushed his empty cup away and stood up.
“Do you want a refill?” Trey asked.
His grandfather shook his head. “I’m going to head over to the feed store and catch up with the other old folks. You young people exasperate me.”
Trey got himself another cup of coffee while he waited for Kayla to text him to say that she was finished at the newspaper. Daisy’s seemed to do a pretty steady business throughout the day, and several people stopped by his table to say hi and exchange a few words. But mostly he was left alone, and he found himself thinking about what his grandfather had said.
If you think a girl as pretty and sweet as Kayla Dalton will still be waiting around for you...you might be in for a
nasty surprise.
Gene was probably right. There wasn’t any shortage of single men in Rust Creek Falls, and just because Kayla hadn’t dated many of them in the past didn’t mean that couldn’t change. As a result of her naturally shy demeanor, she’d been overlooked by a lot of guys, but since he’d been spending time with her, he’d noticed the speculative looks she’d been getting from other cowboys. He suspected several of them were just waiting for Trey to go back to Thunder Canyon so they could make a move—and the thought of another man making a move on Kayla didn’t sit well with him.
He’d never been the jealous type, but he hadn’t exactly been thrilled to see Kayla hug some guy the night they were talking outside the community center. She’d introduced the guy as Dawson Landry and told Trey he’d worked in advertising at the Gazette before he moved to a bigger paper in Billings. Dawson then told her that he’d recently moved back to Rust Creek Falls and the Gazette because he realized he wasn’t cut out for life in the big city.
It was a simple and indisputable fact that after his holidays were over, Trey would go back to Thunder Canyon. He had a job and a life there, and he was happy with both. But he was happier when he was with Kayla. And when he was gone, Dawson would still be around.
The realization made him uneasy. He’d meant what he’d said to his grandfather—there were a lot of things he wanted to see and do before he tied himself down. So why did the prospect of being tied to Kayla seem more intriguing than disconcerting?
RUST CREEK RAMBLINGS: MISSING IN ACTION...
OR GETTING SOME ACTION?
Architect Jonah Dalton and artist Vanessa Brent both seemed intent on putting down roots in this town when they married last year. But the happy couple, who lives in the stunning house built by Jonah himself on the Triple D Ranch, has dropped out of sight in recent days, fueling speculation about their whereabouts. Have they slipped out of town for a pre-holiday getaway? Or are they sticking closer to home and family—and working toward expanding their own? Only time will tell...unless the Rambler tells it first!
Chapter Ten
The Candlelight Walk was an event to which all the residents of Rust Creek Falls were invited, and most enjoyed taking part in at least some aspect of it. At one end of Main Street, members of city council distributed lighted candles that were then carried in a processional to the other end where a bonfire would be lit, refreshments served and carols sung.
Merry Christmas, Baby Maverick! Page 12