Bourbon Springs Box Set: Volume III, Books 7-9 (Bourbon Springs Box Sets Book 3)

by Jennifer Bramseth

  Listen to my earnest plea

  There will be no other for me

  You are my music, my soul sings

  I pledge my troth, take this ring

  Upon finishing the song, Jorrie was in tears and the crowd on its feet. Mack put his guitar on the stage and jumped down, scurrying to fall at the feet of his fiancée. Jorrie pulled Mack back to his feet, kissed him, and flung her arms about him.

  “Now you’ve got to sing the rest of this concert after singing that for them,” she said, laughing and crying at the same time. “I thought you were going to wait until the end to sing it. How can you top that?”

  “I don’t intend to try.”

  “So why did you sing that right off the bat?”

  “I saw you in the audience and couldn’t help myself.”

  He kissed her again, and Cara looked away to Drake, whose eyes were on the couple. She frowned at him.

  “At least try not to look!”

  Drake shrugged. “They’re in public. And I always need material to embarrass my law partner.”

  Mack hopped back up on the stage, and the next number was an up-tempo honky-tonkin’ Bluegrass song, a new number. The band then went through his stable of now-familiar pieces, almost all of them written since he had returned to Bourbon Springs and met his soon-to-be wife.

  Cara watched Jorrie’s face as she gazed transfixed at Mack, and she wondered whether she’d ever looked at Todd with such an expression of complete abandonment.

  She probably had. It was only now she doubted her feelings because of his dishonesty. She’d been in love with him until the very end.

  The number ended, the crowd applauded, and the band announced they were taking a short break. Most of the crowd stood and stretched, including Jorrie. She bade good-bye for a few minutes and said she wanted to catch Mack to ask him to play a certain song. As people moved about, Cara stayed in her seat, as did Drake.

  Drake took Cara’s hand.

  “Something wrong?” he asked.

  She looked down at their entwined hands, amazed that Drake had picked up on her ripple of unhappiness. Casting away her unhappy memories, she shook her head.

  “No, I’m good.”

  “Want another shake?” he offered.

  “How many do you have in there?”

  “One more. I was hoping to give one to Bo or Lila.”

  “If Lila has bronchitis, I’m sure she’d love to have it. But how to get it to her?”

  Drake stood, pulling Cara to her feet. “Any old Davenport would probably do. Let’s go talk to them.”

  Cara and Drake wandered over to where Kyle, Hannah, Goose, and Harriet were talking a few yards away.

  “That shake thing!” exclaimed Hannah when she saw Drake approaching. “Incredible! What do you call it?”

  “I don’t have a name for it,” Drake admitted. “Just something I whipped up. Glad you liked it.”

  “Like it? I loved it! I want that on the menu in the café as soon as possible!” Hannah nudged her cousin in the ribs. “Don’t look so jealous!”

  “I’m not jealous,” Goose said, convincing no one.

  “We’ll have to think of a name for it,” Hannah mused, forefinger on her chin. “In the meantime, any chance we can tease the recipe out of you?”

  “Absolutely,” Drake promised. “I only have two conditions.”

  “Name ’em.”

  “I can get a free one anytime I want at the distillery café.”

  “Done. The other?”

  Drake pointed at Goose. “You never let him know the recipe.”

  Hannah nodded and stuck out her hand. “Deal,” she said, shaking Drake’s hand.

  “Hey!” Goose protested.

  “If you want to feel special again, get to working on the next great bourbon ice cream, cousin,” Hannah said. “Besides, you’re going to have the whole world at your feet once Cinnamon Garnet goes wide.”

  Harriet put her arm around her husband’s waist and pulled him back to their seats as Cara and Drake returned to theirs. The band was returning to the stage, and the crowd was settling down for the second half of the show.

  Cara gave Drake a smirk. “You’re a very conniving fellow.”

  “As you well know, Your Honor,” he said, sitting back in his seat and pulling a bottle of water from the cooler and offering it to her. The heat was intense, and she was glad to have the simple refreshment. “You told me recently in open court that you didn’t like my sharp practice, remember?”

  “Yes, and I stand by that statement when it comes to that case.”

  “You were wrong.”

  “Rachel didn’t think so. She ruled exactly the same way on that issue.”

  A few months earlier, after their encounter in Littleham, Cara had ruled against Drake in a small claims case. She had criticized his argument as “sharp practice,” legal slang for technically correct practice but not very nice. Drake had insisted that a defendant had defaulted, which was true, but when the defendant tried to come forward to set aside the judgment, he’d objected. Cara had set the default aside, and Drake had appealed, but Judge Richards had upheld Cara’s original ruling.

  “The Court of Appeals will let us know if you were both right,” he said.

  “You appealed that little case again?”

  “The client wanted me to do it, so I did. Briefs are due soon.”

  The concert resumed, and Mack and his band played a short set. He apologized but said that he had one last surprise.

  “I do have one more new song,” he said to a smattering of applause, “and even my betrothed doesn’t know about this one. It’s called ‘Waters of Life.’ All you bourbonites out there will get the title.”

  Our journey begins

  Together we start

  A lifetime of love

  Together, one heart

  Oars in the water

  Face to the sun

  Down life’s stream we go

  Forever as one

  The same craft we’ll share

  On time’s river we’ll glide

  Abiding burdens and cares

  As we travel the waters of life

  My home is with you

  My sweet blushing bride

  Forever I’m true

  Love is the water of life

  Pride rent my heart

  Fear claimed my hope

  Muse to my art

  You released what dread stole

  Miracle of forgiveness

  Washed away debt

  Vanquished all blindness

  Distilled joy, no regrets

  The same craft we’ll share

  On time’s river we’ll glide

  Abiding burdens and cares

  As we travel the waters of life

  My home is with you

  My soon-to-be wife

  Forever I’m true

  You’re my water of life

  Applauding wildly, the crowd jumped to its feet as the song ended, and Mack once more came down from the stage to drop before Jorrie. This time, she was unable to stand, and she sat with tears streaming down her face yet with a huge smile. Kneeling before her, Mack took both her hands and kissed them, his eyes brimming with unshed tears.

  Mack returned to the stage to say good night to the crowd.

  “See you in about a month,” he declared, “and I’ll show you my newest accessory.” He pointed to the ring finger of his left hand, waved, and departed the stage on the side opposite where Cara and Drake sat.

  After they lingered a little to talk with Harriet, Goose, and Jorrie, Hannah called Drake over to talk.

  “Be right back.” He kissed Cara on the cheek before departing.

  When Harriet and Goose began to clear their picnic paraphernalia, Jorrie turned to Cara.

  “You two are cute together.” She dipped her head in the direction of Drake, who was laughing along to something Hannah had just said. “Has this really only been going on since Monday? He’s so happy.” />
  Cara took in a long breath, trying to think of an appropriate yet truthful response. “Mr. Mercer revealed his interest a while back, but we didn’t act on it until this week.”

  “Oh, there’s a story. No wonder the man’s been distracted the past several weeks. Thought something was up with him.”

  “You did?”

  Jorrie nodded. “He’s just been… I don’t know. Forgetful, preoccupied. Asked me recently to help on a brief, which he rarely does because he loves appellate work. Now I know the source of his distraction.”

  Jorrie excused herself to go find Mack, and Drake returned.

  “It’s still early,” Drake said, checking his watch. “Want to go do something else?”

  “Like what? I certainly don’t want anything else to eat. That meal you had for us tonight was wonderful.”

  “So I passed that test. Does that mean I have permission to go picnicking with you tomorrow?”

  “Since you seem to be walking into it with eyes wide open, yes.” She picked up the canvas bag as Drake loaded the cooler and blanket to the dolly.

  “Do you need to head home now?” he asked as they walked toward the parking area side by side. “Or can we do something before Cinderella has to go home?”

  Pleased by his coincidental use of the Cinderella comparison, the same one she’d thrown up to her mother when being questioned about the date, Cara’s pace slowed.

  “How is it you already know me so well?”

  “I have practiced in front of you for years now. I know what you’re like. Cautious, worried, reserved. A lot like Cinderella when you come to think of it.”

  They walked in silence the remainder of the journey to his Jeep, and once everything was loaded, they sat in the vehicle together debating what, if anything, to do next.

  “No, I do not want to go to The Windmill,” she protested upon his suggestion. “After all that food, I don’t need another thing to eat or drink, except maybe a drink of water.”

  “So The Windmill we’ll save for another date,” he said. “Although I am glad that when we tried to go recently, there wasn’t a seat in the house. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have bumped into each other in the park.”

  “How is it you can make almost anything sound romantic?”

  “Is that a complaint?”

  “Absolutely not.”

  “Well, here’s another romantic suggestion. What about heading to the nature preserve? We could take a walk.”

  “But isn’t it closed?”

  “Not to me,” he said. “I’m head of the volunteer group and have complete access. I can get us in if you want to go there.”

  “And walk? As in you’re going to show me another creek? I think I see a pattern.”

  “I can’t promise there won’t be frogs. But I can promise fewer bugs this time. So how about a nighttime stroll?”

  “Let’s go.”

  In less than ten minutes, Drake’s Jeep had reached the narrow road that snaked onto the sprawling grounds of the nature preserve. This portion of the access road was not surrounded by trees, and the moon and stars surrendered their glow, causing the land to shimmer from the faintest hint of wind. The ground was high, being in the foothills of the Knobs and elevated above the creeks.

  With no one else around and with no man-made structures for as far as the eye could see, Cara almost convinced herself that they were alone in the world or the heavens. As it was, she felt like she was floating somewhere in between.

  The words of one of Mack’s songs came back to her, and she felt suspended between the earth and sky, between reality and promise.

  The stars above, the earth below

  Between we soared, belle and beau

  But she soon understood that Drake had no intention of keeping her near the highest points of the nature preserve. They drove until the land started to slope, stopping at the parking lot near Nate’s favorite playground. After exiting the Jeep, Drake grabbed the blanket, took Cara by the hand, and led her to a wide grassy area below the playground. He spread the blanket on the ground and invited her to sit, which she did.

  “So why are we here and not up along that ridge we came down?” Cara turned and pointed to the hill behind them.

  “Because this is close to the water. Close enough to walk down there in a few minutes but far away enough to kick back and look up at the stars without being bothered by the trees along the creek.” He leaned back, crossed his ankles, and put his head on his arm. “Great view.”

  She planted her hands behind her on the blanket and leaned back, tilting her head skyward.

  Above them was the wide swathe of creamy brightness known as the Milky Way, slicing through an indigo sky like an untamed river of light. The wind washed over them, along with a hint of mash coming from the distillery to the north. Cara turned her head to see if she could see that far but only spotted a telltale cloud of steam to pinpoint the distillery’s location.

  So lost in the place was she that when Cara felt Drake’s hand upon hers, she sucked in a sharp breath of surprise.

  He withdrew his hand at once and sat up. “Sorry.”

  “No need,” she said, shaking her head.

  Cara studied him as he turned his head up. His sharp features were clearly visible, even in the dimness, and she had an urge to run her fingers through his hair—partly because she was undeniably attracted to him but also because her motherly-tidying-up instincts made her want to smooth those darned locks.

  “Here we are,” she began, “alone under a starry sky, having known each other for years, and yet I’m struck by how little I do know you, Drake Mercer.”

  “Instead of my asking what you want to know, why don’t you tell me what you already know?”

  “Like to hear people talk about you?”

  “Not really. But I do wonder what you know about me. After all, we’ve been around each other for years, and I find it a little hard to believe you don’t know anything about me.”

  “I didn’t say that,” she protested. “I said I didn’t know that much.”

  “You mean you don’t know enough to be completely comfortable around me yet.”

  “Yes.”

  Her bluntness surprised him, and she saw his mouth drop open a little. Drake recovered and asked her what she’d like to know.

  “Everything.”

  Without missing a beat, Drake launched into a recitation of the highs and lows of his life.

  “Bourbon Springs native, born in the hospital here in town. My parents divorced when I was in high school, and I lived with my mother. She died in a car wreck when I was in law school. My dad died a few years ago after a long battle with lung cancer. I graduated as second in my class here at Craig County High School, went to UK undergrad and law school. After clerking for a judge in Lexington, I came home and put out my shingle. My closest relative is a cousin who lives nearby, Jessa. She works in the state parks department in Frankfort, but she’s about to get transferred to Fort Shelby State Resort Park to be the park superintendent there in a few weeks. Or at least that’s what she told me last. Not sure her heart is in that job. She likes the work in Frankfort.”

  “Fort Shelby? That’s where the Judicial College is next week.”

  “Not Lake Pembroke? I thought that’s where it always was held.”

  “It was moved because they’re remodeling all the rooms down there. Not that I’m complaining, mind you. I didn’t relish that three-hour, one-way drive.”

  “What else do you want to know about me?” he asked.

  “Why isn’t a good-looking lawyer in his thirties already hitched or involved with someone?”

  “Nice to hear you say that I’m easy on the eyes.”

  “I might be reporting something someone else said.”

  “That’s not the way you worded it.”

  “Sharp practice, Mr. Mercer.”

  “Your original question was valid,” he admitted. “The truth is, once I hit my midthirties, I had a little crisis. I g
uess I started feeling lonely. Not sure what triggered it. I think it was a college reunion, to tell you the truth. And if you want my dating history, how many women I’ve been with since then—”

  She held up her hands. “No details.”

  “I want to tell you, at least about the women who I thought could be something to me. I think you need to know that.”

  Cara didn’t like the idea, but it seemed important to him that he share this part of his life with her.

  “Very well,” she said.

  “First I dated Selena Cormack for a while,” he revealed, referencing the county clerk in neighboring Van Winkle County. “That didn’t work out because she was getting over a guy she never would tell me about—it was like a big secret, and she never would reveal his name. Also, even though Bourbon Springs and Littleham are only thirty miles apart or less, we had trouble seeing each other. The distance got in the way. We ended it after I woke up to the fact that she was still in love with the former boyfriend. I couldn’t compete. But then what did I do? Fell for someone else, just the same way.” Her mouth dropped open, a poor way to hide her shock. “Yeah, the rumors are true,” he admitted and bowed his head. “I had a bad crush on Pepper Montrose. I even got off her case because I was so infatuated, so at least I got that part right. I know the ethics rules even if I don’t know anything else. Please understand that I don’t bear her or Jon any ill will—they were destined to end up together. But that makes me feel even stupider about having a crush on her. I still get embarrassed thinking about it, how childish I was.”

  “Well,” Cara said, swallowing hard in the face of his unwanted avalanche of revelations, “we can’t dictate to our heart.” He had come close to TMI territory, but she nonetheless had to appreciate his candor.

  He reached for her hand again. She let him claim it and offered him the other. They sat facing each other cross-legged, their hands clasped and resting between them.

  “So in addition to the basic bio I just gave you, there you have my recent and more important romantic follies, Cara Forrest.”

  She thought he might make a move on her—they were on a blanket, and his initial action had been to recline and look up at the stars, a clear invitation to her that she do the same.