The Bull Rider's Son

by Cathy McDavid

  “I...oh!”

  “Yes?” He moved toward her mouth, ready to kiss a confession out of her. He didn’t have to.

  “I do,” she whispered against his lips. “Love you—”

  He cut her off with a searing hot kiss that went on and on. This was the missing piece, he thought through the haze surrounding his brain. The last one he needed to make his home, his life complete.

  “Marry me,” he said when they finally broke apart.

  “You’re crazy, you know.” She laughed, the sound lovely and bright.

  Shane lifted her by the waist and hauled her against him. “Is that a yes?”

  “We can’t.”

  “No?”

  She became more serious. “What about your brother? How will he feel?”

  Shane set her down, but he didn’t let her go. “We’ll figure it out.”

  “And Benjie and Bria. They’re already confused. They’d go from being cousins to stepbrother and stepsister.”

  “Sweetheart, we can do this. Look at what your parents overcame. If they can work through their differences, we can, too.”

  She relaxed in his arms and he took heart. “I love you, and I’m committed to you and the family we’ll have.”

  “We need to go slow,” Cassidy insisted.

  “Sounds reasonable. A month or two should do it.”

  “You’re joking, naturally.”

  “A little.” Shane kissed her again, this time a quick brush of his lips. He’d save the real celebration until later when they were alone. “I haven’t met a woman yet I wanted to put a ring on her finger. Until you.”

  “Shane.”

  He could grow used to her saying his name like that. “Marry me, Cassidy. Soon. This summer. Next year. I don’t care. As long as you do.”

  “Ah...” She kept him waiting another grueling few seconds before ending his agony. “Yes. But I do want to date awhile first.”

  Shane pulled her to him. “I’m going to make you happy. I swear it.”

  “You already have. You’ve given me the family I’ve always wanted and never thought was possible.”

  She’d taken the words right out of his mouth.

  Epilogue

  Three months later...

  Cassidy flitted from one spot to the next, mentally checking off items. Cold hors d’oeuvres were laid out on trays, hot ones warmed in chafing dishes. The caterers were busy in the kitchen, putting the finishing touches on the barbecue dinner. A four-tier cake sat on a table by the window, the top adorned with a miniature cowboy groom and cowgirl bride. A three-piece band was setting up in the backyard and tuning their instruments.

  The wedding, the biggest one ever hosted at the Easy Money, had gone off without a hitch. The newly married couple was outside, finishing up with the reception line. They’d be here soon, and the reception would begin.

  “There you are.”

  Cassidy felt Shane’s arms come from behind to circle her waist.

  “Hi.” She leaned into him, weak in the knees from loving him so much and being loved in return.

  He’d been her biggest helper in putting on this wedding. Cassidy didn’t know if she had the strength for the next one. The Becketts were getting hitched right and left. That was one of the reasons she’d decided to take her time becoming Mrs. Shane Westcott. Plus, they were still developing their unique blended family.

  Benjie and Hoyt had made considerable progress since the fishing trip. Their visit in Payson two months ago had gone well and there was a second one in the works for May.

  Bria accepted Cassidy as her father’s girlfriend, and the two were becoming close. For now, she called Cassidy “Auntie,” which made sense to her because Benjie was her cousin. Cassidy was fine with that and didn’t care if it ever changed.

  Make no mistake, however, she would marry Shane. Their time together had shown her what life could be like, spent side by side with the man of her dreams.

  They’d finally found a house this week. The purchase would be finalized next month, and then they’d move in. She, Benjie, Shane and, on every other weekend, Bria. They were a family, happy and close-knit.

  “Here they come,” someone shouted, and the crowd separated to make a path for the bride and groom. “Mr. and Mrs. Beckett.”

  Cassidy’s parents, all smiles and radiating joy, entered through the door, their arms linked and the photographer snapping pictures.

  “Mr. and Mrs. Beckett again!” someone else said.

  Her parents laughed unabashedly.

  Cassidy laughed, too. More than accepting her parents’ spur-of-the-moment nuptials, she was delighted. They’d come full circle, all of them. What had started nearly a year ago as Liberty seeking her biological father had ended with the Becketts becoming complete. Whole. Healed. A family in the truest sense of the word.

  It was the greatest gift Cassidy could have hoped to receive.

  “Liberty and Deacon are next,” Shane said.

  “Three months from now.”

  Ryder and Tatum had exchanged their vows last month in a small, quiet service. Today, with her pregnancy clearly showing, she’d sat beside Ryder, along with the rest of the family, during the ceremony.

  “Can I talk you into finally setting a date?” Shane turned Cassidy inside the circle of his arms, then gave her a light kiss. “The kids are getting anxious.”

  “The kids couldn’t care less.”

  Benjie and Bria were at that moment playing with Tatum’s brood under the watchful eye of the sitter Cassidy had hired.

  “Don’t make me wait too long.”

  “Or what?” Cassidy smiled up at Shane. What had she done to deserve this man?

  “Ever hear of a shotgun wedding?”

  “I think you have it backward. A shotgun wedding is when the groom is forced to marry the bride.”

  “A technicality.”

  She’d been determined to wait, at least until this summer, to decide. Suddenly, she wanted nothing more than to have her future set. It must be the mood of the day.

  “I’ve always thought a June wedding would be nice.”

  Shane’s head snapped up. “Next month? Really!” He broke into a grin. “All right.”

  “No, no. A year from next month.”

  “Too long,” he insisted.

  “I’ll make the wait worth it.”

  “I’m holding you to that.” He reached into his pocket. “Guess I can give this to you now. Been carrying it around for weeks.”

  He took her left hand and slipped the diamond and ruby ring onto her finger.

  She blinked back tears. “It’s beautiful.” More beautiful than she could have imagined. “I love it.”

  “And I love you.”

  While everyone surrounded the newlyweds, Shane swept Cassidy away to a secluded corner of the house, where they sealed their brand-new engagement with kisses promising a lifetime of happiness.

  * * * * *

  Keep reading for an excerpt from THE HEART OF A COWBOY by Trish Milburn

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  The Heart of a Cowboy

  by Trish Milburn

  Chapter One

  The new colt marshaled his strength and pushed up onto his long, spindly legs for the first time, drawing a smile from Natalie Todd. She watched as the little guy steadied himself on legs spread wide then as his dam groomed him. A couple of wobbly steps brought the newborn close enough to his mother to nurse. No matter how many horses Natalie helped into the world, the wonder never faded.

  “Hard to believe they were in distress only an hour ago,” Jacob Hartwell said as he came to stand beside her.

  “Maybe Mama here just wanted some female company.”

  Jacob laughed a little. “Maybe. She certainly doesn’t have a lot around here.”

  Steven Hartwell, patriarch of the Hartwell ranching family, was a widower, and his two sons, Steven Jr. and Jacob, were still single. Even though Jacob flirted with her a little every time she came out to the ranch, she knew it was harmless and not at all serious.

  “Well, it looks like you have a handsome little fella to add to your testosterone ranch.”

  “You could always marry me and bring some female beauty to the place.”

  Natalie rolled her eyes and stepped back from the stall. “See ya around, Jacob.”

  “Thanks again, Doc.”

  She threw him a wave as she turned and headed out of the barn into the deep cover of night. As she strode toward her truck, she considered just curling up in the seat and catching a quick nap. She’d had a long day at the clinic and then because she was the vet on call tonight, her phone had rung about fifteen minutes after she’d fallen asleep.

  When she dragged herself into the driver’s seat, however, her thoughts drifted to her comfortable bed. What was another half hour’s drive back to her apartment? Hopefully there wouldn’t be any more equine or bovine emergencies tonight. At least the Hartwells’ ranch was closer to her place south of Wichita than a lot of other ranches the clinic serviced.

  She started the engine and headed toward the highway. Once she got away from the ranch, the landscape darkened around her. With no moon and some cloud cover, the southern Kansas landscape was pitch-black. It took ten minutes of driving before she began to see the glow of Wichita’s lights to the north. Only a few minutes and a quick shower more and she’d be curling back into her bed.

  Her phone rang on the seat beside her, eliciting a groan and, yes, maybe even a whimper. She slowed, thankful there wasn’t any traffic, and glanced at the phone. Her heart gave a painful thud when she saw it was her mom calling. Knowing it wasn’t going to be a happy conversation, she pulled off the road. Her hand shook as she picked up the phone and answered.

  “Hi, Mom.”

  “Did I wake you?” Her mother’s voice sounded tired, but then Natalie couldn’t really remember a time when her mom wasn’t tired.

  “No. Actually, I’m driving back from delivering a foal.” When her mom didn’t say anything in response, Natalie knew for certain why her mother had called. “It’s time, isn’t it?”

  “Yes.” Now her mom’s voice sounded as if it was laced with tears.

  “I’ll get there as fast as I can.”

  “Be safe, okay? I don’t want you to have a wreck.”

  “I’ll be careful.”

  But even though Natalie knew that her father’s time was ticking away, she didn’t speed. Though it made no sense, some part of her believed if she drew out how long it took her to arrive at her parents’ house in Wichita, the longer her dad would have. But that was cruel because he was suffering, had been suffering for a long time. That’s what a lifetime of drinking brought a person, a painful death via liver failure.

  Pain of a different kind punched her right in her middle, the realization that probably before the night was through her dad would be gone forever. She bit her bottom lip and pressed down harder on the accelerator.

  Twenty minutes later, she pulled up in front of her parents’ small home, the one she’d helped them buy because they never would have been able to purchase one on their own. She cut the engine but didn’t get out of the truck. Instead, she stared at her mom’s older-model car sitting in the carport. Behind it sat a small SUV belonging to her sister Allison, who’d driven down the day before from Kansas City, bringing their youngest sister, Renee, with her. Her entire family was inside the little blond-brick home, sitting around waiting for her father to die.

  She gripped the steering wheel, fighting the visceral need to drive away, as far and as fast as she could. Even though she’d known this moment was coming for months, she still wasn’t ready. It wasn’t as if she had a perfect relationship with her dad, but he was still her dad and she loved him, despite everything. She wanted to be angry that he’d done this to himself, that his drinking had made his wife’s and daughters’ lives much more difficult than they should have been. But what was the use of being angry now? It wasn’t going to change the outcome.

  With a deep, shaky breath, she opened the truck door and slipped out onto the quiet street. Almost every light in every house was dark, except for those of her parents and Jackie Kincaid across the street, the neighborhood gossip to beat all neighborhood gossips. Natalie resisted the evil urge to find the nearest paintball gun and cover Jackie’s big picture window with globs of paint. Instead, she forced herself to walk toward her parents’ front door.

  She didn’t knock, instead slipping quietly into the living room to find Renee sitting there alone, reading a copy of some French magazine she’d obviously brought with her from Paris. Natalie had the unkind thought that Renee might have brought the magazine solely as an outward symbol of just how far away she’d gone from Wichita and their family. Part of Natalie couldn’t blame her for leaving, but now wasn’t the time to bring it up. Natalie kept those thoughts to herself as her sister looked up and smiled at her.

  “Hey, Nat.” Renee jumped up and wrapped Natalie in a hug.

  Needing that hug more than she cared to admit, Natalie held her baby sister a little longer than Renee probably expected, then continued to hold on to her upper arms as she took in how different her sister looked.

  “I like the new haircut,” she said as she finally released her sister.

  Renee ran a hand over the chic bob. “Thanks.”

  As Natalie examined Renee from head to toe, she realized that her sister looked more European than Midwestern. An odd sense of loss settled in Natalie’s heart despite the fact that Renee had been living in France for five years.

  Natalie glanced toward the hallway that led to the bedrooms. “How’s he doing?”

  “Dreadful.”

  Natalie jerked as if she’d been slapped.

  Renee softened her expression. “Sorry. I’m too blunt sometimes.”

  “I know you probably don’t want to be here, but thanks for coming.”

  Renee shrugged. “I’m not totally without feeling. There’s a part of me that loves him because he’s my dad, even though he wasn’t worth much.”

  “Renee.” Natalie knew she sounded like the scolding older sister, but she couldn’t help it even though there was some truth in her sister’s words.

  “Tell me I’m wrong.”

  Natalie couldn’t. Their dad’s drinking had led to him not being able to keep a job, to their mom working two jobs to support their family of five. He hadn’t been mean, or violent, but his inability to conquer whatever demons that led him to drink had caused his family a lot of hardship.

  Not wanting to focus on the past, Natalie instead took a fortifying breath and headed toward her parents’ bedroom. The mingling scents of cleansers and sickness assaulted her as she entered the bedroom, and it took all her effort not to let the way her stomach turned show on her face.

  Allison was the first to notice her and gave her a tired sm
ile. Her sister reached across the bed and gently touched her mom’s hand and nodded toward Natalie.

  Her mom stood on legs that looked as shaky as the newborn colt’s and wrapped Natalie in her arms. “I’m glad you made it safely.”

  Natalie was struck by just how thin her mother felt and wondered if she hadn’t been eating properly.

  “There’s my other girl.”

  Natalie looked toward the sound of her father’s thin, labored voice. As unkind as it was to think it, Renee was right. Bill Todd did look dreadful with jaundiced skin and eyes, cracked lips and swelling in his abdomen that was obvious even under the blanket covering him. He’d never been a big, strapping man, but now he honestly looked like the death he was facing.

  Her mom stepped back, indicating that Natalie should take the dining room chair that sat next to the bed. Natalie wondered how many hours her mother had sat in that uncomfortable chair at her husband’s side, watching him slip away more with each passing minute.

  “Hey, Dad.” Somehow she managed to force some chipper light into her voice as she sat and placed her hand over his gnarled one.

  He tried to squeeze her hand but obviously didn’t have the strength to do so. Sadness swept over her, not so much that his life was ending but that so much of it had been wasted. All the times he’d made her mad, embarrassed her, caused her to question why she hadn’t been born into another family tumbled through her mind. It all could have been so different if he hadn’t been trapped in an unhealthy relationship with alcohol.

  “I’d like to talk to Natalie alone.” He took a shallow breath, as if only a small portion of his lungs remained functional.

  Natalie tried to figure out why he’d want her mother and Allison to leave the room, but then she caught a glance between her parents, an understanding of some sort. What was going on?

  Her mom ushered an equally confused Allison from the room and closed the door behind them. When Natalie looked back at her dad, his eyes were closed, and for a split second she thought he was gone. But then she saw the faint movement of his chest.