Christmas with a Cowboy: Includes a bonus novella (Longhorn Canyon Book 5)

by Carolyn Brown

  When she finished reading, she picked up her cup of tea and took a sip. She lowered the letter to her lap and sat for several minutes, staring at the opposite wall, her expression still unreadable. Finally, she turned to face him. Her big green eyes were swimming in unshed tears. “That was beautiful. Words cannot tell you how much it means to me for you to pour out your feelings like this.” She raised the pages and held them against her heart. “We have always had this physical attraction, but this”—she blinked back the tears—“this comes from your soul, and I love that you wrote it all down so I can read it over and over.” She laid the letter on the coffee table and scooted down to his end of the sofa.

  He draped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her even closer. “You don’t think I’m stupid?”

  “No, darlin’, I think you are the sweetest, kindest man I’ve ever known.” She shifted her position so she could sit in his lap.

  He brought her lips to his in a searing kiss that made him realize that this was the real thing, and someday he’d say those words that were still stuck in his heart.

  She wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her body even closer to his. Everything in the world, including Ireland and Texas, all the sorrows from the past year, faded away. He and Bridget were alone, and nothing mattered but the two of them. His hands moved under her sweater to caress her back. She unbuttoned his shirt and splayed her fingers in the hair on his chest.

  “You are killing me, Bridget,” he moaned.

  “Then I guess we’d better take this to the bedroom where I can resuscitate you,” she said.

  “Are you sure about this? It’s taking a big step.” Those were words he’d never said to another woman. When any woman in his past had said they should go to the bedroom, he hadn’t argued.

  She pushed her way off his lap and to her feet, and then she took his hand in hers. “It’ll have to be your bedroom. The baby is asleep in mine.”

  Maverick stood to his feet, scooped her up like a bride, and carried her down the hallway, kissing her the whole way. When they were in his bedroom, he kicked the door shut with his foot, set her feet on the floor, and pulled her sweater up over her head. She tugged his shirt from his pants, unbuttoned it, and then unbuckled his belt. He removed her bra and pulled her close enough that her bare breasts were against his chest.

  “I feel like I’m in a dream,” he whispered in her ear.

  “Me too, but if I am, don’t wake me.” She slid the zipper of his jeans down.

  When they were both undressed, he picked her up and laid her on the bed and stretched out beside her. “You are so beautiful lying there with the setting sun on your hair. It reminds me of the sunrise in Ireland.”

  Don’t rush. Don’t rush, he kept telling himself. Savor every moment.

  * * *

  “I like feeling you naked beside me,” she panted minutes later. “But I want more than just that.” She flipped a leg over him and stretched her naked body out on top of his. Her heart was still pounding and her pulse thumped in her ears.

  “I want to take my time with you, sweetheart.” He flipped her so that he was the one on top. His kisses started at her lips, continued down her belly and to her toes, and then started back up again. She thought she’d pass out from desire before he made it back to her lips.

  “Bloody hell, darlin’, take me now, or my heart is going to explode right out of my chest.” She panted.

  He pushed her hair back with his hands and cupped her cheeks, staring into her eyes. “You deserve so much more than I can offer.”

  “Honey, I don’t care if we’re in a hayloft or on the floor in the living room, I just want to feel like I did in Ireland,” she told him. “And this is softer than the floor.”

  “You are so beautiful.” He ran his hands down the sides of her body to the dip of her waist and to the flare of her hips.

  She cupped his face in her hands. “You make me feel so special.”

  “I never thought I’d have this again.” He entered her and they began to work together with a perfect rhythm. “Tell me what you like.” His warm breath caressed her ear as he shifted from low into high gear again.

  “You don’t even have to ask. You already know. I like everything you do to me. Don’t stop any of it.” She swung her legs up and wrapped them around his body.

  “Protection?” He groaned suddenly. “I forgot about that.”

  “It’s okay. I’m on the pill.”

  “Thank God.”

  She latched on to his neck, left a huge hickey, and then she was falling over the edge into the sweet satisfaction of a climax so intense the world seemed to disappear—like the one she’d had that night with Maverick in Ireland.

  “Maverick!” she called out and went limp.

  He rolled to the side but kept her in his arms. In spite of the cold weather outside, they were both slick with sweat. Right then, he wished that he never had to leave his bedroom.

  “That was amazing,” he said between breaths.

  “I know.” She cuddled up closer to his side and closed her eyes. “And darlin’, if you ever offer your heart to me, that’s plenty enough for me. I don’t need or want more than you.”

  Chapter Eighteen

  Bridget awoke the next morning with a smile on her face. Thinking she was still in Maverick’s bed, she reached over to touch him, but he wasn’t there. Laela’s jabbering jerked her right back into reality. Had she been dreaming the night before or was it real?

  She sat straight up in her bed and it all came back. The letter—she had to get it from the end table so she could put it with her priceless mementos. The kisses—she blushed. The sex—sweet angels in heaven, it was amazing. She fell back on her pillow and stared at the ceiling. How could she ever leave Texas after last night?

  Laela jabbered and pointed to the floor.

  “Ducky and Dolly aren’t in the house yet, sweetheart. They’re probably out in the barn, but it’s time for us to go make breakfast.” Bridget slung her legs over the side of the bed and stood up. It wasn’t until the cool air hit her that she realized she was still naked. As if the baby cared, she covered her breasts with her hands and ran to the closet for a robe. She belted it in around her waist and glanced over at her reflection in the mirror above her dresser.

  Her hair was standing up like she’d stuck her finger in an electrical socket. Puffy bags sagged under her eyes from not getting to sleep until the wee hours of the morning. “God, how could any man want this?”

  She got dressed, then changed Laela, and was headed down the hall when she caught the smell of coffee and bacon. Then she heard whistling, and when she reached the kitchen, there was Maverick making breakfast.

  “Good mornin’,” he said.

  “A fine morning to you too.” She put Laela in the high chair. “This is a nice surprise.”

  “I woke up early and reached for you, but then I remembered that you left me sometime before daylight,” he said. “I’m not much of a cook, but I do know how to make bacon and eggs and pancakes.”

  She crossed the room and slipped her arms around his waist and smiled into his eyes. “I thought I’d been dreaming when I woke up this morning.” Just feeling him close to her brought images of tangled sheets and sweaty bodies to her mind.

  “It was very real, darlin’.” He brushed a soft kiss across her lips. “Breakfast is almost ready, so sit down and let me serve you for a change. I even made a pot of tea.”

  “I see that.” She would rather have stood there all day in his embrace as have tea or breakfast, but he’d gone to the trouble to do something nice for her, so she moved away and took a seat at the table.

  He poured a cup and set it before her. “You can sip on that while the eggs finish cooking. I didn’t attempt to make biscuits, but I can do a real good job on toast.”

  Laela slapped the tray of the high chair and pointed toward the stove.

  “Comin’ right up, darlin’ girl,” Maverick said.

  “Som
etimes I wonder if you want me to stay in Texas so you won’t have to say goodbye to Laela.” Bridget sipped her tea. It was perfect—just strong enough without being bitter, and he had added the right amount of sugar.

  “I can’t even think of telling her goodbye,” Maverick confessed. “Just the thought of it makes this big old cowboy want to cry.” He brought a platter with scrambled eggs, bacon, and toast to the table. “But, Bridget, it will tear my heart and soul right out of my body if I have to say goodbye to you, and that’s the truth.”

  A lump formed in Bridget’s throat. Those were the most romantic words she’d ever heard from any man. He might not have said that he was in love with her, but he had sure given her hope that he would say those words someday. She tried to think of something to say, but nothing came to mind. He sat down and bowed his head. The words he’d said kept going through her mind so loudly that she didn’t hear a word of his prayer.

  “Thank you,” Bridget whispered after he finished.

  “For saying grace?” he asked.

  “No, for what you said before that about saying goodbye to me,” she answered.

  “It’s the truth. Don’t matter if you put whipped cream on the top or spread cow manure on it, the truth can’t be changed. It’s the way I feel, Bridget.” He passed the platter to her.

  She filled her plate and passed the platter back. “Nana said that the experiences that don’t kill us make us stronger.”

  Maverick loaded his plate and nodded. “If you leave me, I should be able to lift the farm tractor in one hand.”

  She giggled. “Now that’s a picture I’ll have in my mind all day.”

  His smile brightened the day even more. “As long as I’m in your mind, then I’m happy.”

  It could be a line he’d used hundreds of times on dozens of women, but it sure made her feel like a queen.

  * * *

  Bridget went about her chores that morning either singing or humming. Ducky had gone off with Maverick to take care of ranching business. Dolly opted to stay in the house, so Laela had a playmate. Still humming she felt her phone ping in her hip pocket. She pulled it out to see that she had two messages from Sean.

  His first one said: We have to talk.

  The second one said: I really need to talk to you. Call me.

  She called right then, and it went straight to voice mail. Her mind immediately started going through what ifs. What if he and Kelly had made up and decided on a whim to get married?

  She stopped to stare out the kitchen window and saw that it was snowing so hard that she couldn’t even see the barn out there in the distance. While she waited for Sean to call or text, she brought up the weather for Daisy, Texas. If the forecast was right, they could get six to twelve inches before the next day. If that was the case, she was going to build a huge snowman and send pictures of it to Sean, with a caption that said: EVERYTHING IS BIGGER IN TEXAS.

  Her phone finally rang and she answered it on the first ring. “You’re in big trouble. I’ve been trying to call ever since your text came.”

  “I didn’t send a text,” Alana said.

  “I’m so sorry,” Bridget apologized. “Sean, my friend from Ireland, just sent a text to call him, and when I did, he didn’t answer.”

  “Are you homesick?” Alana asked.

  “No, wondering what’s on his mind and watching it snow,” Bridget replied.

  “Iris just called and volunteered you and Maverick to help with my New Year’s Eve party. You don’t have to do it if you don’t want to, but I’d appreciate it a lot,” Alana said.

  “We’d be glad to,” Bridget said.

  “Great. After this blizzard, we’ll get together and get things lined up. Is that a beep on your phone? Do you need to take the call?”

  “Yes,” Bridget said. “It’s probably Sean. If I don’t take it, we’ll be playing phone tag for hours.”

  “Talk to you later.” Alana ended the call.

  She tapped her phone to go to the caller and said, “Sean, where have you been?”

  “This is Iris, and I just came from walking on the treadmill. Are you expecting a call from Sean?” Iris asked.

  “I am, but he must be out somewhere. He probably has news about him and his woman,” Bridget explained.

  “Well, I’m calling to tell you kids that the weatherman says the roads are going to be horrible tomorrow, so don’t try to come see me. If they’re cleared off by Friday, I’ll see you then. You can tell Maverick so I don’t have to call him too. I’ve been thinkin’ about some things that I can’t wait to tell you about.”

  “What things?” Bridget asked.

  “I want to tell you in person, not over the phone,” Iris said. “I’m finally admitting that I’m getting old. And life is like a roll of toilet paper. The closer to the end you get, the faster it goes. Don’t fiddle fart around with time. Enjoy every day so that you don’t look back with regrets later on down the road,” Iris said.

  “Advice noted,” Bridget said.

  “That’s good. We’ll talk on Friday.” Iris ended the call.

  When Bridget’s phone rang an hour later, she’d given up on Sean and figured it was Maverick. She picked it up off the kitchen counter and said, “Do you need a sled and a horse to get you to the house for dinner?”

  “Not really, but that sounds like fun.” Sean laughed.

  Hearing his Irish brogue instead of Maverick’s drawl shocked her, but she recovered enough to say, “It’s snowing here. I thought you were Maverick calling me. It’s been hours since I called you, and you didn’t answer your phone.”

  There was a pause and then Sean said, “I sent the text, and then Kelly showed up, and we had us a long talk. I had to wait to call you back.”

  “When can I talk to her on the phone?” She fixed Laela a midmorning bottle as she talked.

  “I’m afraid that’s not going to happen.”

  She waited for several seconds for him to go on before she asked, “Are you still there?”

  “Yes, I’m here, but Kelly and I are moving in together. She thinks she can get over her jealousy, and I can keep you as a friend, but we have to figure out something to do with those boxes in my bedroom.” Another long pause. “There’s just not enough room for her things with them there.”

  “I’ll figure out what to do with them by the end of the week,” she said. “I really do wish you the best, but I still think you’d be rushing things.”

  “Maybe so, but I want to give it a try,” he said. “I’ll look to hear from you soon. Maybe you could store them at the church, or maybe I should just send them to Texas.”

  “I’ll be needing to think on it,” she told him.

  “Fair enough. Goodbye, luv,” Sean said.

  She wiped the tears with the back of her hand. She couldn’t seem to stop the steady stream of tears that flowed down her cheeks, so she plucked a tissue from the box on the end table and let it all out, sobbing like she’d never wept before. She grieved for Deidre, for her grandmother, for herself, and even for Laela, who would never know firsthand what an amazing woman had given birth to her.

  She was crying so hard that she didn’t even hear Maverick come into the house, didn’t even know he was there until he had gathered her into his arms. “Are you hurt? Did someone die?”

  Laela crawled over to the sofa and reached up for him. He picked her up and put her on his lap, then put his arm back around Bridget.

  “I’m scared. I’m a failure, and nothing is going right,” she sobbed.

  “But are you hurt?” he asked, again. “Laela looks to be fine. Did she fall or something?”

  “We’re both fine physically. My pride and my heart are broken.” She got control of the weeping but not the sniffling. “Today should’ve been lovely after last night. I hate myself for crying. Don’t look at me. My eyes are all red and puffy, and every freckle on my nose is shining.”

  Maverick tipped her chin up and kissed one eye then the other. It seemed as if he kis
sed every single freckle on her face and then he said, “You’re an amazing woman, and your freckles are where the angels kissed you, sweetheart. Now tell me about your day.”

  “Sean says I have to make arrangements to get my things out of his flat,” she sniffled.

  “Are you serious?” Maverick growled. “Well, just tell him to slap an address label on them and send them to the ranch. You’re more than welcome here for as long as you want to stay.”

  “Now you’ll think that I had to stay because I didn’t have a choice, and you’ll feel like…” She buried her face in his chest. “I want to slap the bloody hell out of Sean for letting a woman lead him around by the nose. And the way I’m behaving now, you’re probably thinking you’d like to throw me out in the snow.”

  “Even though Texas might not be your first choice, I can sure live with it being your second.” He put his free hand under her chin and raised it. “You’ve had more laid on you than even the strongest person could handle. You don’t have to make decisions about anything right now, except how to put up with this old cowboy all afternoon. I’ve done all I can in the barn, and the weather is too bad to do much else.”

  Bridget leaned back and looked deeply into his eyes. “What happens if we have another fling, and this time, we figure out that one of us doesn’t want…”

  “We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it,” Maverick told her as he set Laela down so she could play.

  “How did you get to be so smart?” she asked.

  “Well, I met this woman in Ireland, and her smartness kind of rubbed off on me,” he teased as he took his phone from his pocket, found a song, and started playing it. He stood up and pulled her into his arms.

  * * *

  Blake Shelton was singing “Honey Bee” when he set Laela down and took Bridget by the hand. As they danced, he sang along with the lyrics that said all he knew how to do was speak from his heart. By the time the song ended, she was smiling and Laela was keeping time by bobbing her head.

  “Look at her,” Maverick chuckled. “She’s telling you that she likes country music and wants to stay in Texas.”