The Cowgirl’s Chosen Love: The Colemans of Heart Falls: Book 3

by Vivian Arend

  He winked. “No problem. I’ll grab my phone and send off that message to Alan. You want to touch base with Lisa? Maybe set up a meeting spot. We can share the dreadful details in person. Together.”

  “That sounds fine.”

  He squeezed her knee then headed to where his phone was charging.

  Julia watched him for a moment before purposely rising and opening her own device. This was all just a momentary glitch. After they’d dealt with the teasing, it would be easily solved.

  Yet this royal screwup made it much easier for her to reaffirm her conviction that it would be best to strictly play pretend once they went back to Heart Falls.

  Zach was a good man, and he didn’t need to get tangled up more than she’d already got him. She would keep them on the friend side of the page. Honestly, that would be special all on its own.

  She opened her messages and clicked through to her sister.

  7

  Zach found them a corner booth in the restaurant where the six of them met. Private enough that his and Julia’s bomb could be presented without too many others overhearing. Public enough that he knew he wasn’t about to be skewered by anyone—especially by the most dangerous members of any family: sisters.

  As they settled, he examined his friends, looking for clues as to how they might react. Josiah wore the same gloating expression as Finn. Karen and Lisa looked relaxed yet deliciously content.

  For a moment Zach fought his first instinct, which was to grab Julia by the hand and haul her back to his suite to put that same expression on her face.

  The idea was tempting, but it wasn’t his right, dammit.

  With the two other couples seated on the inside of the circular bench, he and Julia sat on the outside edges opposite each other.

  He was just about to bring up the funny thing that happened the previous night when Julia beat him to the punch.

  “Hey, Lisa. Bet you twenty bucks I’ve done something in Vegas that you haven’t.”

  Which was the perfect way to get all their attention. Lisa and her bets were notorious.

  Lisa lifted a brow. “Really? What did you get up to after Josiah and I left you on the dance floor?”

  “So many cool things. Like, Zach found us a private club on the twenty-seventh floor and somehow got us access.”

  Josiah looked impressed, dipping his chin at Zach. “Room with a view? Nice. You must’ve really sweet-talked somebody to get access without an invitation.”

  Considering Zach didn’t remember what strings he’d pulled, he simply grinned as if he was a magician. “When you’ve got it, you’ve got it.”

  “That was only part of our adventure,” Julia said. “I also met a Dolly Parton impersonator, tried some really good tequila, Zach and I got married, and I discovered that room service bacon is—”

  “Hold your horses.” Karen shot up a hand, fingers spread wide. “Did you say you got married?”

  Julia nodded then winced. “Excuse me. Slight headache. Yeah, it was kind of one of those one thing led to another deals, ending in an oops. It’s okay, though. Zach’s already contacted his lawyer dude, so we’ll get it fixed up in no time.”

  The entire time she shared, her tone remained light. She was so obviously amused it was impossible for anyone at the table to get upset.

  Only Finn was examining him with that impenetrable gaze that said he knew exactly how fucked up this was.

  Thankfully, his best friend didn’t speak. On the practical side, Finn wouldn’t have been able to get a word in edgewise because Lisa, Karen, and Josiah all spoke at once.

  “Are you kidding?” Josiah said with a laugh.

  “I can’t believe you did that.”

  “Was there an Elvis impersonator as well?” That last one from Lisa, which made Julia snort.

  “No. I’m so disappointed.” She turned her attention across the table to Zach. “See? If we were going to have an impromptu marriage in Vegas, Elvis was supposed to be involved.”

  “I’ll remember that for next time,” Zach drawled. “You may as well show them the video.”

  “There’s video?” Lisa reached for the phone Julia had all queued up, and a moment later the four of them had all leaned into watch the travesty.

  Zach met Julia’s gaze across the table. She smiled and offered a wink. Everything about her said she was relaxed and happy…

  Except it was a complete lie.

  A repeat of the moment when it seemed she had been about to share her amusing birds-and-bees story. A veil had fallen, bringing in something heavy and sad.

  Now? She was putting on a great show to make light of the situation for their friends and family, but inside, she was hurting bad.

  The insight struck him on so many levels. First and foremost because he wanted to fix her pain. She didn’t deserve to be sad, and this hurt seemed to go beyond the mixed-up mess of here and now.

  Second truth that hit him—

  He could read her like a book.

  Julia Blushing was a very good liar, but he was even better at spotting her tells. And while laughter swelled at the table as the video continued, Zach struggled to keep his new awareness from showing on his face.

  What a tangled web.

  He’d always been lucky. His gut instinct had always told him when it was time to take a chance. When the time was right.

  Everything in him said Julia was hiding something deep, maybe even keeping truths from herself. But more than that, his gut told him that they belonged together. Sham marriage, fake boyfriend, none of that mattered.

  He and Julia were meant to be.

  Hell of a thing to discover, though, considering everyone at the table was now highly entertained at the idea of them as a couple.

  His phone buzzed with an incoming message, and he pulled it out to discover a response from Alan to his what do we do next? query.

  Alan: well, I can honestly say you boys keep me entertained. Plus, you keep me in business. I’ll do more research, but at first glance this isn’t going to have a cut-and-dried solution. Just a heads-up. This might end up more complicated than you hope.

  Zach put his head down and typed under the edge of the table where nobody could see him: aren’t you a ray of fucking sunshine?

  Alan: you don’t pay me to blow smoke up your skirt.

  * * *

  Zach: thank goodness. A kilt in Alberta would get mighty chilly at times.

  * * *

  Alan: ha ha. You want me to rush down to Vegas or wait until you’re back at the ranch on Monday?

  * * *

  Zach: the ranch. This is supposed to be Karen and Finn’s gig. Julia and I will meet you at the house Monday evening and we’ll get the mess straightened out.

  * * *

  Alan: pass on my congratulations to the newlyweds. I mean, the couple who intended to get married this weekend.

  * * *

  Zach: will do

  Now he understood why Finn always teased that Zach’s jokes weren’t that funny. Alan had the same issue.

  Zach tucked his phone away before the rest of them noticed, which was good. He didn’t want to share the whole it’s going to be more complicated than you hoped revelation. Monday would be soon enough to start fixing their mistake.

  A cheer rang out and then wild applause as the video came to an end.

  Lisa met his eyes. “I’ve got to give up my Most Mischievous Whiskeyteer badge after that bit of shenanigans. Well done, Julia and Zach.”

  Zach laid a hand over his chest. “Don’t disappoint me. Tell me you actually have a badge to give Julia.”

  “Oh, no, Lisa doesn’t need any encouragement to produce strange membership paraphernalia,” Karen said. “One year she tried to make a set of ears for us all à la Mickey Mouse.”

  “They were really good ears,” Lisa insisted.

  Karen raised a brow. “You stuck a set on Tamara’s head before the glue was dry. I had to cut the damn thing out of her hair.”

  Lisa’s nose wr
inkled in a move that was strangely reminiscent of Julia’s favourite expression. “Oh. You’re right. I forgot about that part.”

  “I’m pretty sure Tamara hasn’t. In fact, she already told me about that event, so I think it was very memorable,” Julia shared.

  “Memorable is one way of saying traumatic.” Karen gestured toward where the waitstaff was bringing their lunch. “Clear the runway. Food’s about to arrive.”

  And that was it. Zach had to admit that while he had a way with people, Julia took it to the next level. No one other than Finn seemed to have any concerns whatsoever about the current situation.

  Well, no one other than Finn and himself, of course. Because the layers of questions were getting deeper instead of falling away. Still, Zach focused on enjoying the meal and the company of friends instead of worrying about the situation.

  It wasn’t until they hustled the women off to enjoy a luxury spa package for the afternoon and it was down to just the three of them that things got complicated again.

  Zach settled with a contented sigh into the high-back leather chair in the whiskey bar, the scent of cigar smoke drifting on the air just enough to be pleasant. The waitress brought glasses of heavenly scented amber liquid then vanished as if she’d never been there.

  To his left, Finn raised his glass and peered into the whiskey. “One hell of an oops, my friend.”

  Josiah didn’t even pretend to be casual. He leaned forward on his elbows, drink ignored. “Top it off with the gossip I just got from my receptionist back home, can I ask what the hell you’re doing?”

  Drat. “What’s the gossip?”

  “Word is you and Julia are a hot item.” Josiah’s usual easygoing expression had gone blank.

  So. The small-town rumour mill had done its job. Man, they would have a field day when the updated news hit.

  “You’re my best friend,” Finn began. Paused. His gaze lasered in. “What’s the plan? Is this a mistake to be solved or an opportunity to take hold of?”

  Josiah blinked. “Whoa. Did not see that one coming.”

  Zach could appreciate their newer friend’s confusion. “Our mentor, Bruce. It was one of his sayings. One of the lessons he taught us—too many times people see what they think is a disaster headed their way and do everything they can to avoid it or get out of the path.”

  “When what they should be doing is figuring out how to harness the energy and aim the river in the direction they need it to go,” Finn finished.

  Josiah hesitated. “Accidentally getting married might be a good thing?”

  Finn shrugged. “Nothing to panic over, that’s for sure.” He met Zach’s gaze again. “You know you’ve got my support. The whole situation is a little twisted because Julia is Karen’s sister, but since I don’t think you would want anything that’s not in Julia’s best interest, I see no potential conflict.”

  He held out his hand, and Zach took it gratefully. “You’re the best.”

  The three of them all sat back a lot more comfortably now that Finn had stated where he stood, which put Zach in a better position.

  Taking advantage of the moment’s pause while they all sipped their drinks let Zach run through what he wanted to say. Both of the men beside him were trustworthy. As partners to Karen and Lisa, both of them had high-stakes interest in how his and Julia’s relationship turned out.

  It wasn’t reasoning that made him speak. His gut made him do it.

  “I want this,” he admitted. “Not sure why or how to get to the point where this is more than a messed-up-yet-good idea between two people, but no matter how we got here, me and Julia being hitched is not a mistake.”

  The corners of Finn’s lips twitched upward. He made eye contact with Josiah. “Looks as if we’re backup for what might be the strangest reverse-courtship ever. Marry first, fall in love later.”

  Josiah lifted his glass in the air in a toast. “To brothers-in-arms and the brave women who love us. When the dust settles, may Julia be counted among that number.”

  A shiver slid up Zach’s back. He raised his glass in silent agreement.

  He’d always loved a challenge. Finding a way to forever with Julia would be worth every bit of the struggle.

  He just hoped she’d agree sooner rather than later.

  Pushing aside the unreal situation with her and Zach, Julia was discovering a whole lot of things to appreciate about Vegas.

  Like now. She rested her head on the soft towel rolled up at the edge of the pool and let the warm bubbles of the spa bath break around her like hundreds of heated kisses against her skin. “This is heavenly.”

  “I could use one of these in my backyard,” Karen said. “Just think. After you finish chores or a long hard ride, you could soak in one of these until you’re good as new.”

  “Speaking of long hard rides…” Lisa let her sentence trail off, but the innuendo was there all the same.

  Julia wasn’t touching that one unless she had to. Redirecting… “How was the wedding night, Karen?”

  “You tell us,” Lisa said with a snicker.

  “You’re terrible,” Karen scolded before speaking in a softer tone. “Okay, I avoided the topic for an entire hour, but I’m at the limit of my patience. Julia, what gives?”

  Julia went for the best wide-eyed doe look she could manage. “Isn’t it just the wildest thing? Accidentally getting married. Blows my mind, but it’ll be okay—”

  It was obvious the two people staring back at her were not buying her innocent act.

  She shrugged and went with honest. “Okay. This time with a little less enthusiasm. It’s not a big deal. Zach is a great guy, and the whole thing was just an evening fueled by too much liquor.” She hurried to explain because both their expressions had changed enough to cause concern. “Nothing happened between us other than the sham wedding. Nothing’s going to happen other than being friends. His lawyer will help take care of the mistake. Other than that—” Oops. Good time to get the fake boyfriend thing into the open. “Well, there is this one other thing.”

  “The part about how you and him were burning up the sheets back in Heart Falls?”

  Unexpectedly, the comment came from Karen, not Lisa.

  Lisa gaped. “They are?” She somehow looked horrified and offended at the same time. “You are? I can’t believe you didn’t tell me!”

  “Because there’s nothing to tell,” Julia insisted. “We just…it’s complicated.”

  “It’s also the rumour de jour back home. Tamara texted me this morning that she heard it from at least five different people in the span of an hour.” Karen poked her toes out of the water and examined her polish critically. “So…what gives? Sisters share secrets.”

  The words triggered an awkward sensation, but Julia was trying to embrace the changes in her life. Add in the two women with her now were some of the best she’d ever met, blood-related or not.

  Julia gathered her courage, sitting a little straighter. “Okay, here’s the scoop.”

  By the time she’d explained the situation with the gossip, somehow the events of the entire evening had flown from her lips. The only thing she didn’t explain fully was the situation with her stalker-slash-kidnapper. The less time spent on that topic, the better.

  Her sisters listened without comment but with great concentration.

  When she finished, Karen nodded. “One of the first things Finn shared when we were getting involved again was how much he trusted Zach. He considers the man a brother—and I sort of do as well. Already.”

  The slight hesitation from Lisa was only noticeable because of how she usually leapt before looking. Concern lingered in her eyes. “I have no way to say this without being blunt. You’ve been in our lives for nearly six months. In all that time you’ve never talked about past boyfriends or girlfriends. Tell me to butt out if you want, but even pretending to be with Zach will require some physical contact. Will that be a problem?”

  Julia wasn’t about to lay out all her issues, but t
his much she should share. “I’m not looking for a long-term relationship. If I was, it would be with a guy, I guess. Then again, my turn to be blunt, I don’t miss penis time.”

  A soft cough sounded.

  The three of them glanced up to discover a young man with flushed red cheeks standing at the edge of the hot tub, a tray of snacks in his hand. “I’ll just put this here.”

  He vanished before Julia could sink under the water to hide her embarrassment. Of course, both Karen and Lisa were smirking and not even trying to hide it.

  “Thanks for the warning,” Julia muttered.

  “Poor guy.” Lisa ducked away from Karen’s swing. “Hey.”

  “Poor guy? Poor Julia,” Karen corrected. She smiled softer now. “Teasing aside, we’ve got your back. I can see why you want to make things better for Brad. The rumours you and Zach are together should help, but beyond that, you’re not required to do anything that makes you uncomfortable. You can do what you need to with Zach just as a friend. Okay?”

  “I know that. And…” Maybe it was stupid, but she believed the best of Zach, confirmed by how horrified he was at the possibility he might have taken advantage of her. “I don’t think Zach is the type to push. He’ll tease, but he’s not an Alphahole wannabe.”

  “Agreed.” Lisa wrinkled her nose, her eyes flashing with mischief. “Although, if we’re talking about sex appeal factor, for all that he’s not a ‘my way or the highway’ kind of guy, Josiah is very demanding in the bedroom. Truth. Sexy sex appeal isn’t only granted to the guys who growl mine, mine, mine.”

  “I do like it when Finn growls, though,” Karen admitted before shaking a finger at Julia. “You tell us if you need us. Call—day or night. You’re our sister, but you’re also our friend. We’re here for you. If all you want to be with Zach is friends, then that’s it.”