Cattleman's Courtship Read online

  “Hey there,” she called, waving as she strode toward them. “Sorry we’re late. Lorne had a flat tire on the way here.”

  Lorne, a tall, slender young man, his baseball cap shoved over dark hair, followed Trista, his walk an easygoing lope.

  “Hey, bud,” Lorne said, sending a grin Nicholas’s way. “Were you out riding?”

  Then before Nicholas could answer, Trista heaved a heavy sigh. “Don’t tell me. You forgot.”

  Nicholas’s gaze flicked from Trista to Lorne then back to Cara. “I did. Sorry.”

  “Honestly, Nicholas. How many messages do I have to send you?” Trista complained.

  “I was out riding fences the past couple of days.”

  “I told your dad.”

  “I got the message. I just forgot. Sorry.” Nicholas slapped his hat against his ripped pants, releasing an other cloud of dust. “Give me twenty minutes.”

  “I’ll put Two Bits away for you,” Lorne said, taking the reins of the horse from his friend as he shot a frown at his friend. “You might want to rethink the wardrobe.”

  “Yeah, yeah. I’ll be right back.”

  Trista shook her head as she watched Nicholas jog toward the farmhouse. “That guy never changes. This ranch is his everything, that’s for sure.”

  Which was something Cara had to keep in mind if she wanted to keep her heart whole.

  Ten minutes later, Two Bits was rolling on his back in the pasture with the other horses, looking ungainly and undignified but happy. Cara laughed at the sight.

  Then Nicholas joined them, shoving the tails of his plaid shirt into his blue jeans.

  “Sorry. Again,” he said, pushing his still-damp hair away from his face. A fan of pale lines radiated from his eyes, which were steel gray against his already tan skin. The eyes of a man used to squinting at the sun, looking out over pastures and hills.

  “I know I forgot all about today, but I thought about the wedding and I had a few places in mind for the ceremony,” Nicholas said, dropping a clean hat on his head. “One of them is close by, the other we’d have to drive to.”

  “Let’s check the close one first,” Trista said, pulling out a digital camera.

  “It’s over here. Past the barn and down the hill a bit.”

  As they walked through the yard, Cara felt a tremor of recognition, fairly sure they were headed to the same place she’d had in mind for her own wedding. The same place where Nicholas had proposed to her.

  They headed around the barn, past a few tall pine trees and as they came into the open, Trista squealed with delight.

  “This is perfect. Absolutely perfect,” she said.

  Cara followed, closing her mind off to her own memories, erasing the vision of herself standing on the grassy knoll overlooking a broad valley edged by trees flowing upward to the blue-peaked mountains.

  “What do you think, Cara?” Trista exclaimed. “Isn’t this gorgeous?”

  “It is. Absolutely gorgeous,” Cara said, looking out over the view, hoping Trista didn’t catch the wistful tone in her voice.

  She shot a quick glance at Nicholas, who was frowning at her, as if he had heard it. She held his gaze for a heartbeat, then her eyes slid back to the valley spread out below them. “You could put an arbor here with potted flowers tucked up against it,” she said, walking to the edge of the hill. “That way you keep the view and you delineate the space for the ceremony.”

  “Oh, I like that,” Trista said. “What kind of arbor?”

  “Why not get your father to make one out of willows or something like that? You could buy some preplanted pots of flowers from the nursury and stagger them along the edges of the arbor and hang them from the top bar. Right about now they’d be clearing out their inventory and with a bit of pruning and repotting, they’d be in great shape by the wedding.”

  “I knew you’d be able to help me out,” Trista said. “You seem to know exactly what to do.”

  That was only because, at one time, these ideas had been for her own wedding.

  “We could rent chairs from the church,” Cara added, walking slowly around the open area, gently teasing out her own memories, her old plans. “We can hang some pots on shepherd hooks stuck in the dirt beside the chairs. Sort of like living pew markers.”

  “You are so good at this,” Trista said with a satisfied note in her voice. “I knew I got the right person when I asked you.”

  “The grass will need to be mowed,” Nicholas said, “and I’ll need help setting everything up.”

  “I could get my brothers to come out and help with all that stuff,” Lorne said.

  “Who is doing the service?” Cara asked.

  Trista pulled a small book out of her purse. “Pastor Samuels said he’d be willing to do the service, but he wants to meet with us a couple of times before the wedding.”

  “I still think we should check out the church and that hall my mom was talking about,” said Lorne.

  Cara frowned. “But I thought having the wedding here was—”

  “Lorne’s mom wants a church wedding,” said Trista.

  “She just said it would be easier,” Lorne said, his tone becoming defensive.

  “Everyone has their wedding at a church and their reception at a hall. I don’t want to be everyone.”

  Lorne tugged on the brim of his hat with a jerky motion. “And she thinks that not getting married in a church is like admitting—”

  “That we made a mistake?” Trista’s voice rose a notch and Cara felt their tension from here.

  Obviously the bride and groom needed some space, so Cara walked to the edge of the knoll and wrapped her arms around herself as she looked out over the valley.

  Below her, a dirt road snaked along the edge of the fenced field, then disappeared into a cut in the hills.

  She knew the road led to the higher pastures where the cows were grazing. She had never been there, but every time Nicholas talked about the high pastures, his voice grew quiet with reverence.

  Then the hairs on the back of her neck bristled and she didn’t need to look around to know Nicholas stood right behind her.

  How, after all this time, could she still be so aware of him? And why was he seeking her out?

  The longer he stood there, the more aware of him she became.

  “I was wondering how Alan was doing?” he finally asked, his voice quiet. “I meant to go and visit, but I had too much to do here.”

  Her mind cast back to that moment they had shared as they stood beside her uncle’s bedside. How she had leaned against him and allowed him to support her.

  That had been a mistake. In the past few years she had learned that while one may be the loneliest number, it was also the safest.

  Cara felt the silvery flash of the beginnings of a headache. The week had been too busy, she thought. She’d had too much on her mind—that was why she felt so vulnerable.

  “He’s doing okay,” she said. “The doctor said he could come home tomorrow. I’m hoping to visit him tonight.”

  “I’m glad he’s okay. Must be hard on your aunt.”

  Cara thought of Aunt Lori’s quiet stoicism, which almost cut her more than any fussing and fretting would have.

  “She’s concerned, of course,” Cara said. “But we’re both very thankful he’s doing so well.”

  “And the clinic?”

  “He won’t be able to return to work full-time for a while.”

  “I heard he and Bill had a new vet coming?”

  Cara nodded, her eyes still staring sightlessly at the view below her. “He’s not here for another three weeks.”

  “And you’re staying until then?”

  Was she imagining the faint hint of disappointment in his voice? Or was she simply projecting her own misgivings onto him?

  Had he missed her? Had he thought of her after she left?

  “I’ll have to. I can’t go to Europe knowing that Uncle Alan can’t work.”

  “I hope he can get back to it soon,”
Nicholas said. “It would be a shame if he has to slow down. He enjoys his work.”

  “He must,” Cara said, shooting Nicholas a quick glance. “He’s been here forever.”

  “You sound surprised.”

  “I can’t imagine what it’s like to be tied down to one place,” she said, hoping her wistful feelings didn’t enter her voice.

  His eyes narrowed and she didn’t imagine the frown shoving his eyebrows together. “No. I didn’t think you could.”

  She caught a note of anger threading through his voice and then he turned and walked away from her.

  He had misunderstood her.

  And she knew he saw her the way his father did. Rootless. Unwilling to commit. The thought kindled her anger. She wouldn’t have said yes to marrying him if that was the case, but if he couldn’t see that, then she couldn’t change his opinion of her now.

  Just as well, she thought, turning back to the scenery in front of her. Anger was an easier emotion to sustain around Nicholas than the yearning winding around her heart each time she saw him.

  Cara waited a moment, then followed him to where Trista and Lorne were still talking, hoping she could sustain her emotional distance from him over the next while.

  “I don’t think we need to look at the other place,” Trista was saying, her smile as bright as the summer sun shining down on them. “Lorne agrees with having the wedding here. This is the perfect spot. We’ve got lots of room for guests to park and the view is stunning.” Trista flashed a grin at Cara. “What do you think?”

  “If you two agree on it,” she said.

  “My mom will just have to get over the fact that we aren’t having a church wedding,” Lorne said. It looked as if their differences had been ironed out. “If this is what Trista wants, then that’s good enough for me.” Lorne looked down at Trista with such love and devotion that Cara’s heart faltered at the sight.

  They looked so happy and Cara knew she had to set her own feelings aside for the sake of her close friend’s happiness.

  Trista released a sigh of satisfaction as she tucked her arm into Lorne’s. “I can’t thank you enough, Nicholas, for suggesting this. It’s absolutely perfect for a wedding.”

  “Yeah, I thought so, too,” Nicholas said.

  “And I want to let you know that my mom and dad are putting on an engagement party for us at our house on Saturday,” Trista said. “We’d like you two to come.”

  You two. As if they were still a couple.

  “I’ll be there,” Cara said just as her phone started to buzz. Cara pulled it out and glanced at the number on her screen.

  “Sorry, people, I gotta go,” she said.

  “Is it your uncle?” Nicholas asked, his concern giving her a surprising lift.

  “No. It’s a vet call.” She gave him a tight smile, then walked swiftly to her car, as if outrunning her own emotions.

  Chapter Five

  The Elderveld place was a zoo, Nicholas thought, watching the aimless movement of bodies from the house to the decorated yard. Minilights twinkled from the branches of the shrubs and trees surrounding the large front lawn. Tables and stacks of chairs filled one corner of the yard. Some older women were directing the movements, contradicting each other from the sounds of the complaints being registered by the men by the chairs.

  He waited a moment before descending into the chaos, catching his breath from his mad drive over. His hair was still damp from the quick shower he’d taken to wash off any hay dust that had accumulated while he’d been swathing the hayfields.

  Thankfully he’d gotten all the hay cut. But just barely.

  “Are you sure you want the cake out yet?” one female voice called out.

  “What do I do with the fruit platter?”

  “If I get asked one more question I’m going to scream,” Trista’s mother called from inside the house. “When is Cara coming?”

  The sound of her name made him take another breath.

  He felt as if he teetered on the edge of an unpredictable wave that had the potential to swamp him. And it wasn’t the number of people milling around the yard or the decibel level that bothered him.

  Cara was going to be here.

  The other day on the ranch, he’d caught a hint of their old relationship, of that unusual rapport he and Cara shared from their first “hello.”

  And he realized that he had missed her.

  She’s not staying. She’s leaving as soon as she can, he reminded himself.

  And if he wanted to move on, he had to get used to seeing her and keep old emotions from clouding his judgment. She wasn’t a part of his life or his life’s plan anymore.

  Nicholas took a breath and headed toward the yard just as one of Trista’s teenage sisters came stomping down the sidewalk toward him. Her T-shirt was a neon storm, matching the flurry of color in her hair, and her blue jeans were ripped at the knees. “I’m not changing,” she yelled. “You have to take me as I am.” Then she looked ahead and her bright-pink eyelids narrowed over her eyes.

  “What are you staring at, mister?” she snapped.

  “Nothing,” he said, feeling intimidated by her strident teenage attitude.

  “Like the shirt, Twyla.”

  Though the voice behind him was quiet, the sound gave him an unwelcome jolt.

  “Hey, Cara, about time you came,” Twyla said, her voice holding the faintest note of insolence.

  “Hey, yourself. Why are you smart-mouthing Mr. Chapman?” Cara now stood beside him, facing down the impudent young girl.

  Today her hair hung loose, a golden cloud that rested on her narrow shoulders. She wore a flowing kind of sweater over a pink tank top, strung with a couple of necklaces, and slim blue jeans.

  She looked amazing.

  Twyla folded her skinny arms over her equally skinny waist, ignoring Cara as her gaze slipped up and down Nicholas as if inspecting him. “Is this Nicholas, Uncle Lorne’s best man?”

  “Yes. He is.”

  Twyla’s eyes took on a peculiar glint. “He’s pretty hot. Trista said you used to date him,” she said, sounding catty. “Why did you dump him?”

  Despite his decision to act casual, Nicholas couldn’t stop the sideways slide of his gaze toward Cara, wondering what she was going to say.

  “This isn’t a reality television show, so I don’t have to tell you.” Cara gave her a quick smile.

  Twyla rolled her eyes and strolled away, leaving Nicholas and Cara by themselves.

  “So, I guess we’re supposed to help out with this thing,” Nicholas said, hoping he sounded cool and composed. “Do you have any idea what we’re doing?”

  “Trista told me to show up early, that’s all I know.”

  Nicholas pushed his cowboy hat back on his head as he glanced around the chaos of the yard. Mr. Elderveld was talking to Mr. Hughes. Lorne and his brothers were leaning on a stack of chairs, laughing. And from the house, Nicholas could hear more complaining.

  “I’m getting nervous about this wedding,” Nicholas said.

  “Has Trista talked to you about any of her plans?”

  “Other than the fact that they’re getting married on the yard, no. And Lorne keeps telling me Trista is in charge. He’s a great guy, but he keeps talking about letting go and trusting, which doesn’t make for good wedding planning.”

  “You’re taking this pretty seriously,” Cara said with a light laugh.

  “Marriage is serious,” he said.

  She caught a faint undercurrent and wondered if he was referring to his mother. Or her.

  Cara pushed out her lower lip and blew out her breath. “I’m worried Trista has taken too much on. I don’t know how she’ll pull all this together in the time they have left.”

  “Lorne doesn’t even know how many people they’re inviting.”

  “I guess I’ll have to help her a bit more.”

  “You don’t have time for that, do you?”

  “I owe Trista a lot, so for her, I’ll make time.”
/>   “I’ll have to make time, too. That wedding is taking place on my yard and I don’t want a fiasco on my hands.”

  “Fair enough.” She gave a delicate shrug of her shoulder. “So what do you want to do?”

  “I’d like to get together tomorrow with Lorne and Trista and make a few plans,” Nicholas said.

  He didn’t imagine her slight withdrawal, and he wondered if he shouldn’t have offered to help. But what could he do?

  It was either get involved or have potential chaos on his hands and on his ranch in a couple of weeks.

  Neither option was great.

  Then Cara nodded. “That’d be good. Bill is on call tomorrow.”

  “So we’ll talk more then.”

  He could tell she wasn’t crazy about the idea either. That didn’t matter to him. There was no way he was having a disorganized wedding at his place.

  “Hey. Chapman. Over here.” Lorne was calling him.

  “I gotta go,” Nicholas said, jutting his chin in Lorne’s direction.

  “Let me know what time you want me there tomorrow.”

  “Come after church,” he said. His father would be at some horse clinic that day, so it would be safest to have everyone come then.

  Then he turned and walked over to where his friend stood chatting with his brothers. Lorne winked at Nicholas when he came near.

  “So, I saw you talking with Cara?”

  Nicholas gave him a dry look. “Yeah. What of it?”

  Lorne held his hands up. “I’m guessing…you’re still ticked at her?”

  “I’m guessing people will get hungry soon so we should start putting chairs out.”

  “Oh, yeah.” Lorne looked at his watch. “Looks like we are running a bit late.”

  “Why don’t you get your brothers to put out the tables, and we can put chairs around them. The women will want to put cloths on them or some such thing.”

  Lorne shrugged. “Who knows.”

  Nicholas shook his head and started unstacking the first set of chairs. But as he worked and against his will, Nicholas glanced over his shoulder and each time he saw Cara organizing things on her end.