Page 6 of The Cowboy's Country Charm

“Okay, Rusty to the rescue, it’s a deal.” She smiled, and it was as if a ray of sunshine had broken loose from the sun to brighten the room. “And thanks.”

“No problem.”

He felt lighter, happier. Just the prospect of seeing her again did that. And maybe he could finagle a late-night drink with her at Smokey’s. That would be worth shuttling cars for the evening.

***

Kristy ran her finger down her printed to-do list as she stood in the reception hall. Everything was accounted for. And at least one disaster averted, thanks to Rusty. How many more would there be before the night was over? More importantly, how many would she be able to handle?

Despite having coordinated over two dozen weddings, her nerves always frayed before an event. So many things could go wrong. And there would be no one to blame but Kristy Winslow.

She looked at her watch. The church ceremony should be over in a few more minutes. Then there was an hour in between, though some guests might come straight to the reception regardless.

She surveyed the hall.

It truly was transformed. Ariel’s idea to drape the horrible gray paneled walls in white sheets with purple streamers as accents had transformed the space into a princess palace. The white and purple table linens, accented with the wonderful vases of lavender lisianthus, purple stock, pink hydrangeas, and white roses from Flowers by June, looked chic.

Several musical notes rang out. She glanced at the stage. The band was tuning up. She placed a big check mark near the wordband.

This was the company’s introduction event to Gillette, and she needed it to be perfect, even if they were only the day-of coordinator. She’d gone all out, doing more for less money to assure it would go off without a hitch. The decorations and the flowers would make a positive statement, but the bride had chosen the caterer before Kristy had been hired. If the food wasn’t delicious, the guests would assume it was the fault of An Affair to Remember.

A knot formed in her stomach.

She strode out into the small lobby and spied the rolled-up red rug to the side of the door. Now that the caterer had finally arrived, she’d lay down the carpet and then head to the kitchen to check if the food was any good.

That knot in her stomach tightened just as the front door blew open, letting in a blast of hot, dry air. There, standing in the glow of the lowering sun, was Rusty. He wore black pants and a white dress shirt, with the collar open, under a black jacket. A lock of his thick auburn hair fell over one eye. The pointed-toe boots were the only hint that underneath those clothes was a cowboy at heart. The man certainly cleaned up nicely.

“You’re early” was all she could think to say. At least out loud.Yowzajust didn’t seem appropriate.

“Wanted to be sure I was here when the first car arrived.” He smiled, and his eyes twinkled, as if he was actually looking forward to parking cars.

“You dressed up. You didn’t have to.” Especially since she couldn’t take her eyes off of him. Distracting, that was what he was.

“Wasn’t sure what a valet for a wedding should wear.”

“Well… you look nice.” Really nice. “But you’ll likely be mistaken for one of the guests.”

“I can always wear a sign.”

She had to laugh. “No sign. You’ll just have to announce yourself. And you can ditch the jacket. It’s too hot out there.”

“Will do.”

She took a step closer. The orange flecks in his blue eyes seemed to be dancing. Made her want to dance with him, to feel his arms around her, his hand on her back. Where had such thoughts come from?

Clearly it had been too long since she’d had a date. Not something she was planning on remedying anytime soon. Not something she wanted to remedy.

“Thank you. You didn’t have to do this. I could have tried to find someone. And I’ve worked as wedding staff more than once.”

He shrugged in that no-big-deal way. “I had nothing better to do.”

“Well, I’m sorry about that.” It was nice to know that even a good-looking guy didn’t have plans on a Friday night. Like she usually didn’t when she wasn’t working a wedding. Which, considering she was starting up a business in this region, had been a lot of recent Friday nights.

“Me too.” He looked serious. He turned his head to scan the room. “I meant to tell you earlier that you do good work. I’ve been to this hall many times, and no one would ever accuse it of looking elegant. Tonight it does.”

“Thank you. Much of that credit goes to Ariel. She’s very creative when it comes to decorating. So you come here often? Are you a veteran?”

He nodded. “Air force. Got out this past December after ten years.”

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