Page 21 of Cowboy's Christmas Wife

Kyle let out a laugh that wasn’t altogether kind, and Daryl looked at him, mouth set in a line. “What are you laughing at, kid?”

Thatset Kyle off. “I’m literally three years younger than you,” he said. “Don’t call me ‘kid.’”

“Okay,” Daryl said through clenched teeth. “What are you laughing at,asshole?”

Laura put up her hands. “Okay,” she said, “name-calling isn’t going to help anything. Just—”

“I just want Laura to know that she may be waiting a long time for that saddle.”

The words sank the mood of the room, and dinner became a quiet affair. Daryl didn’t look at his brother again; Laura could feel the guilt coming off both of them like waves. Kyle for saying what he said, and Daryl for not being the reliable big brother he thought Kyle deserved. It broke her heart to see them so awkward with each other. “I’m going to do the dishes,” Daryl muttered as they finished up.

“Do you want help?” she asked. Before he could answer, Lily started to cry. She was ready for a bottle and bed. She gave him an apologetic look, and he waved her on.

“Thanks for dinner, Laura Jo. It was great.”

“Yeah,” Kyle said, coming up behind her to throw an arm around her shoulders—awkward but affectionate. It was a very kid-brother kind of hug, and it made her heart soar. “Thanks.”

TWELVE

Daryl was almost vibrating with excitement. He had been helping Kyle and the hands with their monthly hoof inspection and trim for the cattle—any cow with a bum foot would be looked at by a vet—when his phone had rung. He’d stepped away to answer and since then, he had been nearly bursting from the seams. He did his best to help finish with the cows, but Kyle could tell that he was distracted.

“Go deal with whatever has your head in the clouds,” Kyle said. “You’re not doing us any good here.”

Guilt speared through him. “Sorry, Kyle, I can—”

“You can go,” Kyle said, but this time he was smiling. “We’ve got this covered.”

“You’re sure?” Daryl asked. He didn’t want to leave them shorthanded, but he needed to tell Laura about his call. He needed to celebrate. When Kyle nodded, he clapped his brother on the shoulder. “You’re the best, man.”

He hurried across the pastureland to where his truck was parked beneath a big tree and drove it back to the house. Georgina’s car was parked beside Laura’s. He pulled in on the other side and practically jumped out. When he came through the door, he discovered that the house had been transformed into a harvest wonderland: orangey red leaves and pinecones that had been decorated to look like turkeys were arranged around the sitting room and through the doorway, he caught sight of them on the dining room table, as well—the big table that they only used when all of the family was together.

Daryl found his sister and wife in the kitchen, prepping pie dough for baking on Thanksgiving. “Don’t we normally use the store-bought stuff?” he asked, amused at the sight of his sister slamming a ball of dough onto the counter and roughly attacking it with a rolling pin.

Georgina looked over to him. “Laura had a great recipe for rough puff,” she said. “We’re doing a couple pumpkin pies and a chocolate pecan for you.”

Daryl grinned. “That sounds amazing.”

Laura looked up from where she was wrapping dough with saran wrap. “I’m also making sweet potato souffle this year. It was one thing that I learned that my mother-in-law made that was actually really excellent, and I conned her out of the recipe.”

Georgina looked less than thrilled about a new recipe for sweet potatoes, but Daryl was impressed that she was biting her tongue so well. “We are still doing turkey, right?”

Both women laughed. “Of course, we are,” his sister confirmed. “It wouldn’t be Thanksgiving without it.”

“Where’s Kyle? I didn’t think either of you would be back for hours.”

He felt another echo of that guilt, but he did his best to shake it off. “He sent me back in so that I could tell you about the phone call I just got,” he said.

Laura began to wash her hands. “A call? From who?”

“The news station,” he said, excited again. “They do a feature each week that highlights a local business. They want to showcase my leatherworks shop.”

Laura’s grin was immediate and dazzling. She came around the island and threw herself into his arms. “That’s amazing!” she said. Daryl swung her around, laughing.

He put her down again. “We need to celebrate. You about finished here?”

Laura looked to Georgina, who nodded. “I can clean up here,” she said. “You two go have fun.”

“Go grab Lily,” he told her. “I’ll pack a lunch for us—I want to take you both to my favorite place on the ranch.”

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