Page 7 of Cowboy's Christmas Wife

“You’re right,” she said and looked around at her mess of a kitchen, anywhere but at his face. “I’m not even sure where to start.”

“You start by coming back to the ranch with me.”

“What?” she yelped.

Daryl put his hands up in an “unarmed” gesture. “What this place needs is more than just a little patch job, right? If you’re getting the roof replaced or the whole house rewired, then they’d need you out of here, anyway. And if you’re going to be staying anywhere, what would make more sense than staying with your husband? You and Lily can come live at the ranch while we get the house fixed up, and when it’s ready, you’ll move back. That’ll save you some money staying at a hotel or something.”

It made a lot of sense. “But what about…” She gestured between them.

“That’s why I was calling earlier,” he said. “Realistically, I think we’ll have to stay married between two and four months, depending on when we can get a hearing. Once Clark is kicked off the trust, and you go no-contact, we can get an annulment, and I’ll sign myself off the trust so that the money is all yours.”

They hadn’t talked about the logistics of their marriage the other night—more or less, the conversation ended with agreeing to get married at all. “When should we get married?” she asked.

“How about tomorrow morning?” he suggested. “We’ll go to the courthouse and get it done by a justice of the peace.”

Laura’s breath caught in her throat. Get married tomorrow? It seemed so fast—but on the other hand, it would also mean getting to file for a new hearing that much sooner. “Okay,” she said. “Yeah, let’s do it.”

Daryl nodded, and she could see his throat working as he swallowed.He’s nervous, she realized, and a rush of warm affection washed over in a wave. He reached into his pocket and drew out a ring. “I think you should wear this,” he said.

Laura stared at it. The ring was beautiful—a simple gold band with a solitaire diamond. “Daryl—”

“It was my mom’s,” he explained, “and it’s on loan.” He reached out, waiting to see if she’d meet him halfway. When she did, he enveloped her left hand in his. The heat of his skin felt so nice against her own—it reminded her of the hug she’d felt compelled to give him. It had been so long since she’d been with anyone, and now her nerve endings seemed to light up over the smallest touches.Down, girl, she told her libido.He’s a friend, and he’s going to stay that way. Daryl, unaware of how his touch was making her knees weak, held the ring just on the edge of her ring finger. “I’m not going to lie to my family about what’s going on here, but everyone else needs to believe that this is legit, right?”

Laura nodded. “Right,” she breathed out.

“So, if this were real,” he said, “I’d give you my mother’s ring to wear. When we lost Mom, Georgina was already married, and she said I should have the ring, to give to my wife someday.” He swallowed hard again. “So, will you wear it?”

Even with his explanation, it still felt too intimate; she nearly said no. But when she met his warm, hopeful eyes, she couldn’t make her mouth say the words. “Yes,” she said, and her breath hitched when he pushed the ring onto her finger. This was intimate too—more so than the grand proposal that Clark had staged. He’d offered her engagement ring to her in a velvet ring box, and she had put it on herself. Her eyes flicked up from the new ring on her finger back up to Daryl’s eyes, and she was taken aback by how close they actually were. Had either of them moved? She wasn’t sure, but she could feel his breath against her skin.I could kiss him, she mused, and that thought had her drawing away. She didn’t want to kiss Daryl—he was a friend, and nothing more. It was just that it had been so long without kissing anyone.God, I need to be kissed.

“Well,” he said, clearing his throat, “let’s get you and Lily packed up, and we’ll head back to the ranch.”

Laura nodded and turned toward her bedroom, but then stopped. “Lily and I are sleeping in our own room, right?”

“Of course,” Daryl said. “I think it would be best if—” He looked pained for a moment, but Laura understood his meaning.

“Let’s leave the marriage more about convenience than anything else,” she supplied, and he nodded. Something panged in her about that, but no matter what certain parts of her craved, she knew it would be a disaster if they fell into bed together.

Laura and Daryl started packing bags for her and Lily. She tried to be conservative with what she brought—she could always come back if they truly needed anything—but Daryl encouraged her to pack anything she thought might be useful. “We’ve got more than enough space,” he said. “It’s just me and Kyle in this house made for a huge family.”

She stopped arguing with him after that, and after packing up all of Lily’s “necessities,” it definitely felt like they were making a real move, not just a temporary one. “Are you sure this is okay?” she asked when she saw just how large the pile had become.

Daryl smiled. “Absolutely,” he promised. He pushed back the curtain on the nearest window. The rain had let up. “You get the baby up, and I’ll start packing up the truck, and we’ll get on home.”

FIVE

Daryl didn’t sleep at all that night: he was too busy listening to every sound in the room next to his. He’d gotten Laura and Lily settled into their room, and together, they had told Kyle what was going on over leftover chili. His younger brother called him a moron but thanked Laura for what she was doing for them. When they’d all turned in for the night, Daryl felt mentally exhausted, but he couldn’t turn down the thoughts whirling around in his head.

When the clock on his side table read 3:30, and he realized that sleep wasn’t going to happen, he got up and dragged himself to his bathroom. He turned on the water, splashed his face, and met his own gaze in the mirror.I’m getting married today, he thought and frowned. His hair was longer than he would like, nearly shaggy with the waves that his sister loved to complain about. Out of the three of them, he got the “good” hair.Whatever that means. Most of the time, he kept it shoved beneath a Stetson. For today, though, he would need to do something with it to make himself look presentable—it wouldn’t be right to get married with a hat on.

Daryl headed out to his workshop, intent on working on backed up projects, but he found himself taking scraps out of the pile and fashioning himself a wedding ring of sorts. He measured his ring finger for the size, cut the different scraps into strips, and then he twined the leather together into a tight line. Looping it into a ring, he bonded the edges together and tried it on again.A perfect fit, he mused.

When he came out of his workshop, it was 5:30. He had just enough time to make breakfast before he and Kyle went out for morning chores. He found Kyle in the kitchen, poking the coffeepot to life. “You want eggs?” Daryl asked his brother.

Kyle looked at him like he’d grown a second head. “First chili, now eggs? You got a secret desire to be a chef now?”

Daryl took a breath in through his nose and let it out slowly. “The chili was a thank-you for mending the fence without me, jackass,” he sniped, “and the eggs are for Laura. I just wanted to know if you wanted me to make some for you.”

Kyle shook his head and decided that there was enough coffee to pour into his waiting mug. He took a sip, and Daryl made a face. He would never understand how Kyle could stand black coffee. Daryl didn’t drink coffee all that often, but when he did, he loaded it down with creamer. Kyle slid into a chair at the table and watched as Daryl bustled around to make some eggs. When he found some bacon in the fridge, he held it up. “Is this any good?”

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