Page 51 of Merry Christmas, Cowboy

“Oh, yeah, what’s that?”

Taylor was busy pinning the hem on a lovely ivory gown. “I spoke with Blake Charles today. I’m going to buy a house.”

“That’s wonderful.” Taylor set down her work and gave her a big hug. “Good for you.”

“At least it’s in the works.”

“That’s great,” Julie said. “You’ve been wanting to do that a long time.”

“Yeah, well, I think after what happened with Johnny, I realized I can’t rely on anyone but myself.”

Taylor and Julie exchanged a look. “And us,” Julie said.

“Right, you guys. You’ve always been there for me. You know what I meant.”

“Yeah, we do. So, do you think Johnny really got the message?” Taylor asked.

“I don’t know.” Her shoulders slumped. “I hope so. I can’t deal with him right now. Men are too complicated for me. I’m not going to worry about him or any man right now.” She sat down in a lush love seat that faced a triple mirror. One glance at the puss on her face made her shake her head and get up.

“Nicole, what’s wrong?” Julie asked. “This morning at school you were excited about buying a house and now you’re…”

“It’s a big step.”

Julie and Taylor did another eye exchange. She wasn’t fooling her friends. They knew her better than that.

“It is, but that’s not what’s wrong with you,” Taylor said.

“It’s silly, really.”

“What’s silly?” Julie asked.

“I don’t want you to get the wrong idea, because we’re barely friends and all.”

“Oh, so this is about Garrett?” Both of her friends nodded as if they were expecting this.

“Maybe.”

“Spill.” Julie put her hands on her hips. She meant business now, but then she offered a softer, “Please,” and Nicole didn’t have the heart to deny her.

“There’s really nothing to tell, but I walked into Char-Pie today and there he was, having a good ole time with a gorgeous woman. Laughing and smiling and not showing his grumpy self.”

“Garrett has a grumpy self?” Julie asked.

“He sure does. I’ve been calling for the past couple of days to check in on him about his arm, and he’s been moody. Not really saying much. I got the feeling he wasn’t happy to hear from me.”

“It’s not that,” Taylor offered. “Coop said he’s been antsy and experiencing cabin fever, not being able to work. Remember the doctor told him to take it easy to give his arm a chance to heal. You know men, they need to work and I bet it’s driving him crazy that he can’t right now.”

“So, he decides to date Miss America?” When he was supposed to be fake-dating her? When they had a Christmas pact?

“Number one, you don’t know that he’s dating her. Number two, that doesn’t sound like Garrett,” Taylor said. “And number three, you must care about him a lot to feel this blown away.”

Nicole’s eyes squeezed shut.

“Oh, wow, Nic,” Julie said. “You’re falling for him.”

“I guess I am, but it doesn’t feel good. I don’t want to feel this way.”

“Garrett’s a great guy,” Taylor said. “But I don’t think you have anything to worry about. I see the way he looks at you.”

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