Page 82 of Cowboy of Convenience
Her grandmother shook her head. “Absolutely not.” She almost looked a little panicked at the possibility. “Does he need a good attorney? I am happy to connect you two with someone—”
Evelyn held one hand up, cutting her grandmother off before she ended up in a full-on rant about preserving wealth and protecting assets. “I will probably take you up on that.” Her eyes moved around the space. “Once we get through all of this.”
Her grandmother reached out to take her hand. “I’m so sorry you two are going through this, but I’m so grateful we were able to have his mother at your wedding.” Her expression dropped as her eyes fell away. “When I saw her, I just knew…” She took a deep breath, straightening her shoulders. “And thankfully we will be able to provide her with the beautiful sendoff she deserves.”
"Thank you so much for helping with it. I don't know that Grady could have taken this on too." Even after being in his life for such a short time, it was evident that her poor husband was overworked in every sense of the word.
"I am here whenever you need me, Evelyn." Her grandmother amended, "You and Grady both." She paused, rubbing her lips together before continuing. "I would like the opportunity to continue building a relationship with the two of you. Hopefully becoming a part of your lives."
"We would really like that." Evelyn added on a piece that couldn't be overlooked. "You know I won't be coming back to New York, right?"
Her grandmother gave a little laugh. "There's nothing for you there, dear. Everything you want is right here." Her eyes lifted to the vaulted ceiling. "Maybe not right here, but you know what I mean."
Did her grandmother just sort of make a joke? It was even a little funny.
Evelyn laughed just in case. "To be fair, this place does meet my immediate need, which is to help my husband show everyone how much he loved his mother." That wouldn't be something she would ever have the opportunity to do, so making sure Grady could was important.
Her grandmother looked her over. "Does he know you're the one paying for this?"
Evelyn tipped her head from side to side. "Not yet. I'll probably wait to spring that on him."
It was the first thing she'd done with the Amex when she pulled it out of isolation. Grady would never spend this kind of money, but she understood how important something like this could be. Probably better than many. "I really thought I wanted to leave everything about who I was behind, but maybe I was wrong. Maybe I’m still a little more hung up on appearances than I wanted to admit."
Only it wasn't her appearance she was worried about. She wanted everyone to see how wonderful Darla was. How much her son loved her. She wanted Moss Creek to talk about it for years. She wanted everyone to remember what a wonderful final gift Grady gave his mother.
"Appearances are like money, my dear girl." Her grandmother softly smiled. "They are something, but they aren't everything." She gave her a pat on the knee before standing up. "Now, I believe we need to meet your husband at the ranch so we can choose something lovely for his mother to wear."
A wave of emotion hit Evelyn out of nowhere, tightening her throat and pinching her chest. "I'm really glad you're here with me."
She'd been so focused on Grady—on making sure he had what he needed—not once had she considered that she might need something too. Didn’t really believe she even had the right to need anything at a time like this.
That was something she might have to work on for a while—believing it was okay to occasionally be less than perfectly happy in spite of the life she was born into. Hopefully it would get easier, because guilt and gratefulness were surprisingly heavy to carry around all the time.
"I'm glad I have the opportunity to be here when you need me." Her grandmother straightened, the woman she was so familiar with but was also so unknown, standing tall as she collected her purse and folder. "Let's go help that handsome husband of yours."
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
GRADY
"I'M NOT MAD.” Grady kept his expression firm. “I'm just disappointed."
Lula Bell blinked at him with big brown eyes, looking unbothered by the lecture he was dishing out.
"I just expected more from you is all I'm saying." He held out a treat, watching as his mother's favorite mare chomped through it. "I'm not putting all the blame on you, though."
After finishing up at the station, he'd come straight out to the ranch, parking in the back out of habit before making his way into the barn, looking for something to occupy his time until Evelyn got there. He already felt a little lost without her at his side. It sort of made what Gram-Gram had said to him that first morning make sense.
Maybe marriagewasmore like a business partnership than he’d initially wanted to admit. Having someone to share the load and tackle the problems coming his way had certainly made the past few days easier to bear. Of course there was plenty more than that to his partnership with Evelyn, but now he understood a little better what she was trying to tell him.
Because he couldn't fucking wait to see his partner again.
Which was why he was having a talk with Lula Bell. He spent a good amount of his time on the back of a horse, out in the fields helping out, and he wanted Evelyn to be able to be with him sometimes. That meant either Lula Bell had to get her shit together, or he would have to find his wife a new horse. And the thought of Evelyn riding the same mare his mother rode was a little too sentimental to give up on easily.
"I know you weren’t the only one to blame for what happened at the hospital, and I plan to have a talk with Larry too." He leaned back as Lula Bell swung her head his direction, nostrils flaring as she sniffed around for any evidence of additional treats. "That one was a peace offering. You don't get any more until you show me you’re willing to hold up your end of our bargain."
Lula Bell nudged him, this time looking for attention instead of food. He stroked down her neck, feeling a little regretful he hadn't taken her out more since his mom stopped riding. "I’m sorry too. I bet you've been bored. I can fix that for you, but you've gotta be sweet to my wife."
He probably sounded like a broken record at this point, but calling Evelyn his wife felt too damn good to care. The circumstances of their marriage were certainly unusual, but he wouldn't change a thing.
