Page 30 of My Cowboy Kiss
Then my mother holds open the tent and the most beautiful woman in the galaxy steps into view. She’s wearing the wedding dress that she and my mother made. They talked about laceand pearls and necklines throughout the last few weeks but all I knew was that she was going to look like an angel.
And she does. Her face is lit up by a smile and her eyes are shining full of love.
Wearing a pink bow to match the pink flowers in the bouquet, Captain Claws trots down the path ahead of her. Since Courtney moved to the ranch, he decided that he’s her watch kitten and he wants to be everywhere she goes.
As she passed the chair where Amanda, my brother Leo’s wife, is seated, she hands her the flowers. Then she stoops to lift Captain in her arms and continues down the aisle to my side.
I want to tell her how beautiful she looks. I want to tell her I’m so in love with her, but I can’t speak. If I do, I’m probably going to start blubbering like a baby. Some nights waking up beside her, I’d pinch myself to make sure I wasn’t dreaming, and she was really there in my bed.
Captain Claws climbs onto Courtney’s shoulder, and I take her hands in mine.
The officiant begins the ceremony, and I say all the right things at the right time but my mind is on the vision standing before me.
When he says it’s time to kiss the bride, I lean forward.
The kitten pops his leg out in front of Courtney’s face and meows ferociously at me.
My mother laughs and gets up to take him. He protests loudly as he’s carried away and I kiss the woman I’ve always wanted and loved. My best friend and now my wife.
Later that evening, Marshall toasts us and says something about new beginnings.
It’s not a new beginning at all. It’s another step in what was always meant to be.
Epilogue
Courtney
“Look what I found, Mama!” Our four-year-old son Paxton holds up a grasshopper. “I fixed him.” He has an affinity for helping animals just like his father, but I draw the line at insects. Especially ones that can jump.
“Okay, honey.” I shoo him toward the door. “Put it back.”
“Nooo…I want to put it in my pocket and give it to Grandma.”
I laugh before I can prevent the sound from escaping. “You know Grandma doesn’t like bugs.”
“But she loves me.” He beams. “We’re leaving now?”
I dry my hands on a towel by the sink and then hang it to dry. “Yes, we’re leaving. Are you excited to spend the night with Grandma and Grandpa?”
“Yes!” He bounces up and down. Then he spins around when the front door opens and River strides in.
My heart catches in my throat. This sexy cowboy is mine. To have. To hold. To fuck like crazy. I grin as that thought flits through my mind.
He notices me grinning and lifts an eyebrow. “What?”
I shake my head. “I’ll tell you later. Pax, don’t really put that grasshopper in your pocket.”
River stops him as he’s trying to do that.
“This is for Grandma,” Pax tells him.
“Is that so?” River looks over at me. “In that case I should find some worms too so it’s not lonely when you give it to Grandma.”
I laugh. “Your mom will mount your head on the wall if you do that.”
Frances once told me that the hardest part about raising all the boys was how they always had something creeping or crawling around.
Our golden retriever rushes into the room, his feet skidding on the floor. The momentum carries him across, and he crashes into Pax. River hikes our son up and into the air before he can fall.
