Page 42 of Marrying the Accidental Groom
He rubbed a hand over his face. “Can you just...draw something up? Just in case?”
“I can,” she said gently. “But I’ll also say this—don’t confuse being messy with being wrong for her. Juliana doesn’t need flawless. She needs someone who shows up and loves all of her messy parts, too. And here’s a secret: she has them.”
Gideon wasn’t sure that was true.
She continued, “You’re scared of loving someone who might leave. But you already love her. So, either give her the cleanest break you can...or fight like crazy to give her a reason to stay.”
Gideon didn’t respond. Because that was the part he didn’t know how to do.
Ruby stood and reached for a folder from the cabinet behind her desk. “I’ll get started. Doesn’t mean you have to use it. But if you change your mind—either way—you’ll be prepared.”
He stood slowly, brushing a hand over the front of his Carhartt. “Thanks, Ruby.”
“Anytime.” She paused at the door. “And, Gideon?”
He glanced back.
“You’d be surprised what kind of miracles start with a mistake.”
15
JULIANA
As soon as the call connected, Juliana regretted it. Her mother was the last person who would give objective advice. The second she heard about the job opportunity with Harrison Hotels, she’d probably orchestrate a full-blown SWAT team rescue mission to extract Juliana from Redemption Ridge and return her to the path to what she deemed acceptable. “On track,” in her mother’s dictionary, meant a perfectly polished job and waiting gracefully for her golf-polo-wearing knight in a shining BMW.
But the more time Juliana spent at Redemption Ridge Ranch, with Gideon and his family, the less interested she was in the knight, and the more convinced she was that a cowboy on a mountain bike was more her style. It didn’t make sense, not on paper. Logically, nothing about her and Gideon matched. And yet...she couldn’t help but love the way he made her feel. The way he made her laugh. The way he changed how she saw the world.
He was a good man. She’d suspected it back on Tealua, but seeing him here, in his element, had only confirmed it. He lovedhis family. He loved his community. And if she was reading the signs correctly, he was inching closer and closer to loving her.
The thought sent a thrill through her.
“Juliana Emerson. Are you even listening to me?”
She blinked, startled, and stared down at the phone in her hand like it had materialized out of nowhere. “Hey, Mom. Sorry. I must’ve hit a bad spot. Can you hear me now?”
“Honestly, Juliana, how can you stand being somewhere so backward that there’s no cell service? Are you ready to come home? I’ve got everything arranged. I can have a ticket waiting for you in Denver. Do you need a rental car? Is there even a rental car place? Don’t tell me you’re planning to hitchhike!”
“Mom. Mom. No. Just stop.” Juliana took a steadying breath. “I’m not calling to tell you I’m coming home.”
A long silence followed. “Then why? I feel like I’ve been very patient, Juliana, but this is getting ridiculous. You’ve been in that godforsaken place for over a month. Are you going to tell me what’s going on, or do I need to come there and find out for myself?”
Juliana’s stomach clenched at the thought of her mother in Redemption Ridge. “No, Mom. I just...” She hesitated, then plunged forward, tired of keeping secrets. “You want to know what’s going on? I’ll tell you. After Leo left and I went to Tealua by myself, I met someone. And it turns out...we got married.”
A bubble of hysterical laughter escaped before she could stop it.
“So I’m here. Getting to know my husband. Oh my word, I sound crazy—but it’s true. I have a husband. And I don’t know what to do, because I really like him. But it seems absurd, doesn’t it?”
Her voice cracked. “And that’s not even mentioning that I have a job opportunity—one I would’ve killed for six months ago—with Harrison Hotels. I should be jumping up and down andpacking my bags, but every time I think about leaving, I want to curl up in a ball.” She wiped hastily at the tears now slipping down her cheeks. “And I’m so pathetic I don’t even have friends to talk to about this. I shouldn’t be asking you, but you’re my mom. And even though everything you’ve said and done tells me otherwise, I feel like you should be on my side.”
The floodgates finally closed, and Juliana sat in breathless silence, bracing for impact. Maybe her honesty would spark some kind of sliver of maternal instinct that had somehow stayed buried for twenty-eight years. Maybe the shock of hearing her daughter was married and in genuine distress would bridge the years of distance between them.
Instead, that hope shattered with her mother’s response.
A horrified gasp was followed by her mother’s outraged scream. “You stupid, foolish girl! After everything I’ve done for you, this is how you repay me? I’ve tried to teach you one lesson, and you’re too thick-headed to learn even that. All I wanted was for you to marry someone who would be good for you. Someone who would give you the status and lifestyle you deserve. I never wanted you to make the same mistakes I did. Your father was worthless. Romance and big promises can’t make up for a penniless man who refuses to work. I had no choice but to leave him. Marrying Richard was what I had to do to give us a real life.”
She continued, voice rising. “And now you’re throwing away everything I’ve worked for on some broke cowboy who charmed his way into your skirt on vacation? I can’t believe you would do this to me.”
Juliana closed her eyes against the onslaught. Her tears ran faster as she listened to her mother continue to berate her.
