Jackson: The McBrides of Texas
Page 27
“Yummy!” Maisy interrupted, gesturing with her coffee cup.
Boone McBride had just come into view, walking from the direction of the outdoor stage accompanied by Luke Callahan and Coco. “I believe we were speaking of the other cousin,” Caroline said dryly.
“Too many cousins around here today to keep track of everybody. Maybe Boone has heard something. I’ll go ask.” Maisy handed Caroline her coffee and skipped down the porch steps to meet the focus of her flirtations.
The trio halted at Maisy’s approach. They spoke a moment before Boone shrugged, and he and Maisy veered off toward the lake. Luke and Coco continued on toward her. “Where’s Haley?” Coco asked.
Caroline gestured toward the lake. “Skipping stones with a new friend.”
“That’s Devin and Jenna Murphy’s boy, Reilly,” Luke said. “Caroline, you met them last summer.”
“Oh, that’s Reilly?” Smiling she took a closer look at the boy. “He’s the one who has a Christmas wishing tree in the forest at Angel’s Rest, isn’t he? It stays decorated year round? I thought it might be fun to try to find it while we’re staying there.”
Luke nodded, and then said, “Your little girl looks happy.”
“Yes, she does.” Caroline and Coco spoke simultaneously, and then shared a look. Coco shrugged and added, “She thrives being around other children. Maisy said something’s happened to Gillian? Is that why Jackson missed the sound check?”
Caroline explained about Gillian’s disappearance, then added, “Jackson said Martin has everything well in hand for your performance tomorrow. He thinks Martin will be an excellent manager.”
“Maybe.” Coco shrugged and scowled.
Luke proved his mental acuity by making a quick escape. Coco took a seat in the rocker beside Caroline’s and two women sat without speaking for a time, rocking and watching Haley. Then Caroline said, “I’ve said this before, but I want to say it again now that it’s just the two of us. I’m really honored that you are going to sing at our wedding, Coco. It means so much to Jackson and to me.”
“I’m doing it for Haley,” she quickly pointed out.
A smile fluttered on Caroline’s lips. “I know.”
Except, that wasn’t the whole truth. In the past seven months, Sharon had made a place for herself in Jackson and Caroline’s Redemption, Texas family. And she was grateful for it. Even if she’d never come right out and admit to it.
“I can’t believe you are honeymooning for a month.” Coco pushed out of her rocker and began to pace the porch. “I really don’t think Jackson and I discussed that when we agreed on Haley’s schedule for the next year.”
Yes, you did.
“It’s not responsible of him to go away for so long. We have special circumstances. Haley is accustomed to having him around. He takes care of things for her. He is always there to solve her problems. He is always there when she needs him. Haley will—“
“Be fine,” Caroline said, standing. She walked over to Sharon and spoke more to the point. “You will be fine. You can do this. You are stronger than you think.”
Sharon’s throat worked. Tears pooled in her eyes. “I’m not strong.”
“You are, too. You are here, aren’t you? How many women have the grits to come to their ex-husband’s wedding? Not just attend, but celebrate it like you are doing.”
“That’s pride, not strength.”
“It’s both. Look, you took a terrible blow last fall, and you are still standing. You’re wobbly, but you’re standing. That impresses me. I don’t know that I could have done it.”
“You? Wonder Woman Caroline?” Sharon folded her arms defensively.
“Wonder Woman! Hah. You should have seen me when Robert first shared his diagnosis. I went into a fetal position that I didn’t crawl out of for months.”
“But you did crawl out of it.”
“I did. Because by that time Robert was the wobbly one and he needed someone to support him. We didn’t have a Bois D’Arc like Jackson in our lives to step up and help. So I sucked it up and I stood. You’re doing it, too, Sharon. You are. You just need to trust yourself.”
She made a phfftt sound. “Now you sound like Angelica.”
“No, that sounds like Celeste. Angelica would tell you to go throw your pity-pot off the top of Enchanted Rock.”
Sharon snorted. “During a full moon.”
Caroline grinned. “While naked.”
The women shared a smile, and then Sharon’s gaze drifted back toward the lake where her daughter sent a rock skipping across Hummingbird Lake four times, then threw up her arms in victory. “Girl power.”
“We’ve got it. We just have to believe in it.”
“Maybe I should write a song about that.”
“You can do it, Coco. I know you can.”
The conversation was interrupted by the arrival of two vehicles—Jackson’s truck and whew! Gillian’s Mercedes. Before Jackson pulled into his parking spot, the sedan had sent gravel flying as it screeched to a stop. Both the passenger’s side and driver’s side doors were flung open. Tucker, his face a thundercloud, climbed from behind the wheel as Gillian, her expression just as dark vaulted from her seat. Both doors slammed and the combatants marched off in opposite directions.
“Well,” Coco said. “There’s a story there.”
Jackson opened the door of his truck and climbed slowly to the ground. Meeting Caroline’s questioning gaze, he grimaced and slowly shook his head. Walking toward them, he said, “Long story. I’ll tell you later. Right now, I need a shower and maybe a beer. Then we have a wedding to rehearse. And a party. Sharon, how did the sound check go?”
She glanced at Caroline and winked. “Don’t worry about it, McBride. I have it handled.”
JUNE 9TH
THE HONEYMOON COTTAGE AT ANGEL’S REST ETERNITY SPRINGS, COLORADO
“This has been the most perfect day,” Caroline murmured as she rested her head against her husband’s naked chest and tipped her face toward the stars. Around them, steam rose from the bubbling outdoor spa.
Jackson reached over to the champagne bucket set into the built in cooler at the spa’s edge and topped off their glasses. “It was a fun wedding.”
“I can’t believe River went into the lake.”
“I called it.”
“Yes, you did. Haley was the cutest flower girl ever born.”
“She’s a performer like her mother. Such drama with those flower petals.”
“Our guests were smitten.”
“Can you imagine what she’s going to be like in ten years? I’d better start practicing my mean dad glare now to keep the hairy-legged boys away.”
“Ten years?” Caroline sniffed. “You’ll be lucky to have six.”
“No-o-o,” he groaned. “Let’s change the subject.”
His hand started to wander, though the shift in subject wasn’t all that different. Soon, Caroline was the one who was groaning. They spent much of their wedding night and the first week of their marriage beneath the Colorado stars, before flying to the South Pacific for the balance of their month alone at a beach beyond reach for anything short of a dire emergency.
It was, they both declared, the perfect honeymoon, but when it was time to return to Redemption, to the canyon and the dance hall and bookstore, to River Dog, and to Haley, they were ready. More than ready.
Ready for the next, next chapter. The next verse.
Jackson had a title for it already.
He called it “Coming Home.”
Don’t miss the next book in the
Eternity Springs:
The McBrides of Texas series
by Emily March
Tucker
Coming in February 2020!
Also by
EMILY MARCH
The Christmas Wishing Tree
The First Kiss of Spring
A Stardance Summer
Christmas in Eternity Springs
Reunion Pass
Heartsong Cottage
Dreamweaver Trail
Miracle Road
Reflection Point
Nightingale Way
Lover’s Leap
Heartache Falls
Hummingbird Lake
Angel’s Rest
Praise for New York Times bestselling author
EMILY MARCH
and her beloved Eternity Springs novels …
“With passion, romance, and revealing moments that will touch your heart, Emily March takes readers on a journey where mistakes are redeemed and a more beautiful future is forged—one miracle at a time.”
—USA Today
“A brilliant writer you’ll love creates a world you’ll never want to leave.”
—Susan Mallery, New York Times bestselling author
“A heartfelt story of family, community, second chances, and the power of love … Don’t miss it!”
—Susan Wiggs, New York Times bestselling author
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—Lisa Kleypas, New York Times bestselling author
“A heartwarming tale of courage and redemption … that will have readers cheering.”
—Publishers Weekly
About the Author
Emily March is the New York Times, Publishers Weekly, and USA Today bestselling author of over thirty novels, including the critically acclaimed Eternity Springs series. Publishers Weekly calls March a “master of delightful banter,” and her heartwarming, emotionally charged stories have been named to Best of the Year lists by Publishers Weekly, Library Journal, and Romance Writers of America.
A graduate of Texas A&M University, Emily is an avid fan of Aggie sports and her recipe for jalapeño relish has made her a tailgating legend.
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Contents
Title Page
Copyright Notice
Dedication
Prologue
Part One
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Part Two
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Epilogue
Also by Emily March
Praise
About the Author
Copyright
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
First published in the United States by St. Martin’s Paperbacks, an imprint of St. Martin’s Publishing Group
JACKSON
Copyright © 2019 by Geralyn Dawson Williams.
All rights reserved.
For information address St. Martin’s Publishing Group, 120 Broadway, New York, NY 10271.
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eISBN: 9781250314925
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St. Martin’s Paperbacks edition / July 2019