“I’ll give you a call on Wednesday, okay? We can get together and I’ll let you know what I’m thinking.”
“Okay, if you know before then—” He stopped, not wanting to pressure her.
“I’ll let you know,” she said. She smiled and then watched him walk away. Only after she walked back into her house and closed the door did she break down and cry.
Chapter Fourteen
That night was complete torture for Brayden and he knew that if there was a chance with Kelsey one of them would have to make a big change to make it work. She was settled and newly re-established so it was unfair for him to expect her to accept his terms. It was in his court and he had to create a plan that worked for him, and hopefully kept the door open for his potential with her. He just knew it was there. Their friendship had grown slowly and there was an intense burning desire underneath it that had finally revealed itself, taking them to the next level. He’d never expected that would happen, but he knew enough to know that it was rare—and special.
He walked down into the kitchen, looking for Mal. She was just the one he needed. He explained his situation—minus the intimate details—and she listened intently, the wheels in her mind clearly turning as she evaluated everything he revealed to her.
“I have the perfect idea,” she said, and shared her thoughts which Brayden instantly felt were good. They were possible. They might be his saving grace.
***
With Mal behind Brayden, he walked into the bridal shop on late Wednesday afternoon. Kelsey had called him and mentioned taking a walk after the shop closed to discuss their situation. He wanted to give her some new information to mull over first, though.
“Hey,” she said, looking from Brayden to Mal. “What’s going on?” She glanced over at the clock.
“I’m here to close up shop for you. You have some business to tend to,” Mal said, walking up and behind the counter confidently.
“But—”
“I can handle whatever happens,” Mal said. “No excuses.”
“Ready?” Brayden said.
His smile was so magnetic that Kelsey wanted to run over to him and give him a kiss, which was very unwise considering she had not even shared her decision yet.
“I guess so,” she said. “You two are very suspicious, though.”
“Us? I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said. He walked up to her and softly kissed her cheek and then pulled out a blindfold from his pocket. “For your protection.”
“A blindfold? Seriously?” she asked.
He stood behind her, his chest pressed against hers and reached his arms around in front of her, holding each end of the blindfold in one hand. He whispered in her ear, “Very serious.”
Then he slowly tied it over her eyes.
“I can’t see a thing.”
“That’s the point,” he said. He took her hand and began to guide her to the front door.
“Have fun,” Mal called out. She was laughing away and sounded very excited.
“What’s this about, Brayden?” Kelsey asked. She was excited, too, completely curious about this unexpected surprise, but she didn’t know what to make of it.
“You’ll find out,” he said. “I’ll guide you.”
“We’re walking down the street?”
“Just a few blocks. No big deal,” he said.
“Well, you can see. I can’t.”
“Patience, Kelsey Jackson.”
Kelsey was quiet then, giggling a bit and hearing the sounds of a few passersby laughing at her. She was afraid she’d end up running into a pole or tripping, so she moved slowly.
“Trust me,” Brayden said. “I won’t let anything bad happen to you.”
She breathed in, wanting to hand over complete trust to him. She was vulnerable, unless she threw a fuss, of course. She didn’t want to do that, though. She was too curious.
“Stand still for a second,” he said.
He let go of her and she stood frozen like a statue. She didn’t want to move, because she couldn’t tell where she was, or even in which direction they’d walked. He’d turned her in circles a few times for “a little extra element of surprise,” as he’d put it.
“Okay, take one step up,” he said, guiding her up the step and into a building. He slowly walked her to the center of the room.
Now Brayden was as nervous as she was excited. “Okay, are you ready for me to reveal the surprise?”
“I am,” she said, trying to slap her hands together, but they missed and she slapped the inside of her left arm and her left hand hit the air.
Brayden slowly peeled off the blindfold and told her to shut her eyes.
She listened to his request and kept them closed, although it was so hard to do. He walked away, his steps almost shuffling across the floor. Then he called out, “Okay, open your eyes.”
Kelsey did and she blinked, adjusting to the light, and then looked around. In front of her was a small round table with a lit candle, a blue table cloth, a small vase with a single white rose, and two glasses of wine, already poured. Off to the right was a pizza box, still closed.
“Where are we?” she asked. She had no idea what to think. It was an endearing visual to be sure, kind of reminiscent of Lady and the Tramp.
“This is my new property,” he said. “I’ve decided to open up an accounting firm here.”
Her eyes grew wide and her hand went across her mouth. She could not speak. She was shocked and at a complete loss for words.
“Okay, please tell me that you’re at least excited about that,” he finally said, walking up to her.
“You’re staying here?” she asked in disbelief.
“Yes, the commute would be a killer,” he said. “But before you tell me what your decision was, please know that you shouldn’t change it just because I am turning down that job and going into business for my own in a town I’ve been in for a handful of months. No pressure.”
She laughed and went up to him, wrapping her arms around his shoulders. “Congratulations on your big venture,” she said. She leaned in and kissed him tenderly on the lips, wanting to ease his nervousness. She never would have guessed that he would do such a bold thing. It was so inspiring and brave.
“I like that congratulations. Better than the handshake from the realtor,” he said, nervously laughing.
“Are you sure about this?” she asked.
“I am very sure about it,” he said. “I really came into my own here and have felt happier and more content than I have in a great while. That means something. And so do you.”
“Do you want to know what my answer was about long-distance dating?” she asked, taking a step back and looking down at her hands. Her bangs were covering her face and she was awkwardly playing with her fingers.
“From that look, I think I know,” he said. It was a bummer, but he had to keep things separate.
“You do, do you? Enlighten me, Mr. Maxwell.”
“You just couldn’t do it. It would have been too tough and you weren’t willing to risk it. I understand that, Kelsey.”
“Well, it looks like you don’t know me as well as you thought,” she said, looking up and showing a completely rascally grin on her face.
“You were psyching me out?” he asked.
“A little revenge for the blindfolded walk down the main street,” she replied.
Brayden walked toward her, saying, “You’re going to get it for that.”
She squealed and darted to the far side of the table, making it so he couldn’t grab her. He moved to the left and she moved to the right. Then she moved to the left and he moved to the right. But in the end, playing hard to get wasn’t really her plan and she stopped.
He swooped her up in his arms and tickled her, making her beg and plead for him to stop. Tears were streaming down her eyes and she was laughing so loudly it echoed in the empty building. “Okay, I’m sorry,” she finally said.
“Save those apologies for when you do someth
ing wrong. But more importantly, take mine when I do something wrong. It’s pretty much a guarantee,” he said.
Then he pressed his body against hers and held her tight. He could feel her heart beating and his was beating faster, but the longer he held her close, the more in rhythm their heartbeats became until they were beating in perfect unison.
“Is it okay to kiss you in your place of business?” Kelsey finally asked.
“I can make an exception for you,” he said.
She went up on her tiptoes and he leaned down, keeping his arms wrapped around her and they kissed, agreeing that giving a new life with each other was worth a try. Maybe it would work. Maybe it wouldn’t, but no one would ever fault them for not trying.
“Now, let’s eat. I haven’t eaten for days. Been too busy and stressed out,” Brayden said, rubbing his stomach.
“I haven’t had much of an appetite, either,” she admitted, “but suddenly, I am starving too.”
The two sat down to eat and Brayden began to lay out his plans for Maxwell Financial, talking about how he’d already spoken with Devin Garvin, the accountant who had been so eager to retire, and they’d made an agreement to help with the transition. Mal had reviewed his lease and helped him get a great deal. And Colton and Olivia offered him a place to stay for a bit until he found more suitable housing.
“So everyone was in on this?” Kelsey asked. She’d avoided everyone the past days, not wanting to talk about her decision, because it had been so tough.
“Kind of. I needed a lot of reinforcements to get this done by the deadline you gave me. I really thought you’d say no to the long-distance thing, but I have no regrets.”
“Looks like my leap of faith paid off, Brayden. This is all so amazing. Where is this building, exactly? I’m still not sure where I ended up.”
“Just two doors down from the bridal shop,” he said. His grin showed his completely delight in fooling her.
“The old real estate office?” she asked.
“That’s it.”
“So, do you mind taking me on for a client? You do my books; I do your marketing?” she asked.
“I’d accept, but I’m not sure if you can afford me,” he said teasingly.
“You might not be able to handle all the business I get you, either, so watch out.”
“Don’t get me too busy. After all, part of the goal is to spend some more time with you.”
“I love that goal,” she said. She looked at the pizza box and laughed. They had eaten the entire thing and finished a bottle of wine too.
“So, Kelsey, I was thinking we could go to your place for dessert. If you’re up for it.”
“Sounds like a perfect plan to me,” she said. “I walked though.”
“And I got a ride. Car not back yet?”
“It is, but it’s nice to walk once in a while. Clears the mind.”
The two picked up the small celebration in the middle of Brayden’s new office and then walked out to street. He locked the door, grabbed Kelsey’s hand, and the two began to walk slowly, laughing about nothing and talking about everything.
Everything was quite clear—now as much to them as it had been to everyone else. They had agreed to take a chance and whatever happened from there, they’d both be all the better for it.
Epilogue
With every day that passed, Brayden and Kelsey grew closer and their circle of friends grew tighter. Their new tradition was to meet at Kitty’s for breakfast every Sunday morning, the only day that worked for all of them.
Although it had been quick, Brayden had moved in with Kelsey, both of them deciding it wasn’t very smart to rent two places when they wanted to be together every chance they’d gotten. And, as if fate wanted to let the world know that they’d found each other, they’d also had calls from their exes within the past few weeks. The exes had wanted second chances, but they had none to offer, because where they were headed was what felt right. They were in sync and comfortable being themselves—flaws and all—by each other.
Already at the restaurant, Brayden and Kelsey sat at the round table in the corner, laughing and taking their first sips of coffee. Mal and Wade walked in first and sat down. Then Olivia and Colton showed up a few minutes later.
“Mal, you look great. You’re glowing,” Kelsey said.
“I have some big competition in you,” Mal said, reaching her hand over and touching hers gently.
“What do you mean? You’re not pregnant are you, Kelsey?” Olivia asked. Her eyes were completely wide.
“No!” she and Brayden said adamantly at the same time.
“You two are already reading each other’s minds,” Mal said. Then she turned to Olivia, “I meant that ‘I’m in love’ glow.”
Not so long ago a statement like that would have horrified Kelsey, but she just smiled at Brayden and he winked at her.
“So, I found out what I’m having,” Mal said, patting her belly. “Wade doesn’t want to know, though, so I can’t tell you.”
“Wade,” Olivia said, giving him a frown.
“She’s just kidding,” he said and then looked at Mal. “You owe me a dollar. I knew Olivia would react before anyone else.”
Mal sighed and pulled out her purse and handed her husband a dollar.
“Enough betting. What is it?” Kelsey asked eagerly.
“A boy!” Mal said, smiling brightly.
“Congratulations,” Colton said. “I can’t wait to tell that boy all the stories about his dad and mom when they were growing up.”
“Note to self—no Colton babysitting,” Mal said out loud. Then she laughed and patted her stomach again. “It’s a good thing we have a table now, because I don’t think that I’d ever fit into one of those booths these days.”
“So, what’s going on with you two?” Olivia asked, looking back and forth from Brayden to Kelsey.
Brayden looked at Kelsey. “You first.”
“Well, I’m thinking of opening up a second shop in Deer Run,” she said. “We went to look at properties this week.”
“That’s fantastic! Wow,” Mal said.
“But what Brayden has going on is even better,” Kelsey said.
“What do you have going on?” Wade asked, wondering what it could possibly be.
“A few things. I hired an employee, a bookkeeper, because business is good, but more than that, I’m also getting ready to run a marathon.”
“Great. Where?” Olivia asked.
“Jackson Hole,” he said.
“Your Jackson Hole?” Olivia asked Kelsey.
“Not mine, but it’s time to meet the parents. They are quite curious about him.”
“That’s huge. That’s awesome. Well, I know they’ll love you and see how great you are for Kelsey too,” Mal said. Then she winked at Brayden.
Everyone caught the wink and Brayden laughed. “You are not subtle.”
“What’s going on?” Kelsey said. “Are you all in on something that I’m clueless about again?”
“No,” everyone said. They all looked down at the table, refusing to make eye contact with Kelsey.
Kelsey had grown to love the surprises and adventures that Brayden provided. They made her feel alive, and each and every time, her level of trust in him grew deeper and her connection to him stronger. The fact that he needed some help on occasion was inconsequential. “Well, so long as I don’t have to be blindfolded,” she finally said.
Everyone began laughing.
Brayden raised his cup of coffee. “I’d like to propose a toast.”
Everyone raised their water or coffee cups and waited.
“To those we love and cherishing the special moments of our lives,” he said.
Kelsey smiled and looked at him, touched by his words. “And to the embraces that I get to cherish, too.”
Brayden leaned over and kissed her, not thinking twice about doing it in front of everyone. It was met with groans by the guys and “awe”s by the girls.
~The End~
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Charlene Bright is the author of several contemporary western romance novels. She’s a lifelong resident of the American South and currently residents in southern Oklahoma on a family-owned cattle ranch. She greets each morning with a hot cup of coffee and an optimistic smile. Traveling to America’s national parks is her favorite pastime.
Cherished Embrace (Cherish Cowboys Book 3) Page 12
