Can’t Hurry Love

by Nadine Millard

  Organising it would keep her too busy to worry about Josh and his gorgeousness and unavailability. And with a whole month of events, even she was bound to find someone.

  “I’m not! Look.” Jenna whipped her phone out and opened Instagram.

  Within seconds, they were all pouring over her cousin’s photos. Sure enough, there it was. The Lisdoonvarna Matchmaking Festival.

  It looked like a blast! And judging from the number of selfies with different guys, it looked like it had been a success too!

  “Ok. This! This is what we should do,” Beth said excitedly. “Obviously, not by Saturday,” she hurried on when Paige opened her mouth to speak. “But we should, right? Paige…” She turned to fully face the other blonde. “…you’re forever fundraising for the library. It’s always on the brink of running out of money, right?”

  It was true. When Paige wasn’t working as an online teacher or in the library, she was desperately raising funds to keep all of her courses and classes going.

  “Wouldn’t this be a fantastic way to fundraise? It wouldn’t even have to be for a full month. We could do it for a week or two.”

  “I don’t know—“

  “It’s not a bad idea,” Brooke piped up. “I can help to organise it. And it would be good for the local businesses. Especially if we do it right before the tourist season kicks in.”

  “And we’ll help in any way we can. Right, Jenna?”

  Jenna grinned widely. “I’m in,” she said. “It sounds like a blast.”

  “Fine, let me look into it,” Paige said, earning herself a squeal and an extra cookie. “Now, what do we do about Saturday?”

  Before anyone could come up with an answer, the bell on the door rang out, signalling a customer.

  Judging from the sharp intakes of breath around her, Jenna, Paige, and Brooke had all noticed the same thing she had.

  Tall, dark, gorgeous, and in what looked like a very expensive suit — it looked like the solution to Saturday might have just walked through the door.

  Chapter Seven

  “Hey, Doc. Wanna join us?”

  Josh was only in the door of Bella’s Diner when the voice called out to him.

  He looked over to see Asher Wakefield waving him over to a booth that he was sharing with his twin Damon, and Grayson Carroway.

  He had only been able to tell the twins apart in the last few months. Since everyone else around here had grown up with them, they weren’t confused by the likeness. Josh had learned that the main difference was in their temperaments. Asher was more brooding and serious than his brother.

  He walked over, reached out, and shook hands with the three ranchers.

  Technically, he supposed, Damon wasn’t a rancher. He owned a development company with a partner who worked out of Denver. But he spent most of his time on the Wakefield ranch.

  It was still run by the twins’ formidable father, but he knew Asher did a lot of the legwork in running the place. Damon to a lesser extent.

  And then there was Grayson. Large and always serious — and Beth’s big brother.

  Beth… who he hadn’t stopped thinking about all morning.

  He slid into the seat beside Asher. “What has you all spruced up?” he asked Damon, eyeing the shirt and tie. Usually, Damon was in the uniform of the Rocky Valley locals — jeans, plaid, boots, and hat.

  “My business partner is in town to look at a property. Figured it didn’t hurt to scrub up a little while he’s around. He should be here soon.”

  They all chatted for a while, talking about nothing and everything.

  When Asher asked if Josh would be at that weekend’s poker game, he couldn’t help thinking of Beth’s words about her date Saturday. Who was she going out with anyway? He hadn’t noticed her taking an interest in anyone. Not that that meant anything. It wasn’t as if he watched her every move. Although, he probably would, given the chance, like some creepy stalker.

  He hoped the sudden spike of jealousy didn’t show on his face. The last thing he needed was to be thinking about Beth Carroway when he was sitting across from Grayson. He looked over at the rancher, checking to see if he’d given anything away. Logically, Josh knew that he was being stupid, but… well, he’d been doing a lot of stupid things lately.

  Grayson wasn’t paying any attention to him, however. He was looking — staring more like — at Tara who’d come over to take their orders.

  The redhead was definitely pretty in a girl-next-door kind of way. Josh had never paid much attention. Mostly because his attention had been well and truly caught by the blond baker when he’d first gotten here. But also because her red, poker-straight hair had reminded him of Elaine at a time when it had been way too raw.

  Now that he knew Tara, knew she was the total opposite of Elaine in every way, he quite liked the bubbly waitress. Still not enough to distract him from Beth, however. Hopeless as that was.

  “Hey, guys. What can I get you?”

  “Hey, beautiful.” Damon winked up at the waitress who rolled her eyes good-naturedly. “We’re just waiting for — ah, here he is.”

  They all looked over to see Damon’s business partner walk through the door.

  “Wow.” The whispered word had slipped out, if Tara’s furious blush was anything to go by.

  “I — ah — I’ll let him get settled in and come back in a few,” she stammered. Her hazel gaze darted to Grayson, who looked stonier than usual as his blue eyes, the exact colour of Beth’s, watched the new arrival.

  “Mason.” Damon stood and shook the man’s hand before making introductions. “Mason Decker, meet Grayson and Doc Larson. You already know Asher.”

  They all shook his hand before he pulled up a chair and sat at the end of the booth.

  “It’s not like you to be late,” Damon said as Mason perused the menu.

  “I went to the wrong place.” Mason grinned. “I saw a sign for a bakery and figured I’d misheard the name you gave me. Although I gotta say, it worked out in my favour.”

  “That’s Beth’s place,” Damon said. “What do you mean, it worked out in your favour?”

  “Got myself a free donut and a date for Saturday night.” Decker gave a thumbs-up with one hand while the other set his menu down. “You didn’t tell me how drop-dead gorgeous the ladies of Rocky Valley were.”

  Josh stiffened at his words.

  He couldn’t be Beth’s date since he’d only just arrived. But still…

  Damon was laughing.

  “Yeah,” he said, “’cause this particular pond doesn’t need another big fish.”

  “Who did you see?” Asher asked.

  Mason frowned slightly. “Let me think. One of them was a real hard ass. Beautiful, but scary. Brooke, maybe? Then there was your sister, Jenna. I would have known her even if she hadn’t introduced herself. You’re all freakishly alike, you know that?”

  Josh silently agreed. Obviously, the twins were identical, but their younger sister had the same black hair and light grey eyes. She was obviously a lot better looking than her brothers though.

  “And two gorgeous blondes. One that made me feel like a big bad wolf for just looking at her. I think I scared her just being in the room. And one sassy one who could flirt in the Olympics. She’s my date.”

  Well, shit.

  Sassy, flirty, gorgeous, and blond? That had to be Beth. But that meant she’d lied to him about already having a date. Why? To save face?

  It also meant that she was so damned stubborn she’d gone out there and gotten herself one with the first man she’d met.

  “The one you scared has to be Paige.” Asher grinned. “She always makes me feel like I’ve kicked a puppy with those big, green eyes.”

  “That was it. Paige. Lucky for her, she didn’t have to talk to me because the owner practically jumped me the second I walked in. Not that I’m complaining. I do like a woman who knows what she wants.”

  The atmosphere could have been cut with a knife at his words.

 
Josh didn’t know how Grayson was feeling. Probably not good if his own feelings were anything to go by, because he wanted to reach over the table at Mason Decker and knock him the hell out.

  “Ah – Beth, you mean?” Damon asked, a shit-eating grin on his face. “That would be the baby sister of Grayson here.”

  Josh would have laughed at the comical expression on Decker’s face after Damon’s words, but he wasn’t exactly in the mood to find anything funny right then.

  “Oh, man.” Mason gulped. “Look, I’m sorry I just—“

  Grayson just held a hand up. “Don’t worry about it,” he said, much to Josh’s disgust. “Trust me, I know enough about my little sister to know she probably didn’t give you much choice in the matter. Just maybe keep the details to yourself.”

  The camaraderie around the table was enough to put Josh in a foul mood. But he knew he had no right to feel that way. Especially after the way he’d bailed on her again this morning.

  Why had he even mentioned his feelings for her? He knew it wasn’t fair to her. He just couldn’t seem to stop himself.

  And why was it that every time he felt on the cusp of just giving up and letting her in, something from his former life encroached on the moment and reminded him why he shouldn’t.

  Ellen had been calling since early this morning. And Josh had no idea why.

  He felt awful, but he just couldn’t face hearing about another one of Elaine’s problems.

  He knew if it was anything serious, then he’d be told. He’d requested Ellen contact his lawyer if the worst should happen.

  He just needed space, he reminded himself guiltily. Just some time to heal.

  Ellen’s timing was as bad as it had been a year ago, but it had served as a much-needed reminder. He couldn’t drag Beth into the middle of this mess. He didn’t want to. Letting her or anyone in would only lead to more hurt. More damage.

  Tara returned, and Josh gave his order without even knowing what he was asking for.

  The chat went on around him. He barely participated. And when the food arrived, he ate it mechanically, barely tasting it.

  He was being ridiculous. He knew that. He wasn’t interested in a long-term commitment. Beth wanted the big, over-the-top, movie love that Josh was sure didn’t exist.

  But if anyone could find it, she could.

  So why was he sitting here feeling like his heart had just been stomped on? Was he so petty that he didn’t want, her but he didn’t want anyone else to have her, either?

  Surely, he was a better man than that.

  “So, at the risk of pissing off her big brother, any suggestions of where to take the beautiful Beth on Saturday night?”

  Mason’s question penetrated Josh’s fog of self-pity.

  Well, he had his answer, if the sudden spurt of jealous rage was anything to go by.

  He wasn’t a better man at all.

  Chapter Eight

  “Definitely the black.”

  Beth studied her reflection and decided that Paige was right. The black dress she was currently wearing made her look sophisticated. In the blue, she’d looked about sixteen.

  And Mason Decker seemed like the type of man who was used to sophisticated.

  Since his visit to the bakery, she’d gotten Jenna to quiz Damon about the man in preparation for tonight. Now, she kind of wished she hadn’t.

  The man was intimidating, there was no doubt about it. A complete and total city slicker. Mason would stand out like a sore thumb here in Rocky Valley. He sounded like the exact opposite of pretty much every man she’d ever met, and she wasn’t sure she’d be able to even talk to him without sounding like a bumpkin.

  “I’m not sure about this, you know,” she confided in Paige, who’d come by the ranch to run over some details about the festival and ended up staying to help her get ready. “It doesn’t sound like we’d have a lot in common.”

  “Well, you won’t know until you spend time with him,” Paige pointed out pragmatically.

  “I suppose you’re right.” Beth sighed. She should be excited about tonight. It wasn’t often fresh blood rolled into Rocky Valley. Especially fresh blood that looked as if it came straight from a GQ shoot.

  The truth was that even though she’d grabbed the opportunity to date him with both hands, she hadn’t really felt anything for the admittedly gorgeous businessman. Nothing. No zing. Not even a little zap.

  “He’s just — he’s very urbane. Isn’t that what they call it? I‘m not sure how to talk to people like that.”

  “Oh, I don’t know. You never struggled to talk to Dr. Larson, and he went to Harvard and worked as a city doctor.”

  The mention of Josh made her wince slightly, but she kept her features smooth.

  Besides, Paige was right. When Josh first arrived, he’d oozed city. And though he’d adapted to life in Rocky Valley well — really well — there was no denying that he was cut from the same Ivy League cloth as Mason Decker.

  But she’d never felt uncomfortable with Josh. She’d never felt intimidated or nervous. As for zing and zap? There was an abundance of it, which was why she found herself in this situation now.

  “You don’t think he’s a little scary then?” she asked, not willing to answer the question about Josh.

  “Oh, yeah. I think he’s terrifying.” Paige laughed, a pretty pink blush on her cheeks.

  Beth wished she blushed prettily. But whenever she blushed, it looked like an allergic reaction. She knew that because her brothers used to take great pleasure in pointing it out when they were kids.

  “But you never know… maybe spending time with him will reveal that he’s just a big teddy bear.”

  Beth eyed Paige sceptically but before she could answer, the doorbell rang, echoing throughout the cavernous house.

  “Oh no, he’s here already?”

  “Don’t worry about it,” Paige said in that calming way of hers. “I’m sure Grayson, Zach, or Seth can answer.”

  “No, they’re already gone on their stupid boys’ night. Can you get it? I haven’t even picked out shoes!”

  “Sure.” Paige reluctantly got up. “And wear the strappy ones.”

  She turned and left, leaving Beth alone and trying to force herself to feel enthusiastic about the evening.

  Fifteen minutes seemed a reasonable amount of time to leave a date waiting, so Beth made her way down the giant staircase that dominated the foyer of the house.

  Now that her parents were gone, the house sometimes felt more like a hotel than a home, the huge space and elaborate décor feeling a little stiff. But they were all loath to change the things their mother had picked, and when Dad had been alive, he wouldn’t have let them change it anyway.

  Beth knew that the boys had been contemplating maybe turning the place into a dude ranch at some point. A couple of places around had done it to varying degrees of success. Jenna Wakefield already ran a riding school out of the Wakefield place, with summer treks and pony camps. A couple of them were overnight and weekend camping trips. But they hadn’t fully converted, and she wasn’t sure that they would.

  Asher didn’t seem the type to enjoy having to play nice with visitors. And Damon would probably play too nice. If they did decide to do that, Beth would need a lot of help in the kitchen. But it would probably come to nothing anyway.

  A lot of land around here had been sold off since the last recession, but thanks in large part to Grayson, the Big Sky Ranch was still thriving as a cattle operation. They didn’t need it to do anything else. Not for now anyway.

  Beth knew she was letting her mind wander a bit out of nervousness.

  She took a deep breath, metaphorically pulled on her big girl pants, and strutted as confidently as possible in three-inch heels toward the lounge.

  As she’d expected, Paige had brought Mason in here to wait. What she hadn’t anticipated was the tableau before her.

  Her books always talked about sparks flying between two people, but Beth had never really seen it befor
e. Now she knew exactly what it meant.

  Mason and Paige were facing each other across the large room like combatants on a battlefield. But even though there was a lot of tension swirling around them, it did seem like the kind of tension that happened around Chapter Ten —as in, the kind where clothing started getting removed.

  Which was all well and good — except that Mason was her date.

  Beth didn’t know what to do. They hadn’t noticed her entrance. And she was afraid to step closer in case she got a shock from the electricity swirling around the two of them.

  She was contemplating just walking backward out of the room when Paige’s eyes suddenly snapped to her and widened, looking like pools of sparkling green.

  Strangely enough, even though Paige was in a simple sweater and jeans, with her golden hair pulled into a messy bun, Beth didn’t think her friend had ever looked more beautiful.

  “I’ll let you get on with your date,” Paige snapped surprising Beth.

  In all their years of acquaintance, she’d never seen Paige angry. But she was angry now. Furious even.

  “Goodnight, Mr. Decker.” She walked toward the door, her chin jutting out. “And Beth — good luck.”

  The silence she left in her wake was more than a little awkward.

  “Is she always like that?” Mason asked, seeming more amused than offended.

  Beth eyed him curiously. “Actually, she’s never like that,” she answered.

  “Ah. Lucky me, I guess. You hungry?”

  She wasn’t particularly, not anymore. But she wanted to get to the bottom of whatever the heck she’d just walked into. And she definitely didn’t want to be spending a Saturday night thinking about Josh Larson.

  “Sure am!” She smiled brightly then led the way out the door.

  Chapter Nine

  He was out more money than he could ever remember, but he couldn’t concentrate. Watching the clock wasn’t doing him any good.

  Interrogating her brothers or Damon would be too obvious. Frustration clawed at him, and as he lost yet another hand, Josh knew he should just go home and give up. He wasn’t doing himself or his wallet any good sitting here brooding.