The Texan and the Cowgirl

by Victoria Chancellor

  Goodtime Charlie was going to be a bridegroom.

  Chapter Nine

  Cassie angled the air-conditioner vent toward her face as she and Charlie pulled onto the highway toward Graham. She’d checked out the requirements online for a marriage license and made sure they had their IDs and she had both a checkbook and cash before they drove to the Young County Courthouse.

  Applying for a marriage license made this all so official. Saying you were going to get married was one thing, but actually driving to the courthouse together and applying made it very real. Once they had the piece of paper in their hands, they would be official. Or at least in seventy-two hours they would be eligible to be married.

  She was having serious doubts about whether this was the best thing to do to make Aunt Helen and Uncle Jim happy. Would they see right through the wedding? And once they found out about the pregnancy, would they be so upset that they wouldn’t want her in their lives any longer? They were her closest relatives. They would be like grandparents…unless they decided not to welcome her or her baby into their home.

  “So, what’s makin’ you frown?” Charlie asked.

  Cassie jerked upright in her seat, surprised she’d been so absorbed in her thoughts that she’d leaned toward the window. Away from Charlie and the problems that followed them from Brody’s Crossing to Graham.

  “Just thinking about my aunt and uncle’s visit. Wondering if we’re doing the right thing.”

  “I think we’d better start wonderin’ if we’re doin’ the right thing for us.”

  She turned to look at him, his serious comment making her apprehensive. Was he getting cold feet? “What do you mean by that?”

  “Just that no matter how important your aunt and uncle are to you, we are the two people who will be livin’ together and raisin’ our baby. They’ll go back to California and we’ll be here. Right?”

  “Are you saying you think we shouldn’t get married?”

  “No, I’m just sayin’ you need to decide that this is what you want, too.”

  “It was my decision,” she defended.

  “Was it? Now you’ve got second thoughts?”

  “I…I just wondered. I didn’t say that I’d changed my mind.”

  Charlie let out a big breath, which sounded a lot like a frustrated sigh. “Okay, then let’s decide one important thing at a time. Are we gonna live together after your aunt and uncle leave?”

  That was one issue she hadn’t let herself think about. Having a piece of paper that said you were married was different than actually living with someone.

  Sleeping with someone…

  “What do you want to do?”

  “Hey, I’m a guy. I want a real wife, not a pretend one. We’re gonna be married in the church where I grew up and we’re gonna recite vows that mean something to everyone we care about. Your aunt and uncle, my parents, our friends.”

  “Are you saying we’ll be lying to everyone?” Cassie asked.

  “Not if we try to live by what we say at that altar.”

  She sat there for a moment, staring out the window. “That would be a lot of promises to each other.”

  His hands tightened on the wheel. “I’m willin’ to try if you are.”

  “So, you want a real marriage, as if we went through the whole dating and engagement thing and decided to spend the rest of our lives together?”

  “I think that if we ignore the fact that we’re attracted to one another, livin’ together is gonna be really difficult.”

  So, he was still attracted to her. Except for the brief kiss Monday, he hadn’t done or said anything to indicate that.

  “Our relationship is…complicated. We met and it was great and we both thought it was one weekend, but then…” She let the words trail off.

  Charlie didn’t really understand how much she’d changed over the past few years. When she’d first visited Brody’s Crossing with Wyatt McCall and his assistant’s assistant, Louisa Palmer, she’d been a mild-mannered, starry-eyed workaholic with a fascination for all things Western. She’d stayed in the Western-themed room at the Sweet Dreams Motel and soaked up the atmosphere of the Texas town. Going back to her regular job at Wyatt’s company in California had been a real letdown.

  When she’d taken the chance to leave her corporate career at Wyatt’s company to move here permanently, she’d felt it was a big risk, but one worth taking. Over the past two years, she’d changed her appearance and her lifestyle.

  But she was also pregnant, which just pulled everything right back down to earth. She couldn’t pursue her own dreams any longer. She had her baby to think about.

  “You’re right. I’m attracted to you…still. And I do enjoy being with you.”

  “Then let’s get one bed and go for it.”

  She sighed and looked out the window at the fields behind the barbed-wire fences. “It doesn’t feel that easy.”

  “It could be if you’d let it.”

  “I’m trying, Charlie. I really am.”

  “You’re overanalyzing this. We’re going to be married on Sunday. No matter the reason, facts are facts. Let’s live like a real married couple and see what happens.”

  “And what if we can’t live together? What if we get on each other’s nerves or you get another opportunity in Hollywood?”

  “We’ll tackle things as they come up. Even a couple who’ve gone through years of dating doesn’t know what’s gonna happen tomorrow.”

  She sat silently for a while, watching the city of Graham come into view. “You’re right. I do overanalyze everything.”

  “Okay.”

  “And maybe you don’t think about things enough.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?” He sounded defensive and she knew right away she’d stepped over the line.

  “Nothing. It’s just you could get another chance at success and I have no idea what you might want to do.”

  “Neither do I, so let’s leave it there for now. I’m movin’ ahead with the cowboy school idea at the ranch.”

  “Okay.” She’d leave it alone…for now. But sooner or later something was going to come up to challenge them, and she didn’t have a lot of confidence that they would be able to tackle it together.

  “Well, now that we got that settled, let’s talk about the honeymoon.”

  “Honeymoon?” She hadn’t considered going away with Charlie. “But my aunt and uncle are coming to town to see me. And your parents are coming up, right? We can’t just leave. Can we?”

  “Probably not. I guess we should just take off time from work. We could do things together.”

  “Where?”

  “Here, in town.”

  “But—”

  “Hey, let me arrange that. The honeymoon is my responsibility.”

  Cassie sighed. One more detail she wouldn’t be taking care of herself. “Okay, I guess that’s traditional.”

  Charlie laughed. “Right. We wouldn’t want anybody to think we’re not just the ideal, traditional couple.”

  She turned and looked at him. “You said you wanted to be an actor. This is the role of a lifetime.”

  “You’ve got that right.” His smile faded as he must have realized she wasn’t kidding. “Really, darlin’, this is going to work out just fine. You might be more sensible than I am, but that just means we balance each other out.”

  “I suppose you’re right,” Cassie said, but inside she wondered if they were too different, despite the powerful attraction they felt for each other. Only time would tell if they were making the right decision…or a huge mistake.

  THE NEXT DAY, CASSIE had lunch in Dewey’s private room with the ladies, who were quickly executing Darla’s wedding plans.

  “I need your opinion on the flowers,” Ida Bell said after Cassie got settled into the booth. “The church has silk flowers already arranged in ivy pots, but I think silk flowers are a travesty.”

  “Um, okay.” Cassie had never considered silk flowers in bad taste, but then, Au
nt Helen had loved her “practical” arrangements because they never wilted.

  “I have enough roses and foliage in my garden for the tables at the reception, but we’d need to order arrangements for the altar. Would you want those to coordinate with the bridesmaid dresses or did you have another color in mind?”

  “I haven’t really thought about it,” Cassie answered.

  “Or we could go really fancy and get a trellis or an archway,” Caroline Brody suggested. “I went to a wedding in Weatherford and they had a beautiful trellis to frame the bride and groom at the altar.”

  “That sounds lovely, but it’s pretty fancy, isn’t it?” Cassie asked. She didn’t want to borrow money to have an unnecessarily large or elaborate floral display.

  “They are if you rent them, but we could make one of lattice and use fresh sweet peas and roses,” Ida said, brightening to the idea. “My husband Rodney could make one of those in a flash.”

  “Oh, really, I don’t want anyone to go to that much trouble,” Cassie said, ready to nip this in the bud.

  “That would be beautiful,” Caroline said, as if Cassie hadn’t already spoken.

  “What do you think, Darla?” Bobbi Jean asked her daughter.

  “I’m sure it would look lovely, but it’s Cassie’s wedding, after all.” She turned to look at her friend. “Would you like a trellis or a bower? I have some pictures in a bridal magazine.”

  “I…I think if we had more time, we could do that. But really, let’s just stick to the basics. Y’all have done way more than I ever expected.”

  Ida sat back. “Darn, I could already see it in my mind.”

  “Cassie may be right. Building and decorating such a large piece might be more than we can do by Sunday,” Caroline agreed.

  Finally, someone with a practical side, Cassie thought as she sipped her tea.

  “We’ll save that for another wedding, though,” Bobbi Jean said, looking at Darla.

  “Don’t look at me!” she said. “I’m not getting married again. Besides, I’ve already had one nice church wedding. I can’t imagine going through that again.”

  “We’ll see,” her mother said.

  “What’s the status of the food for the reception?” Darla asked Sandy Brody, turning to a woman who was about their age. Sandy was Caroline’s daughter-in-law and had volunteered for the huge responsibility of getting all the food for the reception to the church’s social hall.

  “The Ladies Auxiliary at the church have pretty much taken over. I just gave them some menu selections. They’re doing the little sweet-and-sour barbecued meatballs, bite-size potato-and-cheese puffs, fresh vegetables and dips, and corn tortilla roll-ups with salsa.”

  “Oh, my, that sounds wonderful,” Cassie said, “but it’s a lot of work. Are all those dishes homemade?”

  “Yes, they’re specialties of some of the ladies,” Sandy explained. “And before you tell them it’s too much—” she held up her hand “—let me just say that their feelings will be hurt if you turn them down.”

  Cassie winced. “I don’t want to offend them, but most of those ladies don’t even know me. They’re going to spend hours making all this food.”

  “Yes, and they’ll enjoy it,” Caroline said. “Remember, they’re coming to the wedding, too. Everyone in town loves a good wedding…and reception.”

  Bobbi Jean nodded. “That’s right. We don’t have another big event until the Fall Festival at the Community Center. There’s always good food there.”

  “Well, if you’re sure…” Cassie let her words trail off, half-expecting someone to jump in and say this was just too much.

  But no one did, and everyone seemed pleased.

  Beverly Casale bustled in, bringing the noise of the restaurant with her. “Sorry I’m late. We had a shipment arrive just as I was getting ready to leave.”

  Beverly was Leo and Toni’s mother and the owner, with her husband, Martin, of Casale’s Grocery. The store was right next door to Toni’s offices, which were next to Leo’s hardware. Brody’s Crossing should rename that block of Main Street “Casale’s,” Cassie thought, since the family had concentrated their businesses there.

  “We’ve just finished talking about the food the Ladies Auxiliary is fixing,” Sandy said, “but we’re going to need some fresh fruit trays.”

  “I can handle that,” Beverly said.

  “Oh, really, you don’t need to—” Cassie exclaimed, then stopped.

  Everyone turned to look at her. She burst into tears.

  Darla put an arm around her. “Hey, it’s okay,” she whispered. “Don’t let all the details upset you.”

  “It’s not that,” Cassie said, sniffling and dabbing her eyes with a napkin. “It’s just…they’re all doing this, and they think…”

  “Cassie, it’s okay,” Darla whispered. “You don’t owe anyone an explanation.”

  “Yes, I do,” she said, sitting up straighter. “I do.”

  “Okay,” Darla whispered, “but only if you want to tell them.”

  “I’m sorry.” Cassie looked around at the ladies, who were staring at her with concern. “You are all wonderful and I’m overwhelmed by everything you’re doing. This town is so generous.”

  “We enjoy it, and we care about you,” Bobbi Jean said.

  Cassie nodded, trying not to cry. “The truth is that we’re planning this wedding so quickly because of my aunt and uncle’s unexpected visit. When Darla told you that, it was the truth. But there’s something I haven’t told you that you should know, just in case…well, if it matters to you.”

  She took a deep breath. “I’m going to have Charlie’s baby.”

  There, she’d finally admitted it publicly. No one gasped, lightning didn’t strike, and the roof didn’t collapse on them. Maybe it wouldn’t be such a disaster after all.

  “Well, congratulations,” Ida said. “What wonderful news.”

  “Yes, congratulations,” Caroline said.

  “Do you want us to keep quiet about this?” Bobbi Jean asked. “Because it might ‘go viral,’ as those young folks say.”

  “I don’t suppose we can keep it quiet for long, but I need to tell my aunt and uncle after they come, after the ceremony and the reception. They’re very conservative and it would be best if they heard the news from me. Quite frankly, I’m not sure how they’re going to take it.”

  “Why, they’ll be thrilled, once they get used to the idea,” Beverly said.

  “I hope you’re right.” Cassie crossed her fingers.

  “Is Charlie excited?” Sandy asked.

  Cassie nodded. “It was a shock at first,” she admitted, “but he’s been great. He wanted to get married right away.”

  “That’s romantic,” Caroline said.

  “A baby can really rush things along,” Cassie replied, not willing to admit that Charlie’s initial reaction hadn’t been the stuff of fairy tales.

  “A baby is always a blessing,” Ida said.

  Cassie managed a weak smile. “So I’ve been told.”

  “THE FLOWERS ARE ORDERED, the dress is being altered, the cake is getting decorated and the rest of the decorations are taken care of,” Darla said as she visited Cassie at work the next day. She’d brought her two charges, Peter, age three and a half, and baby Callie to town so Peter could get a haircut before the wedding.

  She’d spread a blanket on the floor and got out a bunch of toys and books from her ever-present diaper bag. The kids were soon busy playing, and Cassie found it hard to believe that in another year or so, her little one would be doing the same thing.

  “I talked to the minister,” Cassie said. “I don’t feel as if I’ve done anything else for my own wedding except go with Charlie to get a marriage license.”

  “Don’t worry. Everything is under control,” Darla said.

  “How am I ever going to thank you and all the ladies?”

  “If it’s a girl, you could name her Bobbi Jean Sandra Caroline Clarissa Ida Yates.”

 
Cassie laughed. “That’s a bit much, even without you and Beverly. Maybe a party instead?”

  “Great idea.”

  “Except I don’t know where we’d have it. Charlie is being very mysterious about where we’re going to live. For all I know, we’ll be in a tent on the ranch.” Or maybe living in his truck’s camper, although they had agreed to share “one bed.” Not “one cot.”

  “Oh, I doubt that. I think it’s kind of romantic he’s planning a big surprise for you.”

  “I don’t like big surprises. I’d like to know if I’m going to have a place to live.”

  Darla laughed. “But you’re okay with us planning your wedding?”

  “Everyone has been very open about what’s happening, and besides, you’re doing a much better job than I ever could.”

  “Thanks for the vote of confidence. My advice is that since you know everything else that’s happening, let this one thing be a surprise. Have a little faith in your future husband. I know he’s planning something neat.”

  “You know it as in you know what’s going on, or you hope that he is?”

  Darla shrugged and smiled. “I’m not telling. Now, I’d better get the kids back home. Callie is already late for her nap and she can be a real grouch if she doesn’t get to sleep soon.”

  “Yep, she’s a grumpy bear,” Peter said, obviously listening in on the grown-ups’ conversation.

  As if on cue, Callie knocked down their latest tower of blocks and let out an outraged squeal.

  “That’s about to turn into an outright tantrum.”

  “See you tonight,” Cassie said, watching Darla pack up the diaper bag while balancing Callie on her hip. Peter tried to help, throwing a few things into the bag.

  Cassie sighed. She’d have to get used to a different way of life when the baby was born. No more neat and orderly. No more strict schedules and routines. She’d have to become more flexible or she’d go crazy. At least she’d have Darla to give her advice. Before she was a nanny, Darla had been a kindergarten teacher, so she knew a lot about children.