by Amelia Wilde
“Mom?” Asher says from next to me. “You came?”
A tiny woman with gorgeous silver hair and a black caftan shot through with silver thread sweeps through the courtyard and kisses Asher on both cheeks. “As if I would miss your wedding. The first wedding of all my sons.” She looks around the gathering. “But not the first grandbaby.”
“Eagle eyes,” says Driver. Then all of them are talking at once, folding her in their comparatively enormous arms and asking her where she’s been.
“Oh, everywhere. Nowhere.” She waves them off in a flutter of her hands. “Do you have an extra seat for me at the table? If not, I’m happy to book another cabin and be on my way.”
“No,” Asher says. “We haven’t seen you in months.”
“You’re two peas in a pod,” jokes Charlie.
“Stay,” says Roman, folding his mom into another hug.
“This is amazing.” Roman’s girlfriend Jenny has sidled up to me. “I’ve never seen her before, but she’s a living legend. Six boys. Can you imagine? And all of them are…” We both look at the brothers together. Jenny waggles her eyebrows. “You know what I mean.”
Asher takes his mother by the hand and leads her over to me, and for a moment, the rest of the gathering fades away. My heart pounds, aching with every jump. To have a mother at my wedding, even watching from a balcony—it’s a dream come true.
“Mom, I’d like you to meet Everly, my wife.”
She takes both of my hands in hers. “Everly. That’s a gorgeous name. These boys all call me mom, but you can call me Carolyn.”
“Carolyn,” I repeat. “It’s so wonderful to meet you.”
Asher waits as long as he can stand it. “Mom, there’s something I want you to know.” The words tumble out in a rush. “Dad had a brother. A secret brother that he never told anyone about. He sent me to Montana to check on his ranch, but I never—I haven’t finished the job yet.”
Carolyn reaches up and pats the side of Asher’s cheek. “I know, Ash.”
His mouth falls open. “You did? But he told me…he told me he never told you.”
“Your father was a man, honey. He didn’t need to tell me most things. But I know about his brother. They fought over me once.”
Asher is speechless.
“Why do you think he wanted to keep that ranch afloat all those years? It was an apology. For winning.” Her eyes light up. “But he shouldn’t have been sorry. Your father was the right brother all along.”
“I—have to know more.”
“Another time. Look. Dinner is arriving. Let’s all sit down and talk, shall we?”
I follow Carolyn to the table, Asher’s hand in mine, and sit down in my new, big family, all of them laughing and talking at once, tens of summers ahead of us.
It’s the real thing.
Epilogue
Austin
I’m too big for this place.
New York is one long series of buildings, and we’re nowhere near the Big Apple. It closes in on me anyway, pressing against my shoulders. The rental car is too small by half. If I could have, I’d have brought my horse.
I wish I’d brought my horse.
I wish none of this had ever been brought to my attention. I could have lived the rest of my life under the wide blue sky, letting that money collect into an account we can never touch. I’d have gone to my grave without another thought about it.
But what else was I supposed to do, once Luke came riding out onto the field so fast the horse almost threw him? “They exist,” he said, then spit onto the ground like his own saliva was making it hard to talk. “The Bliss brothers. The Bliss family. The other family.”
“What the hell are you talking about?” I shouted at him. I was in the middle of herding cattle, and Luke came out there like he’d lost his mind.
“All that money. That account—”
It came back to me like a bucket of ice over my head on a hot day. The money. The money I’d never asked for, coming from a man I’d never met. Made me think we owed somebody something. Either that or my dad did, and one day, someone would come for payment.
I’m not going to let that happen.
There’s a sign for parking, and I pull the car in. My heart is at steady as can be, but my mind races ahead. Who are these people? All I have is an address.
I don’t belong here.
That’s all I know, looking at this massive hotel. But I walk in anyway. The cool of the lobby slaps me in the face like a rain-soaked breeze.
I make my way through, my boots loud on the shining floors. A lady waits behind the counter in a blue polo shirt. “I’m looking for Roman Bliss,” I tell her. That’s the only name I have.
“He’ll be in his office.” She’s calm, but her eyes tell a different story. A cowboy doesn’t belong in a hotel lobby any more than he belongs on the floor of a ballroom, but here I am. “It’s that way.”
She points me to a sign that leads to a narrow hallway, and after that I find a big office. I go from person to person until the last person points wordlessly at an office in the back.
A man with my eyes sits behind the desk.
“Just a second, Beau, I’m in the middle of—”
He looks up. Does a double take. Meets my eyes.
He has my eyes.
I clear my throat. “I’m Austin Bliss,” I tell him. “I believe we have some financial matters to discuss.”
Thank you so much for falling in love with the Bliss Brothers!
A lone cowboy rides under the big Montana skies.
His last name is Bliss.
And like any man with those Bliss blue eyes and a ranch to his name, he’s in need of a wife.
The Bliss Brothers series is over…but the Bliss family name is just getting started.
Order THE COWBOY’S BRIDE: A BLISS RANCH NOVEL and be the first to read about Austin Bliss!
Dayton Nash was never allowed to love Summer Sullivan. He went to war to try and forget her.
But now he’s back in New York.
And his best friend’s little sister is all grown up…
➤ One-click BEFORE SHE WAS MINE today!
If you loved WISH ON YOU, please consider leaving a review on your favorite site to let other readers know! <3
Connect with Amelia
Amelia Wilde is a USA TODAY and Amazon Top 100 bestselling author of steamy contemporary romance and loves it a little too much. She lives in Michigan with her husband and daughters. She spends most of her time typing furiously on an iPad and appreciating the natural splendor of her home state from where she likes it best: inside.
Need more stories like this one in your life? Sign up for my newsletter here and receive access to subscriber-only previews, giveaways, and more!
Follow me on BookBub for new release alerts!
Still can’t get enough? Join my reader’s group on Facebook and enter the party today!
See you on the other side! <3
P.S. There’s more where that came from!
Are you in the mood for wounded warrior heroes with huge hearts? Read BEFORE SHE WAS MINE free in KU today!
Do New York billionaires strike your fancy? Read about the irresistibly intriguing men of the Purple Swan, starting with RICH BOSS, free for a limited time!
And don’t miss my favorite sweet, angsty, hilarious single dad hero in OVER EASY, first in my laugh-out-loud Main Street Single Dads series! Read FREE today!
Also by Amelia Wilde
Bliss Brothers
Crush on You: Roman Bliss never saw Jenny London coming. This ugly duckling turned brunette bombshell could either save his resort…or destroy his heart.
Stuck on You: Beau Bliss meets his worst enemy in this opposites-attract firecracker of a novel. Who’s going to win this battle?
Hooked on You: Driver Bliss needs his freedom, but he might be willing to give it up for a mysterious one-night stand…
Crazy on You: Charlie Bliss would be crazy to give Leta Quinn a second
chance…
Love on You: Huck Bliss should not fall for his best friend. Not now, not ever.
Wounded Hearts
Before She Was Mine: Dayton Nash survived the war, but he might not survive falling in love with his best friend’s little sister.
After I Was His: War has torn Wes Sullivan apart. Whitney Coalport could put him back together…if they don’t destroy each other first.
When He Saw Me: Bennett Powell never stops searching for the truth. So it makes sense when he falls for Eva…who is a liar through and through.
The New York Billionaires Series
Rich Boss: Kate already had a demanding boss. Then she meets Jax Hunter, the new owner of her company.
Rich Scandal: Graham Blackpool is never getting married. But when a sex scandal forces him into a fake engagement, he finds himself wanting to say I do…
Main Street Single Dads
Over Easy: Ryder isn’t looking for love, but he can’t help falling for the waitress serving him pancakes in his brand-new town.
Cold Brew: Dash isn’t in Lakewood to make friends. He’s here to crush the competition… until he meets his rival and things reach a boiling point.
Sugar Rush: Wilder is the world’s biggest rock star and a desolate widow. All of that changes when he meets the girl behind the counter at Lakewood’s best candy shop.
Copyright Information
Cover Design: Cover Me Timbers
Proofreading: Cassie Hess-Dean
© 2019 Amelia Wilde
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means whatsoever without express written permission from the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
For more books by Amelia Wilde, visit her online at www.awilderomance.com
