A Proposal at the Wedding

by Gina Wilkins

  “I’d appreciate that. Call if you—”

  “Yes, I know. Go.”

  Leaving Kinley with her computer work and phone calls in the small, tidy office, Bonnie headed down to her apartment to prepare for Paul’s arrival. She changed into a pair of jeans and a cap-sleeved yellow eyelet blouse over a matching lace-trimmed tank top, then eyed her reflection critically. She had aimed for cute and casual, and she decided she’d hit the mark closely enough. She stashed a ponytail band in her pocket in case she needed her hair out of the way later.

  She had to climb on a stool to reach the box on a top shelf in her walk-in closet that held the boots she’d worn for horseback riding in the past. It had been so long since she’d worn them that she had to wipe off the dust before she put them on. They weren’t Western-style boots, but rather a low-heeled brown leather ankle boot with a slender toe box that made them work well enough in stirrups. Stuffing her phone and a few other necessities into a small, cross-body bag that would leave her hands free, she pronounced herself as prepared as possible.

  She checked the time. Great. She was ready twenty minutes early, which gave her time to get nervous about the outing for no good reason. To distract herself, she headed back out of her apartment. She would wait for Paul outside.

  She was sitting on the front porch in a rocking chair, chatting with a couple of their guests, when she spotted Paul’s car coming up the road. In deference to the nice weather thus far that day, he’d left the top down on his yellow Mustang, making her glad she’d thought to bring the hair band.

  “Wowza. Hottie in a convertible alert,” one of the guests, Linda Dougherty, commented from the chair closest to Bonnie’s.

  Her husband, Andy, grumbled from her other side, “I am still here, you know.”

  “Why, yes, you are,” Linda shot back at him with a bright smile. “And weren’t you the one who mentioned just yesterday that you think the owner of Bride Mountain Café is a knockout?”

  He chuckled, sounding unabashed. “I might have noticed in passing.”

  “I thought so.”

  Smiling at their byplay, Bonnie stood. “If you’ll excuse me, that’s my ride.”

  “Lucky you,” Linda said.

  Andy made a show of looking at his watch. “Maybe we should head down to the café. I’m in the mood for a big slice of pie.”

  He grunted when his wife punched him on the arm.

  Paul tugged off his sunglasses to greet Bonnie with a big smile. His short-sleeve knit shirt and nicely fitted jeans highlighted his excellent physical condition. He, too, wore boots, though she noted at once that his were traditionally Western-styled, and looked well used. They suited him, but then she hadn’t seen him in anything yet that didn’t look good on him.

  He leaned down to brush a light kiss against her cheek as he reached to open the passenger side door. “You look very nice.”

  “Thank you.”

  He waited until she was seated, then closed her door. “I can put the top up, if you prefer.”

  “Oh, no, leave it down. It’s been years since I rode in a convertible.”

  He seemed pleased by her choice. As he climbed behind the wheel and slid his sunglasses back onto his nose, she pulled back her hair, securing it in a high ponytail. She put on her sunglasses and fastened her seat belt.

  Paul shot a smile her way. “Ready?”

  Lifting her chin, she replied boldly, “Ready.”

  Grinning, he started the engine. Bonnie waved to her watching guests as they drove away from the inn, her ponytail swinging in the warm breeze.

  She enjoyed feeling the wind against her cheeks as Paul drove into the mountains on winding, rising roads that offered spectacular views around each turn. She would have been content just to savor the ride, but she suspected Paul looked forward to their other plans. As if in confirmation, he spoke over the noise of the road, wind and engine. “So, you like horses?”

  “I love them,” she answered candidly. “I never had one of my own, but my high school boyfriend lived on a ranch where they raised Tennessee Walkers. We rode almost every weekend until he dumped me for the local rodeo queen.”

  Though she’d hoped to elicit a chuckle from him with her ironic comment, he frowned for a moment. “Sounds like a jerk.”

  She laughed. “He was. To be honest, I liked his horses better than I liked him. I’m really looking forward to this ride.”

  His smile had returned when he looked away from the road just long enough to slant a quick glance at her. “Great. Think of your trail rides with your sister when we mount up, not your old boyfriend, will you? Or better yet, just focus on me.”

  Even though she knew he was teasing, she nodded with mock gravity. “I think I can do that.”

  As if she had any choice.

  Chapter Five

  It really was a wonder, Paul thought a couple of hours later, that he hadn’t crashed his car right off a cliff. Okay, so maybe that was an exaggeration, since he’d been fully in control of the vehicle, but he couldn’t deny that too much of his attention had been zeroed in on Bonnie.

  She always looked pretty but today, in her curve-hugging jeans and lace blouse over a low-scooped, lace-trimmed tank, with little curls escaping her loose ponytail and her face flushed by wind and sun, she was utterly irresistible.

  Tim Snow, Paul’s friend who co-owned the business alliteratively named Blue Ridge Backtrails, raised both eyebrows when he watched Bonnie bonding sweetly with a saddled bay Tennessee Walker gelding. Bonnie was nose to nose with the horse, who looked as charmed by her as Paul felt. She seemed oblivious to the fact that the horse towered over her, and showed no fear when it blew a breath out its nostrils, then nuzzled her hard enough to make her wobble a bit on her feet. Bonnie merely laughed and reached up to rub the horse’s eagerly cocked ears. The sun washed over them both, bringing out the red in the Walker’s coat and the gold in Bonnie’s blond hair.

  “Whoa,” Tim, who was two or three years younger than Paul, said beneath his breath. “Now that is a pretty sight.”

  Hands in the pockets of his jeans, Paul kept his gaze on Bonnie and her new pal. “Agreed.”

  “Friend of your daughter’s?”

  Paul’s smile faded into a scowl. “Friend of mine.”

  “Dude. Seriously? I mean, sorry about the question, but, uh…”

  Reminding himself that Bonnie looked deceptively younger with her hair in the ponytail and her lace top and jeans, Paul changed the subject abruptly. “So, are you riding with us?”

  “Well, I can if you want me to, since I don’t have any other rides booked until later today, but you know the trail well enough to take her out yourself, if you prefer.” Tim wiggled his eyebrows just enough to make it clear what he would do in Paul’s boots.

  Tim was a natural entertainer as a trail ride guide, with an endless supply of jokes and quips and stories. Yet as much as Paul enjoyed those rides with his friend, he liked the idea of leaving him behind today. “I’ll take her, then. I’m sure you have things to do here.”

  His brown eyes glinting with humor, Tim nodded. “I do have some calls to make.”

  Paul turned toward Bonnie. “So, is that the mount you like?”

  Planting a noisy kiss just above the bay’s nose, Bonnie then turned a beaming smile toward Paul. His gut tightened in response.

  “If he follows me home, can I keep him?” she asked with a laugh.

  He cleared his throat and spoke as lightly as she had. “Well, if your brother can keep a big dog, you should be able to have a pet horse.”

  “That’s Stewie, ma’am, and he’s a marshmallow when it comes to pretty ladies who fawn over him,” Tim informed her in a drawl, sauntering over in her direction. “Paul, are you riding Ace?”

  “Of course.” Paul had already moved
toward the black Walker who stood quietly near the water trough in the spacious corral among a group of saddled horses who watched Paul approach with idle curiosity.

  “Hey, Ace, how’s it going?”

  He wasn’t sure if his favorite mount remembered him specifically, but Ace responded to his voice with a friendly nicker and head nod. After greeting the horse with pats, he mounted, sliding his left boot into the left stirrup and swinging his right leg over easily. He saw that Tim had Bonnie settled comfortably in Stewie’s saddle, the stirrups adjusted for her shorter legs.

  Holding Ace’s reins loosely in his right hand, he nudged the horse forward toward Bonnie and Stewie. “Ready?”

  She was beaming so brightly that he couldn’t help mentally patting himself on the back for coming up with this idea, even if belatedly. “Absolutely,” she assured him.

  “You kids have fun,” Tim said with a grin, stepping back out of the way. “You’ve got my number if you get into trouble, Paul.”

  Looking at Bonnie sitting so happily on the eager bay, her bright eyes glittering like blue diamonds before she hid them behind her sunglasses again, Paul figured he was already in trouble. But there was nothing Tim could do to help him.

  They couldn’t have asked for a nicer day for the ride. It was warm, but not uncomfortably so, with a nice breeze to ruffle their hair and cool their skin. A few clouds dotted the sky, diffusing the sunlight when they weren’t beneath the shade of the lush trees lining the trail. Off in the distance beyond the mountain peaks they could see a heavier bank of clouds gathering for the rain predicted that evening, but Bonnie figured they had several hours yet to enjoy being outdoors.

  Because he knew the way, Paul rode lead with Bonnie following on Stewie. Paul kept the pace slow, and the horses plodded easily over the very familiar trail. The only sounds other than the steady clops of hooves were the birds singing overhead and the breeze rustling leaves, underscored occasionally by running water sounds from the shallow streams that crisscrossed the woods. She and Paul were able to chat easily enough without raising their voices to disturb the peace of their surroundings.

  “It was nice of your friend to let us take the horses by ourselves,” she commented. “The trail ride operation Kinley and I used back in Tennessee never let anyone go out without a guide, even experienced horsemen. It was against their policy.”

  “I’ve ridden this trail with Cassie and/or the twins and their friends almost too many times to count,” Paul explained. “I’ve been friends with Tim for years, so he knows he can trust me to take care of the horses—and you. Cassie and I went along on his first guided ride when he and his partner, Jase, opened their business a few years back. Now they’re a big success. In addition to the trail and buggy rides, they provide hunting and fishing guides in seasons. A general-purpose outfitting operation, you could say.”

  She admired the sight of Paul sitting so comfortably astride the black horse. She didn’t mind at all following him on the trail, as it allowed her to appreciate him without being overly obvious about it. “Did you grow up around horses?”

  He shook his head, looking over his shoulder to answer. “I grew up in Raleigh, North Carolina. My parents were both in their early forties when I came along to surprise them, and I was only a toddler when my dad was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. He wasn’t able to get out and do much, and Mom spent most of her time either working or taking care of Dad. I think she pretty much wore herself out before we lost him, which was why she wasn’t able to fight off the infection that killed her only a few years later. I did all I could to help her, but she insisted on doing most of it herself. I mean, I got plenty of attention from them, don’t get me wrong. We were all close, and I miss them both, but we didn’t do a lot of outdoor stuff like horseback riding.”

  She suspected from his tone that he didn’t want an expression of sympathy just then. The day was too nice to be spoiled by sadness. Instead she asked, “How did you end up being such a jock and a horseman?”

  He chuckled, and he seemed pleased that she’d lightened the conversation. “My mom’s younger brother, my uncle Brian, made a point to take me out and do ‘manly stuff’ like hunting and fishing and sports at least once a month. Great guy. We’re still close, though we don’t get to see each other as often as we’d like. I like sports and kayaking and other outdoor pursuits, but I’d hardly call myself a jock. I have a master’s degree in mathematics, which some people consider pretty much the opposite of jock-hood.”

  Bonnie laughed, conceding his point.

  “As for horses, Cassie developed a love of horses when she was a kid and she begged me to take her riding. I pretty much learned with her. Needless to say, Larry’s not much of a rider and Holly is afraid of horses, so riding outings fell to me.”

  Stewie lowered his head to investigate a clump of grass, but cooperated when she tightened the reins enough to keep him on the trail. She reached down to pat him absently on the neck, thinking about the things Paul had said. Hearing about his childhood explained a few things—like why he was so generous with his time, so unselfish in helping Holly and Larry not only with his own daughter but with their twins, as his uncle had done for him. He’d grown up helping out at home, which had made him self-sufficient, handy around the house and accustomed to taking care of others. But maybe this explained, as well, why he rather looked forward to his “empty nest”?

  “You said you’re from North Carolina? Holly, too, I suppose, since you dated in high school?”

  He waited until Ace negotiated a sharp rise in the rocky trail and Bonnie had safely followed before answering. “Yeah, we both grew up in Raleigh. Holly and Larry came to Virginia when he accepted an engineering position with Tech. After visiting them here and liking the area, I decided to settle here, myself, to be closer to Cassie. She was nine then.”

  Another narrow creek crossed the path, and Ace lowered his head to the water. Paul didn’t urge the horse on, grinning around at Bonnie instead. “Before you ask, I have no plans to move to London. Or to Dallas.”

  Holding Stewie’s reins loosely while he shifted his weight, but remained quietly in place, Bonnie lifted an eyebrow in question. “Dallas?”

  “Oh, I guess you haven’t heard. Holly and Larry and the twins are moving to Texas after the wedding. Holly’s taking a position in a law firm there, and Larry’s already found another faculty job. They’ll be back and forth to Dallas between now and then making arrangements, though of course they’ll be here for all the wedding festivities.”

  “No, I didn’t know. Wow. How do you feel about that?” Was it a relief to know he wouldn’t be called on frequently to chauffeur or chaperone after that move? She couldn’t say she would blame him for looking forward to not being always on standby, to having no one to look out for but himself for the first time since he was just a boy. Or would he miss them as much as she knew he’d miss Cassie? Would he miss Holly?

  Rather than answering, he raised himself in the stirrups and swung his right leg backward, dismounting in one fluid movement. It was a pretty spot for a break, shaded by tall trees between which she could see a spreading vista of hills and valleys and the ridge of blue-tinted mountains against the clouded horizon. Something splashed in the rippling creek—fish? turtle?—and a cardinal flashed red as it darted from one tree to another. She’d grown up in the foothills of the Tennessee Smoky Mountains and had spent a significant part of her youth here in the Blue Ridge Highlands. She couldn’t imagine living anywhere that didn’t have a view like this within an hour’s drive. Not to mention the view from the back porch of Bride Mountain Inn.

  Dropping Ace’s reins straight down to the ground and saying, “Stand,” Paul then walked over to reach up to Bonnie. “Want to walk around a bit?”

  Though she could have dismounted easily enough, she allowed him to assist her down, just for the chance to feel his hands on her again. He didn
’t immediately release her when her feet were on the ground, leaving his hands loosely at her waist. He spoke to Stewie as he let the reins drop. “Stand.”

  “We don’t need to tie them?”

  Smiling down at her, he shook his head. “These are Tim’s two best-trained trail horses. They’ll stay ground tied for a short break.”

  “They’re both beautiful horses. It’s easy to tell they’re well cared for.”

  “They’re treated like royalty,” he agreed with a chuckle. “Tim and Jase are pretty strict with their trail riders. They make sure the horses are treated right.”

  Which was only further testament to how much Tim trusted Paul, she thought. “How long have you known them?”

  “I met Tim a few months after I moved to Virginia a dozen years ago. Actually, I dated his sister for a short time,” he confessed. “Laura and I drifted apart, but I stayed friends with her brother—and with her, for that matter. She ended up marrying Tim’s partner, Jase. Funny story, she always said she couldn’t stand the guy, but after Jase got badly hurt in a rodeo accident, she realized she’d been mistaken. She spent time with him while he recuperated, and a few months later they were engaged.”

  The genuine amusement in Paul’s voice let her know he had no lingering feelings for Laura, but she noted he’d still not answered her question about Holly moving away. She stepped away from him, casually dislodging his hands, and moved to the water’s edge, smiling when she saw two turtles sunning themselves on a big rock. Neither showed any reciprocal interest in her as they soaked in the warmth.

  “I’m still processing the way I feel about it,” Paul said quietly from behind her.

  She looked over her shoulder in question. “What?”

  His fingertips in his pockets, he met her gaze with a funny little smile she couldn’t quite interpret. “You asked how I felt about the Bauer family moving away. I’m still getting used to the idea. I’m happy for Holly, of course. She’s worked hard for a career opportunity like this. But it’s going to seem strange being here with everyone else spread so far apart.”