His Montana Bride

by Brenda Minton

  “That’s what I said. I thought I was going to have to hurt Jimmy Hayworth.”

  “Don’t hurt anyone.”

  She shrugged. “I’m hungry.”

  She was the quick-change conversationalist. “We can stop at the store and see if Rosemary has any chicken strips under the warmer.”

  The preteen in her came out and she rolled her eyes. “Because I love things under warming lights. Do you realize that warm light is just helping salmonella to grow? It’s like a petri dish.”

  Katie laughed, covering the sound with her hand. She glanced out the window and he couldn’t make eye contact with her. Man, she was beautiful, though. He wondered if she had any clue how her eyes lit up with humor, how her mouth was perfect and kissable.

  Marci elbowed him. He glanced down and her eyes had narrowed and she was giving him a look. If he had to guess, that was a “don’t be obvious” look.

  Eyes back on the road. He drove down Massey, stopped at the stop sign and turned on Shaw Boulevard and headed for the store and the salmonella strips that would take the edge off Marci’s hunger until dinner.

  The Massey sign reminded him that he still had one or two Masseys, maybe a dozen, to try to contact for the festival. It would sure help the town if he could get at least one of them to show up. Or at least, that was his dad’s opinion. Maybe the Masseys thought that after all of this time it didn’t really matter if they came back?

  He parked in front of the store and next to him, Marci let out a squeal. It didn’t take him long to see the reason. Joe Banks was sitting on the bench out front and he had a box of kittens. Great.

  He could already see the need and want in Marci’s eyes as she hurried out the passenger side. He thought Katie looked almost as done in by the sight of that box of kittens. Furry bits of fluff and trouble. That’s what he saw in that box. He saw messes. He saw ripped curtains, clawed furniture and a tormented dog.

  Marci had a long-haired gray kitten in her arms. He walked up, scratching his head and wondering how in the world he’d get out of this one. Especially when Marci passed that kitten to Katie and grabbed one that had long hair but looked more Siamese.

  “Joe,” he greeted the old farmer who had recently retired and bought a house in town.

  “Cord.” Joe grinned a knowing grin. Gotcha, that grin said.

  “Marci, you know—”

  She turned sad brown eyes on him. “We could keep it in the barn at your place.”

  Right, he knew how that would work out. “You know you’re not going to leave that kitten in the barn.”

  Her eyes lit up. “You mean I can keep it in the house?”

  His house. It hit him that very soon she would be residing in his home. And she knew it. They both knew the change was coming. He wasn’t a swearing man, but if he had been, there would have been words to say at that moment. Not about a kitten but about the unfairness of life.

  He’d been wrestling God for eleven years about that very thing. He’d missed more church than he’d attended. He’d been angry. He’d wanted a different outcome.

  This time he was a little older. A lot older. He sighed and nodded. “You can have a kitten. The litter box and feeding it are your job.”

  She looked between the two kittens. He could see that she’d thought about pushing it and asking for two. In the end, she picked the gray, snuggled it close and told him she wasn’t really hungry. They did have to run inside and get kitty litter and food.

  As they got back in the truck, his phone rang. The way things were going, he knew it couldn’t be good. He glanced at the caller ID and saw his dad’s name.

  “Dad.”

  “Cord.”

  Okay, they were already at a standoff.

  “Can I help you?”

  His dad sighed long and low, a sure sign. “Why do you have the Time Capsule Committee searching for something that doesn’t exist?”

  “What, do you mean the time capsule that is missing? As far as I knew, it existed.”

  “I mean, why do you have them searching for something that might have been in there, like it’s a big scavenger hunt? Livvie gave you a list of what was in there. Old newspapers and the like.”

  “Dad, this is just a thought, but it could be there was something in there that someone wanted to hide. Maybe the Masseys beat us to it. Did you ever think of that? Maybe an article in one of those newspapers?”

  “Hogwash,” his dad mumbled. “You’re just stirring up talk. You know that the people on that committee aren’t going to keep quiet. I was in the feed store ordering grain and they were discussing it in there. Who had something to hide? What could embarrass a family? Of course, they looked at me because I’m a Shaw.”

  “Dad, that wasn’t my intention and I think you know that. You’ve been a bear with a thorn in his paw for months. I’m not sure what’s up with you, but what I’ve done isn’t a problem.” He paused for moment to think. “Unless the Shaws have something to hide.”

  “No!” his dad snarled. “No, we don’t have anything to hide.”

  The phone went dead. Cord shook his head and tossed the thing on the dash. “Well, that went well.”

  “Maybe I should have stayed out of this?” Katie suggested.

  “No. I think this has more to do with him and my mother than anything we’ve suggested about the time capsule. I can’t remember them ever having a difference of opinion that lasted more than a day. I’m not even sure they’re having one now. I think they’re just not communicating and he’s a little off because of it.”

  They pulled into the driveway of Lulu’s house. Marci looked at the house and then at him. Her kitten was held to her cheek.

  “It’s going to be okay,” Cord offered. He hugged her and she hugged the cat. “I’m always going to be here.”

  “I know. I just don’t want Grammy to go away.” Marci leaned toward Katie. “I’ve been singing the song with her. She even plays it on the piano.”

  “That’s good, Marci. I know she loves making that memory with you.”

  Marci nodded, and as Cord got out, she followed. Katie shook her head. “I’ll wait here. There shouldn’t always be a stranger in the middle of everything.”

  He walked Marci to the door. Lulu was waiting. She smiled when she saw the kitten. Cord’s attention shifted to the truck and to a woman who should never be compared to anyone else.

  He was glad she’d stayed in Jasper Gulch, glad she had found her way into his life. For Marci’s sake, he was glad she was there.

  Yes, it was a lot easier to accept her for the sake of a child than to admit to himself that he liked Katie Archer for more reasons than just the simple fact that she’d made things easier for Marci.

  Chapter Nine

  The festival hall of the fairgrounds was crowded with women. The men were meeting in town at city hall with a company that would supply reproduction suits from the same era as the dresses. Katie stood in the sea of lace, silk, satin and tulle. Someone had shoved a bridesmaid’s dress into her hands to try on. She didn’t have time. Not yet. Nor did she have the inclination.

  The dresses were beautiful. She walked among the women in creations of silk, satin, velvet and lace. The dresses came in all shades of white. Many were the layered-lace creations from the early 1900s. A few were empire-waisted with long flowing skirts. And a couple of ladies had picked gowns from the Roaring Twenties.

  Gwen stood on a makeshift pedestal, their great-grandmother’s dress hanging loosely from her petite frame. The dress was softest silk in warm white. The sleeves hugged the arms, rather than the puffy sleeves of some styles. The skirt fell to the ground with casual grace. Katie wanted to cry as the seamstress discussed the alterations to make the dress fit.

  She walked away, nearly bumping into Julie Shaw, who was wearing Elaine Shaw’s gown o
f soft, draping lace. The antiqued color fit Julie’s auburn hair and autumn coloring.

  “What do you think? Veil or no veil?” Julie asked as she turned in the dress that barely fell to her ankles.

  “No veil. I think some of the women are doing decorated headbands. You could even attach some lace to the headband to let it hang down in the back.”

  Julie clapped her hands together and smiled. “Perfect. And did you see the flower girls Hannah rounded up from church? They look like little cherubs in their pretty dresses.”

  “I did see them.” Katie looked at the group of girls in their white lace gowns. “They look like trouble in waiting.”

  “Yes, they do.” Julie got the words out and then she was pulled away by Nadine, who was enjoying marrying off her first daughter. She was talking about hair and something borrowed being Julie’s grandmother’s pearls.

  Katie moved on because it hurt to watch that mother-daughter moment. Olivia Franklin, the other local bride, was trying on a borrowed dress. Tiny, with blond hair, she looked gorgeous in the lace dress that came just above her ankles. Olivia had the look of a woman in love. And who could blame her? Jack McGuire, her soon-to-be husband, was as kind as he was gorgeous. The onetime high school sweethearts had been reunited after years apart. Being around all these happy couples, even Katie was starting to believe in real love.

  The photographer had Olivia against the backdrop they were using for photos. He handed her an enlarged picture and had her hold it in front of her as he snapped pictures. Katie hoped the idea was as cute in reality as it had been in her mind.

  The next bride up was Hannah Douglas, today free from her twins. She held a picture of a serene young woman in the same dress she was wearing. The velvet dress draped her in winter white and she looked absolutely stunning.

  All around her, brides wore shining smiles and hopeful expressions. Of course they did. They were all planning new lives with the men they loved. And Katie was still carrying the autumn-brown gown that her sister had picked for her. It was a silky affair that hung to midcalf. It was beautiful, really.

  As she circled the crowd, watching to make sure everything was going as planned, Lilibeth approached her, all smiles because she’d been able to help pick dresses for some of the women.

  “This is amazing. I wish I had someone to marry so I could take part.” Lilibeth said it with that certain romantic smile of a young woman who knew someday her fairy tale would happen.

  “It is going to be quite an event.” But Katie almost agreed with the beautician, Annette, who wanted her own ceremony in the quaint Mountainview Church.

  “Robin is trying to match pictures with women. I think since she only has thirty she’s going to recycle so some women will hold the same picture,” Lilibeth offered.

  “That will work. It isn’t so much about who is in the vintage portrait, more that we’re tying the two generations together. After all, shouldn’t marriage today mean the same as it did one hundred years ago?”

  “What a nice thought.” Lilibeth sighed as she agreed.

  Katie smiled at the younger woman. She genuinely liked Lilibeth. “I’m going to see if I can help Robin.”

  She headed toward the photographer. Robin was pushing through the photographs she’d found for them to use in their wedding photos, and to hang in the reception hall during the wedding reception. Julie was up for her picture. As she moved to the spot the photographer indicated, Robin pulled out a candid photo of a young woman in front of a new automobile. New for that time period. Katie knew it was a photo of Elaine Shaw, great-great-grandmother of Julie, Cord, Adam, Austin and Faith. She’d been a beautiful woman.

  Robin handed the photo over, her heart in her eyes. Katie wondered if perhaps Robin wished she, too, was getting married in this ceremony. But like Katie, Robin was a temporary resident in Jasper Gulch.

  After Julie’s picture was taken, Gwen stepped up. She had a photograph of their great-grandmother in the same dress. Katie managed a bright smile for her sister because Gwen deserved this moment of happiness. She deserved this wedding and a beautiful marriage to the man she loved. And Katie knew how to cover her emotions. It’s what she did. She wouldn’t let Gwen see her cry, or see even a hint of her sadness.

  She wanted her sister to be happy.

  Katie walked outside, needing fresh air. As she walked to the corner of the building, footsteps crunched in the gravel behind her. She started to turn, but a voice spoke close to her ear.

  “You are amazing.”

  She smiled at that gruff voice and the scent of mountains, pine and fresh air that seemed a part of the man. “I’m not amazing. I’m out here because I’m jealous of my sister.”

  She turned to face Cord. “She’s wearing the dress I’ve wanted to wear since I was a little girl. I used to sneak into my mom’s closet just to look at that dress.”

  There, she’d actually said it. She’d admitted it to this man. A stranger, really. But maybe that’s what made it okay to tell her secret. In a matter of weeks she’d be gone and this would all be a part of the past.

  Cord leaned close, his forehead against hers. “I repeat, you’re amazing. Gwen has to know how blessed she is to have you. I know that I’m glad that God put you here in Jasper Gulch.”

  “Because what would you have done without me?” She smiled as she said it, but smiling was the last thing she wanted to do. Cord was glad she’d dropped into his life when he needed her to help him through a difficult time. She wanted more.

  She hadn’t realized until that moment just how much more she wanted.

  * * *

  Cord felt a flash of some emotion as he looked at the woman standing in front of him trying to smile, trying to make everything okay.

  “You’re right. I couldn’t have done it without you. But I’m glad you’re here because I would have missed not knowing you.”

  She groaned and closed her eyes, leaning to rest her head against his shoulder. “Could you stop saying the right thing? Just once say something ridiculous and insensitive?”

  He found his arms going around her. “I think I’ve done that more than once. I’m trying to be your hero, so maybe you could give me a break.”

  She stood on tiptoe and kissed him. He didn’t move when their lips first touched. And then he pulled her close and welcomed her lips against his. Everything within him told him to be careful. With her heart and his.

  A month ago he never would have expected this moment or the way he felt with her in his arms. Hopeful? As if he might want to take another chance? As if God had known he would need this woman in his life. For a season? For this short time?

  He kissed her lightly one last time and pulled back. He didn’t say anything. If he did, it would be wrong.

  Screams from inside the hall pulled him back to the present and into the real world. Someone shouted, “Come back!”

  Another person shouted, “Stop! Just talk about it.”

  Cord turned as the door of the festival hall flew open, banging against the outside wall. The bridezilla’s groom rushed from the building. What in the world was a man doing in there? The men were at city hall trying on suits. Ace, the groom, was wearing jeans and a flannel shirt. He shook his head as he turned to face Andrea.

  Andrea in her lace wedding dress chased after him. “You are not going to do this to me. You come back here now! I’m warning you.”

  The groom stopped and Cord wondered if he was going to give in to her demands. Instead, he shook his head and held up a hand to stop her pursuit. “I’m not marrying you, Andrea.”

  “What does that mean? Of course we’re getting married. We sent out invitations. We’re having a reception when we get home. We’ve already received gifts.”

  “I’m not marrying you until you realize we’re a couple. You have to learn to share your life with s
omeone. I’m not going to marry you and be your puppet. I’m not your servant. I’m the man who wants to marry you. I’ve been over there trying on suits for our wedding and you’ve been sending me texts telling me I’d better do this the way you want.”

  “It’s my wedding!”

  “It’s our wedding.” The unhappy groom shook his head and took a step, a promising step toward Andrea.

  Cord wondered if he should try to help. Somehow he thought Ace had this handled. He hoped, pretty selfishly, that the other guy had it handled.

  Ace had given up moving forward and was stepping away from his bride. “It should be our wedding, Andrea. I’m leaving. If you decide to make me a part of our life, then you let me know.”

  “I will,” she pleaded. “I’ll do whatever you want, but you can’t embarrass me this way.”

  “Once again, it’s about you. I will not get married at this ceremony.”

  He turned and walked away. Andrea screamed a feral scream and ran back into the festival hall, leaving the door wide open. Cord looked at Ace getting in the smart car and then back at the building where there was no sight of Andrea. Next to him he heard Katie gasp and then laugh a nervous little laugh.

  “Marriage is a beautiful thing,” Cord said as things seemed to calm down. “And now we’re down to forty-nine couples.”

  “What will you do?”

  He shrugged, taking off his hat to brush a hand through his hair. “I don’t have a clue. We’ve marketed this to the media as a centennial celebration, a wedding with one hundred people.”

  “So you find another couple. Surely you can find someone in the area who would like to get married?”

  “Yes, that should be easy to do in two weeks.”

  “Annette and Dr. Tony?”

  “I can try again. Maybe if I make it about saving the community?”

  “I think that won’t work. She is pretty set on what she wants.” Katie peeked into the building where Andrea was ripping off her veil and rushing through the room. “Maybe a couple wanting to get married who hasn’t considered this ceremony?”