Cowboy Professor_A Western Romance Love Story

by Ivy Jordan

  My parents were next in line, and I wasn’t sure how they were going to take it. They would be shocked for sure, but I knew they loved the idea that Hailey and I would be together. They had been sad to see her go and worried I would just go back to my old ways. I pulled out my phone and made a call to my mother. She answered on the first ring. They were always up early, and I hoped that my father was home, as well.

  “Mom, I have some great news; are you with Dad?”

  “Yes, son, what is it? Are you okay?”

  “Yes, I’m better than okay. I’m with Hailey.”

  “Oh, sweetheart, that’s great. I’m glad you guys stayed together.”

  “She’s pregnant, Mom! I plan on proposing to her in a few weeks.”

  “Oh my God. Are you sure? This seems awfully sudden. My God, she’s pregnant?”

  “It’s okay, Mom. I love her, and it’s not going to affect either of our lives negatively.”

  “What will the world think? You guys are so young, and you haven’t been together long.”

  “I don’t give a shit what the world thinks. I’ve never been happier in my life, and I hope that you guys will support my decision.”

  “It’s just so shocking. But, of course, we are here for both of you for whatever you need. My goodness, I’m going to be a grandmother.”

  “What?!” I heard his father cry out, and I started laughing as she hung up the phone. I wished that I would have been there to see the look on his face. He was probably grilling my mother right now. He was a grandfather now, and he would have to get used to it.

  Hailey came out of the bedroom, looking shy around me. I wondered if she had heard any of the conversation. I didn’t want her to be freaked out. I was there to stay; I would never leave her again. She sat down at the kitchen table, and I poured her a cup of tea. I watched as she added milk and sugar to the cup, stirring it slowly. She hadn’t even sad good morning yet, and I was starting to worry about her.

  “How are you this morning?” I asked.

  “Fine,” she said as she looked into her tea cup. She was acting very timid around me. I went over to her and kissed her on top of the head. She smiled up at me, and I bent down and kissed her on the lips, as well. I lingered at that moment, loving the fact that I could kiss her anytime. That was the best part of being with Hailey – I could kiss those beautiful lips anytime that I wanted to.

  “Everything is going to be okay, beautiful. I don’t want you to worry about anything. You have a movie to make, and I know that, so in the meantime, we will travel back and forth between Miami and LA. I’ll come stay here with you while you work, and I’ll travel when I need to for tournaments.”

  “You want to live here?” she asked in surprise.

  “If that’s okay with you guys. I just want to be here to help you with the pregnancy. Plus, I don’t want to miss any of the appointments.” God, all those appointments. I would be able to see the baby at some point. It was all so unreal; it just blew my mind, but in a good way.

  She smiled and leaned in to kiss me again. “I can find a place to practice here; it will be perfect. I promise you. It will be easier than you think, and I promise I will never ask you to give up anything, especially your career. I know you have a dream of being an actress, and I support you 100% because you mean the world to me.”

  She nodded and smiled lovingly at me, “Okay, I trust you.”

  “When the baby comes, and the movie is over, then we’ll start to make some decisions on where we are going to live and how to juggle our careers with the baby. I have a lot of money, so getting help won’t be an issue if that’s what we want.”

  Her eyes welled up with tears, and they started to stream down her face, completely taking me off guard. I hoped that I hadn’t upset her.

  “What’s wrong, Hailey?”

  “Nothing, I’m just so happy,” she smiled through tears, “I’m so happy you’re here and that you want to have a life with me and our baby.”

  “Oh, sweetheart, of course I do. I love you.”

  “Do you?” she said, and now she was crying. I wiped at her tears.

  “Yes, of course I do. I love you, and I love our little baby. We are going to have a wonderful life together.”

  “Oh, Caleb, I love you, too. I’ve loved you for awhile.”

  “I want to marry you, Hailey. I will propose to you later when I have rings and it’s more appropriate, but I don’t want you to worry about a thing. You are everything to me, and I want a life with you. We are going to be married, and we’ll have this baby. I’ve already told my parents.”

  “Oh God, did they freak out?”

  “A little, but they said they were behind us 100%. And once my mother gets used to the idea of being a grandmother, she will be starting to plan wedding showers and baby showers in no time.”

  “I’m so happy.”

  “So am I. That is if you are willing to try a life with a bad boy.”

  She laughed, “Yes, of course I am. I would love to be your wife.” She grabbed my neck and pulled me in for a kiss. There was so much passion behind that kiss that I felt a little dizzy from it. Her mouth was warm and sensual, and I lingered in that kiss for as long as I could.

  Epilogue

  Hailey

  It was a beautiful day for a wedding in Miami, and having a beach wedding was expected when you were in such a beautiful location. I had dreamed of getting married on the beach my whole life and couldn’t believe that it was actually happening.

  Matt and Mandy, of course, were standing up for us and they were all that we needed by our side. We had talked a lot about the wedding and had decided together to take the plunge before we had the baby. I was four months along at that point, but due to my slim figure, I still wasn’t showing very much, so I was able to get the dress of my dreams and not cause the scandal that Caleb’s parents were worried about. People would eventually find out, of course, but by then we would be married for five months, and it wouldn’t matter so much.

  Caleb had been right about his mother: she was just over the moon about everything. She was thrilled that her son had a partner who could tame his wild ways, and the fact that she had a grandchild on the way just tickled her pink, mainly because she was sure that we were going to have a little girl.

  I was waiting in the beach house Caleb’s family owned, in a room set aside for me and Mandy. Our parents had flown in from Europe for the wedding and had been absolutely stunned to find out that I was getting married and having a baby with the Caleb Harris the famous pro-golfer. They were thrilled in the end after the shock wore off. I was doing well in my career, and well, who wouldn’t be happy to find out that their daughter was marrying a wealthy man?

  I stood in my gown looking in the mirror when Mandy came in the room. “I have your earrings,” she said as she came over to me.

  “Thanks,” I said, taking them from her.

  “You look so beautiful, Hailey, and no one would ever guess you were pregnant.”

  “Well, that’s a relief.” I was so happy, but I also felt jittery. I couldn’t believe that the day had finally come that I was about to marry Caleb. It was all just so hard to believe, but I was accepting my fate as a happy bride and soon-to-be mother.

  “How do you feel?” Mandy asked me.

  “I’m nervous.”

  “Really? Well, you wouldn’t be the first bride to say that. Everything really is going to be okay. Caleb is a great man, mainly because he loves you so much. He would do anything for you, Hailey. That man will spend his entire life doing whatever he can to make you happy.”

  I smiled as I glanced at myself in the mirror again. The dress was absolutely gorgeous. Vera Wang had done well for me, and she had been willing to do it during our massive time crunch. There were certainly benefits to marrying a celebrity. Or maybe I was a celebrity now, too. Just thinking about it made me smile.

  “I know. I’m not nervous because I have doubts. I guess I just can’t believe it’s all happening
so fast. It’s crazy you know?”

  “Oh, I know. The baby part was truly shocking for me. I can’t believe you kept it a secret from me for so long.”

  I laughed, “Well, I was pretty freaked out and didn’t know what to do.”

  “It’s okay; it all worked out and now look at where you are. You are in love and about to embark on a pretty incredible life.”

  “Yes, I am.”

  Mandy looked down at the designer watch that hung delicately from her wrist. I had given it to her as a maid of honor gift. She looked up at me and smiled. “It’s showtime.”

  Now, I was very excited. I was about to walk down the aisle and marry the man of my dreams and, oh, was he dreamy.

  “I’m ready,” I said.

  We left the room and made our way to the patio doors. I looked outside to all our guests seated in chairs facing the ocean. It just all looked so beautiful. The company that had decorated had done a magnificent job. I could see Caleb standing in the front with the pastor and Matt. He was just standing there, waiting patiently for me.

  Mandy opened the doors and the wedding music started to play. I watched as she made her way down the porch and then eventually down the aisle. Matt met her halfway and then brought her to the front. They looked good together, and I hoped that their friendship would one day blossom into something else.

  It was my turn now, and my heart was beating through my chest. I couldn’t believe this was happening to me. I was there at the beach house about to get married, and my little baby was right there with us. It was going to be the start of a whole new life, one that I had never even known of or dreamt of before. A few months ago, I would have laughed if someone told me that I would be married and have a baby that year. I had not even considered such things a few months ago – it hadn’t even been a thought in my head. But there I was; so much had changed in such a small amount of time that it was hard to keep up.

  I made my way outside, and everyone stood up from their seats. I delicately walked down the stairs, careful not to slip. I made my way towards the aisle and then walked slowly down it. I looked at my guests as I passed and enjoyed all the happy looks around me. I faced forward and met Caleb’s gaze, and his never wavered from mine for a minute. He looked so in love with me, and I felt exactly the same way.

  I walked to the front of the aisle and stood there before him, before the man I was going to call husband for the rest of my life. He came to my side and kissed me on the cheek. The pastor got into his speech, and all I could do was look into Caleb’s eyes and feel all the love that he had for me there. When it came time for us to kiss, he stepped before me and placed his lips gently against my own. But no, that would not be good enough for our first kiss as man and wife. I grasped his neck and pulled him in further, and our kiss grew more passionate. There were some hollers around us, and we laughed as we parted.

  “I will love you forever,” he said to me.

  “As will I,” I whispered.

  And just like that, we were man and wife. We held hands as we made our way back down the aisle towards our future.

  Click here to get my book Mr. Billionaire for FREE

  SEAL’D SHUT

  By Ivy Jordan

  This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places and incidents are products of the writer's imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental.

  Copyright © 2017 Ivy Jordan

  Chapter One

  SAWYER

  “You really need to bring all that shit back with you?” John leaned against my truck and peered inside. I hefted a suitcase over the bed of it and huffed from the effort, then took another bag and repeated the process.

  “Yeah,” I said. I didn’t have that much, really. A suitcase, a duffel bag, and one box with some personal memorabilia in it. Most men who came out of the Navy didn’t even have that much, though, and I knew it was strange to hold on to everything the way I did. I couldn’t decide what to part with. It was a decision better made in the comfort of my home, where I could decide what stuck out and what fit in.

  “Jesus, it’s gonna be a shitshow when you leave,” John said. “Who the hell is gonna keep the newbies in line?”

  “You,” I said, and raised an eyebrow. I pushed the sleeves up on my shirt and pulled the gate up on the bed of the pickup after yanking the bungee cord over the stuff to ensure it wouldn’t fly out. “That’s supposed to be your job, isn’t it?”

  “I guess.” John shook his head and backed up from the truck.

  I cast a final look at my stuff. A suitcase, a duffel bag, and one box. Six years in this shit, and I had less to show for it than when I’d gone to summer camp for a week in high school. Part of me was grateful that I got to leave most of what happened behind. The SEALs didn’t make for pleasant memories.

  “Where are you headed?” John asked.

  I thought about it for a minute. I had a few options, none of them guaranteed to pan out in my favor, but I knew the smartest decision would be to go where most of my old friends were. “Probably Austin.”

  “See if you can get any sympathy?” John snorted a laugh. That damn laugh had tormented me in all our time overseas, creeping up like some unexpected pest; it was just a snort, a harsh bark, something I couldn’t escape from but could always hear coming. “Stick around, tell them about the war. They’ll usually throw a meal and some money your way.”

  “You know I can’t stand that shit.” I sat up against the side of my truck and took my cap off, wiping the sweat from my brow. “It’s wrong, exploiting ourselves for that kind of bullshit.”

  “Ain’t wrong if they’re thankful, if they want to, you know?” John shrugged. “Maybe it’s you who feels awful. You don’t think you deserve a free meal, Sawyer? You did a tour with the SEALs. You’ve earned a fuckin’ cheeseburger.”

  I rolled my eyes. It wasn’t like that, and he knew it, and I knew it. I wouldn’t turn down free food, but I wouldn’t make a beggar of myself either. “Austin’s just the best bet for me. I don’t really have a plan. Might as well go there.”

  “No plan? Most guys are achin’ to get back to a family.”

  “You know I never married.” I shoved my cap back onto my head and pushed the bill forward. “Anyway, I should get going. It’s been good serving with you, John.” Even with his snorting laugh, I valued his company and his friendship.

  “Well, shit, you sure you don’t want to stick around?” John spat off to the side and sat up a little. “I mean, I know you don’t have any tours coming up, but you could still hang around the barracks.”

  I couldn’t be more determined to leave. I didn’t know what the future held, but I knew better than to stick around here much longer. The place ate at me. Knowing what I’d done in my time serving, knowing what I hadn’t but should have, it all came to the forefront of my mind here. Going to Austin would be a step in any other direction, and that felt right.

  “Nah,” was all I said. “I think I’d do best going back.”

  “Shit,” he said. I knew he’d miss having someone to clean up after his shit and take care of the recruits, but couldn’t bring myself to care too much about it. Caring was what got us all into these messes in our tours. “Well, good luck out there.”

  I had one more night to spend in these barracks. Technically I could have stayed in an apartment with some of the other SEALs, but I didn’t want to see my comrades when I went to take a shower. I preferred to keep them at a distance. Besides, I liked seeing new recruits come in and not know what the hell to do about a SEAL being in their bunker. They always acted a little scared of me.

  In the end, the other SEALs decided to sleep in the barracks, too, so there were a bunch of empty apartments and a bunch of SEALs taking up space where they didn’t belong.

  Before I could go back to the barracks, I had one more meeting with my commanding officer. He w
ent by ‘Chief,’ nothing else, and I’d long since forgotten his formal name. I stood outside his office toying with my lighter. I’d stopped smoking cigarettes a while back—the jitteriness that came with them was a luxury I couldn’t afford overseas. In the middle of a dangerous mission, that tiny amount of jitteriness could be the difference between life and death. Still, I liked to fiddle with lighters or shoestring or rubber bands. Busy hands, busy mind.

  I could hear Chief bitching at one of the newer guys. It went that way with them; the only way they could earn their keep was by listening to people yell at them nonstop. I remembered my first days of boot camp. I’d been screamed at and screamed at and screamed at until one day I finally screamed back and got hit so hard upside the head that I almost blacked out. Dissent wasn’t an option. We were soldiers, not visionaries. We put up with what they dished out, or we got sent home.

  A few people had gotten sent home that first week. Years later, others, in caskets.

  Finally, the man walked out of his office. His face looked white, teeth nearly chattering in his skull, and he gave me a nervous stare before sprinting down the hallway. I couldn’t imagine why he’d been yelled at, but it was always something stupid. Boots not shined enough, hair not to standard, a dirty room, even looking at a commanding officer funny, all were criteria for getting screamed at. Sometimes they’d get so close to you that you could feel their breath on your face.

  I walked into his office. It was strange that he even had an office, strange to see him sitting down, and stranger that instead of standing up, he remained seated. Usually he liked to look down at people. I snapped to attention, and he nodded at me. “At ease.”

  I stood for a second and then sat down. I would miss Chief more than most people here. He was an unassuming man, with mostly lanky limbs and a skinny face; it was easy to think little of him, or at least not think he’d be a force to be reckoned with. But Chief must have known that everyone thought he was a shrimp because he was the single most damning force in the entire Navy. I was more afraid of him than any of the jacked up SEAL captains that breathed down our necks during our beach training.