by Liz Isaacson
“I want…you know, I think I do want a sandwich for dinner tonight.” He smirked at her and flipped the truck back into drive.
“You think you’re so charming.” She nudged him with her shoulder and folded her arms.
“But that’s comin’, Belle.”
“What? A proposal?”
“Yeah, that’s happening.”
“When?”
“Wouldn’t you like to know?”
“She’s fantastic.” Jace’s mother almost deafened him with her version of hello.
“She’s right here, Mom. She probably heard that.” He glanced down to where Belle laid in his lap. She glanced up at him, a drowsy edge in her eyes. Maybe she hadn’t heard. She hadn’t stirred when he fished his phone from his pocket to answer his mother’s call.
“I can see why you love her,” his mom continued as if Jace hadn’t even spoken. Dinner had ended an hour ago, and Jace knew his mom would call before she went to bed.
“She’s pretty amazing,” Jace agreed, stroking his fingers up Belle’s arm and back to her wrist. “I’m glad you like her.”
That got her attention and she stiffened. He shook his head and smiled, which allowed Belle to relax back into his lap. They’d been cuddling on the couch, chatting until he felt chatted out. She’d turned on a movie and promptly fallen asleep, her usual behavior with movies. Just like he ordered a sandwich everywhere they went, she couldn’t make it through a movie without a nap.
He let his mom talk for a few minutes, then he said good-bye and hung up. “I should go, Belle.” He stroked her hair and jostled her shoulder. “It’s late.”
She pushed herself to a seated position beside him. “Okay. Sorry I fell asleep.” She shot him a sheepish look.
“No, you’re not.” He chuckled. “I don’t mind. I like it when you sleep next to me. It’s peaceful.”
She smiled drowsily and pressed a kiss to his lips. Hers felt full and soft, and he took his time enjoying them. “See you later.” He extracted himself from her arms and stood.
She watched him from the couch as he pulled on his cowboy boots and checked to make sure he had his wallet. “Church tomorrow? Come pick me up?”
“Sure thing, sunshine.”
Jace stewed over how he could propose to Belle during the thirty-minute drive back to the ranch, during the entire church service the next day, while they ate side-by-side at the waterfall. Now that he’d said he was going to propose, it seemed to be all he could focus on.
A twinge of fear crept into his head as he dropped her off at her house on Sunday afternoon. Are you ready to be engaged again?
As he backed out of her driveway and set his truck on the road, Jace wasn’t one-hundred percent sure. He knew he loved Belle. Dr. Fletcher said he’d made great progress. He’d booked several more weeks of equine therapy with Owen.
Jace rolled down his window and took a deep drag of Montana summer air. He felt better than he had in so long, he wasn’t sure if this was his new normal or not. Either way, he liked the way he admired the clear blue sky instead of being angry it hadn’t rained in a while.
Am I ready, Lord?
Jace rounded the bend in the road, and the waterfalls came into view. And he knew.
Yes, he was ready.
Weeks passed, and Jace didn’t ask Belle to marry him. He asked her to show him her wedding dress sketches, and he enjoyed the flush that rose to her cheeks and the furious fire that rode in her eyes. She called him a tease and impossible and once, downright mean, but he’d spoken true.
The proposal was coming.
Today, in fact.
Mari started school today, and Rose and Tom were both driving her into town. Jace had noticed a marked difference in both Tom and Rose since they’d been doing the equine therapy. He felt it in himself.
He finished loading the picnic basket, blankets, and the ring he’d chosen for Belle in the back of their SUV. He reached up and pushed the button to close the liftgate.
“Got it all?” Tom appeared at the back of the car.
“Yep.”
“We’ll get it all set out at the waterfalls.”
“We won’t be there until noon.” Jace swallowed down his rising panic. “That’s if Owen can get Belle to go with him.” He swiped his hat off his head and wiped a hand through his hair. “I have no idea how he’s going to do that.”
“Owen has a plan. He’ll get her there.”
Jace nodded, his mouth set with determination. “Okay, I have to go get some work done.” He strode back to the lodge, and he managed to lose himself in normal ranch chores until he needed to leave.
“You leavin’?” Landon pushed through the door right when Jace was going out.
He grinned. “I’m askin’ your sister to marry me today.”
Landon stared, reminding Jace that he’d never asked Landon about his sudden disinterest in women. Finally, Landon smiled. “I’ll hold everything down here.”
Jace clapped his friend on the shoulder and left. He didn’t drive too fast, or too slow. Timing was everything today, and he couldn’t communicate with Owen too much. He’d planned the proposal down to the minute. It was time to execute it.
Belle rode on the second bench of a Silver Creek van as a dark-skinned woman named Norah navigated it across town. Owen had told her about a possible remodel at the facility, and Belle had come to find out more about it. The director of Silver Creek, Dr. Richards, had shown her the girls’ dormitories and introduced her to Norah, his “best counselor.” Norah had worked at Silver Creek for years, and she knew exactly what the girls needed in their rooms.
She also knew how to get around Gold Valley’s narrow streets in a twelve-passenger van. Owen rode in the front, more than happy to have a reason to escape the stables for a few hours. She’d smiled at him when he’d suggested lunch—just the three of them—at the falls. Norah had run off to the kitchen for food, and Belle’s stomach grumbled for the want of it.
Norah pulled into the parking lot, and Belle noticed that the park and trails didn’t host as many people. “Looks pretty empty,” she said. “Seems odd. It’s a beautiful day.”
“First day of school,” Owen said. “Families are gettin’ back to their normal schedule.” He pulled the bag of food from the back and helped Belle down. She’d taken a few steps when his phone beeped. At the same time, the radio in the van squealed.
Belle waited while he read his phone, while Norah picked up the radio and began speaking into it. The falls called to her, and she took several steps away to enjoy their joyful noise and experience the playful breeze.
Behind her, the van started. She spun to find it backing out. Owen leaned out of the passenger window. “We have an emergency at the facility. We’ll be back in an hour.” Norah peeled off before Belle could comprehend his words.
She stared after the white van, her heart leaping and bounding against her throat. They’d left her. Just driven off and left her.
Pure panic paraded through her when she realized she’d left her purse in the van. Her purse, which also contained her phone.
The breeze tugged against her hair, and now it felt like a hurricane-strength gale. She shivered and glanced around the near-empty parking lot. Only a few cars loitered nearest to the trailhead. She took a breath and forced reason into her thoughts.
She was fine. It was a beautiful day without a cloud in sight. She could walk the trail, enjoy the ducks in the pond, maybe even see some wildlife near the higher, hidden pool she and Jace had hiked to several times.
He dominated her thoughts as she started down the boardwalk, which quickly turned into the trail that led around the pools on the other side of the falls. She walked quickly, enjoying the warm air and time to herself.
She turned up the path that led to the upper pools, suddenly quite content to spend some time here alone. Dismay shot through her when she found someone already in the small meadow preceding the pools.
As she neared, the shape of a cowboy hat form
ed. A cowboy hat she knew all too well….
“Jace?”
The man stood and came toward her. It was Jace. “What are you doing here?”
He swept her into his arms and off her feet. “Waitin’ for you.”
He set her on her feet and kissed her. “Come on. I have lunch.”
Confusion riddled her mind. “You have lunch?” Her feet grew roots as she realized she’d been set up. “You had them drive me here and drop me off, didn’t you?”
“I wanted it to be a surprise.” He tucked his arm around her waist. “And you, Belle Edmunds, are a very hard woman to surprise.”
She let him lead her to a denim blanket spread in a patch of sunlight. “What did you get for lunch?”
“Chicken Caesar salad for you.” He handed her a lidded bowl he produced from a picnic basket. A picnic basket she’d never seen before. It was almost too Martha Stewart to belong to Jace. “Sandwich and chips for me.”
“I like chips too, you know.”
He tossed the bag toward her and sat on the blanket across from her. She popped the lid on the salad. “You did not make this.”
“Gloria, my boss’s wife, did.” He pointed toward the basket. “I think there’s dressing in there.”
Belle stuck a piece of chicken in her mouth and turned her attention to the picnic basket. Instead of finding any dressing, an open jewelry box sat just under the lid. She gasped and choked on the food in her mouth. She managed to swallow as Jace swiped the glittering diamond before she could touch it.
“Belle, I’m in love with you.” His eyes twinkled like stars. “I’m ready to take the leap.” He looked at the ring and back to her. “Will you marry me?”
He gazed at her with such hope, such love, that both emotions flooded Belle, infused her, lifted her up and into his arms. She laughed with him and kissed him. “Yes,” she whispered into the side of his neck. “Yes, I’ll marry you.”
His fingers stayed steady as he slid the ring on her finger. “It’s a white sapphire,” he said. “Since your birthday is in September and all. The other piece is studded with diamonds and sort of wraps around like this.” He swept his hand toward her thumb, up, and around.
She admired the jewel and beamed at him. “I love it.”
“So when can I see that wedding dress?” He slid her a grin.
She gave him a playful shove against his solid shoulder. “About the same time I get to see those diamonds, cowboy.”
23
Belle entered her house and stamped the snow from her boots. “What were we thinking? Getting married in the winter? It’s a nightmare.” She shed her coat and used one foot to get the boot off the other. “Half the flights are now cancelled, and the weatherman just keeps saying more snow’s coming. ‘Don’t plan to go anywhere for the next two weeks.’” She flopped onto the couch next to Jace, who put his arm around her and drew her in for a kiss.
“It’s fine, sunshine. Everyone who needs to be at the wedding is right here.”
She looked at him with that blaze that suggested she didn’t want his solutions, just his sympathy.
“Your parents are back,” he forged on anyway. “Mine are here. Tom’s here. Landon too. So who, exactly, are you worried won’t make it to the wedding?” He held up his hand. “Don’t say you. You’re going to be there, right?”
That got her to smile, and she snuggled into his side. “I’m going to be there.”
Jace wasn’t really asking, though he had several times over the past five months. After a while, Belle just started telling him that yes, she’d be there.
“Hey, this means we’ll have a white Christmas.” He pressed a kiss to her forehead.
“We always have a white Christmas.” She heaved herself off the couch. “You got the invitations sent?”
“All of ‘em.”
She puttered around the kitchen, making a pot of coffee and then pre-heating the oven for a pan of frozen lasagna her mother had brought over several weeks ago. Jace watched her, recognizing the stress of her movement.
“Why don’t you go sew something?” he suggested. “I’ll head back out to the ranch, and we’ll see each other tomorrow to sample the caterer’s options. Okay?”
She didn’t turn toward him, but leaned into the counter and gazed through the window. Gazed through the window at all the snow. Montana seemed to exist under a perpetual storm cloud, and though Jace didn’t normally dislike winter, this year had tested his patience already.
“Belle?” He sidled up behind her and wrapped his arms around her. “You okay? You know everything is gonna be okay, right?”
“How?”
“’Cause honestly, sweetheart.” He touched his lips to her earlobe. “If it was just you and me and the preacher, I’d be just fine. That’s all we need, right? Each other and God’s blessing?”
She began to sway and he went with her, matching his breathing to hers.
“Belle?”
“I know.” She turned into his chest and buried herself in his arms. “I know I just need you and the preacher. But I want everyone to see my dress too.”
Jace chuckled and leaned back. “They will, sunshine. I promise you that.”
She looked up at him with teary eyes, her sob morphing into a laugh. “You can’t promise me that.” She touched her lips to his for half a heartbeat. “But thanks for saying it.” She molded her mouth to his this time, and Jace couldn’t wait for the next seven days to pass so he could become her husband.
Belle stepped into her wedding dress, which took both her mom and Ashley to hold for her. She shimmied into the bodice as Ashley kept a tight grip on all the layers and layers of the skirt. Her mom moved behind her to zip it up. “Belle, this is fabulous.”
“Thanks, Mom.” Her voice caught and she swallowed the emotion back into place. Her makeup had been professionally done, as had her hair. Parted down the middle, with two wispy braids holding the sides back, her auburn locks fell over her bare shoulders.
“You barely fit into it,” her mom said, eyeing Belle’s chest.
“I just need that tape.” She nodded to the skin adhesive she’d ordered online. “Ashley’ll do it.” Her friend handed the fistful of ivory fabric to Belle and retrieved the body adhesive that would keep all the proper parts covered during the ceremony.
Her mother tugged the dress over Belle’s hips and smoothed it down. The semi-mermaid look flared into ruffle upon ruffle as the skirt expanded to a five-foot circle around her feet. She wore a pair of cardinal red heels, and as her mom handed her a bouquet of poinsettias in shades of red, white, and everything in between, Belle felt complete.
Ashley stepped back and scanned Belle. She reached out and tucked a bit more hair behind the braid on the right side. “Perfect.”
“You’re ready,” her mom said.
“I’m ready,” Belle echoed. A grin burst through her body and manifested itself on her face. “Is it time?”
“A few more minutes,” Ashley said, moving to the door and poking her head out. She found who she was looking for and closed the door. “Two minutes, Belle.” She squealed and rushed toward Belle, careful not to tread on the fabric Belle had sewed for over a month.
“I’m so happy you’re getting your cowboy.” She leaned over the skirt and hugged Belle.
“Thanks, Ashley.” Belle sucked the emotion back again as she hugged her mother and the first inklings of the organ music met her ears.
Ashley opened the door, and Belle stepped to her father’s side. “Hey, Daddy.”
He gave her a quick kiss on the cheek and offered her his arm. They moved down the hall and took their position behind the closed doors of the chapel. She took a deep breath, her heart battering her ribcage and her nerves tap dancing against her bones.
“Ready, sweetheart?”
She nodded, ready to see Jace, inhale Jace, kiss Jace, become Jace’s wife forever. “Ready.”
Her father knocked once and the door swung in to reveal a crowd gathered in the
pews. The world narrowed to just the man standing at the end of the aisle. He wore a suit and vest the color of charcoal, with a delicate white poinsettia pinned to his lapel. His tie matched her heels and the deepest red poinsettias in her bouquet.
She couldn’t stop smiling. Jace watched her slow progress toward him with that dangerous, devilish glint in his eye, barely noticeable from beneath his brand new dark gray cowboy hat.
Her father passed her to Jace, who leaned in and whispered, “You take my breath away every time I see you.”
Her nerves wouldn’t allow her to respond vocally, but she lifted her arm and ran her fingers along the brim of his hat.
“Thank you for showin’ up.” He kicked a grin at her, and she returned it.
The pastor started speaking, and she faced him, the solid weight of Jace’s arm against her side grounding her and comforting her. She listened, but the words she’d written for her vows seemed to rush from the pastor’s mouth. Jace’s were read, and while Belle knew she wouldn’t be able to remember them, she clung to the feeling of peace, of safety, of love she felt from the man next to her.
He’d always adored her, and he’d shown her that he treasured her often over the past several months of their engagement.
“Do you, Belle Mae Edmunds, take Jace Leland Lovell to be your lawfully wedded husband, in sickness and in health, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, to love and to cherish until death parts you?”
She couldn’t look away from Jace, whose jaw worked against his emotions. “Yes.”
The pastor started the question for Jace, who lost the battle against his tears. He swiped quickly at his face and smiled.
“Yes.” With his spoken vow, she leaned over and kissed him, taking her time to enjoy and commit to memory her first kiss with her husband.
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