by Vella, Wendy
“You bet on me!” Ted roared; beside him, Mandy giggled again. “And you’re paying him now? After what just went down?”
“I always pay my bets,” Joe drawled, making Mandy giggle again.
They listened as Luke talked to the Robbins sisters before handing the phone to Mandy, who instantly started crying again and couldn’t pronounce a word. Ted took the phone.
“She’s okay, just shaken. I’ll bring her back to you as soon as I can.” He listened to what Miss Marla said.
“Yes, I do,” he added before handing the phone back to Luke.
“Yes, you do what?” Joe said.
“Nothing.”
“It’s the shock,” Luke said in a dry voice as Mandy continued to cry.
When they reached the car, Ted opened the passenger door, picked her up, and sat her on the seat. He then got a blanket out of the trunk.
He covered Mandy up to the chin and tucked it around behind her back. He then pushed the hair out of her face and just looked at her.
She was dirty, her hair a mess, and so beautiful she made him ache to his toes. Forcing her hand out from under the blanket, she touched his cheek.
“Thinking of you kept me strong, Ted.”
“No, you’re strong without me, Mandy. In here.” He touched her forehead.
“You told me that night when you found me in the herb garden at the lodge that I was strong in here.” She touched the side of her head. “I kept saying it to myself.”
He leaned in and kissed her softly just as Jack opened the rear door.
“Yuck,” he said with a smile. “Let’s go. We need to get her back, and people will be worried.”
“And I’m driving you?”
“Your car is more comfortable.”
Dylan joined them, and Ted jumped into the driver seat. They drove back in silence, and Mandy stayed huddled shivering under the blanket until they reached Ryker, even though the weather was warm. By the time they arrived back in Ryker Falls, she was asleep.
Things moved pretty quickly after their return. She was hugged by her aunts and Rory, who were waiting for them at the station.
They gave her tea and cleaned her up, bathing her hands.
Chief Blake questioned her, and Mandy withstood it all, but Ted could see the cracks were starting to show. She was pale and tired and by his reckoning hadn’t eaten even though he’d tried to force her to.
“I’m taking her home. She wants to wash and change,” he said after the doctor had checked her out. “To her apartment,” he added.
Her aunts looked at him, and he thought he was in for a fight, but they simply smiled. No one else put up a protest either.
They drove in silence, then he followed her up the stairs.
“Are you coming in?” she said at the door.
“You think I’d leave you here alone after what you’ve been through?” He touched her cheek. “In you go.”
She turned on lights, then just stood there looking out the window into the darkness.
“I was so scared that I wouldn’t see any of this again.”
He moved around her so they faced each other.
“But you….” She closed her eyes. “Not seeing you again hurt me more, Ted. When I heard your voice, I thought it would be for the last time.”
“Mandy—” He tried to hold her, but she backed away.
“I need to say this before I lose the courage.”
“You won’t, you’re strong.”
“Because of you,” she whispered. “At first the panic robbed me of everything. I had no courage, I was just scared, and then I felt it. This wonderful strength, and it was from anger. Anger that this, my life here, and you would be taken from me, and I couldn’t allow that to happen.”
“My brave girl.” He closed the distance between them and took her hands in his.
“I love you, Ted. I need you to know that, because I don’t want another day to pass without you knowing it.”
“I love you too, baby.”
“Do you really?” She gave him a searching look. “I mean, I don’t want you to say that because—”
“I said it in front of that piece of shit who kidnapped you, and at the time I had your aunts, the Trainers, Fin, and Chief Blake in the room. If I didn’t mean it, that wouldn’t have been the time to say it.”
“I need to tell you some things about me, you may not—”
“Why are you trying to persuade me I don’t love you, Amanda Carter?”
“You know about me?”
“Your aunts told us everything. I’m sorry for what you went through, sweetheart, and what you saw, but that doesn’t stop me from loving you. Nothing could.”
“Oh dear, I’m going to cry again.”
“It’s the shock,” he said in a voice that he thought mimicked Luke quite well.
They washed, and then Ted made her some toast, which he insisted she eat every bite of.
“Do you want to go to bed now, Mandy?”
“Yes.”
He climbed in beside her and pulled her into his arms. Holding her close, he stroked her hair until she relaxed against him.
“When I realized it was due to me you’d been kidnapped—”
“No, Ted, it’s not your fault.” She moved, bracing a hand on his chest to look down at him.
“It is, Mandy. That photo of us, he found you through that.”
“He saw my aunts first on TV and remembered my father talking about them. Then he saw the photo and put things together.”
“I’m sorry, Mandy.” He pushed her hair behind her shoulders, studying every inch of her face.
“No.” She pressed a finger to his lips. “I don’t want to hear you blame yourself. It could have happened anytime. We move forward now and put that in the past.”
“I couldn’t lose someone else I loved.”
“I’m sorry you went through that again. Sorry you were reminded about Emily.”
“It nearly destroyed me losing her, but you…. I don’t think I would have recovered.”
“I love you, my Teddy Bear.”
No more words were needed as he held her close, and Mandy thought that this was happiness. To be loved, and love. To live in the light instead of the shadows.
She held it now with both hands, and she was never letting go.
Chapter 39
Outside weddings were popular at Falls Lodge, and today Ryker had turned on the weather for just such an occasion. The sky was blue, the air warm and sultry, so still he could hear the roar of the waterfall. The guests seated on either side of the aisle were buzzing with excitement.
Ted held Mandy’s hand, as he had often since the kidnapping over a month ago. Being with her had changed him. He wasn’t exactly softening—okay, maybe he was—but his fear that being in a relationship would alter his life was unfounded. Sure, there was give and take, but she was now so much a part of him, he couldn’t imagine his life without her in it any longer.
“Mr. Goldhirsh looks happy,” Mandy said, looking up at him with that special smile Ted thought was just for him.
“He does, and I know how he feels.”
“Me too.” She leaned into him as they walked between the seats to take theirs.
“Oh, Mandy,” Miss Marla said when they joined them in their row, “you look stunning, dear. You too, Ted.”
“Thank you, you look pretty hot yourself, and you, Miss Sarah,” Ted said.
They preened.
“I wonder who will marry next?” Miss Marla added in a not-too-subtle hint.
“Stop that,” he heard Mandy hiss.
He rested her hand on his thigh like he’d seen so many couples do. He was part of that now. The little things that a man and woman in love shared. He wanted more of it. A lifetime, he’d come to realize.
“We’ll get to it, don’t you worry,” Ted said calmly.
Mandy’s head spun from her aunts to look at him.
“They’re just being nosey, don’t mind them.”
She looked flustered, her cheeks pink.
She’d changed so much, but his sweet Mandy Robbins was still very much in there. He did things that shocked her all the time, especially when they were alone. But he knew she’d always keep her innocence; it was the part of her he loved most.
“I love you, sweetheart. We will marry, I just don’t want to rush you.”
“Oh… I, well yes.” He watched her haul in a breath. “I mean, I love you too, of course, but I won’t have you pressured into something.”
“Good to know you have my back.” He tugged her closer and placed a soft kiss on her lips.
“Aww, will you two get a room? That shit is getting old.”
They turned to find Luke and Fin behind them.
“Jealousy is ugly in middle-aged men,” Ted drawled. He then kissed Mandy again.
“Middle-aged!”
“Did I hear you swearing, Fin Hudson?”
“No, Miss Sarah, it was Luke.”
“I doubt that. He’s as sweet as my Mandy.”
“I’m sweet. You told me so on Tuesday when I came in for my scone.” Fin put on a hurt boy look.
“Ssssh, the music is starting,” Miss Marla said.
The wedding of Aunt Jess to Mr. Goldhirsh went off without a hitch. The groom read his bride a poem, and she, all the women, and a few men cried. She wore a simple pale blue dress with her long hair sprinkled with flowers, and he wore a silver suit. The cheer when they turned to face the guests was deafening.
“I think we should do it like this. Just friends and family, nice and small so my family can’t make an event out of it.”
“I don’t want to rush you, Ted. There’s plenty of time; we haven’t known each other that long.” The words tumbled out one on top of the other. Mandy talked like that when she was nervous.
While around them the guests went to congratulate the newlyweds, Ted looked down at the woman he loved.
“I’ve known you for years, Mandy. I may not have loved you for that long but there was always something there. And you can’t rush me into doing anything I don’t want to. Surely you’ve realized that by now?”
“That’s true.”
“I don’t want to spend nights going between our beds. I want to wake up with you in our bed. I want to start a future together.”
“Me too.”
“Marry me, Mandy Robbins.”
“Oh.” She pressed a hand to her mouth to stop the tears. “Yes!”
“She said yes!”
Easing Mandy out of his arms, he turned to find Mrs. L behind him, beaming.
“No going back now,” Mandy said with tears in her eyes.
“Never.” He kissed her again, right there in front of everyone, and Ted had never been
happier.
* * *
Thank you for reading ONLY JUST BEGUN! I hope you enjoyed Ted and Mandy’s story. Book #5 in the Ryker Falls series HOLD ME CLOSE Fin and Maggie’s story is available for preorder now!
The life he has always known is about to change
Findlay Hudson, landed in Ryker Falls, Colorado, leaving a dysfunctional family and his bad attitude behind. He has friends he now thinks of as family, and considers himself happy. All that changes when Maggie Winter, a sexy, alluring red-head, returns to Ryker Falls. She’s had her big London adventure, but Maggie’s clearly hurting and vulnerable now.
They’d always struck sparks off each other, but never moved on them. Second time around though, Fin doesn’t seem able to keep his distance, and suddenly the comfortable life he’d always thought he wanted is turned on its head. Maggie’s arrival brings overwhelming desire and hidden threats. Now Fin’s embroiled in a potential homicide, his estranged father arrives in town, and Maggie… well, Maggie, slides into his heart and this time he can’t shake her.
Coming home was meant to heal her
Maggie Winters left home excited for her big adventure, then everything changed one chilling day when she faced an horrific attack. Determined to put the trauma behind her, she arrives in Ryker Falls, ready for the best acting job of her life. Of course, she’d counted on Fin Hudson, a long tall drink of handsomeness who had always made her feel a little off balance, still keeping his distance. Turns out she was wrong. Way wrong.
Maggie’s defences are weakened and now Fin wants to know what she’s hiding and he’ll do whatever it takes to find out. Fin Hudson could seduce secrets from a stone, but Maggie is no pushover.
With a murder to solve, scars to hide and a business to run, she doesn’t have time for love.
But kisses that touch her soul, a confession and the cheering squad of a close-knit community give her the strength to accept that she and Fin deserve a chance.
Preorder HOLD ME CLOSE now!
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Have you read the first book in my Lake Howling series, A PROMISE OF HOME?
“I absolutely loved the romance, the raw emotional moments, and mystery and suspense in this book!!!”
-Amazon revewier
Reclusive. Grumpy. Irresistible.
Dr Jake McBride loves two things in life. His people, and chicken cheesy-crust pies. Returning from Iraq, he’s done with medicine and strangers… in fact life. He knows all about trauma, and plans on dealing with his, his own way. His needs are simple, solitude and working on his new career as the town recluse. The only problem with that… well two actually, are the interfering towns folk of Lake Howling, and Branna O’Donnell. He’s damn sure that her return means nothing to him… until it does!
His first mistake was kissing her. His second was doing it again.
Branna O’Donnell is burnt out and needs a place to stop running. Strange how that place is back where she’d once been happy. Settling in to small town life again comes with complications and the biggest has a serious attitude. Once the town golden boy, Jake McBride now wears a permanent snarl, not that anyone but her seems to notice the sexy doctor has changed.
Sharing a bed complicates things but no way is Jake leaving Branna alone until they find who is threatening her, and even then he’s not sure he’ll be able to walk away. He can feel himself changing, and it’s all on her, but when her past comes calling with it comes the realization that more than lust is involved. He’s not sure he can be her hero but he knows he wants to try.
If you enjoy your small town romance sizzling with a side of crazy, then Lake Howling is for you. Meet the real authority in town - the local book club - and Jake’s interfering hot friends. Swim (or skinny dip!) in the ice cold lake, then warm up with coffee and a mystery muffin at The Hoot Café. Plenty of feels and LOLS, all wrapped up in a town that will have you packing your bags to head there, from the very first page.
ONE CLICK FOR A PROMISE OF HOME!
“This story is very sweet and tugs at all your heart strings. Not just for Jake and Rosebud, but for everyone in the town. The people are amazing with both strength, protectiveness and their own weaknesses. A Promise of Home sets us up for what could be an amazing small town series.”
-Goodreads reviewer
Turn the page for an excerpt of Promise Of Home!
A Promise Of Home
“Why are you pounding on my door?”
He’d always liked the gruff little burr of her voice. Maybe it was because he’d not had much contact with anyone else from Ireland. Whatever the reason, her accent had always made him smile.
“Hey, Branna, remember me?”
Her focus wasn’t great, but the green eyes eventually settled on him. “Jacob McBride.”
“Penny told me you hit your head, and she thought you may need to visit the doctor?”
“No… thanks.” It sounded as if she tacked on the last word reluctantly, and then she started to close the door.
Bracing a hand on the wood, he leaned in a little. “Your head looks like it’s hurting you, R
osebud.”
“It’s fine, now go away.” Her words didn’t pack too much of a punch because she was whispering; obviously, the effort of speaking was not helping her condition.
“You still got that attitude working for you, O’Donnell.” Jamming a foot in the door to stop her shutting it further, he gently pushed it open, sending her back a step.
“Please, leave my house.” This time, her words had a bit more force, even though they were said through her teeth.
“Yeah, give me a minute and I’ll do just that, Rosebud.” He watched as she staggered backward and then lowered herself into a chair, the effort making her wince.
“Branna or Miss O’Donnell, my name is not Rosebud.”
“Your fault. You introduced yourself that first day in class as Branna Rose, and it stuck.”
“We’re not in school anymore, McBride.”
“Tell me about the pain in your head, Branna,” Jake said, ignoring her words as he pulled out his cellphone and switched on the flashlight app before moving to squat before her. Once there, he pried open the eyelids she’d recently closed and shined the light into them. Her pupils didn’t react as they should as he flashed the light across them. In fact, the pupils weren’t constricting at all. “Vision blurred?”
“What are you doing?” She tried to bat his hands away, but he didn’t move. Instead, he eased her forward to inspect the cut on the back of her head. “Take your hands off me.”
“I don’t go for skinny, belligerent women,” Jake lied, regaining his feet to walk around the back of the chair to get a closer look. Penny had said her legs were fine, and he couldn’t disagree; they were long and shapely coming out of those ragged cutoffs, and she filled that shirt out nicely too. “You have way too much hair,” he muttered, parting the thick mass of black curls until he saw it. Not huge, maybe an inch, but it was matted with blood and may need a stitch.
