He rested his forehead against hers and stared into her eyes. “Not possible.”
She blinked up at him and trailed her fingers over his stubble. “I’m kinda falling for you, Colton Jepson.”
“Good, because I’m way past falling. I’m lying on the ground, begging you to have mercy on my heart.”
Brikelle wanted to remember those words forever. She stilled in his arms and really focused on him. He was a passionate, caring guy, and someone else hadn’t had mercy on his heart. She wondered sometimes if he still struggled from the aftereffects of that Cally person. “You’re more than good enough, Colt. You’re successful, smart, fun, kind—you’re everything any woman in the world would want and more. Cally, or whatever her name was, is an idiot.”
Colt licked his lips. “I don’t care if every woman in the world wants me. I care if you want me.”
“I do, Colt, even if you do have a beastly dog.”
Colt grinned at that, but sobered quickly. “Thank you, Bri.”
She kissed him then, because she couldn’t handle the seriousness of the moment much longer.
The door pounded behind them. Colt released her from the kiss and opened it up.
“Hello, my sweethearts,” Emma said. “Are you two taking a nap, or going to the beach or the pool?”
“Beach and pool,” Colt said, his voice breathless, husky, and perfect.
“Oh, good. Ezra can’t figure out how to run that wave runner thing, and I told him you were so smart and handy that you could get it running.”
“Sure. We’ll change and be right there.”
Emma’s eyes twinkled as she waved and sauntered away.
“If I didn’t know better, I’d think Emma was matchmaking me with my wife.”
Brikelle grinned. “I’ll always love her for getting us together.”
“Me too.” Colt drew her close again.
Brikelle held up her hands. “You’re supposed to go help Ezra.”
“Ezra can wait. I’m going to kiss my wife.”
She laughed, but it was smothered by his lips lighting up her world.
Chapter Nine
Friday turned out to be a long, but fun day. Colt still thought this party was kind of weird, but maybe when he and Bri were old they’d want to host a bunch of friends for a weekend and play old people games, eat way too much, and be surrounded by those they were most comfortable with.
He was pretty impressed with the group as a whole. He’d worried too much about them being uppity. Sure, some of the women cast jealous glances at Bri, but that was to be expected. He glanced over at her as she slipped a lifejacket around her back. She probably thought he was teasing with her earlier in the room, but the way she looked in her swimming suit right now had his blood pumping and he knew his earlier naïve plans of cuddling through the night were not going to happen. He’d sleep on the floor or in the recliner and hope he could make it through this weekend with his willpower intact.
He took her hand and they waded through the water to the waiting wave runner. One of the boys who’d been a bellhop was holding it. Colt had easily fixed Ezra’s problem earlier today by simply placing the button in the kill switch. The motor wouldn’t start without it. That was a standard safety feature, so when someone was thrown from the wave runner, the button that should be attached to their wrist would pull free and the wave runner would stop and circle back to them.
“You want to drive first?” he asked Bri.
She turned to him with sparkling brown eyes. “Can I?”
“Sure.” He helped her onto the front and then climbed up behind her. It was a three-person, so they could fit comfortably, but he held on to her waist.
She wrapped the kill button cord around her wrist, pushed the button to start the engine, and then gunned it.
“Whoa!” Colt clung to her and about unseated them both.
Bri giggled as they roared off into the lake and she turned one way, then another. Colt gripped the seat with his thighs like a bull rider, as holding on to her was proving to be squirrelly, but he didn’t want to let go. She pulled the handle hard to the left, giving it full throttle. The engine was a 1050, so there was plenty of power.
They spun in a circle, and the velocity was suddenly too much. Colt held on to her as they both flew off the machine. Colt plunged into the water, while Bri went a different direction. The cool water embraced them and they popped up quickly with their life jackets’ help. Colt ran a hand over his face and eyes to clear the lake water. Bri was a few feet away.
“You’re crazy,” he said to her. “Were you trying to throw us off?”
“Yep!” She splashed some water in his face. “Big boater and skier, I figured you could handle a little swim in the lake.”
“I’m driving from now on.”
The wave runner had circled back to them, which automatically happened when the pull cord was ripped away. “Not if I get on first.” Bri scrambled onto it.
Colt grabbed her around the waist and pulled her back into the water. They both went under again. The playfulness of the moment made him grin.
He pushed her away from the machine, held on to it, and launched himself up. Bri grabbed on to his arm and yanked, throwing him back into the water. She triumphantly held up her arm with the kill button key on it. “You can’t go anywhere without this, buddy.”
Colt leaned back his head and laughed. “I didn’t figure you to be quite this feisty.”
“Really? Even after I called your dog a beast and yelled at you the first time we met?”
He helped her onto the machine first and climbed up behind her. “That’s a good point. I should’ve been more careful how I chose my wife.”
She whirled around in the seat and pinned him with a teasing look. “Sorry you didn’t marry well.”
Colt squeezed her around the waist and laughed. “Oh, I did. I definitely married up. Just try not to kill us on this thing.”
Bri just laughed and pushed her thumb all the way forward. The machine shot off, and Colt couldn’t do much more than hang on.
Bri dressed for dinner in the spacious bathroom, thinking back over the fun, carefree day. She couldn’t remember ever just letting loose like this and playing an entire day, but being with Colt was what made it really fun. Her family was great, but out of necessity they worked a lot. They had five hundred cows to milk twice a day, cows and calves to feed, fields to plant and harvest, and a small fortune in equipment that was always breaking. She’d worked every morning and every evening during school and all day long in the summers. Most people claimed college was hard, but even though she woke at four a.m. to work as a janitor and took a full class load every semester, she thought college was a lot of fun. She was able to joins some clubs, go on dates, and have a little bit of free time.
To simply play all day today was foreign, but she loved it.
She eyed herself critically in the mirror. The flowered dress was strapless and came a few inches above her knee. She felt a little too daring in it, but she wasn’t showing cleavage like most of the women at the party seemed pretty expert at doing, and the length of the skirt was long enough she’d be comfortable. Her hair was in soft curls down her back. She felt pretty, and it gave her a little thrill to think how Colt would react. He’d expressed quite a few times how attracted he was to her. She hoped what they had was deeper than attraction, but it was fun to see him be so interested in her.
She exited the bathroom to see Colt waiting in the bedroom, wearing a button-down shirt and navy-blue slacks. She was glad he hadn’t shaved his beard; it looked good on him. He had his phone in his hand, but glanced up, blinked, and then his eyes swept over her a couple of times before coming to rest on her face. “Bri, wow.” He set his phone on the nightstand and gestured with his hand. “Look at you. Wow.”
Brikelle smiled and walked slowly to him. “You look really hot,” she said.
“Thanks, but it’s nothing compared to you.”
“Thank you. Shall we go
to dinner?”
He shook his head. “You expect me to go down and socialize with people I don’t know when all I want to do is look at you?” His voice lowered. “And, if you’ll let me, hold you and kiss you.”
Brikelle’s eyes widened. “Why, Mr. Jepson. You are quite the charmer.”
“Mrs. Jepson. You’re far too appealing to me.”
Him calling her missus broke the spell of enchantment he had over her, and she backed away. She wasn’t a missus, not even close, and they were playing with fire being alone in this room. How in the world were they going to get through the night with all the emotions that kept swirling around them every time they simply saw each other? She said a quick prayer, and memories of all the great things he did trickled through her mind—making her laugh, treating her like a lady, spoiling her and buying her all these clothes, doing this sham of a marriage so she and his crew could be assured work …
“You’re appealing to me too,” she said. “But it’s not all about how you look.”
He cocked his head to the side and studied her.
“You’re a gentleman, a hard worker, you’re fun to be with, and I love teasing you. Those things are more important to me than how handsome you are.”
He nodded. “Thank you. You’re more than physical to me too.”
“Well, that’s a relief.”
He laughed. “Let’s go to dinner.” He offered his arm. She took it and released a pent-up breath. Maybe they could get through this weekend without jeopardizing their future.
Everyone was seated at the long, rectangular table when they arrived. There were thirteen in all: six couples and Emma. The women were dressed impeccably and Brikelle felt another surge of gratitude for Colt and their shopping trip.
Dinner went well, and Brikelle made some great contacts and enjoyed herself. It was kind of strange for her to be served like they were in some English manor instead of a mansion in Eden, Utah, but Emma seemed to be in her element and was all smiles.
After dinner some of the couples decided to play card games, but there was a James Bond movie playing in the theater downstairs as well.
“What would you like to do?” Colt asked as he took her hand and stood.
“Could we go on a walk around the property?” she asked.
“I’d love go with you,” Emma said.
Brikelle whirled. She hadn’t realized their host was standing there. “Yes, please do,” Brikelle said.
Colt offered his elbow to Emma and kept a hold of Brikelle’s hand. They walked out onto the back patio and around the pool area and gardens, then down to the beach.
“I just wanted to thank you both for coming,” Emma said. “I know this party isn’t something that’s done often, but it means the world to me.” She sniffed. “It’s miserable being alone, but having friends like the two of you takes away so much of the loneliness.”
Brikelle’s heart went out to the elderly lady. She’d also enjoyed being around her the past week and a half. “I’m so sorry.”
“It’s okay, dear. Listen to this old woman whine.”
They made it to the beach and walked in the firm sand toward the east.
“You just make sure to enjoy each other,” Emma said. “You never know how much time you’ll have together.”
Brikelle’s heart plunged, and sorrow for Emma and fear of having something happen to Colt overwhelmed her. She was just getting to know Colt and she hoped they had much longer together than anyone could predict.
“Joshua told me that you’re an Idaho girl like me.” Emma changed the subject.
“I am. Farm girl straight from Burley town.”
Emma laughed. “I know all about being a farm girl. I grew up in Sugar City.”
“Really? Sugar beets?”
“Oh yeah, worked until my fingers bled as a little girl.”
“And look at you now.”
Emma nodded. “Most of my life has been lots of hard work, but I enjoyed it because Scott was with me. We worked together and relied on each other, and even though sometimes I wanted to beat him with a stick, I always loved him.”
They all laughed and turned back toward the house. The sun was dipping toward the western mountains, and the lake glittered in the embrace of the green valley.
“I see great things for you two,” Emma said.
“Thanks,” Colt murmured, squeezing Brikelle’s hand. Brikelle got a rush of nerves. His voice had been uncertain and that hand squeeze seemed to indicate he might be ready to tell Emma the truth. How would she react? Brikelle didn’t want him to say the words, and not just because they could hurt Emma or lose her business. She wanted her and Colt to be real, to be true. She glanced at her ring finger. Did she have the right to this gorgeous diamond?
They made their way slowly back to the house, and Brikelle held her breath as she waited for Colt to bring up that they weren’t actually married. He opened his mouth and she tensed, clinging tighter to his hand. “So how did you and Scott meet?”
Emma giggled. “We both went to Utah State University and I got to know some of his close friends through my business classes. They all thought it was odd that a woman was in business. Even though it was the seventies and supposedly forward thinking and all of that, most women still graduated in home economics or maybe nursing. Business was still for the men. But Scott’s friends grew to like and respect me. He was in the master’s program, so I’d never met him.”
Brikelle relaxed as Emma told her story. Maybe she and Colt would have another lovely day here tomorrow before they had to admit the truth to this kind lady.
“I went to a dance with my roommates and saw his friend, Lewis, and the two of us got to talking. Well, Scott came prancing over to us like he owned the world. I thought he was so handsome, and he just had this confident air about him that really appealed to me. I was eyeing him up and down and he grinned and said, ‘Hey, Lewis, who is this?’ Lewis said, ‘This is Emmaline Naylor.’ That grin grew on Scott’s face and all I wanted to do was have him smile at me like that forever. He said …” She paused and laughed. “He said, ‘Well then, introduce me to my wife.’”
Brikelle and Colt joined in the laughter. “I can’t believe he really said that,” Colt said.
“I know. I guess it’d become a joke with his friends that I was the right woman for Scott and they started calling me his ‘future wife.’ Too funny. That man made me laugh the rest of the night, and I knew that he was the one for me.”
“That’s so sweet,” Brikelle said.
“I’m sure you fell head over heels for this hunk the first time you met him, too.” She gestured to Colt.
He laughed. “No, she thought I was a jerk with a scary dog, remember?”
“Oh, yes.” They arrived back at the patio. “But you’re gone for him now?” Emma released Colt’s elbow and came around to face Brikelle.
Brikelle looked at Colt. “More than gone.”
Colt winked, and she flushed.
“I’m glad to hear it.” Emma patted her hand. “Well, my dears, I’m going to go watch a little James Bond. That British accent and blue eyes really do it for me.” She winked.
Colt held the door open and she slipped inside with a little wave.
“What would you like to do now?” Colt asked Brikelle.
“Well, I got my walk in. I’m kind of waterlogged from all the times you dumped me off the wave runner.” He smirked at that. “So swimming is out. How about we sit in these lovely patio chairs that I ordered from Restoration Hardware?”
They sank into the chairs, and he turned to her. “You really are amazing. This is a great house, but you pulled it together in a way few could.”
“I was just continuing with the themes and feel the other designer already had in place.”
“Then you are even more amazing. You took something that wasn’t yours and not only made it yours, but made it shine.”
“Thank you.”
They sat there, holding hands and watching the sun
go down. Brikelle felt comfortable like they’d been together for years, yet still the simple touch of his hand stirred excitement and desire in her.
“I keep having to remind myself that we’re not married,” Colt said.
She swallowed hard. “We’re pretty impressive actors if we believe it ourselves.”
“Sorry I got so caught up in the physical.”
“It’s okay. I did too.”
His voice got husky. “If you had any clue how attractive you were to me, you’d make me sleep out here tonight.”
“These chairs are pretty comfortable.”
He laughed and squeezed her hand.
“Don’t worry. We’ll get through this.” Brikelle meant struggling to keep their attraction for each other in check, but it kind of applied to everything they were doing this weekend.
“Have you just been pretending to have fun?”
“No. I’ve had the best day. I was trying to remember if I’ve ever had a day where I just played nonstop.”
“I like that you’re such a hard worker, but it’s important to play too. I’ll have to help you remember that.” Colt winked at her.
Brikelle didn’t want to be without him. This weekend was like a fantasy she didn’t want to end.
They watched the sunset in contented silence. Some other couples wandered outside and they started chatting with them. By the time people filtered off to bed, Brikelle had offers to redecorate a cabin in Park City and work on a house under construction on the east bench of Bountiful. It was thrilling to chat with the ladies about their ideas and see them get excited about different possibilities too.
“Well, Mrs. Jepson.” Colt stood and offered her his hand. “You ready to go to bed?”
“Don’t call me that.” Brikelle blushed and looked around to make sure nobody could hear her.
“Why? Oh, sorry. It makes you feel old or something. That’s what Momma always said. It was her mother-in-law’s name, not hers.”
“No, nothing like that. It just makes me think of things I shouldn’t think of.”
How to Love a Dog's Best Friend : Must Love Dogs Page 9
