by Cora Seton
“Wow,” Rose breathed. “You’re a knockout. Ethan won’t know what hit him when he sees you in this.”
Ellie nodded happily. “I told you – just the thing.” She helped Autumn up onto the pedestal and stood back while she drank in the picture of this new, incredibly sensual version of herself. Somehow the dress echoed the way Ethan made her feel – curvy, sexy and beautiful.
When the bell over the door jangled and someone walked in, they all needed a moment before they could return to the present.
“Take your time looking, dearie. I’ll see who’s out front,” Ellie said, leaving the inner sanctum of the changing area for the front of the store.
“Hi Ellie! I hope you aren’t busy, because I plan to monopolize you for the rest of the afternoon. I’ll be ordering my real wedding dress from Paris, of course, but I want to try on every gown you have to get ideas of what I don’t want.”
Autumn’s heart plummeted into the pit of her stomach at the familiar strident tones.
Lacey.
It figured.
Rose met her gaze and made a face. They both heard Ellie say, “Sorry, my dear – I’m already helping a customer and we’ll probably be some time yet. Maybe you’d like to come back after lunch when I can give you my full attention?”
“That won’t work for me at all. This afternoon I’m picking out floral arrangements – I have a schedule to keep! Who’s here with you? Maybe they can come back.”
Autumn heard footsteps approaching and jumped down from the pedestal, rushing for the changing room, her feet tangling in the train of her gown. Rose grabbed her arm and kept her upright as Lacey burst through racks of wedding gowns and into view. She narrowed her eyes, face flooding with angry color at the sight of them.
“You! What are you doing here?”
“What do you think she’s doing?” Rose said, stepping in front of Autumn. “She’s choosing a wedding dress – duh!”
“For what? You aren’t getting married! Didn’t you hear a thing I said at the diner? Ethan’s broke and Carl’s buying his ranch for me, so you’ll have nothing if you marry that loser – nothing!”
“Why do you care so much if you think Ethan’s a loser?” Autumn said, peering around Rose. “Why don’t you just leave us alone?”
“Because…” Lacey sputtered. “Because you’re ruining everything! Everyone is supposed to be focused on my wedding – it’s going to be the event of the year! And instead all they’re talking about is you. Why don’t you go home to New York – you don’t belong here, and you definitely don’t belong with Ethan!”
“No,” Ellie said, puffing her grandmotherly bosom out like the prow a battleship. “You’re the one who doesn’t belong here, Lacey Turner. I don’t even recognize you anymore. When you were a little girl you were the sweetest thing. Now look what you’ve turned into. Only a truly wicked woman dumps the man she loves in the moment of his biggest defeat and then adds insult to injury by trying to turn others against him. Marriage is the joining of a man and a woman forever – for richer or poorer. That’s what wedding vows say. I doubt you’ve ever paid attention to the wording, though, since you’re much too busy calculating how much money it will net you. You ought to be ashamed of yourself, and I’m ashamed to have you in my store. I sell wedding gowns to brides here – I don’t cater to…to…fortune hunters.”
Autumn’s mouth dropped open at the older woman’s tirade. A moment later Lacey turned on her heel and marched out the front door.
“Good riddance,” Rose said.
Ellie bustled over to a dress rack. “I think we all know you’ve picked your gown, but you try on a few more, just to be sure.” She held out a gown with a beaded bodice.
Autumn took it and dutifully turned so Rose could unbutton her current one, but her joy in the morning had gone out the door with Lacey.
* * * * *
The next week and a half flew by in a blur until Saturday rolled around again, and only a week remained until her wedding. In between fittings for her dress and all the other arrangements, she hardly had time to consider the drastic step she was taking. She also had very little time to worry about the fact that she still hadn’t told her mother, sister, or even Becka about the big event. But now with only seven days left until the ceremony, she knew she couldn’t put it off any longer. Ethan brought it up once, when they were coming up with numbers for Rose, who had volunteered to coordinate a potluck buffet dinner to hold down costs. About sixty people would attend the wedding, almost all of them Ethan’s friends and neighbors from Chance Creek. Aside from Becka and her family, Autumn couldn’t think of anyone to invite. She had plenty of acquaintances, but few real friends she’d ask to buy a plane ticket just to see her walk down the aisle.
“Your Mom and sister will be there, right?” he said. “I have to meet your family.”
“Of course they will – they wouldn’t miss it for the world,” she said.
But she hadn’t picked up the phone or sent an invitation. Now she had no choice.
She called Becka first.
“Ohmygod, Autumn! Where’ve you been – I was about to send the police after you!” Becka squealed.
“I know – I’m sorry. Things got really crazy here, really fast. You won’t believe what’s happened.”
“What, you’re going to marry the cowboy?” Becka laughed. Autumn, stunned, remained silent. A pause stretched out. “No way. Autumn – you’re not serious. You’re marrying him? You’ve known him, what – three weeks?”
“I know it’s crazy, but you have to meet him, Becks – he’s amazing. He’s so handsome and kind and wonderful.”
“He’d better be wonderful,” Becka said after a long moment. “If he’s stealing you away from me he’d better be awesome. Crap, you’re not coming back to New York, are you? Autumn – I’ll never see you again.”
“Sorry,” Autumn said in a small voice. “I’m staying here. I love it. The ranch is so beautiful – better than anything we pictured and we’re going to turn it into a guest ranch. There’s an amazing lodge basically all ready for people to come and stay. That’s where we’ll put you when you come out for the wedding.”
“When is it?”
“Next Saturday.” Autumn held her breath. Becka’s voice screeched over the line, “Next Saturday? Are you insane? That’s…next Saturday! You can’t marry him that fast.”
“The minister’s already booked and I have my dress.”
“I thought I’d be there when you picked out your dress,” Becka said. Autumn heard the hurt in her friend’s voice and sunk a little lower on the guest room bed where she’d retreated to make the call.
“I know – I’m sorry. Like I said, this all happened really fast. So can you come out on Wednesday and we’ll shop for your bridesmaid gown together? You can pick any one you want – on me! We’ll find you something really gorgeous and you can dance with all the cowboys at the reception. Pretty please? Don’t be mad – I still have to call Mom and Lily.”
“You haven’t told your mother you’re getting married next week?” Becka shrieked again.
“Can you blame me? Can you imagine her reaction?”
“Yeah – she’s going to think you got knocked up and needed a shotgun wedding.” Becka paused. “Oh, no. Autumn, don’t tell me you got knocked up.”
“I didn’t get knocked up! I mean, I don’t think…” She dropped a hand to her belly. “Okay, you can’t tell anyone about this.”
Becka groaned. “Lay it on me.”
“We didn’t use protection the first time we had sex. And I’m kind of late – just a couple of days, nothing drastic.”
“What the hell are you waiting for – why haven’t you taken a pregnancy test?”
“I’m going to – tonight. It’s been so busy and I haven’t felt nauseous in the mornings, so I’m good, right?”
“I don’t know, honey – go pee on that stick and we’ll find out together.”
“I wish I could, but I want to save i
t until Ethan gets home.”
“You’re not just marrying him because you might be pregnant, though, are you?” Becka asked.
“No. Definitely not. I’m head over heels for this guy, Becka. I never thought I’d be this happy.”
“Then I guess I’m happy for you,” she said, although she didn’t sound completely convinced. “Give me the details and I’ll buy my ticket right now.”
Five minutes later, she clicked off the phone and stared at it, willing herself the courage to dial her mother’s cell number. The conversation wasn’t going to be pretty – she’d told her mother she was here researching a story, but left the details deliberately vague, so her news was going to come entirely out of left field. She took a deep breath and punched in the number.
“Hi, Mom,” she said when Teresa picked up.
“Autumn! Hi, honey – where are you?”
“I’m still in Montana, working on that…thing,” she began and then wanted to knock her head against the wall. “But something’s happened.”
“What is it? I have to hurry, I’m on my way into the office.”
Autumn could picture her mother rushing around her ultra-modern townhouse, finding her shoes and her purse and her briefcase.
“I’m getting married,” she blurted. “Next Saturday. He’s a cowboy and I love him and we’re going to run a guest ranch and I totally love him. Can you make the wedding? We can put you up.” She bit her lip and waited for Teresa’s reaction.
Her mother appeared to have lost her voice. After a couple of strangled noises, she finally cleared her throat. “Did you just say you’re getting married?”
“Yes.”
“To whom?”
“His name is Ethan Cruz. He owns a ranch here in Montana.” Autumn bit her lip and hunched lower on the bed, every muscle in her body clenched in anticipation of her mother’s next words.
“You’re getting married to a man who owns a ranch in Montana.”
“Yes.”
“How long ago did you meet this Ethan Cruz?” Teresa’ voice was icy cold. Damn, that wasn’t good.
“Three weeks ago.”
“And he owns a ranch.”
“A cattle ranch, yes.”
“This is a profitable ranch?”
“Umm…” Shit! “It’s got a few problems, but we’ve figured out a way to…”
“And the wedding is next week.”
“Yes, but…”
“A week from today you’re marrying a man you barely know who owns an unprofitable ranch in Montana. Do I have that right?”
“Yes,” Autumn whispered. This was going worse than she expected.
“That is the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard. You get your ass on the next plane back home – tonight – or I’m sending Lily there after you. You’re going to tell that insolvent cowboy to get back on the horse he rode in on, and we’re going to sort out your future once and for all. There’s still time for you to get your master’s degree. You can get your MBA, if you’re so keen on working in the hospitality business. I don’t know why we didn’t think of it sooner.”
“Mom…”
“Now, Autumn. Do I make myself clear? You get on that plane right NOW.”
A tear spilled down her cheek. “No, Mom. I’m not coming home. I love Ethan, and his financial situation is just fine – we’ve already figured out exactly what we’re going to do. I’m getting married next Saturday at 4 o’clock in the afternoon right here at Ethan’s ranch, and I’d love for you and Lily to be here – but only if you come to support me. I don’t need any more lectures about the right way or wrong way to live my life. It’s my life, Mom. I’m choosing what I want to do. I’ll email you all the information. I hope you’ll come and walk me down the aisle, since Daddy won’t be here to do it.”
She hung up before her mother could answer and walked on unsteady legs out to the back porch. She lived here in Chance Creek now and this ranch and the nearby town would be her home from here on out. Maybe she wouldn’t have any family attending her wedding, after all, but the rest of the guests would soon be her friends if she had any say in it. This was where she was making her stand. Here with Ethan on the Cruz family ranch.
CHAPTER TWELVE
“Good to see you, Matt, but I still don’t understand why you couldn’t answer my questions over the phone,” Ethan said as he took the chair Matt offered him in front of the large, walnut desk.
“I’ll explain everything.” Matt took his own seat but left the door to his office open, presumably because his secretary wasn’t in and he wanted to see his mystery buyer when he arrived.
“So who is this guy who wants my 100 acres?” Ethan said, settling back in the chair.
“Before we get into that, let’s talk about Autumn’s idea. I’m assuming she’s filled you in on everything. Did you get a chance to read over her numbers?”
“Yep.” Ethan nodded. “Looks like a good idea, as long as I can stay concentrating on the cattle and the day to day operations of the ranch. I’m not what you’d call a social butterfly, and I don’t think I’d be all that good at riding herd on a bunch of tourists. Autumn says as long as I make an appearance now and then and tell a few stories to the guests in the evenings, it’ll be all right. She wants to handle the cooking and supplies, and we’ll hire people to help out both in the lodge and to entertain guests with trail rides and chores.” He used finger quotes to express his opinion of this last part. A bunch of greenhorns wouldn’t be a lot of help with the cattle, but he was sure he could come up with something to keep them busy and out of trouble.
“I think it’s a terrific idea. There are lots of successful guest ranches in Montana, but none in Chance Creek that I know of. Your Big House has a terrific view and as far as I remember it’s the lap of luxury inside.”
“Thanks to Momma,” Ethan said wryly.
“So what you need is a little ready cash for starting up and a means to buy out Claire – am I right?”
“That about sums it up. Think we can swing it?”
“I do. I took the liberty of calling Claire and setting up a meeting later. Meanwhile, I think our buyer for your acres has arrived. I’ve done up the paperwork for the sale and for buying out Claire. If all goes well, we’ll plow through it all this morning.”
“You work fast,” Ethan said, surprised.
“I felt it behooved us for me to do so. Claire has another buyer lined up for the ranch – the whole ranch.”
Ethan looked away. “Lacey,” he said, his jaw tight. “I heard.”
“Claire's more than a little miffed that you keep putting her off and she let me know about it. I figured it would be best for everyone concerned to avoid that outcome,” Matt said. He glanced out the door .“Good, he’s here – let’s get started.”
You could have knocked Ethan over with a feather when Jamie walked in, the same grin plastered on his face that stole the hearts of every woman within a hundred miles. “Hey, Ethan.”
“Jamie. What’re you doing here?”
“Looking to buy me some land. Actually, I’m looking for more than that. Matt will explain.” He took the other chair in the office and tipped it back, resting one booted foot atop his other leg, supremely confident, as usual. Nothing ever seemed to faze Jamie.
Ethan wished he felt anywhere near as confident. He turned to Matt. “I’m listening.”
“Jamie, here, has saved up a fair whack of cash,” Matt began. “Seems he should have been an investment banker rather than a cowboy.”
“My Daddy tried his damndest to make me one,” Jamie interjected. “Didn’t take.”
Ethan suppressed a smile. He hadn’t thought about that in ages. Poor Jamie had spent four years sweating it out at Montana State while the rest of them got right to living after high school. He’d hated every minute of it and spent every available weekend and summer on the Cruz Ranch working with Ethan and his dad until he felt more like a brother than a friend. The minute he graduated with his BA in Business Admi
nistration, he’d booked it back to the ranch and hadn’t left since. Jamie was the quintessential cowboy, as far as Ethan was concerned. He lived and breathed horses and was one of the best ranch hands he’d ever worked with. The idea of him working a desk job was laughable.
“Some of it took,” Matt said. “You’ve done a terrific job with your investments.”
Jamie shrugged. “Don’t have much call to spend my money.”
Ethan laughed out loud. “That’s for sure. You ever been with Jamie at the bar?” he asked Matt. “Ever seen him buy a round? Jamie puts the cheap in cheapskate. Everybody knows that!”
“It worked, didn’t it?” Jamie said, some of the smugness gone from his face. “I’ve got enough cash to secure a loan to buy 100 acres of your land.”
“What’re you going to do with it?” Ethan asked.
“Breed horses.”
“You won’t work for me no more?”
Jamie studied the painting behind Matt’s desk. “I’d like to work with you. I’d like to buy in to a share of the ranch and keep the property as a single parcel. Matt told me about Autumn’s idea and I think it’s a terrific one. I wouldn’t mind working with the guests – teaching them to ride, taking them out on day trips. Maybe taking groups out for week-long camping trips out on the range. I like that kind of thing.”
“You wouldn’t mind dealing with all those people?”
A smile curved Jamie’s lips. “I like people.”
“You like women. What about their husbands and children?”
“I reckon I can tolerate a few of them, too. I like teaching people stuff. I like the idea of getting kids away from their computers and out into the real world. Can you imagine what it’d be like to put a kid on a horse for the first time and lead them out into the country? I think that’s gotta be better than us losing the ranch and having to work for Carl.”
Ethan’s knuckles tightened reflexively on the armrests of his chair. “You got that right.” He studied Jamie. “I didn’t realize you loved the ranch that much.”
