An August Bride

by Debra Clopton

  “You had every right to feel upset and mad. But ashamed, embarrassed—no, I think you should let that go. Some people are good at lying. I’m not one of them—just so you know.”

  She took a deep breath. Her hand shook thinking about it. And why had she told Brent something so personal?

  Feeling reckless could get her into trouble. Then again, at least he’d tried to make her feel better.

  The yacht made a wide arc as it turned back toward Corpus. “It doesn’t matter. I’m happy. I’ve found my calling here with my bistro, serving coffee and good food. No one has a better job than I do. I love being able to cater to people.”

  Cater. Kelsey wondered again about the facility he’d mentioned on his ranch. She would love to be able to help Julie and Candy have more opportunities. And Roxie was part-time, but could really use more hours.

  “You are really good at what you do. I agree—”

  “Dolphins!” The high-pitched yell from Esther Mae broke into his reply. Aunt E was leaning out over the rail, pointing with one hand and holding her big floppy hat with the other. Two gleaming bottle-nosed dolphins popped out of the water, and everyone moved to the edge of the yacht to watch them.

  “I hope Aunt E doesn’t fall in. You might have two rescues in one weekend.” She wasn’t completely joking.

  “I hope she doesn’t either, but I would. She is a very”—he hesitated—“enthusiastic lady.”

  “Tell me about it.” She smiled and watched as the beautiful dolphins ran with the yacht, diving and jumping from the water as if choreographed. “I really do love this place,” she confessed, leaning out to let the breeze sift through her hair.

  She looked over to find him watching her with intense eyes. Her pulse leaped when he wrapped a hand around the railing on one side of her, then the other, and she found herself boxed in. Breathless, she angled toward him. She couldn’t stop herself.

  “So,” he asked. “I’ve heard you out. And I’m still here. Do you ever think you could consider going out with a cowboy? This cowboy?”

  Kelsey’s eyes widened in what looked like disbelief—and why not? She must think Brent had lost his mind asking her if she’d go out with a cowboy after what the last one had put her through.

  “That’s not a good idea, Brent.”

  “Okay, so I love a challenge,” he teased, coaxing a reluctant smile from her. “That smile tells me there’s still a chance here for a lonely cowboy to change a Texas mermaid’s mind.”

  She laughed. He loved her laugh, a lilting sound that danced through him.

  “I don’t believe you’re lonely. If you are, it’s because you choose to be.”

  “The truth is I don’t date much. I haven’t even felt inclined to think about it for months.”

  “Like I said, you chose.”

  “I’m choosing to try to convince you to go out with me.” He was being relentless and he knew it, but she was fun to spar with.

  “I can’t, Brent.”

  She studied him and nibbled on her lip, drawing his gaze. He still had his hands on either side of her, and all he had to do was lean in and steal a kiss. That would not be the smartest move on his part, but it didn’t stop him from thinking about it.

  “Do you really have a pavilion on your property? For events?”

  His mind filled with different things she could have said in this situation. A question about his pavilion wasn’t one of them. “Yup. I do. Why?” An idea hit him like a brick between the eyes. Kelsey loved her restaurant, loved working with people. It was obvious when he’d watched her interacting with her customers. “You wouldn’t by chance be interested in catering our events, would you?” That exact interest flared in her expression even before he finished asking the question. It was perfect.

  She pulled away from the landing. “I know that I just turned down your date, but yesterday you mentioned that you were thinking of offering catering as an option to anyone who wanted to rent the pavilion. I was thinking the Sunflower Bistro might be just what you were looking for.”

  Thank you, Lord. He smiled, unable not to. “Your Sunflowers at my Sandbar. Hmm, I like the sound of that. Kinda like us. Those two words don’t seem to go together at first, but when you think about it, they’re perfect. Who doesn’t need sun on a sandbar?” Brent hoped he hadn’t gone too far, but it really did make sense. At least to his way of thinking. And it gave him more time.

  “This would be purely business, Brent,” she warned.

  “It will be whatever you want it to be.” He meant that. But it still gave him the opportunity to make his case.

  They were approaching the dock. The wedding wasn’t until later that evening, and he wasn’t ready for the cruise to be over.

  “You would need to come out and see the ranch—the pavilion. See what we have to offer.”

  “Yes. You’re right.” Her forehead crinkled slightly at the thought.

  “How about tomorrow?” Brent was rushing things, but he didn’t want to give her time to talk herself out of her brilliant idea. “You could come out, bring your aunt and Norma Sue and Adela. I could give you all the tour.”

  “Yoo-hoo, you two,” Esther Mae called, hurrying over. “Y’all look like you’ve been having fun. I hate to see the cruise end, but then, if we are to have a wedding this evening, we need to get off the boat. It was romantic, don’t you think?” She looked from Kelsey to Brent. The palm tree on her hat swayed with the movement.

  Adela joined them and Norma Sue followed. They launched into the plans for the wedding that evening.

  “Ladies,” Brent said, not wanting to miss his shot. “Would y’all like to come out to the ranch tomorrow for lunch and let me give you a tour of the Sandbar? It’s just twenty minutes away.”

  “Does a rooster crow?” Norma Sue asked, grinning.

  Esther Mae clapped her hands together. “Oh yes. That would be the perfect ending to our trip.”

  Brent wanted to pick up the smiling redheaded aunt and give her a hug. “I’ll treat you ladies to lunch and a ride over some of the most beautiful ranch land in these parts. We’ll even ride on the beach.”

  “The beach! Oh, how romantic. Isn’t it, Kelsey?” Esther Mae elbowed Kelsey, who glared at her. “We’ll be there right after church.”

  “This is perfect,” Adela said. “Just perfect. You, young man, have made our day.”

  “I’ll furnish lunch,” Kelsey said. “You know, since you’re showing me what you have to offer, I’ll show you what I have to offer.”

  Brent laughed. “I like the sound of that—I mean, sure. Great. Show me what you’ve got.”

  The sunset wedding was extremely romantic. So romantic that as Kelsey took her place beside the other bridesmaids, the most rebellious feelings took hold of her. Capital D-dreamy feelings that went against every bowed-up, hard-knuckled thought she possessed about weddings.

  Tiffany had chosen a quiet stretch of beach where the land merged into the sand, leaving a beautiful grassy area for the reception under the stars. They’d sparkled it up more by stringing twinkling lights overhead and splendid, fifteen-foot palm trees in huge pots had been brought in by the wedding planners. The trunks were wrapped with lights all the way from the top to the base. Though it was sunset now, the lights still glowed happily in promise of what would come as the sun went down and the reception began.

  Her gaze flickered to Brent standing with the other groomsmen beside Steven. He was watching her; his lips quirked when their eyes met. Kelsey’s fingers tightened around the flowers. Her breath caught in a knot of longing.

  You hate weddings, she reminded herself. But that was the problem—did she?

  She looked back at Tiff and Steven and her heart lifted with a light spirit, not an angry one. Her fingers relaxed on the flower stems. She’d gotten over Lance a long time ago. It had been the lingering effects of the wedding that had been the hard part to overcome. Which actually said something for what she’d realized she’d felt for Lance. She took a cleans
ing breath. He’d done her a favor and she knew it. She’d been more in love with the idea of him than with him. What a disaster their marriage would have been.

  But she’d trusted her heart and it had led her wrong.

  As the preacher pronounced Tiffany and Steven husband and wife, a surge of true joy ran through Kelsey in a rush. Instantly, her traitorous eyes slid to Brent—he was smiling with happiness for them too. Longing she didn’t dare soften to swelled in her chest . . .

  Then those heart-stopping, smoldering eyes shifted to her.

  Drat! Double drat!

  She snapped her gaze back to Tiffany. She and her Prince Charming practically floated together down the aisle.

  Kelsey’s gaze flicked to Brent again, and she wanted to make like a crab and disappear into a sand hole. Because the moonlit beach reception was about to happen, and she wasn’t certain suddenly that she could trust her actions.

  Of course first, she had to take his arm and walk back down the aisle with him.

  “They made it,” he said, smiling as he held his arm out to her not nearly enough seconds later. She slipped her hand through his arm, and they started off behind Carrie, the maid of honor, Tiffany’s best friend, and Tru, the best man.

  “Like a fairy tale,” Kelsey said, keeping her gaze locked firmly ahead of them. As soon as they made it to the last row, Kelsey slipped her hand out of the crook of Brent’s arm.

  “Tiffany,” she said, hugging her cousin. “It was such a sweet wedding. Congratulations.”

  Tiffany sniffed. “It was, wasn’t it. I’m so happy.”

  Kelsey laughed. “Then stop crying.”

  “I know it’s crazy, isn’t it?” Tiffany smiled. “Happy tears are wonderful, though.”

  Brent stepped in and hugged her too. “Happy tears are always good. Not that I tear up that much, but that’s what my mom always says.”

  “Thank you, Brent.”

  Steven grinned, pulled Tiffany into his arms, and brushed the tears from the corners of her eyes. “As long as they’re happy tears,” he said, then kissed her and winked at them. “I’m one happy cowboy.”

  As Steven and Tiffany were engulfed in a wave of other congratulations, Kelsey felt Brent watching her, but she refused to look at him. She didn’t trust her heart. Couldn’t trust her heart. And right now, in this moony, oh-so-romantic setting, the last thing she needed to do was put herself within touching distance of the handsome cowboy who’d plucked her out of the sea.

  Later, after the cake was cut and the wedding party had danced—she’d been all too aware of being in Brent’s arms again—she stood alone lost in thought. The gorgeous moon shimmered on the water and the lights from the wedding reception cast pinpoints of brightness across the sand and out over the ocean, and all she could think about was that Brent was heading home as soon as Tiffany and Steven left for their honeymoon. It was a good thing.

  It was.

  Brent stood on the outer edge of the light, his thoughts ebbing and flowing with the tide. The reception was in full swing, and Brent had felt restless all evening. What was going on with him anyway?

  Kelsey.

  He hadn’t been able to forget her expression as she’d watched Tiffany and Steven recite their vows. His heart had ached thinking about how Kelsey said she’d been hurt and embarrassed when she’d been stood up at the altar. And that she’d been mad.

  He could understand why weddings would be hard for her. But she’d seemed mesmerized by the ceremony, and when she’d looked at him, he’d felt it all the way to his soul.

  What was he doing?

  He’d wanted to march across that sandy aisle and sweep her off her feet and into his arms. He’d wanted to right the wrong done to her on her wedding day.

  But he’d only known her for twenty-four hours. And he’d never been known for being impulsive. He couldn’t start winging it now, not with something this important. Especially not with Kelsey.

  He hadn’t been looking for someone like her at all. Hadn’t expected the effect that meeting her had had on him.

  But all he could think about was her from the moment he dove into the ocean.

  Deciding he better join the party or Steven might think something was wrong, Brent headed straight for the cake. He grabbed two pieces of the creamy white confection and crossed to where Kelsey stood beside the dance floor watching the guests.

  “Hey, you don’t line dance?” he asked, stopping beside her. He offered her the cake and she took it with a smile.

  “Not really. I’m not one to jump out there.”

  “I’m with you. Though I don’t mind watching everyone else mess up their steps, I don’t want to be the one who turns left when the rest of the line turns right.”

  She laughed. “Oh, the nightmare of it.”

  “Yeah, that’s what I’m talking about.” He took a bite of his cake. She did the same. He’d never had a better time eating cake.

  “So.” He cleared the lump out of his throat. “You doin’ all right?”

  In the glow of the tea lights, her eyes clouded. After a beat she nodded. “Tha-thanks for asking. Actually, I am. I couldn’t always say that. But I truly could see Tiffany and Steven’s love shining through during the ceremony.”

  “It was clear to everyone.”

  “As it should be,” she said, looking up at him with amusement.

  She was having a good time. The expression on her face then had been both tender and sad. Normal emotions at a wedding.

  “Hey, would you like to go for a walk on the beach? It’s a beautiful night. Of course, if you’d rather dance—” Silence radiated between them despite the music blasting from the loud speakers.

  Kelsey cut another forkful of cake, and he was certain she was going to turn him down. Instead, she gave him an uncertain smile. “I would like that.”

  Yes.

  They put their plates on a tray and walked toward the water. The surf swept in with a hush and swept out, bringing with it the damp, briny scent of a beach evening. The music from the wedding and the laughter lingered in the background as they walked on the firm, damp sand just at the edge of the water.

  “You know, Aunt E and the girls are thrilled about coming to your place tomorrow. They couldn’t stop talking about it all the way back to the hotel today.” She laughed, a husky, completely feminine sound.

  Brent’s pulse hummed faster—it had been in an uproar from the moment his and Kelsey’s gazes locked during the ceremony.

  Kelsey paused to pick up a shell and then held it out to him. The moon caught on the pale swirls of pinks and gold melded in the creamy white pearl tone. “Beautiful, don’t you think?” She smiled, then looked out to the ocean.

  Brent swallowed hard and willed himself to say something. Words were hard to come by, though, when all he wanted to do was pull her into his arms and kiss her breathless.

  Coming for a walk had been a bad idea. He didn’t want to run her off before she came out to his ranch and they got something worked out with the catering. That was his way in with Kelsey—his way of keeping in touch and hopefully getting past her “cowboy” barriers.

  “There’s nothing like the vastness of the ocean to put things into perspective.”

  Kelsey looked at him. “Yes, I always say that too.”

  He could breathe again at least now that he got a few words out. “I spend a lot of time at my beach on the ranch. It’s a good place for me to think.”

  “I can’t imagine having your own beach. That’s amazing. I mean, I can walk out of my bistro or my bungalow and see the beach anytime, but to own a piece . . . it’s just too cool.”

  He laughed. “Well, I look at it as the Lord owns it. I just get to enjoy it while I’m here. It’s also something else the ranch has to offer as a venue, not that I’m using the pavilion and beach to their main potential at the moment. I have a ranch to run.”

  “It really sounds like the perfect setup. I have to admit that the more I’ve thought about it, the more ex
cited I am to see it.”

  “Good, I think it’s a perfect match.”

  “Just like us,” he wanted to say, but didn’t.

  When she’d turned to look up at him, she was suddenly almost too close, kissing close. The sweet scent of her had him wanting to be even closer. Her beautiful hair was pulled up in a soft bunch of twists and curls with tendrils that escaped about her face. He couldn’t help himself and gently tucked one behind her ear.

  Her gaze searched his, suddenly wary. She swallowed, and as he watched her throat move, he wanted to place a kiss there.

  He had it bad.

  Suddenly, from the band platform, the microphone crackled to life. “It’s time to throw the bouquet,” someone announced.

  He shook himself. He’d been seconds away from kissing Kelsey and more than likely running her off.

  He shifted to look toward the sound, and Kelsey did too. Tiffany was waving her rose bouquet in the air. She laughed as several of the single women raced each other to the sandy area in front of her.

  “Kelsey Wilcox, get yourself over here,” Tiffany demanded with a smile, looking toward them. Obviously they were still well visible despite the shadows.

  Norma Sue marched from the crowd and across the sand. “Kelsey, come on and get on up there.”

  “I don’t think so.” Kelsey held her hands out as if warding off the bouquet. “I’m fine right here.” Her cheeks flamed red.

  Esther Mae came hustling over from the punch bowl.

  “Kelsey, Tiffany wants you in the group. You might catch it.” The redhead beamed.

  Kelsey crossed her arms. “No. I don’t want to catch it.”

  “Nonsense.” Norma Sue planted her hands on her ample hips. “Have a little fun. Get in there or be a party pooper.”

  “Okay, fine,” Kelsey huffed, shooting a stern look at Norma Sue. “But I’m not going to catch it. I’m not kidding that I’m not ready to think about marriage. Even if it’s just through a bouquet toss.”