by Liz Isaacson
“Don’t you think Annie should take care of the cake?” Bree asked. She knew Colton’s friendship with herself and Elise had been a sore spot for Annie in the past, and she didn’t want to hurt her friend.
“She asked me,” Elise said. “Yesterday, maybe? She wants us to make it, because Colton loves our chocolate cake.”
“Then we have a cake decided upon,” Bree said, echoing Elise.
“Not the design,” she said as they finally reached the parking lot at the lodge. Patsy beeped the horn, as there were a lot of cars in the lot in the summertime.
They piled in with the other ladies who lived and worked up here at the lodge, and Bree was glad for the extra people, so she didn’t have to talk so much. She was used to letting Sophia dominate the conversation, and she did on the drive down the canyon to the movie theater, because apparently, there was a guest in the lodge who’d checked in today who was “fussy.”
Since Sophia worked in the kitchen and dealt directly with a lot of guests, she usually had some amazing stories. Patsy had dealt with Mrs. Buckley too, and the two of them traded stories all the way down the canyon.
At the theater, she couldn’t pick out Colton’s or Wes’s truck, as it seemed like every man in Coral Canyon drove a big truck. The two men met them, along with Annie, inside the front doors of the movie theater, and Colton hugged Bree first, then Elise. He then took Annie’s hand in his and said, “I can’t wait to see if Carole can figure out how to keep her diner open.”
“Oh, come on,” Elise said, stepping with him and Annie. “We said you could choose the movie.”
“And I did,” Colton said, though he’d clearly chosen this romantic comedy for the company he kept. “And I’m so excited about it.”
“Stop it,” Annie said, laughing.
Patsy and Sophia had moved on to talk about the garbage disposal in their cabin, which needed to be fixed, and Sophia said she’d text Graham as soon as they sat down with their food. Bree watched them all start into the theater and head for the line to order dinner, and slowly, her attention moved to the last man standing there.
Wes.
Excitement zipped through Bree’s bloodstream, even though she really wanted to hold him at arm’s length. At the same time, she wasn’t sure why he couldn’t just get a little closer. The constant tug of war inside her exhausted her, but she managed to smile at him. “Ready for this?”
“I don’t think I’m as excited as Colton,” Wes said. “But I suppose if I get to sit next to you and eat something fried at the same time, I can count that as a win.”
He was funnier in real life than he’d been on the phone, and Bree laughed with him for the second or third time that day. He didn’t reach for her hand, something she appreciated. She wasn’t exactly trying to hide her relationship with him from anyone, but she didn’t need to broadcast it from the rooftops either.
They got in line behind Sophia and Patsy, and Wes hadn’t had a moment to say anything before his phone rang. Mom sat on the screen, and he said, “It’s my mother.” He fumbled the phone to answer it, saying, “Mom, can you hold on for a quick second?” He pulled his wallet out of his back pocket and handed it to Bree, who almost dropped it. “Yes, just one second, I swear.”
He pulled the phone away from his mouth and said, “I want the pepperoni and sausage pizza, with extra cheese if they’ll let me have it. And a Diet Coke. Use any card in there, okay?”
“I don’t—”
He gave her a grin and stepped out of line with, “All right, Mom, I’m back. See? That was only one second.”
Bree held his wallet like it was a poisonous spider. She didn’t need him to pay for her dinner. If he did, that made this a date.
Why shouldn’t it be a date? she asked herself, and that sent her mind spinning too.
She watched him smile and laugh as he talked to his mother on the phone, and she honestly didn’t know what that would be like either. She hadn’t spoken to either of her parents in months now, and she could barely remember what their voices sounded like. Even when they did talk, there was no laughing. No good-natured humor about how long her mother would need to hold until Bree could talk to her. Nothing good about their conversations at all.
The worst part was, Bree knew all of that was her fault. She’d been the one to ruin everything in their family, and she’d left Vermont two decades ago and never been back. Twenty years was such a long road, and she had no idea how to bridge the gap between her and her parents. So she’d stopped trying—a long time ago, if she were being honest with herself.
“Next,” a teenager called, and Bree snapped out of her awful memories. She didn’t like spending time in the past, and certainly not with her too-small family at the forefront of those memories.
“I’ll take the fried chicken,” she told the girl. “Tots. And a pepperoni and sausage pizza with extra cheese. Two drinks.”
The girl named some astronomical amount, and Bree was suddenly grateful she wasn’t paying. If she’d come here with Alex, she would’ve been, and worry would’ve accompanied her for the rest of the night. As it was, Wes’s card cleared quickly, and she took her buzzer and the two cups over to the soda machine to get the drinks.
She then joined her other friends as they all waited for their food. Wes came over and rejoined them a few minutes later, and said, “Mom wants you to call her,” to Colton. “She and Dad are trying to make plans for the wedding.”
“Did you just talk to her?” he asked.
“Yep.” Wes smiled around at everyone. “Okay, let me see if I can get the names right.” He went around the circle, and of course, he aced matching all the women to the right names.
Still, Patsy grinned like he’d just single-handedly achieved world peace, and she congratulated him on a well-done first week at the lodge. Everyone seemed completely taken in by Wes’s charm, and Bree felt like she was standing on the wrong side of a pane of glass. Looking in. Pressing her hands against the hard surface, desperate to be accepted into the group too.
She wasn’t sure why. Wes had said beautiful things that afternoon, and if anyone was in his inner circle, it was her. Why did she feel like such an outsider then?
“Yeah, go,” Wes said. “We’ll be in when our food is done.”
Bree blinked, realizing they were the only two left again. “Sorry,” she said. “I ordered the fried chicken, and it takes a while.”
“It’s fine,” he said. “Can you imagine what the previews for this movie will be?” He shuddered, and Bree smiled at him.
“Why don’t you have a girlfriend?” she asked, and all the playfulness slid right off Wes’s face. It was nice to know he could be serious sometimes too.
“I worked too much in Denver to maintain a relationship,” he said simply. “And then I’ve been on the road, so that wasn’t really conducive to meeting a life partner.”
“You never dated in Denver?”
“Uh, yeah, sure, I dated,” he said, glancing toward the food pickup counter. No fried chicken had arrived yet. “I’ve actually been engaged twice.”
Bree almost spit out the soda she’d just taken into her mouth. She managed to swallow it with only a slight cough. “Oh, wow. Twice?”
Wes nodded and took his own drink. “Yeah, neither of them got very far. I think I loved them on some level, but not the truly, deep level I needed to actually say I-do.” He smiled as he lifted that one shoulder into that sexy half-shrug. “My mother is very disappointed in me, if you must know.”
“Because you’re not married?”
“Yes,” he said. “She asks me about it all the time. Just now, in fact.”
“She did not.”
“I swear to you, she did.” He put one hand over his heart as if making a pledge. “Absolutely, she did. She never lets a conversation happen without asking me if I’m seeing quote—someone special.”
“Wow,” Bree said. She wondered what her mother would ask her if they talked. Probably about work, and the lodge, and
Wyoming. That was all they ever talked about. As if the weather in the Tetons was something that could take up hours of conversation and leave one satisfied.
“I have disappointed her,” Wes said. “I do regret it. But Gray’s been married, and he has a son. Cy too, minus the son. Colt’ll be married soon. Our company’s future is secure. I guess I’m…just really looking for that one woman who’ll sweep me off my feet and make me wish I’d met her two decades ago.” He gave her a small smile, but Bree had no idea what to say.
She’d known there was more to Wes than a fancy suit and a big bank account. She’d known that from talking to him last winter. But she didn’t know that he could be deep in one moment, and romantic in another, and absolutely charming in a third. He was so good at all of those, and she couldn’t help feeling like she was getting played.
“Oh, food’s ready,” he said as the buzzer went off on the table. He picked it up and stepped over to the pickup counter. When he turned around, he had everything on a tray, and a few questions in his eyes. “Ready?”
“Yes,” she said, stepping to his side and plucking one of her tater tots out of the cardboard tray. “I’m ready.”
They walked toward the entrance to the theater, where she showed their tickets and they were told to go to theater twelve for their feature.
“How old are you?” she asked as they walked.
“Forty-seven,” he said.
“Do you think we’re too far apart in age?” she asked. “I’m only thirty-six.”
“Only if you want to use that as a reason you don’t want to be with me,” he said, nudging her to the right as theater twelve came closer. “Because I don’t care.” He gave her a smile that wasn’t entirely playful and headed into the dark theater first. The previews had already started, and Bree gave all of her attention to navigating to their seats in the near-darkness. Wes passed out their food and put up his footrest. Bree did that too and got all settled in.
Just as she took her first bite of the deliciously hot fried chicken, the movie began. As she ate and watched, she realized she didn’t want a reason to not be with Wes.
So when she finished eating and noticed he was done too, she lifted the armrest between them, snuggled into his side, and relaxed as he put his arm around her shoulders. A sigh came out of his mouth, and then his lips lowered to her ear, “I guess the age thing doesn’t matter to you either.”
She shook her head, because it didn’t. Gladness poured through her that she didn’t have that to worry about, and she settled in to enjoy the movie with her new boyfriend.
“Oh, come on,” Wes said later, as the six of them finished ice cream cones at the shop next door to the theater. “It was obvious Rick was not going to buy the diner from the first ten minutes.” He laughed loudly as Elise and Sophia protested. “Back me up, Colton,” he said, looking at his brother and then Bree.
She said nothing, because he’d dug himself into this hole. Colton shook his head and said, “Bro, you’ve got to learn how to watch movies with women.”
Bree grinned at him, and Colton’s eyes sparkled with something she didn’t like. She licked her ice cream as he got busy on his phone, and sure enough, hers buzzed in her pocket a moment later.
She rolled her eyes at him, the conversation between the two of them silent but loud at the same time. Wes was still trying to defend himself against Elise and Sophia, and Patsy threw in a comment every now and then too.
Colton nudged her with his foot, and she just glared at him. The message should’ve been clear. No, she wasn’t going to talk about Wes right now. Not right in front of him, and certainly not with his brother. Even if she and Colton were good friends. Bree had a line she wouldn’t cross when it came to her relationships.
“All right,” Colton finally said. “We’re causing a scene. Let’s go.” He stood up, and since he was the pack leader, everyone soon joined him.
They took their laughter and loud talking outside, and Wes finally let the women go ahead of him. “Thanks for inviting me,” he said. “That was fun.”
“It was,” Bree said. “I’m glad you came.”
“She’s so glad you came, Wes,” Colton said, and Bree elbowed him in the ribs. He grunted and then laughed, and Bree wondered why he couldn’t just act his age for a couple of hours.
“I’m going to put something gross in your birthday cake,” she told him. “Pickle juice instead of milk.”
He sobered quickly and stepped in front of her. “You wouldn’t.”
“Try me,” she said.
“Okay,” he said, holding up both hands. “I’m sorry. Honest.” He glanced at Wes, who’d also suddenly turned a bit more stoic. “Bree makes a killer chocolate cake.”
“Yeah?” Wes asked. “Where’d you learn to bake?”
Bree clenched her jaw, because she didn’t want to say. “My grandmother,” she managed to say, but the two words really hurt her throat coming out.
“Oh, where’s your family from?” Wes asked, and pieces of Bree’s sky started to fall.
“She doesn’t talk about her family,” Colton said quickly, coming to her rescue.
But that only made Wes ask, “She doesn’t?” He looked at her. “You don’t? Why not?”
“Can I talk to you?” Colton asked, grabbing Wes and practically dragging him away from Bree and Annie. Every muscle in Bree’s body felt like someone had laced it with string and then pulled that string tight, tighter, tightest.
She looked at Annie, who wore an anxious look on her face too. But it wasn’t like she knew about Bree’s family either. She’d literally never talked about them, to anyone.
“Emily’s calling,” she said. “Excuse me.” She too stepped away, turning her back to take the phone call from her daughter.
Bree felt like an island standing on the sidewalk. People she knew—friends—surrounded her, but she was absolutely all alone.
She’d felt like that since the day Bronson had died. An island all alone in a vast sea of people who could never understand her.
Chapter Nine
Wes got out of Colton’s truck and reached back inside for the box of cupcakes they’d stopped to get. His younger brother had a serious sweet tooth, and Wes couldn’t say he minded. Colton had been talking about The Chocodile here in Coral Canyon for months, and Wes would finally get to try one of their confections to see if they were as amazing as his brother said they were.
The night hadn’t gone exactly the way Wes had hoped. Ninety percent of it had, he supposed. He’d flirted with Bree, and she’d flirted right back. They’d had a couple of meaningful conversations before the movie began, and she’d cuddled right into him for the bulk of the romantic comedy. Those kinds of movies so weren’t his thing, but if he got to inhale the sweet scent of Bree’s perfume, and trace patterns on her upper arm…he could deal with the ridiculous movie on the screen in front of him.
Colton had pulled him away real fast, though, when Wes had brought up her family. “Look,” his brother had said. “She doesn’t talk about them. From what I can gather, something bad happened, and she never goes to visit. Never talks to them. So just let this go.”
Wes didn’t want to let it go, though. He couldn’t imagine having a real, lasting relationship with Bree if he never got to know about her family. His curiosity had him oscillating between calling her and asking again, or driving up there and showing up on her doorstep to ask.
But something told him his brother was right. If he did that, he’d lose Bree for good. At the same time, she’d surely tell him eventually, right?
Bless her, he prayed silently as he followed Colton up the steps to the front porch of the luxury farmhouse his brother had bought.
“I’m gonna call Mom,” Colton said. “Put those in the kitchen, and don’t eat them all.”
“How could I possibly eat them all?” Wes asked. “We got eight, and I just finished an ice cream cone.”
“I’m just saying.” Colton continued through the house and out the
back door, where he lifted his phone to his ear and faced the woods behind his house.
Wes put the cupcakes on the counter but didn’t open the box. He was stuffed from eating the whole pizza at the theater, even if it was a personal size, meant for one person. With that, the soda, and the ice cream, he thought he’d be eating cupcakes for breakfast.
Colton seemed to have a bottomless stomach, but the older Wes got, the less he could eat and be comfortable. And if there was one thing he’d learned in his forty-seven years, it was that life was too short to be uncomfortable by choice.
So he went upstairs to the guest bedroom where he was staying and changed out of his jeans and cowboy boots. When he’d first gotten the boots, he’d felt absolutely ridiculous. But he’d learned to wear clothes to play a part, and the boots made the guests at the lodge feel like they were getting the true Wyoming country experience. One man had even said that out loud to him.
Look, son, a real cowboy.
The son had not been impressed.
And Wes wasn’t a real cowboy—at least not yet. But maybe if he learned to play the guitar and brushed up on his horseback riding skills, he would be. Bree sure did seem to like cowboys….
Frustrated that Bree was once again in the forefront of his mind, Wes put on his pajamas and went back downstairs at the same time Colton came in from the back porch. “Is she freaking out?” he asked. “The wedding is still six weeks away, right? And Annie’s doing it all.”
“Most of it,” Colton said. “She’s not freaking out. She’s just wondering where we should cater the luncheon. I told her I’d take care of it.” He put his phone on the kitchen counter and reached for the cupcakes. “I’m going to have the s’mores one. It’s fabulous if you warm it up for seven seconds.”
“So specific,” Wes said, grinning at his brother.
“Oh, I’ve tested this,” Colton said, turning to the microwave.
