His Montana Bride. Brenda Minton

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      “Yes, horses.” Cord was smiling now.

      She didn’t know if she liked to ride horses, but she knew she wanted to. She would be in Jasper Gulch for most of the month and she wanted to enjoy herself. And she could enjoy herself with Cord Shaw and Marci. No entanglements. No temptations.

      He was a man who wanted only friendship. And maybe help planning this monstrosity of a wedding.

      * * *

      The last thing Cord had planned to do was bring Katie Archer into this part of his life. He protected Marci and Lulu. That had been his job for almost as long as Marci had been alive. But Marci had other ideas this time. For some reason she was clinging to Katie’s hand, pleading with her to go riding.

      He wanted to smile at the trapped look on her face. Her jewel-colored eyes were flitting from his goddaughter to him and back to Marci. It would have made his life easier if she’d met Marci and quickly slipped away, uninterested in this part of his life. Instead, she seemed to be silently asking his permission.

      Great.

      He’d gone several years without getting tangled up or inviting a woman into this part of his life. He’d learned his lesson with his ex-fiancée, Susan. She’d told him from the beginning that she didn’t want Marci in their lives. He hadn’t realized until it was too late that she’d been serious. It had all become crystal clear when she’d thrown him over for his best man—his supposed best friend.

      Lesson learned.

      “Marci told me she wouldn’t mind if you joined us,” he admitted now to Katie because she was still standing there looking unsure. She seemed to be waiting for permission to accept. Great.

      “We really don’t mind,” he continued.

      And he’d love to see her on a horse, the city girl in her made-for-dresses riding boots, the scarf around her neck and hair falling in loose curls.

      “I see.” She bit down on her bottom lip and then looked around.

      “They all assumed you’d go and they’ve left you behind,” he explained the obvious. The church had emptied out.

      “We have a picnic,” Marci offered with a hesitant smile. “And Cord has a real gentle horse.”

      “Does he?” Katie looked down, smiling at his goddaughter.

      He felt a real fondness for this woman, practically a stranger, at that moment. Her hesitation wasn’t about Marci. Maybe it was more that she just wasn’t interested in him. Or was she afraid of horses?

      “Do you ride?” he asked.

      “I’ve been once, on a trail horse.”

      “The nose-to-tail kind of trail horse?” he asked, unable to hold back his amusement.

      “Yes, that’s the kind.”

      “Don’t worry, you’ll be fine.”

      Pastor Ethan Johnson approached, ending the conversation. Cord smiled at the other man because he and Ethan had something in common. They were both on the list of eligible bachelors in Jasper Gulch. Men who needed to find wives. He, for one, didn’t need help. Ethan probably felt the same way.

      There were plenty of single ladies in town. There were even a few new ones. There were the Shoemaker ladies, the new historian from somewhere in New Mexico, Cord’s sister Faith. The list was long. Cord knew his dad would like to see all of his kids married off. More than once lately Jackson and Nadine Shaw had mentioned that it was high time someone put some grandkids in those empty bedrooms at the ranch.

      “Are you all heading out?” Pastor Ethan asked as he walked up to them, smiling at Marci and then at Katie.

      Katie gave Ethan a friendly smile but not the flirty one so many single woman used on the pastor. She was definitely one of a kind. He liked that about her.

      “Yes, we are and we’re sorry for keeping you late, Ethan. I didn’t realize everyone had left.” Cord glanced around the empty church. The church he’d been raised in.

      It hadn’t changed much over the years. The wooden pews, the amber glass in the windows, all exactly as it had been the last time he’d come to church. It felt the same, smelled the same. The only thing that had changed was him.

      “Haven’t seen you here before, have I, Cord?”

      Cord smiled at that. Ethan had never seen him here. “No, I guess I haven’t been here since you took over.”

      “No, I guess not.” Ethan shot a quick look at Katie and then back to Cord. “Things change.”

      Not that way, they didn’t. He wouldn’t hurt Katie’s feelings by opposing the statement too heavily and what it implied.

      “I reckon they do.” Cord touched Marci’s back to guide her toward the door. “And we should get out of here so you can lock up.”

      Ethan walked to the front of the church with them. “Cord, I heard that with the siding on the museum, they might get some finish work done on the interior by the end of the month.”

      “If we don’t run out of money.”

      “I’ve found some photographs of the church that I thought might be something for the historical society, as well as an older Bible that has been left in the office. It should really be put under glass. There are even some births and family histories included.”

      “Sounds like something we’d love to have in the museum, Ethan. You might even show it to Robin Frazier, she’s in town studying genealogy, I believe.”

      “I think I’ve seen her.”

      They were at the doors now and Cord watched as Marci, who had hurried out ahead of them, tried to get the truck door open. He hit the remote to unlock it and she shot him a big smile and climbed inside.

      “She’s got more energy than ten kids,” Ethan said. He glanced up and then back at Cord. “It’s a shame to have that bell up there and no way to use it.”

      “Yeah, I don’t guess I remember that bell ever working,” Cord said.

      “You know, if they insist on using the recorded bells instead of fixing this one, we could always remove the bell and put it in the museum,” Ethan said, looking up at the door in the ceiling that led to the belfry.

      “I could bring it up with the church council. To be honest, I don’t even know what’s wrong with the bell.”

      “Neither do I. When I got here I was told there’s a bell but it doesn’t work and they showed me how to use the recordings.” As Ethan talked, he reached to undo the collar around his neck. “If you could bring up the issue, I’d appreciate it.”

      “I’ll do it.”

      The two men shook hands and then Cord turned to ask Katie if she was ready to go. Katie had already walked away. She was at the truck with Marci and he could tell from the distance that the two of them were having an animated СКАЧАТЬ