34

On the day of her wedding, Kate stood in the church anteroom staring in the mirror.

Connie circled around her like a nervous hen, fluffing out the skirt of her satin gown and straightening the bow on her bustle. Beneath her fingertip veil, Kate wore her hair in a braided twist with wispy tendril bangs.

She forced herself to breathe. The sick feeling inside was due to her tightly laced corset. Had to be. Please, don’t let it be a sign of cold feet. Or…

She clamped down on her thoughts. Oh God, not Brett again. She had put him out of her mind. Okay, maybe not entirely. She gave herself an impatient shake. Oh, fudge, what was she thinking? He still had a way of springing into her head when she least expected it. But that had to stop. Brett was gone, and he wasn’t coming back. She’d finally accepted that.

Gone.

If only he hadn’t been so anxious to bring her and Frank together, then maybe…

Gone.

She gave herself a mental shake. Stop it! Balling her hands at her sides, she hardened her resolve. From this moment on, Brett Tucker would be dead to her. Whatever hold he had on her would have to stop. She planned on devoting her life to being the best wife possible to Frank. He deserved no less.

Connie finished fiddling with Kate’s gown and stepped back. “You look beautiful,” she said, clasping her hands to her chest.

Kate heaved the deepest breath her corset allowed and turned with a smile. “You do too.” Her maid of honor’s pink gown gave Connie’s complexion a rosy glow.

Connie searched Kate’s face, her eyes filled with worry. “Oh, Kate, all I want is for you to be happy. You deserve it. After what happened at your first wedding—”

“Nothing like that will happen again,” Kate said. “Frank’s a changed man. His jealousy is no longer a problem. So, you see? Everything worked out for the best.”

Instead of looking relieved or happy for her, Connie’s mouth twisted downward.

Kate frowned. “Are you okay?”

“Yes, of course,” Connie said, seeming to avoid Kate’s eyes. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

“You’re not still upset about Harvey, are you?”

Connie reached out to adjust Kate’s veil. “Nope, he’s completely out of my mind. I honestly don’t know what I ever saw in him.”

“Oh, Connie, are you sure?”

“Yes. Now will you quit worrying?”

“I can’t help but worry about you.” So, if it wasn’t Harvey on Connie’s mind, it had to be something else. Connie had been acting strangely of late. “You know that even when I’m married, we’ll still be friends. Nothing will change that.”

This time Connie did meet Kate’s gaze. “I know that.”

“Then say what’s on your mind. And don’t tell me it’s nothing. I know you too well, and something is definitely bothering you.”

A shadow of indecision flitted across Connie’s forehead. “We don’t have time for this right now.” She glanced at the door as if willing an usher to knock and say it was time to start down the aisle. “Your wedding…”

Kate folded her arms across her lace bodice. “I’m not leaving this room till you fess up.”

“Oh, Kate. Don’t make me do this. I’m afraid we’ll both regret it if I do.”

Kate frowned. Now she really was worried. “I mean it, Connie. I’m not leaving this room until I know what’s on your mind.”

Connie lifted her gaze to the ceiling and let out a sigh. “I didn’t want to tell you this…”

Kate felt a jolt of alarm. “Tell…tell me what?”

Dark, misty eyes met Kate’s. “I promised Frank I wouldn’t say anything, but you and I have been best friends for a long time…”

“Go on.”

“The Texas Ranger—Mr. Tucker—tutored Frank on how to win you back.”

Surprised to hear Brett’s name, Kate frowned. “What do you mean by ‘tutored’?”

“I saw them in the Feedbag Café practicing marriage proposals. I later confronted Frank, and he confessed. It was like he was attending some sort of male charm school or something. The flowers, the note, the lame goat, even the purchase of your ring were all Mr. Tucker’s doings. Frank told me that Mr. Tucker even taught him how to hide his jealousy.”

“Hide his jealousy?”

Connie nodded. “Whenever he feels jealous, he’s supposed to whistle until the feeling is gone.”

Kate reared back, momentarily speechless. So that explained Frank’s annoying habit of whistling whenever they were in public. When she finally found her voice, she squeaked out, “Brett did that?”

He’d made no secret of how much he’d wanted her and Frank back together, but never had she imagined he would go to such lengths. She inhaled. Now it all made sense. The sudden change in Frank had seemed so out of character. So…unreal.

Her temper snapped. “And you waited until now to tell me this?”

Connie wrung her hands together. “I shouldn’t have said anything. I promised Frank I wouldn’t say a word. But…I’m just so afraid he hasn’t changed as much as you might think.”

Kate didn’t know what to say. All this time, she’d thought that Frank was being thoughtful and sweet, but it was really Brett pulling the strings. It had been Brett all along. She had been nothing but a pawn in the game of love.

A tap sounded at the door, followed by an usher’s voice. “It’s time.”

It was time, all right. Past time.

“Here, don’t forget your bouquet,” Connie said.

Kate glanced at the carefully arranged spray of red roses. Her aunt had gone to such lengths to make sure that every detail of her wedding was perfect. That made what she had to do so much harder.

Declining to take the posy with a shake of her head, she flung the door open. Hands curled at her sides, she forced a ragged breath and stomped by the usher.

Connie ran after her. “Kate, wait!”

She didn’t wait, nor did she slow down. Instead, she stormed outside to the front of the church. Pushing the heavy doors open, she rushed inside. Too angry to think or even care that she was making a scene, she stormed down the aisle to the altar, mindless of the filled pews on either side. The organist picked up speed as if trying to keep up with her.

Connie’s words still ringing in her head, Kate barreled toward Frank, eyes flashing. Tilting his head with a frown, he looked like he didn’t know whether to run or duck.

Startled, the minister quickly thumbed through his little black book and cleared his throat.

Ignoring him, Kate glared daggers at Frank. “‘Losing you is like a world without candy,’” she muttered beneath her breath.

“Dearly beloved,” Reverend Johnson began in a ponderous, yet hesitant voice.

“Not now,” Kate said and lowered her voice for Frank’s ears only. “‘A world without sunshine. A world without laughter.’” How foolish of her to think that Frank had suddenly turned into some sort of poet, able to pour his heart out on paper. “I should have known you never wrote those words!”

Frank gulped and ran a finger along his collar. “Ah, come on, Kate,” he whispered back. “What was I supposed to do? You know I’m lousy at expressing myself.”

“At least then I knew what you said was honest and true. Using someone else’s words…” She shook her head. “How can I believe anything you say?”

He grimaced. “Okay, so Tucker helped me. He taught me what to say, what to do, and how to act.”

“And how to hide your jealousy!” she said, forgetting to keep her voice down. A gasp from one of the wedding guests reminded her they weren’t alone. “Don’t forget that!” she said in a quieter but no less passionate voice.

“I’m still working on that part,” Frank admitted.

The minister mopped his forehead with a handkerchief and tried again. “Dearly beloved…”

“Not now,” Kate and Frank said in unison.

Frank shook his head. “Ah, gee, Katie. Don’t look at me like that. I can’t help it if I get all tangled up inside if another man looks at you.”

She snapped her mouth shut. As a child, she’d grabbed hold of him to keep him from falling from the train. In some ways, she’d been holding on to him ever since. Now to save them both from what would surely be a terrible mistake, she had to let him go. It was the only way.

“I can’t do this, Frank. I can’t marry you.”

He frowned. “Because I let Tucker help me win you back?”

“No. It’s because…I agreed to marry a man who doesn’t exist.”

The problem was, she had liked that man. Liked him more than she’d ever thought possible. That was one of the reasons she had agreed to go through with the wedding. She had honestly and truly thought Frank had changed. Had believed it with all her heart.

“Tucker’s gone,” he said. “So you don’t have to worry about me doing any more of that dumb stuff.”

Kate took a step back. “But…but I liked that dumb stuff.”

Reverend Johnson opened his mouth to say something, but before he had the chance, Frank cut him off. “Not now,” he said, saving her the trouble.

The minister looked affronted. “I was just going to suggest that we adjourn to my office.”

Ignoring him, Frank gaped at her. “So…so what you’re saying is you like the flowers that Tucker made me send. You liked them more than you liked my other gifts.”

“I liked all your gifts,” Kate said, not wanting to hurt him more than necessary.

“The eggbeater?”

She nodded. “I use it every day.” She ran her sweaty hands down the satin skirt. This was a nightmare. Here she was, standing at the altar in her wedding gown, discussing a blasted eggbeater.

“But you liked Tucker’s ideas better.”

Before she could respond, her aunt bustled up to the altar, wielding her shotgun. “What’s the matter? What’s going on?”

“Please, Aunt. I need to talk to Frank alone.”

Aunt Letty scoffed. “Well, you sure chose a funny place to do it. What is so important that it can’t wait till later?”

“I can’t tell you right now.” She gave her aunt’s arm a reassuring squeeze. “Please, please go to your seat.”

Her aunt looked about to argue, but instead returned to the front pew.

Kate turned to Frank. “I’m so sorry,” she whispered. “I…I want you to know I still love you as a friend. I wanted it to be more. There was a time when I thought it was more. But”—she shook her head—“I guess in a way, we’ve both been pretending to be something we’re not.”

For a long moment, neither of them spoke, and an uneasy buzz of whispers filled the silence.

Frank heaved a sigh and grimaced as if in pain. “Maybe it’s for the best,” he said, his shoulders slumped. The whispers stopped, and the guests leaned forward, trying to catch his every word. “If…if it’s this hard to get married, I don’t want to think about what lies ahead.”

She felt terrible. Was it possible to feel any worse? He had tried to change for her and maybe had lost a bit of himself in the process. “I really appreciate how hard you tried, and…I wish it didn’t have to end like this.”

The initial sadness on his face changed to a look of relief. “I wish it didn’t either. But getting married and all that courting stuff is just”—he gazed at her as if seeing her for the very first time—“it’s just not for me, and I’m glad to be done with it.”

“So am I,” she said. “I kinda miss the old Frank.”

“I miss him too,” Frank said. “And I miss the way we were before all that courting stuff got in the way. We used to have fun together. Laugh.”

“That’s because we were friends,” she said. “Good friends. Maybe that’s all we were ever meant to be.”

He nodded. “Maybe so,” he said. “Maybe so.” With an apologetic glance at the minister, he turned and walked away.

Shocked guests swiveled their heads to follow his progress up the aisle. After he’d left the church, the heavy wood door banging shut behind him, all eyes turned to Kate.

Aunt Letty jumped up from her seat. The shotgun she’d brought to the church to prevent another wedding disaster fell to the floor with a clatter.

“Kate, you can’t just let him leave like that. Go after him.”

Kate blinked back tears. “Forget it, Aunt Letty. The wedding is off.”