35

“Giddup!”

Brett raced up the hill, his horse’s hooves pounding the ground like the rapid beat of tom-toms. Birds circled overhead, protesting the intrusion with loud caws. Cows lifted their heads with swishing tails and blank stares.

He crested the hill, and the church came into view. The carriages parked outside gave him small comfort.

His body was stiff from riding, and he’d lost valuable time in town changing horses. But Soldier was tired, as was Ringo, and he’d left them both at the stables.

He’d hoped to catch Kate before she left for the church, but when he reached town, he found businesses already closed so that their owners could attend the wedding.

At any minute, the church doors could swing open. The thought of Kate and Foster emerging from the church as husband and wife made Brett feel sick.

Snapping the reins, he urged his mount to go faster. Every step carried him closer to her; every second seemed to carry her farther away.

This was crazy. Insane. He had no right, no right at all. Still, she had given him that note, and the word love still rang in his heart. Then there was the candy… Why would she go to so much trouble if he meant nothing to her? Why?

God forgive him, but he had to know. Did thoughts of him fill her every waking hour like she filled his? Did visions of him rob her of sleep? Did the memory of his lips torment her?

He toyed with the idea of slipping into the church unseen. He would know at a glance if she was happy or sad. If she was happy, he would leave and never bother her again. But if she was the least bit unhappy, he would know that too.

Oh God! He’d stopped her wedding once; how could he possibly justify stopping it a second time?

Reaching the church, he quickly dismounted. But before he could race inside, the door burst open and Kate ran down the steps in her wedding gown.

Alone.

She kept running as if she hadn’t seen him.

“Kate?” he called after her. “What’s wrong? What happened?”

She whirled about, and her jaw dropped. “Brett? What…what are you doing here?”

He held his hands shoulder high. “I’m not here to cause you any trouble. It’s just… When I read your note, I knew I had to see you.”

She frowned. “I wrote that weeks ago.”

“I know.” He took a big breath. “I couldn’t bring myself to read it till last night, and I’ve been nearly out of my mind ever since. When I heard about the wedding, I had to know if you were happy—”

“Happy?” she choked out. Before he could explain, something seemed to snap inside her, and she rushed at him with pummeling fists. “Happy? No, I’m not happy. I just found out that this…that everything I believed about Frank was a lie.”

“Kate, stop!” He caught her by the wrists. “I don’t know what you mean. What’s a lie?”

“All of it!” She yanked her arms away from him, her eyes flashing. “I know about the flowers…the note…the goat. It was all your idea.”

His jaw tightened, but he didn’t deny it. How could he? Everything she said was true. “I was only trying to help.”

“You think that was a help? Making me believe that it all came from Frank? Trying to make me fall in love with a man who doesn’t exist?”

“Kate, look at me.”

She shook her head. “Just go. Leave me alone.”

This time he grabbed her by the shoulders. “Look at me,” he said, louder this time, his voice full of entreaty. “That man does exist, and you’re looking at him,” he said, his earnest eyes seeking hers.

She tried to pull away, but he tightened his hold and his voice grew husky.

“It took me a while to figure out what you meant to me. At first, all I wanted was to right the wrong I’d done. I honestly thought you loved Frank, and all I wanted was for you to be happy. When I finally realized my true feelings for you, I didn’t know what to do. Kate, I love you. I love you more than I thought it possible to love anyone. Maybe that scared me, I don’t know. All I know is that you mean everything to me, and I hope you feel the same about me.”

* * *

For a moment, it seemed as if the earth had stopped turning and the world stood still. All Kate could do was stare at him.

Finally, she found her voice. “You…you love me?” she stammered.

His eyes answered her first, with a light burning so brightly that it took her breath away.

“Every word I told Frank to say came from the heart. My heart. They were things I wanted to say to you, but I didn’t think I had the right. When I read your note and heard you’d named a candy after me, I had to come back and find out for sure what it meant. Yes, I love you, Kate Denver. I think I loved you from the first moment I set eyes on you. If that’s not what you want to hear, then say so. I’ll leave and never come back.”

Her breath caught in her lungs. Try as she might to resist the appeal in his eyes, it was no use. She felt the shield around her heart fall away, revealing not the grief and sadness she’d walled inside but something far more fluid and beautiful, something that seemed so right.

It was as if a bright light had suddenly illuminated the darkest corners of her mind, making everything crystal clear. She now knew that the reason she hadn’t admitted her true feelings for Brett had been fear.

Fear that he would strip away her defenses. Fear that such a thing would open her up to future losses, future hurts, future heartache.

That had never been a worry with Frank. Maybe it was because he held part of himself back too. Hiding behind a protective shield was the lingering curse of childhood grief, of loving and losing at a young age. She’d accused Frank of not trusting her, but the truth was that, in turn, she hadn’t trusted him enough to give him her whole heart.

Somehow, she’d known—sensed—that holding back would not be possible with this man. Once she admitted her true feelings, Brett would demand everything she had to give.

And more.

“I…I don’t know what to say,” she whispered.

“You can start by saying you forgive me for trying to marry you off to someone else. For taking so long to know my own mind. For leaving without telling you how I felt. For—”

“Taking so long to read my love note to you?” she asked.

He gave her a sheepish smile. “Yeah, that too.”

Just then, Aunt Letty crashed through the double doors, brandishing her shotgun. “Oh, no, you don’t, Kate Denver. Don’t you go believing a word this man has to say!”

“Aunt Letty!” Kate gasped. “Put that gun down!”

“I most certainly will not. I mean it! Had it not been for this man, you and Frank would have been married by now.”

“Auntie, please. Put the gun down before someone gets hurt.”

“Not till he leaves.” Glaring at Brett, she waved the shotgun back and forth for emphasis. “So what’s it gonna be, cowboy?”

Releasing Kate’s arm, Brett held up his hands, palms out. “Mrs. Denver, I wish I could apologize for all the trouble I’ve caused, but the truth is, I believe that marrying Foster would be the worst mistake your niece could make.”

“I don’t recall asking your opinion, Mr. Tucker!”

Kate stepped toward her aunt, hand extended. “It’s true, Aunt Letty. Marrying Frank would have been a terrible mistake. I know that now.”

Aunt Letty lowered her shotgun with narrowed eyes. “Does…does this mean there’s not going to be a wedding? Ever?”

“Oh, there’s going to be a wedding, Mrs. Denver,” Brett said, locking Kate in his gaze. “Just as soon as your niece here agrees to marry me.”

Kate’s heart pounded. “Is…is that a proposal?”

“No, but this is.” He dropped to one knee and took her hand in his. He gazed deep into her eyes, the tenderness in their depths stealing away her breath.

“Katherine Anne Denver, I never thought I could love a woman the way I love you.” His voice thick with emotion, he continued. “I want you in my life now and forevermore. I want our children to have red hair and freckles, same as you. I want to look at them and see your blue eyes and big, bright smile. I want your face to be the last thing I see at night, the first thing I see in the morning. Marry me, and you’ll make me the happiest man alive.”

Kate let out her breath. Oh, please don’t let this be a dream. “What…what about your job? You said you could never settle down. You said—”

“I know what I said, and none of it turned out to be true. Without you, nothing else matters.”

“Oh, Brett,” she whispered, the last of her reservations falling away. She pressed her free hand against his cheek, tears welling in her eyes. Something broke loose inside, and all the feelings she’d tried to deny rushed through her. “I love you too. I didn’t want to…I honestly didn’t want to, but there was no helping myself.”

His face lit up with a joy that matched her own. “Oh God, Kate! You don’t know how much I wanted to hear you say those words aloud. I guess we were both fighting a losing battle. I know I was.” He beseeched her. “Does that mean you forgive me for trying to marry you off to someone else?”

Her mouth curved in a smile. “I forgive you,” she said.

“What about the rest?”

“The rest?”

“I asked you to marry me.”

“Oh!” Kate clutched her hand to her chest, and happiness unlike any she’d ever known bubbled up inside. “Oh, Brett. Yes, yes, yes, I’ll marry you!”

Jumping to his feet, Brett took her in his arms and brushed his lips against her forehead. “Oh God, Kate!”

Behind him, Aunt Letty lowered her weapon. “There it is,” she said. “There it is.”

Surprised that she had forgotten her aunt’s presence, Kate pulled out of Brett’s arms. “There what is?”

“The look that every bride should have on her face. The look of a woman in love.” Aunt Letty turned her gaze to Brett. “The look of a man in love.”

Kate wasn’t sure she’d heard right. “You mean…you’re not mad that I ruined the wedding?”

Aunt Letty lifted her shoulders. “Who said anything about a ruined wedding?” She gave her shotgun an emphatic shake. “Get a move on. Both of you. We can’t keep the minister waiting any longer.”

Brett exchanged a glance with Kate. “You want us to get married now? But I don’t have a ring.”

Aunt Letty’s gaze traveled back and forth between the two of them. “Do you swear you’ll love my niece to the end of your born days, no matter what?”

“Yes,” Brett said, looking deep into Kate’s eyes. “And if it’s possible to love beyond the grave, I swear I’ll do that too.”

“In that case, you can borrow my ring until you have time to purchase another.” To Kate, she added, “It’s the one your uncle gave me on our wedding day.”

Her aunt’s offer only added to Kate’s joy. “Oh, Auntie, thank you.”

Juggling the shotgun in her arms, Aunt Letty pulled off her wedding ring and handed it to Brett.

He studied the simple gold band before slipping it into his vest pocket. “I’ve already picked out a ring for you,” he said quietly to Kate. “It has stones that match the color of your eyes, and as soon as I have the chance, I will order it.”

Still unable to believe the amazing turn of events, Kate gazed up at him. “You already picked out a ring. But how did you know?”

He laughed at her expression. “A man can dream, can’t he?”

Kate felt her heart swell. “Oh, Brett. I just hope I can make you as happy as you make me.”

Brett started to say something, but Aunt Letty stopped him with a poke of her shotgun.

“You two will have time for all that jibber-jabber later. Right now, we have a wedding to attend to.” She scanned Brett up and down from the top of his Stetson to the toes of his dusty boots. “As for the groom…I guess you’ll have to do.” She indicated the church steps with a toss of her head and pointed her shotgun at them. “Now git in that church, both of you. Your guests are waiting. And this time, I aim to see that nothing stops this wedding.”