Page 244 of Ride a Cowboy

“Welcome aboard.” The attendant looked at her ticket. “Your seat is near the back. Next to that tall handsome man in the cowboy hat.”

Bridget glanced toward the rear of the plane and spotted them. Her heart nearly exploded with joy.

Neither man had seen her yet. Mark had claimed the window seat and was watching the activity out on the runway. Matt was sitting next to the aisle with his head thrown back, his eyes closed. The seat between them—her seat—was empty.

She walked straight up to their row and hitched her purse higher on her arm. “Excuse me. I think that’s my seat.”

Both men jerked at the sound of her voice. Her smile was so huge it hurt her face, and then a sudden bolt of panic jerked her. What if their offer hadn’t been sincere? What if they didn’t want?—

She didn’t have a chance to finish her thought. Matt stood up quickly, bumping his head on the overhead compartment. That didn’t stop him from giving a loud whoop. The chatter in the airplane died at his loud exclamation and Bridget saw one of the flight attendants look their way with a worried expression.

He hugged her. A hard, full-body embrace that drove all the air from her lungs.

Mark’s voice cut through the silence. “Stop hogging her.”

Matt released her, helping her to her seat. Once she was in place, Mark wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her as close as the armrest between them would allow. “Goddamn, you’re a sight for sore eyes.”

She pulled back and cupped his beloved face with her hand. “Ditto. I couldn’t let you guys leave without saying something.”

Matt quickly claimed one of her hands, leaning closer. The airline safety video began to play, but they ignored it. “What did you forget to say, sweetheart?”

“I wanted to know if your offer still stands?—”

“It stands,” Mark interjected quickly. “For you. Always.”

“I’d like to move to Wyoming and start a life with you guys. You saved my life, kept me safe, but more than that, you brought me to life. I’m not sure I knew what it meant to live until I met you.”

Matt leaned over and pressed a kiss on her cheek. “You did the same for us, Bridge. Mark and I were just living, slogging our way through the daily grind without even knowing how much was missing from our lives. Then you fell down at our feet—literally—and it became obvious we had no idea what happiness was. You opened our eyes to some pretty amazing possibilities. Now I can’t even imagine a life without you, without Mark. We fit together. The three of us.”

Mark squeezed her hand. “You’re ours, Bridget. Our city cowgirl. We’ll keep you safe, always.”

Matt reclaimed her attention. “And warm and happy and—” He winked at her as he added “well-fed” to his romantic list.

Bridget could see a few passengers looking in their direction, could read the confusion on their faces as they tried to figure out the relationship dynamics.

She grinned. They had a lot of things to work out, but she knew they would. “I know now that everything’s going to be all right. There’s nothing the three of us can’t do, because you love me. And I love you.”

Epilogue

Rodney sat on the front porch of the James Ranch and watched the sun set behind the mountains. An early spring was upon them and he was taking advantage of the warmer weather, needing a respite from being cooped up inside.

“I wondered where you disappeared to.” Bridget came outside and joined him on the porch swing.

He could hear the television playing in the background. “You’re missing the movie.”

She shrugged. “I’ve seen it before.”

The James family was watching The Hangover, curled up in comfort on the couches and chairs, eating popcorn, laughing at Zach Galifinakis.

“So you came back.” Rodney hadn’t been surprised when Bridget arrived in Saratoga two days ago, hand in hand with her handsome cowboys. Anyone could look at them and know they were meant to be together.

She looked out at the ranch. He was struck by the utter contentment on her face. After months of living together, he wasn’t sure he’d ever seen the true Bridget. The one sitting beside him now. Relaxed, complacent, peaceful. It was a nice change from the constant fear and suspicion that had resided there before the trial.

“Do you think I was crazy to drop everything in New York and follow Matt and Mark back here?”

“Not crazy at all, unless you count crazy in love.”

She grinned. “I don’t regret the decision. Even though my mother flipped out and yelled at me for two hours on the phone for quitting my job without having another one lined up. She also wasn’t too pleased to hear I’d followed a man I’d just met out west on what she views as a lark.”

---