Page 79 of A Sunny Sweetheart for the Cowboy

“Did I tell you about Rayna? I once thought I was in love with her. I know now I wasn’t, not even close, but that’s what I thought back then.”

“Okay?” It wasn’t like Paisley hadn’t had a boyfriend or two herself back in the day. Not so much since she’d begun her vagabond existence, though.

“She left for California after my dad died and my mom lost the ranch. I think she figured I was a loser, and she could do better.”

“Ouch.”

“Yeah. She… well, she gutted me. Kinda glad now, though.” He pecked Paisley’s lips.

“There must be more to the story.”

Weston chuckled. “There is a bit more. She heard via the grapevine that my fortunes had changed, and she tracked me down a few days ago.”

“How mercenary of her.”

“Exactly. She worded it differently, assuming I’d be thrilled to see her and invite her back into my life. But, of course, that is never going to happen.”

“Right. So how did she come into the current conversation?”

He sighed. “She’s serving at the Golden Grill.”

Paisley took a step back and disengaged her hands from his. “You want her to see us together?”

“Secondary benefit after spending time with you.” Weston stepped back into her space and cradled her face between his hands as he studied her intently. “There’s no better restaurant in Jewel Lake, I want to take you out for dinner, and I want the world to know I love you. I’d feel the same if Estelle wasn’t a gossip and if Rayna didn’t work there.”

Paisley rested her fingertips on his wrists as she searched his eyes. “Okay.”

“I don’t want to hide anything from you. Rayna’s in my rearview mirror. Her future isn’t linked to mine in any way. My future is determined by you. You and God.”

“Thanks for trusting me with that.” How was she supposed to feel right now? Everything inside her was a jumble of emotion, but maybe that was mostly the turmoil of the past week talking. Weston was her anchor. He might have been hard to catch, but now that they were on the same page, he was all in and taking the lead. Wasn’t that what she wanted?

Yes. Yes, it was.

Weston’s hands still held her face, his thumbs caressing her cheeks as he leaned slowly in and touched his lips against hers.

She closed her eyes, letting the gentle current settle over her. Yes. Weston was the man for her.

“I’m parked right beside you. I’ll follow you to Jewel Lake. Okay?”

“Okay.” She linked her hand with his — oh, how right it felt — as they made their way through the parking lot toward her little car. If only she could leave it here and ride with Weston! If she’d asked him to drive her to the airport last week, she could’ve. Instead, she’d run away without telling him.

That would never happen again. Not now that she’d found the other half of her heart.

Weston followed Paisley’s car all the way to Jewel Lake. She exited the Interstate and soon pulled into the angle parking near the duck pond. He parked beside her and met her behind the vehicles.

“I missed you.” He twined his fingers with hers.

“You just saw me at the airport. You’ve been staring at the back of my head ever since.”

“You could feel that? Like daggers?”

“More like Cupid’s arrows.”

Weston fake-gagged.

“Too much?” She giggled.

“Nah.” He winked. “I just don’t want to seem too different from the guy you fell for.”

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