Page 34 of The Cowboy Fix

His intense gaze didn’t leave her face. “For the ranch?”

“We could do that if you want.” She shrugged and stepped out onto the porch. “But I was thinking more personal.”

He hitched his thumbs in the buckle of his tool belt. Rare humor twinkled in his eyes. “You don’t like my working cowboy look?”

Izzy swallowed the sudden lump in her throat.Oh yeah.She liked what she was seeing all right.

Leaving the porch that would be designated for the groom and his groomsmen, she tossed over her shoulder. “It works if that’s what you’re going for.”

“We should talk about this some more.” Nathan laughed, a sound that was as rare as spotting a pair of endangered bald eagles high in a nest, which made it all that more special. He teased her, “What’s your hurry?”

That was the moment Izzy knew she’d better come up with a new plan. She didn’t want Nathan to catch on to the fact that she was in full retreat, her non-nesting instincts just as endangered.

She stopped and faced the rancher who was doing his darnedest to keep a serious expression. He wasn’t having much success.

Oh, dear Lord.What was she doing? Izzy let her shoulders relax. “I’m in a hurry because, I don’t know if you’ve heard, but Malorie and Blake want to get married in three weeks. That’s not much time to finish getting the cottage ready.”

His humor evaporated. “Blake mentioned a date. Can you get your part done by then?”

“I think so,” she said, slowly taking a few steps backward.

“How many guests should we expect? I’ll have to order the chairs.”

Izzy couldn’t ignore the play of sunlight and shadow on Nathan’s firm chest. “Malorie wants to keep the number of people invited to just family and close friends. So small. Twenty or Twenty-five?”

Andee, Reece, and Timmy ran up to them. When the three of them were together, Andee was their spokesperson. She grabbed Izzy’s hand. “B.J. and Uncle Jonas say we can pick out the flowers we want to plant. Can we go to the store now?”

Saved by the bell.Izzy took a relieved breath and let the kids drag her toward the Rover. She didn’t want to fall for the cowboy and wasn’t ready for something permanent, even if he was interested. Which she was pretty sure he wasn’t. He certainly hadn’t asked her to go on a date. Anyway, she didn’t have time or a free future to indulge in such a reckless act.

“In the car, then.” Izzy glanced at Nathan. He stood right where she’d left him, a puzzled look on his handsome face. Hesitating, she waved goodbye before climbing behind the wheel. Before she took off, she texted her mom to see if Sylvia wanted to meet them at Lou’s Garden Center. Her GPS said the nursery was on the north side of town on Mesa Ave.

Her mom was quick to respond. “Was just heading back to the ranch. Will meet you at the garden center.”

Izzy listened as the kids chatted about which plants they wanted. When she pulled into the parking lot, her mom’s white Rubicon was already parked in the lot, and she could see Sylvia wandering down one of the aisles looking at the plants.

She grabbed a large cart and hugged her mom while the twins and Timmy, after saying hello to Sylvia, started pointing at possible candidates.

“Be selective and remember to get all sizes of plants, short and tall,” she reminded them. “And lots of different colors. The snapdragons are over on the next aisle.” She watched as the kids hurried toward the riot of color on the other side of the long table where she’d stopped beside Sylvia. “Slow down, please.”

Andee slowed to a fast walk.

Izzy turned to her mom. “They have so much energy.”

“And I can’t wait for you to give me grandchildren,” Sylvia said with a huge sigh, slipping her hand inside the crook of Izzy’s elbow.

“Grandkids are a long way off.” Pushing the cart, Izzy slowly followed the pre-teens. “I have to find a husband who will stay first.”

“Jim taking off like he did wasn’t your fault, Iz. You two just weren’t a good match. It’s a shame he wasn’t more honest about his feelings for Catheryn.”

It was too badshewasn’t honest aboutherfeelings. “Mom?”

“Hmmm?” Sylvia had let go of her arm and was running her fingers along the petals of several petunias. “We should get some of these.”

“Go ahead. They would look pretty in the window planters.” Izzy wasn’t sure how to phrase her next question. “Did you know that I hadn’t fallen completely in love with Jim? That I held part of my heart back?”

Sylvia stopped and looked at Izzy. “What makes you think that?”

“I don’t know. Jim not showing up was upsetting but looking back now, it seems like I wasn’t as heartbroken as I should have been that he chose another woman and a hike around Europe and Asia instead of a future with me.”

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