Page 10 of Wicked Cowboy
Ridley
Marry him? My mind raced. Every day of my life, I pictured… nothing for my future. I paced back and forth. My sisters and I were so different. I worked long hours with no plan of ever changing. I wasn’t the one with some life mission like my green living sister Nicole had. I wasn’t maternal like Georgie. Nor was I a go-getter like Indigo or a dreamer like Stephanie or a sweetheart like Olivia.
I was the middle child who never shone in anything. So I threw myself into helping patients since dating had always ended in disaster.
Now one of the hottest men I’d ever met just asked me to marry him… and take care of his father and new charge. My ears buzzed, and I questioned if I misheard him, but I hadn't. And my lips still tingled from that kiss.
For years since that wedding, I'd hoped he’d come to sweep me up in his arms and tell me he was in love, but that was a silly dream. Now I knew, he packed a thrill in his lips. And that pledge of fidelity had made my knees weak.
In this room with a pale green bedsheet and silver trims, I started to relax. At least this room wasn’t glittering with diamonds and gold.
I closed my eyes and tossed myself on the bed. I needed grounding. I probably needed sleep too, but for the first time in days, I knew for a fact that girl was in a good home.
I checked the door was closed and then grabbed my phone out of my pocketbook I’d tossed near the door with my small luggage earlier. Once I had it again, I called my sister, Nicole. Georgie, Indigo, and Stephanie were all in different time zones and I couldn’t be bothered calculating their equivalent times, but at least Nicole would be home.
“Nicole,” I breathed when she answered.
“Did you get Chelsea yet?”
The lightness in her voice made me close my eyes. If I was half as beautiful as Nicole, then maybe I’d have more confidence. I closed my eyes and decided to tell her everything. “There’s been a snag.”
“What’s going on?”
Her tone had an inflection of concern. I took a deep breath and said fast, “Chelsea would prefer to stay with Carter.”
“Did you get another picture with him?”
My eyes widened and I pressed my hand to my heart. This wasn’t the way to comfort me. Adrenaline coursed through me. “Nicole!”
She let out a small giggle. “You liked him years ago. Is he ugly now?”
I never should have shared my favorite photo of us with her. Sure, it had been nice to show off his handsome face. Though, that photo had been taken before special training and muscles that held me tight. I let out a frustrated sigh, “No. He’s even more gorgeous.”
“Married, with kids?”
This was it. I tightened my shoulders. “No. In fact, he proposed.”
“Proposed what?”
I collapsed onto the pillows on the bed. No one would ever guess marriage. I ignored how my throat grew tight and finished, “Proposed we get married and raise Chelsea together. We’re both named in the will as her chosen guardians.”
“Wow.”
Understatement of the year. I opened my eyes and saw the time. It was almost seven. I slumped my way to my bag to find something to wear. “That’s one way to say it.”
“What are you going to do?”
This was the question of the day. Did I accept my eventual dying alone, or did I choose a different path? I grabbed my white blouse and capri shorts, which were my only clean clothes left. I hadn’t expected to stay in Texas this long. I needed a laundry room. “I used to say my life was in Pittsburgh with my sisters and family close by, but everyone else is moving to far off places.”
Georgiana was in love with her home in Tulsa with her husband. Indigo was traveling the globe with her new husband. Stephanie was now in London, planning her wedding. And one day Nicole and Olivia would marry too, and I’d be… lonely. Nicole then said, “They are.”
All my sisters would eventually fall in love, marry, have children, and who knew where they’d settle. Every sister had some sparkle to them. I pressed my hand to my head to feel the heat in my face. “I’m thinking of saying yes to this.”
“Because you’re mad for him and been in love with him for years now?”
My feelings on him were based on his good looks, not anything else. I hardly knew him, but this was probably the best offer I’d ever get. This was practical when I said, “Look, I don’t want to be the spinster aunt who falls apart on the couch at Christmas.”
“That’s a specific fear.”
