Page 138 of Once Upon a Holidate
“Hello.” Nick was tall, with dark hair and eyes. He rose and shook her hand. “So you’re the little lady with the horse.”
“I am.”
“How’s he settling in?”
“He loves it here. He’s made friends with a barn cat and he’s eating well.”
“Wait until he meets the zebras,” Nick said, looking at Pallas.
His fiancée groaned. “Don’t remind me.” She turned to Beth. “I run a destination wedding business. I do themed weddings and over the summer I had a bride who was all about a black-and-white wedding. She begged me to rent the zebras, so I did. It was a nightmare.”
“It wasn’t that bad,” Nick said calmly.
Pallas’s eyes widened. “They escaped. Cade and Carol had to chase them down. They could have been killed.”
He pulled her close and kissed her nose. “Always find that rain cloud, don’t you?”
Pallas smiled at him. “Is this where I remind you it did, in fact, rain that morning? And the DJ held up the wedding party.”
“With a flare gun.”
“Still, it was a gun!” Pallas turned back to Bethany. “My weddings are normally much more calm than that, believe me.” She pointed to the far side of the room. “Come on. Let’s get champagne. I’ll introduce you as we go, but don’t worry. You won’t be expected to remember any names.”
Drinks in hand, they circulated through the room as Pallas introduced Beth to her family. Cade joined them a few minutes later.
“Sorry about my mom,” he said, moving next to her.
“Don’t be. It’s fine. I’m not ashamed of what I do and if people have a problem with that, it’s not up to me to change them.”
Cade studied her for a second, as if thinking about her words, then he held out a plate with several cheese puffs. “These will make you feel better.”
“I can’t be won over with pastries,” she told him, then popped one in her mouth. An unexpected slight tang blended with the smooth cheese and the melting pastry. It was all she could do not to groan or grab the plate.
“I take it back,” she admitted. “I can be won over with pastries.”
Cade laughed, then looked at his sister. “Thanks, sis. I’ll take things from here.”
“Introduce her to Drew.” Pallas grinned. “Our cousin is very charming. He runs the bank.” She lowered her voice. “Which makes our mom crazy but you didn’t hear that from me.”
“We’ll save Drew for later,” Cade muttered, leading Bethany away.
For a second she allowed herself to hope it was because he was nervous about her meeting his successful cousin. That he might be worried about her reaction. And while that was probably wishful thinking, it still felt nice to pretend he saw her asmore than the person who had accompanied his prize horse to Happily Inc.
***
It was nearly ten o’clock before Bethany and Cade left for the ranch. She’d been seated with the younger cousins at dinner, at what was obviously the kids’ end of the table. Cade had started to complain to his mother, but Bethany had intervened, saying she was fine where she was. She’d had a great time talking movies and computer games with the teens and telling them about El Bahar. Years ago she’d learned that stories about her summers with the nomadic tribes often got her out of awkward conversational pauses. When in doubt, mention camping in a desert oasis.
“I’m sorry about my mom,” he said for maybe the fourth time.
She put her hand on his arm—to, ah, be nice, she told herself. Not to feel the muscles. “Stop. Seriously, I’m fine. Totally and completely fine. I had a great time. I ate enough for twenty, had champagne and talked kitten heels with three of your cousins. My evening was perfect.”
“She’s a snob.”
“Some people are, but you’re not and I’m not, so please let it go. In a few weeks I’m going to be gone. She’s your mother and there’s no reason to be mad at her. I swear.”
“Thank you. Other than that, was it okay?”
She put her hand on her very full stomach. “I’m very happy right now. Full and sleepy. Everyone was nice to me. I love your grandpa Frank. Don’t take this wrong, but if he were to ask me out, I’d probably say yes.”
