Page 63 of Cowboy Falling Hard

One of her friends had discovered that one of her friend’s husbands had been cheating on her.

He knew better than to question God’s timing, but it was hard not to.

She was just starting to trust me, Lord. Our relationship was moving forward, and now this.

She had already had trouble thinking he would stay true. If one of her friend’s husbands had been caught cheating, that would bring all those doubts and fears to the surface, and, he was afraid she would look at him and see all the things he had in common with that husband.

Not that he even knew the man.

Maybe he was just blowing things out of proportion, but he felt like Orchid had been working through those fears, but now they would be back in her face.

He pared another apple, letting the waste fall into the bucket at his feet.

Maybe the problem with this type of work was there was too much time to think. He needed to have faith in Orchid and what they had been building together.

She knew what kind of man he was, and that’s what she had been falling in love with. His character and integrity. She said as much. Maybe she hadn’t used the word love, but he felt like that’s what they were working toward. A strong relationship built on shared values, on the character of both of them and the idea that they would live with integrity and respect for each other.

The buzz of voices in the kitchen shifted, and he lifted his eyes.

Orchid stepped in. The other ladies’ hands stilled as they looked at her. But her eyes went to him. His hands stopped, too.

He couldn’t keep himself from setting the pan aside as he rose, his eyes never leaving hers.

She looked crushed, dejected. Like she’d been crying, even.

He threw his knife and the apple he’d been working on in the pan as he walked toward her, his mouth suddenly dry. His heart hammering.

To his relief, she met him halfway, her arms wrapping around him as he enfolded her and pulled her close.

As he lay his cheek on her head, his eyes met Miss Charlene’s. She gestured toward the back room where they’d been storing the apples and extra flour and sugar.

He’d been back there several times carrying things to the kitchen, and he jerked his head at Charlene. She was right. That would be the perfect place for him to take Orchid to talk.

“Let me wash my hands and we’ll go to the back room.”

She nodded her head against his chest but didn’t move.

He didn’t want to leave her, but he didn’t want to stay here in the kitchen with all the eyes on them, when he had so much in his heart that he needed to say.

Or maybe, even more that he needed to hear.

He didn’t bother with soap, just washed his hands so they wouldn’t be sticky, barely dried them, and took Orchid’s hand, sliding it against his, clasping it with his fingers, wishing that sealing their hearts together was that easy.

She’d been in conversation with Rose, and he didn’t pull her away.

But she said, “Talk to you later,” and moved to go with him.

Rose gave an understanding smile at Dwight, and he felt like he had her blessing.

Funny how that eased his heart more than anything she could say would have.

If Orchid’s family approved of him, that would go a long way toward easing Orchid’s mind as well. She respected and appreciated her sisters, brother and mom. They made up the foundation of her world, and he knew their opinion would be essential to fulfilling his desire to have a relationship with her.

They walked in the room. He turned around and shut the door, the lights flicking on as he hit the switch at the same time.

He wanted to turn and pull her back into his arms, but if she needed to talk, he didn’t want to take that from her, or overshadow that with his need to touch her, feel that she was real, that she was still with him, that nothing had changed, even though he thought most likely, everything had.

“You heard?”

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