Page 37

Story: Her Vagabond Heart

“Shrimp.”
“Think I’ll give that one a miss. This is egg, right?”
“Yes.”
“Bleurgh. What about these?”
“Salmon and capers.”
“I don’t know what capers are, but I’ll give it a go.” That one also went on my plate and I smiled my thanks to the server. Before she could move away, though, Grayson stopped her, adding four more mini sandwiches to my plate.
I rolled my eyes but said nothing, knowing that I really did need the energy, even if I had to force myself to eat.
Grayson’s body was warm, his arm strong around me. Added to that, the ibuprofen was kicking in, which meant I could relax a little.
“Smile at me. Caitlyn’s watching us and Rhett’s about to come over. Fuck. They’re both coming over. Laugh like I just said something funny.”
“They’ll never believe that.”
“So sick you’re about to pass out. Not so sick you’ve forgotten how to talk smack.”
That actually made me smile, at least.
Caitlyn looked amazing in a dark green, body-hugging dress and her hair tied back in a sleek ponytail. Her gaze dropped to Grayson’s arm, around my waist, then back up to me. She smiled. “Hey. Mind if we join you?”
“Sure.”
“So, rumor has it you’re our resident punk rock chick and that your lovely hair offends our deeply conservative mother.”
I laughed, taking an instant liking to her. “Apparently.”
Belle came over and, without hesitating, climbed into my lap, eyeing Caitlyn curiously. “Wolfe said you’re a rodeo champion, but I didn’t believe him.”
“Well, that’s awkward.” Caitlyn replied, clearly amused.
“So you really are?” Her eyes were bugging out of her head.
“Yep, I sure am.”
“Did you always want to be one, like even when you were a kid?”
A shadow passed over Caitlyn's face and I felt her tense before she shrugged. “Yeah, I guess.”
Well, that had me all kinds of interested because I sensed a mystery here.
Belle squirmed to get off my lap. “I’m gonna tell Florian because he didn’t believe Wolfe, either. He said you were too pretty to catch cows for a job. Will you come with me?”
“Sure.” Taking Belle’s hand, Caitlyn shot us a smile over her shoulder as she was led away.
“Well, that’s very interesting. What made Caitlyn want to do that?”
“It was top of the list of jobs most likely to piss off our father.”
Even more interesting. “And did it work?”
Rhett answered this time, his eyes on Caitlyn as she chatted with the kids. “Yes. Better than she bargained for.”
Well, did I have a thousand questions? You bet I did. But there was no time to ask them, because the photographer called out for the rest of the bridal party to join the bride and groom.