Page 5 of Merry Christmas, Cowboy (Home to Texas #2)

“Just long enough to fix the place up and sell it. I bought a house in the Mammoth Lakes area in California. It’s a fixer-upper and I figured to move there and work on it while we get used to the area.

Living with chaos doesn’t seem to bother Cody.

” He leaned against the ladder. “He misses the snow. I figure he’d like it there.

Be a good place for us to settle down for good. ”

“And what about you?” she asked. “Would you like it there?”

“I’ve always gone where the work took me, but yeah, what’s not to like? Fresh air, beautiful scenery, and snow in the winter.” He smiled. “The sale of Uncle Rand’s place will give us a certain amount of financial freedom and as long as there’s enough work for me locally, I can adjust.”

“Well, your timing is good coming to Last Stand when you did. We’ve got enough Christmas activities to keep Cody busy for the entire season. Speaking of which, there’s a tree lighting ceremony tonight in town at the library. Everybody comes out for it.”

“I don’t know…”

“Hey, we made a pact remember? We’re going to make this Christmas memorable for Cody. And maybe for you too.”

“Uh, let’s stick with Cody. I’m afraid I’m a lost cause.”

“Yeah, well, I had that same attitude, for about a minute, in September.”

“What happened in September?”

She shook her head, as if she couldn’t believe she’d brought up the subject. “Never mind.”

“Oh, so turnaround isn’t fair play? I just told you a lot about myself, and I’m a pretty darn private person.”

Her shoulders slumped and she took a seat on the love seat bench, one that he hadn’t yet discarded.

He had plans to spruce up the exterior, but that would come last on his agenda.

He leaned against the ladder, crossing his ankles, waiting for her to say something.

He had an uncanny curiosity about her that he was afraid stemmed from his attraction to her.

It wasn’t just a physical reaction, but he liked her spunk and her kind heart, despite the fact, yesterday she’d been snarky about poisoning him with her cookies.

“I might as well tell you. It’s not that the whole town doesn’t know and you’re bound to hear it at some point.

I was engaged to be married. Johnny Dupree and I dated for nearly two full years.

He’s an investment banker, and well, we hit it off right away and fell in love.

He was all-in on getting married and we planned a beautiful wedding.

I even had Taylor make me a custom wedding gown, but that’s a whole other story.

On my wedding day, Johnny informed me that his ex-girlfriend had come back into his life.

And he wasn’t sure about his feelings for me.

He, uh, claimed he needed time to figure it all out. And so, my wedding didn’t happen.”

Garrett’s first reaction was what a jerk her fiancé was. And secondly, he could only imagine the pain Nicole went through. He felt immediately protective of her and wished he hadn’t pressed her to tell him her story. “Sorry, Nicole. That had to be hard on you.”

“It was. I was not only heartbroken but humiliated. And then December rolled around and I started getting excited about the holidays. You might say Christmas saved me. Because I love it so much and what it means to our town. During this time of year, there’s no room in my heart for anything but good spirit.

I know that sounds Pollyanna of me, but my mom always says there’s no sense crying over spilled milk and Christmas is a time for miracles. ”

“You have a smart mom, and a fool for an ex.”

She smiled. “Thanks. I agree.”

Cody walked out of the house, coming to sit on the loveseat next to his teacher.

“Got your teeth all brushed?” Garrett asked.

Cody smiled, putting his teeth together to show them both how they sparkled.

“Looks good to me, Uncle Garrett,” Nicole said.

“Oh yeah? Good enough to go to the tree-lighting ceremony tonight?”

“Can we, Uncle Garrett, can we?”

“I suppose as long as we get back to work. Looks to me we have about one thousand more lights to string.”

“So, you’ll come?” she asked.

He nodded and looked at his nephew. “We’ll come.”

When he gazed at Nicole, she had a triumphant smile on her face that oddly didn’t bother him in the least.

*

“He’s a good-looking man,” Taylor said to Nicole, as they put supplies away in Coop’s truck. The lights were all strung and everyone was busy cleaning up.

“Who?”

Taylor rolled her eyes. “You know who. Garrett Brown.”

“I hadn’t noticed.” Liar.

“He’s really good with his nephew. Coop likes him. He invited him to play poker with the guys next week.”

“That was neighborly of him.”

“And we invited him over for dinner tonight, along with little Cody before the tree lighting. You’re coming right?”

She gave her friend the stink eye. “I’m coming, but don’t go letting your imagination run wild. Keep that for the gowns you design.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Nic.”

“Uh-huh. Bless your little matchmaking heart, Taye. But you know I’m not in a place, right now, where I can be open to anything.”

“Neither was I, when I met up with Coop again, and you can see how perfectly that turned out.”

“You’d lost your high-profile job in New York, not your fiancé on your wedding day.”

“Hey, I know it was rough on you,” she said, giving her a loving look.

“I’m not trivializing it. I know how hurt you were, are.

And I promise no pressure, just come and have a nice dinner with us Coopers.

Julie and Miguel are coming too. We’ll have a simple early meal, and then head over to the tree lighting. ”

“Okay, sorry. You’re right. It’s no big deal.

” It wasn’t as if she would open her heart up again.

She’d been burned too badly to let anyone get close.

So, just because romance was out of her life, she still had a whole lot of spirit left in her, especially this time of year.

“How’d you get him to agree to dinner? He isn’t the easiest man to convince of anything. ”

“Coop insisted. And you know Coop, he’s pretty persuasive. I got the feeling Garrett isn’t comfortable about it, but he’s coming.”

“I think he’s sort of a loner.”

“All we can do is offer him friendship and see if he takes it. He was a big help today.”

“So was Coop, and all the volunteers were great getting the job done.”

“Yeah, they were.”

“Thanks for your work on the fence too.” They both gazed at the corral fence decorated now with garland and ornaments and lights. “It’s going to look amazing at night.”

“I think so too.”

Nicole looked toward the house and found Coop and Garrett deep in conversation, each one loaded down with equipment, heading their way.

“Hey, ladies,” Coop said, loading a ladder into the truck, while Garrett set a toolbox down inside.

“Looks like we used every single strand of lights. We didn’t miss a branch or a fence rail. ”

“It was a productive day, that’s for sure.” She walked over to give Coop a big hug. “You’re the best. I’m glad Taylor married you.”

He laughed. “So am I.”

“Thanks again.”

After the hug, she glanced at Garrett. She felt like she needed to say something to him too. “I can’t thank you enough for helping today. And for allowing us to take over the ranch for the next few weeks.”

He scrubbed his chin and his eyes narrowed in on her. “Did I agree to that?”

“Well, uh, maybe I didn’t say it right, I—”

“Kidding,” he said and then turned to Coop and Taylor. “If you’re sure it’s no imposition, I’ll see you for dinner, later in the day.”

“None at all. We’re happy to have you come,” Taylor said. “There’ll be a few of us; Nicole will be there too.”

Immediately, his gaze traveled to her with an unreadable expression. She felt a flutter in her tummy, one that put her on edge.

“Okay then,” he said. “I guess we’ll see you all later.”

She lifted her hand to wave, then let it drop just as quickly. “See ya.”

He gave her a crooked smile, then walked back toward the house.

Taylor nudged her arm. “He is pretty darn—”

She put her hands over her ears. “Fa, la, la, la, la. La, la, la, la.”

When she finally uncovered her ears, Taylor smiled. “I was going to say, handy. He’s pretty darn handy.”

She gave up and finally played along. “You should know. You married the handiest man alive.”

“Well, thank you, Nic,” Coop said. “I’ll take that as a compliment.”

“Welcome, Coop.”

Nicole glanced around one last time, making sure they weren’t forgetting anything. And found Garrett on the porch, leaning over the railing, watching her. Once their eyes connected, he spun around quickly and strode into the house. As if he’d been caught red-handed.

She turned to her friends, ignoring their amused expressions. “I think we’re finished here.”

*

The Cooper house was full of dinner guests by the time Nicole got there.

As soon as she walked into the living room, she was met by Muffy, Julie’s little champagne-colored dog, nipping at her heels.

Following right behind her was Cody. “Hi, Miss Russell,” he said, bending down to pet the pup. The two were becoming fast friends.

“Hello again, Cody. Are you all rested up after helping with the lights today?”

“Yes, ma’am,” he said. The dog was licking his face and Cody was eating it up.

“Muffy sure is cute. Cassie likes to play with her, so Julie brought her over.”

“Uncle Garrett says once we settle down, we can get a dog.”

Garrett walked up. “I said, maybe,” he explained quietly, rocking back on his heels, his hands in his pockets. “And it won’t be for a little while, Code.”

Garrett gave her a look, like he was in over his head.

“Dogs require lots of attention, Cody. It’s a big commitment, which means you have to give up a lot of your time, to care for them properly. I’m sure your uncle will know when the time is right.”

Cody nodded. “Yes, ma’am.” Muffy ran into the other room, and Cody took off after him, little eight-year-old Cassie not far behind.