Nashville cowboy, p.1
Nashville Cowboy, page 1
NASHVILLE COWBOY
MEN OF STONE RIDGE
HEATHERLY BELL
Copyright © 2021 by Heatherly Bell
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Created with Vellum
For my Family
CONTENTS
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Epilogue
PROLOGUE
There’s apparently a small matter that I need to address. The very nature of our little town has some young women taking temporary leave of their senses. Yes, you may have heard the rumors, and they’re true. We hold the dubious distinction of being the town with the greatest number of runaway brides in…ahem…history.
And though we’re never completely shocked when this happens, it’s still a sad situation. Jilted grooms are not what we’d like our town to be known for. The problem is, because our women have often dated more than one man, and they have such fine choices before them, they hesitate to settle down with one.
Why do they get all the way to the altar before they figure this out, you may ask?
I wish I knew!
You may have guessed, but this is also true: there’s a wedding in the works and our very own “Nashville” cowboy, Jackson Carver, will be coming home to be his older brother Lincoln’s best man. As luck, or fate, would have it, the maid of honor, Eve Iglesias, happens to be the same woman who left poor Jackson at the altar.
While we don’t exactly expect a brawl to break out between these two, anything could happen. And we sure don’t want anything to interfere with the Stephens/Carver wedding, a long time coming, believe you me.
To say we’re all a little sensitive about these upcoming nuptials is perhaps an understatement. We’re worried sick!
~ Beulah Hayes, acting president of the Society of Reasonable, Respectable Orderly Women (SORROW), and author of The Men of Stone Ridge, tenth edition ~
CHAPTER 1
Lincoln Carver woke to a beautiful naked woman splayed all over him, her long sweet-smelling hair fanned across his chest. Her arm was slung across his waist, one curvy leg between his two legs. Good thing it was his fiancée. Sadie Stephens, also known as the love of his life.
Lincoln Carver was one lucky cowboy and he knew it. He scrubbed a hand down his face. But Jesus. Lucky or not, he was not looking forward to today. His brother would be arriving.
“Baby, wake up.”
“Hmm?”
“Do you know what I have to do today?”
“Make me coffee?”
“Pick Jackson up at the airport.”
“Mm,” she mumbled, and then as if just now hearing him, “Oh.”
“Yup.” She shifted and he tugged her into his arms. “Not going to be a fun time.”
She sat up straight, her hair adorably mussed. “Today! He’s coming back today.”
Uh-oh. He did not like the look on her face, filled with hope and anticipation that had nothing to do with him, or how lucky he might get this morning.
“Sadie,” he said in a warning tone. “We talked about this.”
“I know we did, and I’m not doin’ anything but standing by watching, helpless, as Jackson and Eve are reunited once more.” She smiled and smoothed down her hair. “You can’t stand in the path of true love. All I’m doin’ is providing the perfect opportunity. They’re going to stand up for us at Trinity Church and when they glance at each other across the altar…”
“He’ll reach over and wring her neck?” he provided helpfully.
“No, baby.” She settled back down into his arms, resting her head on his shoulder. “They’re supposed to realize that could have been them at the altar. And that maybe it’s not too late.”
“There’s a little thing you’re forgetting. She ran out on him on the day of their wedding and my brother is not the forgivin’ type.”
“What if he still loves her?” She propped her chin on his chest.
“There you go getting carried away again.”
“I just want them to be as happy as we are. Remember, you didn’t want to fall in love and get married, either? And now look at you.”
“Yeah, now look at me.” He splayed his hands behind his neck. “Mornin’ sex. Afternoon sex. Nighttime sex. I’m really sufferin’ here.”
She thumped his pec. “One-track mind.”
Sadie knew he was kidding. Not that he didn’t enjoy the constant sex, because he sure did, but he loved this woman. He’d do anything for Sadie. But Jackson would be put through enough having to be the best man while Eve was maid of honor. She was Sadie’s best friend. No matter what Jackson said, there was a reason he was still so bitter. He’d gone on to quite a bit of success in Nashville, married a beautiful country singer, even if they divorced after three months. He’d moved on, in other words.
No fool, Lincoln saw quite clearly that both Sadie and his grandmother, Mima, were up to no good. Eve was already living at the Carver house, taking over Mima’s duties since she broke her arm. No one wanted to tell Jackson. Lincoln would, but he figured he’d soften the blow and tell him in person.
“I love you,” Sadie said. “Did I tell you today?”
Yeah, he’d never get tired of hearing that.
“And I love you back.”
And when his fiancée straddled him with a wicked smile, he forgot all about what he would be doing later today, because at least his day was starting off right.
“Thank you for cooking, sugar. Jackson will be expectin’ my banana cream pie for dessert,” Lillian “Mima” Carver said. “Now make sure you beat those egg whites till they’re stiff and beautiful peaks.”
Eve Iglesias did as she was told while Mima issued orders from her seat at the kitchen table and simultaneously read her latest book. Secretly, Eve thought Mima was enjoying her time off from the kitchen maybe a little too much. And she was enjoying her new role as Kitchen Overlord in a rather extravagant and obvious way.
“You sure y’all told Jackson about me?” Eve asked, angling the whisk to beat the heck out of those egg whites. Good therapy.
“Of course, darlin’. I’m sure Lincoln and Sadie told him all about you being in the weddin’.”
“I don’t mean that.”
Eve prayed for a big dose of saintly patience. It was one thing to be paired with her ex-fiancé at the church. Quite another to be staying at the family home in his old bedroom. “Does he know that I’m living here and taking care of you?”
She glanced heavenward. “Lord have mercy, why did I have to break my right arm? Couldn’t it have been my left arm? I’ve got no use at all for my left arm. It could just hang there all day and I wouldn’t know the difference. Sugar, I really hope those pork chops are like my Jackson likes them. Juicy and tender on the inside, golden crispy and crunchy on the outside.”
For crying out loud, the woman should write a cookbook. “Ode to the Beauty of Food” or something. Eve was already hungry enough. She was dying to bite into a chop. She’d had a long enough day with the Harrisons’ colicky mare and the Garcias’ pregnant goat. She’d driven an hour in each direction and with nearly the entire day gone, finally come home to the Double C Ranch in time to cook supper. She didn’t know if she was exhausted or terrified. Possibly both. Either way, the old pebble in her throat took up its former residency. She could barely swallow, much less eat.
A small part of her was certain that Jackson would have long ago forgiven her for ditching him at the altar even if they hadn’t spoken a word since that day. After all, he’d bounced back while the same couldn’t be said about her. She’d managed. Survived. Not one to feel sorry for herself, Eve didn’t want anyone’s pity.
“I followed your directions,” Eve said, opening the lid to peek. “They look good enough to eat.”
“Smell good, too. You’re an angel, that’s what you are. An angel sent from up above.”
“Aw,” Eve said, as she did every time Mima loved on her.
When Eve returned home after graduating from Texas A&M, it was to the surprising forgiveness and open arms of Mima Carver. After her little stunt at Trinity Church, other than her own family, and Sadie, the residents of Stone Ridge turned on her. Some refused to speak to her. The mothers didn’t want Eve dating their sons, because even with the shortage of women, no one should take another chance on a runaway bride. Not that she was interested in dating anyone .
But Sadie understood. Sadie knew what it was like to love a Carver cowboy. In Sadie’s case, she’d pined away for Lincoln for years, until he’d finally noticed her. Now they were getting married and every last desperate man in town could quit hoping there would be a last-minute change in plans. This wedding was happening because Sadie and Lincoln were made for each other.
“You didn’t answer the question,” Eve pressed. “Does Jackson know I’m livin’ here?”
“Well, now, sugar, when would I have time to tell him? I’ve been busy getting my poor arm broken in three places. Havin’ surgery. I think you know all this. Been directing you to cook just the way my cowboys like. Been helping Sadie and her mother plan the wedding. I’ve got no time at all to spare.” She waved her hand in the air dismissively.
Just as Eve suspected. Mortification pulsed through her, followed closely by terror. Jackson would either be cold and standoffish, or madder than a wet hen. Neither would be a whole lot of fun.
“L-Lincoln could have told him.”
“And he probably did. Don’t you worry none. No one’s going to kick you out of my home.”
But this was Jackson. No one had a better cause to be angry and hostile. Even Mima barely spoke a word to Eve right after she’d humiliated Jackson. Then Mima heard what happened to Eve while away at college, and her heart was big enough to forgive.
Just as she put the last of the finishing touches on the large farmer’s dining table that seated twelve, Daisy rushed in.
“Sorry I’m late! There was traffic in Kerrville that slowed me up some.”
“Get washed up for dinner,” Mima said. “Jackson is on his way. Ought to be here any minute.”
Crowding Eve at the sink, Daisy elbowed her. “Bet you’re nervous.”
“You could say that.”
“Don’t worry, I won’t let him kill you.” She put her hands out, karate chop style. “If he tries, I’ll git him for ya.”
“Ha, ha. That’s funny.” Eve hip-checked Daisy.
Daisy was one of several auto mechanics down at Lou’s Auto forty minutes away in Kerrville. With a shortage of jobs in Stone Ridge, most taken up by the men in town, some women moved away. But Eve moved back after college and she and her partner, Annabeth Dantzer, were the only vets in the area.
Eve would have preferred fading into the background, but the men of Stone Ridge made that difficult.
CHAPTER 2
Minutes after the plane taxied to a full stop, Jackson Carver unbuckled, pulled the brim of his black Stetson low, and stood to grab his carry-on from the overhead compartment. Lincoln would pick him up in baggage claim and drive him the sixty miles home.
Two weeks before the wedding day, time he planned to use unwinding. Fresh off a fifty-city tour, he needed a long break. More like a hibernation. His last recording contract fell apart in a mix of creative differences and management issues. The producer they’d hired walked off, and all contracts were dissolved.
“Welcome to Texas,” the pilot said over the intercom and then went on to offer today’s temperatures.
Ah, Texas weather. There were only two seasons in Texas: winter and summer. They both often happened in the same week. To hear the pilot describe it, today was winter even if the calendar said June. Tomorrow, eighties were forecasted. No, Jackson wasn’t exactly a stranger to Texas, but for the past several years he’d resided both on a tour bus and in Nashville.
But he would have preferred a vacation on a deserted island. He wasn’t thrilled to be going back to his hometown and there was little else that could have brought him back other than Lincoln’s wedding. He would have preferred to return once his career took off but that hadn’t happened in eight long years. It was said that an overnight sensation took ten years, so he should be in the seventh inning stretch. Right.
He’d come home for the wedding, but it was also a good chance to unplug. With little to no cell phone reception on their ranch and spotty downtown, he’d be relegated to the home landline. He’d left the number with his manager and musician friends, for emergencies only.
The bright June sunshine pooled over the brim of his hat, casting his view in shadows. His boots thudded across the cement tarmac toward the small building of the regional airport. He followed the crowd to baggage claim, grabbed his guitar case and one other bag, then walked to the curb and scanned the horizon.
Lincoln stood just outside the driver’s side of his truck, wearing a dark leather jacket, Stetson, his long legs spread in a stance. Arms crossed. Big brother smirk firmly in place. Jackson might be known as Nashville’s cowboy among his friends and band members because of his ranching roots, but Lincoln Carver was the real deal.
Jackson stopped short of the truck, his gaze sweeping over the red four-wheel drive glimmering in the sun. Lincoln must have taken it through the car wash recently, because new or not, a truck that lived on their ranch was never this clean. He slid his hand down the hood in admiration.
“You dare pick me up in this piece of shit?” Jackson asked, sarcasm heavy.
Lincoln burst into loud peals of rich laughter and a moment later, he hauled Jackson into a bear hug. A bear hug because the man was a bear. Huge, even to Jackson’s six feet. He’d put on weight, too. And this before his wedding day.
“Missed you, little bro,” Lincoln said.
“Same.”
Jackson wasn’t much of a hugger anymore. He regularly hugged three people in his life: Lincoln, their younger sister, Daisy, and their grandmother, Mima.
“Guessing Sadie’s still a real good cook. You’ve put on a few since I last seen you.”
Linc pulled back to pat his belly. “Guessed right. Enjoyed every last minute of it.”
“Heard you were supposed to gain weight after the wedding.” He snorted.
Lincoln cleared his throat. “Lookin’ on the thin side yourself.”
“Mima will fix that in no time, I’m sure.”
Jackson expected a laugh, but when he didn’t get one, the small icicle that slid over his heart the second he’d heard who the maid of honor would be spread like tentacles. His family, doing their “Carver thing.” Keeping him in the dark like a mushroom. Feeding him just the same. Something was wrong.
“Yeah,” Lincoln said without looking at him. “Uh-huh. She will.”
They grabbed his luggage, threw it in the back, and climbed into the truck for the drive through Texas Hill Country to the small town of Stone Ridge. Their town was unique for a handful of reasons, one of them being that they were so far removed from everything that they tended to rely on each other. Now that he’d traveled all over the country and seen his share of mountain peaks and valleys, he appreciated the big Texas sky far better. The view was at times so open and unobstructed you’d swear the land went on forever. But it only seemed that way.
Jackson’s mind worked overtime with every passing mile.
There surely couldn’t be anything worse than informing Jackson that Eve would be the maid of honor while he’d be the best man. He’d received the news several months ago, and with time, digested the idea. Time to tuck in the anger and hostility, all he had left for Eve. He’d get over his damn self. There could be nothing worse than facing the woman who’d ripped his heart out and stomped all over it, humiliating him in front of a full church. Nothing worse than having to face her after eight years of struggling, and too many record deals that fell through. Nothing worse, other than maybe…
“Shit, Linc. What the hell’s wrong? What did Daisy do? Is it Mima? What are y’all keepin’ from me now?”
“Daisy’s fine. Still fixing engines down at Lou’s. Still got her eye on the rodeo cowboys.” Lincoln kept driving on the main highway headed south. “And Mima…well…she’s alright.”
