Accidental Mail Order Bride by J. S. Cooper

Chapter Twenty-One

“I’m so sorrywe didn’t get to go to the bar last night,” Beau told me after breakfast. “I really didn’t anticipate that we’d have to work after dinner.” He shook his head. “It’s just a really crazy time for us right now.”

“Yeah, Austin was telling me something about you speaking to developers?”

“Yeah,” he sighed. “We don’t really want to sell any of the land, so we’re coming up with an idea where we might open like, a dude ranch for tourism, but we’re having a hard time figuring out exactly what we want to do.” He sighed. “I guess that’s what comes when you have a lot of land.”

“I guess you don’t make that much money from ranching?”

“Not anymore, unfortunately. Times are changing, and it’s really hard to get good help around here …But enough about the family business. I was thinking maybe we could go to the bar tonight?”

“That would be fun. If you’re sure?”

“Yeah, definitely, and I spoke to Wyatt, and he said that he finally got a hold of Sadie.” He chuckled. “And I guess she’s down to join us as well.”

“Oh, that’s cool.”

“Let’s eat dinner there, give you a change from Mom’s cooking.”

“Oh, your mom’s an amazing cook. I don’t mind staying here for dinner.”

“Oh, I know, but sometimes you need a break.” He grinned. “Or, I should say sometimes I need a break.”

“Oh yeah?” I looked at him in surprise. I would have loved to have had a homemade meal for dinner every night.

“I love my mom and I love my family, but sometimes I just need a break, you know?” He gave me an awkward look. “I mean, I’m really glad that you’re here and I hope you’re having a fun time, but you have to admit, it’s kind of awkward.”

“Yeah, I guess so. I mean, I guess I knew what I was getting into. You didn’t even know that I was coming.”

“It’s not even that,” he said. “It’s just …” He sighed. “Anyway, what do you think of Wyatt and Sadie?”

“Oh, I think they’re great.”

“And what’d you think about Austin?” he said, as if he didn’t really care.

“Oh, he’s really nice too. I really enjoyed meeting your family.”

“Yeah, I can’t wait for you to meet my other brothers. I am the oldest, but we’ve all got our own idiosyncrasies, you know?”

“Oh, I bet. Who is your mom’s favorite? Or does she not have a favorite?”

“If she does, she hasn’t told us.” He gave me a wink. “Though I’m pretty sure it’s me.”

I smiled. “Oh, why do you say that?”

“Oh, just because.” He grinned and shook his head. “Okay, I’m not being honest. I doubt that I’m my mom’s favorite. I’m pretty sure that’s Wyatt.”

“Why’s that?”

“Because he’s the baby, and aren’t babies always the favorite?”

“I guess so. I’m an only child, so I wouldn’t really know.”

“Oh yeah, you are, aren’t you? Your parents passed away recently, huh?”

“Kind of. My mom passed away. I don’t know where my dad is.”

“Oh, that sucks. Deadbeat, huh?”

“You could say that.”

“Ah, parents,” he shook his head. “So, I was thinking that maybe we could go out around six o’clock?”

“Oh, okay.” I was slightly taken aback that he didn’t ask me more about my mom’s passing, but maybe he didn’t want to pry.

“So, we can eat at the bar. It’s just regular bar food, or we can go somewhere else to eat and then go to the bar for drinks?”

“It’s up to you. I don’t really mind.”

“Yeah, maybe we’ll just go to the bar for everything. I like bar food sometimes.”

“Yeah, me too.”

“Okay then, so I’m going to go to work and be ready for six.”

“Okay. Bye, Beau.” I gave him a little wave and then walked back to my bedroom. I saw that I had a missed call from Olivia, so I called her back quickly.

“Hey, Lucy,” she answered the phone after two rings. “Guess what? I booked my ticket!”

“No way, already?”

“Yeah. I figured why let you have all the fun?” She laughed. “I’m going to be coming in a couple of days.”

“Oh, awesome! Just text me your flight information, and I’ll give it to Amelia, and Ranger will come and pick you up at the airport.”

“Sounds good. I’m really excited. So how’s it going with you and Austin?”

“Well, I thought it was going kind of well, but who knows? He actually went to the log cabin.”

“What do you mean he went to the log cabin?”

“I mean he left and he went to the log cabin to live because he needed to think.”

“Think about what?”

“I don’t know. I didn’t even know he was going. He didn’t even tell me.”

“Oh, snap. And what did Beau say?”

“He didn’t really seem to say anything,” I sighed. “Olivia, I’m really not feeling it with Beau, you know? I just don’t feel like there’s any real interest there on either of our sides. Like we’re doing what we should be doing, but I don’t think we’re doing it because we’re trying to get to know each other, you know?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, he invited me to go to the bar tonight, and we’re going to go, but it doesn’t feel like a date, even though technically I suppose it is a date.”

“Why is he going along with it, then?”

“I think honestly he just really loves and respects his mom, and I think he’s trying to honor her by at least take me on some dates to show that he tried, even though I don’t really think he’s interested at all.”

“Oh man, do you think he’s gay?”

“No, I don’t think he’s gay. Why would you say that?”

“I mean, because he’s a really good-looking guy, and you’re quite beautiful. So if he’s not interested in you then—”

“Not every guy is interested in me. You know that.”

“Well, I know you say every guy isn’t interested in you, but pretty much every guy I’ve met that has met you has wanted to be with you.”

“Olivia, you’re far too kind, but that’s totally untrue. There are more guys that don’t want to be with me that do.”

“Maybe.” Olivia didn’t sound convinced.

“And anyway, what are you talking about? You’re absolutely gorgeous yourself. You have men fawning over you everywhere you go.”

“That’s not exactly true,” she snorted. “But thank you for the compliment.”

“What? I mean it.”

“And that’s why I love you. I’m so excited to see you.”

“I’m so excited to see you as well. I can’t believe you’re coming to Montana.”

“I can’t believe that you’re already in Montana. We’re crazy.”

“No, we’re not crazy. And who knows, the other brothers will be coming home. Maybe one of them will catch your eye and you’ll fall for him.”

“Yeah. Maybe. I mean, if they all look like Beau, I’m not going to say no.”

“You really think Beau is cute, huh?”

“He’s gorgeous, Lucy. What are you even talking about?”

“I don’t know. I’m just surprised that you think he’s gorgeous.” I paused. I hadn’t heard Olivia use those words to describe a man in a really long time. Was she interested in Beau? Was that why she was coming? Obviously, Olivia didn’t even know Beau, so she couldn’t be that interested in him.

Or could she?

I thought back to the day she’d seen him on video chat. Was that when she had said she was going to come to visit me, or had she said she was going to come to visit me beforehand? I couldn’t remember, but now I felt even more anxious. Because if Olivia was interested in Beau—like seriously interested—then what was I doing here?

“Hey, I have a question for you, Olivia,” I said, thinking out loud.

“Yeah?”

“If I were to tell you that Beau was going to arrange a day for us to go mushroom foraging, would you be down?”

“Oh my God, of course. You know I would. I love mushrooms. Would we be able to eat the mushrooms that we found?” she said excitedly. “Like, could we cook some dishes? That would be so cool.”

“Yeah, I’m not sure, but maybe.”

“But you hate mushrooms, Lucy. Why would you want to go mushroom foraging?”

“Oh, I was just thinking maybe it would be interesting.”

“I guess. I mean, if you’re down to do it, I would definitely go. It sounds like a lot of fun.”

“Yeah, it does. Well, I’m going to call you later. Okay? Text me over the details, and I’ll give them to Amelia and Ranger.”

“Okay. Thanks, Lucy. Tell them I said thank you so much. Also, what should I bring them to thank them?”

“Oh, you don’t have to bring them anything.”

“I do. I mean, it’s one thing for you to be there because you were invited. I’m kind of just showing up as your friend, and I don’t want them to think that I’m just some sort of grifter, you know?”

“Oh, they won’t think you’re a grifter, I promise.”

“But I’d like to.”

“Well, I’ll ask Beau and see what he thinks. Okay?”

“Thanks, girl. Okay, speak to you later. Bye.”

I hung up the phone and stared out of the window at the Montana Rockies in the distance. Such a majestic beautiful sight, so different from New York City. I wondered what Olivia would think when she got here. Would she fall in love with it as I had? Would she fall in love with one of the brothers? I sighed and stood up and headed to the kitchen as I heard my phone beep with the airplane details.

“Hey, Amelia.”

“Hi there,” she said from the sink. She was scrubbing the dishes to put into the dishwasher.

“So, my best friend, Olivia, actually got a ticket already. I hope that’s okay?”

“Oh, of course, dear. The more the merrier. When will she be here?”

“In a couple of days. If you can’t go to the airport, I can just get a taxi and pick her up. Oh, I still have my rental car.” I slapped my hand to my mouth as I remembered. “Oh gosh, I need to return that. They’re charging me per day, and I haven’t even been using it.”

“So here’s what we’ll do, dear,” she said. “I’ll have Ranger drive me in one car, and then I’ll have Beau drive your rental back to the airport, and then we’ll drop off your rental, and then all of us can drive back in the Escalade.”

“Are you sure? And I don’t want to put Beau out. I don’t even know if he knows that Olivia is coming.”

“Oh, I’m sure it’ll be fine, dear. I’m very excited to meet your friend.”

“Thanks, Amelia.” I smiled at her warmly. “You’re amazing. I really don’t know how to thank you for everything you’ve done for me.”

“Oh, my darling, I’ve done nothing for you. You have just done so much for me.”

I started to feel guilty then because, well, I hadn’t actually done anything, and it didn’t look like she was going to her dreams coming true. I wasn’t interested in being with Beau, and I didn’t think Beau was interested in being with me either.

“Amelia, I know you sent for me because you hoped that Beau and I would make a connection, but,” I paused, looking for the words, “I—”

“Oh, give it time, dear. You two have just met. It’s overwhelming. I know my sons and … Well, let’s just say that I know that you’re made for one of them. I can already see you as a part of the family, my dear Lucy.”

“Oh, well thank you, Amelia, but Beau and I—”

“Don’t worry about Beau, my dear. Whatever’s to be will be. True love will find its way in the end.” She turned back around and smiled, her eyes twinkling. “Now, you want to go down to the stables and feed the horses?”

“Um, I can. I don’t really know how.”

“There’re some ranch hands down there. They’ll show you the way.”

“Okay, sounds good.”

“Have a great day, Lucy, and I’ll see you for lunch.”

“Okay. Bye, Amelia. Thanks again.”

I walked towards the stables. I was actually excited to do more on the ranch. I was excited to learn the ropes, and as I saw two of the ranch hands shoveling manure, I knew that I didn’t have to be an expert to get my hands dirty. I could shovel. I could feed horses. That was easy.

I thought about Amelia’s words, that true love would find its way. I felt like she was really, really hopeful that Beau and I were going to get together. But I just wasn’t interested in him in that way. He was a nice guy. He’d be a good friend, but romantically? I didn’t want to kiss him. I didn’t want to touch him, and I’d already kissed his brother. Shit, I’d fallen for his brother before I’d even reached the ranch. I knew that sounded crazy, but it was kind of true. That kiss in the bar had knocked me off my feet, and now I found myself in a very complicated situation.

* * *

As we pulled up to the bar, I realized that it was the same bar I’d gone to the first day I’d arrived. I only hoped that Chip wasn’t there. I really didn’t want him making any comments about me and Austin. As soon as Beau parked, Sadie and Wyatt jumped out of an old Chevy pickup truck parked nearby and headed towards us.

“Hey, Lucy. So good to see you,” Sadie said with a huge smile as she walked up to me.

“Hi, good to see you, as well.”

“I’m so excited to show you to the bar. It’s so cool here.”

“I’ve actually been here before,” I told her, hoping she didn’t ask me too much information.

“Oh, really? When? I didn’t know you guys had gone to the bar.” She looked back at Wyatt. “Wyatt, why didn’t you tell me you guys headed to the bar”?

“We didn’t head to the bar. At least she didn’t head with me.” He looked at Beau, “Did you guys go to the bar?”

“No, we didn’t. You stopped by here on your first day, right?” Beau looked at me.

“Yeah. I came because … this is so embarrassing … but I lost the address, and I was hoping that someone at the bar would know where Horseshoe Ranch was.”

Sadie burst out laughing. “This is totally a ‘Tell me you live in a small city without telling me you live in a small city’ sort of thing.”

“What are you talking about?” Wyatt asked, with confusion in his eyes.

“Haven’t you ever seen any of those Tik Tok videos?” She looked at him. “People are always saying, ‘Tell me your man is cheap without telling me your man is cheap’ or “Tell me your daughter is messy without telling me your daughter is messy.’”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Wyatt just shook his head.

“Okay, well, whatever.”

“So, ready for a drink?” Sadie asked me with a bright smile.

I noticed the way that Wyatt was looking at her. He was smitten, even if he didn’t realize it. I would love for a man to look at me the way that Wyatt looked at Sadie, and to think they didn’t even realize that they were made for each other. How crazy was that? “I am absolutely dying for a drink. Thank you very much.” I looked back at Beau. “What about you, Beau?”

“Of course, I’m always up for a beer,” he chuckled.

I saw Chip behind the counter soon as soon we entered, and I stifled a groan as we walked up to a table. Hopefully, he wouldn’t notice me, or at least not say anything if he did.

“Hey there, Beau. Hey, Wyatt,” Chip shouted from the bar. And then his gaze landed on me and his face split into a grin. “So, I see you found Horseshoe Ranch then?”

“Yes, I did. Thank you.”

“Hey, Sadie,” Chip went on. “Surprised to see you here again so soon.”

“Hah, hah, me too,” she laughed.

“What’s he talking about?” Wyatt frowned.

“I came here on my date, remember?”

“You came to the bar on a date?” Wyatt sounded kind of pissed.

“Yeah. Why?”

“Why would you go to the bar on a date? You could get drunk and a guy could end up taking advantage of you.”

“You’re not my big brother or my dad, Wyatt. Chill. I was fine. I had a glass of wine and that was it.”

“Uh huh.” Wyatt just shook his head. “Beau, tell Sadie don’t do anything so stupid next time she goes on a date.”

“Sadie, don’t do anything so stupid next time you go on a date,” Beau said with a grin. Okay. Let me head up to the bar and speak to Chip and order us some drinks. What do you guys want?”

“I’ll take a Heineken,” Wyatt said.

Sadie looked at me. “You want to share a bottle of wine, Lucy?”

“I wouldn’t say no,” I nodded.

“What’s your favorite?” she asked me.

“I’m pretty flex. I can do white or red or rosé.”

“Let’s do a Malbec,” she said to Beau. “Two glasses, and let’s get some tater tots, as well.” She looked over at Wyatt and poked him. “You want some tater tots, Wyatt?”

“I ate already.”

“So, you’re saying no, you don’t want any?”

“I mean, I could always have tater tots, you know that,” he chuckled. “Fine. Let’s get some tater tots.”

“Sounds good to me.” I watched as Beau walked up to the bar. “So, this is a really cool place. I guess this is you guys’s local?”

“Yeah,” Sadie nodded. “We’ve been coming here since we were 19.”

“Really?”

“Well, we weren’t drinking or anything. Chip wouldn’t serve us alcohol,” she sighed. “But he would serve us Cokes and bar food, and, you know, we’d play darts. They’ve got a mechanical bull at the back, as well, that’s fun to ride on. You should go on it sometime.”

“Oh, yeah. That sounds like it would be really fun.” I thought about Austin and wished he was here with us. I’d love to see him on the mechanical bull.

“Oh, yeah, and they also have line dancing here.”

“Do you guys line dance a lot?” I asked her.

“Oh, yeah. I love to,” Sadie said. “Wyatt, not so much. Can you two-step, Lucy?”

“I think so.”

“I really love line dancing,” Sadie said.

“What are your favorite songs to line dance to?”

“Well, if I’m honest, I really love Achy Breaky Heart by Billy Ray Cyrus.”

“I remember that song. That was a good one.”

“And then do you know Boot Scootin’ Boogie?”

“I’m not sure if I do.”

“It’s by Brooks and Dunn. You have to know it.”

“Not really.”

Wyatt then interjected into the conversation. “Sadie also loves to dance to What the Cowgirls Do.”

“Yeah, I do,” she laughed. “You know that one?”

“No, I don’t think so,” I shook my head.

“It’s by Vince Gill. You have to know Vince Gill. Can you do the Cowgirl Twist?”

“Honestly, I’ve never heard of it.”

Sadie started laughing. “Sorry. I forget you’re from New York City. I guess there’s not a lot of country dancing going on in New York City?”

“Not really,” I laughed. “I like to dance, though, so I’d be open to going out and doing some dancing, maybe if they have like a beginners’ night?”

“Oh, every Thursday night is line dancing night, and there’s always someone willing to teach. Heck, I’d teach you. You want to go next Thursday?”

“Yeah, that would be great. My friend Olivia will be here by then. She can come as well.”

“Oh. Three hot single girls on the prowl,” Sadie wiggled her eyebrows.

“Excuse me,” Wyatt frowned. “I don’t think so.”

“What do you mean, ‘You don’t think so?’”

“It’s not just going to be three single girls on the prowl. I’m going to be coming, and I’m sure Beau will want to come, as well.”

“What? You never like to go line dancing.” Sadie looked at him. “What is your problem?”

“I don’t have a problem, Sadie. What? You don’t want me to go line dancing with you now, just so you can pick up some men.”

“I’m not trying to pick up any men, Wyatt. I’m just—”

I decided it was time to change the subject before things got heated. “Well, guys, while I don’t mean to interrupt, but I was wondering if you could, perhaps, tell me more about, um …”

“About what?” Wyatt looked relieved.

“The cabin where Austin is.”

“The cabin?” Wyatt looked surprised now. “Austin? I thought you were going to ask us questions about Beau, seeing as he’s at the bar right now.”

“Oh, well … I was going to ask you questions about Beau later.”

“Huh,” Sadie said, looking at me through narrowed eyes. “So you want to know about Austin and the log cabin, huh?”

“Well, just more about the ranch and everything. I mean, I don’t really care about Austin, in particular.” I paused, feeling the weight of Sadie’s gaze on me. I had a feeling she could tell that I was more interested in Austin than Beau, but if she was going to be my friend, maybe it would be good to have her as an ally so that I could get more information about the family out of her.