Chapter Eight
“G uys? This is Emily,” Liam said by way of introduction as they arrived at a table in Grey’s Saloon where several other couples were already seated at a table drinking cocktails. “You’ve already met Jake, obviously. But, Em, these are some good friends of mine. This is Trey Reyes and his wife, Holly. And here’s the elusive Olivia, Jake’s wife.”
“Hello, then. So, nice to meet you all,” Emily said, shaking hands with his friends who were beaming at her from behind their cocktails.
She hadn’t expected a crowd but was secretly glad for it to take the pressure off her and Liam. And to distract her from Muriel’s phone call.
Olivia was as adorable as her husband only prettier, and she reached to give Emily a kiss on her cheek. “Jake told me all about you and how brave you were this morning. I think I would have fainted dead away on the spot at the sight of that bear so close.”
“Bear?” Holly repeated. “Oh, do tell. This sounds exciting.”
“This is a bit of a sore topic,” Liam said. “Maybe we can just get her a drink first?”
“I’d love one, to be honest,” Emily told him as they scooched into the booth beside the others. There was a band playing in the corner and a handful of people dancing on the dance floor, opposite the tables. It was, naturally, a local country band, Liam told her, but everyone’s favorite. They were playing a cover of a Morgan Wallen song and the crowd at the bar was singing along.
The cocktail waitress danced herself over to their table and took their orders. “And can I just say,” she added before heading back to the bar, “I just love your accent. I had a second cousin twice removed who went to school in England for a while,” she told her. “And when she came back home, I swear she sounded just like you. It was the funniest thing. We never let her live it down. But you’re the real deal, right?”
Emily blushed at the unwarranted attention. “Um, yes. I suppose I am. I don’t really hear it myself. But I guess I do still have an accent.”
Holly reached across the table to Emily after the waitress left. “Don’t let that bother you. Your accent is perfectly lovely. The thing about America is that we have crazy different accents wherever you go, and nobody thinks a thing about it. But someone from Boston tries talking to someone from the Louisiana bayou and they might just need a translator.”
A collective laugh went up from the table.
“True in the UK, as well,” she admitted. “But we’re really all more alike than different, aren’t we?”
Liam took her hand under the table and gave her a squeeze.
A photographer was walking around the restaurant, taking photos of couples and made it to their table.
“A photo for the memory book?” the photographer, who also sounded British said. “I take the photos for free. You can decide later if you want to purchase.”
The other couples posed and smiled for the camera and so she and Liam went along. Honestly, a keepsake of this night together might be wonderful to have. Afterward, the photographer wandered off to shoot other couples, and Emily forgot about him as the talk turned to the morning and the excitement with the bear.
Between cocktails and the meal—which was surprisingly good—Olivia and Holly amused everyone with tales of their daughters’ exploits together on the preschool playground and how the three-year-olds had hatched a plan to corner their favorite little boy behind the monkey bars to kiss him. Luckily for him, the teacher rescued him before they could fully execute their devious plan. But it was all for naught, as the little boy in question sought the girls out later and kissed them on his own. The teacher caught it in a photo which, obviously, made it to their Instagram stories.
Emily had sat dinners like this with her married friends, feeling like an outsider as they discussed their kids, their lives together, and all that came with it. In fact, she’d hosted many of those dinners. Tonight, with Liam sitting beside her though, it felt all right. Like she belonged. Which she certainly didn’t. But they welcomed her into their circle without prejudice and seemed equally invested in hearing about her life working on their exotic idea of Wall Street.
The others goaded Trey into telling the story about a case he’d investigated for a Wall Street banker’s wife, who was living part-time in Montana, and whose cheating husband turned out to be a Russian spy and how Trey’s investigation had led to an entire FBI probe and scandal.
That story felt a little close to the bone for Emily, but she said nothing about the scandal that had shut down her firm. Instead, the other couples at the table were all-in on hearing the subway story of how she and Liam had met. And the crazy meet up after. Liam told that one.
“Your supper club sounds amazing,” Olivia said. “Please, please, please invite us to one when you get back to the city?”
Liam flicked a look at her but said nothing.
“I’m afraid my supper club days are over in New York. Sadly, I’m… I have to move back to London in a couple of weeks.”
Disappointment rumbled through the table and all eyes turned to Liam.
After a beat, he got to his feet. “So, I promised you a line dance.” He offered her his hand and pulled her to her feet. “Who else is with us?”
Leave it to Liam to drag the fun back in. As a group, they joined others on the dance floor where a pretty little blonde was teaching line dance to the uninitiated. While the band took a quick break, she broke down the steps in the dance, which technically required cowboy boots—sadly lacking for her—for the boot-scoot part, but for which her own shoes sufficed perfectly well for the boogie part.
Of course, she was the only one who had no idea what she was doing, but Liam stayed with her, teaching her the steps along with the adorable dance instructor. As the band cranked up again with a cover of “Friends in Low Places,” the dance floor was suddenly crowded with people doing this amazing dance in unison. It didn’t matter if she got the steps wrong. Because they laughed through it all and, eventually, she got the hang of the rhythm of the thing. And it was fun.
Almost as fun as watching Liam dancing from behind, at the way his body moved, and the way his jeans hugged his butt and watching him just enjoy himself. The dancing seemed to liberate something in him as it did in her, as well. All thoughts of her brother and her father disappeared, and she gave herself over to the music. Soon, she was line dancing like a pro—well, that might be an exaggeration—but she felt confident and happy. She did not want this night to end.
They danced and danced and, sometimes, the songs were slow, and couples paired off and did the two-step around the floor.
“This one is definitely above my pay grade,” she whispered to him as he took her in his arms.
“Not to worry. Just follow my lead.”
She did. She tried. And mostly succeeded. But being in his arms, dancing close together, was a revelation. Resting her cheek against his strong shoulder, she smiled, feeling happy.
“Who knew you were such an expert dancer?” she murmured against his ear as they turned on the floor.
“Far from expert. But when you grow up in a place like Marietta, unless you’re riding bulls or cutting horses, you find your fun where you can.”
“ Bulls? When you mentioned the rodeo, I thought you meant roping or bronc riding.”
He grinned down at her. “You’ve seen my buckle, haven’t you? With the bull on it? I’ve worn it just to impress you.”
His wink made her laugh. He wasn’t wearing it tonight, but she did remember that buckle from that day in New York. She’d been clearly distracted looking at him instead of the buckle. “But bulls ? Gad. I admit to watching an event once or twice on the TV. But—good God, Liam. And that’s how you hurt yourself?”
“Everyone hurts themselves,” he said with a chuckle. “And eventually, everyone gives it up. Like I did. But I still think about it. Sometimes, I even dream about it. Olivia’s brother-in-law, Finn Scott, made a good living at it, till he lost a kidney. But now he breeds bucking stock. He’s one of the best and does very well for himself.”
“They breed bulls to be good… buckers?”
He laughed. “Absolutely. They understand the assignment. They’re athletes. Pure and simple. And treated as such. There are world-class bulls pulling in seven figures.”
Impressive.
She held him a little tighter as the song played out, thinking about him on the back of one of those monsters with horns. The thought of it made her shiver. But that was the city girl in her talking. Here, girls swooned over the men who rode bulls, risking life and limb. It was, she reminded herself, a different world. There was so much she didn’t know about him and so much he didn’t know about her. But the more she learned, the more she wanted to know.
He pressed his lips against her hair and inhaled deeply as the song ended. The simple gesture curled low in her belly. He held her hand on the way off the floor and joined the others at the table. The witching hour for babysitters was approaching and Holly and Olivia, along with their husbands, needed to call it a night. Several, including Liam, collected the photos at the front of the restaurant that had been framed with a paper matte. It was a good photo of them and now she wished they had two of them.
“Will we see you this weekend at the Kowalskis’ vow renewal at the ranch?” Olivia asked her as they were leaving.
“Oh, you’re going?”
“They’re old friends of our family. I think everyone here is going.”
“I’m not sure I’m… invited…”
Liam put his arm around her. “You absolutely are. Plus, you get to enjoy an event here at the ranch. Our new chef’s first big shindig.”
That she was looking forward to. A Michelin-star chef catering a wedding? Yes, please.
She leaned into Holly. “This really was such a fun night meeting all of you. I look forward to seeing you all then.”
“Ditto.” Holly kissed her on the cheek as they headed to their trucks and whispered in her ear. “He’s one of the good ones,” she said. “And I can see he’s crazy about you. Hope it all works out for the best.”
“Thanks.” She hugged Holly back and waved goodbye to Olivia.
She could imagine friendships with all of the women she’d met out here in Montana. They were a special breed. There was no competition, no angling for position. Just… friendship. She loved that. But it had been one of the most surprising things since coming here.
As far as things working out with Liam? The pounding dread of her father’s disapproval still loomed at the back of her mind.
But she’d resolved to push it away until she needed to face it. That time would come soon enough. But not yet.
As she and Liam walked back to his pickup, he took her hand in his. Warm and strong, his fingers curled around hers. “Did you have fun?”
“It was brilliant,” she said. “Lovely. I adore your friends.”
“I think the feeling was mutual.”
The air was crisp and a little cold at this time of night and when she looked up, the sky was awash with stars. She’d really never seen anything like it before.
A shooting star flickered in an arching trajectory over the mountains and disappeared. “When I was little,” she told him, leaning against the fender of the truck, “in England, the stars were nothing like this. Lots of cloud cover and the sky was small compared to yours. But I do remember sitting on my mother’s lap and her telling me that wishing upon a star was something I should always do. That it was real. That’s just come back to me now, watching this sky.”
Liam leaned against the truck beside her, looking up. “She was not the pragmatist in the family then?”
“No. That belonged to my father, who drummed such far-fetched ideas out of our little heads early on. I’m afraid there is still a tiny bit of dreamer alive in me, though. Don’t tell my father.”
“I had one of those, too,” he said. “My old man had no patience with dreamers. He was a man of action, whose actions often got him into trouble. Life has been better since he passed. That’s awful of me to say. But for all of us. Especially our mom.”
“I love your mom. Everyone should have one like her.”
“Agree. She’s fond of you, too.”
“She and Ray seem happy.”
“Yeah. That’s a long story. One that nearly turned our family inside out. But they’re madly in love and now that his cancer is finally in remission, things are even better for them. She’s happy after many years of… happiness being elusive. I think they plan to get married someday. But they’re in no rush. With Cooper, Shay, and Ryan living out on Ray’s old ranch now and Ray moving in with Mom, it feels like everyone is finally where they’re supposed to be.”
“And what about you?” she asked.
“Me?” He swallowed thickly. “I’m standing here watching the stars with you. What else could I ask for?”
She rolled toward him and wrapped her arms around him, and he did the same to her. She inhaled his scent deeply. Etching this memory in her mind, she knew full well that their time together was short, and they would likely never get the chance to find whether they were supposed to be. The same universe that had thrown them together was intent on separating them. She couldn’t work out the logic.
But this was the reason she’d come. This, right here. Maybe it was only meant for her to taste this kind of a feeling, not to keep it.
He was, she feared, meant to be an escape, not a landing place.
*
Morning light filtered through the window curtains, aiming a beam at Liam’s left eye. He rolled sideways and blinked, his gaze coming to rest on the soft flow of Emily’s hair on the pillow beside him.
A slow smile tugged at his mouth. She was still asleep, her face turned toward him, hand curled under her chin. She looked… as if she’d been painted there in the morning light with her lashes shadowed against her cheeks, skin pale with sleep. Her lips—those same lips he’d gotten lost in last night—were pursed with sleep as she dreamed about something. He wanted to touch her, reach out his hand and wake her for more of what they’d shared last night, but he felt almost content to watch her sleep.
The memory of last night was still fresh, but somehow felt like he must have dreamed her pulling him into her cabin last night with a kiss that didn’t end until they were on her bed and tugging off their clothes. They’d had more than a few drinks at Grey’s. But no. Clearly, that had really happened. He remembered pausing to watch her strip off her blouse and skirt, his gaze devouring the sight of her half naked until she reached for his shirt and tugged it over his head. Staring at the shape of her breasts filling the black bra she wore and the pique of her nipples as she made her intentions clear.
“Keep up, cowboy,” she teased, reaching for the buckle of his belt to undo it with a flick of her wrist.
He kicked off his boots and shed his black jeans, leaving them in a puddle on the floor before pulling her down beneath him, sprawled on her bed together exploring her skin with his mouth with his last bit of restraint. She tasted… like honey. Like dropping his nose into a bed of clover on a hot summer day. And every inch of her was soft and willing and delicious.
“Em,” he whispered against her neck as she arched her back under him. “I can’t get enough of you.”
She met his gaze then, kissing him into silence, dragging a hand down his back, exploring the crescent-shaped scar her fingers found there. But she didn’t question it. She merely traced it with her fingers until he distracted her by pushing aside her lacy bra to access that nipple with his mouth. Her response was a shaky breath, exhaled slowly.
She murmured, “I used to imagine you doing this sometimes when we were on the phone together.”
He laved her nipple with his tongue, then, “Stop. You’re gonna make me lose it.”
“Sometimes,” she persisted, smiling, “I’d have to resolve that situation myself.” She curled her fingers in his hair as he moaned softly against her breast. “But I must admit, this is… better.”
He smiled against her breast, his hand trailing down the back of her hip until he’d cupped her ass up close to him. “If I’m honest… same. I’ve wanted you since the moment I laid eyes on you. That sounds bad, right? Like… stalker bad?”
She shook her head. “I believe it was I who dragged you into my bedroom, sir.”
“That’s right. You did.” He palmed the skin of her thighs, moving up to the spot between her legs, enjoying the tremor that caused against his hand. “And I’m grateful for that. ’Cause I didn’t want to push you.”
She took his earlobe between her teeth and gave it a little tug, sending a shiver of heat through him.
“ Shhhh ,” she whispered. “You and I? We won’t apologize for this. We’re past doing that. I don’t want to think about tomorrow or the next day. I only want to think about now. Right here. With you.”
He wanted the same, and he knew, full well, that he couldn’t keep her. That she was going to be gone all too soon. But they would have tonight. They would have this. And he wanted to make it good for her and etch it in his memory.
She turned the tables on him, tossing her leg over his and climbing atop him to discover him the way he had her. She tortured him slowly with her tongue, her teeth, and her hands until he couldn’t take any more. He rolled her over and took her with all the tenderness he could muster, until there was no more restraint or holding back.
They made love long into the night, unable to get enough of each other. They moved together as if they’d been designed that way, until they both came in shattering climaxes and lay, exhausted beside one another. And then they lay talking quietly, the way they had across the phone lines, but now, looking into each other’s eyes, sharing things he never thought he’d say to another person.
She talked about her family and the time before her brother became the enemy. When they’d had a semblance of a relationship the way the Hardesty clan had. And Muriel, whom she loved, was separate from that, but caught in the middle sometimes and how Em wished that wasn’t true. And he told her about his troubles with Will and how they’d let all that go finally, but how he wished he could still resolve things about his father who was gone and hardly missed by any of them.
They talked and made love and finally slept and he dreamed about her walking through his meadow beside a little girl—not Lolly, somehow, he knew that—but a child that looked like her but with his eyes that sparkled as she chased butterflies beside Em.
Now, as he stared at her in the morning light, he reached over to brush a strand of hair off her cheek. Her eyes fluttered open and she smiled.
“Hi.” The word was groggy and sweet.
“Morning,” he said, still unable to take his eyes off her.
She reached over to brush the hair from his eyes as well. “Did you sleep at all?”
“Some.” He grabbed her hand and pressed a kiss against her palm.
“Mmm. Me, too. Do you suppose they’ll all guess what we’ve been up to?”
“Since my truck is still parked outside your door… probably. But I don’t think anyone will be surprised.”
She blushed a little. Then her eyes widened. “What time is it?”
He reached for his cell phone and the screen lit up. “Almost nine.”
She jumped up, dragging the sheet with her from beneath his blanket. “I promised your mom I’d teach her how to make that flourless chocolate cake this morning! Look at me! I have to shower and—”
He sat up and grabbed her hand, pulling her to him for another kiss. “Don’t worry. It’s fine. She won’t say a thing. I promise.” He patted her on the bottom. “You shower, I’ll make coffee. And something to eat.”
“Thanks.” She stopped and turned back to him, clutching the sheet to her. “Last night? It was… wonderful.”
He grinned with a quick nod. It was. “Go.”
*
Liam, bless him, didn’t want her to face his mother on her own, so he walked over with her to the house. Tara and Sarah were in the kitchen, going over something on Tara’s laptop while Lolly sat under a mobile on her play mat. One of the dogs was lying beside her, following her every move with a protective eye and occasionally nuzzling her.
Sarah straightened. “Oh, good morning, you two.” Her smile was a little overbright to be subtle.
“Morning,” Liam said, giving her a quick buss on the cheek and a warning look close-up.
“Hey, Tara. What are you two up to this morning?”
With a sideways look between Emily and Sarah, she said, “Tweaking the website is all. Your mom had some great ideas about the font and the branding.”
“Did she?”
“Yes, I did,” she said proudly. “At least Tara thinks they’re good ideas. Emily? Hope you’re well rested after your adventure with the bear yesterday. We heard all about it.”
Neither of them looked well rested. “I feel great. Don’t you, Liam?”
“Never better.” He sent his mother a narrow warning look.
“And the bear,” Emily went on, “was quite terrifying, but your son is the reason we’re still standing today.”
“The reason we’re still here is that you didn’t panic,” he said. “Pure and simple.”
“Whoever was responsible for you two standing in my kitchen this morning, I am grateful,” Sarah told them, reaching out to take Emily’s hand.
“It was an incredible day,” Emily said, “meeting Deke and his birds, flying around the mountains in Jake’s helicopter…”
“That is on my bucket list. A helicopter ride with Jake. He was a helicopter pilot in Afghanistan, you know, and probably one of the best pilots out there,” Sarah mused aloud.
“He did take a couple of years off my life zooming down those canyons,” Emily admitted.
“You’re serious, Mom? I’ll arrange it. Whenever you want,” Liam said, giving her a kiss on the cheek.
“Really? You are my favorite child,” she teased.
“Yeah, yeah.” Unconvinced, Liam laughed. “Now, you all have fun doing your chocolate cake thing. I’ve got to do some work out at the small cabin this morning, then we’re heading up to the round barn to finish the decorations for the Kowalskis’ vow renewal on Saturday.” He gave Emily a secret touch on her backside. “See you later?”
She nodded. “You will.”