Epilogue
Sharp
The sun glowed red behind my eyelids, and I forced my eyes open, knowing it was going to be a little too bright. I squinted, then rolled my shoulders back, knowing today was going to be a long day. Thankfully, we had a plan, and I could get away at the end a little bit early if I hedged my bets.
I groaned, feeling far different today than I had the first time I had done this.
After all, it wasn’t every day that a man needed to head to a church for his wedding.
Of course, we weren’t going to an actual church this time. We weren’t taking any chances with anything being too similar to the first time I had been thrown into this.
“Okay, you have your tux on, you’re wearing your boots, we have your fancy hat because of course you need the fancy hat for the wedding, that way everybody can still be surprised when you go bald later.”
“Seriously?” I asked, as Gwen began to pace, checking off points on her list, on her actual godforsaken clipboard.
It was an odd rose-gold color that matched the wedding colors that Jamie and I had chosen, and she was in full wedding-planning mode.
It didn’t matter that we’d hired an actual planner who worked with the ranch often, since everybody had full-time jobs, sometimes two in Jamie’s case, but Gwen needed to be a part of it.
I loved my baby sister. Though she was annoying the fuck out of me right now.
“I do not have a receding hairline.”
“So you say. But if you wear your hat enough, you’re not going to truly see it.”
“I’m not always wearing the hat.”
“No, sometimes you wear your ball cap.” Galen winked at me as he played with the rim of his own hat. “Not to mention, I heard the girls saying that guys looked hotter when they wore their hat backwards. So remember that if you and Jamie ever fight and you need to get out of something.”
“That’s your advice? Put your hat backwards so you could what, swoon the anger out of her?” Ewan asked with a cluck of his tongue.
“What? It sounds like a good plan.”
“At this point I’m taking notes. The Montgomerys can be scary.” I held up my fist, and Ewan bonked it, shaking his head. “They enjoy us saying that, or I’d hide from everybody for even daring to use those words.”
“I wonder if there’s a Montgomery cousin for me,” Galen said as he ran his hand over his newly shaved face.
We all usually wore beards, but he’d shaved it to try something different.
When I had called him an infant, saying that he looked like a ballsac, he punched me. But that was what brothers were for.
“By the way, do not touch any one of Jamie or Livvy’s cousins,” I ordered Galen.
My brother held up both hands. “What? Are you telling me they’re off limits? Because telling me they’re off limits is a problem.”
“I love that you act like you’re some playboy, when you’re nothing of the sort,” Gwendolyn said, as she pointed her pen at him. “But seriously, don’t touch a Montgomery cousin this weekend. We want this wedding to actually go off without a hitch.”
The way that she emphasized the word this made me narrow my gaze. “We are all aware that the first wedding wasn’t my fault, right?”
“The way that it ended up? No,” Ewan began.
“But the fact that you were even going to marry that woman to begin with?” Gwen shook her head. “That’s all on you.”
My shoulders fell. “Fine. I promise I won’t be stupid again.”
“Can you please write that on your handy-dandy clipboard?” Galen asked, tapping his fingers on the edge of the chair. “We need to make sure that everybody remembers that.”
“Then why is everyone picking on me? It’s my wedding day.”
“It’s Jamie’s wedding day. You just happen to be there.
” Gwendolyn frowned. “Or at least, I hope you get there. Okay, each of us will be driving, and we’ll have Ewan in the front, leading.
I’ll be in the center with the spare truck just in case we run out of gas or something, and Galen will be taking up the rear, just in case both trucks fail.
And Galen, if you make a taking-up-the-rear joke right now, I will throw my fancy clipboard at you. ”
Galen shut his mouth, his eyes dancing, and I met Ewan’s gaze.
I loved my family, I really did. The McBrides were something else, and when you added all our cousins together? Well, we couldn’t rival the Montgomerys, but we came pretty close.
“I will walk through fire to get to this wedding. And we’re getting married at the creek right along the edge of the property. I’m not going to be late, I’m not going to miss out. I’m going to marry Jamie Montgomery, and there’s nothing anyone can do about it.”
“That’s what I like to hear,” a deep voice said from behind me, and I whirled to see the big, tatted, and bearded Austin Montgomery practically filling up the doorway.
“Sir. Well. I’m glad you heard that part of the conversation,” I said with a laugh.
“I figured you might be nervous, but I’m pretty nervous too. Giving away my baby girl isn’t easy.”
Galen whistled beneath his breath, and I resisted the urge to steal Gwen’s clipboard and throw it at him.
“I’m just grateful that Jamie said yes. Because we both know if you were actually going to give her away, she’d run down the aisle because she doesn’t believe anyone can give her away.”
“That’s my baby girl. I’m just here to make sure that you get to the ceremony. In fact, do you mind riding with me? You know, just so we could have that father, son-in-law time?”
Panic nearly seeped in, and I heard more than saw Ewan and Galen fist-bump each other, and I swallowed hard.
“No problem. As long as I get to Jamie, that’s fine with me.”
“Good. Are you guys ready?”
“All ready to go,” Gwen said as she tapped her clipboard.
“You guys will stay up front, and we’ve got a plan.
We’ll just have Ewan follow you, and we’ll make it to the wedding in no time.
Now, we have our hats, suits, and I look amazing in my suit, by the way,” she said as she slid her hands down her hips.
“And because I know if I even look at a Montgomery man in any sort of way my brothers will murder them, I’ll just have to find a townie. ”
“Finding someone in Clover Lake isn’t going to help you either,” Ewan snarled, and I just shook my head, before following Austin to his truck.
They’d driven up from Denver, and I was forever grateful that these were going to be my in-laws. They were hilarious, caring, and brought an exorbitant amount of cheese. I didn’t quite understand it, but I didn’t mind. I’d learn to love cheese with the quiet abandon that they did.
I slid into the truck, my knees shaking. “Come on, let’s do this.”
“Nervous?”
“Just a little. Then again, I think I just want to get there, make sure there isn’t an act of God trying to separate us, and get through my vows without stumbling.”
“As someone who made more than a few mistakes back in my day, I understand that. But you’re taking my heart with you. I hope you know that.” Austin pulled out onto the main road, our parade behind us, and I swallowed hard.
“I get it. I really do. I know I seem fickle because this is my second wedding, but I’m going to make this one work.”
“You had your reasons for the first one, and I understand wanting to make the family proud. You have no idea. But I also see the way you look at my daughter. And the way that she looks at you. This just means we have more of a reason to come visit Wyoming.”
I smiled then, keeping an eye out on the rolling clouds. It better not rain today.
“At some point the Montgomerys are going to outnumber the McBrides in Wyoming.”
“That would be a shame,” Austin teased. Then he frowned and tapped something on his dash.
“What is it?” I asked, alarm shooting through me.
“It’s nothing. Well hell. Hold on.” Then Austin Montgomery, my hopefully soon-to-be father-in-law, pulled to the side of the road, confusing the hell out of me.
“Austin? Are you okay? Do you need to call someone?”
“Just wait a minute. I’ve got this.”
But he didn’t do a damn thing. Instead he let the truck run idle, as Ewan, Galen, and Gwen, waved as they passed us.
“What’s going on?”
“Hold on, can you get out for a second? I’ll meet you around the engine.”
Wondering what the hell was happening, and more than a little confused, I hopped out of the truck and closed the door. Then the damn man sped off, and I took a step back, grateful he didn’t hit me.
I stared at the dust plume, open mouthed, as the man waved at me, and kept moving down the road, following my traitorous siblings.
“What the fuck?”
They had all left me on the side of the road on my wedding day? I didn’t want to reminisce about this. I wanted to be with Jamie. What the hell?
I looked both ways, not seeing a single fucking car, and realized I was going to be late. I was going to be a runaway groom not once, but twice in my life. Jamie was never going to forgive me. Hell, I was never going to forgive her father or my siblings again.
Then I turned at the sound of an engine and saw a familiar SUV driving up. My jaw fell as Jamie pulled up next to me and rolled down the window.
“Hey stranger, need a ride?”
I licked my lips, my mouth suddenly dry, as I stared at the love of my life, in a soft and lacy white gown, flowers woven into her updo’d braid.
She had her makeup all glammed out but still looked like the Jamie I loved. Her hot-pink streaks wove into her white-blonde hair perfectly, and I realized that she wore my grandmother’s necklace.
“Jamie. Thought it was bad luck to see the bride before the wedding?”
“I figured it cancels out the bad luck of the groom being left behind on his wedding day. What do you think? Am I adorable?”
“You are the sexiest, most adorable, most amazing woman I’ve ever met. But what the fuck?” I asked, shaking my head. “I thought your dad was going to kill me and bury me in a hole.”
“We could have had any of your siblings do it, but Dad really wanted to be part of it. Now hop on in, and now I get to drive you to the wedding.”
I shook my head, got into the SUV, and leaned forward, capturing her lips in a kiss that nearly sent us both over the edge.
“You’re going to need to redo your makeup,” I growled.
“If I didn’t know for a fact that your sister had circled around and is on her way back up the road, I’d show you that I’m not actually wearing panties under this dress.”
She winked as she said it, and I groaned, my dick hard, and she pulled out onto the road.
“You are a witch.”
“I’m about to be your witch. Let’s go get married, Sharp McBride.”
“Jamie Montgomery, you are my insanity. And I love you.”
“And I love you too. And I promise never to run away.”
“Even accidentally,” I muttered, then leaned to the side, kissed her on the cheek, and ignored all of my family as they parked on the road near the creek, honking horns and shouting at us.
I was marrying into a crazy family, but the good part was, it seemed that my family was just as insane.
It was a match made in Wyoming heaven.
The final book in the series is next with His Practically Fake Proposal!