Chapter 23

Cord Behr guided his beautiful wife down the aisle to where their sister-in-law sat. Jane sighed as she sat beside Molly, and she looked at Cord. "I'll save you a spot, baby."

"Thanks." He swept his lips across her silken hair, then turned and headed back the way he'd come. Keith had asked him to be a groomsman, and Cord couldn't say no to that. He didn't even want to.

He joined up with Mission and Travis, and the three of them re-entered the big administration building at Blackhorse Bay. Lindsay and Keith were getting married outside on the balcony, which had been decorated with flowers, ribbons, and other frilly things to the point of perfection.

Inside, Mission led them down a hall and into a room, where Keith stood in front of his father with his hand out. Matt Whettstein worked on his cufflink, and Cord took the cowboy hat Boone gave him.

"To keep?" he asked.

"Yep," Boone said. The idea of getting a free cowboy hat would've once made Cord weep in gratitude. Now, he still felt the same feelings, but he'd grown more used to the abundance in his life. He tried to list at least three things each evening that he was grateful for, because he never wanted to get to a place where he thought he was smarter than God. Where he thought he deserved the good things he enjoyed in his life.

He always wanted the Lord to know how incredibly grateful he was, through good times and bad. Like Jane's pregnancy, he thought.

She had just over three months left until she'd deliver their son, and Cord couldn't wait—and not only because he wanted to be a father so badly. But because her pregnancy had not been easy for her. She'd been sick every day, on some level, since the very beginning, and he needed her to be done with the pain. The exhaustion. The throwing up.

But every night, Cord thanked Jesus for the baby. For the fact that Jane had held onto her pregnancy, and that they got to be parents together.

Cord switched out his current cowboy hat and replaced it with the matching one he and the other groomsmen would wear as they walked down the aisle. Keith finished getting dressed; he called everyone over to him; Cord hugged him tight and said, "You're going to love being married."

"My daddy's got something to say," Keith said, ever the picture of calmness and coolness. The only time Cord had ever seen him without the classic, stoic look on his face was when he'd left the farm they'd both been working for years.

Another hard thing Cord understood. While he'd left the Hammond Family Farm for an even bigger dream—opening and running his own mechanic shop—it had still been incredibly difficult.

"Thanks for being here for Keith," Matt said. He'd been the best boss a man could have, and Cord loved him with the deepest part of his heart. "He's waited a while for this day, and it means a lot to him—and me—to see him surrounded by such good men."

Matt cleared his throat. "I never dreamed I'd be standing here with so many of you. See, I left Montana with exactly two people, and I didn't think I'd ever let anyone else in again. But the Hammonds broke down the door, and all of you walked right in like you belonged in my life and my children's lives. And you know what? You do."

He gave them all a smile that shook a little bit. Cord ducked his head, his own emotions beginning to swell. "We love you," Matt said. "We've enjoyed working with each of you over the years, and while so many of you have moved on to something else—and we find ourselves moving on too—we will always be family." His voice broke on the last word.

Cord looked up then, and Boone took a tiny step forward. "Amen to everything my brother said," Boone boomed. "Now, it's time to get this man married." He grinned and clapped his hand on Keith's shoulder.

Keith smiled too, and he hugged his father hard while Boone herded everyone into the line where they belonged. From what Cord understood, Lindsay didn't have a lot of family, so Cord had no idea what the bridesmaid situation would be.

He stood back a few people, and he moved into the hall when everyone else did. Matt and Boone headed out to the wedding, and then Cord looked over to the woman standing beside him. "I'm Cord Behr," he said.

"Alicia," she said. "I'm one of Lindsay's neighbors. Well, I was. Out by Twilight Fields."

"Sure," Cord said. "We're, uh, my wife and I bought her farm. So we'll be neighbors soon enough."

Alicia's eyes brightened and sharpened at the same time. "Oh, you bought it."

"Yeah," Cord said, glancing up to Travis. He knew Cord and Jane had purchased Twilight Fields from Lindsay, but Cord wasn't sure who else did. They hadn't exactly broadcasted that fact.

But Cord wanted more land than the suburban home where he and Jane had been living since their wedding last year. He wanted horses and the ability to have more dogs, and Jane said she could take care of some chickens and a couple of barn cats.

Twilight Fields would be too big for them, but Cord reasoned he didn't have to plant it all or fill every stall with horses. He could get a few dairy cows too, and then he and Jane would have fresh milk, butter, cream, and eggs.

He could still run his mechanic shop, and they'd be a little further from her family farm, but still plenty close enough to see them anytime they wanted.

"I can't wait to welcome you and your wife to the area," Alicia said.

"He owns the new mechanic shop Dave goes to," another woman said. Alicia turned and looked at the woman behind her, as did Cord. She smiled. "Right, Cord?"

"Yes, ma'am," he said. "If you're talking about Dave Kidman."

"I am." She touched her chest. "I'm Beth, his wife. He says you're the best."

"I try," Cord said, accepting the compliment far easier than he had others. Jane had been telling him to be kind and gracious, but he didn't have to be self-depreciating. He couldn't wait to tell her he'd finally done it.

"And your wife is due with your first baby soon," Beth said.

"That's right," Cord said. "It's a little freaky how much you know."

Beth laughed lightly. "That's all I know."

He grinned at her. "That's about all we are," he said. "We'll be moving in slowly over the next month or so. We don't have to be out of our place, and Jane works with me at the shop."

The line started moving then, ending their conversation. Cord offered his arm to Alicia, and she linked her hand through his elbow. They walked down the aisle with everyone watching them, and Cord's skin started to itch. He reminded himself no one really cared about him, and once they'd circled around the altar, he got to go back to his saved seat.

Jane smiled at him. "You're so handsome," she murmured as she leaned into his bicep.

"Met some of our new neighbors," he whispered back.

"Oh?" Jane's face brightened, and Cord sincerely hoped she'd be happy in a more rural environment. They'd been over it several times, and she claimed she'd be perfectly happy, because she got to talk to customers at the shop six days a week.

The shop was for him, the farm was for him, and Cord just wanted Jane to have something she loved, adored, and craved.

That's what your son will be, he told himself as the music changed. Cord twisted to find the bride waiting at the end of the aisle, and he quickly got to his feet so he could help Jane up too. She took a few extra seconds, then stood at his side with her hand resting maternally on her belly.

He loved feeling his baby move inside her, and the first time he'd been able to…Cord still got a little misty-eyed when he thought about it. Or maybe that was the way Lindsay shone like the sun, moon, and the stars as she smiled down the aisle at Keith.

He too wore a sort of silver-gold radiance that Cord had decided only brides and grooms could achieve on their wedding day.

She walked with her brother on one side of her and her daddy on the other, and Cord knew there were stories there. Probably long, dusty roads too, that all three of them had trod to get to this point.

Jane slipped her fingers into Cord's, and he squeezed. Not too long ago, this had been them, and he couldn't wait for the next fourteen months, and then the next.

Lindsay's dress looked like it had been made with white palm fronds, the tops of which had been sewn together at the waist. They hung down in layers of feathery leaves, with the top half covered in lace and jewels in equal measure.

"She's so beautiful," Jane whispered, and Cord could agree with that. She moved one step at a time, advancing fairly slowly toward Keith. When she reached the first row, she paused to kiss Gloria's cheek, and she hugged Matt. Then her daddy passed her to Keith, who took her easily into his arms and pressed his cheek against hers.

Derrick and his dad sat in the two reserved seats up front, and the whole audience retook their seats as the pastor came forward and stood behind the altar.

"What a joyous occasion which has brought us all together," the man said. He spoke with a quiet power that reached into Cord's chest and struck right against his heart. The man reminded Cord of Gray Hammond, who could whip a man with words barely spoken louder than a whisper.

He and Elise had made the drive from Coral Canyon for Keith's wedding, as Keith had grown up on their family farm and was like another son for them. Having Jane's parents here was one reason she and Cord weren't moving immediately to their new farm.

His shop was another—spring was an incredibly busy time as farmers and ranchers got their machines and equipment out of storage from the winter. Spring planting sat only a couple of weeks away, and the bigger operations had already started, taking a chance that a late freeze wouldn't strike them this year.

Cord had no plans to plant on the new farm—other than a few rows of corn and maybe some pumpkins. But those could go in the ground weeks from now and still be okay. He didn't own any horses, nor chickens, and they really only needed to move their personal belongings from the house in the gated community to the more rural one that actually sat closer to the mechanic shop.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we gather here today under this vast, open sky, surrounded by the beauty of nature, to celebrate the union of Keith Whettstein and Lindsay Lewis in marriage. As we stand here, let us be reminded of the enduring spirit of the cowboy: a spirit of courage, resilience, and integrity—a spirit that Keith and Lindsay embody in their love for one another."

Cord had never had much use for cowboys until he'd become one—and then, the cowboy way had literally saved him. Thankfully, air continued to flow through his nose and into his lungs, despite the storm of emotions inside him.

"In the journey of marriage, much like the life of a cowboy, there will be long trails, sunrises, and sunsets. There will be storms to weather and clear skies to cherish. Marriage, like the land we stand on, requires nurturing and respect. It requires the hard work of tending and the joy of harvesting."

Jane leaned her head against Cord's arm, and he reached over with his other hand and covered hers, covered their baby. She looked up at him, and so much was said without a single word being spoken.

"A bit of advice, if I may," the pastor continued. "Not just to Keith and Lindsay, but to everyone here." He spread his arms wide. "Let your love for others be as steadfast as the mountains around us. Let your commitment to each other be as enduring as the ground beneath your feet. Remember that we're all wounded in some way. We all have need of the Master Healer. We all need to be loved, cared for, and guided."

"Amen," Cord whispered. So many people hid so much beneath the surface. It was impossible to tell if they were suffering greatly or not, and he never wanted to add more to someone's plate when they were already carrying a heavy load.

"Now, let's get these two married," the pastor said. "I believe Lindsay has something to say to Keith."

"You do?" Keith asked, and that elicited a few chuckles.

She nodded, and she turned back to her brother, who handed her a single index card.

"You need a card for it?" Keith teased, and Cord found himself laughing with most of the other cowboys. Everyone who worked for Blackhorse Bay had come to this wedding, which meant a lot of cowboys and their dates.

Lindsay only smiled at him, and then she glanced at her card. "I want to face all of my challenges with you by my side, Mister Whettstein. I want us to be able to speak with honesty to each other, and I want to build a sanctuary away from the world with you."

She lowered the card. "I know it might not be easy, but I believe that with God guiding us, we can do it. I'm so glad you brought that horse to me last year, and I know God orchestrated that storm to keep you with me long enough to make you think you couldn't live without me."

"I can't," he whispered, and a few people went, "Aww."

Cord did it internally, because his dang emotions threatened to choke him again.

"I don't have a card prepared," Keith said. "I didn't know I needed to say anything."

"You don't." Lindsay handed the card back to Derrick without looking at him, and she took both of Keith's hands in hers. "I just wanted to say that."

He searched her face, the silence becoming strained. Cord started praying mighty hard that Keith would know what to do and say in this moment. It was the man's wedding day, after all, and he didn't particularly like being in the spotlight either.

"I'll just say this," Keith said. "I left the job I had before I came to Blackhorse Bay, because God told me I should. I fought Him real hard on it, too. Just ask my daddy." He grinned over to his father, then quickly sobered. "I wanted a chance to meet more people—and that really meant women."

Lindsay giggled and ducked her head.

"I wasn't having much luck there either," Keith said. "But I put my head down, and I worked. I kept praying. I didn't give up on God—and you know what? He didn't give up on me, even when I thought He had. I've learned since then that God doesn't give up on us at all, not a single one of us. You needed me that night, and I needed you in my life permanently."

He drew in a breath big enough to lift his shoulders and expand his chest. "I love you with all I have, and as I grow and change and mature, I'm sure how much I love you will too—and I can't wait for it."

Keith nodded like that was that, and both he and Lindsay turned to face the pastor. He said all the right words in the right place, ending with, "I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss your bride."

Cowboys started hooting and hollering before Keith could even face Lindsay again. Cord brought his hands together as Travis whistled through his teeth. Keith pulled Lindsay to him and kissed her, and then they faced the crowd.

"Everyone kiss the one you love!" Keith yelled, and Cord wasn't going to second-guess that.

He pulled Jane into his chest, met her eye, and said in a voice that might've been considered growly to those who didn't know him, "I love you, Jane Behr."

"I love you too, Cord," she said back, just as seriously.

And then he kissed her. After all, he'd been told to, and Cord tried to follow all the rules at any wedding he attended. Fine, all the rules all the time, in anything—and kissing Jane still brought a roar of fire with it that reminded Cord just how much he loved his wife.