Chapter Sixteen

H ow had they gone from enjoying a quiet moment sitting on a garden bench together to Nathan practically pushing her out the door? Izzy didn’t get it.

She’d been the one to back away from their kiss even though it was the most spectacular fireworks she’d ever experienced. She got that part. And she could see that her reaction had given Nathan the wrong impression. It wasn’t him and his kiss that was the problem. It was her, and her fear of making another mistake after what happened with Jim.

She knew Nathan wasn’t Jim. She just didn’t know if she could trust her heart.

Putting the tea set she’d picked up at the Emporium on the counter in the little kitchen inside the cottage, Izzy grabbed the drill she’d brought with her and screwed the plaque she’d had made dedicating The Wedding Cottage to Zelda and Adam next to the door.

In loving memory of Zelda and Adam Lohmen, who lived every day showing us what true love lookedlike.

Love your sons, Jonas, Nathan, and Blake. We missyou.

For the first time since taking the Triple L job, she didn’t tell the brothers, and especially Nathan—though she might have if he were speaking to her—what sentiment she’d memorialized on the memory plaque.

She thought... hoped... they would approve.

Standing back, she took in the whole picture. The renovated she-shed into a sweet English cottage. The surrounding garden, almost in full bloom. The seating area for wedding guests. The wide arbor for the bride and groom. The benches in the back where she and Nathan had sat for a blissful moment when they were last here and where he’d told her she should take the Montana job.

She didn’t realize it then, but she’d already fallen deeply in love with the rancher. When he seemed to think she would be better off taking the out-of-state job, so far away from him, her heart had taken a tumble. Izzy couldn’t blame him. She’d only ever told him she wouldn’t be hanging around after finishing her job on the Triple L. She’d never hinted that she was thinking anything different.

He hadn’t spoken more than a single sentence to her since their last disastrous conversation. The crazy man wouldn’t spend more than five minutes in the same room with her.

He cleaned the barn and stalls before she got there in the mornings, leaving her alone to visit with Rosie in the pasture. She’d stopped practicing the moves he’d taught her for barrel racing, which she missed, though not as much as she missed Nathan.

Feeling a little lost without his company, she sat on what she’d come to think of as their bench. He was everything she wasn’t. Constant. Stable. A rock. But she was dependable when it came to her job and her clients. And she knew how to stay the course. He could see that, couldn’t he?

More than anything, Nathan Lohmen made her feel safe.

Safe! That illusive feeling. Why had she not realized that before now?

Could she make up with the stubborn cowboy so they could be friends again? Maybe more than friends, if she was brave enough.

Jumping up, she flipped on the garden lights and followed them around the edge of the garden until it suddenly hit her. There was one thing she had more of than Nathan. She was very persistent when she needed to be. And right now, she needed to be.

Izzy grinned. There was one thing she knew. If she asked him for a favor, he would have her back if it had anything to do with the ranch. She was sure of it, even though he was acting like he didn’t want to see her ever again. This time he wasn’t going to get his way.

On the way back to the ranch, her cell rang. Thinking it might be her mom with a report on how things were going with George, she pulled over, and frowning when it wasn’t her mom’s number, took the call.

“This is Izzy Payton,” she said.

“Hi, Miss Payton. This is Helen Nichols, Mayor of Strawberry Ridge. I’ll get straight to the point.” The mayor was speaking Izzy’s language. “I have a proposal to talk to you about and have an opening in my schedule tomorrow at ten. Will that work for you? We can meet at my office in City Hall.”

Curious. “I’ll be there.”

“Good. Stop at reception on the way in and someone will direct you. See you tomorrow.”

She stared at her phone for a while wondering what the call from the mayor meant, then shrugged because there was no point in trying to guess what her proposal was. She would find out soon enough.

Glancing at the box in the passenger-side front seat, she drove straight to Malorie’s. Blake had the kids out for a hike, so it was just the two of them trying on their dresses for the engagement party the next night.

Parking in front of Malorie’s rental, she grabbed her dress and knocked on the door.

“There you are,” Mal said as she let her in. “I was afraid you changed your mind about coming over.”

“Nope. I just went to the cottage first to do a couple of things.”

Mal led the way to the kitchen where she’d set up a charming tea service, this one cream-colored with roses and gold-colored handles. There was a matching plate stacked with sliced egg salad sandwiches. She’d had the set for as long as Izzy could remember. “I haven’t been there in a few days. How does everything look?”

“Beautiful.” Izzy took a seat at the breakfast table. “It’s perfect for your wedding.”

Mal grinned at her as she sat on the other side of the table. “And your wedding?”

“I’m not getting married. Not anytime soon anyway.” Izzy poured their tea and took half a sandwich, placing it on her plate.

She watched as her friend settled her napkin in her lap. Mal wasn’t one to hold back what she thought. It didn’t take her long to dive in. “Can’t you take a break and hang around here with me for a while?”

“You sound like Sylvia,” Izzy returned quickly.

“I’ve always loved your mom.” Mal raised her teacup. “To a smart woman.”

“You think that because you both think alike.” Izzy didn’t hold it against them. They were her two favorite people, not counting a particular cowboy.

“It’s a shame that things went sour between you and Nathan. I was looking forward to being your sister-in-law.”

She almost choked on her tea. “Nothing was going on between us.” Because Mal was her best friend and Izzy had kept it a secret she blurted, “We shared one kiss.”

“That doesn’t sound like nothing.” Mal’s brows rose in speculation, not a good thing when her friend got into that mode. Sure enough. “You love him.”

“How can you tell?” Not sure that she had those kinds of feelings for the rancher, she didn’t know how Mal could possibly know.

She’d come to the ranch to help fix the Lohmen’s financial problems. And then she’d mistakenly thought she could rebrand Nathan along with the Triple L, maybe even fix Nathan and lure him off the ranch and back into his horse community. But he’d taken the reins and was the one who made the moves. Not with her of course, he was too much of a gentleman to rush her into more than one kiss.

Even if Mal was right, they had divergent futures. Nathan would never leave the Triple L, and she wouldn’t ask him to move just to follow her from job to job. Not when his whole life was the ranch. He wouldn’t be happy and that wasn’t fair.

Mal sat her cup down. “I’ve seen the way you look at him and the way he looks at you. It’s written all over your faces.”

That was one subject she didn’t want to discuss, even with her very much-in-love best friend. Izzy pushed back her chair and stood, leaving her half-finished tea and sandwich on the table. “How about we try on our dresses?”

“Okay. I’ll stop talking about Nathan, but I just want to remind you that Montana is a long way away.”

That it was. She had three job offers. Any one of them would help build her business to the next level.

They were standing in front of Malorie’s mirror in their 1950s-themed dresses. Izzy’s lightly patterned flowers on an emerald-green background with a bow around her waist; Mal’s a light blue halter cocktail dress—when Izzy realized, she didn’t want to go all the way to Montana, even if it was the best option for her career.

She put her arm around Mal’s shoulders. “You are a good friend, Malorie Harper, soon to be Mrs. Blake Lohmen. Montana is too far away.”

“So, what are you going to do?”

“With Montana out of the running, that leaves Bellingham and Chicago. They’re not any closer, but they both have great airports so I can come visit whenever I want. And I can probably finish those projects up very quickly with my eyes closed.”

Mal hugged her back, sighing happily in Izzy’s ear. “And we’ll fly out to see you, wherever you go after that. I promise.”

She turned Mal toward the mirror. “You’re going to make a beautiful bride.”

“I can’t wait to be married to Blake and be a family. He’s such a good father, and no matter what happened between them in the past, he loves his brothers.”

The next morning while she was getting ready for her meeting with the mayor, Izzy thought about what Mal had said. Her best friend couldn’t wait to marry Blake and become a family. That’s what love was about... making a partnership that lasted a lifetime with someone who made a girl happy. If she was brave enough.

Did she love Nathan? Did she love him enough to figure out how to have a life with him?

She admired the cowboy. Loved how once he made up his mind he didn’t waver. And loved that even though he didn’t always agree with his brothers, he’d learned to figure out how to work with them to benefit the ranch, not just himself. Even if it meant on occasion pulling a high card from a deck of cards, winner-take-all.

Either she truly loved the man and would commit to staying on the ranch with him for the rest of their lives. Build a life together and raise a family with him. Or if she didn’t, turn her back on all that and go on with the life she’d already chosen.

Was that what she wanted for her future? Running from one job to the next instead of taking a different path?

*

Forty-five minutes later, dressed in a business suit of dove gray, her hair twisted into a bun at the nape of her neck, after introductions and shaking Helen Nichols’ hand, Izzy sat down across from the mayor.

Determined not to let her past override any decision she might make, she pushed the persistent mental buzzing to the back of her mind and smiled at the mayor. “You said you had a proposal?”

“Yes.” Helen studied the papers on her desk briefly and then folded her hands together and leaned on her elbows. “Strawberry Ridge has received a community revitalization grant to help update the historic district and improve our business districts and neighborhood commercial centers. My goal is to stretch the grant money as far as it will go while spending it wisely. I’ve heard about what you’re doing for the Triple L and how innovative your ideas are. Is reviving Strawberry Ridge a project you would be interested in managing?”

Flushed with sudden excitement, Izzy took a deep breath. She couldn’t say yes! fast enough. This was exactly what she was looking for. Something to stretch her skills and that would give her a reason not to move thousands of miles away.

She loved Strawberry Ridge. And she loved Nathan more. It was as simple and as complicated as that. This sweet town, the job the mayor was offering, and one grumpy cowboy were everything she didn’t know she wanted.

“When do I start?”

“Monday.” Helen rose, shook her hand, and walked Izzy to the door. “We’ll do your onboarding then and go over the grant. I understand you’re staying at the Triple L. Will you need help finding housing?”

“I don’t think so.” At least she hoped not. It all depended on what Nathan had to say about her not taking the Montana job. But it didn’t matter. More than she ever thought it possible, she loved that man. “I’ll let you know on Monday.”

“Eight o’clock, then,” the mayor said and waved Izzy off.

She took her time driving back to the ranch, taking in the blue Colorado sky, the mountains that rose high into the air on the backside of the ranch, and the loving care Nathan gave to his home. She had been so certain when she first arrived on the Triple L that she was taking on a job that, if she was successful, would be a huge feather in her cap. She’d had no idea the real win was falling for a solitary, grumpy cowboy. It’d happened so slowly, by the time her heart let her know that she was hopelessly in love it was too late.

Back at the guesthouse, she stood in front of the mirror in the bedroom and stared at the woman looking back at her. She was subtly dressed for business, the CEO of her own company. Her hair was as tamed as it was going to get.

Quickly, she took the pins out of the bun and let the thick waves fly free. Loving Nathan was like coming home. Why had she not figured it out sooner? She’d never felt that way about Jim.

“Are you ready to trust your heart?” She whispered to the woman in the mirror.

Sitting on the side of the bed, Izzy answered herself unequivocally, “Yes!”

Now all she had to do was convince the cowboy who’d fixed her heart that she was all in, one hundred and ten percent.

Indulging in a long soak in the tub, she took her time getting ready for Blake and Malorie’s engagement party. The catered celebration started at six. There would be dancing and hopefully, an opportunity to talk to Nathan. She couldn’t wait to tell him about her new job.

While she waited for the festivities to begin, she cut flowers from the garden to make bouquets and took them to the main house. Nathan was nowhere to be seen. For a minute her heart stuttered. Surely, he wouldn’t miss his brother’s party because he was trying to avoid her.

She found Malorie and Andee in the kitchen overseeing the caterers. “I brought flowers. Does Nathan have vases somewhere?”

“Good grief, I forgot about flowers. Yes. In the pantry, there’s a whole shelf of them.”

Blake came in and grabbed his fiancée around the waist. Timmy and Reece were right behind him. “Come keep me company, my love, and let the caterer do her job without you hovering.”

Malorie pinked up. Izzy sighed, happiness for her best friend giving her goosebumps. Grabbing the vases, she moved the flowers to the table out of the caterer’s way. When she was done putting the displays together, worried by Nathan’s absence, she placed the vases around the living area of the main floor. She still didn’t cross paths with Nathan.

A violin player set up in a corner. Jonas joined Izzy as guests began to fill the room.

Finally giving in to rising concern, she asked, “Have you seen Nathan?” How could she talk to him if he continued to hide?

“Yes. There he is. He was just checking on the horses.” Jonas put an arm around her shoulders and whispered in her ear. “You’re not going to let him get away, are you?”

She looked in Nathan’s direction. He was frowning at Jonas.

“No. He’s my guy,” she confessed.

Jonas grinned and nudged her toward his brother. “Good. Go get him, sister.”

She didn’t have to be told twice, or maybe she did, but not anymore. She made a beeline toward the cowboy who’d stolen her heart. This time he didn’t walk away, just waited until she reached his side.

The room was filling up. The violinist started to play softly. Izzy’s heart flipped over at the sight of the emotions playing in Nathan’s dark eyes.

“Can we talk?” Placing a hand on his arm, she held her breath, crossing her fingers and toes that he wouldn’t turn her away.

Her heart leaped as he took her hand and led the way out to the far end of the porch where they found a semi-quiet spot where they could talk without being interrupted. He tugged her against the house and faced Izzy. “When are you leaving for Montana?”

“I’m not going to Montana,” she said, leaning toward him as the faint strains of the violin found them on the porch. Through the window, she could see Elizabeth Green from the Rose Tea Emporium, the mayor, and Sloane Michaels talking, holding up their champagne flutes.

Nathan pulled her closer. “Why?”

“I changed my mind about accepting a job that’s so far away.” She couldn’t help smiling at him. “I took a different job.”

He didn’t smile back but something stirred in his eyes. The straight line of his mouth eased. “You’re taking one of the other two?”

“Still too far away.” She reached for his other hand and took a step closer. “Besides, they don’t have a certain cowboy living close by.”

He pulled her into his arms. “What are you saying, Izzy Payton?”

“The mayor of Strawberry Ridge has offered me a job I can’t refuse. And... I’m saying... I love you, Nathan Lo—” Before she could finish, Nathan put his hands on both sides of her face and kissed her as if he was never going to let her go.

Izzy’s heart swelled. Her pulse racing, she grabbed his wrists and kissed him back, making sure he knew there was nowhere else she’d rather be than right there in his arms.

Finally, he raised his head. “I love you, Izzy Payton. Will you marry me so we can spend the rest of our lives loving each other?”

“I want to wake up next to you every morning for the rest of our lives,” she said with a happy sigh.

He grabbed her around the waist and swung her in a happy circle. “Is that a yes, Miss Payton?”

“Yes, Mr. Lohmen!” Izzy laughed. “Yes! Yes! Yes!”

He kissed her again until she was breathless, then gently dragged her into the party. “Let’s go tell Blake and Jonas.”

Across the crowded room, the brothers watched them come in. Nathan raised their entwined hands, a gentle grin lighting his handsome face.

Izzy was ready for this next adventure. Her heart swelled.

Blake and Jonas raised their champagne glasses, both giving them a thumbs up. Blake nudged Malorie and whispered in her ear. Balancing on her toes in her excitement, Mal clapped before tilting into her future husband’s shoulder.

Nathan took Izzy into his arms. “Let’s dance.”

“Forever,” Izzy kissed the cowboy, who was the bright star lighting all her days and nights.

With an exciting new job and Nathan at her side, her days of being a rolling stone were over. To a round of cheers and applause, she melted into Nathan’s love.

The End