The Lawman's Christmas Proposal

“I remember.” The dude ranch had always been popular with folks wanting a break from colder climates.

“Now we’ve got Christmas and a wedding to prepare for, both coming up in less than a month. My girls are doing most of the work on their own, and they could use an extra pair of hands.”

Mitch nodded slowly.

“Normally, I’d get a couple of the boys in here to give them some assistance. But we’re shorthanded, and Pete’s up to his eyeballs in work as it is. If you could manage to spend some time around here, you’d be doing us all a favor.”

Mitch nodded again. Compared to some of Jed’s plans, this one sounded harmless. And he had meant it when he said he would do anything to help Jed.

To tell the truth, he would be doing himself a few favors, too.

He could avoid his family’s hushed voices and averted gazes.

He could bypass some trips to the sheriff’s department in town. No matter how often his dad encouraged him to drop in, he knew how all those visits would make him look. He’d seem no better than an old retired cop who took his vacations anywhere from Maine to Alaska but spent those days hanging out with the local law.

Most of all...best of all...he would have a reason to hang around the ranch. A chance to be near Andi and to find out what was up with her.

If she wouldn’t tell her family what was worrying her, she’d have to tell someone. She needed an outlet, as his department-assigned shrink would say. Considering her decision to walk away from him, getting her alone had presented a problem. Jed had just handed him the solution.

With all those perks attached to the request, how could he turn the man down?

He couldn’t appear too eager, though. “Sure,” he said casually. “I’ll be happy to lend a hand. For whatever time I’m in town.”

* * *

“WHAT DO YOU think of this design?” Andi turned the pattern book on Tina’s desk to show her cousins the photo she was indicating.

With the waitress on duty ready to set the tables for dinner, they’d had to move all their samples from the dining room into Tina’s small office off the lobby. It didn’t matter to her where they worked, as long as she kept busy enough to keep her mind off Mitch...and that kiss that had made her lose control.

Her face burning, she glanced quickly at her cousins. Luckily, Jane and Tina had both switched their attention to the pattern book.

Jane looked at the fabric swatch in the photo. “I like the other one better.”

“I like this one. Then Tina gets to choose.”

“Oh, no, I don’t,” their cousin said. “You two are the experts.”

“We need a tiebreaker.”

“And if Tina doesn’t want to be on the spot,” Jane said, “she shouldn’t be. Shay’s in the kitchen. Don’t you think we should get her in on this? She’s got a good eye, too.”

“Great idea,” Tina said.

Shay, who was a frequent visitor to the Hitching Post, was dropping off an order of ice cream. Though Paz made the desserts for the hotel dining room, they had contracted SugarPie’s to provide the wedding cakes and pastries for the receptions. But when it came to ice cream, they relied on the Big Dipper, the shop not far from SugarPie’s in the heart of Cowboy Creek’s small business district.

As Tina left the office to track down the other woman, Andi caught Jane looking at her with a thoughtful expression.

“I see Mitch is back again,” Jane said. “And he appeared just when you happened to be at the corral.”

She snapped her head up. “That was a coincidence.”

“On your part or his?”

“What does that mean?”

“It seems way too coincidental he showed up at the same time you were standing there waiting.”

“I wasn’t waiting. I was checking on Trey.” She caught Jane’s grin and realized her cousin was teasing. She also knew she had overreacted. Forcing a smile, she added, “So...you suspect Eddie and Laurie of synchronizing the clocks on their cell phones?”

“No, actually, that hadn’t occurred to me.” Jane’s tone turned serious again. “Maybe fate stepped in, leading Mitch here at just the right time.”

“No. It was Grandpa wanting to see him. And Laurie asking him to bring her to the ranch for a ride.” Hoping to close the subject, she glanced at the pattern book again. “There’s no need to wait for Shay. I don’t know why you’re digging your heels in over this. Now, look. This morning, you agreed with me this pattern’s a better match for the tableware.”

“Yeah, and I’ve always agreed that you and Mitch made a good match.”

“Jane. Please.”

“Now, you look,” Jane said quietly. “You can’t hide anything from me. I know how you felt that summer you were seeing him. And I heard you crying the night before you left the ranch. You cared a lot. So did he. You two really had a chance together.”

A chance she had blown back then, and that circumstances now put out of her reach. “That was a long time ago.” Her children’s births and husband’s death ago.

“And here you are, in town at the same time.”

“Just another coincidence.”

“I won’t argue that. But my point is, how likely is it this will happen again soon?”

Focusing on the pattern book kept her from meeting Jane’s eyes. It couldn’t help close her ears to Jane’s softly spoken words.

“Maybe you both need to take this second chance.”

Shay walked into the office, saving Andi from a response.

“Shay,” Jane said, “you’re still planning to waitress for us the night of the wedding?”

“Oh, yes, I’ll be here. I’m looking forward to it.”

Still shaken by Jane’s statement, Andi fought to focus on the other woman. “How’s your gran?” They all knew Shay’s elderly grandmother had been having some health issues.

“Not too bad. I’m on my way to pick her up now. But Tina said you wanted to show me something?”

“Yes, if you have a few minutes.” She indicated the two samples. “Which one?”

“This one’s a better match,” Shay said immediately, pointing.

“Perfect,” Jane said. “You’ve got a good eye, too.”

Shay had chosen the same pattern Jane had so suddenly been unable to make up her mind about.