Moonlight Beach Bachelors: Her Forbidden Cowboy

“Nope, not like home.”

“Tell me you haven’t met any big movie stars and I swear I won’t be jealous.”

“I, uh, well,” her voice squeaked.

“Who? Tell me or I’ll haunt you into forever.”

“Would you believe Dylan McKay lives two doors down?” Jessica squeezed her eyes shut, anticipating the bombardment. No one was a bigger fan of the Hollywood heartthrob than her bestie Sally.

“You’ve met him?”

“Yes, I sort of ran into him on the beach.” Or rather, the other way around—he’d run into her. “He’s a friend of Zane’s.”

“No way! I can’t believe it. Tell me everything.”

A knock on the dressing-room door startled her, and she jumped. She’d forgotten where she was.

“Miss Holcomb, can I help you with anything?” Sybil asked.

“Whoops, gotta go,” she said in a low voice. “I’ve got to get dressed. I’ll call you later.”

“You better!”

Jessica smiled as she ended the call and answered the saleswoman. “No thanks. I’m doing great.

“I’ll be out in one minute.”

“You sound happy. Find anything to your liking?”

“Just about everything,” she answered.

She imagined the attire concierge who worked on commission smiling on the other side of the door.

Her purchases today would make both of them happy.

* * *

Zane had received a text message from Jessica half an hour ago telling him not to wait for her to have his meal. She was going to be late. But he didn’t feel much like eating without her. It had taken Jessica living here for him to realize he’d eaten too many meals alone.

She must’ve gotten carried away on her little shopping spree.

When Jessica finally pulled through the gates, driving toward the garage, Zane made his way to the living room and, with the grace of an ox, plunked down onto the sofa.

A minute later the door opened into the back foyer, and he heard the crunch of bags and footsteps approaching. He picked up a magazine and flipped through the pages.

“Hi, Zane,” Jessica said. Her voice sounded breezy and carefree. “Sorry I’m so late.”

When he lifted his head, he found her loaded down with shopping bags. “Did you buy out the store?”

She chuckled from a warm and deep place in her throat. “Let’s just say the store manager couldn’t do enough for me. They offered me a vanilla latte and a chocolate mini croissant, and the shoe salesman almost gave me a foot massage.”

His brows gathered. “A foot massage?”

“I told him no. I didn’t have time. Is that done here?”

“I don’t know if it’s done anywhere,” Zane said. For heaven’s sake, she was buying shoes, not asking for a damn foot rub. His nerves started to sizzle. He studied the assortment of shiny teal-blue bags she held. “Where did you go?”

“Misty Blue. Mariah recommended the shop to me. It’s just up the coast.”

“Leave it to Mariah,” Zane muttered. She had impeccable taste, but she could be indulgent at times.

“Speaking of Mariah, have you heard from her today?”

“Yes, we spoke earlier this morning. Do you need to talk to her about anything in particular?”

She shook her head and lowered her packages to the floor, releasing the handles. “I’m managing for right now.” She walked over to lean her elbows on the back of his angular sofa. From his spot on the couch, he had a clear view of her face. “How is her mother doing?”

Zane shook his head. “Not great.” He was lucky his mother and father were in their seventies and still quite active living in a retirement community in Arizona. He saw them several times a year. And when something like this happened, he thought about spending more time with them. “Mariah said her mom might have some permanent damage from the stroke, but it’s too soon to tell. She spends most of her day at the hospital or meeting with doctors.”

“I’m sorry to hear that.”

“Yeah, me, too. And with all that, she asked about you. She made me promise to have you call her with any questions.”

Jessica sent him a rigid look. “Unless it’s an emergency, I’m not going to call her, Zane. You and I both know what it’s like having to deal with a family crisis.”

A lump formed in his throat. “Yeah. I agree, and I told her as much. There’s nothing so important that it can’t wait. Between the two of us, we’ll figure out what needs figuring from this end.”

“Right. Hey, I almost forgot. I bought you a present.”

His heavy heart lightened. “You did?”

She bent to forage in one of the bags and came up holding a long, shiny black box. It wasn’t a gift from Misty Blue, that was for sure. She stretched as far as her arms could reach, eyeing the box carefully one last time, before handing it over. “I, uh, hope this doesn’t upset you, but I know how much you loved the one Janie got you, and, well...this one is from me.”

Her fingers gently brushed over his hand, and her caring touch seized his heart for a moment. With his good hand, he managed to lift the lid and gaze at his gift. He found himself momentarily speechless. It was an almost identical replica of a bolo tie with a turquoise stone set on a stamped silver backing that Janie had given him on the anniversary of their first date. It had been lost in the fire, and he’d never replaced it. It wouldn’t have had the same sentimental meaning. But the fact that Jessica gave it to him meant something. He lifted the rope tie out of the box and shifted his gaze to her. “It’s a thoughtful gift, Jess.”

“I know you treasured the first one. I helped Janie pick it out, so I remember exactly what it looked like.”

“You didn’t have to do this.” But he was glad she had.

“You’re putting a roof over my head and feeding me, but more importantly, being here is helping me heal. It’s the least I could do for you. And I wanted it to be...something special.”

“It is. Very special.”

He rose from the sofa, found his footing and, using his crutches, shuffled over to her. He gazed through the lenses of her glasses to dewy, softly speckled green eyes. They were warm and friendly and genuine. He bent to kiss her forehead the way a brother would a sister, but then awareness flickered in her eyes, and he felt it, too. He lowered his mouth, heady in his need to taste the giving warmth of her lips again. When he touched his mouth to hers, he savored her sweetness and assigned this moment to memory for safekeeping. He backed away just in time to keep the kiss to one of thanks. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” Her deep, sultry voice thrilled him and churned his stomach at the same time. She sounded so much like Janie.

“I haven’t had dinner yet. I waited for you. Mrs. Lopez put our meal in the oven to keep warm. Are you hungry?”