Dad's E-Mail Order Bride (22 page)

Faster.

And faster.

Closer.

And closer.

Until she exploded inside with a massive shiver.

Graham slowly kissed his way up her body.

“More?” he said, balancing himself above her on his hands.

Courtney grinned. “I think I’m good for now.”

“Thank God,” he said, flopping over on his back. “You forget I’m an old man.”

“
My
old man,” Courtney corrected, resting her head on Graham’s shoulder.

He kissed her forehead and brought her fingers up to his lips. Courtney sighed, looking at the beautiful white pearl and the diamonds twinkling at her from the moonlight shining through the bedroom window.

She was engaged.

Oh. My. God.

She was actually engaged.

Rachel and Tiki would make beautiful bridesmaids, and Rachel would be so proud when she helped arrange the combs in Courtney’s hair that they’d made together for her wish basket. And Hanya could be in charge of her bride’s book. And she couldn’t forget Broadway—he could act as the ring-bearer. She’d seen a dog do that in some movie once.

They’d have the reception at The Wooden Nickel and invite the whole town, and…

Graham stirred beside her. He opened his eyes.

When he found her staring at him, he smiled. “How long have you been awake?”

“Long enough to work out most of the details of our wedding,” Courtney said happily.

He pulled her to him and put his arm around her. Courtney snuggled against him, running her hand up and down his muscled chest.

“And have you picked a wedding date?” he asked.

“I thought that was one detail we should decide together,” Courtney told him.

“How about this coming weekend?” he said. “It only takes three days to get a license in Alaska.”

Courtney laughed.

He leaned forward. “Should I take that as a no?”

Courtney propped herself up on her elbow and looked at him. “Of course, that’s a no, Graham. I don’t want to get married without my friends and family here. And I would think you would feel the same way.”

“My friends and family are here,” he said.

“Not all of your family. Your parents aren’t here. Don’t you want to invite your parents to attend our wedding?”

“No.”

“May I ask why?”

“No.”

Courtney sat up in bed and said, “Well, excuse me, but I don’t consider that an acceptable answer. You claim you want to spend the rest of your life with me, yet you don’t see the need to tell me why you wouldn’t want to invite your parents to our wedding?”

“Because they wouldn’t come to a wedding here, okay? Instead they’d want us to have the wedding in New York, where they could make a big production of things.”

“Then I have another question for you. Rachel really wants to go with me to Hal and Peg’s anniversary party in Seattle. Will you let her go?”

“I’ll think about it,” Graham said.

Courtney couldn’t keep herself from asking, “You’ll think about it seriously? Or like you were going to think about letting Rachel go to school in Ketchikan or Anchorage?”

He frowned at her. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means,” Courtney said, “that school will start in a few weeks. And so far you haven’t made a move to do anything about it. Don’t think Rachel isn’t aware of that. She thinks the subject is closed.”

Graham sat up in bed. “Well, excuse me if I’ve been up to my ass in fishermen all summer. I haven’t had time to do anything.”

“I really want Rachel to go to Seattle with me, Graham. I want you to come, too. It would be a nice change for all of us.”

Graham threw the sheet back and got out of bed.

He walked out of the bedroom naked.

Courtney wrapped the sheet around her and followed. When she found him, he was in the bathroom pulling on the boxer shorts he’d left on the bathroom floor.

Graham grabbed his watch sitting on the vanity, slid it onto his arm and pointed a finger at Courtney. “I tried to tell you this would happen,” he said. “We’ve been engaged, what?” He looked down at his watch, then back at her. “We’ve been engaged almost twelve hours to the minute, and you’re already talking about Seattle being a nice change from here.”

“A nice change for a
weekend,
Graham,” Courtney stressed. “Not permanently.”

“My life here
is
permanent, Courtney,” he said, “and if you’re having doubts about making Port Protection your permanent residence, don’t marry me.”

“Well, how unbelievably convenient of you, Graham,” Courtney said, flipping the sheet to the floor and gathering up the robe she’d left in the bathroom the night before. “We’ve been engaged—” she grabbed his arm and looked at his watch “—
exactly
twelve hours now and you’re already looking for an excuse to get out of marrying me.”

Courtney pointed a finger at Graham. “But if you think for one minute just because I love you that I’m going to assume the role of the meek little backwoods housewife and never say a word when I think you’re wrong about something, then don’t marry me!”

He clenched his jaw. “Why do I get the feeling you aren’t just talking about Seattle?”

“You don’t want to know.”

“I’m asking, aren’t I?”

Common sense told Courtney this time she should leave it alone. She’d barely had time to digest that Graham had asked her to marry him. She didn’t want him to think now that she’d let him chase her until she caught him that she was changing all the rules. But she had some rules that if Graham couldn’t abide by, she needed to know it sooner than later.

Courtney took a deep breath. “I’ll be willing to live with you in Port Protection for the rest of our lives, Graham. But I don’t intend to be the hermit you’ve become and never leave the island. If I marry you, you and Rachel will be my family. And that means when I do go to New York or anywhere else, I’ll want my family to be with me. If you aren’t willing to do that, you need to tell me now.”

Graham looked at her for a long time.

“Are you through?”

Courtney nodded.

“So am I.”

Courtney slipped his grandmother’s ring off her finger and held the ring out for Graham to take. She prayed that he wouldn’t take it. That he’d pull her into his arms and take her back to bed and prove to her all over again that what she’d always been looking for was standing right in front of her.

Graham took the ring and walked out of the bathroom.

Courtney let him go.

She jumped at the sound of the front door slamming. Then Courtney slumped onto the floor, unable to believe what had happened.

Twelve hours.

Oh. My. God.

Her engagement had lasted only twelve hours.

Broadway whined.

“Oh, shut up,” Graham said, “I’m thinking.”

Going down the steps, he’d been thinking that he’d done the right thing by taking the ring back. That his gut instinct had told him all along Courtney would start talking about New York the minute he told her he loved her. That he didn’t need Courtney telling him how to raise his daughter. And that the chance of Courtney ever turning into some meek little backwoods housewife was as likely as his entering the Woodsman contest again.

But coming up the steps, he’d been thinking that he didn’t want a life without Courtney in it. That he respected her for speaking her mind when she thought he was wrong about something. That Rachel loved and needed her as much as he did. And that what she’d said about him becoming a hermit was true.

Graham shook his head.

Love was one complicated son of a bitch!

But when she heard the click of Broadway’s toenails on the metal spiral staircase, she decided Graham had only opened the door to let Broadway in. By the time she heard more footsteps on the stairs, Broadway was already licking at the tear running down her cheek.

When Graham walked to the bathroom doorway, Courtney still didn’t get up. She pushed Broadway’s head away, and he flopped down and put his big head on her lap.

“I’ve changed my mind,” Graham said.

Courtney moved Broadway off her lap and stood.

Graham took a step in her direction.

The love in his eyes told her all she needed to know.

“About?” Courtney said.

She took a step in Graham’s direction.

“Life,” he said.

They both took a step forward.

Now they were standing nose-to-nose.

“I think we should check out Ketchikan and Anchorage before we go to Seattle.” He paused briefly. “And it might be nice if we spent Christmas in New York this year.”

Courtney slid her arms around Graham’s neck. “And if your wife decides to stay in advertising, but work out of a home office wherever we are at the time?”

“Would I get free advertising for the lodge?”

“No,” Courtney said. “But we could trade it out.”

Graham kissed her.

Courtney kissed him back. “Anything else?”

“Yes,” Graham said. “Will you please get dressed so we can go tell our daughter we’re getting married? Rachel is going to totally freak out.”

Courtney laughed.

Broadway barked twice in agreement.

“It’s time to get up,” Hanya said. “Your dad is waiting in the kitchen. He said to be quick about it.”

Tiki looked down from the top bunk when her mother left the bedroom. “What do you think is wrong?”

“Who knows,” Rachel grumbled, throwing back the covers and getting up. “Dad probably thought up some new chore to add to my punishment.”

“How long is this punishment going to last, Rachel?”

“Try for life.”

“Poor you.”

“No, poor Dad,” Rachel said with conviction. “My punishment ends today. I’m telling him so right now.”

“This I gotta see.”

Tiki hopped down as Rachel jerked off her pajamas and pulled on her shirt and jeans. Seconds later Rachel was in the lead, marching barefoot out of Tiki’s bedroom, down the hallway and into the kitchen.

Rachel came to a stop so fast Tiki bumped into her.

Courtney was at the table with Yanoo and her dad.

“Courtney? What are you doing here?”

“I asked Courtney to come,” her dad said.

Instantly, Rachel knew not to pick a fight.

Her dad’s I’m-upset-with-you stare was her first clue.

“Courtney’s been telling me some things I didn’t know.”

Rachel braced herself. “Like what?”

“For starters, Courtney said you asked her to persuade me to let you go to Hal and Peg’s anniversary party.”

Busted.

“Yes, Dad, I asked Courtney to talk to you for me. She’s leaving for New York from Seattle. I’d really like to be there to say goodbye.”

“And,”
her dad said, “Courtney says you think the subject’s closed on checking out schools in Ketchikan and Anchorage.”

Rachel crossed her arms. “And why wouldn’t I think that? School starts in a few weeks and you haven’t mentioned Ketchikan or Anchorage once since you said you’d think about it.”

“I’m mentioning it now,” he said. “We’ll leave a few days early and check out the schools in both places before we go to Seattle to the party.”

“We?” Rachel repeated.

“Yes,” he said. “I’m going with you.”

Rachel wasn’t over that shock when he said, “But you and Courtney will have to fight it out over which city you like best. I’m leaving that decision up to my daughter and my wife.”

Rachel blinked. “What wife?”

Courtney held her hand out.

Rachel recognized the ring immediately. She wanted to believe what her dad was saying was true. But they’d played this joke on her before. She’d be stupid to fall for it twice.

“Well?” her dad said. “Don’t disappoint us, Rachel. This is the part where you’re supposed to totally freak out.”

After all you’ve put me through this summer?

Ha!

“Why would I freak out?” Rachel asked with a smirk. “I told you from the beginning you were perfect for each other.”

“And the spirit guides made it all happen.”

Rachel whirled around. “Oh, no you don’t, Tiki.
I’m
responsible for bringing Dad and Courtney together.
Not
you and your spirit guides.”

“Stop arguing,” Hanya said, stepping between them and turning Rachel and Tiki around in time to see the kiss the happy couple was sharing. “Love is what brought Graham and Courtney together.”

Rachel didn’t argue with that statement.

Her mind was already spinning toward the future.

Goodbye isolation. Hello world!

Nothing could stop her from having a normal life now.