To Love A Cowboy: A Billionaire BWWM Western Romance (9 page)

"How lucky are you to have a man that came with you, knowing you
were going to be working? I'm sure he was ready to sacrifice some of
that time. He knew he had to fit in to your schedule. Give him a
little credit. You on the other hand, take the opportunities that
come to you, don't apologize for your ambition, and see each day for
what it is. Love hard. This life is nothing without the one you
love."

Kate laughed. "Quoting your songs now, huh?"

Fancy blotted the red lipstick and smiled at herself in the mirror.
"Honey, my songs are the key to life. You didn't know? Now,
since we're done here, why don't you have my car service take you
back to your hotel and you and that wonderful man of yours enjoy the
rest of the time here. Share a little romance, I don't know. And I'll
be seeing you very soon. I have another awards show I need to book
you for."

Kate and Fancy gave each other air kisses and Fancy was out the door.
Kate finished packing the clothing and took everything on a luggage
trolley down to the lobby. The car service was waiting. Her first
stop was to take the clothing back to the warehouse where her Paris
assistant would make sure they were returned to the boutiques where
they originated.

Her phone rang as soon as she came out of the warehouse.

"Where are you, my love?"

Whenever she heard Bruce's voice, it brought a smile to her face. "I
just finished for the day."

"I am on my way to the city. I can be there in about an hour."

"You know what? What if we had a quiet evening back at the
cottage? Maybe dinner in the garden and then spend some time in the
Jacuzzi tub after getting massages."

"We can do whatever you'd like, my love. I just thought you
would like to do a little sight seeing in Paris."

She shook her head. "As long as I'm spending time with you,
that's all that matters. I'm on my way back to you now."

As far as Kate was concerned, the car could not make it to the
cottage fast enough.

When she arrived, she practically ran inside to her room. She could
barely unlock the door before Bruce opened it.

"My love. Welcome."

He was dressed casual in a short sleeved black shirt that showed off
his muscular arms and a pair of gray slacks and some black loafers.

"You look great."

"Thank you," he nodded. As he stepped to the side, she
could see there were two beds set up for massage.

"This way."

A man and woman stood there, dressed in all white. "Welcome."

"All of this for me?"

Bruce nodded as the woman handed Kate and Bruce robes.

"We will step out while the two of you get undressed. Please lay
face down on the table first."

"Couples massage. This is nice."

"Anything for you."

Kate could suddenly feel the tension in her body, screaming to be
relieved. After they undressed, Bruce met her with a glass of
champagne.

They toasted to the evening. And after an hour and a half of
invigorating massage, Kate was ready for the rest of the evening.

They thanked their masseuses and Kate poured another glass of
champagne.

"Next, we will meet in the garden for dinner in an hour. But I
have the Jacuzzi going for us to relax for a moment."

He took her glass and led her to the bathroom. The jets were buzzing,
bubbles all over the filled tub.

Kate dipped a toe in to get a gauge for the temperature. It was
perfectly warm. She let the robe fall to the floor, and naked,
stepped in.

She motioned for Bruce to join her. First, he filled their glasses
with more champagne that would go perfectly with the sweet berries
that were on a tray on the ledge of the Jacuzzi. Bruce submerged in
the water as well, floating over to where she was. Kate leaned
against the edge, wiping the sweat from her brow.

Bruce teased her lips with the juicy fruit. Licking her lips, she
took a bite of the berry and she felt the juice trickle down her
chin. Bruce kissed the trail where the juice dripped. He passed her
the glass of champagne after dropping a berry in each of their
glasses.

"A toast," she proposed.

"Okay."

"To us. To us finding our way and finding the balance between
love and life."

Their glasses clinked.

"I like that one."

They sipped their bubbly.

"Do you think we have found that balance?" Bruce asked.

Kate shrugged. "I'm not sure if we have the entire answer. I
think we are on the way though."

Bruce kissed her lips. "Part of what drew me to you was your
ambition. I saw a lot of myself in you. I've always known what I
wanted out of life and I went for it. With no abandon. It's part of
what made me successful in the corporate world. But when my parents
got sick and I was not able to maintain a relationship of any kind, I
knew there had to be more to life than working hard. There needed to
be love."

Kate liked the way he sounded, so romantic. "That sounds so
ideal. We all just fall in love and love will conquer all and make
things right."

"My love, it should be that way. All of that ambition is
wonderful. But what truly matters is love."

"I see what you are saying. And I agree, but I think there is so
much that goes into making you happy. We are made to live through our
talents."

"I agree, my love. I do agree."

Kate put down her glass and threw her arms around Bruce's shoulders.
She remembered her conversation with Fancy.

"I do have to say thank you."

"For what?"

"For being here with me. I do realize it may have taken a lot
for you to be here with me while I was working. I thank you for
understanding me and my drive and what I want out of life. And I
thank you for loving me."

A grin came across Bruce's face. "Wow."

"What?" Kate teased.

"I was not expecting that."

"A thank you?"

"No. Just. I did not think you recognized. Well."

"Shut up and kiss me."

"Yes, ma'am."

Bruce's kiss did what it always did to Kate. She was dizzy with love
and affection.

"You know just how to make me go crazy."

"Woman, so do you. But I'm here and I'm not going anywhere."

They regarded each other for a moment.

"You do know that I'm not going anywhere right?" Bruce
asked.

"I hope not."

"I want more for us."

Kate was not sure where the conversation was going, so she sat
quietly while Bruce spoke.

"I want to know if you are totally committed to being together
as a couple."

"I am."

Bruce moved closer to her. "Up until now, we have been dating,
exclusive, but I want us to be fully committed to one another. I
think it's time we start looking at the next steps in our
relationship."

Kate's heart was pounding. "Okay."

"Okay?"

"Yes, okay. I'm in."

Bruce's face was stoic and she was not sure if he heard her so she
repeated it.

"I'm in, Bruce."

"I heard you." When he spoke, it was calm, almost a
whisper.

"So now, I ask you again. Bruce Stanger. Are you happy?"

"Kate Walker, being with you has made me one of the happiest men
in the world."

As soon as she stepped foot on L.A. ground, Kate was ready to get
back to her life. Being in France was almost magical and it seemed
like she was living in a fairy tale while she was there. Not only was
she able to do what she loved with her career, but she made endless
love to the man she was in love with.

Having the opportunity to work with Fancy at the awards shows and
events put Kate's name in the forefront of being a new up and coming
stylist. Linda and Amelia had been fielding calls all day long about
booking Kate's services. Kate would now need to have an assistant to
help her out and her stylist business was growing so quickly. Grey's
Boutique had more business than she dreamed of. When Fancy spoke of
Kate's services while she was on the red carpet, it instantly turned
in to more followers on social media, more clients, and more business
in the boutique.

People were not only browsing, they were coming to shop and booking
Kate's consulting services for special events. Kate had even been
booked for a few speaking engagements. Things were on a roll and she
did not want to lose momentum.

Then there was her relationship with Bruce. That was also gaining
momentum. If you asked her early last year if she would be smitten by
a man who was asking her for a commitment, Kate would have laughed.
Finding love was the furthest from her mind. Having a relationship
and being career oriented did not seem like it could fit in the same
space in her life. And now here she was, trying to juggle both and
find a way to make it all work.

Her conversation with Fancy made the world of difference. The advice
was not unlike what she'd heard from Bruce, or her mother for that
matter. Even on a visit to Bruce's parents' home, they mentioned the
same sentiments. Everyone wanted her to be serious about love and in
Kate's mind, she could not see how she could focus on what she wanted
out of life and career and being full time in love.

Obviously people did it and made it work. Women juggled being wives
and mothers every single day. To Kate, she could not figure out how
to spread herself around enough to give her all in each area.
Instead, she thought it easier to focus on one thing at a time. It
was just easiest to focus on career. Her career never let her down.
Her career, although there were highs and lows, was pretty straight
forward. There was no ambiguity where work was concerned. Either she
was working or she wasn't. And the amount of work she had was
contingent on how much energy she put out. It was the true meaning of
you had to give in order to get.

She poured all she had into being successful. When she was honest
with herself, she was not sure how she would be able to give one
hundred percent to every area of her life. Just thinking about it
made her exhausted. She just could not think of what she could do to
manage love and her career, because everyone was correct in saying
that having love in her life was absolutely necessary.

Bruce's request for the two of them to start looking at a life
together in a fully committed relationship took her by surprise. It
really should not have, but it did. He spoke of the two of them so
seriously and for a second, she thought he was going to propose.

Getting married was not on her agenda so immediately. She was not
completely ready to take that leap. Instead, she was happy with being
in a committed relationship to see where that would take them
organically. She certainly did not want to rush anything because
timing was everything as far as she was concerned.

Now that she and Bruce were looking at taking things to the next
level, she knew that meant marriage would be on the horizon. It was
something she needed to prepare herself for. Something she needed to
start thinking about. Envisioning herself as a wife was difficult.
How much would her life change?

How much would being Mrs. Bruce Stanger change everything she knew
about life?

Just thinking about it made her start to panic, but on the back end
of that, thinking about being with the man she loved made her heart
full of joy.

*****

Kate walked into the boutique with renewed invigoration.

"Hello, ladies!"

"Look what the cat dragged in," Linda commented as she
walked over to get a hug from Kate.

"Kate. You look so refreshed."

"Thanks Amelia. I almost feel like I have a new outlook on my
career. I feel refreshed."

Amelia smiled as Kate walked back to her office.

"I know you don't think you are going to breeze in here without
giving me all of the specifics of the trip."

Kate looked up to see Linda standing there, leaning against the door
frame, arms folded.

"I just got here. My goodness." Kate shuffled a few things
around on her desk.

"Whatever. You know I'm nosy."

"This is true. So where should I start?"

Kate took a seat, leaning back in the chair.

"Tell me everything about Paris." When Linda spoke, she had
a dreamy look on her face.

"It's gorgeous. And yes, it's as romantic as you think it is."

Linda clasped her hands together. "Yes! I knew it."

"You really have to go sometime. I wish I could have been there
just for vacation, but it was nice to be able to do a little business
and a little pleasure."

"Isn't that the way to do it? A little business. A little
pleasure."

"I tell you Linda, I'm trying to figure it our. How do I do
both?"

"Ah, that's the billion dollar question. How do you juggle it
all?"

Kate stared at Linda.

"What are you looking at me like that for?"

"I thought maybe you would have the answer."

"Oh, honey, there is no guidebook for that. You just have to do
what you feel is right in the moment and hope it all works out."

Kate sighed. "Really? That's all that you have for me?"

Linda shrugged. "Sorry."

"Anyway," Kate continued waving her hand. "As far as
business. Obviously working with Fancy was amazing. Just the mere
mention of my name has doubled business. I'm grateful for that fact.
She is so sweet and wants to continue to work with me for the next
few events she has over the summer. We have to send her the details
on the retainer. I also got the opportunity to connect with some
other designers while there and that was amazing as well. I think
going to Paris should be a yearly trip at least."

"Next step, Paris Fashion Week, right?"

"I would love that. We have to work toward that, but I think we
are going in the right direction."

"Now, how about the pleasure part?"

"Wow. Bruce is amazing as well. First with surprising me by
coming with me in the first place. Then he was patient, so patient
with me. I was working so hard, and he was so supportive. I could not
ask for anything more."