Her Cowboy Groom

But the idea of getting in her car and leaving the nice little cocoon the ranch provided made her stomach tie in knots. What if despite Katrina’s threat, Michael showed up at the shop the moment Linnea got back? She wanted to be strong enough to believe that it wouldn’t bother her, but she doubted she would be. She’d bought into their romance a hundred percent, and she still sometimes thought she might wake up to find the awful truth wasn’t in fact the truth.

She needed to stop thinking that way and face it head-on, no matter how horrible it was going to be. She knew that, told herself that over and over, and yet here she sat in Chloe’s old room, not taking that first step.

A knock on the door drew her attention. “Yeah?”

Owen poked his head in. “Get dressed. We’re going to the rodeo.”

“I don’t think I’m up for that, but you all have a good time.”

“Nope, not letting you wiggle your way out of this one. After all, you’re my only hope.”

She cocked her head a little to the side. “Do I even want to ask?”

“See, there’s this girl named Tiffany in town who has been after me, and I need protection.”

Linnea actually snorted at that. “Protection from a woman? You are Owen Brody, right?”

“Exactly. I’m so irresistible that I need a protection detail.”

“Lord, I need to borrow some waders because it is getting deep in here.”

Owen shot her one of those crooked grins of his that she was sure had the women of Blue Falls tripping over themselves to be with him. For a moment, she understood why. If he weren’t Chloe’s brother and she didn’t think men sucked at the moment, she might even be tempted.

Which was another good reason not to go to the rodeo, and another reason she needed to get back to Dallas.

“Owen—”

“You’re going to leave me out to dry after I saved you from a rainstorm and got your tires fixed?”

“Pulling out all the stops, huh?”

“Did it work?”

“Why are you pushing this? Do you really need me to pretend I’m with you to stave off the hordes of women?”

He leaned back against the doorframe and hung his thumbs in his jean pockets. “Because you need to get out of this house and have a good time.”

“You do remember I just had the worst week of my life, right?”

“Which is why you need to go have some fun, because I’d lay good money down that Michael isn’t having fun right now.”

The evil gleam in Owen’s eyes nearly made her laugh. It was amazing how many times he’d given her a light moment throughout the week, something she would have thought impossible when she’d driven out of Dallas with her world shattered.

“Fine, I’ll go. But I’m not promising you won’t regret it later.”

“Fair enough, but you’ll be with me. You’re guaranteed to have a good time.”

“Oh, get out,” she said as she stood. “And take your enormous ego with you.”

His grin widened as he slipped out the door. She closed it behind him and shook her head. But she found herself smiling at the idea of spending the night out while Michael was miserable. At least she hoped he was.

She turned and headed for her bag to look for something appropriate to wear. She might not really be Owen Brody’s date, but damn if she wasn’t going to take advantage of his infectious thirst for a good time. And if she happened to appreciate how he looked in his jeans, well, nobody had to know but her. After all, she’d be back home soon, back to her real life that didn’t include rodeos or cowboys in tight jeans. She glanced toward the door where Owen had stood a few moments before and wondered if she would have been better off falling for someone like him than for the man she’d thought was perfect for her.

Chapter Four

Despite the fact that her best friend had lived her entire life on a ranch and had probably been going to rodeos since she was in utero, Linnea found herself asking several questions as she and the Brodys sat in the grandstands watching the events.

Owen nudged her in the back. “I thought you grew up in Texas, woman.”

She eyed him over her shoulder. “Not too many rodeos in the Dallas suburbs.”

“Not that far to Fort Worth, either. Home to one of the biggest rodeos in the country.”

“She was probably watching Project Runway or Say Yes to the Dress,” Chloe said with a teasing smile.

Linnea wrinkled her nose at her friend. “Neither of those was on when I was in high school. And I seem to remember someone I know not minding Project Runway marathons.”

Chloe lifted an eyebrow. “I am a girl, after all. Just because I know my way around horses and cattle doesn’t mean I don’t like pretty things, too.”

Linnea noticed Owen turn his attention to his brother beside him. “How did talking about rodeo lead to a discussion about clothes?”

“Get two women together, and talk always turns toward clothes,” Garrett said with a matter-of-fact tone. “Or shoes.”

Chloe reached back and slugged him in the side of the leg.

“Ow. Wyatt, control your wife.”

“Oh, hell no,” Wyatt said, putting his hands in the air. “Not touching that one with a ten-foot pole.”

“Smart boy,” Wayne said from where he sat on the other side of Garrett.

“What is up with women needing so many shoes?” Owen asked.

“Because we have pretty feet,” Chloe said.

“I’ll have you know I have gorgeous feet,” he tossed back.

“Boy, the only time you had anything other than ugly feet was when you were born.”

Linnea found herself smiling at the good-natured family teasing. Owen had been right. It felt good to get out of the house and do something around other people, even if every time she saw a couple holding hands it sent a sharp pain through her heart.

By the time the rodeo was over, she was ready to retreat to the guest room, however. She was proud of herself for taking a step toward moving on, but she’d worn a smile for about as long as she could manage for one night.

So when Owen pulled into the parking lot for the Blue Falls Music Hall, a flutter of panic hit her. “I thought we were heading back to the house.”

“Later.”

Before she could protest, he slipped out of the truck and headed around the front. Not willing to let him get the door for her as if it were a date, she opened her own door and got out before he could reach her. Thankfully, he didn’t comment on her blocking his attempt at chivalry.

“Sure you don’t want to skip this?” she asked.

“You haven’t been to the music hall in a long time. And the Teagues of Texas, a local band, is playing tonight. They’re pretty good considering it’s not what they do for a living.”

Not wanting to put a damper on Owen’s fun, she accompanied him inside. Though she wasn’t his date, it was obvious that they’d arrived together. But it didn’t seem to matter. They were approximately half a dozen steps inside when a cute little brunette grabbed his hand and dragged him toward the dance floor. He looked back at Linnea with a smile and a shrug, causing her to laugh a little under her breath.

“Oh, good, you came,” Chloe said as she looped her arm with Linnea’s and dragged her toward the bar.

“Not much of a choice. Seems all my options for a ride back to the ranch stopped here.” She could have driven herself, should have, but it had seemed silly to take yet another vehicle at the time when they were all going to and coming back to the same place. But now she was stuck in the middle of a beehive of humanity having a good time.

After they sat at the bar and ordered drinks, Chloe spun toward Linnea. “How are you doing?”

“Great. Never better.”

“Sorry. We were hoping getting out would give you a boost.”

She took a breath. “It did.” When Chloe looked skeptical, Linnea continued. “Really.”

Even if she was feeling as if her meager reserve of happiness was running out like the sand rushing through an hourglass, she needed to be grateful that she had friends so ready to try to help her. But maybe it was time to go home and continue trying to heal there.

But she thought about how differently her family would handle things. While they were wonderful and loving, too, she knew her mother would want to hug and protect her, to talk about all the minute details of what had happened. The very thought made Linnea want to run screaming across the border into Mexico. Even though she would have preferred going back to the ranch after the rodeo, being in the midst of a crowd of strangers dancing, talking and laughing was still better than the pity and well-intended coddling she would get from her family if she went home. She needed more time to prepare to deal with that every bit as much as for dealing with returning to work and possibly running into Michael.

She scanned the crowd, spotting a few familiar faces. Chloe’s friends India and Skyler were laughing in the opposite corner with someone else Linnea didn’t know. Garrett and Wyatt were standing at the end of the bar holding bottles of beer. But, no surprise, Owen was right in the middle of the action on the dance floor, smiling at the girl he was dancing with, not the same one who’d accosted him at the door. Linnea realized she’d been staring at him for too long, appreciating the way he moved and how nice he looked in a clean, dark blue, button-up shirt and jeans that weren’t caked with a day’s work.

“Did you hear me?”

Linnea jerked her attention back to Chloe. “What?”

Chloe looked toward the dance floor. “What were you watching so intently?”

“Nothing. Just got lost in my thoughts.” Let Chloe assume she was still dwelling on what Michael had done. It was better than admitting that she had been thinking about Chloe’s little brother in a way she shouldn’t be, especially only days before she had been scheduled to walk down the aisle to marry another man. What the heck was wrong with her?

Chloe didn’t look as if she quite believed her, but she didn’t question her further. She did look back at the dancers, however, and shook her head. “I swear, one of these days my brother is going to grow up and stop acting like a college frat boy.”

“Holding your breath on that one?”

Chloe laughed. “No. Don’t really want to turn blue and pass out.”

Linnea chanced another glance at Owen. “It’s not like he’s over the hill.” Far from it. He was a man in his prime, one she needed to stop watching before she gave herself away. There shouldn’t even be anything to give away. Or maybe she was just overreacting because her nerves were so on edge.

“Would you like to dance?”

It took Linnea a moment to realize she was the one a tall cowboy was talking to. He was nice-looking in a rough-around-the-edges sort of way. He just had the misfortune of asking her to dance at the wrong time in her life.

“No, but thank you.”

“You sure?”

She offered him a smile that she hoped was kind but not encouraging. “Yes, I am.”

The song ended, and Owen parted from his latest dance partner. As if he could sense they were talking about him, he headed straight for them. He eyed the retreating cowboy.

“That guy bothering you?” he asked.

Linnea shook her head. “No. Just asked me to dance.”

The band struck up another tune, a cover of a Jason Aldean song. Linnea was more of a pop-music fan, but you couldn’t live in Texas and not be familiar on some level with country music.

“Not a bad idea,” Owen said, and extended his hand to her.

She stared at his hand for a moment. “I don’t think so.”

He placed his other hand over his heart. “You’re going to shoot me down? The guy who saved you from the side of the road.”

“Oh, you’re milking that for all it’s worth.”

“Go on,” Chloe said, motioning toward the dance floor. “Save my brother from his legions of adoring fangirls.”

Linnea had the strongest urge to click her heels together three times to see if she’d be transported back to the ranch. Something tightened inside her, telling her that dancing with Owen wasn’t a good idea. Mentally calling herself a fool for worrying over nothing, she sighed. “Okay, one dance.”

He gave her a crooked grin. “Unless you can’t pull yourself away.”

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