To the twins’ delight, Reese agreed they could visit the ranch on Saturday. Once a time was chosen, Reese hurried the kids out to his car, trying to hush their loud and prolonged goodbye calls to Cade.

“So, Sara, you’re now free to discuss Mr. Porter’s wedding.”

Sara struggled to smile, remembering the windows.

“Would it be okay if we talked at that coffee shop around the corner?” Cade asked. “I haven’t had my quota of java yet, and I wouldn’t mind something to eat. I think I’ll need my energy to make all these decisions you’re talking about.”

“It’s—”

“A wonderful idea!” Katie’s smile resembled that of an obsequious slave. “Take as long as you like, Sara. We want to do our best for Mr. Porter.”

“Please, call me Cade.”

Sara frowned at Katie. Earlier her sister had bawled her out for redoing the display mannequin’s makeup instead of attending to the massive files stacked behind the reception desk. Now suddenly Katie was all smiles and pleasantness at the prospect of having Sara leave the building?

Something was fishy.

“The desk will be unattended,” she reminded softly. “I could be gone a while.”

“I’ll find someone else.” Katie’s smile never wavered.

Cade cleared his throat. “If the arrangement isn’t to your liking, Ms.—”

“Her name is Sara. Sara Woodward.” Katie’s Cheshire cat smile widened.

“It’s nice to meet you, Sara,” Cade said softly, his smile charming. “But I repeat, if the arrangement isn’t to Sara’s liking…”

Nothing about her current circumstances was to Sara’s liking. Her “liking” would be to work with Gideon Glen—a special-effects genius whose work Sara had admired for years. Sara’s biggest “liking” would be for her family to accept her independence and stop trying to coax her back into the family business.

But she could hardly say that in front of a client. Instead Sara leaned forward, grasped her sister’s arm and excused herself.

“We’ll just be a moment, Mr. Porter.”

“It’s Cade.”

“Of course it is.” Sara dragged Katie around the corner.

“Sara!” Katie struggled to free her arm. “What are you doing?”

“Consulting. Katie, this guy doesn’t have the first clue about a wedding.” She kept her voice subdued through rigid control.

“You’ll figure it out. Work with him. And take your time,” Katie said sweetly. Too sweetly.

Warning bells chimed a second time, but all Sara could do was ignore their caution and follow her sister back into Woodwards’ reception area.

“Enjoy your coffee, you two.” Katie made it sound like a date.

Sara ached to refuse. But with Cade Porter watching—

You’re home to help, remember. So help.

“Mr. Porter, how do like your coffee?”

“Strong and black.” He flashed his smile and Sara’s knees softened.

Those blue irises are only colored contacts.

Her knees didn’t seem to care.

“Bye.” Katie waggled her fingers at them before picking up the phone.

Cade opened the big glass entry door. Sara walked through, wondering if she’d imagined the smug look on Katie’s face.

“Autumn’s such a refreshing season, isn’t it?” Mr. Porter grinned as he clapped a hand on his Stetson so the wind couldn’t take it.

“I guess.”

It was obvious from his deep breaths that he’d found the store confining and enjoyed the freedom of outside. Sara struggled to match her step to his. Not an easy feat wearing the needle-thin heels Katie insisted were the only appropriate footwear for a fashion-conscious house like Woodwards’. Her best effort was a mincing half jog.

When they finally arrived at the coffee shop, Sara collapsed into a chair and brushed the mass of damp tumbling curls off her face. Her look, reflected in the pastry case mirror across the room, was so not the image of a pulled-together career woman out for coffee with a client.

“Makeup artist, cure thyself,” she muttered, patting a napkin against her damp forehead.

“Excuse me?”

“Talking to myself. Often happens after a round with the twins.” Hiding facial flaws on others was Sara’s passion. Hiding her own was a losing battle, so she ignored her reflection. “Somehow those two little kids always leave me feeling like I need time to recoup. Happy but drained. The way you looked before we left the store.”

“I wasn’t drained,” he said.

“Right.” He’d been chafing to get away. Sara wondered why.

“Because I invited you, I’m buying. What will you have?” Cade leaned one shoulder against the wall, his face all sharply defined planes and angles in the dimmer interior.

“Just coffee, thanks. Double cream.”

Cade’s shadowed gaze raked her face, then his swift assessment moved slowly from her untamed curls to the pearly sheen of polish Katie had painted on her toenails. He nodded once, then walked to the counter.

Sara leaned back against the banquette. Because Cade wasn’t volunteering any information, she’d have to come out and ask about his sister, and risk sounding like a snoop. She hadn’t come up with a way to begin when her client returned, grinning as he set a gigantic cup in front of her.

“Thank you. Is something amusing you, Mr. Porter?”

“Cade.” He studied her hair, frizzy now from the outside humidity. “You don’t look old enough to drink that.”

Sara’s molars met. Tomorrow she’d cut off her curls. Perhaps then—

“I assure you I am perfectly capable of functioning as your wedding planner. I do have the necessary credentials.” Later she’d ask Katie how that certificate had gone from the trunk in her room at their parents’ home to hanging on Woodwards’ wall.

“I’m sure you do.” He sat down across from her, stretched his long legs to one side. His eyes turned a moody shade of blue.

“Is the coffee bad?” She sipped her own.

“Coffee’s fine.” The granite jaw softened slightly.

Sara liked the effect. “So—?”

“I wanted to do something really special for my sister. I didn’t realize planning her wedding would be so complicated.”

“And now you’re thinking more along the lines of elopement?” she teased.

“No way.” Not a morsel of doubt crept into his low, firm tone. “I specifically chose Weddings by Woodwards because they’re supposed to be the best in the business. And I want the very best.”

“Woodwards is top of the heap.” Sara studied him. “You need the best because—?”

“Because this wedding has to be absolutely perfect. She deserves it.”

As he said the words, something in Cade Porter’s demeanor changed. The intensity of his voice, the love underlying his words, the blaze of pride in his blue irises—all of it told Sara how much he loved his sister.

“Your sister is lucky to have a brother like you.” For a tiny second a soft brush of yearning feathered across her heart. Then reality returned.

Cade Porter was planning this wedding without the bride! It was exactly the kind of thing her lovable family would do, the kind of overbearing, know-it-all action that Sara constantly fought against.

“Tell me what your sister would want.” That didn’t sound nosy. Sara held her pen above the pad and waited.

Cade leaned back against his chair and closed his eyes. His deep, assured tone compelled her attention.

“She’s a perfectionist. She’d want every detail to be taken care of. So do I. I don’t want any surprises on that day. I want it beautiful, elegant but not stuffy. I want the guests to enjoy themselves, to feel welcome. I particularly don’t want ordinary.” He opened his eyes. “I want memorable. Does that help?”

“It’s a place to start. Any idea when she’ll hold her wedding?”

His eyes flickered open. “For now, the date’s up in the air.”

Another glitch.

“When will she know?”

“Probably not until a few days before it’s to be held.”

Sara frowned. This was getting weirder by the moment.

“Mr. Porter, we need your sister present for at least one consultation.”

“Not possible.”

“But it sounds like you want to have everything planned without having a set date.”

“That’s exactly what I want. A church ceremony seems obvious.”

“Unless the wedding comes during a busy season like Christmas when we would have to book ages ahead.” Sara set her cup aside, troubled by his plan.

She was pretty sure she could do this—on her own, without help. She had the skill, the ability. It was simply a matter of applying her brain to the problem and then coming up with a solution. But was it right to do it all without the bride’s involvement?

“What about a park setting? Then we wouldn’t need to book ahead.”

His eyes narrowed, but he didn’t answer.

“Weddings in a place that holds meaning for the couple can also be charming. Is there some place special to your sister and her fiancé?”

Cade seemed not to hear her because he suddenly leaned forward, holding her gaze with his own.

“If it was you, would a church wedding be your choice?”

“No.” She avoided his gaze.

“Why not?”

“I’m not the church-wedding type.” Sara wasn’t about to tell him how long it had been since she’d stopped talking to God. “Listen, Mr. Porter—”

“Can we please agree that you’ll call me Cade?” He was doing that charm bit again, and he hadn’t moved a muscle.

“Cade,” she complied, pretending a coolness she didn’t feel. “My preferences are not the issue here. I must talk to the bride to get her feelings on things.”

“She’s leaving it all to me.”

His fast response ramped up Sara’s inner warning system to red alert. She looked him straight in the eye, just the way Winnie had taught her.

“Does your sister even know you’re planning this wedding?”

“Not yet.” Cade’s smile dimmed. “It’s a surprise.”

Sara squeezed her eyes closed, barely stifling her groan.

“I’m guessing you don’t think that’s a good idea?”

“I think it’s a terrible idea. I have never known a bride who didn’t want to play an active part in her own wedding.” Sara glanced away, counted to five. When she looked back, his eyes waited for her. Their gazes locked. “Tell me the truth.”

“She wants to elope,” he rasped, his voice drained of its rich timbre. “To go somewhere no one knows her and take the most important step of her life.”

“Then surely—”

“She’s so fixated on getting married she can’t see how much she’ll regret her decision later. But I know exactly how much she might need those memories in the future.” His ominous tone told Sara Cade’s own personal reasons were figuring into his decision to organize this wedding.

She recognized that he was probably smarting from his sister’s decision. Maybe he felt left out. Maybe he’d been goaded into circumventing what she wanted by their parents.

Whatever his reason, Sara was the last person to help Cade Porter plan something his sister didn’t want. She had too much experience with interfering families and the pain that came from resisting their strong wills.

“I’m sorry, Mr. Porter. I can’t help you with this wedding.” Sara rose, picked up her purse. “If you still want Weddings by Woodwards, I’ll select another planner. But my advice is to talk to your sister, really listen to what she tells you. Then abide by her decision.”

“But—”

Sara ignored his frown, determined to make him understand.

“You want your sister to treasure happy memories of her wedding day?”

“Of course!”

“That won’t happen if every anniversary she’s reminded that you forced something she didn’t want. She’s entitled to have her own dream—even if it isn’t your dream.”

He couldn’t know she was speaking from experience.

“But—”

“I’m sorry, I can’t help you. Goodbye.”

For a fraction of a second, one thought held Sara immobile.

She was going to disappoint the family.

Again.

Chapter Two

“Wait!”

Cade ignored the curious stares of the other coffee-shop patrons. He needed Sara Woodward. He needed Weddings by Woodwards, needed their expertise and their clout. But more than that, he found himself not wanting this small delicate woman to think badly of him.

And she did.

Her prickly tone, the frost edging her voice, the sharp snap of her consonants—Sara Woodward had pegged him as an overbearing ogre, forcing his sister to bend to his demands.

“You don’t understand.”

“No, I don’t.”

“Will you please hear me out before judging me any further?”

Sara debated for a moment, nodded once then took her seat.

Cade smiled.

“Thank you. I can imagine what you think, Sara. But if I couldn’t, your face gives it away.” Relieved she was still listening, he hurried on. “I apologize. I should have started at the beginning. I’ve lived alone so long, I expect people to read my mind.”

“You don’t have to apologize. I still won’t do it.” The jut of her chin emphasized her determination.

“Give me five minutes?”

She studied him, lips pursed. Finally she nodded.

“I’ll listen. But it’s really a moot point.”

“Why?”

“Unless the wedding takes place very quickly, I won’t be around. I’d have to hand you over to someone else eventually anyway.”

Someone else? But he’d connected with her. Or thought he had.

“I understood that once Weddings by Woodwards took on an event, their planner stayed until the event was over.”

“Usually that’s true.” Her lids drooped, shielding her eyes.

“So?” What was she hiding? Cade leaned in to study her closed-up face.

“I won’t be staying. I returned to Woodwards to help out only while my grandmother is ill.”

“Returned from?”

“Los Angeles.” Sara studied her notepad. “We can go back to the store now. Katie will help you.”

“She said she’s booked today.” Cade dismissed that. “You don’t know when you’re leaving Denver?”

“Not exactly.” Sara avoided his gaze. “But the moment Winnie is back at Woodwards full-time, I’m off to L.A. Working at Weddings by Woodwards is temporary for me.”

Her voice, sheathed in steely determination, gave the impression it wasn’t the first time she’d said that. Cade didn’t argue. Instead he signaled to their server to refill their cups and offered her one of the croissants he’d ordered.

“You said you’d explain,” Sara prodded.

“I’m not sure where to start.” Cade stirred his coffee, then decided it wasn’t going to get easier. “Karen, my sister, is overseas, in the military.”

“Oh?”

“She and her fiancé are in a special tactical force. I hear from her sporadically. In her last e-mail Karen told me she and Trent had just become engaged and that they wanted to be married as soon as they return, at the end of their mission, which is secret. See why I can’t specify a date and time?”

“Yes, I understand.” Interest lit her expressive face.

“Karen’s twenty-three,” he continued. “She and Trent were high-school sweethearts. I want to give her the kind of wedding our parents would have. A celebration.”

“But she wants to elope.”

“Because Karen thinks it will be easier on me, that it won’t cost me anything, won’t make a fuss I’ll have to endure.” Publicizing personal details wasn’t his forte, but Cade could tell by Sara’s dubious expression that he was going to have to open up if he wanted her help. “You see, I was supposed to be married right before Karen went overseas the first time. My fiancée died two weeks before the wedding.”

He heard her soft gasp.

“I’m so sorry.”

“Thanks.” Cade hated this part, wanted to get past it fast. “Marnie died of an aneurysm. It was totally unexpected.”

“And then your sister left.” Her face softened. “That was a hard time for you.”

“Yes.” He could see Sara didn’t understand. Yet. He’d have to give her more details. “Karen felt guilty for leaving right after I’d lost Marnie. She wanted to ask the Army for leave, but I persuaded her to go.”

“Because?” Sara’s brown velvet eyes missed nothing.

“Because she deserves to build her own life. There was nothing she could do for me. I’m older, I’m stronger. I could get through it on my own.”

“You wanted to protect her.”

Cade smiled at the accuracy of her assessment and the skill with which she cut through his prevarication.

“It’s what I do,” he admitted.

“You protect your sister—because you think Karen isn’t capable of looking after herself?” Disbelief emphasized the arch of one sculpted eyebrow. “At twenty-three?”

“You remind me of her.” Cade recalled the many times his sister had cut through his excuses and demanded the truth. “Karen doesn’t mince words, either.”

The petite blond wedding planner tightened her lips.

“It doesn’t have anything to do with how old she is, Sara.” Cade let the story pour out. “Our parents died when I was eighteen. Karen was ten. I raised her. I was her father, mother and her brother. She’s my only family. That’s why this wedding has to be special.”

“Even if she doesn’t want it?” Sara’s brows furrowed.

“She does! She just doesn’t want to let on she does because Karen thinks another wedding will bring back the pain of losing Marnie.”

“Will it?”

“Probably some,” he acknowledged. “But my experiencing a little pain isn’t a good enough reason not to have a wedding for Karen.”

“I see.”

She didn’t.

“My sister used to constantly talk about what she’d do for her own wedding. She had more bride dolls than any of her friends. In her room at home there’s a big fat album full of wedding pictures she’s been cutting out of magazines for as long as I can remember.” Cade met her stare. “Karen’s wedding has been a dream she’s had forever. I am not going to let her give it up because of me.”

“Generous of you. The album might come in handy.” Sara’s wise-owl eyes never left his face. “But surely you understand what’s involved? You were about to be married. You must have consulted with your fiancée, made joint decisions.”

That made him laugh.

“If you’d known Marnie, you wouldn’t have said that. She was the ultimate organizer and she did not like her plans interfered with. That was fine by me. Some stuff was going on at the ranch at the time and I was glad to let her handle all the details. I didn’t care how, as long as we got married.” He made a face. “I wish now I’d paid more attention.”

“You’ve known a lot of loss.”

“I’ve known a lot of happiness,” he corrected. “I thank God for that every day.”

Sara’s face closed up like a clam, her eyes dropped to her worksheet. Cade wondered what he’d said wrong.

“It isn’t possible to ask Karen’s preferences on anything?”

Cade shook his head.

“She and Trent were leaving base for a new mission the day she e-mailed me. I can leave messages, but I can’t contact her directly. Even if I could, there wouldn’t be any point.”

“Because?”

“Because all Karen and Trent care about is getting married as soon as they get home. That’s why I want everything in place.” He wouldn’t give up, not yet. “I don’t want my sister to elope because it’s easier. I want her to come home, to walk her down the aisle of the church we grew up in. I want to hand her care over to her husband.”

Not strictly accurate, but Cade pushed past the half truth to continue.

“I want her to have precious memories of her wedding day that she can take out and treasure when the tough patches come.”

At last Sara lifted her head and met his gaze.

“It’s going to be a lot of work.”

Cade’s heart bumped with relief. That meant she was going to help, didn’t it?

“Life is a lot of work. But family matters, and when you do something for them, the payoff on their faces makes the work seem like play.” He studied her. “You must know that yourself.”

“I must, mustn’t I?” Sara agreed dourly, her concentration on the scribbles she placed on her notepad.

The chagrin tingeing her voice surprised Cade. He studied her profile, followed one of her golden ringlets to its resting place on her narrow shoulder. Sara Woodward had the kind of soft, wistful beautiful many women tried to erase.

Perhaps she—

A movement outside caught Cade’s attention and he blinked at the man who peered through the glass.

“Isn’t that your brother, Reese, father of the infamous twins?”

Sara’s head jerked up. She twisted to get a better look. When she turned back, her almost-black eyes glittered with indignation.

“Yes, it’s Reese.” Sara squished her napkin into a ball. “Sometimes I wish I’d never left L.A.”

Her whisper shocked Cade. Fairly certain she hadn’t been talking to him, he didn’t press because her face looked as if she’d lost her best friend.

Sara’s narrow shoulders drooped. The soft cream silk blouse shifted, revealing her slim neck and the delicate silk scarf she’d tucked in there. Cade didn’t know much about fashion, but he was fairly certain that particular hue of Caribbean orange wasn’t in vogue at the moment. Yet on Sara it looked exactly right—vibrant, warm, full of potential.

He wondered why she’d chosen the shade. Actually he had a thousand questions about his wedding planner.

“What do you do when you’re in L.A., Sara?”

She blinked. Big innocent doe eyes, an unusual combination with that blond hair, widened.

“Do?” Her cheekbones turned a richer pink. “Um…”

“You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to.” He’d only just met the woman and now he was prying? Loneliness wasn’t an excuse. “I’m getting too personal. Sorry.”

“It’s not a secret. I’m a makeup artist for a movie studio. I’m trying to break into special effects, though.” She said it defiantly, as if she expected him to offer some negative remark on her choice of career.

“Cool.” Cade asked the first thing he thought of. “Ever worked with the stars?”

“Once or twice.” Her eyelids drooped, shielding her thoughts. One short oval nail tapped against the tabletop.

Sara might not like his questions, but at least she hadn’t told him to mind his own business. Cade pressed on.

“I’m guessing it’s a challenging field.”

“It can be.” She lifted her chin and her face transformed, skin glowing, eyes shining with excitement. “That’s what I like about it. It’s a chance to prove you can change things, make them into what you want. I never tire of that.”

The hint of defiance underlying her words reminded him of Karen on the day she’d announced she’d enlisted. Determination. Grit. Challenge.

Sara’s fingertips tightened around her cup of barely touched coffee.

“I’m going to get into special effects. As soon as I can figure out how.”

“I’m sure you will.” He remembered an earlier comment. “It was nice of you to put your dream on hold to help out while your grandmother recuperates.”

“I didn’t want to.” Soft pink deepened to a rose blush.

“But you came anyway. That’s true commitment.” Cade studied the pure clear shape of her face. “Surely there must be a call for your kind of work in Denver?”

“For makeup. But I’m trying to get into special effects. That means Hollywood.”

“I see.”

“Do you?” Sara Woodward’s velvet brown eyes challenged him to understand.

And Cade didn’t, though he wished he could.

For him, family came right behind his love for God. Although his parents had been gone for fifteen years, he still treasured the family moments he could recall, happy, laughing moments when it seemed as if they’d always be there, providing the love and security he’d taken for granted.

The same love he’d showered on Karen as he tried to protect her.

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