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  Then Rafe was cutting through the crowd of well-wishers, holding out his hand and dragging her to the side.

  “Suzanne—”

  “Rafe.”

  “No, let me,” he said in a voice thick with emotion. Without taking his eyes off her, he cupped her face in his hands. “I’m sorry I’ve been so…so difficult. I’m sorry I sent you away. I’m sorry I didn’t call.” He hesitated, then dropped to his knees in the grass. “But I know now that I love you, Suzanne. And if you’ll have me, I want to marry you.”

  Her lower lip trembled, and for a heartbeat he waited, expecting her to launch herself into his arms. But she didn’t. She shook her head, a single tear sliding down her cheek.

  “I can’t, Rafe.”

  “What?”

  “Not if you won’t accept my help.” She swiped at her eyes, and he understood what the tears cost her. “I want a real marriage, where we work together, Rafe, where—”

  “Shh.” He stood and dragged her into his arms and kissed her. When he pulled back, he was shaking. “We’ll work all that out. It may take me a while to get the hang of a relationship, but we’ll work together.”

  “You’re sure?”

  “Yes, I don’t need your money for the loan right now, but if you want to use your money to buy some furniture for the house, that’s fine. I want you to fix it up so it’ll be your home, so you’ll be happy there.”

  She threaded her fingers in his hair. “Rafe, don’t you understand? All I need to be happy is you.”

  He gripped her arms in his hands. Now that he’d touched her again, he couldn’t stand to let her go. “Then say you’ll marry me,” he whispered roughly, still not satisfied without the words.

  “Yes, I’ll marry you.”

  “I love you, Suzanne.”

  “I love you, too.”

  He swept her into his arms and kissed her with all the passion and hunger he had been holding inside. When they finally opened their eyes, the crowd of spectators had turned to watch them. “We could get married right here and now,” he said, grinning at his mother who was smiling, cuddled inside her new husband’s embrace.

  Suzanne shook her head. “No, I want Alison to help plan my wedding, and my sister and father and Grammy Rose to be here. Family is the most important thing in the world.” She nuzzled his neck.

  “You’re right, and I want to have one with you, Suzanne.”

  “I want that, too.” She kissed his ear. “In fact, I can’t wait to get married.”

  “Then you want a big church wedding?”

  She shook her head. “No, I want a cowboy wedding.” Her fingers traced a path over his chest. “And I’m going to be a cowgirl bride.”

  Epilogue

  Six Weeks Later

  Her wedding couldn’t have been more perfect, Suzanne thought, as she rode across her grandmother’s lawn to meet Rafe on horseback. He and Bud had used his trailer to bring Thunder and Blondie up, and she wore the white bridal hat, lacy boots and choker from her hope chest, along with a tea-length cowgirl bridal gown Alison had helped her find. It matched the earring set and the beads trimming her veil. Rafe wore black dress jeans and a long black Western frock coat over a brocade striped-satin vest with a black bow tie, an outfit that made him look rakish, like a movie star. He’d traded his everyday Stetson for a new black one, his work boots for black alligator cowboy boots with silver spurs.

  Her entire family had shown up for the service. Everyone was in such a festive mood with talk of Alison’s and Rebecca’s pregnancies. Hannah had given birth to a baby boy the week before, a strapping seven pounder with dark hair like his father’s and a smile like his mother’s. They named him Clint Wiley Tippins. Her uncle Wiley was ecstatic to finally have a male in the family, especially a namesake. Jake had already bought out the sporting goods store, everything from footballs to soccer balls were scattered across the infant’s room.

  Red roses draped the trellis on top of Pine Mountain, and she and Rafe met in front of the gazebo. He dismounted, then offered her a hand down. Together they walked into the gazebo, a symbol of the way they planned to spend the rest of their lives.

  Red strummed the last chord on the guitar, and the preacher began the service.

  “Who gives this woman to marry this man?”

  Her father stepped forward and kissed her cheek. “Her sister and I.” He gave Rafe a warning look. “You’d better be good to her.”

  A rumble of laughter sounded, and Rafe nodded. “Yes, sir, I intend to.”

  They joined hands, each reciting vows they’d written themselves.

  Suzanne pressed a kiss to Rafe’s hand. “Rafe, I went to Sugar Hill to start a business venture, instead, I found you and started my life. Before you, I had only emptiness and the hope of money to make me happy. But your love is much more valuable. You are my life, Rafe. I fell in love with you the first time you held me in your arms on the dance floor, and I almost lost you because of lies. From this day forward, there will be no secrets between us, only the bond of our love and the joining of our hearts for-evermore.”

  Rafe kissed the palm of her hand, then squeezed it between them. “Before you came into my life, Suzanne, I thought I had everything I needed. My land, my family, the legacy of my past. But when I met you, I realized that my life wasn’t complete, that my legacy lies in being with you. I was afraid to love before, now I’m afraid not to. I promise to love, honor and cherish you all the days of our lives.”

  “You have rings?”

  Suzanne bit her lip, praying Rafe was okay with the fact that she’d insisted on using her grandmother’s simple wedding band. He smiled and slid it on her finger.

  “Sometimes simple things are the best,” she had told him.

  And he had agreed.

  The preacher uttered a prayer, then pronounced them husband and wife. Rafe dragged her into his arms and kissed her, the love and passion in his embrace so sweet and tender that tears flooded Suzanne’s eyes.

  They broke apart to applause and laughter, the chatter of their family around them filled with congratulations. Alison had arranged for a groom’s cake made in the shape of a horseshoe, the Western cake topper and a charm bridal serving set completing the Western theme.

  After she’d hugged all her family, Rafe’s mother approached her. “I feel like I’m getting a daughter!”

  Suzanne returned the hug. “And I’m getting a mom. Finally. And a wonderful home.”

  “It will be wonderful when we make a few changes,” Rafe said.

  Mrs. McAllister pulled back. “Rafe told you he discovered Landon had cheated his father. He’s reimbursing us with all the money he owes us.”

  “Yeah, once something Mom said kicked in, I figured if he’d lied about one thing, he’d lied about others. I talked to Palo and he did a little checking for me, found records that showed Dad didn’t owe him nearly as much as he’d claimed. Finally the Lazy M will be out of the red,” Rafe added.

  “That’s great,” Suzanne exclaimed.

  “And Palo’s bringing all his horses back to board as well,” Rafe said. “Apparently Landon had been bad talking me around town so no one wanted to board with me.”

  “All that’s going to change now,” Mrs. McAllister said. “Landon ruined his own reputation.”

  Suzanne rubbed her hand along her husband’s back. “I’m so glad things are working out for the McAllisters.”

  Rafe pulled her into his arms. “Yeah, I’d say things are definitely looking up for the McAllisters. Maybe because we learned to work together.”

  “Rafe,” his mother said, “Bud and I have decided to move into the carriage house. We plan to fix it up for the two of us.”

  “Mom, you don’t have to do that,” Rafe said. “Suzanne and I are fine with all of us sharing the big farmhouse.”

  “Oh, pshaw,” his mother slapped his hand and cuddled up to Bud with a grin. “We need our privacy. Besides, that house is meant for a big family. I do hope you’re going to give me
some grand-babies.”

  Suzanne blushed. She’d actually hoped she was pregnant and thought her dizzy spells earlier in the week might be a sign. She was surprised at how disappointed she’d felt when she’d realized she wasn’t.

  The music started up, a country band Grammy Rose had found, and everyone gathered food and began to dance. Rafe led her to the dance floor, hugging her in his arms as they swayed to the music.

  “I love you so much, Mrs. McAllister.”

  She wrapped her arm around his neck. “And I love you, Rafe. Forever and always.”

  “No more secrets, right?”

  She laughed, then bit down on her lip. “Well, there are a couple of things I should tell you.”

  “Uh-oh, like what?”

  “Well, I’m not very good at gardening.”

  He chuckled, his body brushing hers seductively. “Honey, I figured that out the first time I saw you pulling weeds.”

  “Oh.” She didn’t realize she’d been so obvious. “And I can’t sew worth a flip.”

  “Really?” He frowned.

  “And…uh, I can’t cook.”

  He arched a brow. “That delicious cake?”

  “Compliments of Mimi’s shop.”

  His dark eyes pierced her. “Hmm, you might have to make up for all that.”

  She angled her head to peer up at him. “Excuse me?”

  He grinned. “I always did like that prickly spine of yours.”

  She laughed and curled deeper into his arms. “So, what do I have to do? Grovel? Shovel horse manure to earn my keep.”

  “Hmm, that’d be an idea.”

  “In your dreams, cowboy.”

  His laughter rumbled from deep in his chest. “Actually, I had something else in mind.”

  Suzanne pretended to give it some thought. “Does it involve kissing?”

  “Oh, yeah, lots of kissing, and other indoor sports….”

  She licked her lips, a slow smile spreading across her mouth. “Well, you did promise to teach me everything I needed to know about riding, cowboy.”

  His finger traced a gentle path down her cheek, and her breath caught. “I can’t tell you how happy you’ve made me, Suzanne. But you’ve given me so much—what can I possibly give you?”

  Suzanne leaned on tiptoe and whispered in his ear. “A baby.”

  Rafe’s look of surprise came swiftly, then he halted and picked her up and swung her into his arms. “How long do we have to stay at this reception, anyway?”

  ISBN: 978-1-4268-7868-8

  HAVE COWBOY, NEED CUPID

  Copyright © 2003 by Rita B. Herron.

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  *The Hartwell Hope Chests

  †Nighthawk Island