The Airman's E-Mail Order Bride (Heroes of Chance Creek Book 5) (22 page)

Was that it? she wondered. Did Heloise play games in order to get people to pay attention to her? If so, she’d lose her power when she signed away the ranch. She’d be hard pressed to get her nephews’ attention then.

It was hard to feel pity for the woman who’d just backed her into marrying a man she didn’t want—and who didn’t want her, either, judging by the longing looks Eric kept exchanging with Melanie—but somehow she did anyway. Could all of this have been avoided if Colt and his brothers had simply visited Heloise once in a while?

“I know how busy you all are,” Heloise said, “so I’ll make the appointment at Ellie’s myself. Two o’clock tomorrow afternoon.”

“If she has an opening,” Storm cautioned.

“She’ll have an opening,” Heloise said darkly and Heather figured Ellie would.

‡

H
e was going
to kill Heloise. If he didn’t kill Eric first. Colt appreciated his friend’s dedication to pulling off the trick, but if Eric nuzzled Heather’s neck one more time, he was going to launch himself across the table and strangle the man.

And then his aunt for good measure.

Heloise smiled at him triumphantly. “Aren’t Heather and George just the sweetest couple you ever saw?”

“Yeah, sweet,” he ground out.

Melanie placed a hand on his arm and it was all he could do not to shrug it off. “I think they’ll be very happy together,” she said.

“Exactly,” Colt said. “Very happy.”

He saw a flash of alarm in Eric’s eyes. His friend edged away from Heather. Colt relaxed—a bit.

“Regan and Ella, you two outdid yourselves with dinner,” Heather said suddenly.

She could try to turn the conversation all she wanted. That didn’t change the fact she’d declared her intention to marry Eric. Just how did she think they were going to pull that off? Setting aside for the moment there was no way in hell he’d let her go through with it, there were all sorts of legal implications.

Everyone else chimed in with compliments. Colt was sure the meal was delicious but he couldn’t taste it. It was all he could do not to bang a fist on the table and cancel the whole charade right then. But the sharp glances Mason and Austin kept sending his way reminded him exactly why he couldn’t do that. Three months, he told himself. He could survive anything for three months.

The meal took forever, and afterwards Heloise sat in the living room for another hour like a queen surrounded by her subjects. Finally, just when he thought he couldn’t take it anymore, she rose to leave. “Zane, drive me home. I don’t want to call a taxi so late at night. Why you all thought it prudent to keep me out so long past dark, I don’t know.”

Colt stifled a groan. At least she hadn’t asked him to drive her home.

“George? You can walk us out to the car. I have a few more questions for you,” Heloise added. “Give that beautiful bride of yours a kiss and come along.”

Colt gritted his teeth at the thought of Eric kissing Heather—again. His friend shot him a look and leaned in close to peck Heather’s cheek.

“That’s not a kiss,” Heloise said. “That’s barely a how-do-you-do. In my time, men knew how to get a girl all stirred up.”

Eric sent Colt another helpless look, and if Colt wasn’t mistaken, flashed an unspoken message to Melanie as well. He stepped close to Heather, pulled her into an embrace and kissed her passionately.

Colt’s hands balled into fists. When Heather wrapped her arms around Eric’s neck and kissed him back, he stepped toward the couple.

“All right, show’s over.” Zane rushed Heloise from the room in alarm. A moment later they heard the front door open and close. Eric released Heather. “Sorry,” he said. “Colt, you know there’s no way I—”

“Don’t do that again.”

“I had to. You heard Heloise.”

“I said—”

“Stop it! Just stop it!” Melanie pushed her way between them.

Colt shook off his frustration and held out his hands. “Fine. I’m done here.”

“
You’re
done?” Eric stepped forward but Melanie caught his arm.

“Enough. We’re going upstairs. Colt, get yourself together.” She led Eric firmly from the room without another word.

Heather shook her head. “You’re an idiot.” She followed the others out.

“Wait. Heather!”

Left alone, Colt had to admit she was right.

At least her
sales were improving, Heather thought when she looked over her accounts at the store the next morning. After all the drama last night, she needed some good news, and the uptick was just what the doctor ordered. Ever since the night of the demonstration she’d noticed more men in the store, too. Tom Hennessey must have passed the word among the other contractors that Renfree’s still sold quality goods. She and Susan had worked out a schedule of demonstrations for the next couple of months based on the ideas the customers had come up with. Now she looked forward to seeing the results of Allison’s newsletters.

She’d also noticed that the women who attended the laminate flooring event kept coming back into the store as they carried out their renovations. She had a feeling that when they showed their friends what they’d done, she’d get more signups at future demonstrations.

If only the rest of her life was going anywhere near that well. Breakfast had been a strained affair, with Colt and Eric both sullen and angry. In the end, Melanie had snapped at them to grow up and get over it, but neither of them had apologized, or said much of anything. Heather knew she’d screwed up when she blurted out to Heloise her intention to marry Eric, and the men needed to get their acts together if they were going to pull this off. Meanwhile, she needed to get Mia up to speed on this latest twist. She picked up her phone and made the call she’d been dreading all morning.

“Mia? It’s Heather. How are you?” she said when Mia answered.

“Forget about me. How are you? Rose told me a crazy story about you and Colt marrying other people. What’s going on?”

Heather explained the whole strange sequence of events. “So, Colt’s going to marry someone else. And I’m going to pretend to.” They still hadn’t actually worked that part out. “We need to schedule a double wedding.” As she talked, she started a list on the pad of paper that sat next to her keyboard.
Dress, flowers, invitations, tell Mom about Eric…
She crossed off
Eric
and wrote
George
.

After a long pause, Mia said, “Who are you marrying?”

“A man named Eric Rutherford. Except he’ll be George Buckley when we marry.” She added,
Get my head examined
to the list.

“Oh, heck. You’ve dug yourselves a deep hole, haven’t you?”

“You’ve got that right.” Heather underlined that last item. “So do you think you can pull it off?”

“A double wedding in less than two weeks with a groom getting married under an assumed name? No problem!” Mia sighed. “Look, send me over all the details. Meanwhile, you and… wait—who’s marrying Colt?”

“Melanie Munroe.”

“Where do you get these people?”

“You don’t want to know.” She propped an elbow on the desk and leaned her forehead against her hand.

“Well, you and Melanie need to buy wedding dresses, pronto.”

“Already on it. What else?”

“Bring her to our meeting later today. I’ll get you both up to speed. How many guests will she want?”

“I’m not sure she’ll want any.”

“Well, thank God for small miracles.” Mia paused. “Sorry, that was mean.”

“Don’t apologize; we’ve thrown a wrench in your plans. We’re the ones who need to apologize.”

“Heather, I can make this happen, but are you sure you want me to?”

She appreciated what Mia was really asking. “I don’t want you to, but I need you to. We all do, or we’ll lose the ranch.”

“Oh, Heloise infuriates me! Who does she think—” Mia got herself under control. “Never mind. I’m sure you’ve already thought everything I’m about to say.”

“And more,” Heather agreed. “I have to go. Meet you at three-thirty at Linda’s?”

“Sounds good.”

Heather entered Ellie’s Bridals, a small boutique in the middle of town, at five to two and was greeted by the owner, who held a phone to her ear. Melanie came in a moment later, and when it became clear Ellie was tied up in a call that might take a while, they drifted toward the racks of dresses and began to look through them.

Heather had no idea how to choose a dress in which to marry a man she didn’t love. She didn’t know how she could stand to watch Melanie pick a dress in which to marry Colt, either. At least they’d be equally miserable. Judging by the looks they’d exchanged over the breakfast table this morning, Melanie and Eric were falling hard and fast for each other, and she knew Melanie didn’t relish marrying Colt any more than Heather wanted to watch her do it.

She wandered around the store, averting her eyes from any gown she might have wanted to wear when she married Colt—ones that suited her curves and would make her feel beautiful for the man she loved. Instead she focused on tea-length sheath dresses. Something plain and demure for a fake wedding—if it had to happen at all.

When she’d found four or five she thought might do, she let herself into one of the changing rooms, but when she came back out into the fitting area several minutes later, she nearly bumped into Camila. Ellie followed close behind her. Both women cocked their heads and looked her over.

“If you wear that to your wedding, I will shoot you,” Camila said.

“Camila’s right, Heather,” Ellie said. “It doesn’t suit you at all.”

“Fine. I’ll try something else.” Heather walked back into the changing room and picked out another slim, fitted tea-length gown. Struggling out of the first one and into the next, she presented herself to Camila and Ellie again.

“That’s the same dress!” Camila was indignant. The phone rang and Ellie bustled off, but from her expression Heather thought she agreed with Camila.

“No, it’s not.” Heather stepped closer. “And you know why I want something plain, so pipe down.” She’d called Camila right after her call to Mia and filled her in on everything that had happened.

“Right. To marry your fake fiancé. You know that’s ridiculous, don’t you? I can’t believe how complicated this has all gotten.”

“You can’t believe it? Try living it!”

The bells over the door to the store chimed and they both craned their necks to see who’d entered.

“That’s Regan,” Heather said, “so just leave it, okay? I refuse to buy anything fancy for this wedding.”

Melanie came around the racks of clothes with several dresses draped over her arm. She appraised Heather. “That looks sensible.”

Camila smacked a hand to her forehead. “You’re not supposed to wear something sensible to your wedding!”

“You are when you’re in our circumstances. I’ve got another one; want to try it?” Heather said to Melanie.

When Regan made her way to the fitting area a few minutes later, she held an armload of dresses. She arrived just as Melanie stepped out of her changing room in a sheath dress similar to the one Heather had on.

“No,” Regan said. “No, no, a thousand times no. Get those off right now. Both of you!”

“Told you,” Camila said.

“Here.” Regan shoved the dresses she carried into Melanie’s arms. “Go change. Heather, give me two minutes. I’ll find you something, too.”

The bells over the door chimed again.

“Regan, I’m not in the mood—”

“I don’t care. You’re going to try them on anyway.” Regan disappeared around a rack of dresses. A moment later they heard her greet Ella and Storm.

Camila leaned in closer. “You have to stop this before it goes any further.”

Heather didn’t have time to answer before Ella came around a rack and presented a gown. “This one is gorgeous! You have to try it on, Heather.”

Storm followed her. “I have one for you, too.”

“What are you guys doing here?” Heather asked. Reluctantly, she took the dresses they gave her and let herself back into the changing room.

“We’re here to help you find a dress. You’re one of us, which means you need to look stunning,” Ella declared.

“Can’t let the family down, you know,” Regan chirped when she appeared again. She passed more dresses over the changing room door to Heather. Heather hung them all on hooks.

“But I’m not marrying Colt yet.”

“You will soon enough. We have standards to uphold. There’s a manual and everything,” Storm added.

“Really?” Heather asked, peeping over the door.

“No, not really.” Storm laughed at her. “There should be, though. Maybe we should start writing it.” She turned to Regan and Ella.

“Rule number one, we Hall wives stick together no matter what. That includes you, too, Melanie,” Regan said. “Come on, ladies, show us some dresses.”

Ellie rejoined them, beaming happily at the gathering of women. “This is more like it. I’ll bring out some bubbly!” She quickly headed off again. Camila was the only one who held back, her expression grim. Heather knew why and if she’d had any choice she would have left the boutique in a heartbeat, but while her circumstances were less than optimal, she couldn’t help but appreciate the way the other women had rallied around her. She needed all the friends she could get.