The Christmas Bride - A Western Romance Novella (Book 4, Burnett Brides Series) Read online

  “Dang, that’s a real shame. I was enjoying their cooking. Could you at least string them along for a little while, so we can continue to eat decent food?”Wyatt slammed his drink on the desk. “Now, what kind of man does that to a woman?”

  Gus was a great foreman, a good man who didn’t know how to handle women. Never had been able to keep a woman interested in him longer than a courting moon. Maybe there was a reason he’d never married.”A hungry man?”

  “Go to the damn café if you’re hungry. Don’t depend on widow women who are looking husbands, unless you want to get hitched,” Wyatt told him.

  “No, thanks!” Gus held up his hand and shook his head. “You have to admit we haven’t had food like that since Mrs. Beatrice died.”

  Beatrice had been an excellent cook. They’d eaten well, and her pies were known for bringing the men running in from the barn. But she was gone. “Well, it’s over. I put a stop to the widow women’s cooking.”

  Gus sank into a chair across from him and laughed. “Why did all these women think you were on the hunt for a wife?”

  “From what I was told, they were sent here by Eugenia Burnett.” He couldn’t help but think about Eugenia. Her dark hair was more silver than black, and her blue eyes sparkled with heat and laughter. For being almost fifty, her figure was still neat and trim in a shorter spitfire version.

  “Mrs. Beatrice’s friend?”

  “The one.” The woman was a small ball of dynamite that no one wanted to cross.

  Gus stammered in shock. “Wweell why would she be trying to set up her friend’s husband?”Wyatt shrugged and contemplated the fire. “You know we often had Eugenia and Thomas out for dinner.”

  Eugenia and he shared something that they had never acknowledged while they were both married. At a dinner, they’d accidentally touched, and Wyatt’s body had tingled and hummed with something he’d never experienced before. While he was married to Beatrice, he’d avoided his wife’s best friend.

  “Yes, those two women could talk the feathers off a chicken.”

  Wyatt took a sip of his whiskey, letting it warm him all the way to his toes, just like a fine woman could heat up a man. And that’s what he missed. He missed having a woman. Her soft touches, tender smiles, and gentle reminders. It was the little things that he took for granted.

  He missed having a strong-willed woman who would stand up to him and challenge him to become a better man.

  After spending the day around men, he missed coming home to a woman’s voice, her smell, the way she eased his burdens.

  “You haven’t answered my question. Why is Eugenia trying to find you a wife?”

  “Maybe because when our mates were alive, there was always this mindfulness between us. Nothing ever happened of course, but we felt drawn to one another.”

  Nothing ever happened, but now that Beatrice had been gone a year, he wanted to set fire to that ember in Eugenia. There was something there that he wanted to create a blazing inferno with. Even thinking about her made his gut tighten and blood rush to his groin.

  Gus’s brows rose as he looked at Wyatt over his drink. “Are you crazy? That woman is known for her meddling. They call her the meddling matchmaker. Why in the hell Eugenia? Why not some sensible woman?”

  Wyatt leaned toward Gus. “Oh, Eugenia’s sensible all right. She’s strong willed and wouldn’t cower every time I raised my voice to her like most women. Give me a woman who knows what she wants and goes after her desires rather than one who lays around with the damn vapors all day.”

  “Beatrice—”

  “Beatrice was great until she got sick. Then all I could do was sit by and watch her waste away. Both of us died a little bit every day. Her body and my heart. But she’s gone.”

  Three years of being ill and then she’d gone like a thief in the night, quiet and quick, leaving behind her grief-stricken family. Now over twelve months had passed, and he was ready to move on.

  “God rest her soul.” Gus raised his glass in the air to Beatrice and then put it to his lips and gulped. “Still, you and Eugenia Burnett. I’m so damn shocked I can’t feel my face anymore.”

  “You can’t feel your face because of the whiskey.”

  “That too. But Eugenia? Slap me upside the head. You’ve got your spurs tangled up. Is she interested in you?”

  Wyatt shrugged. “Who knows? I told her she was the only woman I wanted to get a casserole from.”

  “She hasn’t brought one yet,” Gus said.

  Oh, Eugenia Burnett would not be that easy. No, courting Eugenia would be tricky and so much fun.

  “She’s not going to, either. It’s going to take a little more persuasion on my part before she’ll come around. Eugenia’s not some young filly ready to be bred. Nope, she’s going to require some top-notch wooing.”

  Gus laughed. “The idea of you chasing a woman at your age is pretty funny.”

  “That better be the whiskey talking. I’m still young enough to want a woman in my bed. I’m still young enough that I don’t want some wimpy woman who is just going to lie there and endure. Eugenia will make a great wife. She’ll make life interesting again.”

  “Lord, boss, if she’s what you want, I hope you’re right. If not, you’re going to spend the rest of your days living in marriage hell.”

  “Or it could be damn near heaven.”

  Chapter Two

  Eugenia watched as her children and grandchildren scurried about the living area of the ranch house. Her grandchildren playing tag around the Sheraton sofa and the rocking chair. The main room was filled with her sons and their families for the second week in a row. Normally everyone was so busy that they decided the first Sunday of the month was family day, and they all gathered on that day. But it was Saturday. There were no birthdays, and the holidays were still weeks away. Her motherly instincts were on full alert, and her female intuition kept screaming something’s up. Her children were being very tight-lipped.

  “Rose,” Eugenia called. “Can I speak to you?”

  “Sorry, Eugenia. It’s going to have to wait,” she said and hurried into the kitchen to help Cook with the meal. She flittered about as nervous as a June bug searching for light on a moonless night.

  Rose could evade her questions, but Beth had just walked into the parlor and she couldn’t lie.

  Eugenia walked up to Beth. “Why is everyone here? What’s going on?”

  Beth’s emotions were so easy to read. She licked her lips and glanced back at her husband as if seeking his support. “Nothing. We’re just waiting for our guest to arrive.”

  “Guest? No one said anything about a guest. I wondered why everyone had gathered for dinner. Who’s coming over?” Eugenia asked, stunned they hadn’t said a word about the visitor.

  Beth’s face blanched and her eyes widened. “I’m sorry, Eugenia. I think I hear the baby crying. I need to go check on Seth.”

  Eugenia watched as Beth scurried away faster than a mouse with a cat on its tail. Her children were definitely hiding something.

  She walked over to Travis, determined to learn who her children had invited to dinner. “This is quite unusual for all of us to get together for dinner two weeks in a row.”

  Travis smiled. “We all thought it would be good to get together.”

  So they were trying to keep the guest’s identity a secret. She narrowed her gaze at her oldest son and raised her brows at him as if he were five. “I’m your mother. Who is coming to dinner?”

  Travis grinned that same smile he’d used as a boy when he thought he’d pulled a fast one. “The girls invited Wyatt Jones to dinner tonight.”

  Her heart leaped and began an erratic beat in her throat.

  “What?” She put her hands on her hips. “For God’s sake, why?”

  “Because the girls invited Wyatt,” Travis said as if she was a simpleton who didn’t understand. A knock sounded on the door. “In fact, I think that’s him now.”

  With startling clarity, she suddenly real
ized her family had heard about the incident at the café, and now they were trying to help Wyatt in his quest to lure her into marriage. Lure her into another man controlling her every move.

  There wasn’t enough gold in California for her to take the bait.

  Travis threw open the door. “Wyatt, glad you could make it. Come on in.”

  Wyatt strode through into the parlor, his large body seeming to fill up the space of the living area. Their gazes met across the room, and he removed his hat. His dark hair was sprinkled with silver in a nice way that complemented his high cheekbones and full lips. For a man in his forties, he still had a trim, strong frame that was both tempting and well defined.

  Gosh darn it, why did her body have a second awakening when he came into the room? Why did her heart pound a little faster and her blood rush like a freight train through her veins? She refused to acknowledge that a glance from Wyatt’s earthy brown eyes had her body humming with an awareness that she’d long forgotten.

  “Evening, Eugenia.”

  That cognizance of him as a man had happened many years ago, when they were both married. Happily married. He’d accidentally touched her hand at a party, and they’d both jumped from the tingle that had zipped up her hand to her heart. An innocent touch that had them staring at each other with shock. Since that day, she’d avoided him at all costs. Now that he was widowed, she needed to find another widow woman to send his way quick.

  “Wyatt,” she acknowledged, the memory of their last conversation making her wary. He had that same duffle bag in his hands. He wasn’t going to start bringing empty casserole dishes to her home was he? “How are you?”

  “Excellent, thanks. I brought some candy I thought you might enjoy.” He pulled a sack of penny candy from the bag, and she breathed a sigh of relief. No empty casserole dishes.

  “Since Rose is in charge of this party, I’ll give them to her,” she said, wanting nothing to do with his gift.

  “No,” he said, his voice gruff. “I brought each of the women a sack of candy. I just wanted to make sure you got yours first,” he said, his full lips turning up in a smile that warmed her from the inside out.

  A thrill of excitement waltzed down her spine, landing in her center with a box step.

  “Oh, thanks,” she said, taken back. She loved penny candy. She licked her lips. How could she refuse the little bag? It would be impolite. She’d accept them just this once. “Thanks, Wyatt.”

  Wyatt smiled at her response, and she knew she had to let him know real quick that this meant nothing. She’d accept his cinnamon candy, just not his proposal.

  He was making it very clear to her sons his intentions to court her. She needed to snip this little matchmaking exercise in the bud. Not now. Not ever.

  Rose came into the room and smiled at Wyatt. She leaned in to kiss him on the cheek. “So good to see you, Mr. Jones. We’re glad you came tonight.”

  “Thanks for inviting me,” he said. “I brought you, Sarah, and Beth a bag of penny candy as well.”

  “How sweet,” she said, glancing at Eugenia. “Thank you.”

  Eugenia was feeling nauseated as she watched him win over each one of her daughters-in-law. They were so easily bribed by a sweet-talking man. They’d married her sons after all.

  “I think dinner is just about ready,” Rose said. “We should all make our way to the dining room.”

  Eugenia tried to hang back and let the other couples go in first, but Wyatt came to her side. “Could I seat you at the dinner table, Eugenia?” he asked, his cinnamon eyes twinkling with amusement.

  The man knew exactly what he was doing, and he knew she was not happy about his obvious pursuit in front of her family. She raised her brows at him. “I’m perfectly capable of seating myself, Mr. Jones, but I’ll allow you to walk me to the table.”

  He took her arm and placed her hand in the crook of his elbow and then smiled down at her as if she was on the menu. “Eugenia, I have no doubts about your capabilities. I’ve been on the receiving end of your endeavors. You’re quite good.”

  “Thank you. I strive to do my best at whatever I do.”

  “That’s good to know.”

  She narrowed her eyes at him, staring, her heart racing. Why did this man always have the ability to make her body react?

  “Let me pull your chair out for you,” he said, trying to keep from grinning at her and failing.

  The man was insufferable. He was deliberately trying to goad her. Deliberately trying to get a reaction from her. But she refused to take his bait. He would have to work harder if he expected a rise from her.

  “Thank you, Wyatt,” she said, playing his game. “Tell me, have you received anymore casserole dishes recently?”

  “No, I’m quite disappointed. I was hoping to receive your casserole dish.”

  She laughed as she sank onto the chair he’d pulled out. “My kitchen is closed. I’m not baking for any man.”

  He leaned in close to her ear. “You don’t have to cook for me. But I’d buy a new kitchen for you, if you’d let me.”

  She sent him her haughtiest stare. “I don’t want a new kitchen. I like my life.”

  Rose cleared her throat. Eugenia glanced up and realized her family was all sitting at the table and they were watching the two of them, their lips pursed to keep from snickering.

  She gave her sons her meanest reproving mother look. “Well. Aren’t one of you boys going to say the blessing so we can eat?”

  *

  Wyatt stared across the parlor at the woman he couldn’t stop thinking about. They’d been dancing around each other for years, and it was time to either take action or cut bait. Sure, Eugenia wasn’t a young woman, but he didn’t want a young woman who wanted babies. At this time in his life, he wanted an equal partner. A woman who knew the rough roads of life and would face them with him.

  He wanted a woman who would stay with him until he took his last breath. Eugenia was that type of woman.

  Her sons seemed accepting of him, and now he wanted to test the boundaries. “Eugenia, would you take a stroll out in the night air with me?”

  She raised one brow and stared at him in a sassy manner that clearly said you’re crazy.

  “It’s chilly outside.”

  She wasn’t going to make this easy, and that urged him on. He liked the challenge and hoped the final reward would be as good.

  Rose stepped forward. “Here’s your shawl. It’s a very pretty night out tonight.”

  Eugenia cut her a look that should have stopped the young woman cold, but Rose ignored the glare sent her direction and handed her mother-in-law the shawl.

  “Okay, but let’s make it quick.” Just long enough to tell Wyatt to stop this madness.

  He stood and offered Eugenia his arm. “We’ll only be gone as long as you want.”

  Eugenia rose from the settee and placed her hand in the crook of his arm and then looked at her kids. “This won’t take but a moment.”

  No one said a word as they walked out the door, but as soon he shut the wooden opening, Wyatt heard laughter.

  Yes, her family was definitely enjoying watching their courtship.

  They walked down the steps and several feet out into the yard, just far enough for privacy. “It’s a little nippy for December. I think we’re going to have a cold winter this year.”

  She stopped. Pulled her hand from his arm and pointed her finger at him. “Wyatt Jones, I know what you’re up to, and it’s not going to happen.”

  He smiled at her but didn’t say a word, standing there in his down coat, felt hat, and leather boots, watching her like she was the evening’s entertainment.

  “Somehow you’ve talked Rose into helping you, but I will straighten that out right away. I’m not interested in ever getting married again.”

  Wyatt shrugged and slipped his hands into his pockets. “And here I thought we were just going to have a nice friendly stroll.”

  Her defenses were locked in place, and somehow he n
eeded to get through the walls she’d built and show her they could be good together.

  “You’re trying to court me!” she accused.

  “Honey, if you just think I’m trying, then I’m not doing a good job. I am definitely courting you,” he said softly, stepping closer to her.

  There was a smell about her that reminded him of springtime. Of new beginnings and hope, of lazy mornings and happiness.

  “Well you can just stop courting me right now. You’re wasting your time. I’m never going to get married again. Do you hear me?” she asked, her hands on her hips, her eyes bullets in the dark.

  “Was your marriage to Thomas so bad?” he asked.

  She jerked back, surprised. “No, why would you think that?”

  He shrugged. “Maybe because you’re so adamant that you’ll never marry again. Why Eugenia? Explain it to me so that I can understand.”

  Whatever had happened in her first marriage, he wanted to make certain that he didn’t repeat that same mistake. He wanted a happy home, and if he couldn’t have that with Eugenia, he needed to know now.

  “Simple,” she said. “I don’t want to.”“That’s hardly an explanation.”

  “I like my life.”

  He stepped closer to her, and her sapphire eyes grew larger. She put her hand up to her throat as if to put space between them. “You don’t want to get married, but you want everyone around you to be married. If marriage is so important to the people you love, why don’t you want it for yourself?”

  She tilted her head back and gazed up at him, but for once she didn’t say anything.

  He stepped even closer, mere inches separating their bodies. She wrapped her shawl tighter around her like a shield. He could see her breath making white wispy clouds in the night air. God, he wanted to kiss her. His body ached with the need to taste her, to sample from her lips.

  “I don’t know what it is, but there is this thing between us that I didn’t feel with Beatrice. This knowing that when we touch, sparks are going to fly.” He placed his hands on her arms and drew her to him. She didn’t resist.