The Cowbear's Mail Order Bride (Curvy Bear Ranch 6) (2 page)

A car’s engine rumbled in the distance. Muffler problems for sure. He cocked his head to one side. The thud of a loose exhaust pipe carried across the distance. The sound grew louder until an old, beat-up 1987 Buick Regal rolled to a stop between the barn and the house. A puff of bluish smoke blasted out of the back as the engine died. What a piece of crap.

“That must be her,” Madison said softly.

Drew opened his mouth to tell her to deal with it, but closed it the second he got a good look at the occupant. A tall woman stepped out of the car. A bulky sweater and loose jeans did nothing to hide her stunning curves. Good God, she was all breasts and ass.

A tumble of black hair cascaded over her shoulders. It stood out in stark contrast to the pale peach hue of her skin. As she moved closer, he caught a glimpse of her haunting gray eyes. He couldn’t stop staring.

“Hello, I’m Sharon. I’m here to meet Drew,” she said.

His bear took one whiff of her floral perfume and lost his mind. The creature flailed and clawed at his chest in an attempt to escape. Drew was so caught off guard that he gasped in response.

“That’s Drew.” Mack flashed a shit-eating grin. “I’m sure he’ll be able to talk in a moment.”

“I know I don’t look exactly like my pictures,” she said. “I hope you don’t mind the change.”

“Your hair looks great,” Madison said. “I like the darker color. Red only works with certain complexions.”

Drew silently cursed at his bear.
Calm down, dammit. She’s going to think you’re a freak.
Not that he cared. He was about to send her away, so what she thought of him didn’t really matter.

“Um, I need to get back inside,” Madison said. “I’m getting cold.”

“I’ll go with you, honey,” Mack said.

Drew glared at their backs as they retreated to the house. He turned to find Sharon striding toward him. Before he could move out of the way, she threw her arms around his shoulders and pulled him into a tight hug.

“I’m so excited to finally meet you,” she said. “I can’t wait to see the ranch and go on that trip into Yellowstone that we talked about last week.”

“What?”

“You know, up to Minerva Terraces. I’ve always thought it looked like an alien landscape. Something you’d find in a distant galaxy.”

“Oh, man. This is going to suck,” he mumbled.

His bear scraped a claw across his ribcage as if warning him to find a way to keep her.

His bear snarled,
Mine!

No matter how much he wanted to ask her to stay, he couldn’t. The sooner he explained the situation, the faster he could get back to his life. Entertaining thoughts about this sexy, completely unexpected woman was out of the question. He didn’t know anything about her, and she didn’t know him at all. Maybe she was perfect for the man Madison thought he was, but how well did his soon-to-be sister-in-law know him anyway?

“I’m sorry,” he said. “There’s been a huge mistake.”

“What do you mean?” she asked in a shaky voice.

“I’m not the person you’ve been talking to for the last…well, however long it’s been.”

“What? What do you mean?” she asked.

“You’ve been talking to my sister-in-law, not me. You and I have never had a single conversation."

“But that’s impossible,” she said.

“It’s the truth,” he said. “I’m sorry, but the man you thought you were coming to marry doesn’t exist.”

Chapter 2

Cindy pressed her nails into her clenched fist. He didn’t like her. She should have sent him a more recent picture. If she’d taken a more accurate photo, maybe he wouldn’t be so shocked. She’d put on a bit of weight since the photos had been taken, but surely not enough to make him turn her away. Or maybe he didn’t like curvy women. That was the only reasonable explanation for his sudden change of heart.

“I know I’ve gained a few pounds, but I didn’t intend to deceive you,” she said. “You seemed like such a nice man. I didn’t think you’d be so obsessed with my appearance.”

“I’m not fixated on looks,” he said. “Trust me, you look dammed good, but I wasn’t joking. My sister-in-law set this whole thing up. She’s a bit crazy right now because she’s been having a rough pregnancy. Honest to God, she’s the person you’ve been talking to.”

“You’re not kidding?” she asked.

“No.” He sighed.

“I thought I was coming here to get married,” she said. “I left my job, my friends, and my family behind to be with you. I drove all the way from Virginia for you.”

Not really. Her motivation to hide was what drove her to sign up for the online dating site. They’d promised to find her the perfect husband. They’d advertised that seventy-five percent of their matches had ended in marriage. And what better way to hide from her past than to marry a cowboy on a remote ranch in Montana?

“If you need a place to stay for a bit, we have room,” he said. “But you can’t stay for more than a few days. We have a bed and breakfast and a new group of guests are coming in the day after Valentine’s Day.”

“That’s a week away,” she said.

“Yep. So you have a week to figure things out. I’ll make sure Madison and my brothers take care of you while you’re here. It’s the least we can do considering the circumstances.”

As he smiled, a dimple appeared on his cheek. Shaggy brown hair hung down to partially obscure his hazel eyes. He looked just like his picture. Tan, strong, ripped. His arms flexed under the weight of the metal contraption he had flung over his shoulder. Even though snow covered the ground, he wore a black T-shirt and jeans. How he wasn’t freezing his butt off was beyond her.

When she looked up, she caught him openly assessing her too. She dropped her gaze but couldn’t stop a smile from spreading across her face.

He cleared his throat. “I need to get back to work, but let me put this away and I’ll walk you over to the B & B.”

“Okay,” she said.

As he strode toward the huge red barn, she admired the way his jeans clung to his butt. A rush of heat flooded her face. Too bad the whole thing had been a hoax. But how could she be mad at Madison when she was also lying? What were the chances that she’d end up with another liar?

She sighed. She never used to lie. But over the past year, telling the truth had become a liability. She couldn’t afford to have anyone discover her secret. At least Drew wasn’t kicking her off of his property. She’d have a week to come up with a new plan and she was nothing if not resourceful. But the thought of running again made her stomach ache. The stress of constantly looking over her shoulder was getting to be too much. Eventually the past would catch up to her. It was only a matter of time.

“Let’s get you set up,” Drew said. “Can I get your luggage from the car?”

“Yes, thank you.”

At least he was being a gentleman about everything. It wasn’t his fault that his sister-in-law had decided to find a woman for him. Interesting, considering he was the kind of man who should be surrounded by hot women. Maybe there was something inherently wrong with him that she couldn’t see.

She shrugged. Oh well, she wouldn’t get the chance to get to know him anyway. Everything she’d thought she’d known about him had been a lie. Well, some of it had to be true. He was clearly a cowboy and he did live on the ranch, so it wasn’t all fabricated. But was he really as sweet as he seemed to be when she’d talked to him online?

Ugh, but you didn’t talk to him at all.
She’d have to keep remembering that for all intents and purposes, he was a complete stranger.

As they trudged through the snow, she inhaled the crisp mountain air. It smelled so much cleaner than the air in LA. She’d lived up in the Hollywood hills above a dense layer of smog, but the air had always seemed to carry the scent of frantic desperation. She knew the feeling well.

Drew hauled her heavy luggage out of the back seat of the car as if it were lighter than air. His arms rippled with strength as he hoisted the bag into his arms. Her heart fluttered for a moment. Too bad their online relationship wasn’t real. She’d love to have him lift her into his arms and carry her like that. She’d never been so jealous of an inanimate object in her life.

The trip to the bed and breakfast didn’t take more than a couple of minutes. When they reached the porch, Drew stomped his boots.

“Madison will have a fit if you track any mud into the house,” he said.

“Okay.” She pounded her feet on the wood until every last drop of snow fell off.

He opened the door and waited for her to pass. As she stepped into the foyer, her breath caught in her throat. It was just as beautiful as the pictures Madison had sent. At least there was some truth in their exchanges.

“I don’t know which room Madison wants to put you in, so I’ll just pick one,” he said. “She’s probably hiding anyway.”

“Hiding?”

Was Madison afraid of what Drew would do to her? He didn’t seem like a violent man, but some men were particularly good at hiding it until it was too late.

“She’s embarrassed that she took it this far,” Drew said.

“If you see her, tell her not to worry. I’ll figure something out. I always do,” she said.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “You seem like a nice person. Anyone else would have flown off the handle.”

“I’ve tre... um, seen a lot of pregnant women do crazy things,” she said.

“Women in your family?” he asked.

“Acquaintances.”

She’d lied to Madison about everything, including her former occupation. She’d been an obstetrician in her old life, but now she’d never be able to practice again. Lying about everything else was fairly easy, but faking a medical license was going too far. It violated the Hippocratic Oath’s ethical standards.

Did she even have any ethics anymore? How far would she go to keep her former life secret?

As she followed Drew into the kitchen, she barely registered his commentary.

“…and dinner is served at seven. Town is only twenty minutes away and we keep the road plowed in the winter,” he finished.

She nodded at the right times and smiled when it seemed appropriate. But the reality of the situation was slowly seeping in. The grand plan she’d constructed had failed. Now what? She’d have to find another place to hide, but where?

“Feel free to use any of the common areas downstairs,” he said. “We have a hot tub out back and plenty of walking trails. Although I wouldn’t wander too far into the woods because it’s easy to get lost. If you need anything, I’m sure Madison will come out of hiding at some point, but anyone will be happy to help.”

“Thanks, Drew.”

“It’s the least we can do,” he said. “The bedrooms are upstairs.”

She trailed behind, taking a moment to peek into the living room. A large overstuffed sofa sat in front of a tall fireplace. Huge oil and watercolor paintings of nature scenes decorated the walls. The entire room held the warmth of family. A twinge of regret pierced her heart. She missed her daughter so much, but couldn’t do anything about it.

After returning her attention to the stairs, she caught a great view of Drew’s butt. On the right man, jeans could be sexier than a pair of silk boxers. She had no doubt that every inch of him was as hard as granite and as chiseled as a marble statue.

An unfamiliar warmth spread throughout her body. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d wanted a man. On the road, she’d passed plenty of burly truckers, but they didn’t turn her head at all. Most of them were downright revolting. The few good-looking men she’d encountered reminded her too much of—

“Your room is right down the hall,” Drew said as they reached the top of the stairs. “We have a couple of larger rooms near the back of the house. Since no one else lives here except for Madison and Mack, there shouldn’t be too much noise in the house.”

He opened the last door on the left and stepped into the bedroom. She crossed the threshold into a stunning rustic bedroom. A large four-poster bed sat in the center of the room. A matching dresser and nightstand completed the set.

“The bathroom is over here,” he said.

As she followed him into the smaller space, her heart kicked against her ribs. The cowboy’s piney scent rolled off of him in waves. The subtle underlying hint of sweat only served to enhance his ultra-masculine presence. Too bad he hadn’t been the one communicating with her. She would have tossed him into the huge bathroom and gotten her rub-a-dub-dub on.

When he turned and almost walked into her, she realized she’d been following too close.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” she said.

“Close space,” he murmured.

His gaze dropped to search her face… but for what? She had no idea. She sensed intent behind that look in his eyes… but maybe she was just imagining things.

“It’s too bad,” he said softly.

“What?”

“It’s too bad we’ll never have a chance to get to know each other,” he said.

“Maybe in another life,” she whispered.

“Maybe.” He leaned forward slightly, just a small movement that made her think he was going to kiss her.

She closed her eyes, but when nothing happened, she snapped them open. He regarded her with an amused expression.
Ugh! Jerk.
He was one of those guys who liked to tease but wouldn’t follow through. She hardened her heart. She shouldn’t be thinking about him like that anyway.

He stepped around her and strolled through the bedroom toward the door. She turned on her heel and followed him.

“I’d like to rest now,” she said.

“You’re free to do whatever you want,” he said.

Oh, if only that were true.

“Have a good day.” She forced a neutral expression.

“You too,” he said with an equally composed face.

After closing the door, she sagged against it. The stress of driving for hundreds of miles coupled with finding out that she’d been lied to created a storm of exhaustion. She needed a nap. But first, she needed to look at her daughter’s face again.

She pulled the photograph out of the pocket in the suitcase and held it in her trembling fingers. Everything she was going through, the heartache, the pain—it didn’t matter as long as she could keep Brooke safe.

***

If Drew could have pulled his bear out by his throat and strangled it, he would have. The whole time he was giving the tour to Sharon, his bear danced around in his chest like a wild animal, which technically he was, but still.

Really, Bear? You’re going to get this worked up over someone you don’t even know?

His bear responded with a swift kick in the gut. Drew gasped and grabbed his ribs.

Dammit bear, calm down!

The beast chuffed and pranced around before finally settling down. After an overly dramatic huff, his bear responded,
hell yeah we’re going to do this.

We don’t even know her.

Doesn’t matter. She’s hot and she’s ours,
his bear snapped.

She’s leaving in a few days and she won’t be coming back,
Drew responded.

His bear could be such a pain in the ass sometimes. The damn creature only seemed to think about two things: women and food. Speaking of which, he needed a snack.

As he wandered into the kitchen, he spotted Mack washing a mug in the sink.

“She got you on dishwashing duty now?” Drew asked.

“Yeah, amongst other things,” Mack said.

Drew slid onto a stool at the island in the center of the room. He grabbed a red apple out of the fruit bowl and took a crunchy bite. Juice dribbled down the corners of his mouth. He swiped it away with the back of his hand.

“On a scale of one to ten, how pissed are you?” Mack asked calmly.

“Eleven.”

“I figured as much.”

“How did she get that past you? It sounds like she’s been communicating with Sharon for months,” Drew said.

“She uses the computer a lot to check for reservations. She sets up promos and stuff,” Mack said. “I never thought anything of it until she came to me this morning to confess. I’ll be honest, I wanted to wring her neck, but I love her too much.”

“It’s probably all those crazy hormones. Women get insane when they’re pregnant,” Drew said.

“Nah, not all women, just my honey bear,” Mack said.

“Your
honey bear
,” Drew air-quoted, “needs to think about the consequences of her decisions. Also, I’m pretty damn insulted that she thinks I can’t find a wife of my own. If I wanted a woman around to nag me all day, I’d hook up with someone in town.”