Walker Bride (5 page)

The men were fussing over a foal and its
mother in one of the stalls. If Tyson were feeling extremely
ornery, he’d have called them out on it, as they looked like three
women ogling over a new baby. As it was, he was curious too.

“Whatcha got there?” he asked as he
approached and all three turned to look at him.

He noted the quick flash of disgust that lit
in Russell’s eyes before he must have thought better of it. Ben
simply gave him a nod, but Eric turned with a smile.

“Hey. Come check her out,” he offered.

As Tyson approached the gate, Russell and Ben
shifted to one side, as if, perhaps, not to get too close. Okay, so
this family bonding thing hadn't crept over into Eric’s other
brothers—not yet anyway.

He looked into the stall and saw what had
captured the men's attention. It was a beautiful new chestnut foal
still getting her wobbly legs under her.

“Now that’s a sight,” he said, his voice
cracking under the emotion of seeing them.

It never changed, this was something he’d
appreciated since childhood—new life. He could even remember
staring at Lydia when she was newborn with the same enthusiasm. At
thirteen years old he was old enough to appreciate what a baby
meant to the world. He had no idea then how chaotic and strange the
future would become, only that he would vow to protect her for the
rest of his life.

“Dane bought the mare before he knew he was
getting the job in Ohio. I promised to take care of her,” Eric
said.

“She’s a beauty alright. What’s her
name?”

Ben chuckled, “Fairy Godmother.”

Tyson shook his head. “Is there a book on
naming horses with funny names?”

Russell lifted his head. “I left a message
for Dane to tell him the foal was here and ask what he wanted to
name her.”

Eric slapped a hand on Russell’s shoulder.
“Did you give him a suggestion like Cinderella?”

“Is she the one with the Fairy
Godmother?”

The four men looked at each other dumbfounded
as if they were supposed to know that. Then Tyson supposed, they
each wondered how they got to talking about that. They each turned
in a different direction and took manly stances as Lydia rode up to
the barn.

“What are ya’ll doing in here looking
guilty?” she asked as she dismounted her horse.

“Talkin’ horses,” Russell quickly answered as
he shoved his hands into his front pockets.

“Could have fooled me.” She looked right at
Tyson. “What are you doing out here?”

“I suppose the same as you. Staying away from
home.”

Eric took off his hat and ran his hand over
his hair, then replaced it. “You two are pathetic. You should get
homes of your own. I’m going back to the house.”

Eric walked out, and his brothers followed,
but Tyson stayed with his sister as she began to take the bridle
off her horse.

“How was your ride?”

“Good,” she said as she unfastened the cinch
and tossed it up over the saddle. “Why are you staying away from
home?”

“Just not in the mood,” he said as he reached
out and took the saddle off the horse for his sister. “You take
this with you?”

“No, I store all my tack here.”

He nodded and placed the saddle along the
wall with the others. “You still could keep him at home.”

She shook her head as she took the blanket
off the horse’s back. “I’m like you. It’s nicer to hide over
here.”

“Eric was right. We are pathetic.”

“You more so than me. I get out and see
people. I go to town all the time. I’m here all the time. I have
businesses and properties and…”

“I get it,” he said picking up a grooming
brush. “I went to town today. It wasn’t so bad. And I’m here now,
and I’m staying for dinner.”

He watched her rise from the other side of
the horse and look at him though she barely could see over the
animal. “You went to town?”

“Got fitted for the tux.”

“Good. You saw Pearl then?”

He shrugged as he brushed the horse. “Yeah, I
saw her.”

“She’s single you know,” she said as she took
the bridle from the horse.

“So what?”

“Just saying.”

Tyson lifted the brim of his hat. “We had a
drink or two. I think she had three. I took her home after.”

His sister appeared next to him. “You went
out?”

Tyson held his hands up as if in surrender
from her questions. “Just a friendly drink. Thought I needed it
after she felt me up with the tape measure and all.”

Lydia let out a laugh. “She wasn’t feeling
you up.”

“I beg to differ.”

She planted her hands on her hips and looked
up at him. “Did you enjoy it at least?”

He winced and lowered the brim of his hat.
“Let’s just say I was social and leave it at that. She has a
reputation that I don’t need a part of.”

“She had a reputation, and you’re no saint.”
Lydia picked up another brush and moved to the other side of the
horse. “She’s a very successful business woman, and we're going
into business together. She's my new partner.”

Tyson rested his hands on the top of the
horse’s back and looked over to his sister. “How many things are
you going to take on?”

“As many as I can. Why sit around and wait
for Grandpa to die and inherit what he’s made? I want my own.
Besides, what happens if he loses it all? You know that gamble with
Bryon Walker was part of his doing too. Sure the Walkers were the
ones thinking they were going to lose all their land, but it could
happen to us. I love him, but it doesn’t mean I have to like how he
does things.”

Tyson eased back and brushed the horse.

His sister was one of the wisest people he
knew, and all that wisdom was shoved into a five-foot frame. He
chuckled to himself. There was a lot to learn from her.

Being invited to a caterer’s house for dinner
had its perks. Susan was trying out new recipes, and since she was
a vegetarian, she’d invited the others to try meat filled
dishes.

Tyson wondered if she’d invited more than
Eric’s brothers and his sister. There was enough food to feed a
small army. No wonder she’d been quick with the invitation.

“I’m going to finalize the cake plans
Monday,” she said as they all ate and she moved salad around on her
plate with her fork. “I like the red icing design, but red icing is
nasty.”

Lydia looked up. “All of your guests will
have red lips.”

“I don’t want that.” She turned to Eric whose
head was down as he plowed through his meal. “What do you
think?”

He lifted his head slowly. “Whatever,
babe.”

She chuckled. “That’s what I thought.”

“I can go with you,” Lydia offered. “I’ll bet
Pearl would have a lot to say about it too.”

Just the mention of her name had Tyson
dropping his fork and all heads rising to look at him. “Sorry,” he
said as he went back to his meal.

“She’s been great,” Susan said finally taking
a fork full of lettuce and almost making it to her lips. “She knows
everything. I wonder what her wedding would look like?”

“I think simple. She’s used to all the fancy
stuff. I just think hers would be simple.”

Why that made him laugh, he wasn’t sure, but
again everyone turned to him. “She’s not simple. I don’t see simple
being her wedding design of choice.”

A grin formed on his sister’s lips. “You know
her style now?”

“I’m just saying. That fancy makeup and those
expensive shoes. Her jewelry and her hair. That woman isn’t
simple.”

Russell shrugged. “I think she’s just
professional. She’s not too complicated,” he defended his
cousin.

Tyson took another bite of the meat on his
plate. He was in the wrong house to make comments about another
Walker. But he kept his conviction. Pearl Walker wasn’t simple. She
was a whole lot of drama wrapped in a pretty package. He snapped
his fork. And he was the man who was thinking way too much about
that pretty wrapping.

It was eight-fifty, and Audrey had promised
Pearl she’d be there to pick her up. After all, Audrey had to be to
work by nine, so where the hell was she?

The doorbell rang just as she picked up her
phone to call her. Throwing her bag over her shoulder and cursing
her sister, she pulled open the door.

“You’re late! And you told me…” She stopped
when she saw Tyson Morgan on her doorstep with his dark eyes
wide.

“I’m…sorry?” he said gripping his truck keys
in his hand.

“I thought you were my sister. She’s supposed
to pick me up,” Pearl said as her phone rang in her hand. She
swiped her finger over the screen and held it to her ear. “Where
are you? You said you were picking me up.” She groaned as she heard
her sister make excuses for forgetting her. Now she couldn’t pick
her up because she was late for work and in some weird way, it was
all Pearl’s fault. “Fine. Goodbye.” She disconnected the phone with
a grunt.

“She’s not coming?”

“How’d ya guess?” Pearl shoved the phone into
her purse, collected herself, and looked back up at him. “So why
are you here?”

“Well, from the sounds of it, I suppose I’m
here to give you a ride to your shop.”

She narrowed her gaze on him. “Why are you
really here?” The alarm on her phone went off, and she pulled it
from her purse again and silenced it quickly. “You know I don’t
care why you’re here. I need a ride and if you’d give me one that
would be fantastic. I have a bridal showing at nine-thirty, and I
haven’t even been to the bakery.”

Quickly, Pearl pulled the door closed and
locked it. She hurried by Tyson and then turned back. “Are you
coming?”

“Yup, right behind you.”

Pearl was already in the truck when Tyson
climbed in and shut the door.

“This is much nicer,” she said looking
around.

Of course, it was nicer. She’d ridden in the
farm truck. That was far from luxurious.

“Thanks. I don’t drive it much.”

He started the engine, glad that she’d
changed the subject from earlier. When she’d asked what he was
doing there, Tyson was glad she hadn’t waited long for an answer.
The truth was, he had no idea what the hell he was doing there.

Something that Lydia had said to him last
night seemed to resonate with him.
I get out and see people. I
go to town all the time.

His time in town yesterday hadn’t been so
bad. A few minutes getting felt up by the grumpy bridal store woman
to his right hadn’t been horrible. There was beer involved, and
that too was good.

Tyson pulled away from the curb. “How can I
help you out this morning?”

“You’re here to help me?”

Giving a shrug, he rolled down his window. It
was getting a little stuffy in the cab of the truck.

“I was in town, thought I’d…” He thought he’d
what? Again, he hadn’t planned on showing up at her door at nearly
nine in the morning. Then he remembered he’d stopped at 7-11 and
gotten coffees. “I brought you a coffee,” he pointed to the cup
holder.

Her eyebrow raised as she studied him. “You
came all the way to town to buy me a 7-11 coffee?”

“If you don’t make it yourself, it’s the
best.”

She reached for it and eased back.
“Thanks.”

“You’re welcome,” he said as he turned at the
stoplight. “So, honestly, what can I do to help you this
morning?”

“Really? You have time to help me? Because
I’ll take you up on it. I’m not the kind that…”

“I mean it,” he said reaching for his
cup.

“Franklin’s Bakery has an order for me. I’d
be forever indebted to you if you’d pick up my order and bring it
back to the store. I have to pull out the dresses I was going to
show the bride. Get the room ready. Set out the strawberries and
champagne. And…”

“I can do that,” he interrupted.

Pearl let out a long sigh and turned toward
him. “You didn’t come just to make sure I was able to get to work
did you?”

Tyson winced. “Maybe. I felt a little guilty
that you didn’t have your car.”
And you haunted my dreams
,
he thought to himself. “Needed a few supplies too.”

“You came to town two days in a row. That’s
not normal is it?”

“Nope. Not at all. But Lydia says I need to
get out more.” And after having sat with his grandfather in silence
this morning while he listened to the man chew his toast, he was
damn sure he’d be in town more.

Pearl reached over and touched his arm.
“Thank you. It means a lot to me.”

He felt the sizzle in her touch zap every
part of him awake. “It’s nothing.”

“It is to me.”

Pulling the truck up in front of the store he
parked. “I’ll be back with the order. What am I getting?”

“They have a box of pastries with my name on
them. They are already paid for, so you just have to get them. I
can call and let them know you’re coming.”

“Do you need to do that?”

She pursed her lips. “I’ll call. Not everyone
will believe a Walker sent a Morgan to run their errands.”

He nodded and tried not to act or feel as
offended as he was.

Pearl gathered her bags and hopped out of the
truck. “By the way. I like this truck better. I thought you had a
little bit of luxury in your life.” She winked and closed the
door.

Tyson looked at the truck’s interior. Yeah,
he’d decked it out when he’d bought it. Leather seats. XM radio.
The trim was elegant, and so was the black paint on the outside. It
had been his splurge, which was why it spent most of the time in
the garage. He didn’t want anything to happen to it. The old farm
truck was just fine for running around. So why had he pulled this
one out this morning?

He waited until she was inside before pulling
away.

Pearl watched him drive away and then leaned
her back against the door. Her heart was racing so fast she
couldn’t calm it down to a normal pace.