Western Ties: Compass Brothers, Book 4 (24 page)

Sawyer returned to his brothers’ sides, clasping his mother’s hand. Colby invited everyone to return to the house for some dinner. He said, “JD left very few instructions. The one thing he insisted on was, and I quote, ‘a big-ass party’.”

Everyone laughed as Colby continued. “Nobody loved a barn dance more than JD, and we thought it would be a suitable tribute to him.”

The crowd began to disperse, everyone heading to the barn. Leah packed up her guitar and approached Sawyer.

“You hanging in there?”

He nodded. “Yeah. Helps having you here. That song was beautiful, Leah. Thank you.” He stroked her cheek lovingly and gave her a sad smile.
 

They started to return to the house when they noticed Vicky still standing by the grave. Sawyer squeezed her hand.

“Go get her,” Leah whispered.

Sawyer went to his mother. He whispered something that made her smile. Sawyer put his arm around his mother, and he led her slowly toward home.
 

“It was a wonderful service,” Vicky said as they reached the spot where Leah waited for them.
 

“It really was,” Leah agreed.
 

Vicky looked up at the blue sky and took a deep breath of the cool autumn air. “We’re all going to be fine.”

It was a simple statement, but Leah felt the rightness of it.

They would be.

After a huge covered-dish dinner, all the men in attendance started breaking down tables and moving the chairs against the wall of the barn. During the meal, Vicky had recalled the barn dance where she’d first met JD. She’d told everyone in hearing distance about how he’d been the life of the party, leading off the dancing. According to his mother, when it came to community socials, JD was always the first to hit the floor and the last to leave it.

She’d asked Lucy to grab a photograph from the family album. Lucy came back with it and they all passed it around laughing. Sawyer had never seen the old picture before, but he grinned when he saw the much-younger image of his father. JD was leading a conga line of costumed partiers at a Halloween celebration. His arms were raised, and his smile was contagious.
 

On the return trip to the house, Sawyer had dreaded the coming evening. Given the heavy emotions of the funeral and the past two days, all he’d wanted to do was go upstairs, crawl into bed and sleep for the next week. However, as always, JD had known the right answer.

Vicky had more color in her face tonight than she’d had in weeks. She was chatting with her friends, eating, reminiscing. Lucy made sure his mother’s wineglass was always full and while she was far from drunk, Vicky was certainly relaxed, almost at peace.

The music kicked on, but the floor remained empty. Everyone looked around as if uncertain what to do. Silas caught Sawyer’s gaze and nodded. The two of them walked toward the middle of the barn. Sawyer wasn’t surprised when Sam and Seth joined them. The crowd of partygoers laughed as the four brothers started shuffling around and singing along with the music.
Show Me the Way to Go Home
had been JD’s favorite song ever since the movie
Jaws
came out. Sawyer couldn’t count the number of times he’d heard his dad humming the tune as he worked on the ranch.

Halfway through the song, Seth dragged Vicky out on the floor with them, spinning her around as she laughed. The music continued and soon the barn floor was packed with dancers.
 

Hours passed, but no one left. No one wanted to break the spell of the magical night. After the heavy emotions of the past month, Sawyer hadn’t expected to have so much fun for a very long time.

“Hiya, gorgeous,” Leah said. “Where have you been hiding my whole life?”

He caught the distinct smell of tequila on her breath. “Guess I don’t have to ask where you gals snuck off to. Enjoy your shots?”

She giggled. Sawyer grinned. He’d never seen Leah tipsy. Just when he thought she couldn’t get any cuter, she found a way to surprise him.

“I only had one shot, but wow, my head’s sort of spinning.”

He wrapped his arm around her shoulder. “Yeah, but you also had a couple glasses of wine with dinner.”

“Crap. I forgot about that.”

He led her to the door of the barn. “How about some fresh air? Might clear your head.”

“Okay.” She accepted his proffered hand, and together they meandered away from the party, toward the woods. “I think that’s the best dance I’ve ever been to.”

Sawyer agreed. The party ranked up there. “It’s been a great night.” He sighed and rubbed his hand over his face.

“What’s wrong?” Leah asked.

“I’m trying to figure out if I’m supposed to feel this good. I mean, we buried my father this morning. Is this right?”

Leah glanced up at the sky, the moonlight reflected on her face. “I keep thinking about what JD wanted for the family. I remember his last words to you. He said be happy. In a lot of ways, you and your brothers were lucky. You had weeks to say goodbye to your dad, to tell him all the things you wanted to say. There was closure. A lot of people don’t get that.”

Sawyer nodded. “Never looked at it that way. You’re right.”

“But more than the closure, you had time to prepare for this. You knew today was coming.”

“Yeah. I did.”

“And was it as bad as you imagined?”

Sawyer shook his head.

“Nope. Most of the time the things we fear are never as horrible as we imagine. JD only made two requests for his funeral—the moonshine jar and the barn dance. He knew how to live life to the fullest. He suspected his death would be very hard for you, so he found a way to make it easier, to remind you to laugh. If I’ve learned one thing today, it’s that life goes on.”

“I love you, Leah.”

She smiled. “I never get tired of hearing that.”

“Good. Because I intend to say it to you every day for the rest of your life.”

Leah laughed. “Careful, cowboy. That sounds perilously close to a proposal.”

Sawyer dropped to his knee. “I practiced it a little different, but you’re right. That’s exactly what it is. Marry me, rose.”

Leah gasped when he reached into his pocket and pulled out a ring. “Took Mom into town with me last week to help me choose one. We had to get it sized. Marco, the jeweler, tugged me aside and handed it to me tonight.”

“You bought me a ring?”

“Why do you sound so surprised?”

She shrugged. “No one can feel this happy. It can’t be natural.”

Sawyer’s grinned widened. “Does that mean you’ll marry me?”

Her eyes twinkled with mischief. “Are you giving me a choice? A
real
choice?”

He stood. “Of course I am. So long as you choose right.”

“And if I don’t?” she teased.

“I’m going to pull a Seth Compton and kidnap you. Tie you to my bed and make love to you until you agree to marry me.”

Leah laughed. “God, Saw. You’re making this a very hard decision.”

Sawyer wrapped his arms around her waist. “What if I promise to tie you up even if you say yes?”

She nodded. “That helps.”

She fell silent. Sawyer realized she was having a lot of fun at his expense. “Put me out of my misery, Leah. Yes or no?”

Leah lifted her face to his and kissed him softly. “Yes,” she whispered.

“Hot damn. Wait here.”

“What?” she asked him, but by that time, Sawyer was ten feet away from her.
 

“Don’t move,” he hollered over his shoulder.

“What about my ring?” she yelled.

Sawyer chuckled. He’d been so damned excited by her answer, he’d forgotten to give her the diamond. He rushed back to the barn and searched the crowd until he found who he was looking for.

“Sam.” He approached his brother, who was sitting at the edge of the floor, hanging out with several of the hands.

“What’s up, bro?”

“Can you and Cindi stay at the ranch house tonight?”

Sam shrugged. “I suppose so. Why?”

“I want to borrow your place.”

Sam grinned. “What for?”

Sawyer tilted his head. “You know what for. I’ve had too much to drink to drive Leah to town. Besides, I’m not sure I could wait that long. She said yes.”

“To what?”

“To me. We’re getting married.”

Sam stood, grabbing Sawyer’s hand and shaking it hard. “Well, how about that? The place is all yours. The key to the front door is under the flowerpot at the top of the porch stairs.”

Seth and Silas came over.
 

“What’s going on?” Seth asked.

“Sawyer proposed to Leah. She said yes.”

Sawyer accepted his brothers’ congratulations, their loud cheering bringing their wives and his mother over. After twenty hugs and at least two-dozen congratulatory handshakes, he finally managed to break free. Jesus. Leah was probably thinking he’d deserted her.

He returned to the edge of the woods to find her sitting on the low wall. She gave him an exasperated look. “Thought maybe you’d come to your senses and run away.”

He shook his head. “My family.”

It was the only explanation he offered, but she didn’t seem to need more. “Did they approve?”

“They’re over the moon.”

“Sawyer?”

He offered her a hand to help her stand. “Yeah?”

“I want my damn ring.”

He laughed and placed the diamond on her finger. “We’re spending the night at Sam and Cindi’s place. They’re going to stay at the ranch house.”

“Really? Is this part of the tying me to the bed promise?”

“Come on. Let’s go consummate this thing.”

She laughed. “Do you consummate engagements? Thought that was only marriages.”

He grasped her hand and led her down the path that would take them to Sam’s cabin. “Leah?”

“Yeah?”

“Walk faster.”

Leah giggled, but she let him tug her toward Sam and Cindi’s cabin. They ended up racing the last quarter of a mile, both of them breathless by the time they reached the front porch.

Sawyer found the key, turned it in the lock and gestured for her to enter. His heart was racing, but not because of the run. It was a new beginning for him tonight. Leah walked into the house. Sawyer paused and glanced toward the clear night sky. He could almost imagine JD smiling down at them.

“You were right, Pa,” he whispered. “Like a brick to the face.”

“Sawyer?” Leah called from the house.

“Coming, rose.”

About the Authors

Jayne Rylon and Mari Carr met at a writing conference in June 2009 and instantly became archenemies. Two authors couldn't be more opposite. Mari, when free of her librarian-by-day alter ego, enjoys a drink or two or…more. Jayne, allergic to alcohol, lost huge sections of her financial-analyst mind to an epic explosion resulting from Mari gloating about her hatred of math. To top it off, they both had works in progress with similar titles and their heroes shared a name. One of them would have to go.

The battle between them for dominance was a bloody, but short one, when they realized they’d be better off combining their forces for good (or smut). With the ink dry on the peace treaty, they emerged as good friends, who have a remarkable amount in common despite their differences, and their writing partnership has flourished. Except for the time Mari attempted to poison Jayne with a bottle of Patron. Accident or retaliation? You decide.

Jayne and Mari can be found troublemaking on their Yahoo loop at:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Heat_Wave_Readers/join

You can follow their book-loving insanity on Twitter or Facebook or send them a personal note at
[email protected]
or
[email protected]
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Look for these titles by Jayne Rylon

Now Available:

Nice and Naughty: Ménage and More

Three’s Company: Ménage and More

Compass Brothers (with Mari Carr)

Northern Exposure

Southern Comfort

Eastern Ambitions

Men in Blue

Night is Darkest

Razor’s Edge

Mistress’s Master

Play Doctor

Dream Machine

Powertools

Kate’s Crew

Morgan’s Surprise

Kayla’s Gift

Coming Soon:

Play Doctor

Healing Touch

Powertools

Nailed to the Wall

Hammer it Home

Compass Brothers