Читать книгу The Wedding Party And Holiday Escapes Ultimate Collection - Кейт Хьюит, Aimee Carson - Страница 51

Chapter Ten

Sitting beside Ryan in church felt oddly intimate. When he opened the book in his hand for the next song, Betsy smiled. After the opening hymn, she’d discovered Ryan had a surprisingly good voice and that their voices blended together as if they’d been singing harmony their whole lives.

She wasn’t so much conscious of the words as she was the beautiful melody. Life was certainly strange. When Betsy had tumbled into bed last night, she’d never thought she’d be sitting in a church this morning.

As they sat down, Ryan took the book from her hand, his fingers brushing against hers, lingering for an extra beat. Electricity traveled up her arm. He must have felt it, too, because his eyes met hers. For a second she thought he might kiss her right then and there. If that wasn’t shocking enough, she had a feeling she’d have let him.

Someone read some scripture, but Betsy scarcely noticed. It was as if there was a bubble around her and Ryan and they were the only two in the room. When he reached over and took her hand, she curled her fingers through his and expelled a happy sigh.

Betsy knew she should ask why he hadn’t mentioned inviting Adrianna, but she didn’t want to spoil her fantasy. For just this morning she wanted to pretend that Ryan wanted her and no one else.

“Grace is something needed but not deserved,” the minister intoned.

The sermon this morning appeared to be centered around forgiveness. It was a topic Betsy preferred not to think about. Those who didn’t know her relationship with her mother, who didn’t know all she’d endured growing up, often spouted the forgiveness talk. But Betsy was having none of it today.

She’d heard all about forgiveness setting you free, but she already felt free. And how could she forgive a woman who’d never asked for her forgiveness? Who’d gone her merry way through life, hurting all those around her? Who’d even at the time of her death been in a destructive mode?

Betsy hated that the preacher had a voice that was hard to ignore. But she did her best, concentrating on the feel of her hand in Ryan’s, on his muscular thigh pressed up against her in the packed pew.

Dress casually, Ryan had said. Thankfully she hadn’t tossed on a pair of jeans like she’d considered when she’d hopped out of her superquick shower. Instead she’d chosen a wraparound tweed dress with brown boots and tights. Ryan had whistled when he’d seen her. For a second she’d felt beautiful.

Actually he was the one who was beautiful in his dark pants and gray sweater. And the way he smelled...so good she couldn’t stop thinking of that time he’d crawled under her covers. If she had him there now, she’d make sure they did a whole lot more than just talk.

“Time to stand.” Ryan tugged her to her feet.

She rose, her heart pumping hard and fast, unable to let go of the image of him in her bed, a visual that seemed stuck in her consciousness.

The minister offered a benediction. When he quit speaking Betsy realized she’d sat through her first church service in over five years. Other than the forgiveness part, it had been bearable. Ryan kept hold of her hand as they exited the pew. It was then that the horde descended.

Okay, so maybe it wasn’t a horde. But close. Ryan’s friends seemed to come out from the woodwork.

“When did you and Ryan start dating?” Mary Karen Fisher had pulled her blond hair back in a bouncy ponytail, making her look more like a college student than a mother.

Betsy had always liked Mary Karen. She was as upbeat and friendly now as she’d been back in high school. Which was amazing considering she had five small children at home, four of them boys.

“We’re not actually—” Betsy began.

“Just started,” Ryan said before she could finish.

Betsy inhaled sharply.

“You’re a good match for him.” Lexi Delacourt, a prominent social worker in Jackson Hole, nodded her approval.

“What makes you think that?” Betsy asked.

“Call me for drinks sometime—” Lexi winked “—and I’ll tell you why.”

“Lexi,” Meg Lassister called out, “we’re heading over to The Coffeepot to get a table.”

“You guys are coming, aren’t you?” Mary Karen asked.

Ryan placed a hand on Betsy’s shoulder. “We’ll be there.”

The two of them slowly strolled out of church. The sky was a bright blue and the sun shone warm against her face. Ryan was telling her a story about when Lexi’s husband came to Jackson Hole, got caught in an avalanche while skiing the backcountry and lost his memory.

The tale was so unbelievable that she wondered if Ryan made it up. Or maybe this was all a dream. It felt like one. Ryan calling her for a date. Being so attentive.

She looped her arm through his. If this was a dream, she was going to enjoy every minute of it.

* * *

“Oh, no,” Betsy said when they drew close to The Coffeepot. “There’s a line.”

“No worries.” Ryan smiled and edged his way through the crowd, then led her through the maze of tables to a large one in the back. “See? Cole and Meg got the table.”

Betsy recognized another one of the couples already seated. Joel Dennes was a prominent contractor in town. His wife, Kate, was a pediatrician. She was also one of Ryan’s former girlfriends.

Awkward, Betsy thought to herself as Ryan held out her chair, seating her next to the couple. After introducing her to Joel and Kate, he smiled. “I hear congratulations are in order.”

Betsy tilted her head.

“We’re having a baby.” Kate slipped her hand through her husband’s arm.

“Congrats from me, too,” Betsy said. “When are you due?”

“The middle of June.” Kate’s face lit up like a Christmas tree. “Our daughter, Chloe, is thrilled. She said she doesn’t need any other presents. Knowing she’ll soon have a brother or sister is present enough.”

“But we know when it comes time to unwrap gifts, she’ll want something more under the tree,” Joel said with an indulgent smile.

Once it got going, the conversation flowed easily. Betsy had seen Kate around, but she’d always seemed a bit standoffish. Today she discovered that Kate was as nice as she was pretty with her dark brown hair, big hazel eyes and a curvy yet lithe figure. Betsy felt like an ugly country mouse sitting next to a pretty city one.

Ryan was in his element, laughing and joking with his friends. Although everyone was friendly, Betsy held back, not sure of her place in this group, not wanting to be too bold.

But the man at her side would have none of it. Ryan skillfully drew her into the conversation, first by making them aware that she was Keenan’s sister, then telling all her secrets. From her bull-riding talent to her skill with snowballs.

“You should come out to our house sometime.” Kate paused for a moment as the waitress placed plates of food—and her bowl of oatmeal—on the table. “We could build a fort or have a snowball fight. Chloe would love it.”

“Count us in.” Mary Karen leaned across the table. “As long as we can bring the boys.”

Mary Karen’s oldest set of twins made Dennis the Menace look like a choirboy.

“If we play, we get Betsy on our team,” her husband, Travis, announced.

“What about me?” Ryan pretended to be outraged.

“You already said how good she was,” Mary Karen said in a matter-of-fact tone. “Naturally we took that to mean she can take you out.”

“Yep,” he said, bringing her hand to his lips and kissing it. “She can take me out anywhere, anytime.”

Betsy looked him in the eyes and wondered if he’d say the same thing if Adrianna was sitting beside him. She prayed he was sincere. If he wasn’t, she was in trouble. Because she was falling more deeply in love with him by the second.

* * *

“Have you slept with him yet?”

“Adrianna, shush,” Betsy hissed. “Someone might hear you.”

The following weekend, the two women spent the morning checking out the current exhibit at the National Museum of Wildlife Art, then stayed to grab some lunch at the Red Sage Café, located inside the building.

Adrianna glanced around the empty café. “There’s no one here. Everyone is out Christmas shopping or skiing.”

“I don’t feel comfortable discussing my personal life in such a public venue.” Betsy kept her voice low.

Although Jackson Hole held almost twenty thousand people, it was also a close-knit community. The last thing she wanted to do was to get some gossip going about her and Ryan.

“Okay, how about if I speak in a whisper?” Adrianna grinned, her voice as loud as before. “Then will you tell me your secrets?”

“There’s nothing to tell,” Betsy said. “We’re only friends.”

Adrianna took a bite of her tuna pita. “You really expect me to believe that? I saw the way he looked at you last Friday at Wally’s.”

“And I’ve seen the way he looks at you.” Betsy took a sip of her iced tea, hoping Adrianna would drop this line of questioning but knowing she wouldn’t.

Adrianna waved away the comment. She chewed thoughtfully. “Perhaps he doesn’t want to push you.”

Or maybe he’s in love with you.

The thought rose unbidden from the deepest recesses of Betsy’s subconscious. Ryan had made it clear he liked being with her, yet he had originally enlisted her to help him win over Adrianna. He’d also told Tripp that it was Adrianna he wanted.

Was spending time with her part of a plan to make Adrianna jealous? Or had he simply decided to settle for second best?

Betsy sighed. “Ryan and I are friends, Anna. I’ve told you that many times.”

“Still not believing it.”

That’s because so far Betsy knew she hadn’t been all that convincing. “I think Tripp is going to ask me out.”

Adrianna’s eyes widened and she straightened in her seat. “Are you going to go?”

“Of course,” Betsy said with what she hoped was a convincing smile. “Why wouldn’t I?”

* * *

Betsy picked up her purse, ready to head out the door when Ryan called to her from his office. She sighed and set down her bag on her desk, hoping this wouldn’t be another invitation to stay late.

All week Ryan had been consumed by a case scheduled for court next week. Every night he’d asked her to work late. The first time it had happened she’d thought he had something more personal in mind. But when he’d pulled out his case notes and started to talk, her hopes of a more intimate evening sank like a lead balloon. It had been the same story every night since.

By the time they finished it was usually close to ten and she’d gone home exhausted. Too tired to even trim her Christmas tree. It still sat in her living room, in water, begging for decorations. She’d thought about asking Ryan if he wanted to come over this weekend to help, but decided against it.

She’d started to wonder if the connection she’d felt between them had been all in her head. That’s why when Tripp had called, told her he’d gotten the job and offered to take her out to dinner to celebrate, she’d said yes.

“You need something?” Betsy asked, stopping in the doorway to Ryan’s adjoining office.

He looked up and she saw the lines of fatigue around his eyes. Putting down his mouse, he sat back in the leather-and-cowhide desk chair. “We’ve both put in a lot of hours this week. I’d like to take you out for dinner as a token of my appreciation.”

A token of his appreciation. The sentiment was sweet, but it hit Betsy wrong. Like he felt forced to take her out.

“Thanks for the kind offer,” she said in as pleasant of a tone as she could muster through gritted teeth, “but I already have plans for dinner.”

“Oh, are you and Adrianna getting together?”

Now he was really starting to get on her nerves. Granted, some of her less-than-good mood was probably because she was tired, but did he really think she didn’t have any other options than dinner with a girlfriend?

“Actually, no. Tripp is taking me out to dinner.”

Ryan pushed back his chair and stood. His brows pulled together. “Tripp Randall asked you out?”

Anger shot up Ryan’s spine. After that night at Wally’s Place, he’d told Tripp he was interested in Betsy and to back off. Of course, come to think of it, Tripp hadn’t agreed. His friend had just laughed and asked if Betsy was Ryan’s flavor of the day.

When he’d asked Tripp what he meant by that crack, Tripp had said they both knew his infatuation with Betsy wouldn’t last. After all, barely two weeks ago he’d told Tripp he was sure Adrianna was “the one.”

It pissed Ryan off to know that Tripp was right about him, or rather former Ryan. Even though he knew his friend hadn’t meant to hit a nerve, he had. For a few seconds all Ryan could think was he sounded a whole lot like his uncle Jed.

Uncle Jed had three ex-wives and a girlfriend young enough to be his daughter. That wasn’t the kind of life Ryan wanted for himself.

Regardless of what Tripp implied, Betsy was different from the others, and he could see them having a future.

But you thought Adrianna was different, too, a little voice whispered in his head. He immediately silenced it and focused on the conversation at hand.

“Is there anything else?” Betsy asked.

She hadn’t really answered his question, but from the look on her face, it wouldn’t be safe to ask again. But he’d be damned if he’d let Tripp monopolize her weekend.

“Joel called and asked if we wanted to come out for some fun in the snow at their place tomorrow.”

“You mean he called and invited you.”

“Yes, but he specifically mentioned wanting you to come.” Ryan had planned on talking to her about those plans over dinner tonight. But that wasn’t happening.

Because she was having dinner with Tripp.

Ryan took a deep breath and forced a smile. “It should be fun. Afterward I thought we might decorate your tree, if you haven’t already decorated it, that is.”

“When would I have time to trim the tree?” Her expression softened. “My boss is a real slave driver and I spend all my time at work.”

Hope rose in his chest. “So you’ll do it?”

“Sure,” she said. “Sounds like fun.”

“I can pick you—”

“Call me tomorrow,” she said before he could finish. “I’ve got to run.”

“Okay,” he said. “I’ll call you in the morning.”

“Not too early,” she said as she headed toward the front door. “I may be out late.”