The Texas Ranger's Bride (Lone Star Lawmen 1)

“Thanks for being my friend, Luckey. I owe you.”

Chapter Eleven

14.00. Second place for the night at the Oklahoma rodeo. Not good enough.

Cynthia Lyman had taken first with a 13.95.

“It wasn’t your fault, Starburst.” Kellie threw an arm around her neck and fed her a treat. She’d been losing concentration and there was only one reason why. Instead of getting over Cy, her love for him was stronger than ever. She was dying to talk to him, to be held and kissed. But she needed to nail some first places at the three upcoming rodeos in Texas in order to maintain the highest average. That wouldn’t happen if she didn’t snap out of it.

The most despondent she’d been since leaving Austin, she walked Starburst back to the trailer and loaded her inside. Once she’d taken care of her, she drove to the RV campground where she and Cody were staying.

There were headlights behind her she could see through the side-view mirror on her truck. Someone else was coming into the RV park. She wound her way through to their reserved area. The lights stayed with her. Maybe it was Cody.

Soon she turned into their spot and could see Cody’s truck and trailer ahead in the distance. Her cell rang. She knew it was Cody. He always phoned her when he saw she was back. After stopping the truck, she clicked on without looking at the caller ID.

“I know...you don’t have to say anything, Cody. I didn’t have a good night.”

“14.00 nabbed you a second place. From where I was sitting, you wowed the audience.”

At the sound of the familiar male voice, she almost went into cardiac arrest. “Cy?” Kellie was trying to comprehend it. “You were in the audience tonight?”

“Yup. I flew into Oklahoma City and rented a car at the airport so I could drive to the arena and watch your performance. I wanted to join you while you were walking Starburst to the trailer, but I didn’t want to frighten you. I’ve probably made things worse by following you. Thus the phone call.”

Kellie was speechless.

He’d come all this way to see her.

She forgot everything and scrambled out of the truck. He was moving toward her. She couldn’t get to him fast enough and started running. He caught her up in his arms and swung her around like a bride.

“Cy—” But anything else she would have said was stifled by the hunger of his kiss. Delirious with love and wanting, she kissed him back without thinking about anything else. All she could do was show him what he meant to her. They melted together, trying to become one.

“I love you, Cy. You were right about everything. I miss you too horribly to let you go.”

“That’s all I need to hear. I’m in the middle of a big case and have to be back at the airport in a half hour to catch the red-eye from New York to Austin. It makes one stop here. We don’t have much time. Come and get in the car with me. We have to talk fast.”

She wanted to scream that it wasn’t fair to experience this much rapture, only to have it snatched away in so short a time. But this was Cy’s life. Even working a dangerous case, he’d come for her. She had to find a way to deal with it, because he really was her whole world.

After they got into the car, he pulled her to him. She needed his kiss as she needed air to breathe. What they were doing was devouring each other, but there wasn’t enough time to pack in all their feelings in a matter of minutes.

“I love you, Kellie. You’re so much a part of me at this point, I can’t live without you.”

“I can’t either, darling. I’ve been so afraid of loving you for fear I’d lose you. But Luckey told me something that straightened out my dilemma in a hurry.”

“He said you called him.”

“Obviously I couldn’t bear even a week apart from you. He told me about what was written on the application when he wanted to become a Texas Ranger. It said, ‘Decide you want it more than you’re afraid of it.’” She looked into those dark blue eyes. “I want you more...so much more you can’t even imagine.”

“Good old Luckey,” he whispered against her lips before driving his kiss deeper. After he lifted his head, he reached into his Western shirt pocket. “Will you marry me for real this time?” He held up a diamond ring.

She let out a cry. “It’s the same one you gave me before. I thought it was property from the agency’s warehouse.”

The smile she loved broke out on his face. “It’s not the same one, exactly. But it’s the same style, yes. I wanted the ring to look like the one you wore when we pretended to be man and wife. I think I wanted our marriage to be real from the beginning.” He slid it home on her ring finger.

Tears filled her eyes to feel it back where it belonged. “So did I. The blog piece I put on about our fake marriage wasn’t fake to me. I meant every one of those words you said were over-the-top.”

He pressed his cheek to hers. “I said them because I wanted to think you meant them, but I was afraid that dream could never become a reality.” He found her mouth and kissed her passionately, over and over again. “Have you put your disclaimer in the paper and on your blog site yet? I’ve been too busy to look.”

“No. I’ve been holding off. It’s because I haven’t been able to take back the words I wrote. I’m afraid they’re written in my heart forever. I could feel myself falling for you after your captain first brought me into your office at the agency. There you were again, the Ranger I’d bumped into in Bandera. You were the most glorious sight this cowgirl had ever seen, standing there in the sun in your Stetson.”