Say You'll Marry Me

There was a time she’d been proud—and even a little smug—to be seen on his arm when they were out at the local hot spots in Nashville. These days, the thought of him made her want to punch something. No matter how good he looked on the outside, she knew the lying, cheating thief he turned out to be, and her image of him was permanently tarnished. What once seemed charming and charismatic was revealed in hind-sight as sneaky and slimy.

Not only was he a cliché when it came to cheating, but a cliché to his profession as well. She had no doubt her lawyer ex-fiancé would’ve turned his nose up at Logan had the two ever met. He did the same to every other cowboy-like guy they’d come across in the Music City.

But Joy realized that while Logan might dress in old, thread-bare work clothes, she respected that he knew how to put in an honest day’s work. And so what if he didn’t shave every day. Or if his hair didn’t stay neatly combed. Truth be told—to herself only—the more disheveled he became, the sexier he looked in those low-riding jeans and time-worn, chest-hugging, cotton T-shirts.

Now, the gentleman part her grandma had just mentioned? That needed work—lots of it.

Sure, it had been sweet that he’d carried her to the house when she injured her ankle. The gesture had sent a heady little zing zipping through her veins when he scooped her up against his broad chest as effortlessly as the hay bales. Then he’d ruined it when he told her to shut up and acted like helping her was some big inconvenience in his busy day.

She still hadn’t figured out what the heck he was talking about when he’d gone on about men sweating when they worked, but somehow there’d been an insult for her at the end. Something about her not grasping the concept of work. What the hell did he know about her?

They hadn’t spoken in the past two days, even though she realized she’d never thanked him for helping her into the house. He’d been busy with the hay and other chores, and she’d stuck close to the house with the excuse of resting her ankle. It wasn’t that bad, but he didn’t know that.

Facing him after the whole mix-up on the porch was not something she looked forward to, either. Talk about awkward. And she hated that her broken engagement had come up, because even though Gram hadn’t revealed details, the thought of Logan knowing the reason was just plain embarrassing. Thankfully, no one knew about the stolen money. She hadn’t pressed charges against Luke because the affair with his secretary was humiliating enough.

A shadow blocked out the sun, interrupting her musings as she realized Grandma had stood.

“I’m going for a walk,” she declared.

Sweet Pea grunted agreement and lumbered to her feet.

Joy rose as well, the wrap on her ankle preventing her from feeling more than a twinge of discomfort. “Let’s go. Where to?”

“You don’t need to come with me. I don’t need a babysitter. You and your grandfather hover too much. It’s smothering.”

She gave her grandmother a gentle smile. “Grandma, I need to exercise my ankle, or it’ll get too stiff and take longer to heal. Either I walk with you, or we each go alone. I missed you while I was in Nashville, so I’d rather have company.”

The guilt trip half-worked. “Fine,” Gram groused. “Suit yourself.”

Joy sighed past the lump in her throat and followed her down the porch steps. It was best to ride things out silently when she got grumpy, because reasoning with her right now would be like trying to reason with a three year old.

And don’t take it personally, she reminded herself, even though her chest ached.

Keeping silent was a good plan, until Joy realized their destination was the barn. Her pulse ticked faster as Logan

exited with her black mare, Grace, and her grandma gave him a friendly wave. She wasn’t at all self-conscious about the episode the other day, which meant the next few minutes wouldn’t go well with the way she’d been talking all morning about Logan as Luke.

“Grandma, how about we go to the pond?” Joy reached to take her grandmother’s arm, but she shook her off.

“I don’t want to go to the pond.”

“Come on, Sweet Pea loves it there.”

As if to back her up, the pig gave a couple grunts and trotted ahead in the direction of the trail that led through the woods, to the back field.

Good girl, Sweet Pea.

Even though they had the pool in the back, Grandpa still kept the pond aerated and filtered so it was good for swimming well into the fall. Cool and clean. They’d also built a small dock with a bench at the end, overlooking the water, the field, and the rolling countryside beyond.

Grandma stubbornly kept on her target course as if on a mission. As she approached the pasture entrance, she said to Logan, “I would like to speak with you.”

He latched the gate after unhooking the lead line from Grace’s halter, then turned to face them, his expression guarded after the confrontational tone of grandma’s voice.

“Good morning, June.” His gaze flicked to Joy, but he didn’t acknowledge her.

“You should be ashamed of yourself,” Gram admonished, glancing between the two of them.

“Excuse me?”