I’d rather think about the man I’m going to meet. My future husband.
Ronan Marshall. Even his name makes shivers run up and down my spine.
Of course, I haven’t seen him in person but I feel like he’s a big bruiser of a guy. Lord, I hope so. I’m not a tiny girl and I really want a man that makes me feel tiny and delicate.
“Pfft!” I snort. I’m not a tiny, delicate girl. I’ve worked in a bar and a club before I went to the coffee shop. I cut my teeth learning to take care of myself. Learning how to make sure that handsy guys realized that I wasn’t about to tolerate their shit. I can cuss like a sailor and knee an uncooperative guy in a sensitive area if he doesn’t pay attention to my warnings. I don’t give two fucks whether they call me a bitch.
But I do care that my little town has spent the last few years blaming me for the golden boy’s death.
He left. He left me to pick up the pieces of my heart and go on breathing and working. Go on with my life.
And he just left me to deal with all the fallout. Didn’t come home at first. Then Christmas rolled around and he was on a flight home. A flight that went down. I was devastated, since I hoped that him coming home meant that he was interested in renewing our engagement.
But I never got to find out. And then the whispers followed. The whispers that grew into outright anger. Against the horrible woman that made him leave.
Nobody bothered asking me how I felt. How much it hurt when he left. Nobody except Sienna.
And that’s why she’s my ride or die.
So I kept on with my sad and lonely existence until I just couldn’t take it anymore.
Which brought up the craziest idea I ever thought of. Ever After Matchmaking. Not online dating. Nope. This is considerably more serious. This is life-altering.
That’s what I need. Something to get me out of the stagnant existence I’ve been suffering from.
Enter Ronan Marshall. I know he’s rich. He made no bones about it. But I don’t want his money. I just want someone to want me for me. Someone to care what happens to me.
That’s what he’s offering.
I grunt and grab the arms of the seat when the plane dips sharply. My tummy flops over and I groan.
“Shit!”
“Sorry, everyone! Just a little turbulence. We’re coming in for our final approach to the Wyoming Regional Airport. So make sure you’re buckled up and welcome to Wyoming!”
I glance out the window and gulp when I see the mountains all around us. I grew up in the mountains of Emerald Ridge but for some reason these ones seem bigger and more foreboding.
My fingernails dig into the armrests. I close my eyes and pray that I’ve made the right decision.
Fifteen minutes later, I’m pulling my case down and making my way out of the aircraft into the airport.
My mouth drops open. It seems a lot smaller than I was expecting and it’s almost empty. I check the baggage claim and make my way out of the gate. Very few people are here and most of them are dressed in cowboy boots and jeans, stetsons on their heads.
Except for the man standing off to the side of the entrance. The man wearing dress pants and a button-up, a tailored suit jacket over top of it. The dark gray fabric skims his body like a lover’s caress. His eyes meet mine and then he glances away before his dark eyes slew back and his jaw slackens.
The same strong jaw and deep, dark eyes that I’ve been dreaming about. Apparently he hasn’t had the same feelings because he totally missed me at first.
I sigh and push down the uneasy feeling in my belly. He stalks up to me, his strides smooth and controlled, like a panther. All graceful and muscular. So damn sexy. His firm lips quirk and he stares down at me.
Way down at me. He’s got to be at least six foot four to my five foot two.
“Kat?”
“Yeah.” I try to smile even though hurt flashes through me.
He eyes me up and down and his dark eyebrows lift, his melted chocolate eyes pausing on my substantial breasts.
I shake my head and try not to let irritation ruin our first meeting.