Tempting Love (Cowboys & Angels 3)

Cord shot Steed a dirty look. “Go to hell. I haven’t slept with all of them.” He lifted a beer to his lips and smiled. “Almost all of them, but not all of them.”

“What are you boys talkin’ about?” Waylynn asked, flopping down next to me on the couch.

“Guy talk,” Cord said, tipping the bottle back and finishing it off.

Waylynn laced her arm with mine as she tucked her feet up under her. “Hmm, guy talk translates into y’all were talking about how many women Cord has slept with.”

“Hey, you’re a smart cookie,” Cord said with a chuckle.

Waylynn shot him a smug look. “I know my brothers.”

Glancing across the room, my breath stalled as I watched Corina holding Gage. The way she was looking at him made my chest ache in a good way. A wanting way.

“I’m going to ask her to marry me.”

I wasn’t sure why I said it out loud, but I did.

“What?” Waylynn asked.

“Dude, did you hit your head or something? We went from me screwing half of Oak Springs to you mindlessly saying you’re asking Corina to marry you? Where did that come from?”

I continued to stare toward Corina. She was rocking Gage. Every now and then she would look down at him and say something with the most breathtaking smile I’d ever seen. My heart felt like it was about to combust inside my chest.

There was no denying how much I loved her and wanted to spend the rest of my life with her. The need to see her belly growing bigger with a child was so overpowering, it nearly brought tears to my eyes. The thought alone had me making one of the biggest decisions I’d ever made in my life. I knew what I needed to do. What I wanted to do.

Swallowing hard, I shook my head. “For the first time in my life, I actually know what I want.”

“Hell, this just got good,” Steed said.

Cord leaned forward. “Holy shit, is it just me or is he for real turning blue?”

I shot Cord a dirty look, then followed it up with my middle finger.

Waylynn took my hand. “Mitchell, are you being serious? You’re going to ask Corina to marry you?”

Smiling, I looked at my older sister. “I’ve never been more serious in my entire life.”

Waylynn’s eyes searched mine. It was almost like she was looking deep into my soul. “That’s not the only thing you’ve decided.”

With a wink, I replied, “No, it’s not.”

“Are you sure you’ve got everything?” I asked. Again.

Corina stood in line at the ticket counter and stared at me. “What is going on with you? Yes! I’ve got everything.” She let out a sweet chuckle.

Leaning down, I kissed the tip of her nose. “It’s our first time traveling together and all. I want everything to be perfect.”

“It’s going to be amazing. You know, Cord would say you’re acting like the girl in the relationship.”

I let out a light-hearted laugh. “Yeah, and he’d mention something about the Smurfs.”

She stared at me with a blank expression. “The who?”

Stepping back, I asked in horror, “You don’t know who the Smurfs are?”

She shook her head. “Nope. Oh wait, there was a kids’ movie about them! The little blue people.”

My mouth dropped open. “I have so many things to teach you, young grasshopper.”

Corina rolled her eyes. We looked up when the ticket agent called out, “Next.” As we stepped up to the counter, we handed over our driver’s licenses.

“Heading to Chicago?” the ticket agent asked.

“Yes! My brother is getting married.”

It was clear the agent couldn’t have cared less. She forced a tight smile and kept typing. “How many bags?”

“Two each,” Corina answered. I would have only had one, but Corina needed extra space for her bridesmaid dress and all of that.

My phone buzzed in my pocket. When I pulled it out, I saw that it was my boss. Shit. I quickly sent him a text.

Me: About to get on my flight. Call you after I land.

Sliding my phone back into my pocket, I didn’t bother to look at his response. I knew what it was going to say. Probably something along the lines of call me now or I’ll have the plane delayed.

“You’re both set. You can head over to security and proceed through to gate sixteen. Enjoy your trip.”

We both said, “Thank you,” and made our way through the airport to the security checkpoint. I was TSA pre-approved so I made it through first, giving me enough time to call the boss man.

“Michael, it’s Mitch.”

“Do you want to explain to me what in the fuck I’m looking at on my desk right now?”

I winced when he yelled.

“I believe it’s pretty clear, sir.”

“Mitch, have you thought about this? Have you talked to your father about it?”

Anger raced through my body. How dare he even ask that—like I was a kid who couldn’t make a damn decision on his own. It wasn’t like it was in the beginning, when I was young and not sure what I wanted to do. It killed me to give him my answer.