The Cowboy's Homecoming. Donna Alward

to the camper for now, but thanks for the invites.” His jaw felt tight and he forced himself to relax it. “Heck, I’m going to be rodeoing a fair bit of the time anyway. Easier to just hook up and go, you know?”

      This would be his home base. No commitments, no ties. He was still going to run this life the way he had for the past several years. On his terms, coming and going as he pleased.

      He knew at times it must have seemed as if he didn’t care for his family, but nothing could have been further from the truth. That he was here was proof of that. He wanted this for them, if it was what would make them happy, and he was strangely happy that he could finally do something right rather than merely being an afterthought.

      He just hoped they could accept that he needed to run his life his own way, too, and understand when the time came for him to leave again.

Chapter Two

      Kailey stared in the boutique’s mirror and had to admit that Lacey had fantastic taste.

      The bridesmaid dress was turquoise blue, a slightly brighter shade than a robin’s egg. The light material draped and flowed in an utterly feminine way, fluttering to a hem just above her knees. It was strapless, leaving Kailey’s shoulders bare, and she realized she was going to have to rectify the farmer tan she had from working outside in T-shirts by employing some self-tanner. But she loved it. She completely and utterly loved it.

      Lacey came back to the dressing room with a box in her hands. “Oh my gosh! That’s so beautiful on you!” She put the box on a padded seat and put her hands to her mouth. “Oh, Kailey. You’re stunning.”

      Kailey felt a blush climb her cheeks. Not that she didn’t like dressing up for a night out, because she did. Occasionally it was nice to feel like a girl. But this was different. It felt so formal. So...foreign. The only wedding she’d been in before had been Duke and Carrie’s, and that had been so low-key that she’d just worn a pretty red dress from her closet and a flower in her hair.

      “It’s not too much?” Kailey looked down, hitched up the bodice just a touch. She had to admit, she liked the way the fabric crisscrossed her breasts and waist.

      “It’s perfect.” Lacey beamed at her. “And don’t worry about wearing heels you’ll break your neck in. Here. I got you these. My present to you.”

      Lacey picked up the box again and handed it to Kailey.

      Kailey opened the lid and found a gorgeous pair of cowboy boots nestled inside, with matching blue accents inlaid on the boot shaft.

      “Wow. Just...wow.”

      “I figured you might not wear the dress again, but you might find some use for these.”

      Kailey took the first one out of the box and slid it on. It was a perfect fit. “There is nothing more comfortable than a good pair of boots,” she decreed, looking up at Lacey and smiling.

      “I’m going to be wearing a pair, too,” Lacey replied. “Under my dress.”

      Kailey had seen Lacey’s dress. It was sweet, in a similar style to Kailey’s only long and white and with frothy light material on the overskirt. Simple and very, very sweet—just like the bride. “The boots can be your something blue,” Kailey suggested, and Lacey grinned.

      “I might have thought of that.” She looked at Kailey. “So what do you think? Alterations? Or is it fine as is?”

      It fit perfectly. “I think we can take this home today, don’t you?”

      Lacey nodded. “I can’t believe it’s only a few weeks away. Sometimes it feels like it’s all happened so fast, and other times it seems to be taking so long!”

      Kailey smiled in return, though it felt forced. She kind of understood what Lacey meant but in the totally opposite way. Valentine’s Day seemed like ages ago, yet the time from then to now had gone so fast. Quinn and Lacey had been busy falling in love and she’d...

      She’d been busy, all right. Thinking she’d seen something in Rylan Duggan that didn’t exist. Thinking he was...different.

      “I should change,” she suggested, annoyed that she’d allowed Rylan to sneak into her thoughts. “We still have errands to run, right?”

      With two and a half weeks until the big day, Kailey was spending more time than usual away from the ranch, fulfilling her maid of honor duties. Not that she minded, but it was a busy time of year. They’d be making the first cut of hay soon, not to mention rodeo season picking up. She didn’t often travel with the stock, but she had the final say on which animals traveled and she was in charge of making the arrangements.

      “Right,” Lacey replied, taking the boots from Kailey as she reluctantly removed them. “K, you’re going to knock Rylan’s socks off in that dress.”

      Kailey scowled. “That is so not the objective.”

      “Oh, of course not.” Lacey’s face looked a little too innocent to be believed. “But you have to admit it’s a nice little side benefit.”

      “Whose side are you on, anyway?” Kailey turned her back so Lacey could undo the hook and eye at the top of the zipper.

      “Hey, I love my brother. Don’t get me wrong.” Lacey’s fingers were cool against Kailey’s skin as she undid the clasp. “But that doesn’t mean I agree with everything he does. Like hurt my new best friend.”

      Kailey swallowed thickly. She loved it in Gibson, had lived here all her life. And she and Carrie had been good friends for years. But she had to admit, that with the exception of Rylan, she was very, very glad that the Duggan siblings had come to live at Crooked Valley. Duke and Lacey’s friendship had become really important to her.

      “That’s sweet,” she said, trying to make her voice sound breezy. “But you don’t have to worry about me. That’s water under the bridge.”

      “I’m glad to hear it.”

      Ouch. Not that she mistook Lacey’s meaning. Clearly the family was aware of what had happened on Valentine’s Day. And she knew that all Lacey meant was that she was glad Kailey had moved on. But it stung a little, too, that Lacey was glad there was nothing between them. It felt as if the Duggans wouldn’t support her having a relationship with Rylan... After all, blood was thicker than water. Maybe they thought she wasn’t good enough for their little brother.

      She locked herself in the changing room and frowned. What the heck was wrong with her, thinking like that? She didn’t want a relationship with Rylan, for Pete’s sake! What she wanted was for him to satisfy his inheritance requirement and then just leave again.

      And good enough? She pulled on her jeans and zipped them, her movements quick and efficient. Jeez, she let one guy catalogue all her faults as a girlfriend and suddenly she doubted herself. Honestly, there were days she wished she’d never met Colt Black and his charming face. Or Rylan and his charming face, too. Boy, she was a sucker for the lookers, wasn’t she?

      But today that didn’t matter. Today was about Lacey’s wedding, so after she put the dress in the garment bag and paid the balance at the counter, she and Lacey started back to Gibson for lunch. This afternoon they had appointments to put in the final order for the cake and flowers. Lacey was the perfect blushing bride-to-be, radiant and happy during the preparations. There hadn’t been a single bridezilla moment, and for that Kailey was eternally grateful.

      The Horseshoe Diner was doing a bustling business over the lunch hour, and Kailey and Lacey found themselves at a table near the back, close to where the ancient jukebox sat. Lacey, being ever conscious of fitting into her wedding dress, ordered a salad with dressing on the side. Kailey didn’t worry so much about what she ate, considering the physical labor she did each day. She ordered a cheeseburger with bacon and hot peppers and then, at Lacey’s horrified expression, asked for a side salad instead of fries.

      She