скачать книгу бесплатно
This Time Forever
Carol Steward
BROTHER OF THE GROOMSJust when Adam MacIntyre answered his true calling at last, putting down roots on his Colorado ranch, along came footloose Lisa Berthoff to turn things upside down. His siblings might have marched down the aisle with hers, but Adam wasn' t about to fall for a drifter who didn' t believe in God, or in settling down….SISTER OF THE BRIDESAs a photojournalist, Lisa knew better than to let her personal feelings about a subject interfere with a job. But she couldn' t seem to help herself. Not when the subject was rugged cowboy Adam and the feelings were…well, she wasn' t quite sure what they were. That was the problem….
It had taken Adam long enough to find where he belonged….
No one—especially not a woman with no ties to family or land—would come between him and the dreams God had called him home to.
Adam didn’t need or want his life turned inside out by a stubborn woman who didn’t believe in promises, or God, or slowing down long enough to see exactly what she was missing. A loner like himself had no business tying anyone else down to his obligations.
Keeping Lisa around in the confines of his lodge was definitely asking for trouble. Regardless of her familial connections or her charming personality, the beautiful drifter couldn’t stay. Wouldn’t, even if he’d be foolish enough to ask her to…
CAROL STEWARD
wrote daily to a pen pal for ten years, yet writing as a career didn’t occur to her for another two decades. “My first key chain said, ‘Bloom where you’re planted.’ I’ve tried to follow that advice ever since.”
Carol, her husband and their three children have planted their roots in Greeley. Together, their family enjoys sports, camping and discovering Colorado’s beauty. Carol has operated her own cake-decorating business and spent fifteen years providing full-time child care to more than one hundred children before moving on to the other end of the education field. She is now an admissions adviser at a state university.
As always, Carol loves to hear from her readers. You can contact her at P.O. Box 5021, Greeley, CO 80632. She would also love for you to visit her Web page at http://members.aol.com/csteward37.
This Time Forever
Carol Steward
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
And He said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a lonely place, and rest a while.”
—Mark 6:31
Acknowledgments
I’d like to acknowledge my husband, Dave, and my three kids, Sarah, Matthew and Scott.
It’s not always easy having a writer for a wife and mother, yet they keep encouraging me, even when the going gets tough. Thanks.
And a special thank-you to my editor, Melissa Endlich, for her patience and understanding, and the faith that I would finish this book.
Dedication
To my two Dads: Tom Bohannon and Jack Steward.
Wow, we really miss you!
Contents
Acknowledgments
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Epilogue
Letter to Reader
Prologue
Lisa Berthoff watched the quarter-size flakes of snow swirl in the darkness as her sister and brother-in-law drove away for their honeymoon. Guests left and family hurried around, cleaning up after the wedding and reception. No one wanted to be stranded at the church. The blizzard had dumped twelve inches in the three hours since they had arrived.
On her way up the stairs to the bridal suite, she glanced at the bride’s bouquet, caught in the crystal chandelier. “That could only have happened to Katarina,” she said with a chuckle.
Adam MacIntyre, the groom’s youngest brother added, “It’s becoming a family trait, getting the bouquet caught on something.”
Lisa smiled. “Oh, yeah. Emily’s caught in the tree—I forgot about that. Guess I was only concerned with how to avoid catching it.” Lisa had been expecting Katarina to throw the bouquet to her or Adam since they were the only unmarried siblings left.
“You’re not superstitious, are you? That was only a coincidence.”
“Superstitious? Not me, but I saw you hiding across the room.” Lisa laughed. “Don’t tell me you weren’t half expecting our families to set us up. First Emily and Kevin caught a bouquet, and six months later they’re married. Five months later Alex and Katarina catch Emily’s bouquet, and eight months later—”
“Doesn’t matter now, does it?” He motioned toward the chandelier. “We’re free from the wedding curse. What do we need to finish up here? Since Kevin had a car full of people, and the rest of the family went to their hotels, I agreed to make sure you get home okay before I leave.”
Lisa had convinced her mother and eldest sister, Emily, that she could make it to Katarina’s house without a problem. Leave it to them to arrange for an escort. “I just need to load the cake into Katarina’s van and get my things from upstairs. I won’t be long. You can go on home.”
“Katarina and Alex’s house is on my way out of town. Besides, I don’t think Kat’s van is going anywhere on these roads. I’ll take care of the cake.”
Lisa ran upstairs, gathered her things and put them into her bag. She caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror, and paused. She swayed back and forth, watching the fabric move in fluid motion, then spun on one foot and watched the dress fan out and swirl around her legs.
“Katarina’s quite a seamstress. All three of you looked beautiful in your dresses.”
Lisa turned. She swallowed a lump of embarrassment at being caught doing something so childish. Adam was leaning against the door frame with his arms crossing his chest. The MacIntyre men looked handsome as ever in their tuxes. Adam was no exception. “Thank you. You and your brothers clean up pretty nicely yourselves.” She turned to find her purse. “I thought you were taking the cake to the van.”
“Pastor Mike had already taken care of it. I thought I’d better see if you had anything else to carry down. Mike doesn’t think his car will make it, so I offered to give him a ride home, too.”
After a quick glance to make sure she had everything, Lisa slipped into the leather coat Katarina had loaned her. “Sorry for the delay.” She felt her cheeks heat up again and grabbed her purse.
“Not a problem. I rather enjoyed watching your little dance.”
She faced Adam, waiting for him to move out of the way. “It was terribly rude of you not to let me know you were there.”
“Did you expect me to join you?”
She tried to take her eyes off his dark brown gaze and his wide smile. “Dream on. My boyfriend would not appreciate me dancing with someone else, even if you and I are practically related.”
“Then again, he’s not here, is he?”
Lisa tried to get past Adam. “We’re keeping the pastor waiting.”
Adam chuckled. “Pastor’s going to have a long wait if he’s waiting on me. I dodged that bouquet.”
“You are a true cad,” she said, pushing her way past him. “If you think I was implying…” She stopped and spun around to face him again. “I didn’t…” Lisa lifted her finger to lecture him, then decided it wasn’t worth the effort and continued down the stairs.
Adam followed. “Everyone knows this MacIntyre will avoid the altar at all costs.”
“Doesn’t appear to be an immediate problem, does it?” Lisa snapped, picking up her pace.
“You ought to talk.” Adam smiled.
Lisa ignored his remark.
Pastor Mike looked up as Lisa and Adam made their way down the stairs. “I need to go get my briefcase from my car. I’ll meet you at your truck.” Mike opened the door and stepped outside. A strong gust of wind blew past them, rattling the chandelier.
Lisa sucked in a breath of icy air and closed her eyes. When she opened them, she saw the bridal bouquet blow loose, right into her hands.
Lisa ducked as another piece flew past her and hit Adam in the chest.
Lisa stared at the bouquet in horror.
“Not superstitious, huh? Tell you what,” Adam suggested. “Let’s keep this our little secret.”
“Keep what a secret?” Lisa countered. She tossed the bouquet on the stairs. “I didn’t see a thing.”
Chapter One
One Year Later
Lisa Berthoff switched the cellular phone to her other ear and eased the sporty rental car to the shoulder of Highway 1.
“Lisa, Francie here. I need you in Colorado to do the story on a bed-and-breakfast. We’re backlogged for weeks. Your ticket’s waiting at the airport. Leaves this afternoon.”
“When?” Lisa’s voice rose an octave. She looked longingly at the Pacific Ocean. Tell me I’m not hearing this. “Come on, Francie. I finally make it to the coast just in time for the migration of the whales, and you send me off to cover a bed-and-breakfast?” She shouldn’t complain. A job was a job, even a temporary assignment.
“What’s wrong? Did you finally meet someone to take your mind off of Dale?”
“That’s not it at all. He did me a favor by leaving. I was just hoping to see the sights while I was here this time. I’ve been going full speed for months. Give me a couple of days.” She hoped her hard work would pay off soon. Lisa had bailed the magazine out of more binds this past year than she had had dates.
“Sorry to tell you this, dear, but we really need you to get moving on this right away.”
Lisa moved the phone to the other ear as the editor explained the circumstances. One of these days, she would be able to be picky. Until then… “Of course I’ll cover the story. I hope everything goes okay for the Greens and their baby.”
“This place is north of Denver somewhere. Let me see here…Loveland. Hmm. Loveland—Valentine’s Day. There’s your angle. Get it?”
“I get it. And I’m familiar with the area. My sisters live—”
Her no-nonsense editor’s voice broke her off. “Pull this one off, Lisa, and Steve’s agreed to put you on the payroll full-time.”
Those magical words caught her attention, even though she knew better than to get her hopes up. “Promises, promises,” she said. “You know as well as I do Steve’s been stringing me along for months.”
“He’s serious this time….”
She paused, barely allowing Francie enough time to finish her explanation. “I’m already interested,” she said impatiently. “I didn’t say no, did I?”
Lisa jotted down the airline and flight information. “E-mail me the specifics. I’ll be in touch.” She pressed End and set the phone in her bag.
Lisa glanced at her watch. “Francie, how could you do this to me again!” She had less than three hours to get to the airport, return the rental car and pick up her ticket. Lisa quickly reviewed the route on her map and took one last longing look at the waves hitting the jagged shore. Footloose and fancy-free. I knew it would catch up with me. Farewell, San Francisco. Another time.
