The Maverick's Bridal Bargain

You better be getting more bookings while you’re there, or else. Her finger quickly swiped to hide the notification, but as soon as it was gone, a second one popped up. This time, there were no words. Just a row of dollar signs.

Luckily, he was able to look away right before she turned her head in his direction, probably hoping he hadn’t seen her boss’s directive. Even though his instincts had now been confirmed, there was something about the threat at the end that evoked just the smallest pang of sympathy.

Once, he’d had an old blowhard of a first sergeant who’d gotten in his face and cussed him up one side and down the other when he caught Cole helping another recruit clean the latrine. The dressing-down took place in front of the entire platoon, who all did their best to pretend nothing out of the ordinary was happening. So he was familiar with being embarrassed by high-handed bosses who never appreciated a job well-done. If only Estelle of Estelle’s Events could see that her employee was currently reeling in her clients hook, line and sinker.

Still. Someone had to look out for his brother and make sure nobody was taking advantage of the lovestruck groom. Cole couldn’t tamp down the need to remind the couple of the more practical side of things.

“I know you guys are thinking with your hearts right now, but maybe you should be thinking with your checking accounts.” Honestly, Cole had no idea what their budget was, but every time Vivienne had made a suggestion during the car ride over here, he’d been reminded of one of those bar-code scanning machines in the grocery store, each beep signaling a rising total.

“Like I said, I’m not sure how much it would cost to get the building fixed up, but if you’re not tearing it down, you’d likely be investing that much money into the place anyway to use it as a barn or a shed-thing or...whatever you would use it for on a ranch.” Vivienne was definitely a city girl, all right. Yet she didn’t let her lack of knowledge about cattle operations keep her from continuing on. “The table and chair rental will depend on what your final guest count is, but I have a vendor who includes linens and delivery and setup in the cost. Using a caterer is going to give you more flexibility with the menu than you might have at a restaurant or hotel. The flowers, the music, the cake and the photographer are all separate businesses you’d be hiring out anyway, so the location wouldn’t matter. If you give me a day or so, I can draw up a new budget for you with some projected prices, but based on my experience, it’ll be at least a few thousand dollars cheaper to have the reception here rather than using a formal venue.”

Wait. Did Vivienne just say cheaper? As in she was trying to save Zach and Lydia money? And the woman was smiling as if she was actually happy to take a cut on her commission. Assuming she was working off a commission. Cole had no idea how people were paid in her line of work or why anyone would ever need to hire a wedding planner in the first place. It wasn’t like it was a real job that required much effort.

His head spun at the whirlwind of conflicting thoughts and he tried to make sense of it all.

But when he saw his brother and Lydia walking around the space, eagerly talking about where they could put a dance floor and whether they should forgo a church ceremony and say their vows under the canopy of aspen trees outside, the weight of determination settled in Cole’s chest. The Daltons, or at least their branch of the family, hadn’t had anything to celebrate in a long time. So if having the party here gave Zach even a glimmer of happiness, then Cole was going to make sure the bride and groom had the biggest and best wedding the town of Rust Creek Falls had ever seen.

Chapter Four (#ue802d78b-745f-5702-a152-ba5dc28e878c)

Estelle was going to have a fit about their company doing a “cowboy” wedding, Vivienne thought to herself as she drove toward Rust Creek Falls on a Sunday morning three weeks later. But ever since she’d seen that beautiful brick freight house, her brain had been buzzing with all kinds of ideas and she hadn’t felt this motivated at work in a long time.

When Cole had made that comment about checking accounts and the cost of the Grant-Dalton wedding, Vivienne was certain that he’d seen Estelle’s text to her about locking in more wedding contracts while she was in Rust Creek Falls. Then, out of nowhere, he’d all of a sudden switched gears and was promising that they could have the buildings on the family’s new property ready within a month after closing.

The guy was a complete mystery to her. One minute, he was all stoic, chastising his brother for not having his cell phone on. The next minute, he was winking at her and calling her ma’am