A Love Worth Waiting For

Julie couldn’t believe it. All this fuss over one man? “Just because he’s rich doesn’t mean he’s nice.”

“He could be nice. We don’t know that he isn’t,” Misty reasoned. “He might be a good dancer.”

“It’s an engagement party, not singles’ night.”

“It’s a Friday night. There’ll be a band. That means we’ll have to dance with him.”

“It’ll be tough, but someone’s got to do it.” Susan looked determined to suffer. “My theory is that you never know what God has in store for you. In my case, why not a billionaire?”

Julie laughed, she couldn’t help it. “Okay, believe Mr. Ashton is going to be your knight in shining armor. I’ll make sure to introduce you to the billionaire. Satisfied?”

“Absolutely.” Susan waggled her brows, looking full of trouble. “Maybe I’ll get my hair done, too. Since I’m getting dressed up, it wouldn’t hurt to dazzle him.”

“Why bother? I’m sure Mr. James Ashton has his pick of beautiful women,” Misty teased.

“You don’t think he’ll take a second look at me. Is that it?” Susan pretended to be offended.

“He could be looking at me instead.” Misty flicked her hair behind her shoulder. “Maybe the billionaire likes blondes.”

Susan and Misty laughed together, and Misty said goodbye. The outside door clicked shut as Julie snapped off the lights.

“I’ll be back in an hour to direct the caterers.” Susan grabbed her coat and purse from the dark corner. “Don’t you worry about a thing. You just make sure your grandfather is here on time.”

“You can count on that. Thanks, Susan.”

“Don’t mention it.”

Together they turned off the rest of the lights and closed the doors behind them. The fat raindrops became a downpour the minute they stepped into the parking lot.

“I hope this is just a temporary thing,” Julie called over a sudden gust of wind. “I’d hate to have to row people across the parking lot.”

“Joke all you want, but it’ll all work out.” Susan shouted to be heard over the drum of rain as she headed to her car. “Drive safely.”

“You, too!”

The sky let loose with a violent torrent of icy rain. Great. Just when she didn’t think it could get worse… She took off running. Gravel crunched at her feet and rain knifed through her thin jacket. She flung open her truck’s door and collapsed on the seat. With hands stiff from the cold, she found her keys and started the engine.

“Please, don’t tell me it’s going to be like this all afternoon.” She flicked the defroster on high, but only chilly air sputtered from the air vents.

Rain pinged on the roof and streamed down her windshield. She shivered and swiped a circle of fog from the glass. Tree branches swayed violently in the wind. Twin beams cut through the downpour as Susan’s car eased out of the parking lot and out of sight.

With her mind on the party, her grandfather and the billionaire showing up, Julie put her truck in gear and crept through the storm, keeping a close eye on the road.

“It was good to finally meet you, Mr. Renton.” Noah shook the older man’s hand. He hadn’t found any obvious reason not to trust the man.

There was an honest glint in Harold’s eye, that was for sure, as he grabbed his battered Stetson and headed for the door.

Harold may appear to be kind and decent, but Noah had learned the hard way that people were not often what they appeared.

“I’ll look forward to seeing you at the party, son.” Harold nodded in the way men from the country did, his drawl unassuming as he tugged open the door. “Looks like the storm isn’t about to let up. Hey, that’s Helen’s car in the driveway. She must have just pulled up.”

“Wonderful!” Nanna clasped her hands together, obviously overjoyed. “She’s going to help me fix my hair. You drive safe, Harold, my love. Guess I’ll be seeing you in a few hours.”

“I don’t see how you can get much prettier, but I’ll be lookin’ forward to it.” Blushing, head down, the older man cleared his throat.

Noah blushed, too, realizing Nanna and Harold were waiting for him to leave so they could be alone. Well, he could take a hint. He headed for the living room to give the couple privacy.

Okay, so he sort of liked Harold. He was a well-preserved man, who spent his retirement running his ranch and seemed to love doing it. And the way Harold looked at Nanna—well, it did look like true love.

Don’t jump to conclusions, Noah warned himself, pacing the room, listening to the fire pop low in the grate and the bushes scraping against the windows.

Trying not to listen to the murmur of his grandmother’s voice in the entry hall, Noah whipped out his handheld computer. The little electronic notebook was his life support, and somewhere in the files he’d begun a list of everything he had to remember for today—

There it was. He scrolled down the list. Flowers. He’d forgotten flowers for his grandmother.

There was plenty of time. He’d just take Nanna’s car and zip into town. It wasn’t that far away. Hadn’t Nanna shown him pictures of the bridal flowers she’d selected? This town, as small as it was, had a florist shop.

“Where are you going?” Nanna demanded when she caught up with him in the kitchen. “My friend Helen is here, and your sister will be by any second to help me get ready for the party. Are those my car keys?”

“If you let me borrow them, I’ll bring you home a surprise.”

“All right, then, fine. Take my car, but you be careful, young man. My Chevy is older than you are, so show her some respect. And absolutely no speeding.”

“I’m not a teenager, remember?” He kissed her cheek. “I’ll be good. I promise.”

He said hello to Nanna’s friend, pocketed the car keys and escaped out the back door while he had the chance.

The defroster in her pickup couldn’t keep up with the fog. Julie swiped at the windshield with the cuff of her jacket sleeve, watching the endless curtain of gray rain that obscured the road ahead. What was that up ahead? She squinted to make out the faintest red glow flashing in the thick gray mists. Taillights. Someone was in trouble.

Julie braked, easing to a stop in the road behind an old sedan. She hit her flasher as thunder cracked overhead. Her pulse kicked high and fast in fear, and she reached for her purse, feeling for her cell phone.

There was no sign of anyone anywhere. Maybe the driver was hurt. Maybe—

A movement in the shadows caught her attention. The tall, broad-shouldered form became a man, rain drenched and awesome, as the lightning cracked behind him, zagging like a crooked finger from the sky to the top of a nearby knoll.

What was he doing out there? Didn’t he know it was dangerous?

As thunder clapped, Julie bolted into the storm, ignoring the cut of ice through her jacket and the sting of rain on her face. “Hey! Get back in your car—”

Lightning splintered the sky the same second the man turned. The earth began to shake like a hundred earthquakes beneath her feet. As the thunder boomed like cannon fire, Julie saw it all in an instant. The bright streak of light overhead, the man leaping toward her and the spark of fire as a tree beside the road flashed with flames.

All she could feel was the steel-hard impact of his shoulder, the dizzying spin of rain as it knifed from the sky and the drum of cattle racing by. She hit the muddy earth with a breath-stealing thud.

Pain rocketed through her body and her head smacked on the rocky earth. The man’s hand curled around the back of her head, cushioning the shock. Fighting for air, she was only dimly aware of the lightning and thunder, the cold and wet. The man’s face was a blur as he crouched over her. A tree limb crashed to the ground at her side. Fire licked at the leaves, even as the rain made the flames smoke and die.

“Are you all right?” he asked in a voice as deep as night, as powerful as the storm.

She gasped for air but couldn’t draw it into her lungs. Fighting panic, she knew she wasn’t hurt seriously. All she had to do was relax—