time.”
“I’ll have to make time, too. That wedding is taking place on my yard and I don’t want a fiasco on my hands.”
“Fair enough.” She gave a delicate shrug of her shoulder. “So what do you want to do?”
“I’d like to get together tomorrow with Lorne and Trista and make a few plans,” Nicholas said.
He didn’t imagine her slight withdrawal, and he wondered if he shouldn’t have offered to help. But what could he do?
It was either get involved or have potential chaos on his hands and on his ranch in a couple of weeks.
Neither option was great.
Then Cara nodded. “That’d be good. Bill is on call tomorrow.”
“So we’ll talk more then.”
He could tell she wasn’t crazy about the idea either. That didn’t matter to him. There was no way he was having a disorganized wedding at his place.
“Hey. Chapman. Over here.” Lorne was calling him.
“I gotta go,” Nicholas said, jutting his chin in Lorne’s direction.
“Let me know what time you want me there tomorrow.”
“Come after church,” he said. His father would be at some horse clinic that day, so it would be safest to have everyone come then.
Then he turned and walked over to where his friend stood chatting with his brothers. Lorne winked at Nicholas when he came near.
“So, I saw you talking with Cara?”
Nicholas gave him a dry look. “Yeah. What of it?”
Lorne held his hands up. “I’m guessing…you’re still ticked at her?”
“I’m guessing people will get hungry soon so we should start putting chairs out.”
“Oh, yeah.” Lorne looked at his watch. “Looks like we are running a bit late.”
“Why don’t you get your brothers to put out the tables, and we can put chairs around them. The women will want to put cloths on them or some such thing.”
Lorne shrugged. “Who knows.”
Nicholas shook his head and started unstacking the first set of chairs. But as he worked and against his will, Nicholas glanced over his shoulder and each time he saw Cara organizing things on her end.
Lorne caught the direction of his gaze, frowned, and drew Nicholas aside by the shoulder. “Are you sure you’re okay with this? I mean, with Cara and all?”
Nicholas forced a laugh. “It’s over, Lorne. Has been for three years.”
Lorne shrugged. “Maybe, but I know you cared about her and I didn’t get the whole attraction thing until I met Trista. If what you had with Cara was anything like what I have with Trista—”
“If what I had with Cara was the same, we would have been married already,” Nicholas said, unable to keep the sharp note out of his voice.
“But it’s still gotta be hard to see her like this. I told Trista she had to ask someone else, but she wouldn’t and neither would I, so here you two are. Stuck with seeing each other. Sorry.”
Nicholas shrugged. “I’ll deal. It’s sort of like that horse I used to have. The one that spooked every time something brushed its stomach.”
“I remember the time he dumped you in the patch of thistles,” Lorne said with a laugh. “But I don’t get the Cara connection.”
“Remember how I fixed the problem?”
Lorne nodded, but still looked puzzled.
“I took it in the corral. Brushed it with sticks and sacks and my hand and kept at it until it got desensitized. Until it didn’t jump each time it saw a stick or something coming at it.” Nicholas lifted one shoulder in a slow shrug. “I just have to do the same with Cara. Get desensitized.”
Lorne nodded slowly, as if he didn’t quite get it but was willing to go along with the idea. “Desensitized. Sure. Whatever.”
“And the more I see her, the less spooked I’ll get.”
“Just make sure you don’t get spooked the day of my wedding.”
“I’ll be there.” Nicholas slapped his friend on the shoulder. “Now let’s finish with those chairs before the women start nagging. Then we can get going on those lanterns I see piled by the trees.”
Half an hour later, chaos had fled
“I’ll have to make time, too. That wedding is taking place on my yard and I don’t want a fiasco on my hands.”
“Fair enough.” She gave a delicate shrug of her shoulder. “So what do you want to do?”
“I’d like to get together tomorrow with Lorne and Trista and make a few plans,” Nicholas said.
He didn’t imagine her slight withdrawal, and he wondered if he shouldn’t have offered to help. But what could he do?
It was either get involved or have potential chaos on his hands and on his ranch in a couple of weeks.
Neither option was great.
Then Cara nodded. “That’d be good. Bill is on call tomorrow.”
“So we’ll talk more then.”
He could tell she wasn’t crazy about the idea either. That didn’t matter to him. There was no way he was having a disorganized wedding at his place.
“Hey. Chapman. Over here.” Lorne was calling him.
“I gotta go,” Nicholas said, jutting his chin in Lorne’s direction.
“Let me know what time you want me there tomorrow.”
“Come after church,” he said. His father would be at some horse clinic that day, so it would be safest to have everyone come then.
Then he turned and walked over to where his friend stood chatting with his brothers. Lorne winked at Nicholas when he came near.
“So, I saw you talking with Cara?”
Nicholas gave him a dry look. “Yeah. What of it?”
Lorne held his hands up. “I’m guessing…you’re still ticked at her?”
“I’m guessing people will get hungry soon so we should start putting chairs out.”
“Oh, yeah.” Lorne looked at his watch. “Looks like we are running a bit late.”
“Why don’t you get your brothers to put out the tables, and we can put chairs around them. The women will want to put cloths on them or some such thing.”
Lorne shrugged. “Who knows.”
Nicholas shook his head and started unstacking the first set of chairs. But as he worked and against his will, Nicholas glanced over his shoulder and each time he saw Cara organizing things on her end.
Lorne caught the direction of his gaze, frowned, and drew Nicholas aside by the shoulder. “Are you sure you’re okay with this? I mean, with Cara and all?”
Nicholas forced a laugh. “It’s over, Lorne. Has been for three years.”
Lorne shrugged. “Maybe, but I know you cared about her and I didn’t get the whole attraction thing until I met Trista. If what you had with Cara was anything like what I have with Trista—”
“If what I had with Cara was the same, we would have been married already,” Nicholas said, unable to keep the sharp note out of his voice.
“But it’s still gotta be hard to see her like this. I told Trista she had to ask someone else, but she wouldn’t and neither would I, so here you two are. Stuck with seeing each other. Sorry.”
Nicholas shrugged. “I’ll deal. It’s sort of like that horse I used to have. The one that spooked every time something brushed its stomach.”
“I remember the time he dumped you in the patch of thistles,” Lorne said with a laugh. “But I don’t get the Cara connection.”
“Remember how I fixed the problem?”
Lorne nodded, but still looked puzzled.
“I took it in the corral. Brushed it with sticks and sacks and my hand and kept at it until it got desensitized. Until it didn’t jump each time it saw a stick or something coming at it.” Nicholas lifted one shoulder in a slow shrug. “I just have to do the same with Cara. Get desensitized.”
Lorne nodded slowly, as if he didn’t quite get it but was willing to go along with the idea. “Desensitized. Sure. Whatever.”
“And the more I see her, the less spooked I’ll get.”
“Just make sure you don’t get spooked the day of my wedding.”
“I’ll be there.” Nicholas slapped his friend on the shoulder. “Now let’s finish with those chairs before the women start nagging. Then we can get going on those lanterns I see piled by the trees.”
Half an hour later, chaos had fled
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