Merry Cowboy Christmas (Lucky Penny Ranch #3)(53)

Disappointment washed over her when she parked next to Truman’s truck in the backyard. Jud’s vehicle wasn’t anywhere in sight. She’d hoped that they could have a few minutes to talk about the night before. She let herself into the house, made sure she locked the door, and went straight for the refrigerator. Dora June had made fried chicken and there were leftovers. She put a leg and a breast in a bowl and picked up a can of diet cola.

She didn’t even turn on the foyer light but made her way upstairs in the dark. Once she was in her bedroom with the door closed, she lit up the room with a table lamp. Then she sat down in the recliner beside the window and bit into the cold chicken. Nothing had tasted so good in a very long time but it didn’t take away the yearning to talk to Jud.



Jud was late to church that Sunday morning and slid into the pew right beside Fiona just as the preacher took the pulpit. Nudging Fiona on the shoulder, he whispered, “What time did you get home last night?”

“After midnight. Where were you?”

“At Deke’s. I waited until ten for you and then got bored, so I went to Deke’s for a beer.”

“Shhhh.” Dora June tapped them both on the shoulder from the pew right behind them.

The preacher cleared his throat loudly. “What do you want for Christmas? Are you thinking about a new car? A trip to a place where it’s warm and you can put your feet in the sand? Or are you thinking about peace and happiness…” The preacher went on but Jud didn’t hear a word he said.

What did he want for Christmas? For the better part of a year Jud had wanted to be at the Lucky Penny with his cousins by Christmas. He’d yearned to be there when Blake and Toby talked about the improvement they were making, the new baby calves last spring, and even putting up fence in the heat of a Texas July. From the moment he’d driven his truck onto the property a few weeks ago, he’d known peace. But what he truly wanted for Christmas was what his two cousins had. The start of a family and happiness with a woman they loved.

Fiona crossed one leg over the other and brushed his hip in the process. She did not bring happiness to him. Turmoil was more like it—that’s what he felt every time she walked into a room.

She was family of family, and the awkwardness of a fling could cause more problems than he could count on his fingers and toes. He told himself for the thousandth time that she would be moving away as soon as she could and he was definitely staying on the ranch of his dreams.

Happiness might not be in Santa Claus’s big bag this Christmas, but if Jud could ask for anything, it would be contentment. Fiona’s shoulder touched his again when she fidgeted. He shut his eyes and imagined kissing that sweet spot between her shoulder and neck and moving up to taste her earlobe before settling his lips on hers for a series of kisses that left them both panting.

Every song, even “Jingle Bells,” reminded him of her, every snowflake that dropped or cold breath of air he inhaled brought back a visual of her. Just one romp in the hay might put her out of his mind, but then what? Her sisters were married to his cousins and they would be thrown together forever. No, that would never work.

“So what do you want for Christmas?” Deke whispered on his left side.

“Haven’t made my list yet. Have you?” Jud said from the side of his mouth.

“A tall blonde full of sass heads up the list or maybe a redhead so hot that she can leave burn marks on my mattress,” Deke chuckled softly.

“Shhh.” Fiona shushed them with a finger to her lips.

Lips.

A stirring behind Jud’s zipper reminded him of how much Fiona affected him.

Think about something else other than the taste of those luscious lips. Think about what the preacher is saying. Think about pulling a calf, building fence in August, or drilling a new well.

“And now I’ll ask Jud Dawson to deliver the benediction,” the preacher said.

Jud stood and shook the legs of his Wranglers down over the tops of his boots, bowed his head, and said the shortest prayer of his life, thanking God for the day and the holiday season and asking that everyone be blessed with heavenly love, amen. It was not easy to talk to God when his mind was on the woman sitting to his right, looking like a billboard model in that red sweater hugging her curves and the green plaid skirt that barely skimmed her knees.

“I wish you’d do the benediction every week,” Deke said the moment the rest of the folks in the church joined in with a hearty amen. “That was the shortest one I’ve ever heard, and Blake had to kick me awake to deliver it one Sunday so you can imagine how short that one was.”

Jud clapped a hand on Deke’s shoulder. “If I’d been sleeping, maybe I wouldn’t have been thinking about things I shouldn’t in church.”

“I understand,” Deke said seriously.

Dora June and Lizzy pulled Fiona out into the center aisle and Jud felt as empty as if he’d lost something. But he couldn’t lay claim to what he’d never had, so he waved at Fiona as the women headed toward the nursery to collect Allie and Audrey.

Tonight, he promised himself, he would be home in time for them to visit. They needed to talk about what nearly happened Friday night and decide exactly where they stood with each other.

When he turned back around, Deke was gone as well as both his cousins and their wives. Truman was standing at the back of the line looking lost. He stepped out beside the old guy and threw an arm around his bony shoulders.