A Cadence Creek Christmas (Cadence Creek Cowboys) by Donna Alward Read Free Book Online

know,” he said gently. “You’re stubborn, strong, bossy and completely competent. But things happen. Call Melissa, trust Clara, pretend to walk down the aisle for the rehearsal and then go stuff yourself with lasagna. I promise you’ll feel better.”
    She didn’t like being handled. Even if, at this moment, she suspected she needed it. It was so different being here. More relaxed, laid-back. She was used to grabbing her non-fat latte on her way to the office, not sipping from china cups in a B&B dining room while eating croissants. Maneuvering her SUV with the fold-down seats through city traffic rather than walking the two blocks to wherever. Definitely not used to men looking into her eyes and seeing past all her barriers.
    Cadence Creek was a completely different pace with completely different expectations.
    “Rhys? Taylor? We’re ready for the walk-through,” Avery called down the aisle, a happy smile on her face. Despite the wrinkles in the plans, Taylor’s soon-to-be sister-in-law was beaming.
    Well, if the bride wasn’t worried, she wouldn’t be, either. She looked up at Rhys. “I’ll call Melissa when we’re done. But if this goes wrong...”
    “I expect I’ll hear about it.”
    The other members of the wedding party joined them at the end of the aisle—first Clara and Ty, then Sam and Angela, Jack and Avery’s friend Denise, who’d flown in from Ontario just this morning and thankfully ahead of the storm. Rhys held out his arm. “Shall we?” he asked, waiting for her to take his elbow.
    She folded her hand around his arm, her fingers resting just below his elbow as they took slow steps up the aisle. It was just a silly rehearsal, so she shouldn’t have a tangle of nerves going on just from a simple touch.
    At the front of the church they parted ways and while Taylor slyly glanced in his direction several times, he never looked at her. Not once. He focused unerringly on what the minister was saying, and she found herself studying his strong jawline and the crisp hairline that looked as if his hair had been freshly cut.
    The minister spoke to her and she jerked her attention back to the matter at hand, but she couldn’t stop thinking about Rhys. It wasn’t often that Taylor was intimidated by anyone, but she was by Rhys. She figured it had to be because he found her distinctly lacking in...well, in something.
    What she couldn’t understand was why on earth his opinion should even matter.
    * * *
    The Wagon Wheel was lit up, the windows glowing through the cold and very white night. Hard flakes of snow still swirled through the air, biting against Rhys’s cheeks as he parked his truck in front of a growing drift.
    They’d all bundled up and left the church a few minutes ago, the procession of vehicles crawling through town to the diner. There was no way they would have made it to the city for dinner. Even with the roads open, visibility was bad enough that there was a tow ban on. The smart thing was to stay put.
    Taylor “Bossy-Pants” Shepard hadn’t been too happy about that, though. He’d taken one look at her face and seen the stress that came from dealing with things gone wrong. It was a prime example of why he liked his life simple. If things went wrong out at Diamondback, he might get called to work but the worry belonged to Ty and Sam. Besides, his mother kept him plenty busy with things at the diner when she needed help. There were days he wished she didn’t own the place. That she’d stayed on as a cook rather than buying it from the last owner. There was too much at stake, too much to lose.
    Frigid air buffeted him as he hopped out of the truck and headed for the door, his head bowed down as far into his collar as possible. This storm had been a good one. Hopefully it would blow itself out by morning and nothing would get in the way of the wedding. For one, he only wanted to get dressed up in that tuxedo once. And for another, Callum and Avery deserved an incident-free