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But for some reason, that didn’t feel right.
“You once told me this was the Holidays’ home—their dream,” he said. “And you’re right, it is. As much as I’ve come to love this ranch, I’d also like to have my own home. A home Belle and I build together. Just like you and Liberty are turning Mrs. Fields’ Boardinghouse into your dream home.”
“I get it,” Jesse said. “But I hope you’ll still run the ranch. I hate to say it, but I don’t think Hank can handle it alone.”
“Neither can I, and I’ve discovered I don’t want the entire responsibility of the ranch on my shoulders. I still want to run my investment company and I want plenty of time to spend with Belle. Which is why I’m hiring a foreman.”
“Do you have a clue who you’ll hire?”
“No. I’ve interviewed a lot of cowboys, but Hank vetoed all of them. He’s a hard man to please. We’re lucky he didn’t veto us.”
“You’re right.” Jesse slipped an arm around Corbin shoulders. “Now let’s go marry our women before he changes his mind.”
* * *
“I will never complain about another stressed-out bride again.” Liberty stared at her reflection in the mirror. “And whose idea was it to let Sissy Haskins fix our hair?”
Belle bit back a smile as she adjusted the veil on her sister’s massive up-do. “Yours.”
“Damn. You should have talked me out of it. Along with this tight corset dress.” Liberty tugged on the bodice of her wedding gown. “I can’t breathe in this contraption.”
“You can’t breathe because you’re nervous. All brides are.”
Liberty looked at her in the mirror. “You’re not.”
It was true. Belle wasn’t nervous. She was excited and happier than she’d felt in a long time. After years of letting her sister make all the decisions, Belle had finally discovered what she wanted.
And who she was.
She was the calm, collected twin. The sister who put people at ease and kept her head in stressful situations. The sister who wasn’t loud and assertive, but still knew how to get her way. The sister who loved watching people celebrate the most important moments of their lives.
Today, she finally got to celebrate her own important moment. She was marrying exactly the type of man she had always dreamed about. A man who was kind and protective . . . and vulnerable. A man who was scared of love, but when he loved, loved deeply.
Corbin loved her deeply.
She didn’t doubt it for a second.
As soon as Belle had finished adjusting Liberty’s veil, the rest of the bridal party started showing up. As the maids of honor, Sweetie and Cloe wore navy blue dresses. The bridesmaids, Hallie, Noelle, and Sunny, wore red. And the flower girl, Pip Wadley, wore a mixture of red, white, and blue.
She looked absolutely adorable.
As did Buck and Gilley with their stars and stripes collars. The wedding bands were attached to those collars, which made Belle a little nervous. She hoped Gilley wouldn’t break away from Pip as they walked down the aisle. Although the little girl seemed to have a way with animals just like her grandma Melba. The entire time the bridal party was adjusting bows and doing last-minute primping, Pip was teaching both dogs how to sit and stay by using the dog treats she had stashed in her dress pocket.
“That little gal is a chip off the old block.” Mimi moved up next to Belle. She wore a red, white, and blue flowered dress with a wide-brimmed hat decorated with matching flowers. She looked as happy as Belle . . . until her gaze landed on Hallie, who was standing at the window waiting for Daddy’s signal that it was time for the bridal party to head over. “I’m worried about Halloween,” Mimi said.
Hallie had been fired from her job at a brewery in Austin. Belle had been so busy with Corbin and planning the wedding, she hadn’t had much chance to talk to her little sister. That, and Hallie had always been so strong, Belle never worried about her.
She turned to her grandmother. “I don’t think you need to worry, Mimi. She told me she wasn’t that upset about being fired. The new owner of the brewery was a real jerk she’s happy to be away from. And I’m sure she won’t have any problems finding another job.”
“I’m not worried about her finding another job. I’m worried about her moving back to a big city where she has no one to watch out for her. I understand all young people wanting to move away from home and sow their wild oats, but she’s done that and I think her getting fired is a sign from God that it’s time for her to move back home and be surrounded by people who love her.”
Belle smiled. “You want all your granddaughters to move back home.”
“And what’s wrong with that? Look how happy you, Liberty, Sweetie, and Cloe are now that you’ve moved back. Now all we need to do is convince Hallie and Noelle to do the same and the family will be all together again.”
Before she could tell her grandmother it wasn’t likely Hallie and Noelle would move back home, Hallie spoke in a high-pitched squeak that drew everyone’s attention. Hallie had never spoken in squeaks in her life. She usually spoke in bellows.
“Jace?”
