His Bewildering Bride (The Brides of Paradise Ranch - Spicy Version Book 3) Read Free

Wendy, isn’t it? The seamstress?”
    “That’s her.” Cody grinned from ear to ear. “Well, I got word that she’s coming in on today’s train.”
    Travis frowned and straightened, arms dropping to his sides. “Why didn’t you tell me?” The question he really wanted to ask was “Are you really going through with that harebrained idea?”
    Cody shrugged, kicking the dirt. “Figured you’d be busy getting things squared away with Bonneville. Besides.” He met Travis’s eyes. “I wanted to get the first look at her.”
    Travis shook his head. “First look? It’s not like anyone else is going to call dibs on her, Cody. You sent away for her. She’s a woman, not a mare waiting to be ridden.”
    “Oh, I don’t know about that.” Cody’s grin turned cocky, and he winked.
    It was all Travis could do not to walk over and smack his brother upside the head for his crassness. If he was going to meet a lady with those sorts of thoughts on his mind, then it would be no surprise if the lady in question turned up her nose and ran at the sight of him.
    That thought settled it. Travis strode further into the stable, taking his saddle off the wall where he stored it and heading to his horse, Archer.
    “What are you doing?” Cody asked, mounting a last.
    “Coming with you,” Travis said, brooking no argument.
    “I don’t need you to come babysit me while I meet my future wife.” Cody nudged his mount forward, walking out of the stable.
    “Who said I was coming for your sake?” Travis called after him. Cody was out of earshot by the time he followed up with, “It’s that poor woman I’m concerned with.”
    He saddled Archer as fast as he could while still being careful. His old friend stood still while he worked. Archer was one of the things he’d miss the most about Paradise Ranch. He didn’t actually own the faithful mare, even though he’d spent the last several years taking care of the old girl as carefully as he’d take care of any woman under his protection. Some things about grabbing opportunity by the horns and moving up in the world were harder than others.
    Possibly in response to the bond they shared, Archer responded deftly to Travis’s commands when he mounted and headed out after Cody. Cody was almost to the edge of the ranch by the time Travis caught up with him.
    “You trying to avoid me or something?” Travis smoothed Archer into a walk beside Cody, who refused to look at him.
    “This is none of your business,” Cody replied, jaw tight. “Wendy will be my wife, not yours. I’m the one who sent away for her. You’ve never shown a lick of interest in getting married.”
    “Because I want to be sure I can provide for a family before I rush into anything half-cocked.”
    “Is that why you’re going all Benedict Arnold and slipping into Bonneville’s pocket?”
    Travis sighed. “That’s part of it. It would take me twice as long to earn what Bonneville is offering me if I stayed with Howard.” He shook his head and frowned at how quickly Cody had turned things around on him. Adjusting in his saddle, he went on with, “This isn’t about me anyhow. If you’re so certain you’re ready for a wife and the children that usually follow, why are you acting like you’re doing something wrong?”
    Cody darted a sidelong look at Travis. He swallowed and kept his mouth shut. The two of them rode along in silence. Travis split his focus between the road in front of them and his brother.
    Finally, when Cody’s silence grew too long and suspicious, he said, “You’re having second thoughts, aren’t you?”
    “No,” Cody answered, too fast. He cleared his throat, shot Travis another sideways look, and said, “I don’t even know what she looks like. What if she isn’t as pretty as Corva Haskell or Eden Chance?”
    Travis’s scowl deepened. “A woman’s beauty is in her soul. If she’s a good woman with a kind heart, it doesn’t matter what her face looks like.”
    Cody snorted,