A Bride for Braxton Read online

  A Bride for Braxton

  Oakdale Romance Duet

  Book One

  CHERYL WRIGHT

  A Bride for Braxton

  Oakdale Romance Duet

  (Book One)

  (Previously Published as May – Calendar Men Series)

  Copyright ©2019

  Cheryl Wright

  Cover Artist: Black Widow Books

  All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the copyright owner of this book

  Thanks

  Thanks to my very dear friends (and authors), Margaret Tanner and Susan Horsnell.

  Without their encouragement, this book would not be written.

  Thanks also to Alan, my husband of over 45 years, who has been a relentless supporter of my

  writing for many years.

  And last, but by no means least, thank you to all my wonderful readers who constantly encourage me to continue writing these stories. It is such a joy to me, knowing so many of you enjoy reading my stories. I love writing them as much as you love reading them.

  Table of Contents

  Thanks

  Table of Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Epilogue

  About the Author

  Chapter One

  “You did what?” Braxton Chalmers could feel the heat travel up his face.

  If he thought his cousin Melanie was pushy before, he now saw her with a whole new perspective.

  He sat opposite her, his hands on his knees as he leaned forward, waiting impatiently for her explanation.

  All the while his foot tapped nervously.

  “Honestly Brax,” she said. “It’s not that big a deal.”

  Yeah right. She’d volunteered his time for the local Youth Center’s annual fundraiser. He wouldn’t have to do much, she said. He’d be standing around a lot, she’d added.

  His eyes squinted suspiciously.

  She was up to something, but Braxton had absolutely no idea what it was.

  Melanie was always up to something and every single time she dragged him into it. He should just break ties with her. But how could he? They’d grown up together. He loved her as cousins loved each other.

  She’d introduced him to his first girlfriend, although it didn’t last long, and she’d dated his best mate.

  That too hadn’t lasted.

  She was always concocting something, and he knew, was absolutely convinced, she was up to her neck in it right now.

  “It’s one night, Brax,” she said impatiently. “What’s the issue? I know you volunteer there all the time.”

  “The issue,” he said, trying to control his temper. “Is that you didn’t ask – you just went ahead and put my name down.”

  She had the audacity to grin.

  Without warning, she jumped out of her chair and headed to the refrigerator where she pulled out a beer and passed it to him.

  As if that would pacify him. He was near boiling point and Mel wants to fix things with a beer?

  He silently counted to ten, wondering if fifty would be better.

  This was nothing new. His dear cousin pulled these types of stunts all the time.

  There was the time he thought he was attending a family dinner, but it turned out to be a blind date organized by Mel.

  Another time she organized the blind date then told him. The ‘date’ spent the entire night on her cell.

  And then there was the time she….. Nuh, not going there.

  He braced his shoulders and glared at her. “What exactly am I doing at this fundraiser?”

  He didn’t trust her one little bit. She’d come up with so many crazy schemes over the years, and right now his scheme radar was off the charts.

  She shifted in her seat uncomfortably.

  He watched closely as the color drained from her face.

  Mel shuffled about for nearly a minute, licked her lips, then spoke quietly. “You know, the usual stuff – take tickets at the door, help move tables, that sort of thing.”

  He sat back in his seat and relaxed. He felt more comfortable now.

  And suddenly everything changed.

  He studied her as she tried to force back a grin. Her hand suddenly went up to her mouth and she pretended to cough.

  Something was definitely up.

  He frowned and stared at her. If he did it long enough, she might renege and tell him the whole story?

  Without warning she stood. “Sorry cuz,” she said quickly, glancing at her watch.

  Was she going to own up to her lies after all? He hoped so.

  “I’ve got an appointment in ten. Gotta run.”

  And that was that. She snatched the near empty beer bottle from his hand and shoved him toward the door, snatching up his cowboy hat as she did so.

  “Mel…”

  “Sorry, no time. Talk soon.” She slammed his hat into his hands, then gave him an almighty shove and banged the door behind him.

  He swallowed hard. What the hell was she up to?

  * * *

  “Hey Brax.” It was Mel. What did she want now? “I just realized I didn’t give you the date of the fundraiser.”

  He heard her swallow – hard. “May 20. 8:30pm. But I’ll need you there an hour early.” She said it quickly as though she needed to get it out in a hurry.

  “Uh huh.” If he kept her talking, he might finally get the truth.

  She suddenly changed track. “By the way, Sierra West is in town.”

  That stopped him in his tracks. He’d dated Sierra when they were teenagers. She was seventeen and he was almost twenty. It felt like a life-time ago.

  He recalled how they were practically inseparable; spent almost every waking moment together. He’d even thought about asking her to marry him, despite their young ages.

  Then suddenly she left town – for a job in the city. She’d given him no warning whatsoever, and he was shocked when she’d told him the night before she was to leave.

  He recalled his agonizing pain at losing her. He’d walked around in a fog for weeks, not understanding what had happened.

  He was inconsolable and his heart felt as though it has been shattered into tiny pieces.

  Despite all that, he would never forget holding her in his arms, and how it made him feel.

  Even after all this time, his traitorous mind still brought those memories to the forefront.

  “Her grandmother died,” Mel said, bringing him out of his thoughts. “She’s back for the funeral.”

  “Oh.” He loved Evelyn dearly, and recalled some of their time spent together. She was such a nice old bird. He’d spent quite a bit of time at her place. He had visited there often while he dated Sierra, even having a number of meals there. “I’m sorry,” he said genuinely. “I really liked her.”

  “You’ll get the chance to tell her yourself,” Mel said. “I’ve invited her to dinner. Of course, you’ll be coming too.”

  He reveled in the opportunity to see Sierra again but was annoyed at his cousin for again manipulating him.

  “Six o’clock sharp,” she said.

  Before he could protest, she disconnected the call.

  Typical Mel.

  As much as he was annoyed with Mel, it wou
ld be good to see Sierra again. She would have moved on by now, probably had a husband and 2.5 kids this far down the track.

  He did the mental arithmetic. It was a little over ten years since they’d seen each other. She’d visited before, of course, but he’d gone out of his way not to see her.

  She was out of reach, and he wasn’t going to leave himself open to having his heart crushed again.

  He’d thought of following her to the city, of course, but he loved this little town. There was no way he could have left at that time. Nor did he want to leave.

  He still didn’t.

  His heart was here and always would be. Apart from the fact he now had his own business here.

  He leaned back in his chair. and wondered what she looked like now, ten years on. Would she have changed much? He thought she probably would have, especially living in the big city, with all the pollution that could be found there.

  Had he changed at all?

  He strolled over to the hallway mirror and stared at his reflection. He didn’t think he’d changed much at all.

  Braxton pulled out his cell phone and pulled up a photograph from ten years ago. The photograph. The much-loved selfie showed the two of them staring into each other’s eyes. Two young people very much in love.

  He looked back at his reflection; he hadn’t changed much.

  A bit older than he was in the photo, his black hair seemed even blacker, if that was possible. The biggest change was probably his stubble.

  It was so dark, it was hard to conceal, even after freshly shaving.

  He ran his hand across his chin, the way Sierra used to like doing.

  He shook himself.

  Back in his comfortable lounge chair, he stared at the photograph for a long time. He had regretted their parting from the moment she’d left.

  Why hadn’t he stopped her? Or at least tried to stop her? He hadn’t made any attempt to keep her there, and that had played on his mind for some years. Even to this day he regretted not trying to convince her to stay.

  But that was all in the past. Things had changed. He’d moved on and assumed Sierra had too.

  A quiet knock at the door interrupted his thoughts.

  “Brax. Braxton.” A familiar voice called out to him at the same time she was knocking.

  He braced himself; he’d know that voice anywhere. Sierra stood outside his front door.

  He took a deep breath and slowly let it out, then walked toward the door. He put his hand to the door handle but didn’t open it for the longest time.

  He wasn’t sure what his reaction was going to be like, seeing her after such a long passage of time.

  By the time he opened the door, she was already walking away. Her back was to him, so she didn’t see him standing there.

  “Sierra,” he called quietly.

  She turned toward him, and he watched as her lips quivered, then her eyes filled with tears. He was certain the tears weren’t because of him, but for the loss of her dear grandmother, Evelyn.

  He opened his arms, as he’d done so many times all those years ago, and she ran to him. He wrapped his arms around her, and they stood there for what seemed forever.

  Her tears flowed, and she sobbed her heart out. Through all of that, it felt as though they’d never been apart.

  Memories came flooding back as he held her, good memories, from better days. Thoughts of holding her, kissing her, and simply being together.

  He held her tight, stroking her silky soft hair as she cried, gently rubbing her back to chase the demons away.

  His heart rate accelerated – he’d never forgotten the feel of her in his arms. His heart that had been shattered into a million pieces when she’d left, suddenly felt whole again.

  Braxton knew, without a doubt, he had to protect himself, protect his heart. Because once the funeral was over, Sierra would leave him again, as she had done all those years before.

  * * *

  “I’m sorry,” Sierra said, once she’d composed herself again.

  He led her to one of the big comfortable chairs in his lounge room. “Don’t apologize. It’s hard losing someone you love.”

  She glanced around the room, trying to distract herself. It was obvious to Braxton she felt embarrassed about her outburst.

  She stared in the direction of his hat stand. “You’ve still got that old hat?” She laughed, and he recalled how much he’d loved to hear that tinkling sound when they’d dated.

  Braxton studied her. She was still as pretty as she was all those years ago. Little had changed, and to his disgust, he felt as much for her now as he did back then.

  He ignored her question. “How long are you here for?”

  “I’m staying for the funeral, of course,” she said quietly. “But I got extended leave. I’ve been feeling a bit burned out.”

  She glanced down into her lap and stared at her entwined hands.

  It was then he realized he didn’t really know what she did for a living. In fact, he wasn’t sure she still worked until now. It would make sense, if she had kids, that she might be a stay at home mom.

  He shifted in his seat at the thought of her being a mom.

  She looked up and stared at him. “Something wrong?”

  He shook his head. “I… I thought you might not work.” He took a deep breath, almost anticipating what she would say next.

  Instead she frowned. “Why would I not work? I mean, that doesn’t even make sense.”

  He shifted again. “To look after your kids?”

  He watched as her expression went from confused to amusement. “Kids? I don’t have kids.” She leaned forward and stared into his face. “I don’t even have a husband,” she said quietly.

  “You don’t? I thought by now…”

  “Too busy working,” she said. “More’s the pity.”

  Once again, he wished he’d followed her to the big city. Perhaps he might have convinced her to come back home to Oakdale.

  But he knew that wasn’t true. He wouldn’t have done that. Not ever. She had to make her own decisions, and he wouldn’t have wanted to have her life choices, or lack thereof, on his conscious.

  “I…” She licked her lips, and he remembered the way she used to do that when he was about to kiss her, the way she pouted her lips in readiness.

  Her lips were still as enticing and as luscious as they always were. Only now they were painted a pretty soft pink.

  “I’m still available,” she said quickly and suddenly.

  He sat forward. “Really?” He was incredulous. He was convinced this beautiful young woman he once courted would have been snatched up by now.

  His heart beat loudly. So loud he could hear it racing in his head. She’d said he had a chance. He opened his mouth to speak, then suddenly came to his senses.

  He shook that ridiculous thought out of his head and frowned at her.

  “What about you?” she said out of the blue.

  His head hurt. Braxton hadn’t contemplated this scenario, but now it had presented himself, it gave him pause.

  He leaned back in his chair and thought.

  Thought about the good times. The places they’d visited together. The quiet times they’d spent just hanging out. The days they’d gone riding up to the hills, just the two of them.

  The bad times suddenly reared their ugly head. The way he felt when she said she was leaving. Giving him no warning whatsoever. She was leaving the next day on the train, and she didn’t want him to see her off.

  He was heartbroken. In many ways he still was. He’d thought about her often for some years, then decided he needed to block her out of his memories. Forever.

  “What are you saying,” he asked softly.

  She waved her hands about in front of her face, then shook her head. “Forget it,” she said. “I had this weird idea that things could be how they used to be when we were kids.”

  He grimaced. He couldn’t help it. “I’m single,” he suddenly blurted out, then immediately re
gretted it.

  Building a relationship on something that happened over ten years ago couldn’t possibly work. Besides, she all but admitted she was only here for the funeral and then some extended leave.

  After that she would be gone again. Totally out of his life.

  Just like before.

  Chapter Two

  Sierra arrived early for dinner as planned.

  Mel said she wanted to have a ‘private chat’ before Braxton arrived.

  That piqued her interest more than a little.

  Melanie glanced over the top of her coffee mug and studied her best friend from their teenage years.

  “You’re going to help, right?” she said. “Tell me you’re going to help.” She’d already had four people pull out, which left her short-handed.

  It wasn’t that Melanie was hard to get along with, it was just that people hadn’t realized how much organization was involved in a charity event such as this.

  Sierra sighed. “I guess.”

  Melanie stared at her. “You don’t sound very convincing. Please,” she begged. “You’ve got to help. I can’t do this alone.”

  Her friend stared at her. “You won’t be alone. Mrs Jones is helping, Mrs Squires, and, ah…” She counted off on her fingers. “Oh, that’s right, Mary Jessop offered as well?”

  Melanie nodded. “That’s right, but that makes just four of us. I really, really need your help. Besides, Brax is part of the auction.”

  Mel grinned at her friend, but Sierra was confused.

  She swallowed down a big mouthful of coffee, then almost choked on it. “What do you mean Brax is part of the auction? Apart from helping with tables and other stuff, that doesn’t even make sense.”

  “Shhhhh, it’s a secret,” Mel said, putting her fingers to her lips. “I haven’t told him.”

  Sierra was still confused. “Haven’t told him what? I have no idea what you’re talking about Melanie.”

  “If he wasn’t my cousin, I’d find Brax pretty darned sexy. And I know you do.”

  Sierra felt the heat creep up her face. “I can’t help it if I find him attractive. He’s a good-looking man.”