Homespun Bride

you. You think she’d be concerned about your reputation.”
    “My reputation?”
    “Hanging out with a cowboy who doesn’t have a wealthy family or social connections.”
    While his tone was light, there was something in his voice. Something serious. Her pulse skipped a beat. Could he be serious about her? She took a sip of the tart punch. No, she was reading too much into things. Perhaps it was her heart, wishing that he at least loved her, too, a little.
    Because she loved him. Very much. She could no longer deny it. She cherished this man. She honored him. She wanted nothing more than to love him for the rest of her days.
    “I think my reputation would be greatly improved being seen with you tonight.” She kept her words as light, but they were honest, too. “Do you see your family anywhere?”
    “I haven’t seen hide nor hair of them. I know Aiden was planning on bringing Ma, but I didn’t see them in the church. Of course, it was crowded. Half the town must have been there.”
    “And here, by the sound of it. That must mean your mother’s health is still improving?”
    “She’s holding her own. She ought to do better once the warm weather decides to show up. That could be June, knowing this part of the country.”
    “And your younger brother?”
    “We made him stay home tonight. We didn’t want him getting into any trouble here.”
    “By trouble you mean...?”
    “Getting his hands on some alcohol. Maybe thinking about joyriding with someone’s horse tethered up outside. We were hoping jail would have straightened him up. Shown him that life is a serious matter.”
    “It didn’t?”
    “No. He’s bitter. He’s full of hatred. It’s not a good situation.”
    “And he’s your little brother.” Sympathy marked her face, making her all the more comely. The dress she wore was the color of lilac blossoms and made her look like a princess. “You must want so much for him to live well and be happy.”
    “That’s what I want.” Thad swallowed against the hard emotion. The helplessness of it nibbled at him. “I can’t make a grown man’s decisions for him. Aiden and I are doing our best, but we’re both here tonight.”
    “And he’s home alone?”
    “If we’re lucky, he is.” His throat stung. “The thing is, I could have gone down that path myself.”
    “You?” She looked at him as if she saw him perfectly, the man he was, down to the soul. “No, not you.”
    His Noelle, so beautiful and unguarded, she made his spirit soar. She looked at him as if he were ten feet tall. Admitting the truth, well, it was tough, but she may as well know everything. “After I had to make the decision to ride away from Angel Falls, I knew what I’d done to you. It about broke me. You were my dream, Noelle, and all I saw was a future without you. A life without you. You were about all that I’d ever thought of living for.”
    Her eyes brightened with tears and she turned away so he could not see the emotion on her face.
    He would always be able to see into her heart. “I was hurting bad. Very bad. After a long hard day in the saddle when the cattle were down for the night we’d all gather around the campfire. Whiskey would get passed around and it h-helped. I didn’t feel anything for a long time, and that was all right by me.”
    “Oh, Thad.” She kept her face turned away. She set her cup aside and then folded her empty hands.
    “Once I realized what I was doing, I haven’t had a swallow since. I’m not the sort of man who will follow my father’s path in life. But I can see how easy it might be for someone else to. I know Finn doesn’t think he has much to live for. He’s just existing. Spending his days one at a time.”
    “I’ve been guilty of that, too.”
    “You?” That surprised him. The woman who’d made the most of her life in spite of her blindness. The woman who could have any man in the room proposing to her, judging by the looks she was getting from several of them. The woman who still chose to be with him.
    When she straightened, her eyes were bright with unshed tears. “I’m so sorry for your brother. It’s easy to fall into the habit of walking through life. It’s safer. Because you don’t have to risk as much. You don’t have to really feel.”
    Yep, he was standing on that spot himself. He’d been afraid to move a step forward. He couldn’t see how this would work for them. He didn’t know if Noelle still had the same dreams. He didn’t know if she