Ain't She Sweet (Seven Brides for Seven Mothers #2) - Whitney Dineen Page 0,63

in that whisper of time between consciousness and sleep, right before surrendering to her dreams, she feels the mattress compress slightly. She rolls into the warmth of her husband’s arms and for that moment, everything is as it should be.

James

Wearing a full Woody the Cowboy costume, I’m horseback riding with my dad. He’s on Thunder and I’m on my childhood mount, Jester. We’re flying across the meadow like at any moment our horses might lift their hooves into the air and take flight. Their manes are whipped up in the breeze like living things unto themselves.

I’m so exhilarated to be with my dad again that I let out a primal scream of joy. “Dad!” I call while trying to catch up with him. But he maintains his lead and I can’t get any closer.

I try again, “Dad, please, I need to talk to you!”

His horse slows a bit and just when I think I can catch him; my mount’s leg buckles and we both go crashing to the ground. I feel the impact, but I’m not hurt. I just roll to the side and wait to regain my equilibrium.

A shadow crosses my line of vision and before I know it, my dad is standing above me. He reaches out his hand to me. “Dad?” I ask, afraid to trust that he’s really there.

“You always did have a reckless streak, didn’t you, James?”

“Maybe when I was younger,” I tell him. “But now, most people would tell you my life is pretty boring.”

“What part of pretending to date a supermodel seems boring to you?” he teases.

“You know about that, huh?” I can’t help but release a chuckle of happiness that he still knows what’s going on with me.

“Your mom is worried you might be caught up in something you can’t handle, but I think you’ve got this.” He grabs my hand and gives it a yank until I’m standing right next to him. His graying blond hair and crinkly blue eyes look just like they did the last time I saw him, which was the day before he died.

“I want to quit pretending to be Tara’s boyfriend,” I tell him. “I want it to be the real deal.”

He nods his head before saying, “Just remember she’s not like the other women you’ve dated. She’s had a vastly different life, parts of which may be hard for you to handle.”

“You mean because she’s famous.”

And just like that we’re sitting on the top of a roller coaster on the very top of a twenty-story high drop. Dad says, “This is Tara’s ride.”

“It can’t be,” I tell him. “She got off the ride when she moved to Oregon.”

“No, son, the ride followed her. And now you’re on it as well.”

An almost electric charge of dread flows through me as it starts its descent. “How do we get off it?”

My dad starts to become transparent and I know he’s about to disappear and leave me to freefall on my own. I reach out, hoping I can stop him, but my efforts are futile. The last words he says to me are, “All you can do is ride it out, son.”

The car careens over the edge and I scream the whole way down, sure it’ll never stop its reckless descent.

I wake confused and scared. I used to dream about my dad all the time after he died, but it’s been several months since that was a common occurrence.

Before getting out of bed, I pick up the phone and call down for room service. I decide to have them deliver it to my room. I’ll take it over to Tara’s from here.

I hurry to brush my teeth before going next door to collect Penny for her morning walk. I love how much the puppy loves Tara, but I still feel disappointed she’s not with me. That first night when Penny slept on my chest sold me on having a dog, and now that same animal is giving Tara all her love.

Tara is still sleeping when I walk through the connecting door. She’s so radiant I can’t look away from her. Her long, dark hair is tousled like she just came in from a windstorm. Penny is lying with her head on Tara’s shoulder, but as soon as she sees me, she starts dancing around for me to help her down to the ground.

I hurry to pick her up and decide to carry her downstairs, so she doesn’t have an accident on the way. The elevator makes a stop