The Cowboy's Package Love with Faith (COMPLETED)

Chapter 34

Jedediah smiles into the phone. "Aubrey sweetheart, if that is what you want I am absolutely fine with it. She is your family, after all."

"That's sweet handsome, but do you think it is too soon?" She asks obviously torn between what she wants and what might be best.

He repositions himself in his smooth seated saddle as he thinks about her words. Sure he thought that she was jumping back into a relationship with her sister a little quickly. On the other hand he had no idea what it felt like to yearn for a relationship with your sibling you were once very close with. "Well we have a month before you officially become Mrs. Williams. I think that praying about it and following God's plan is the best thing you can do."

"Honey, I always knew you were smart but sometimes you grow on me. I think that's the best advice I've gotten in a long time, thank you."

He chuckles slightly. "Anytime for my sweetheart."

"I love you."

"I love you too," he says then adds in a hushed voice, "I wish I could kiss you right now."

She giggles like a school girl. "Me too, however I need to find a dress to wear to marry you so I think I should go."

He makes fake sniffling sounds into the phone all while a smile graces his lips. "Okay, sweetheart. Let me know when you leave. I love you."

She cant' help the laugh that escapes her at his efforts to makes her feel bad about making him 'be in agony all day' as he likes to put it. "I will. You be safe and call me if you need anything. I love you too."

"Okay. Talk to you later. Bye."

"Talk to you later. Bye honey." She hangs up with a smile on her face and a good feeling about the next few hours. Once again the sea of white dresses, in all shapes, styles and sizes, overwhelms her. However, she pushes on back to the front where she had been just minutes before. There she finds Lacey and they head across the bridal shop to where her friends and soon-to-be family are waiting.

As soon as Cole spots her he grins widely and scurries to her. She picks him up and sets him on her hip as she begins to speak, "Sorry about that guys, I just had to make a quick call. Everyone I would like to introduce you to my little sister, Lacy. Lacy this is my sister-in-law Stacy, my mother-in-law Debra, my good friends Raely and Jenny and then you have met Cole."

There is a chorus of nice to meet you and hellos before Lacey begins to speak up about the dress. "I like to think that I still know my big sis pretty good, so I picked out a few I think you might like. If you would like we can go start there and figure out kind of what you like."

Aubrey nods. "Sounds good." She sets Cole in Stacy's lap and kisses his cheek before following her sister's slightly plump figure back into a spacious dressing room.

Dress after dress she tries on. The first one is too puffy, the second too short, the third was too mermaid style, and the fourth was too over the top. Aubrey melts into a heap on the floor of the dressing room. All she wants to do is snuggle into Jedediah's arms and let him pick one that he likes, but of course that would be too untraditional.

"What do I do now?" She asks Lacey as she walks in and sits down beside her.

"Well there are a few more options, but what I really think is that you know what you want in your mind, but you can't find it hanging in here."

Aubrey looks up at her little sister but her gaze quickly switches to the floor in front of her. "When I was a little girl I used to plan out my wedding. I always saw myself wearing a long dress that was just flowing. Not puffy. Not too tight. It just hung off my shoulders and flowed down to the floor."

Lacey stares into space while mentally running through all the major styles that they have not gone over. "Let me show you a few other dresses."
***

Jedediah pushes a bull through the wire gap in the fence. Half Acre Squares pasture, that he takes care of, juts up to the south side of the Big Country pasture that Traven Long takes care of. The bulls from Big Country pasture enjoy crossing through the old worn out fence into the Half Acre Squares pasture. Occasionally the bulls from the Half Acre Square pasture or HAS pasture for short cross over to the Big Country as well. This wouldn't be a big deal other than the cattle in the HAS pasture are heifers and have longhorn bulls on them so that they have smaller babies and hopefully an easier time calving.

If the big angus bulls from the Big country pasture got left in the HAS pasture too long the heifers could be bred to them and have big calves. On the other hand if the longhorn bulls bred the older more experienced cows they often raise smaller calves meaning the ranch is loosing money.

He and Traven have a frequent call history on their phones from one or the other calling to say 'your bull is back on me'. They usually put them back, knowing where they go, but either way they called to let one another know. Sometimes they would ride out together to put them back and make an effort to patch the fence. However, today Traven was tied up entertaining his twin sons.

Jedediah swings his right leg over the back of his saddle and lowers it until it is resting on the ground. He lets a huff escape his lips as he drags the wire gate across to the post it secures to. It's not the bulls or the work that frustrates him. For one, he can't be upset with the bulls. They are just doing what comes natural to them. Second, he loves his job even if covering the same land does make you wish you had a change of scenery. What eats on him is that the fence is so worn out that when you make an effort to patch it you only make a bigger hole.

Just as he shuts the gate his phone begins to ring. When he pulls it out and sees Aubrey's picture on the screen a smile instantly graces his lips. "Well hello sweetheart."

"Daddy! Daddy! Momma found a dress."

He is a bit surprised that it is Cole and not Aubrey, but he quickly recovers and grins at everything the little boy said. "Well that's good! Are you on your way home?"

"No, we are going to eat ice first."

Jedediah can't help but chuckle at the mischievousness in Cole's voice. "Without me?"

"Well momma said we are going to make some when we get home."

Jedediah begins to laugh when he hears Aubrey telling Cole that it was suppose to be a secret. "I look forward to it Cole. Ask your momma to tell me when you are heading my way."

"Okay I love you daddy!"