Her Billionaire Cowboy's Wedding Fiasco, page 1
part #2 of McCoy Billionaire Brothers Series
Table of Contents
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Title Page
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Epilogue
Excerpt from HER BILLIONAIRE COWBOY'S TROUBLE IN PARADISE
About the Author
Copyright
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HER BILLIONAIRE COWBOY'S WEDDING FIASCO
McCoy Billionaire Brothers, Book Two
HOPE MOORE
Chapter One
“What a fiasco. I knew this was going to happen.” Todd McCoy stared at Cal Emerson, his grandfather’s lawyer. Granddaddy had obviously lost his mind right before he’d passed away a little over six months ago. Before he’d left them, he’d redone his will to make all his grandsons suffer by forcing them to get married, at least he was assuming all of them would. Since first up was Wade, and he’d married, now Cal was able to reveal Todd’s fate which was similar to Wade’s—but Morgan’s actual requirements wouldn’t be revealed until he either accomplished his challenge or lost everything. And that was the kicker—why had Granddaddy made his demands a do it or else lose it all, everything they had worked so hard for and loved? Wade had been first and ended up, as crazy as it was, happily married to Allie, whom he’d married in order to save the ranch he’d helped build.
Now, it was Todd finding out his fate.
He gripped the edge of the chair he sat in. He’d watched the last three months while Wade had jumped through hoops to save the ranch and now Wade sat beside him, as happy as a clam, still married and deeply in love.
But even so, Todd was not going to be a puppet on a string.
He loved his grandfather but this was going too far. J.D. McCoy had been used to getting his way. He’d brought his grandsons up to like hard work and to be proud of what they were building. Todd loved producing the best grape jelly the world had ever tasted, and he truly believed that McCoy Stonewall Jelly was the best, and he had helped build the multi-billion dollar enterprise they all had dedicated their lives too. Todd was also proud of the wine they were producing but his pride and joy was the jelly production. And his granddaddy knew this.
He knew it, and he’d given Todd full rein to take the jelly company to new heights, and Todd had run with it in the years that he’d had complete control of that division of McCoy Enterprises. And now, from the grave, his grandfather was going to take his passion away from him.
Just like that.
The thought of losing the jelly farm and the winery twisted him into knots.
“I’m going to have to jump through the same hoops that Wade did if I want to save the vineyards, save the jelly brand and the wine? There is no other way?” He knew there wasn’t, knew his granddaddy had lost his ever-lovin’ mind to do this to him, and yet he asked anyway. He was desperate.
Mr. Emerson didn’t even bother saying yes; he just nodded. And smiled.
“Don’t give me that, Cal. There’s got to be more in that will than just a nod from you.” Unable to continue sitting, Todd stood and strode to the window, where he grabbed the frame and stared out across the ranch that they all loved so much. At least they didn’t have to worry about losing it any longer. Wade had saved it.
Now it was his turn—His turn.
“Todd, it’s the same as it was with Wade, if you want to save your vineyards, to be clear, McCoy Stonewall Jelly and Wine Division and keep it in the control of you and your brothers, then you have three months to find a wife, then three months to stay married. Because it worked out for Wade, he kept the stipulations the same.”
“Does that mean if it hadn’t worked out for me, then Todd’s stipulations would have been different?” Wade beat Todd to the question. And from the corner where Morgan stood, stiff and unmoving, a grunt of disgust sounded.
They watched as Cal steepled his fingers then nodded slowly.
“That does it,” Morgan growled. “He has contingency plans?”
Another nod.
That darn nod was growing old. Todd hung his head. “Even from the grave, he’s thought of everything. Sounds just like him.”
“Yes, he did. Now, I’m not allowed to elaborate more. But I need to again reassure you boys that your granddaddy was not crazy, not losing his senses, and not being vengeful. He wanted heirs; none of you boys seemed in a hurry to get married and he had grown weary of waiting. So even though he knew that in the end you might still never marry even after the stipulations he laid out, he wanted to…encourage you to try.”
“You mean force us.”
Cal’s lips twitched. “As you can see, Wade thought that J.D. was playing a little poker with y’all and that he was bluffing, but I can assure you he wasn’t. I have my orders, so that’s the deal. When you walk out that door, the clock starts ticking.”
Morgan growled, “This is ridiculous. Todd has built that business into what it is. Yes, it had a name and reputation when we were growing up, but until Todd took over ten years ago at eighteen and put his marketing genius behind it and tweaked those grapes into tasting like they do today, there was no comparison. And now, he stands to lose that? I don’t agree with any of this.”
Everything Morgan said was true and Todd felt a sense of pride that his older brother acknowledged that. Yeah, it made him proud. But he also knew Morgan could feel the clock ticking and his time was coming. And Morgan had built McCoy Stonewall Hotel and Resort Division into what it was today: a powerhouse that could compete on a global market. Granddaddy was heartless. That was all there was to this.
But if there was one thing Todd knew, it was that when the chips were down, he was not the kind of man who would be counted out. He would not let himself be that man. And his granddaddy knew it.
So, what now? “Thanks, Morgan, and I agree with you. Granddaddy knows that I’m a part of that land, that my roots are in that dirt. Just like Wade’s are in this ranch. And while your roots are in the land, too, you just have a different calling in the hospitality industry. We love what we do; it’s in our blood. Just like it was in Granddaddy’s. But as much as I hate to say it, I can see his point. What man who’s built all this, watched us flourish in it, wouldn’t want great-grandkids? We just happened not to be in any hurry and, we did, or do, give off the vibe that we’re not going to get married. I know I’m not commitment material. I’m not ready.” He looked at Wade. “That’s how you felt, too, wasn’t it?
“In many ways.” Wade smiled. “And as mad as I was, it all worked out and I found the best woman in the world. I’m glad I took the challenge. But just because it worked out for me doesn’t mean it will for you. But I’m rooting for you. And that’s what Granddaddy wanted, I think—for us to just take a shot at it.”
“But I don’t want to take a shot at it.”
“Exactly,” Morgan agreed with Todd.
Todd raked his hand through his hair, resigned to the idea. No, he wasn’t happy—he wasn’t happy at all—but he was not going to lose everything he had worked so hard for. “As much as I despise this idea, I know when I’m going to have to give in and go for it. But mark my words: it’s going to take a miracle and I mean a pure miracle for me to even proposition some unsuspecting female to even do this. I don’t like my chain being yanked and if and when I do get married for real, I’m going to pick her not because of some scheme Granddaddy concocted to force me.”
Turning without saying another word, he strode out the door and into the sunshine. His gut churned and his temper boiled. He needed a miracle.
Ginny Rossi stared at her parents in total and complete disbelief. What? “You are not, cannot be selling this winery. Where is this thought even coming from?”
Her parents had started the winery when she was a kid. She’d been brought up playing beneath the vines as a toddler and grown up with the business and then into the business. By the time she’d been an adolescent, it was her passion. It was her dream to build it into the best small label boutique Texas winery in the country and she was well on her way. But now—this? “What are y’all thinking?” She repeated what she had said in her mind out loud, glaring at them.
“Now calm down, sunshine.” Her daddy raked a hand down his face, meeting her gaze with one stern look of his own. “We didn’t come to this conclusion without a lot of thought.”
“You’re telling me you two have been scheming behind my back.” She had his grit and meddle, that was for sure, but he had raised her to speak her mind and she wasn’t backing down now just because he was speaking his. She wanted to hear why they were tearing her world from beneath her.
“Your mom and I want to retire, and yes, we’re thinking about you, too. This offer came out of the blue.
It surprised us and got us to thinking. The offer is generous and far exceeds any amount that we could ever imagine. It will set us up for our retirement and we won’t have to worry about if we’re going to make our money back this year with the crop and cases of wine. And we can travel instead of being tied to the harvest and the production schedules. But it’s not just about us—this money will set you up, too. You won’t ever have to worry about anything. We’ll invest that money and you’ll be fine. We thought this would be a good time for you to have some freedom and figure out what you really want out of life. Maybe you can have time to find a husband and have a family. And if a winery ends up being what you want, you can start another winery.”
Her mother looked at her with gentle eyes. “It wasn’t as if you chose the winery. You were just born into it. Have you ever thought there might be some other passion out there you’d like to pursue? This gives you that opportunity.”
This was unbelievable. They just didn’t get it. “No. I love this place. I feel blessed that I was born and raised here. You can’t just tear it out from under me.” She did see their point; she did. It would set them up for retirement—they wouldn’t have to worry every year about whether this small winery was going to make it. But the thought of a big conglomerate taking over her winery…it hurt. They’d bring it in under their label and the Rossi Rose of Tyler Winery name would disappear. Their name, all her hard work would go away. As if it had never existed. She had worked so hard to get their brand recognition. It was her heart.
Her heart.
She had to think. Taking a deep breath, she fought for time. “Okay, wait. Just wait.” She held her hands up as if that was supposed to help her think better. “What if…what if I come up with a way to get you the money that you need? I mean, I can maybe come up with the money that will buy you two out and set you up almost as well as this other option could. I can put together something that could replace your part of the option.”
Her mother looked worried and her dad just shook his head. “Ginny, you know I believe in you but this is just too much. I’m going to sell. You don’t need to take it into debt and have that hanging over your head. You could lose it all. And you’ll only work harder and not find out that there is more in life out there.”
“I don’t want to find out if there is more out there.” Ginny shot out of the chair and paced. She yanked her teal-toned cowboy hat off her head and slapped it against her leg as her mind whirled. “Dad, come on, give me six months. Don’t do this to me.”
He looked conflicted. “I can’t. The deal closes in four months.”
“Then give me that time at least. Dad, you’ve got to give me a shot at keeping my dream alive.”
Her dad looked as though he were about ready to have a fit. He stared out the window, both hands on his jean-clad hips; his shoulders were stiff. His body language was not looking good. She would beg if she had to. Her mind was reeling. What could she do?
She pinned him with eyes full of all the desperation that she was feeling. “Come on, Dad. It’s not like you’re going to lose out on anything. You’ve got to give me a shot.”
He met her stare with one of…of…she gasped as she realized what she saw in her father’s eyes. He didn’t believe in her. He didn’t think she would come up with the money. Or he didn’t believe she could make a go of it if she were able to borrow enough to pay him.
The realization cut deep. More than anything else could.
She straightened and crossed her arms, her eyes probably glowing with her anger. Anger that hid the hurt because she refused to show how badly his lack of belief hurt. “You owe me a shot at this. I have worked my butt off for this winery. I should have some choice in something that affects my life. My life.”
“Fine. You’ve got it. But when you bring me the deal, if I’m not satisfied completely, I go with this other offer. And you can’t argue. Is it a deal?”
“Deal,” she snapped without hesitation. “I’d better get to work.” And with that, she spun and stormed out of the room, so mad she could spit nails. But she had no time to waste venting. She got into her Jeep and burned rubber as she drove toward the north corner of her winery, where she could sit and think in solitude. She had to come up with a plan.
It was going to take a miracle and every creative idea she could come up with to find the kind of money she was going to need to save her dreams.
Chapter Two
As soon as Allie McCoy saw her best friend’s name on the phone screen, she tapped the Accept button. “Ginny, I’m so glad you called—”
“They’re selling the winery to a corporation,” Ginny said, without pausing to say hello. “The corporation is going to destroy it. They’re going to take our label off and join us in with a whole bunch of different wines, probably grocery store grade…it’s going to be horrible. But I’m not going to let it happen. I’m not. I’m looking for a deal. I need to buy them out.”
Allie, with mouth ajar, listened to the rapid-fire words of her best friend. Her tough-as-nails friend who had always been her backbone, her protector, her take-charge kick-butt friend who she loved with all her heart. And she was upset. Terribly upset. Rossi Rose of Tyler was Ginny’s heartbeat. Her love. What were her parents thinking?
“Ginny, calm down. I hear you and can’t believe this.”
Ginny let out a long sigh. “Me either,” she said with a tone that, for a small instant, sounded lost and vulnerable.
That was the thing: Allie had always been the sedate, vulnerable one. Ginny was the tough one who, even if she had a weak moment, no one ever knew it. Allie wasn’t even supposed to have ever witnessed it but she had, though seldom. Allie knew her friend very rarely broke.
They were so opposite as friends that they made a complete circle when their list of differences were posed against each other. Ginny helped her be braver, and she helped Ginny loosen up on her usually aggressive stance.
Allie had never heard Ginny so upset.
“It’s true. I have to come up with a deal or they’re going to do it. I have four months before the deal closes to come up with the money, and somehow to convince my dad not to sell. But Allie, I understand why he’s doing it. They work so hard and as wonderful as I believe our small label wine is, they have to worry all the time about whether we’re going to have a bad crop or if this is going to be the year that does us in. They want to retire and this is an offer that is basically a once-in-a-lifetime kind of offer.”
“That’s amazing for them. But terrible as far as you go.”
“Exactly. But I believe that if I had full control that maybe I could turn everything around and I don’t need what they need. I just don’t want this to happen. I’ve got to figure out a way to come up with this money.” She gave a gruff laugh. “What I need is a miracle like you had. I need a billionaire to walk into my life and offer me the deal of a lifetime with an end date. Not really, but you know what I’m saying.” She sighed. “I’ll figure this out. I just needed someone to vent to and I knew you would understand.”
And she was the only person Ginny would tell something so personal. Ginny held people at arm’s length—heck, football field’s length.
Allie stopped breathing, as her brain rolled over everything that had happened that morning. Wade had come in and found her on the patio outside their bedroom, writing. Working on her new novel. She was giving it everything she had and was so excited. He sat down on the lounger and draped an arm around her shoulders then told her that his granddaddy had given Todd the same stipulations as he’d had or they’d lose the vineyards and all businesses associated with it. Todd had to get married or he would lose the jelly business and the winery. Allie couldn’t see Todd and Ginny together, but, desperate times called for desperate measures. Should she mention this?
This could be the solution to both of their problems. But the two of them didn’t get along at all. Shoot, they could hurt each other. She was going to have to ask Wade about this. Before she mentioned it to Ginny.
“Ginny, whatever you do, don’t do anything rash. You’ve got four months to figure this out and come up with a plan that works. You need an investor—that can’t be too hard, can it? Your wine has been hanging in there with the best and it’s making a profit, isn’t it?”
