“Clint, honey, come and meet Clay,” Mom called, giving Megan a smile and wave.
Megan returned the smile, while Dad headed their way.
Harper spoke first. “Did we just enter The Twilight Zone?”
“Yeah, no kidding.” Emma glanced between Nash and Megan, her eyes huge. “You were friendly to each other. Friendly!”
“You know, ladies,” Nash said, placing his chin on Megan’s shoulder, “you don’t need to have all the answers all the time.”
Harper and Emma exchanged a long look, then they said in unison, “Yes, we do.”
Nash laughed and shook his head. “We found a middle ground.”
Megan piped up, then. “You found a middle ground?”
“Mm-hmm,” Nash said. “It turns out we have something in common.”
Megan’s heart was so full, she felt like it could burst right out of her chest. She turned in his arms, staring up into the strength of his gaze. “What’s that?”
“Making you happy.” He dropped a kiss on her lips.
Right as he went to deepen the kiss, Chase yelled, “Shit. The food!”
Nash was out of her arms a second later, running after Gus who beelined toward the food table. “Goddamn it!” he roared. “No, Gus. Noooooooo!”
Megan stood in a flurry of people running toward the table. This wasn’t the first time Gus had attacked the food table like a starving animal. The same thing had happened at Harper and Chase’s rehearsal for the wedding, where Gus destroyed the food she’d made by nosediving into the table.
Megan laughed a little, then, being the only calm one in the bunch, she stuck her fingers into her mouth and whistled. “Down!” she yelled.
Gus stopped and lay down, sending Nash rushing by him to slide along the ground.
Megan stared at the shocked expressions around her and burst out laughing. “You should see your faces right now.”
Shep started clapping. “I don’t believe that just happened.”
Everyone else joined in.
Jenny nodded, clapping super-fast. “She trained the untrainable dog.”
Nash looked utterly dumbfounded sitting on the grass.
Dad turned to Mom. “I don’t get what in the hell is going on.”
“You don’t have to,” Mom said. “Clap, Clint.”
He listened.
Megan smiled, tears in her eyes, knowing right here, right now, she’d found her perfect safe place for their baby.
Epilogue
Eighteen months later . . .
“Son, no!” Nash darted forward, scooping Ricky up as Gus was pulling on his diaper, trying to keep him out of the creek. “I turn away for one second, and you go straight for the water.” Ricky giggled as Nash brought his son up to his face. “Dangerous things are not good, no matter that you keep thinking they are.”
“He’s your son,” Megan said from behind him. “Do you really expect anything different from him?”
Nash turned, holding Ricky like a football, discovering Megan approaching. Christ, her beauty never stopped stunning him. She looked as beautiful now as she had when she walked down the aisle at their new house to marry him. They’d exchanged vows at sunset, and the reception had been under a tent at Irish Creek Ranch.