He walked towards me, his grin getting a little wider with every step. He stopped a foot short of me, and I could smell the sweet aroma of his cologne. I was too stunned to speak. I could only look at him. He never dressed like this, never wore cologne, not even when we went out at night.
“Emma,” he started. “My life hasn’t been the same since you started on the ranch. I never knew how happy I could be before you entered my life.” He paused, swallowing hard and shifting his hands, which were still folded together in front of him.
“I remember my daddy telling me about the moment he knew he loved my mama. They hadn’t been dating long, but he made her smile and something inside him just melted, and he knew. That’s how I’ve felt around you since the morning we went to the Texan the first time.”
I smiled, blinking to hold back tears at how steadily he was looking at me with his gorgeous blue eyes.
“I’m sure you know how much I love you,” he continued, swallowing again. “And, I can’t imagine my life or the farm without you. I don’t ever want to be without you again.”
He moved his hands now, and I could see he was holding a small silver whistle. He brought it to his mouth and blew into it. I didn’t hear anything at all, but Riley came running around the corner from the direction of the tack and feed room. I’d never seen that dog run before. I smiled as Pete dropped to one knee on the alleyway floor and Riley ran right to him.
“What have you got there, boy?” Pete asked.
Riley had a big red ribbon tied around his neck, the full bow just below the back of his head.
“Did you do all this?” I said, smiling just a little.
Pete turned the ribbon on Riley’s neck until I could see a black velvet ring box hanging from it. He untied the ribbon and gave the dog a good scratch behind the ear.
“Good boy, Riley,” he said. The dog laid down right where he was, his job well done, and curled up, nose to tail.
Pete looked up at me, opening the ring box and turning it so I could see the tiny ring inside of it — a yellow gold band with a sparkling diamond right in the middle that flashed in the twinkling lights.
I brought my hands to my mouth, drawing in a breath that I couldn’t let out again right away.
“Emma Flowers, will you do me the great honor of marrying me? I can’t think of another person on this Earth that I’d rather spend my life with.” He gazed up at me, so much love brimming in his wide blue eyes that I could only stare at him for a few moments, my heart ready to burst from my chest with how much I cared for him.
I nodded, tears spilling from my eyes as I dragged in a stuttering breath. “Yes,” I whispered, but behind my hands. I dropped them and, still nodding, answered a second time. “Yes!”
He grinned and rose to take me into his arms. I kissed him deeply, the excitement spinning between us stealing our breath away too quickly. We broke apart, gasping and giggling. He put the ring on my finger, and I couldn’t take my eyes away from how lovely it was and how perfectly if fit.
“I love you so much, Emma,” he whispered.
“I love you, too,” I whispered back.
He took me in his arms again, and this time we kissed for a long time, not pulling away until Daddy knocked on the door behind us to find out how it went. Smiling, we opened the door to Daddy – and to the rest of our lives.
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BAD BOY COWBOY
By Claire Adams
This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places and incidents are products of the writer's imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental.
Copyright © 2017 Claire Adams
Chapter One
Trethan
I leaned back against the bar while I waited for the bartender to pour Brent and me a couple of beers. It seemed like half the town was packed into the Roasted Bison that night, but that made sense. It was Friday night in a small town. What else were people going to do? Plus, we were getting into the good, warm days of summer, and everyone was starting to feel a little frisky.
I watched a couple busty blondes spin out on the dance floor, their feet tapping enthusiastically to the live country band playing in one corner. Mickey and the guys had been playing this place every Friday night since God knew when, but every week, there seemed to be a new selection of girls out dancing to their music.