Author: Molly McAdams

Cassidy’s mouth formed a perfect O. “Is there a tub?” she whispered, like she was afraid there wouldn’t be.

I grinned and tugged on her long hair. “A big one.”

“Really?!” She squealed and kissed me hard. “Oh, I can’t wait to use it.”

I couldn’t wait for her to see it. She was already dreaming of soaking in it; she was going to go into shock when she saw that monster.

“I love the wraparound,” she said dreamily.

“You know, that was the last thing we built. Only added it because that night on the hill you said you wanted to live on a ranch one day and just sit on the porch during the evenings. It was so hard not to tell you right then about the house, but I was going to take you the next day before everything happened with Tyler. Now I’m kinda glad you didn’t see it before it was finished.”

She didn’t say anything, just looked at me with those whiskey eyes, and I knew without her saying the words that she loved me. It was pouring off her, and God, I loved her too.

“Now all that’s left is to go pick out furniture and make it our home.”

Cassidy’s face fell. “What about all the furniture from the town home?”

I shook my head. “I didn’t pay for that furniture. Dad did, ’cause he was trying to help me get out of the apartment. So now that Amanda’s getting out of the dorms next year and moving into an apartment, she gets all that stuff.” Amanda went to A & M, the traitor, and though I wasn’t thrilled she was gonna live with a couple roommates off campus, I’d moved into an apartment my junior year too, so it was only fair.

“Gage, is th—” She stopped suddenly and looked down at my chest.

“What, darlin’?”

“Is this really going to be our home? Here on the ranch?”

My heart skipped a beat. I could have sworn she’d want this. “Uh, that was the plan. I built on the ranch for a reason. I’d always planned on living here with my family. And you, Cassidy, you’re my future. I want a family with you.”

Her eyes welled with tears and she did a face-plant onto my chest.

“Cass? Darlin’, what’s wrong? Do you not like it here?”

She shook her head, but before I could feel like she’d killed my dream, she spoke up. “You don’t understand. Since we set foot on the ranch a year ago, all I’ve thought about was living here with you. It’s all I want, Gage, and I was afraid I’d never get to.”

I laughed once. “Cassidy, you scared the shit outta me. I thought you didn’t like it here or something.”

“No, no. I love it, I swear I do. I just didn’t want to get too excited about it if you weren’t sure about my living here with you.”

“I’m sure, trust me. Cassidy, if this is what you want too, then this is our future. This house, this ranch . . . it’s yours.”

“I want it! I want it so bad.”

“I’m glad, darlin’. Now, are you ready to talk about everything? Afterward, we’ll get dressed, I’ll show you the rest of the house, and we’ll go back to the main house for dinner.”

“Can you just tell me something first?” she pleaded, leaning up on one arm to peer down at me. “Are you mad at me about Connor? I can’t go through talking to you about everything else if I’m worried about the end. I need to get that out of the way first.”

I took a deep breath in and out, looked up at the skylights, and ran my hands over her back. “I’m not mad at you, I’m mad at him. I’m hurt that you kissed him back, and it hurts knowing you have those feelings for him. But you told me everything and that had to be hard, and after all is said and done, you left him and told him not to wait for you because you were coming back to me. And, darlin’, I’m not letting you go. I told Connor not to contact you again, and I don’t want you contacting him. Other than that, I’m gonna forget about Detective Connor Green.”

She nodded and pressed her lips softly to mine. “I love you, Gage Michael Carson.”

“I love you too, Cassidy Ann Jameson.” I really needed to change that last name of hers.

Chapter Seventeen

CASSIDY

WE’D BEEN GONE for almost six hours by the time we got back to the main house, and from the looks of everyone, other than little Emily, they knew exactly what we’d been doing. Or, at least, the good parts. Gage had ended up grabbing one of the spare shirts he always kept in his truck since the one he’d been wearing had been used as a sheet, and I saw that didn’t go unnoticed either.

John looked at me, looked over at Gage, then back to me. “Where’d you take her, Gage?”

“To our house,” he said proudly, and squeezed my hand.

John smiled big under that mustache. “What’d you think, Cass?”

I let go of Gage’s hand to run and fling my arms around John’s neck. “Thank you for my wraparound porch, and my bathtub and my kitchen.”

Everyone laughed out loud and John chuckled as he set me back down. “He sure did have a lot of changes he wanted made after he met you. I’m glad you like it.”

“I love it,” I breathed, and stepped back to Gage. “I can’t believe you’re going to let us live on your ranch though. Thank you. I seriously love it here.”

He shook his head and looked at Gage quickly before quirking a gray brow at me. “Not sure what you mean, doll; you marry Gage, this land is half yours.”

“Dinner’s ready!” Tessa called from the other side of the breakfast bar in the kitchen, and everyone began moving with the exception of Isabella.

I was still staring at John. What did he mean half mine?

Gage kissed my forehead and ushered me toward the kitchen before he went to talk to Jesse about what Isabella wanted to do for dinner. After getting her situated with food on the couch, the family brought extra chairs into the living room when the couches got full, and we all ate in there. Watching Jesse and Amanda try to be sneaky about stealing longing glances at each other had me forgetting about John’s strange comment, and I wanted desperately to ask Isabella what she thought of the two of them. I knew she’d winked that morning, but I hadn’t had a second alone with her since, and that lady didn’t need time; she just needed to see them together once and that’s all it took. Well, according to her and Jesse.

Tessa served pie and we stayed out in the living room for hours talking. It was safe to say the Carson family loved Jesse and Isabella, and they were just as taken with the Carsons. It was weird to have Tyler so comfortable around Gage and me together, but I was happy we could all be normal. Ty and I had slipped back into our friendship during the week in California, and it didn’t seem to bother Gage, just as it didn’t bother Ty to watch Gage and I kiss. It finally felt right to me, and I couldn’t have been happier.

When Emily fell asleep with her head in my lap, and Isabella couldn’t keep her eyes open any longer, the family started breaking up for the night and figuring out sleeping arrangements. And since Isabella was being put into the guest room, and no one felt comfortable leaving Jesse or Amanda alone after seeing the way they were looking at each other, I was back in a room with Amanda, and Gage was fighting with Tyler and Jesse over who was taking the bed, the couch, and the floor in his room.

I ran downstairs to grab a glass of water and found Gage’s parents talking in the kitchen. It looked like Tessa was preparing some things for the next day; I swear that woman never stopped cooking.

“Hey, sweetheart, whatcha need?” Tessa asked.

“Oh, I’m just getting some water. Do you need any help?”

“No, but can I say again that I’m so happy you’re here? You didn’t see him when he thought y’all were over. Damn near broke my heart seeing him that way, and then thinkin’ of not having you in our family . . . well, that sealed the deal and my heart did break.”

“Tessa,” I said softly, and put the empty glass down on the counter.

“No, no. Don’t go getting weepy on me. I’m thrilled as a pig in cool mud that you’re back, and I’m gonna stay that way. Now, when all our visitors are gone, you and Gage are gonna have a sit-down with me and John, and we’re gonna talk about everything that went down. But it looks like y’all worked out whatever happened, and when he showed ya the house, that told us all we need to know. Right, honey?”

“Sure did,” John agreed, and snatched a bell pepper slice.

“I’m not going anywhere again,” I said, hoping it would reassure them for now until we could have our sit-down.

“I know, baby girl.” She smiled sweetly at me and went back to slicing.

“Hey, John? What did you mean earlier when you said that if I married Gage, half the ranch would be mine?”

His eyebrows raised and he shared a look with Tessa. “He didn’t tell you?”

I sighed deeply and hopped onto the breakfast bar. “Apparently there’s a lot he doesn’t tell me. I found out about your family helping Isabella from Jesse just last night. Gage never once mentioned it.”

John made a clicking noise with his tongue. “That’s Gage for ya. He doesn’t mind being in the background. He prefers it. As for the ranch, guess we should start back when he was fifteen. Of course Gage has been doing chores on the ranch all his life, but when he turned fifteen he started working for me. Worked harder and longer hours than any of my hired ranch hands, so he got paid same as they did and for the hours he worked. That’s how he got that truck; paid for it in cash when he turned sixteen. Other than that, he saved practically every cent. Now, when he went to school he wasn’t getting paid much because he was only home about four months out of the year, but from what he had left over, and what he hadn’t spent on the apartment he shared with y’all, he decided to put it toward something. It took almost every penny he’d saved, but he bought half the ranch and business from me. Signed his half over to him about a week before y’all showed up last year. I was sure he woulda told you then.