Chapter 58 Three Months Later
Three Months Later
Madi
Colorado in early May was breathtaking and Shane’s ranch was everything Matt said it would be and more. The local flora growing in open fields created the perfect backdrop for Kayla and Daisy’s wedding.
It actually reminded me of Jack and Meg’s wedding. Intimate and understated, but beautiful. It wasn’t the wedding style I’d choose for my wedding, but it suited them.
My wedding? I had no right thinking about marriage. My relationship with Matt, though intense, was still new. Just because we love each other and we’re house hunting together doesn’t mean he wants to marry me.
Matt threw around the words linking us, words like we, us, our, without hesitation when he spoke of the future, so I felt confident shopping for a home we could share. But he hadn’t so much as whispered a hint of a suggestion that he was thinking of marriage.
What am I doing? Thinking about marriage after three and a half months of dating was stupid. Men didn’t propose after three months.
Jack did.
Jamie did.
Jay did.
I told my mind to shut up.
I was only thinking about marriage because Kayla’s wedding was the second Matt and I had attended in the last month.
The first was Jay and Cate’s. I wasn’t ashamed to admit I’d balled like a baby when Jay said his vows.
He’d dug deep, and there wasn’t a dry eye in the house, masculine or feminine, by the time he said “I do”.
My troubled baby brother had found the perfect match in Cate, and if there’d ever been any doubt, she put them to rest when she promised to kill him if he got himself killed trying to protect her.
My sigh carried on the breeze as I watched Matt help a struggling teen adjust his hold on the arrow so he could draw it back without dropping it.
Today was my second archery lesson, and I’d get one more before we returned home three days from now.
I stretched my shoulders and flexed my fingers, happy to be using my body again. The deep stab wounds in my thighs took longer to heal than I’d wanted them to.
A week after returning to work, I told Jamie I was ready to move back in and help. It was more for me than them, since they had all the help they needed. I was desperate to follow through on my promise.
And to prove I was capable, so they’d all stop babying me.
To no one’s surprise, Matt told Jamie he’d be moving in too. Jamie just laughed, clapped him on the shoulder, and thanked him for helping out two seconds before putting him to work.
Men.
Not that I minded. The nightmares didn’t haunt me as much when Matt was beside me. Plus, Matt helped as much as he could; despite having only one good arm, it was quite a bit.
“Madi, you ready?” Trina asked.
Wanting to boost her confidence, Matt had asked Trina to teach me while he worked with some of the other kids.
“Yes, ma’am,” I said, making her giggle.
“You remember your stance?”
“I do.” When she worked with me earlier in the week, she showed great patience as I worked to perfect a proper, balanced stance.
“Looking good, Red,” Matt shouted down the line.
Asshole, I thought with a wicked smile.
There was no hiding my blush as memories of our most recent night with my red scarf and the matching tie I’d bought for him crossed my mind.
It’d taken time to build the courage to ask, because I wasn’t sure Matt would relinquish control in the bedroom, but when I did, he’d practically begged me to tie him up and do what I wanted.
“Madi.”
“Yes?”
“Are you paying attention?”
I wasn’t. “I’m sorry, can you explain it again?”
Shane hosted a family dinner the next evening, the last before Kayla and Daisy left for their honeymoon.
The guys smoked huge cuts of pork and beef all day, and everyone else pitched in to make the side dishes and set the two giant picnic tables.
I’d grown to love Shane when he stayed with us, but seeing him with his family and the kids he helped gave me a newfound respect for the man.
He invited every last wayward kid to the celebration dinner; they didn’t all accept, but that was on them.
After we finished eating, multiple conversations filled the backyard with laughter and love.
Until Matt stood up and cleared his throat.
“If I could have everyone’s attention, please.”
He waited until all eyes were on him.
He cleared his throat again. “As you know, I spent my teen years here.”
Matt rubbed his hand over the scar on his left forearm while he waited for the confirmations to end.
His skin graft was a success, but his scar was painfully obvious because of the bright ink surrounding it. I’d researched getting his tattoo touched up, but Matt decided against it.
My heart all but melted when he explained why. “I never want to forget how close I came to losing you. The scar reminds me to treasure every second I have with you.”
A dog barking brought me back to the present.
“I can’t imagine where I’d be if it hadn’t been for Shane’s love and generosity,” Matt said.
More confirmations from the crowd.
“The thing is, while I’ve given Shane credit for helping me become the man I am today, I’ve never actually told him how I feel.”
That wasn’t entirely true, but Matt was leading up to something bigger.
Matt’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed down his emotions.
“Shane, I’ve been telling people I grew up without a father, but that’s not entirely true. I had you.”
I wiped my eyes as Matt acknowledged the family he’d had all along, but was too afraid to see.
My eyes weren’t the only ones leaking as Shane stood and walked around the table to stand beside Matt.
“It’s about time, son.”
Matt didn’t hesitate to accept Shane’s hug.
“I’m not calling you Dad.”
“Thank God for small favors.”
“I love you, man.” Matt clapped Shane’s back.
Shane returned the sentiment.
The rest of dinner was a lot less emotional as we devoured the lemon cake with buttercream frosting before clearing the tables.
As I picked a few stray napkins off the ground, Matt walked out of the house.
“Hey Red, want to take a walk?”
“Sure, just let me throw these away.”
“I’ve got them,” Shane said, coming over. “Go enjoy the sunset with your man.”
“Thanks, Shane.”
Matt reached for my hand and led me to the pond just beyond the large garden. I watched the calves play in the field as we passed by their pen.
Horses neighed in the background, temporarily drowning out the steady buzz of bug life.
“We should visit more often.”
He stopped and turned to me. “I’d like that.”
Matt brushed a strand of hair off my face and tucked it behind my ear. I leaned into his touch, thinking it’d be magical to kiss him with the tall grass and wild flower-surrounded pond as a backdrop and the bugs and animals providing the soundtrack.
“Did I ever tell you why I left my buddies that night?”
He’d never said anything; I just assumed the prospect of sex was more enticing than having another beer with his teammates.
“Sex?”
“Well, yeah,” he laughed, “but we were celebrating a successful mission.” He paused. “One we didn’t think we’d survive, let alone complete.”
“Oh.” Not the most elegant response. Why didn’t he stay and celebrate? Why’s he telling me this now?
“Madi, from the moment I saw you, I couldn’t…” He sighed. “You have this aura about you. It’s fucking magnetic. When you approached me at the bar, I was helpless against it.”
My gut tightened. My breath stuttered.
“Madi.” Matt got down on one knee. “I love you with every fiber of my being, and I’ll work every day to be the man you deserve.”
Tears ran down my cheeks. Cheeks that were mostly scar-free because of the man on his knee telling me he didn’t think he deserved me yet.
“Will you—”
I tackled him while shouting, “Yes.”
We tumbled onto the grass and made out like teenagers. When we finally came up for air, Matt picked up the red velvet ring box he’d dropped.
“Fuck, the ring fell out.”
It took us thirty-five minutes to find the gorgeous diamond with small deep purple amethysts on each side.
But only because we couldn’t keep our hands off each other…
Love the Sheppards and want more? Read HUNTED, the next installment in the Sheppard & Sons Investigations series.