Chapter Twenty-Three
The sun was just starting to set over the western horizon, sending shards of fiery orange light over the valley below. Atop his horse, with Hannah settled comfortably in front of him, Garrett drew in a deep breath, breathing in the peace the evening had brought them.
What had started as an utterly chaotic day had shifted to something else. Something quieter, more comforting than anything Garrett had ever experienced. Even the worries of his deed had ventured to the back of his mind, allowing him a respite.
“Beautiful,” Hannah murmured in front of him.
Smiling, Garrett dipped his head and nuzzled his cheek against her hair.
“I should have done this with you the very first day,” he answered. “To show you how beautiful this place could be. Show you how much it means to me.”
Hannah turned her head to look back at him, and his heart fluttered with joy as he saw her smile.
“You’re showing me now, and I love it,” she said.
“I’ll show you everything from now on,” he promised, “It’s hard work, to be sure, but it truly is a wonderful home.”
“I’m starting to believe that,” Hannah said softly.
She looked positively serene as she peered up at him, and Garrett realized then that he wanted to be responsible for such a look of happiness every single day.
Then her smile shifted. Just a little at first, the corners of her lips drooping a little. Then her brows pinched just slightly, and she sighed.
“Is something wrong?” He asked. “Are you feeling tired? We can go home if—”
“No,” she said quickly, burrowing her head into his chest in the way he was starting to love. “No, please, not yet. I truly do love this.”
“Alright,” Garrett agreed, “But if you’re not tired, then what is wrong? I can see there’s something.”
Hannah sighed and looked back out toward the sunset.
“You know how earlier at the river we were being honest?” She asked.
Garrett nodded.
“Well, now that I know how you feel, how you see our future, I want to be honest about something else, and I’m worried that it might ruin the moment,” Hannah confessed.
Garrett once more nuzzled his chin atop her head, then placed a kiss there.
“It won’t. Tell me,” he quietly urged.
Hannah was silent for a few more moments before she turned her piercing blue eyes back up to his dark brown ones.
“I’m… I feel unsettled around your friend, Grace Walker,” she confessed.
“I know you only ever loved her like a sister, but the way she slapped you? The way she jabs at me? It feels… I don’t know…
I guess I’m a little jealous? She seems to be showing up a lot lately, and I’m not used to her ways.
It’s like she’s trying to push me away, and I guess I can see her point.
She seems so much more accustomed to work on the ranch.
On the way things are done here. Maybe… maybe she would be a better fit for you. ”
Garrett quickly shook his head as he held her tighter.
“No,” he said sternly. “She’s not the right fit for me, Hannah. You are. I’m sorry that I hurt her feelings, I really am, but I’ve never once thought of her the way I have thought about you.”
He was relieved when he saw her smile return, if only a little.
“Not even a teensy bit?” She asked.
Again, Garrett shook his head.
“And even if I did, which I don’t, her father would never allow her to marry someone like me,” Garrett replied.
Hannah’s brow pinched as she turned a little more in his arms.
“What do you mean someone like you?” Hannah asked, “You’re wonderful.”
Garrett’s heart swelled at the compliment.
“Well, I’m glad you think so, but Mr. Walker certainly doesn’t agree,” Garrett explained.
“He had a problem with Mr. Dawson leaving his ranch to a riffraff orphan like myself, and he barely tolerated Dean and my friendship. I think the only reason he allowed it in the first place was because he assumed I would be working for Dean and him one day, and he liked my loyalty to his son.”
The anxiety and insecurities Garrett felt from the day Mr. Walker had become so furious after learning he had inherited the ranch came rushing back to Garrett, and he shook his head to disperse the troubling thoughts.
“That doesn’t matter,” he said, both for himself and for Hannah. “What matters is that I wanted you as my wife, not her. And I am very happy that you took a chance and moved your entire life here for me.”
Hannah huffed out a wry laugh.
“Even if my siblings came along and have caused all this chaos?” She asked sarcastically.
“Even then,” Garrett promised, then helped Hannah turn in the saddle so she could face him.
“Please don’t worry about Grace,” he said softly as he cupped her cheek, “I don’t want her. I want you. And some mistakes have been made, yes, but nothing has happened that would make me change my mind, or my heart about you.”
Hannah’s sweet, serene smile returned, and it pulled him in like a moth to a flame.
“There’s something else I would like to do,” he whispered, caressing her cheek, “Something I also should have done in the beginning.
“What’s that?” Hannah whispered, her blue eyes staring dreamily up at him.
“I want to kiss my wife.” He confessed.
He could have sworn Hannah stopped breathing for a second. Then her sweet smile widened, and she leaned toward him.
“Your wife wants you to kiss her, too,” she breathed as their lips hovered close together. “She wants that very much.”
Garrett’s muscles sagged in relief as he heard her reply, and he cupped both hands delicately around her face as he closed the distance between them and so very softly brushed his lips against hers.
At once, sparks erupted through his lips, down his arms and even to his toes.
He took a breath, feeling more emboldened by the little jolt, and kissed her again; longer, slower this time.
In response, Hannah sighed and leaned forward. At once he bound his arms around her, pulling her even closer as they deepened their kiss.
“Oh my,” Hannah breathed when they finally, slowly pulled away.
Garrett huffed out a laugh, unable to stop his grin as he opened his eyes and took in the pure happiness in Hannah’s beautiful face. His grin grew into an even bigger smile as he watched an adorable pink blush rise in Hannah’s cheeks as she touched her fingertips to her smiling lips.
“That felt even better than what I dreamed it would,” she confessed, her cheeks growing redder as she said so.
“You can say that again,” Garrett breathed, and dipped his head to kiss her again, this time with more confidence.
Hannah giggled against his lips, sending another zing through his veins, and reveled in the way she brought her arms tightly up around his neck; holding him closely just as he was holding her, holding each other as a husband and wife should hold one another.
It was a moment of pure bliss, and one he was utterly thankful to God for.
***
The stars were just starting to peek out through the dark blue sky as Garrett finally rode his horse back into the barn.
He knew in a few moments he would have to dismount and help Hannah down, but he didn’t want to.
Not just yet. So much progress had been made in their few short hours alone, and he wasn’t ready for that to come to an end.
Yet the soft glow of the porch’s lamp light reminded him that Hannah’s siblings were inside, no doubt missing and worrying about her.
In the barn, he tilted her head toward his, and gave her one more sweet, lingering kiss. Then they both sighed, as if they shared their reluctance, and Garrett dismounted himself, then Hannah, from the horse.
“I’ll wait for you,” she offered, swaying a little as Garrett began to remove the reins from his horse. “You could teach me how to do that. That way when we go riding again, I could help you?”
Garrett chuckled, loving that that was her answer.
“I’ll take care of it tonight,” he replied.
“Besides, I’ll be a little bit. I need to make sure the stall doors are secure and everyone’s fed and watered before I come in.
And I know you want to go check on your brothers and sisters, and I’m sure they’re all anxious to see you again, too.
I’ll be in as soon as I can, I promise.”
Hannah’s brow perked.
“No sleeping in the barn tonight?”
Garrett shook his head as he let out another chuckle.
“No sleeping in the barn tonight,” he promised.
What he wanted to say was that he wanted to sleep next to her, but he worried that would be taking their budding romance too far too fast. So he kept that to himself, and after sharing one more quick kiss, Hannah left him to take care of his chores.
Another night on the living room floor would be just fine, as long as they were asleep under the same roof.
In the quietness of the barn, Garrett unsaddled his horse, brushed him down, and put him in the stall.
To his surprise, the horse’s feed and water were already poured out in their designated containers.
He checked the other horse stalls and found that someone had already done that for him too.
He smiled, grateful that one or even all of the children had stepped up to help him.
Pausing at the barn door, Garrett took a moment to rub his hand down one of the sturdy old beams. He loved the barn. He loved the fields, the cattle, and all of the work that came with it. He loved that not only did he still love his ranch, but his heart was making room for Hannah and her siblings.
His smile slipped into a frown, however, as knowledge of his ownership of the ranch was still under threat slammed back into the forefront of his mind.
Guilt came swiftly after, because after Hannah had been so vulnerable and trusting with him to tell all of her secrets, he still had kept his own to himself. It wasn’t fair, and he knew it.
She’s your wife. You should tell her what’s going on. Logan’s words from the courthouse came echoing through his head. He should tell her. He would tell her. Not now, though. Not in this moment of peace.
So Garrett tucked worries once more back into himself, snuffed out the barn lamps, and headed to the house.