EPILOGUE
Twelve years later
– ROSETTE –
My laughter mixes with Aspen’s, our eight-year-old daughter, as all three of our horses gallop through the field beside our ranch.
Cedar is in front of us, riding an Arabian horse he’s been training over the past few weeks.
Aspen is riding Nutty, Cedar’s old horse.
She’s her favorite and even if we bought her a pony when she was old enough to start riding lessons, she always wants to ride Nutty.
Probably because Cedar used to take her for a ride since she was only a few months old.
The wind rushes past me.
The feeling of freedom hits me in the face, just like the manes of Freckles as they dance in the wind.
I stare forward through the ears of my horse, watching my husband lean back to lessen speed.
I do the same, and so does our daughter.
We all come to a stop close to the ranch and walk back to let our horses come down from the long ride.
“Is it okay if I stay with Grandpa and Grandma tonight?” Aspen asks.
I turn to face her, taking in the way she lets her hand glide over Nutty’s neck.
She has the same smile as her father while she has my light brown copper hair and stormy gray eyes.
Eyes that are staring back at me.
The smile sliding across my face is a natural occurrence when I’m around these two.
“Sure, if it’s okay with them.”
She stayed with Daphne and Jason last weekend.
Even if the kids are nowhere near the same age, they do enjoy playing game night and having a sleepover movie night or whatever.
Aspen rolls her eyes.
“I’m sure it is, they never say no to me. Besides, Grandma Anne and I were going to practice dressage knots.”
“Looks like Grandpa is early,” Cedar states and we follow his line of sight to see Cecil leaning against his car, parked right in front of our house.
“Eager much,” I mutter under my breath with a smile in my voice.
Twelve years ago, I couldn’t have imagined this moment.
One where I’m married with a gorgeous daughter.
A husband who loves the ranch life and works hard no matter what.
Marriage, kids, both weren’t on my list of goals for the future.
It shows how life can be as unpredictable as nature.
Aspen wasn’t planned, but welcome when we discovered I was pregnant.
I had a bacterial infection and needed antibiotics.
We were very aware my pill wouldn’t work, and I guess in some way she was a plot twist we should have seen coming.
An overflow of love, and still after all these years the chemistry still burns hot between us.
Of course we have our differences, and some days we don’t get to see one another.
I still teach riding lessons while Cedar breaks-in the Arabian horses from the Stellan ranch.
We’ve found a balance where work and personal stuff flow right alongside one another.
Some days we have helpers from the Stellan ranch to lighten the load.
I have more time to spend with family and friends, all while the ranch still runs better than ever.
“Did you have a great time?” Cecil asks when we come to a stop in front of the stables.
“Grandpa, can I stay with you and Grandma tonight?” Aspen blurts.
Cedar chuckles. “We had a great ride, Dad. As you can hear, Aspen is very excited about practicing dressage knots.”
I dismount and state, “Secretly I think it’s all about baking cookies with Anne instead of braiding anything.”
“Yes.” Aspen takes Nutty into the stable and adds over her shoulder, “We are going to bake cookies, right, Grandpa?”
“Sure thing, little sport,” Cecil says and lets his hand glide over the horse’s rear.
I walk into the stable behind Aspen when Cecil asks, “Will you two join us for breakfast tomorrow?”
Making eye contact with Cedar, I wait for his nod when I reply, “Absolutely.”
The old man smiles and joins Aspen in the stall to help her with Nutty.
It’s another thing I’ve discovered about Cecil, he likes getting more hands on now that he’s retired.
For years he only focused on breeding the perfect Arabian horse.
Until he fell in love with Anne.
She really turned his life around.
Not only theirs. In some way she’s also responsible for the change that led to Cedar and I being together, happily married.
I remember when he asked me the question when we were together for a little over three years.
I was in bed due to feeling miserable from a bacterial infection.
He put the ring on my finger when I was sleeping, and I woke up completely confused while staring at it.
I’m sure that’s the moment of conception because nine months later Aspen was born.
Like I mentioned, a plot twist we should have seen coming.
Or maybe Cedar had it planned in the back of his mind when he put the ring on my finger.
An hour later, Cedar and I walk into a childfree house and have a Saturday night all to ourselves.
It doesn’t happen often, but it’s special when it does.
Aspen going to the Stellan ranch tonight was planned, her staying the night wasn’t.
So, I did know we were going to be alone for dinner and made lasagna earlier today.
Easy enough to throw the dish in the oven and have dinner ready in thirty minutes.
“Hungry?” I ask when Cedar closes and locks the door behind him.
There’s no reply until his strong hands are on my hips.
With a growl he turns me and easily picks me up to throw me over his shoulder.
“For you? Always,” he rumbles and strides in the direction of the bedroom.
A giggle flows from me which quickly turns into a moan when he slides a hand between my legs.
The air rushes from my lungs when he throws me onto the mattress.
He’s standing beside the bed to help me out of my riding boots and pulls at my pants.
I’m pulling my shirt over my head and unclasp my bra while my husband gets very naked along with me.
A jolt of lust slams through me when he covers his hot, strong body with mine.
His lips brush along my neck, and I love the way he nips at my skin.
I pull my legs up and feel his hard length pressing at my center.
He kisses me as hard as he enters me in one stroke, swallowing down my moans as he starts to thrust.
Busy lives call for a lot of quickies whenever there’s time.
Our lovemaking has always been a fast, rough, and delicious ride.
Taking what’s given while riding the bliss it creates.
As if life when you share the same goals and run the same work drive.
I dig my nails into his shoulder, wanting more and craving everything he gives me.
His head is buried in the crook of my neck while I tilt my hips to fuck him back the way he’s taking me hard.
Sweaty bodies gliding in heat, breathing getting choppy.
Life hits pause and in this moment there’s only the two of us while nothing else matters.
Every time we have sex it gets better and better.
It sounds impossible, yet it’s nothing but the truth.
Our bodies are perfectly aligned, hitting all the right buttons, knowing on instinct what the other likes and loves.
Completely in sync we move as one and we feel when the buildup is going to hit explosion level.
Cedar pulls away and sucks my nipple into his mouth, grazing it with his teeth and creating the perfect bite of pain morphing to pleasure.
I scream. Loud. His name, moans, curses, everything as the bliss overwhelms me.
He quickly follows, prolonging my orgasm by feeling him thicken and pulse inside me.
His body collapses onto mine, but I love the feel of his weight.
Our breaths come out harsh in the silence of the room and I smile.
After twelve years of living with this man we still manage to brighten one another’s lives every damn second of the day.
The past shows the greater good of the future, an impression of how one day flows into the next while we walk the road of life side by side.
“I’m not going to move until my cock is hard again so we can do a repeat,” Cedar mumbles against my neck.
I chuckle, making his dick slide out.
Cedar curses. “That wasn’t the plan I had in mind, woman.”
“How about a plot twist where we eat dinner naked in bed to gain enough energy for the rest of the night?” I offer.
His smile is deviously sexy.
“That right there is why I fucking love you.”
I slide out of bed and walk in the direction of the bathroom.
Another scream rips from me when Cedar suddenly scoops me up and carries me into the shower.
“Another plot twist. Shower sex before food,” he rumbles.
I turn in his arms and murmur against his lips, “And this right here is why I fucking love you in return.”
I can feel the smile when our lips meet in another feverish kiss.
Ranch life at heart is raw and beautiful, as is our love.