Epilogue
Ethan - One month later
Jonah whooped as he nudged Tank to run faster. The boy had taken to riding like he was born for it, and he and Tank had bonded deeply. Now, when I took the horse treats, he would ignore me as he looked for Jonah. If he wasn’t with me, Tank would huff and turn his back on me.
Gabriel joined me at the fence as I watched the two race around the riding pen. “That old horse has a new lease on life, thanks to Jonah. Dad must be smiling down on them.”
“Yeah. And now that he’s officially Jonah’s horse, there’s no reason to use him for the guests.” I waved at Jonah, signaling him to wrap it up. “I would have hated to have a stranger on Tank’s back.”
“The new horses are settling in nicely. They’ll be solid mounts once Austin’s done working with them.”
“Hard to believe the dude ranch is almost ready to open.” I blew out a breath. “This time next month, we’ll be in full operation.”
“It’ll never be the same.” Gabriel rested his forearms on the fence, his gaze sweeping over the ranch. “You ever wonder if we made the right choice? Turning our home into a dude ranch?”
“Sometimes.” I shoved my hands in my pockets and leaned back against the fence next to my brother. “But then I think about everything that’s come of it—Hannah, Jonah, Chloe—and I know it was fate’s design.”
We lapsed into silence as Jonah rode over and dismounted Tank. “I can’t wait to tell Mom all about my ride today.”
“Why don’t you head over now? Gabriel and I can take care of Tank for you.” I reached for the horse’s reins. “You only have an hour to get cleaned up and packed before Chloe picks you up.”
“Are you sure?” Jonah clung to the horse, hesitating. “He’s my responsibility.”
I grinned. “Just this once.”
He said his goodbyes to Tank and raced away to the dogwood tree we’d planted in memory of his mother. He liked to sit on the ground beneath the branches and talk to her about all things Tank.
Hannah and I loved him like he was our own, but we never wanted him to forget Cassie. He had blossomed since they arrived at the ranch. He navigated his grief while still making room for the joy that living here brought him. It wasn’t all smooth sailing, but he had all of us to help him through it.
“I’ll give you the same option you gave Jonah.” Gabriel nudged me. “You only have an hour before Jonah leaves to spend the night with Declan and Chloe. I’ll take care of Tank. You go get ready for your mate.”
“I think I’ll take you up on that.”
The hour flew by, and soon Jonah was talking excitedly to Chloe as they walked to the farmhouse, leaving Hannah and me alone on the front porch. I laced our fingers together. “Ready to go?”
“I don’t know. You won’t tell me what we’re doing.” Her dimples flashed, so I knew she wasn’t upset with me.
“That’s because it’s a surprise.” I grabbed the bag I’d packed for us and led her away from our cabin. “But I can tell you one thing. There’s not a single pair of granny underwear in this bag.”
She rolled her eyes as she laughed. “Of course not. I don’t have any left. They mysteriously disappeared. I believe someone blamed it on fairies?”
“Hey, shifters are real. Why not fairies?”
“But fairies that steal underwear?”
I shrugged. “There’s no other reasonable explanation.”
We reached the barn, and I strapped our bag to the back of an ATV before helping Hannah up. She held onto me, her arms wrapped around my middle and her cheek pressed against my back as I drove to our destination. It wasn’t far, but the light in the sky was already fading.
I stopped a short distance from the pond and lifted Hannah off the ATV, carrying her to our home for the night. I’d set up a tent off to the side and nestled a small table with chairs underneath a tree. Fairy lights glowed in the branches.
“I promised you romantic.” I lowered her to her feet, keeping her in my arms.
She looked up at me, a soft smile playing with the corners of her mouth. “You give me romance every day. The way you listen to me. The way you hold my hand every chance you get. The way you find little things to do for me to make my life better.”
“That stuff’s easy. I love doing it.”
“Still romantic.” She stretched up on her tiptoes and brushed a kiss along my jaw. “But I appreciate the effort you made today. Big gestures? Also romantic.”
I kissed her. Slowly, savoring her lips against mine. As if we had all the time in the world. Because we did. We had the rest of our lives together. And I would never take a minute for granted.