Chapter 27
“I now, by the authority committed unto me as a minister, declare they are husband and wife according to the ordinance of God, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Those whom God has joined together, let no one put asunder.” Pastor Dan smiled as he closed his book with the order of service.
On the cliff overlooking the ranch, the late-July sun was bright, even in the early evening.
In his pastoral robes and clerical collar, the gray-haired man glanced at the bride and groom and then spoke again in his gentle voice.
“Tyler, I give you permission to kiss your bride so that you may seal your vows with a kiss.”
With a tender smile, Tyler leaned in to Kinsey and kissed her sweetly.
He was wearing a suit but had paired it with cowboy boots and a cowboy hat.
Of course, she’d worn her cowboy boots too with her wedding gown.
And Ty’s son, Wyatt, who was standing next to Ty in a suit, cowboy boots, and a cowboy hat, was grinning at the couple.
The family and the few guests that had been invited to the private ceremony clapped and whistled.
From the front row of the chairs that had been set up on the level area of the overlook for the wedding, Dustin tightened his hold on Silver. In a strapless summer gown and a pretty hat, Silver was more stunning than the bride. And he wasn’t biased in the least.
She was more beautiful than Venus Vargas, Brock’s fiancée, who was attending the wedding with Brock.
Silver was even more beautiful than Emberly, who’d flown home with her husband Max and was fresh and glowing at almost six months pregnant.
Silver was lovelier than Mom, who was sitting next to Dad at the start of the row.
“You’re beautiful,” Dustin whispered.
Silver lifted her face, her smile wide and happy. “Kiss me,” she whispered.
He had no trouble obliging her with that particular request. He bent down and tasted her lips, which held a hint of strawberries and only made him want to linger. Who was he kidding? He would have wanted to linger even without a fruity scent.
Her response was rapid and strong, her lips fusing with his eagerly and easily, igniting desire inside him—desire that was already constantly burning.
For a few seconds, he half forgot where he was, until Kade nudged him from the side. “Pastor Dan was talking to Ty, not to you.”
Dustin elbowed his brother back, gave himself a final tug of Silver’s lips, then pulled back to level a full glare at Kade.
Kade’s easy grin made an appearance.
“Who’s next?” Dad’s gaze shot between him and Kade.
Kade sat back and held up his hands. “Whoa! Don’t look at me. I’m not even in a relationship.” He’d recently broken up with a girlfriend, one of the many he’d dated over the years, one of the many that Dustin couldn’t remember.
“It won’t be long, though,” Dad said with a wink. “Knowing you, your fast, furious, and forever woman is just waiting for you to make your move.”
Kade puffed out his chest. “Probably.”
Mom shushed their whispered conversation, and Dad mouthed the words at Dustin. “You’re next.”
Dustin allowed himself a rare smile. He couldn’t have asked for a better moment, here with Silver and with his family all in one place. How many more occasions would they have like this? He hoped many more, especially since Dad seemed to be doing better.
Even so, Dustin knew Dad wanted to see each of his children married before anything happened and his condition worsened. That was why he was pushing them all to find their forever loves.
Brock and Venus had settled on a Christmas wedding during Brock’s break. It would be a more elaborate affair with lots of media attention. With his popularity and Venus’s status, a big wedding was to be expected.
What kind of wedding would Silver expect? Something like Ty and Kinsey’s, or something more like Brock and Venus’s?
Silver hadn’t brought up marriage, and neither had he.
But yes, he was planning to marry her. He had no doubt about that.
Even though they’d technically only been an official couple for three weeks, since that day he’d started construction for the new building on her property, it felt like they’d been together forever. Maybe they had.
Even though he’d taken the apartment in the barn on her ranch again and saw her every day, all day, it still wasn’t enough. He wanted to be with her all the time and never have to say goodnight to her again.
So when would be the right time to propose to her? It was probably too soon.
When he’d gotten to the house earlier in the day, he’d dug out of his old bedroom drawer the ring he’d purchased for her back when they’d been in high school.
It was a simple gold band with a blue jewel at the center.
He’d purchased it using his own money that he’d saved up from working on the ranch, which back then had seemed like a fortune.
The ring was just as pretty now as it had been when he’d first seen it and thought of her.
As they mingled on the overlook and took photos with the bride and groom, Dustin fiddled with the ring.
A short while later, when they were at the reception in the dining room of the lodge, he was still fingering it and trying to figure out the right time to give it to Silver.
Maybe later tonight, when they had a chance to be alone, he could give it to her here on the ranch and hint that he wanted to propose to her soon.
The reception was more elaborate than the ceremony, with more people in attendance. A dinner was prepared by their expert chef, followed by dancing and cutting the cake and more dancing.
By the time Ty and Kinsey left for their honeymoon, the hour was late.
Dustin had already made plans to stay at the family house for the night and drive back to Boulder in the morning.
Even so, he wasn’t ready for the night to end, and Silver wasn’t either.
As they meandered along one of the trails, holding hands in the moonlight, somehow they ended up at the barn.
She was tugging him along, and they’d been talking about the memories from long ago. Finally, she stopped and faced him. “Do you know where we’re at?”
He studied the environment, cataloging everything as he usually did—the lone light in one of the ranch-hand windows, the slinking of a fox in the woods to the west, and the soft strains of Brock’s guitar.
She was waiting expectantly for his response.
He knew exactly where they were at. “We’re at the spot I first kissed you.” He reached for her, wanting a replay so he could end the kiss the right way this time.
She took a step back out of his reach. “You mean the spot where I first kissed you.”
“I don’t remember it that way.” He fumbled for her again with the overwhelming need to kiss her.
She pushed his hands away. “Well, it’s true. I lifted my face first.”
“And I bent in first.”
She laughed lightly. “This is also going to be the spot where I do this.” She lowered herself to one knee and then peered up at him, her pretty hat long ago discarded and her sleek hair now framing her face. “Dustin, I want to marry you. Will you be my husband?”
Her question was out before he could register what was happening. He could only stare at her, his heart speeding to a million miles an hour. Should he give her the ring here? It would be the perfect spot and the perfect moment.
He lowered himself to his knee so that he was facing her, then he pulled out the ring. “Silver, I want to marry you. Will you be my wife?”
As her gaze locked in on the ring, she gasped.
“It’s not an engagement ring,” he hurried to explain. “It’s actually a ring I’d intended to give you back in high school but was too scared to do it.”
“And you’re not scared now?” she whispered as she reached out and gently touched the ring.
“The only thing I’m scared of now,” he whispered in response as he slid the ring down her finger, “is that you might want to wait too long to get married.”
In the next instant, she threw herself upon him and was hugging him.
He wrapped her up in his arms and found her mouth.
Even though they’d stolen kisses throughout the wedding day, none of them had been enough to satisfy him.
Even this kiss now—as thorough and deep as he could make it—wouldn’t satisfy him.
But at least it would sate him until the next kiss.
He had hardly started the kiss when she broke it and pushed against his chest. “Dustin, wait.”
“No.” He was already chasing after her lips again.
She angled her head so that her neck was all he could reach. He gently began dropping kisses along her jawline.
“Do you mean it?” Her voice had a breathlessness that told him she liked his kisses.
“Mean what?” he mumbled against her neck.
“That you don’t want to wait too long?”
“I’d marry you tonight if I could.”
She froze.
He paused in his kissing. Shoot. Why had he said that? Even if it were true, it was too much too soon. Wasn’t it?
“I’m sorry,” he whispered. “I’m probably just excited about marriage because of seeing Ty and Kinsey together.”
“It’s all right.” She spoke hesitantly. “I’d marry you tonight too, if I could.”
He sat back on his heels, taking in her earnest expression in the moonlight. “You would?”
She nodded.
“You don’t want a wedding with everyone there?”
“I just want you.”
“You don’t want a wedding like Venus’s or even one like Kinsey is planning?”
“Not in the least.”
He could feel a strange rise of excitement inside him. “So what would you like?”
She paused, then smiled. “Let’s elope.”
“Really?” Was she serious?
She nodded as if hearing his unspoken question. “Yes, we’ll fly to Vegas tonight.”
He would do it in a heartbeat, but he had to make sure she wouldn’t have any regrets. “You’re sure?”
“Oh, Dustin,” she whispered as she cupped his cheek. “I’ve been waiting to marry you forever. I don’t see the point in putting it off one more day. Do you?”
He answered her by reaching for her, engulfing her in an embrace, and crushing his mouth to hers. He was getting married to the love of his life. Tonight. He couldn’t think of anything he wanted more, except a lifetime with her.