Epilogue Two
REMY
* Four Years Later *
I honestly think my heart might explode.
"It's okay, buddy, I've got you." Stone lifts our two-and-a-half-year-old into his arms before slowly approaching Prince. "Do you see that smile in his eyes? I think he’s saying hello."
Feeling safe in his daddy's arms, Drew smiles. His eyes go wide when the horse snorts at him. Stone chuckles. "He's just checking you out. Want to give him a little pat?"
He demonstrates how to run a hand across the shoulder, and Drew eagerly leans in to have a try. "He's so soft!"
"Yeah. You see how he likes that?"
"Yeah."
“You wanna pet his nose?"
"Yeah!"
He copies his daddy, lightly petting Prince, giggling when the horse tries to snuffle his wrist. I watch from the nearby golf cart as Stone pulls a carrot from his pocket, helping Drew feed the horse.
Unicorn comes trotting over to see what's going on, then comes straight toward me. He nods, looking me up and down as Stone and Drew come over to pet him as well. With his huge heart, Stone has gone on to rescue so many more horses in the time that we’ve been engaged and now married, but those first two still feel like “mine”.
Unicorn keeps staring at me. I shift, turning on the bench seat and rubbing a hand over my extended belly. He snorts, and I swear he nods, understanding I'm pregnant.
Drew laughs from his perch in Stone's arms. “Is he saying hi to my little sister?"
"I think so, buddy."
"Can we name her Unicorn, too?"
Stone chuckles. "What about Charlotte? Or Ella? Or Eva?"
Drew looks at him very seriously. "How do we know what her name is?"
"When she's born, Mommy is going to hold her for a bit and see what feels right."
"Can I help? I'm good at names."
"You sure are, sweetheart," I laugh.
Bone River Ranch now has horses named Spoon, Sweetheart, GreenGreen, and Space. Those four are young enough, and now healthy enough, that they can be donated to other farms and ranches. Who knows if they'll keep the names or not, though.
Stone pulls another carrot from his pocket and hands it to Drew to feed Unicorn.
He's so good with our son, encouraging him, helping him with things that are scary at first but that need to be done.
My gorgeous hulking husband has confessed to me that he's nervous about having a daughter, but he's promised to raise her to be exactly the same: kind and fearless.
Stone whispers to Drew, who nods, then calls out, "Daddy’s gonna make burgers ‘cause you’re tired." He looks at me carefully. “Do you need a nap?"
"I think so, sweetie. You can help me lie down on the couch while he cooks dinner."
Stone feeds the last of the carrots to Prince and Unicorn, then they trot off to join the other horses out in the field. He gets into the golf cart to drive us back to the house with Drew on his lap. It really is the perfect vehicle to get around the ranch, especially with a toddler.
The evening light is just beginning to change as we slowly rumble along the gravel road.
Around the curve at the top of the hill, I admire the wide-open sky and the mountain to the side.
Orange and purple streaks glow behind our two houses on a charming ranch where I live with my gorgeous horse thief husband, adorable son, and a daughter we'll be meeting in two or three weeks.
My heart is so full I could burst every time I think about how perfect my life is…even if I never thought I'd be riding off into the sunset in a golf cart.
Want more? For a spicy bonus scene (not part of the story, just a little something extra) please click here or visit the bottom of the *Books* page at .
Stay tuned for The Boss, The Wrangler, The Mechanic, and The Biker! The whole series is here.
If you love rough and dirty mountain men, you’ll love the Loners of Wolfe Mountain. Keep reading for a preview…
Bear
My breath freezes in my chest.
Holy shit, she's beautiful.
No. Beautiful doesn't cut it. It's not graceful and precious and serious enough a word to convey the way the fading light curves around her delicate, angelic face.
She blinks through long, wet lashes. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost. Are you okay?”
I duck under the tree to join her. “I'm the one who should be asking you that."
The way she smiles sends a strange fluttering sensation through my entire chest. "All right, mister. If you want to rescue me, go ahead." She looks at my empty hands. "Do you have an umbrella?"
"N…no." The tree is saturated by now, and heavy drops of rain are slipping through.
"Some knight in shining armor," she quips, wiping a soggy tendril of hair off her face. “No umbrella…no horse to get us back to town…”
No woman has ever been so sassy with me before. Then it dawns on me.
She doesn't know who I am.
The number of times I've met a woman who didn't already know everything about my family and my grouchy demeanor…well, I could count them on one hand.
The wind picks up and a deep shiver runs through her. In a flash, I whip off my heavy jacket and wrap her in it. Then I pick up her backpack. "We need to get you warm and dry. Now."
She follows me a few steps back to the trail, her sneakers already sliding on the leaves and mud. I reach down to pick her up, then stop. I don’t know what it’s like to be a young woman, but if an unfamiliar six-foot-four mountain man grabbed me, I might freak out.
"May I carry you? This rain will make the leaves slippery as ice. I don’t want you to break an ankle."
She pushes another soggy strand of brown hair out of her face, her stunning, deep blue eyes smiling up at me. "Sure. Thank you."
I scoop her up, holding her tight to my chest. At this angle, I can tuck her face into my shoulder to protect her better from the rain.
Another surge of warmth flows through my heart. Holding this young woman feels incredible. No, more than that. It feels…preordained. Like she was always supposed to be here. Like every single time I've swung an axe or lifted weights was all so I could carry her safely right now.
This intense wave of desire is distracting, making it difficult to focus.
She shifts slightly in my arms, leaving my hand grasping her lower back close to her butt.
Her legs drape over my forearm as her arm wraps around my shoulder.
My God, what would it feel like to have those delicate fingers running through my hair?