Epilogue
SUTTON
Three Months Later
I was able to graduate on time. It’s all thanks to the people sitting in the stadium cheering me on.
“Sutton Rawlins,” the emcee calls my name to walk the stage.
I smile, carrying a secret with me. The ring twinkles on my left hand, a new addition that included Case and his father asking me to marry him.
We were out riding horses this past weekend.
Ryland on Ace, Case on Maximus, and me on Maribelle, a gift from my now fiancé.
I still ride with him on Ace when it’s the two of us, but when we have family days, we all ride our own.
We went to the cabin, tethered our horses, then walked down to the stream, where there was a picnic set up.
Case spilled the beans, scream-talking, “Will you marry us, my Sutty!” I broke down, with big fat tears streaming down my cheeks, nodding yes as my response.
Not caring about anything else, including the ring on my finger.
A fact Ryland had to state it was time for him to slide on my finger.
“That’s my Sutty!” Case’s voice echoes along with a hell of a lot of clapping and whistling as I shake hands with the dean.
“Congratulations,” the dean says with a smile.
I look up at my found family, giving them a slight wave and blowing a kiss to my two guys.
These people are the ones who love me so deeply and are willing to do anything to help not only me but everyone.
They’ve rallied when I had to study for my final exam; all hands were on deck.
Ms. Catherine and Russell helped tote Case to and from school if Ryland wasn’t available.
Meals were delivered on days Ryland worked late, and I’d been pouring over my books.
Maeve kept us stocked in desserts, helping me out once again.
I love cooking and baking when I can, but having others to pick up the slack when we need it has shown me a small portion of how amazing they are.
Now that the hard stuff is done and I have an interview at Arrowleaf Elementary School, I can help out more.
The best part of my job as a teacher is I’ll be off when Case is, and with the way our life is panning out, it’s going to work even better in the near future.
The dean hands me my hard-earned diploma.
A part of me wants to open it and take a little sneak peek to make sure it’s there.
I don’t. They said your paper could slip and then it’d hold up the line.
I’ll wait until I’m with my family. I move to where there’s a photographer standing waiting to do his thing.
I stop, stand on the tape, and smile. The flash almost startles me, and I try to recover as fast as possible before I’m herded off the stage.
As soon as he’s done, I’m supposed to return to my seat.
There’s no way I’d make it that long, sitting and waiting.
It’s probably a bit selfish, not staying and doing the whole cap toss, but honestly, I don’t know a lot of the students I’m graduating with.
So, we made plans. The minute I’m done on the stage, they’d quietly exit the stadium and walk outside to the covered area, and we’d have our own little celebration before we head back to the ranch.
“My Sutty!” Case runs toward me. I make sure the door closes behind me before stopping in my tracks in order to pick up my boy.
“Oh, my Case.” I breathe him in. Ryland breaks away from the rest of his family to join in our hug.
“I’m so damn proud of you, babe.” Ry’s lips touch mine. Case is out of the stage where he jokingly breaks us a part, and truth be told, I kind of miss him doing it. He still walks around doing the kissy, kissy noise, though.
“Ryland, thank you. Thank you for giving me this beautiful life, helping me through everything, supporting me, and, most of all, loving me,” I tell him.
Try as I might, there’s no way I’ll ever be able to do for him what he’s done for me.
My childhood home is being rented by a single mom with two little girls.
They love the house so much I’m tempted to give them a steal of a deal whenever she’s ready to buy the place.
Right now, we’re not in any hurry, and my renter is still getting on her feet, which works for me.
Then there’s the whole Shane ordeal which had a whole lot of hands in it, and Wild is now moving to Arrowleaf with his wife, Delilah.
Sheriff Liam Dane might be a decent person, but as a sheriff, he’s been kind of shitty.
He must have realized it, too, because he’s stepping down and retiring, and Fletcher will be taking his place.
“Sutton, baby. I’d give you everything I possible could. This, though, you did all on your own.” I shake my head as tears stream down my cheeks.
“You’ve done more than I could ever thank you for.” It’s true. His family is now our family, his son is now our son, and our future is going to be brighter as soon as I tell him the good news. “And in about eight months, we’re going to make Case a big brother.”
“Me gonna be big brudder?” Case asks in his voice that only has one octave.
We’ve tried working with him on his inside voice, even took him to a pediatric audiologist to see if maybe his hearing is giving him an issue.
They didn’t find anything, and he mentioned this could be a phase that could last a while.
Neither Ryland, me, nor his family mind.
We were only worried about it being something that could have a long-term effect on him.
“You are,” I respond. Ryland hasn’t said anything.
I think he’s in a little bit of shock. Crazy, if you ask me.
I haven’t been on birth control the entire time.
We kept waiting for it to happen, and when I mentioned it to Ms. Catherine, she told me not to worry, that it was probably stress.
Once the dust settled, it would happen. And well, naturally, she was right.
“I love you, Sutton, so damn much.” Ryland wraps us tighter in his arms. “Love you, Case.”
“Hey, I love you, too, Daddy, and my Sutty,” Case interjects.
“And I love you both so, so much.” We have our moment, but once our moment comes to a close, Ryland nods at his family to come over and join our celebration, exactly how it’s meant to be.
I hope you enjoyed Ryland and Sutton’s story and will consider leaving a review. If you’d like a bonus scene of His to Touch click the link below for more!
His To Touch Bonus Scene
Coming next is Snowed in with the Cowboy, Clay and Minnie’s book, and releases December, 13th!
Prologue
Minnie
Two Weeks Earlier
“I can’t believe you won’t be home for Christmas.” My sister, Lenny says into my ear as we hug for what must be the hundredth time. I’ve been trying to leave for an hour now, the faster I get on the road, the less time I’ll have to travel through the night.
“I’ll be back before you know it,” we pull apart.
It’s going to be hard for both of us this year, me because I’m traveling, exploring as much of the states as I can cram for the next month before I have to buckle down and work.
My sister because this is her first year as a single woman living on her own.
I really hate what she’s gone through, and I’d have stayed if this wasn’t pre-planned well over six months ago when Lenny’s life was different.
“I know. Ignore me,” she waves her hands at her eyes. The tears she’s been trying to hold back are slowly going to slide down her cheeks if I don’t get this show on the road.
My big sister has been there for me even when she didn’t have to be.
That’s the type of person Lennon Maldonado is.
She’s nine years older than me and being saddled with a child at that age when Lenny should have been out doing her own thing proves it time and time again.
Our parents weren’t always the greatest, they did the bare minimum for Lenny and when I came along unexpectedly, she picked up the slack.
All of the slack, her childhood changed in an instant, and not once did she ever hold a grudge against me.
Lennon should have, except she didn’t. The moment our parents brought me home from the hospital, my sister stepped up to the plate, doing everything while our mom and dad did absolutely nothing.
“I’ll never ignore you,” I squeeze her hand. We both have the same love language, physical touch. It’s nothing for me to walk up to my sister and lay my head on her shoulder or for her to hug me just because.
“I wouldn’t let you. I’d hop in my vehicle so fast or an airplane, depending on where you are,” Lennon’s car is a hunk of junk, yet she refuses to throw in the towel. My sister is the epitome of live within your means and the small apartment she’s in right now only proves my point further.
“Do me a favor and look at new vehicles while I’m away.
” We walk toward my vehicle, it’s loaded to the brim, and I’ve spent more than my sister probably saved this year.
That’s okay, this is my big adventure, finally leaving my home state of Florida for the first time ever in my almost twenty-seven years.
“I’m not making any promises, Samantha is still kicking,” I look over at her four-door maroon sedan, said car is nearing twenty years old and is starting to cost more to maintain than it’s worth.
“Yeah, yeah. Until she isn’t,” I look from her car to my rig.
Okay, it’s completely different than having a vehicle, it’s a van outfitted out with a small kitchen area and bedroom.
It has everything I could need minus a bathroom with a shower.
That I’ll have to stop at along the way to use which Lenny helped me map out a gym she pays for yet put me on her plan in order to use during this trip.