by Jill Gregory
“Oh my God. Is he all right?”
“Are you kidding? He wants to go back and do it all over again. So are you ready to come over and spring the big surprise?”
“Are you sure you want to do it this way? Both of us telling him together? He doesn’t know me that well yet, Zach. Maybe you should tell him first and I’ll come by later—”
“Hey, since when did you turn into a chicken? Come on over here. We’re going to do this together as a family.”
As a family. She and Zach and Dillon, a family. Her heart lifted.
“I hope you know what you’re doing, McCallum. I’m on my way.”
Zach’s pickup was over near the corrals, but other than that, the Last Trail ranch looked unusually quiet as she parked in the driveway.
Zach came out on the porch as she walked up the steps and kissed her.
“Dillon’s out back in Ardelle’s garden, playing with Batman. Are you ready?”
“You don’t think he’ll start to cry or anything, do you? I mean, he’ll know I’m not going to try to replace his mom, right?”
“Believe me, replacing Alicia would be the kindest thing you could do for him.” Zach smoothed her hair, kissed her deeply, and took her hand. “My little boy’s going to feel almost as lucky as I do.”
It was serenely quiet as they strolled through the house, the gracious, warm house Ardelle Harvey had loved all of her days and that had fascinated Faith from the first moment she entered it.
Faith’s heartbeat quickened as she saw Dillon and Batman sitting in the grass beyond the deck. The boy tossed a ball a short distance, and Batman raced after it, trotting back proudly with it in his mouth. But they both stopped and looked over as she and Zach came out onto the wide planked deck.
Dillon jumped up, his quicksilver eyes alight. But instead of coming over to say hello, he opened his mouth wide and shouted, “Surprise!”
From every corner of the trees and shrubs and from behind her at the sides of the house, others yelled the same.
“Surprise!”
A flood of grinning people swarmed toward her, laughing and clapping. Bessie and Ada, wearing matching grins, Roy and Corinne, Gabe, Owen, the Templetons . . . Patti and Bob. And . . . from the side of the ranch house came her family—her mother and father—all the way from Philadelphia—her brother Adam, and bringing up the rear, arm in arm, Ty and Josy—back from New York.
“What the hell is going on?” Faith croaked in disbelief as her family enfolded her in a giant Barclay embrace.
“You didn’t think we’d let you get engaged without all of us being here, did you?” Her mother smiled.
“How . . . did you know? . . .”
“How do you think?” her brother Ty shot back. “Clue number one stands about six foot three and is right behind you. Kind of hard to miss. Even if he did summon us by phone.”
A glowing Josy squeezed Faith’s arm. “It looks like he’s got something to say,” she murmured, glancing behind Faith at Zach.
As her family stepped back and the crowd grew silent, Faith slowly, dazedly, turned around.
Zach was grinning at her, looking pretty damned pleased with himself.
“You might have noticed that the other night I never formally asked you to be my wife. Not in the usual way—with a proposal.”
“You don’t ever do things the usual way,” she laughed.
“That was intentional.” His tone grew more serious and he raised his voice so that it carried throughout the crowd of friends and family gathered around them in the garden.
“Years ago I ran off and left you high and dry, and the whole town knew about it. Now I’m going to ask you to marry me, and they’re all going to know that too. They’re going to be our witnesses. Every one of you,” Zach addressed the crowd to cheers and whistles. “Pay attention now,” he instructed them.
Oh my God. He’s crazy. Faith felt a blush stealing up her throat, flooding into her cheeks. When Zach did something, he didn’t ever do it by half measures, did he?
Right now he was kneeling down before her, and as he did, he reached out and took her hand in his.
From the corner of her eye, she saw Dillon pressing forward, his mouth gaping open in delight.
Then she couldn’t see anything but the expression on Zach’s face as he gazed up at her.
“Marry me, Faith. I love you. You’re my heart. My light. My life. I’m asking you before all our friends and family, and I’ll keep asking you until you say yes. Will you do me the very great honor of agreeing to become my wife?”
There was no amusement in his eyes now. They were intent on hers, gleaming and purposeful. The hushed crowd around them—friends and family—might not have existed. Faith saw only Zach, her Zach, with that sexy smile on his lips and the tension in his jaw as he waited for her answer.
“If you say yes,” he added softly, his fingers warm and strong around hers, “you’ll give me the chance to make up to you for all the years we’ve been apart.”
Silence thundered through the garden as Faith stared into his eyes.
“Then I guess I’d better say yes,” she whispered.
“Couldn’t hear you,” Bessie called out, and Faith’s brother Adam chuckled.
“Me either,” he said.
Corinne piped up, “Louder.”
“Yes!” Faith shouted, laughing too. “Yes, Zach, I will marry you and I’ll hold you to that promise for the rest of our lives!”
Applause and cheers and whistles broke out, but Faith scarcely heard them.
Zach stood, wrapped his arms around her, and kissed her thoroughly. Deeply. Possessively.
They were the only two people in the garden, in Thunder Creek, in all of Wyoming. No, in all of the world.
Heat rushed, blood raced. Their mouths clung, hungry, needy, and finally fulfilled.
When they broke apart, Zach yanked a small white velvet box from his pocket. He flipped it open. Faith stared at the diamond ring nestled in smooth pink velvet.
It was emerald-cut, set in platinum, and it dazzled brighter than a July sun.
“Put it on.” Dillon tapped her arm as she gazed wordlessly at Zach. “Dad, help her put it on.”
More laughter and applause as Zach slid the ring on her finger.
Then Faith knelt and gathered Dillon close. “We’re all getting married, Dillon. Our whole new family.”
“Cool.” The boy’s grin almost outshone the diamond. “But I don’t want a ring or anything. A baby brother—now that would be awesome.”
“We’ll start working on it right away,” Zach promised. As he saw the laughter burst across Faith’s face, a strange new feeling descended upon him. Contentment.
So that’s what it felt like.
“Bring out the food and let’s get this party rolling,” Bessie chirped, and all around them people began to scatter. Batman barked, and Corinne and Patti rushed to take charge of setting up the buffet tables.
Faith felt her mother kiss her cheek, her father hug her. She embraced them and her brothers, and stepping back, still dazed, met Zach’s eyes in the sunlight.
They smiled at each other, but there was no time, and no need for words.
They both knew what the other was thinking, feeling, as the party swept into full swing around them, as great platters of fried chicken, sliced ham, crusty rolls, and potato salad filled the buffet tables covered in red-and-white-checked cloths. Roy and Owen dragged a cooler from the bushes, and everyone hurried to grab plates and flatware, beer and colas.
But Faith and Zach weren’t even aware of the food—only of each other and the unbreakable bond between them.
This was their time, now, at last. Their time to laugh, to celebrate, to marry. And beneath the enduring sun and mountains, moon and stars, clouds and sagebrush, and all the passing seasons of Thunder Creek—their time, at last, to love.
About the Author
JILL GREGORY IS THE NEW YORK TIMES BEST selling author of thirty novels. Her novels have b
een translated and published in Japan, Russia, France, Norway, Taiwan, Sweden, and Italy. Jill grew up in Chicago and received her bachelor of arts degree in English from the University of Illinois. She currently resides in Michigan with her husband.
Jill invites her readers to visit her website at www.jill-gregory.net.
Also by Jill Gregory
NIGHT THUNDER
THUNDER CREEK
ONCE AN OUTLAW
ROUGH WRANGLER, TENDER KISSES
NEVER LOVE A COWBOY
JUST THIS ONCE
ALWAYS YOU
DAISIES IN THE WIND
FOREVER AFTER
CHERISHED
WHEN THE HEART BECKONS
THUNDER AT DAWN
A Dell Book / August 2005
Published by
Bantam Dell
A Division of Random House, Inc.
New York, New York
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
All rights reserved
Dell is a registered trademark of Random House, Inc., and the colophon is a trademark of Random House, Inc.
www.bantamdell.com
eISBN: 978-0-440-33549-8
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