Epilogue
Three months later
A lot had happened since that day three months ago. Josh was healing. He was no longer in the Marines, a decision his injury had prompted him to make. He was living in a double-wide trailer set up for him at the back of Blackland Ranch, giving him the privacy he needed. Linc wanted him to stay in Texas, wanted to build a place for him on the ranch.
In time, Josh would decide what he wanted to do.
Zach had become a real member of the family, spending lots of fun weekends out at the ranch. He had joined his local swim team and had already won his first trophy.
Carly and Linc had been married three weeks, after a simple ceremony in a beautiful little chapel in Iron Springs with all of their close friends and neighbors. Afterward, they had partied in a back room at Jubal’s, then left for a weeklong honeymoon on a private island off the Florida coast. Though traveling was fun, they preferred being at home on the ranch.
The wedding was perfect. The honeymoon was perfect.
Beau was right—when the fit was perfect, everything just seemed to work.
Not that they didn’t have their differences. Linc was still as stubborn, overprotective, and controlling as he had been before. The crazy thing was, now that he was her husband, somehow she found it endearing.
They were living in the ranch house, at least for the time being. Eventually Linc wanted to rebuild the big stone mansion.
“We’ll gut it,” he’d said, “redesign it just the way we want, and make it our own. We’ll keep what we like and give away the rest. It’ll be a great place to raise our kids.”
Standing now at the window in the living room of the ranch house, Carly’s heart gave a little leap of anticipation as she watched Linc driving up the road toward home.
He strode in like he always did, bigger than life, taking up the very oxygen in the room. He bent his head and very thoroughly kissed her.
“Hi, honey.” He smiled. “How was your day?”
She grinned. She loved when he said that. “We got a couple of new accounts. Business is picking up so much I decided to hire an assistant for Row. That way I can take a little more time off to be with my handsome husband.”
Linc grinned. “I like the sound of that.” He held up an envelope. “I had a visitor at the office today—Joe’s attorney, Willard Speers.”
“Mr. Speers? I paid his bill sometime back. What did he want?”
“He came by to drop off this letter. He said we needed to open it together.”
She moved closer, read the handwriting on the envelope. “That looks like Joe’s writing.”
Linc led her over to the sofa and both of them sat down. Carly carefully tore open the envelope and pulled out a single sheet of paper.
Carly started reading out loud. “‘Carly, if you and Linc are reading this, by some great miracle the two of you are married and my fondest wishes have come true.’”
Her head came up. “Oh, my God.”
Linc took the letter, started reading where she’d left off. “‘I’d like to think I had some small part in getting the two of you hitched.’”
Carly took back the letter. “ ‘Carly, you know how much I love you. You’re married to the best man I know. I believe he’ll treat you right and be a very good husband.’”
Her eyes filled.
Linc took back the letter. “‘Linc, I wanted someone special for Carly. I know you remember me saying that more than once. I believe you’ve become that special man.’”
Linc paused for a moment to clear his throat. “ ‘Knowing the two of you, watching you grow and change over the years, at some point, it occurred to me that you would suit each other perfectly. I couldn’t be sure, of course, but I figured you ought to have time to find out.’”
“That’s why he asked you to look out for me,” Carly said. “He wanted to give us the chance to know each other.” She read the last paragraph. “‘So have a great life, you two, and know that wherever you are, I’ll be watching over you. I love you both, Joe.’”
Linc eased Carly into his arms and just held her.
“He wanted us to be together,” she said against Linc’s shoulder, wiping at the tears on her cheeks.
Linc looked up as if he could see her grandfather in heaven. “I owe you, Joe Drake. You gave me the best gift I’ve ever had.”
“He gave us each other,” Carly said, and smiled through happy tears up at Joe.