Beau
One Week Later
“Okay, guys, I think he’s coming. Be quiet.” I looked around the room and glared at my brothers so that they didn’t dare talk.
“Okay. I mean, wow. Mom and Dad are coming back from their second honeymoon. Yay.” Austin rolled his eyes.
I gave him a quick glare and looked over at Olivia. She touched my hand gently, and I smiled back at her in appreciation. She was the only one that knew how momentous this really was.
Mom had called me two days ago to say that the surgery had gone well and Dad was recovering. He needed to watch his diet and his exercise level, but the doctors were hopeful that he had plenty of years left as long as he took care of himself.
“He’s coming,” Sadie said, running back into the kitchen. “They’re coming, they’re coming!”
“Shh, Sadie,” I said. “Hide.”
“Yeah, Sadie,” Wyatt added as she crouched next to him behind the kitchen table. They’d been arguing all morning because Sadie was going to go to Idaho for a week to hang out with her cousins and party, and he wasn’t happy about that.
But I figured it would do Wyatt some good to spend time without her. Maybe he’d realize what he was missing if she wasn’t there. Olivia kissed me on the cheek and I grinned at her.
“What was that for?”
“For being strong, and for being the sort of man that looks after his family and makes things okay.”
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome,” she said with a small smile.
We heard the door open and then footsteps in the direction of the kitchen. As my parents approached, it suddenly struck me that this might not be the best idea. If Dad had heart issues, was it really smart to give him a surprise party? I didn’t want to give him a heart attack.
I looked around at everyone waiting in anticipation. I didn’t want to ruin the surprise that Wyatt and Sadie had come up with, but I also didn’t want to tell them why the surprise might not be a good idea.
“I don’t know if this is a good idea,” I whispered to Olivia. “With Dad’s heart issue, what if the shock gives him a heart attack?”
“Oh, I didn’t think about that.” She put a hand to her mouth. “What do we do?”
“I don’t know, but we don’t have long. They’re about to walk into the kitchen.”
“Okay.” She jumped up and ran out of the kitchen. “Amelia, Ranger. It’s so great to see you both! Everyone’s in the kitchen. Come on in.”
I looked around the kitchen. Expressions ranged from disappointed to hurt to angry. My brothers were pissed, and I knew they were going to give Olivia a hard time because of this. But I knew why she’d done it, and that’s why I loved her. She didn’t care what my brothers thought about her, and she also knew I didn’t want to betray my parents’ trust. So she did the only thing she could do. She ruined the surprise before my dad walked into the kitchen. I jumped up and followed behind her.
“Hey, Mom. Hey, Dad, how was Seattle?” I said as if I didn’t know what was going on.
“It was fine. Thank you, son.” Dad gave me a firm pat on the arm. “I’ll want updates on everything that’s been going on since I’ve been gone.”
“Sure. We can talk tomorrow morning?”
“Sounds good.”
Amelia looked back and forth between me and Olivia and she smiled. “Am I picking up a sign that you two are possibly together?”
“Yes.” I wrapped my arm around Olivia’s shoulder. “Olivia and I are in love and we will be getting married. Not right away, but she’s going to stay here in Montana, and we’re going to work on the eco-retreat together. She’s going to take some classes online and learn more about the ranch.”
“Well, I guess we need to go away a bit more often, then.” Mom gave me a big hug and kiss. She then turned to Olivia and gave her a big hug and kiss as well. “Welcome to the family, dear. We’re so happy to have you.”
“Thank you,” Olivia said. “I hope you don’t think this is absolutely way too fast and crazy.”
“Not at all. I’ll tell you a little secret.” Amelia lowered her voice. “The first time Lucy told me her best friend was coming, I had hope.”
“Mom, do not tell me that this was part of your plan as well,” I interrupted.
“Of course not.” She shook her head. “I’d never even met Olivia, but I knew whoever was a good friend of Lucy’s had to be a wonderful woman, and when she showed up and I saw the way you two were together, I did have my hopes and dreams, and I guess they came true.” She smiled. “Now, where are my other boys?”
“They’re in the kitchen. Sadie’s there as well.”
“Ah, Sadie.” She looked at me hopefully. “Anything new with her and Wyatt?”
“Mom, you know he’s clueless, and she’s kind of clueless too.” I shrugged. “I don’t know if that’s ever going to happen.”
“We shall see,” she said. “Two boys down, five more to go.”
“I guess so. But you better go in there. They’re about to kill me and Olivia, seeing as we ruined the surprise party.”
“The surprise party?” She gave me a look. “I see.”
“But Olivia made sure it didn’t happen.”
“Thank you, Olivia.” My mom squeezed her hand. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. Come on. Let’s go inside to the kitchen. We have cake and drinks and all sorts of goodies,” Olivia said.
“Hold on, Olivia. Mom and Dad, you guys go through. We’ll join you in a minute, okay?”
“Okay,” Mom said, and they walked into the kitchen.
“Aren’t we going to go?” Olivia looked at me through narrowed eyes. “Do not tell me you want to make love right now because I’m not going to have a quickie with you while your parents are in the kitchen celebrating.”
“I wouldn’t say no if you wanted to, but no, that’s not why I wanted you to wait. I have something for you.”
“Okay. What?”
“Come with me.” I grabbed her hand and walked her toward my bedroom. “It’s not a quickie,” I said, pulling her into my arms and kissing her. We walked into my bedroom, and I handed her a flat package that I’d wrapped carefully.
“What’s this?” She said, shaking it.
“I don’t think you’ll be able to tell by shaking it.”
“Okay. Should I open it now?”
“Yeah, I wanted you to open it now.”
She took the ribbon off carefully and placed it on the side of my mattress and then unwrapped the gift. She stared at the newspaper in her hands with a frown.
“Um, what’s this?”
“Check it out,” I said. “What’s the date?”
“It’s today.”
“Open up the paper and look at it.”
“What part?” She looked confused, and I just smiled.
“The front page.”
“Okay.” Her eyes scanned the front page and she stilled. She looked at me a couple of times, and then she looked back at the newspaper and started laughing. “Is this for real?”
“Yeah, it is. What do you think?”
“I love it.” She held up the newspaper and read aloud. “Montana’s most eligible cowboy is no longer available.”
Under the words was the photo of the two of us that I’d taken that night we’d confessed our love.
“How did they get this photo? And how did they know you’re no longer available?”
“Because I told them, duh. For a beautiful and smart woman, you sure are dumb sometimes.”
“Don’t call me dumb.” She laughed and pressed her lips to mine. I kissed her back softly.
“Do you like it?”
“I love it. I really, really love it.”
“I wanted to make it official, and I wanted you to know that no more women would be going around town calling me the most eligible cowboy and trying to get into my pants.”
“Well, aren’t you a thoughtful one, Beau?”
“I try my best,” I told her. “I love you.” My heart melted at the look of adoration in her eyes. I took her hand and kissed her wrist. “I have one more gift for you.”
“Oh? What is it?”
“Hold on.” I walked over to the drawer and opened it. “I wasn’t going to do this now, but it feels like the right time.” I pulled out the small jewelry box and walked back to her, and her eyes widened.
“Beau, what is that?” I opened it and took out the diamond ring I’d bought just the day before. I got down on one knee and looked up at her.
“Olivia, since I met you, nothing has been the same. You have brought joy and happiness into my life unlike I’ve ever known before. I know I said I didn’t want to rush this, but being with you and sleeping with you and spending my days with you has been amazing. I want the world to know you’re mine and that you’re no longer on the market. Everyone knows I’m not on the market because of that paper. But without a ring”—I grinned—“no one knows that you’re off the market.”
“What are you saying, Beau?”
“Will you marry me, my darling? Will you make me the happiest man in the world?”
She nodded and whispered, “Yes.”
I jumped up as I slipped the ring onto her finger and pulled her into my arms and swung her around.
“I love you, Beau. Oh my gosh, I love you!”
“I love you so much, Olivia. I never, ever want to spend another day without you.”
Thank you for reading Most Eligible Cowboy. To read a bonus chapter, click here!