Rustic Hearts

Braxton

 

“You and Sophie coming to the house for supper tonight?” Jefferson asks as we finish herding the cattle back into the newly fenced pasture.

She’s been moved in for a little over a month now. She flew back to New York over Thanksgiving to see her mother and to pack up the rest of her belongings. She took part of the money in the account Gram had set up for her all those years ago and repaid Stanhope the money he had invested. Then, she made Charlotte an official partner in Sophia Doreen Designs. The two of them run the business together with Sophie taking on a more creative role and Charlotte ru

“Nope. I have plans for us tonight.”

“Did you tell Doreen? You know how upset she gets when you two are missing, and she was expecting you.” Emmett winks at me over Jefferson’s shoulder. “I’m going to wait in the truck while you two figure this out.”

We watch as he hops in the passenger side of Jefferson’s truck.

“I did. I called her this morning.”

“Good. Well, you two have a good night.”

He starts to walk to the truck, and I call after him, “Jefferson?”

I don’t know why I’m so nervous.

“Yeah?”

“I need to ask you something,” I say as I reach in my pocket and pull out the box that has been tucked there all day.

I made the mistake of showing it to Silas and Walker yesterday, and the two have been giving me shit ever since.

“I have this for Sophie, and I’m going to give it to her tonight.”

I open the box to show him the ring inside. It was my mother’s. Nothing fancy—just a simple diamond in a simple setting.

He looks at the box and then to me. “You ready for that? It’s only been a couple of months since she showed up here in Poplar Falls. You sure it’s not too fast?”

“Six weeks,” I say as I look down at the ring.

“What’s that?”

“Six weeks. That’s how long it took Dad to know that he wanted to marry Mom and to put this ring on her finger. It only took me four.”

He nods his head, and a smile graces his face.

“I’m ready if she’ll have me and if I have your blessing.”

“My blessing? I couldn’t have asked for a better man for my Sophia. You’ve been my son since the day God brought you and your sister to our doorstep. I’d be awfully proud for you to make that official.”

“Are you ready yet, woman?” I ask as I round the hall and see her sitting in the closet floor rifling through a pile of clothes.

I look around at the mess. It’s been a tight fit since Sophie moved all her things into the loft. Women sure come with a lot of extra stuff.

“I’m trying to find my brown scarf. I swear I packed all of my scarves in one box and I can’t find them now,” she huffs in frustration.

I reach down and pick up a brown wool scarf and hold it out on one finger for her to see. She looks up and blows a piece of stray hair from her face and mumbles, “Thanks,” as she grabs it.

“You’re welcome. Now, can we go?”

She stands and wraps the scarf around her neck.

“I promise I’ll get this all sorted eventually. I need to throw out almost everything and only keep the essentials.”

She looks over at the shelf of shoes and sighs. I follow her eyes.

“You aren’t getting rid of those,” I state matter of fact.

Her eyes snap to me.

“You made fun of me for wearing this very pair when I first got here,” she reminds me as she lifts a pair of nude stilettos.

“I did. They’re impractical as hell, but I didn’t say they weren’t sexy,” I say as I pull her to me.

She places the shoes back on the shelf and turns in my arms.

“Well, I have to give up something because all of my stuff and I don’t exactly fit.”

“We’ll make it work,” I say as I kiss her lips, “now, let’s go. I’m getting hungry.”

“Where are we going anyway?”

“It’s a surprise.”

We walk out into a clear but cold December night. She starts toward the truck, but I wrap my arm around her waist to steer her in the direction leading behind the barn.

“We’re walking?” she asks in disbelief.

“It’s just a short distance. I promise.”

I tuck her into my side and we walk down the back of the ranch through the forest of trees and toward the river. About twenty minutes later we make it to the spot. It’s a clearing on a hill that overlooks the water. A fire is crackling, and picnic basket rests on a quilt along with an ice bucket and two champagne flutes. She untangles from my arm and walks toward the site. Then she turns around and beams at me.

“What’s all this?”

“Your Christmas present.”

She looks confused for a moment before her eyes go soft.

“It’s perfect.”

She doesn’t understand, so I walk over and take her hand and lead her to the blanket. I spin her to face out toward the valley and the water below, wrap her in my arms, and rest my chin on her shoulder.

“I wanted our first supper in our new kitchen to be special,” I whisper into her hair.

“What?” she breathes.

“Pop and Jefferson gave this parcel to us. We are standing in what will be our kitchen with huge bay windows so we can look at this view every morning. I’m going to build you a wraparound porch, so you sit out here all you want and sketch, and your new closet will be able to hold all the sexy shoes you can buy.”

“You’re going to build us a house?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“With a bathtub?”

“Oh yes, can’t forget the Princess’s bathtub,” I tease.

“It is perfect,” she chokes out on a sob.

“Not quite yet,” I say as I hear the rumble approach.

She hears it too and turns to look back toward the trees. We hear laughter and then Beau’s impatient voice loudly whisper, “Now, Mommy?”

“Now, baby,” Dallas answers as she plucks him down from the four-wheeler.

He releases the excited puppy in his arms, and Hawkeye shoots off like a rocket in our direction.

I reach down and scoop him up as Dallas gets back on the machine and pulls Beau up into her lap. She winks at us, and they drive back off into the trees.

I turn to Sophie, and she watches me closely. Her eyes are full of amusement and question.

Hawk is squirming in my arms, and she reaches for him as he leaps. He starts licking at her jaw as she giggles. Once he finally settles, she notices the red bow and box around his neck.

“What’s this?” she asks as she starts to untie it. She sets Hawk down and opens the lid. She gasps and turns back to me with shock written all over her face.

“I know it’s not much, and we can get you another one if you want, but it was my mother’s, and I think she’d like for you to have it,” I say as I take the ring from the box and lower to one knee.

She gasps.

“Sophia Doreen Lancaster, I know it seems fast, but I’m a man who knows who he is and I don’t need a lot of time to ponder when I know something is right. I love you, and I want to spend the rest of my life loving you. If you’ll have me.”