“Funnily enough, no.” Briar turned away from him again, tossing the mangled silverware box into another bigger one withother trash and broken down boxes. “For some reason, not knowing when it’s going to happen is freaking me out.”
“Well, I haven’t even bought a ring yet,” he said. “I thought maybe me and you could go shopping next weekend, after I’m moved in, and Bobbie Jo has her new lambs, and all of that.”
Briar reached for the scissors and cut open one of the boxes he’d brought in from the storage unit. Tarr hadn’t done much of anything since bringing in the bins still sitting on the dining room table, and he wished she’d stop working.
She wouldn’t, and Tarr had learned that she operated better if she had something to do with her hands and eyes while she talked about things that were difficult for her.
“These are towels,” she said.
“They go in the hall closet,” he said. “Briar, honey, talk to me about going ring-shopping next weekend.”
She looked at him then, and Tarr raised his eyebrows. “I should have the fence in by then, and I wanted to go to the animal shelter too. Since I can’t pick a dog without you, you’ll have to come with me, and I thought we could stop by that custom place by the Maven’s.”
Briar nodded. “Can we go to Maven’s for lunch after?”
“Maybe dinner,” he said. “It’s a vacation-schedule day on the farm, and I don’t want to get up any earlier than I have to.” He grinned at her. “You’re okay with a custom ring?”
“Yes,” she whispered.
“It might take them a couple of months to make it,” he said. “So there wouldn’t be a proposal for at least that long.”
A slip of relief ran through her expression, and Tarr tried not to take it personally. “That’s okay, I think.” She took a step toward him, and then another. “Is that okay with you?”
“Sweetheart, you know I want you here right now.” He let her take his hand, the feminine touch of her skin against his welcome and wanted. “I’d take you to City Hall this afternoonand make you mine. You could move all your stuff in here this weekend, and we could start our family with each other tonight.”
She blinked, her eyes wide and filled with vulnerability.
“You do know that, right, Briar?”
“Yes,” she whispered.
“I love you,” he said. “I’m not the one who needs the wedding, or the engagement, or the time. I’m happy to give you anything you want—the wedding you want, the engagement you want, the time you need. Heck, I’d tear this house down and live in the RV while I rebuilt it to your precise specifications if that’s what you wanted.”
Her eyes turned glassy, and she sniffled.
“I’d give you the world if I could,” he whispered. “And I will do whatever I can to make sure you’re happy, and cared for, and that you feel absolutely loved. Okay?”
She nodded, and in that moment in time, Tarr really thought she believed him.
He drew in a breath and hauled Briar against his chest. “You don’t need to worry about a proposal until probably August or September, honey. And yes, I’ll let you know beforehand, all right?”
“I love your sexy Texan drawl when you say, ‘all right?’”
Tarr smiled and stepped back. “How much time do you need? Like, do I need to tell you a week out? A couple of days? What are you thinking?”
Briar laid her head against his chest and breathed in with him. “Honestly, Tarr, now that I know it’s not for a couple of months, I feel—great. Maybe I don’t need to know more than that.”
He ran his hands up and down her back, his palm stopping on the side where she’d been injured. He covered it and pressed in. “You don’t need to keep unpacking for me, honey. You’ve been on your feet too long.”
“My back and hip are aching a little,” she admitted. “And I still have to go back to the Goatel.”
“Let’s go,” he said. “I’ll give you a ride over there.” He took her hand in his, and they left his house together. Soon, it would betheirhouse, and Tarr tipped his head back into the near-summer sky and once again thanked the Lord for His bounteous blessings.
“I love the blue sky,” he said.
“I love the scent of dirt at this time of year,” she said back, continuing the game they played sometimes without him having to nudge or remind her.
That made his heart swell with love for her too. “I love your hair when it catches the sunlight.”
