“Is everything ready?” Dakota asked, turning to look at Blade as he walked through the kitchen door.
“Almost,” he replied. “Wolfe is helping with the flowers.”
Dakota burst out laughing. “As in Sheriff Ethan Wolfe?”
“He’s surprisingly good at matching colors,” Blade stated with a shrug.
He walked over to where she stood at the table and placed his hand on her belly. “How are you feeling?”
“Perfect,” she replied. “If it wasn’t for the fact that I’m not fitting in my clothes, I wouldn’t even have known I was with child.”
“That’s not true,” Blade pointed out. “You would have noticed all his kicking.”
Dakota shook her head. “We don’t know that it’s a boy.”
“I do,” Blade said with a playful smile. “He told me while you were sleeping.”
There was no way to really know until the baby arrived, but Blade was convinced that they were having a boy. It honestly didn’t matter; he would be just as happy if the baby turned out to be a girl.
Blade removed his hand from her belly and grabbed a piece of chicken, popping it into his mouth.
Dakota playfully slapped his hand away when he went in for another piece and chased him out of the kitchen.
“You need to go check on the flowers and Wolfe,” she instructed, “or we won’t have any food left for the reception.”
“I can’t believe I’m being thrown out of my own house,” he complained. “You know I’m eating for two.”
“You, my dear husband, are not the pregnant one.”
“I like to believe that we are pregnant,” Blade replied. “And Dr. Masterson confirmed that men do sometimes share their wives’ pregnancy symptoms.”
Dakota sighed dramatically. “You’re impossible.”
“And you’re beautiful,” Blade said as he backed away from the kitchen.
Dakota’s cheeks flushed at the compliment, making Blade’s heart beat faster. It was crazy how much she still affected him. They’d been together for two years now, and they’d been married for just a couple of months less.
Blade blew her a kiss, and Dakota pretended to catch it and press it to her lips. Satisfied, he dragged his eyes away from her, turned around, and started walking back to the barn.
It was amazing how many things had changed since they had returned. Killing Austin had removed the weight Blade had been carrying for such a long time. He felt free and happy.
The first thing Blade had done when they returned to Silver was to check on Millie. Imagine his surprise when he found her kissing Jace in their living room. Both Millie and Jace had turned pale at the sight of him. Blade hadn’t been angry, just shocked and confused. He had been even more shocked when Millie greeted him with words.
Jace had truly done wonders for Millie. It had been strange to see her with somebody, but it was a welcome surprise. Blade couldn’t have asked for a better man for his sister. That was why Blade immediately agreed when Jace had asked him for his blessing. For years, Millie had been a shell of herself, but now she was happy again, and it was all thanks to Jace.
Once the shock had worn off, Blade and Dakota had listened to Millie as she told them everything that had happened while they were gone. Blade had almost forgotten how much Millie liked to talk. When they were younger, he had always teased her, but now he had been way too happy to even try to interrupt. Jace also enjoyed talking, and Blade and Dakota had shared amused looks as they listened.
Later, when Millie had finally run out of things to say, Blade and Dakota had told her that they were together and about their plans to restore the ranch. Blade had been a little worried about how Millie would feel about it, but once again, she had surprised him and told him that she would want to live there with them.
Of course, their plans had depended on whether Blade would actually be allowed to start fixing up the place. He had turned eighteen on their journey for revenge, and although it wasn’t twenty-one, he had hoped that it would be good enough.
The next day, he had gone to see Wolfe. The man was not only the town sheriff but a mentor and friend. Blade had told him about his and Dakota’s adventures and how they had taken care of all the men on the list. Wolfe had listened, and when Blade was done, he had hugged him and told him that he was happy for him.
Blade had known that if anybody could help him get the ranch in his name, it was Wolfe. At first, the sheriff had been surprised when Blade told him that he wanted to fix the placeup and restore it to its former glory, but the more they spoke about it, the more excited Wolfe became to help him.
Restoring the ranch also meant that Blade had decided to pursue a career in law enforcement. The town was safe in Wolfe’s hands, and Blade would always be there to help if needed, but he had spent so many years filled with anger and chasing bad guys that he simply didn’t want to do it anymore. Wolfe had been disappointed, but he had also understood.
Once the ranch was in his name, the real work started. Fixing the place hadn’t been easy, and they were still working on improving it all the time. The hard work was worth it, though. At first, business was slow, but then it picked up, and things became easier.
