I stare at him and say softly. “What?”
He nods once, serious. “I have twenty acres with your name on it if you want it.”
My breath catches. Wilder land is something I thought I’d never have. And I made peace with it. But this...this is unexpected. And far more than I deserve.
Cami squeezes my hand. “Tucker has his land,” she continues. “Jenna has hers. Weston owns the entire Granger property, which now extends to the back of the Wilder Ranch and is part of it as well. We’re building something here, Ollie. We want your family here, too.”
Jack points across the field, toward a line of cottonwoods and a faint shape I didn’t even notice at first.
“There’s a cabin out there,” Cami adds quickly. “It’s small but has three bedrooms. It’s not great, but it’s solid. You could make it work until you build something else. Or fix it up. Whatever you want. It’s yours to decide.”
My heart pounds so hard it makes my ears ring. I look out and see Poppy and Owen here. Ellie in my arms and feel the quiet in my bones. The peace of this place. The fresh new beginnings that it is with Wilder Ranch and Jessop Ranches combined. We left the ghosts of the past and are building something new.
“You would do this?” I ask, voice rough.
Cami’s face crumples as if she might cry again. “I’d do anything for you, Ollie,” she says. “I love you. You’re my family.”
I shake my head slowly, trying to make sense of it. “But… it’s yours. I can’t afford this land.”
Cami’s expression turns fierce. The same look she gets when she’s defending her ranch, her people, her heart.
“Now it’s ours,” she says. “You don’t owe anything on it. It’s yours and I really hope you say yes because Weston already drew up the papers.”
Jack nods. “It was your family’s, too,” he says. “This land is meant to stay in the family.”
My throat tightens. I stare out at the field again, and all I can see is a future I never let myself imagine because wanting it felt like it could never happen. Hell yeah, I want it. I want it more than anything.
I picture a porch light in the distance on a big red barn full of animals. Kids laughing, swinging on a tire swing beneath the big oak tree over there.
I blink hard and finally look back at them. “Yeah,” I say, voice so thick it makes me choke when I respond. “Yeah, I want this.”
Cami makes a sound that’s half laugh, half sob, and she throws her arms around my neck so fast I barely have time to react. I hug her back, tight, because I don’t know what else to do with the way my chest feels like it’s splitting open.
Jack claps my shoulder with a heavy hand. “Good,” he says gruffly.
Cami pulls back and wipes at her cheeks, then punches my arm lightly. “Don’t make it weird, just take it.”
“I’m not making it weird,” I say, but my voice cracks, and she smiles at me like she sees right through me.
Jack starts the truck up again. “Come on,” he says. “Let’s go look at it.”
We drive toward the cabin, the sun feeling somehow warmer and brighter now, my mind spinning. The cabin comes into view, and it’s rough, sure. The porch sags a little. The roof looks like it’s seen a few storms. But this place could be ours. I can’t wait to tell Poppy. I’ve seen her dream board, and I know she has dreamed of us having a place of our own. She has chickens, a tire swing, a horse, and various other farm animals on that dream board. She wants a farm. And she’s getting a farm.
Cami hops out first and walks up to the porch like she’s already picturing a porch swing. Jack checks the steps with his weight, like he’s already planning to help with repairs.
I stand back a second, staring at it. I’ve spent my whole life being the one who shows up, the one who holds the line, the one who makes sure everyone else is okay. I’ve never expected to be given anything like this. I expected to work like hell for everything I wanted.
Cami looks back at me. “Well?” she calls. “You coming?”
I nod and walk up to the porch, my boots thudding against the old wood. The door creaks open, and cold air rushes out, carrying the faint scent of old pine and dust.
I pull Cami in for another hug. “Thank you.”
Jack claps me on the back and nods.
It’s not fancy, but it’s ours. And it’s a damn beautiful start to our life together out here.
My phone buzzes in my pocket, and I pull it out. Poppy’s name is on the screen.
