He squeezed her fingers, his grip almost painful. They stood like that for a long moment, the world silent and still except for the wind sighing through the trees.
Finally, Jonah let out a heavy breath, his broad shoulders sagging. "Guess there’s not much that can be saved."
Her heart twisted at the weariness and resignation in his tone. She understood what it meant to lose everything, to start over. She’d done that once before.
"Will you rebuild here?" She spoke the question softly.
Jonah faced her, his blue eyes searching hers with an intensity that made her breath catch. The air between them seemed to thicken, heavy with unspoken words and emotions.
"What is it?" she finally whispered, unable tobear the tension.
He cradled her face, his thumb skimming across her cheekbone. "I'm not sure if it's too soon to say this…"
Her middle churned as worry slipped in. "Please, just be open with me. I want to know what you're thinking, no matter what it is."
He let out a slow exhale, and his eyes softened. "All through the night, I've been wondering if maybe the cabin burning down was a hidden blessing. I started building back when I thought I'd marry Naomi. But after she broke things off, it became a reminder of everything I'd lost, a symbol of the bitterness and loneliness that consumed me."
Pain crossed his face, and the weight in her chest pressed so hard that she could barely draw air. She knew exactly what he meant—all too well.
His gaze turned earnest again. "It wasn't fair of me to ask you to join me here one day. Not in a place with roots tangled in that old pain. You deserve so much more, Patsy. Something built just for you, for us."
Oh.
He was talking about her living here, with him. Which…of course she’d known, maybe, someday… He was courting her. Even so, to dream of it, to hope for it…
They were pale comparisons to what was happening now, with this man looking at her like he was. Wanting her like he did, like she didn’t deserve.
Tears blurred her vision. Jonah was too good. Didn’t he remember where he’d met her? Didn’t he remember the saloon? The…ugliness of her?
His voice turned rough with emotion. "I'm going to court you proper. I’ll give you all the time you need. But I fully intend to make you my wife, if you'll have me.” The love in his gaze took her breath and any words she might have managed. “And you don’t have to give up your dreams to be with me. Now that I'm not tied to this ill-fated place, we canfind a new home. Our life, together, can be anywhere we choose.”
He lifted her hand to his mouth and pressed a kiss to the back of it. “Whatever you want, wherever that takes us, I'll move heaven and earth to make it happen. Your happiness is what matters most to me."
A sob caught in her throat. How was it possible that this incredible man had come into her life? That he could be so selfless, so willing to put her first?
"Jonah." She choked out his name, then inhaled a breath so she could speak clearly. "All I ever wanted was a home of my own. A safe haven where I wouldn’t have to worry about living up to other people's expectations. All I wanted was the freedom to be…me. To not be perfect."
“But you are perfect—for me.” Jonah kissed her forehead, the corner of her eye. “Perfectly beautiful and perfectly human and…I wouldn’t change anything.”
His words made her chest swell almost to bursting. She lifted her palm to his rough jaw. "I thought I needed a pretty white cottage in a green meadow to be happy. But I was wrong. I found my home in you, Jonah. God brought Anna here, and he sent you to find me and bring me to this place. I don't need anything else. Just the two of us together. And Him."
"Patsy." Jonah’s voice was rough with emotion. The love in his eyes was so intense, so rich, that her knees went weak. He drew her into his arms, cradling her against his warm chest. She clung to him.
"I don't deserve you." His breath was warm against her hair. "But I'll thank God every day for the rest of my life for bringing you to me."
She tilted her head back, meeting his gaze. The longing in his warm blue eyes reflected of her own. In Jonah, she’d found a future she'd never dared to dream of.
She laid her head on his shoulder, and therest of the world fell away. The burned-out cabin, the uncertain future, the hardships in their pasts—none of it mattered.
For the first time in her life, Patience knew with absolute certainty that she was exactly where she was meant to be, in the arms of the man she loved, the man who loved her in return. The man who would stand by her side, no matter what challenges lay ahead. A man whose God she knew she could trust.
Here with Jonah, she was home.
CHAPTER 19
Jonah had to fight to hold his grin as he entered the cabin that night. He’d been riding all afternoon with Patsy, showing her around the ranch. She’d wanted to see every corner, like she actually wanted their home to be somewhere close by. He’d happily go to Wyoming or Colorado if she wanted—or back to Boston, where she grew up. But building their life near his family would be pretty near perfect, if that was truly what she wanted.
Dinah carried a plate of cookies to the table. “We already finished dinner, but you and Patience can fill plates from the pot on the stove. We’re having cookies now. WhereisPatience?” She raised her brows at him.
