Charley, still looking at her engagement ring, said to the jeweler, “I’ll pay for both wedding bands.”
“You can pay for mine, I guess,” Sully said with another chuckle. “But I’ll buy yours.”
They picked out matching platinum wedding bands. When they emerged from the jewelry store, Charley was staring at her left hand as Sully carried the bag containing the bands.
“Never in my wildest dreams did I ever think I could be so in love and so happy,” Charley said as they reached his Jeep.
“Me neither,” Sully said and kissed her. “Hungry?”
“Yes, let’s go eat because you’re going to need your strength.”
“Is that right?”
“Yes, I’ve got plans for you.”
Sully’s grin was wicked. “Like what?”
“This city slicker is going to keep a certain country boy in bed until New Year’s Day.”
“I can’t think of a better way to welcome the New Year.”
EPILOGUE
THE FOLLOWING YEAR
“Ican’t believe it’s been a year since we got married,” Sully said on Valentine’s Day as Charley lit the tall red candles on either side of the long-stemmed red roses in the center of their dining room table.
“It’s flown by.” Charley smiled. She looked from the table, about to be lavishly laden with a catered dinner for family and friends coming to celebrate their anniversary, to her handsome husband. “Because we’re so happy.”
The previous year, they had been tempted to run over to the county courthouse and let a judge marry them. But knowing Owen Custis, the Coopers, and the Brevards would be disappointed to miss the nuptials, they restrained themselves from taking the early opportunity to become husband and wife.
A year ago in January, Chloe, Jade, and Tracy had helped Charley pick out the perfect white wedding gown and veil in their favorite boutique near Denver. Airline tickets and hotel reservations had been made by the family. During the first partof February, the ladies had celebrated with a bachelorette party. Cash had thrown Sully a bachelor party with the other Cooper men and Custis men in attendance. Though Valentine’s Day was a big event for florists, her wedding day far outweighed that, and Pretty Petals closed for two weeks. Roy and Randy had volunteered to keep Sully’s gun store open and take care of the horses. Pets had been boarded or were being watched by staff on the ranches. Charley had asked Chloe to be her matron of honor, and Sully’s dad had agreed to be his best man. Owen was thrilled to have Henrietta Culpepper fly with them to Hawaii.
After landing on the big island of Oahu on February tenth, sightseeing, boat rides, swimming, sunbathing, and hiking were on the agenda, with families enjoying activities together and separately. When the late afternoon wedding rolled around on Valentine’s Day, a sunset of yellow, purple, and red painted the tropical sky, melting into the blue waters of the Northern Pacific Ocean. A wooden archway laced with white tulle and red roses had decorated a private, sandy shore owned by the hotel on Waikiki Beach. Cooper and Colton had served as ushers, escorting folks to white folding chairs divided by a white runner. Austin was the ring bearer, while Abilene, Courtney, and Carly had been flower girls. Thus, with everyone barefoot and wearing leis, the bride carried a bouquet of Rocky Mountain Columbines as Coop walked her down the aisle to the groom, clad in black slacks and a white shirt adorned with a lavender columbine pinned over his heart.
Amid smiles and sniffles, Sully and Charley became husband and wife.
At the beginning of a fabulous luau, Coop made the congratulatory toast. There wasn’t a dry eye to be seen after Coop had spoken of the Triple C Ranches legacy dating from the 1800s to the present moment and how blessed he was as thepatriarch to officially welcome Sully and Charley Custis into the Cooper fold.
A party of Polynesian food, drinks, and entertainment ensued. With tiki torches blazing and live music filling the air, Sully and Charley were the first to dance. During the second dance, when Owen asked to cut in on Sully and Charley, Sully danced with Henri. Then everyone joined them. The children took turns dancing with each other and the adults. Even Dalton was on the sandy dance floor as Tracy held him while dancing with Cash.
Those memories would forever be lodged in grateful hearts.
Since returning from Hawaii, Sully and Charley had combined his thirty-thousand-acre ranch with her ten, putting their combined ranch at forty thousand acres, the same size as Triple C Ranches-East, Central, and West. With the last name of Custis fitting right into the mix, they’d kept the name Triple C Ranch-South.
Sully’s gun club continued to prosper. Perhaps even more so as countless customers from far and wide visited, wanting to hear about his part in stopping the infamous mass murderer known as the Cave Killer. Not only the local, but national news had reported on and praised Sully, along with Burt Groves, for saving a courageous Charley and stopping Dorian Fester.
Charley’s flower shop had flourished. Packed with flowers and plants, she’d hired Henri, who was now happily married to Owen, to help her. She’d also hired Mindy, the wife of Sully’s cousin, Roy, to make deliveries. Together, the three of them managed to keep up with the customers flowing into Pretty Petals and the orders pouring out of the shop’s front door.
For their first anniversary, on the front doors of Sully and Charley’s house, huge wreaths of ponderosa pine branches worked into the shape of two hearts were made festive with columbines, red ribbon, bows, and LED lights. Inside,in addition to more columbines and roses, their house was decorated with tulips, peace lilies, and orchids. It was all Charley’s doing, and Sully had said he couldn’t imagine his life or home without her. Charley had echoed the sentiment back to him.
Owen and Henri were already present for the anniversary celebration. While Sully was bringing in firewood for the hearth in the den, Owen stood behind the wet bar ready to play bartender. Henri had helped Charley set the table and prepare appetizers.
Leaving the den, Sully found Charley in the dining room. He’d made her blush with a compliment about her hourglass figure and how he couldn’t wait to strip off the red velvet dress she was wearing. Sully’s eyes dipped to the hint of her ivory cleavage exposed in the scooped neckline, and Charley gave him the onceover. Clad in a black, Western-style jacket, and a white button-down shirt, along with dark jeans and black boots, he was magnificent.
“I couldn’t be happier, Mrs. Custis,” Sully said with a grin and pulled her into his arms.
Charley tilted her head, and the light from the chandelier over the dining room table danced in his eyes. “Are you sure about that, Mr. Custis?”
