For the first time in his life, rather than feeling afraid of the prospect, he was elated. He was excited. He couldn’t think of anything that would make him happier, in fact. As comfortable as he’d gotten with solitude, he would never have to get accustomed to it again. He had a family — and a beautiful one, too — and he couldn’t wait to see what else the future held for them.
EPILOGUE
KYRA - TWO YEARS LATER
“Jazzy! Jazzy, where’d you go off to now?” Kyra searched the main house for her two-year-old daughter, though she’d already heard a small giggle coming from under a pile of throw pillows on the couch. She had enough time to play the game, even though she kept saying, “Oh, no. Where could she be? We’re going to be so late.”
Little Jasmine — or Jazzy so no one confused her with her grandma — was probably the most mischievous toddler Kyra had ever met. Over the last couple of months, Kyra had learned to go with it. If Jazzy was allowed to have her pranks, she was the happiest kid around. Other than these little rebellions, she was easy to amuse and hardly ever cried. It didn’t hurt that she was always surrounded by animals, which she absolutely adored, if the way her eyes lit up every time she saw them was any indication.
Kyra sat on the couch and leaned ever so gently against the pile of pillows. “Hmm… where could she be? I’ll just sit here and think of places for a while. Wow, these pillows are extra comfortable for some reason.” She patted the top of thepile. “Let’s see. I looked under the beds. I looked behind the curtains.” The pile of pillows giggled again. Then, Kyra played her winning card. “I know she can’t be with the chickens because they haven’t been fed yet, and Jazzy always feeds the chickens when they’re hungry.”
At that, the little girl leapt from her pile like a jack-in-the-box, screaming, “Chickens!” in a way that no one other than her parents would understand.
“There she is!” Kyra picked her daughter up and swung her around. “Such a clever little girl. Do you want to feed the chickens before we go?”
Jazzy nodded, and Kyra carried her to the back door and helped her put her boots on. One of Jazzy’s favorite chores was feeding the chickens. Kyra understood completely. There was something so satisfying about scattering that feed and watching them all come running, scratching and pecking at the ground excitedly.
On their way out the door, they met Adam, who was on his way inside. “Where are you two going?” he asked.
“Chickens!” Jazzy repeated, as excited as she had been the first time.
“We’re going to feed the chickens before we leave,” Kyra clarified their daughter’s brief answer, even though Adam no doubt already knew exactly what it meant. Kyra could not have imagined a more attentive father than Adam. Why he ever doubted himself was way beyond her. He cared so much about every step his daughter took, every new word she learned, every single milestone. At times, he even appeared to care more than Kyra did, though that felt downright impossible to her, as much as she hyper-focused on her little girl.
Essentially, little Jazzy Sage was surrounded by love — the love of her parents, her grandmother, and all the animals on the ranch. As they finished feeding the chickens, Jasmine pulled up in her car. Jazzy recognized the car at once, and left the chickens to run toward it, shouting, “Grandma!”
Again, her adorable, little voice left the word barely understandable. Jazzy was a great talker for her age, according to her doctor. She understood so much and spoke quite a bit, too. Her pronunciation would improve as she got through the toddler years. But it hardly mattered. Everyone who loved her understood her perfectly well.
Jasmine stepped out of her car and lifted Jazzy into her arms. “Hi there, cutie,” she said. “What have you been up to?”
“Chickens,” Jazzy answered.
“Feeding the chickens, huh? I bet you’re their favorite by now, right?”
Jazzy nodded.
Kyra finished putting the feed away and made her way over to greet her mom. “Hi, Mom,” she said.
“Are you two ready?” Jasmine asked.
“Beyond ready,” Kyra said.
“And Adam?”
“He’s following right behind us. There are a few more things to do around the ranch.”
Jasmine nodded. “It’s always easier for the men. Well, get your shoes. Let’s head out.”
Kyra gathered everything she needed and went back out to her mom’s car. Jasmine had already buckled the little one into her car seat. She’d insisted on having another car seat especially for her car as she intended to be a big presence in Jazzy’s life, and Kyra could not have been happier about it. After kissing Adam goodbye, she hopped into Jasmine’s passenger seat, and the three of them took off.
Kyra could barely contain her excitement on her way to the venue, and when they arrived it only intensified. Jasmine carried Jazzy and led Kyra into a dressing room where everything was set up and ready for them. “Are you nervous?” Jasmine asked.
“I can’t tell,” Kyra answered. “I’m so excited I think it’s drowning any nervousness out.”
“Perfect.” Jasmine leaned in and kissed her daughter. Then she helped Kyra get into her dress. Kyra stood in front of a mirror and fought back tears.
“You look like the beautiful bride you are, honey,” Jasmine said.
Though she’d dreamed of her wedding day many times when she was a little girl, as she aged, Kyra had begun to give up that fairy tale. It felt like it was never going to happen, not because it was too late, but because she had seen no way out of her predetermined life. To her, it was better to let go and try to make a different dream come true. How could she have predicted that becoming a ranch hand on a whim would make all her dreams, even those she’d long given up on, come true?
