“Don’t forget about the gaggle of kids Florence predicted,” I remind him, my tone reverent.
Heath grins. “Fuck, I really hope she’s right about that.”
Me too. I’d love nothing more than a house full of children running around who look like Heath to fill our days with chaos and laughter.
“Florence has plenty of time in heaven with any future little ones, plotting how they can cause the most trouble,” I respond with a wistful smile.
The image of her up there sharing all the best gossip and teaching her favorite antics brings a bittersweet comfort.
“We couldn’t be luckier,” Heath agrees as he tucks my hair behind my ear. “There’s something I have to tell you too… well, more like show you.”
“Oh?” My curiosity is piqued. “What is it?”
He takes a small step back and offers me his hand. “It’s a surprise. If we leave now, we’ll get there before dark so you can get the best view.”
Eager to see what he has up his sleeve, I intertwine my fingers with his. “Consider me intrigued.”
Never in my wildest dreams did I think I’d be married to the man I spent years bantering with, and pregnant with our baby before my twenty-seventh birthday. Yet here I am, more content than I’ve ever been. The grief of losing Florence still lingers in the background, but I’m reminded daily why I chose Heath as my person and how much brighter my life is with him in it.
What started as a mutual agreement has transformed into what I’m calling tethered love—the kind that has anchored me through grief, brought me more joy than I thought possible, and has me finally believing that happily ever afters really do exist.
The Start Of Forever
My palms are clammy as I grip the steering wheel tight on our way to the far side of the ranch’s property. I shouldn’t be so damn nervous after planning this surprise all week, but what I’m about to show Charlie is a big deal and I really want her to like it.
“If we drive much farther, I’m going to need a snack and a bathroom break. This daughter of yours has me on a very short leash,” she teases from the passenger seat.
She has the window down, her hair dancing in the breeze as she smiles over at me. I’ve never seen anything more beautiful, and I’ll never take for granted that she’s my wife.
“We’re almost there,” I promise. “I packed a cooler with some of Ma’s famous chicken salad sandwiches, pickles, and cottagecheese. There’s also a bathroom where we’re going, but it’s nothing fancy—just a toilet with four walls.”
Charlie glances over, eyeing me suspiciously. “You’re very brave for surprising your pregnant wife, Mr. Halstead.”
“I’m about to be outnumbered. I’m going to need all the courage I can get,” I tease.
She presses her fingertips to her temples, eyes fluttering shut. “Ah yes, I see lots of pink glitter and tulle in your future.”
I shake my head, laughing as we round a thick cluster of trees, the open-framed house I’ve been building coming into view. The wooden frame features tall rafters and expansive openings for windows that’ll fill the house with natural light and a stunning view of the vast Montana sky, with the mountains as a backdrop. And off to the side of the house is a picturesque meadow dotted with wildflowers.
As we come to a stop out front, Charlie sits up straight in her seat. “What is that place?”
“Our home,” I state.
She turns to me with wide eyes. “Our what now?”
“I’ve been building out here for a while now. It wasn’t high on my priority list since I wasn’t sure I’d ever need it. But now that we’re married with a baby on the way, I figured it was about damn time to finish it so we could have a place of our own.”
When I got back from Wyoming, I not only resumed interviewing for a foreman but I also hired a local crew to finish the house. It’ll be done before the first frost, which means the baby will be two or three months old when it’s ready for us to move in. That might not be ideal, but I like the thought of us staying in the apartment when we bring her home from the hospital. It’s where Charlie and I started out as husband and wife, and I’m looking forward to creating some of peanut’s first memories in the place that brought her mom and dad together.
“Heath, I’m at a loss for words,” Charlie admits softly. “I had no idea you owned the property this far out.”
“My parents bought a stretch of land for each of us kids and gave it to us on our eighteenth birthdays. It just took me a while to figure out what to do with mine,” I explain.
It’s not exactly a secret, but hardly anyone ever comes out this way, and it sat untouched until I started building on it.
Jensen and Briar’s house is on the other side of the ranch, and Walker has a good-sized lot nearby if he and Birdie ever decide to build. Still, I doubt they’ll ever leave her place, especially since her parents gifted her the property behind it so she could expand her animal sanctuary.
Eager to have Charlie close, I get out of the truck and go around to her side.
