He shook his head, smiling. “I’m just elated, which terrifies me.” He laughed. “If that’s not insane, I’m not sure what is.”
“We’re both crazy, Lucas. We all know this.” Gillian laughed and hugged him, nearly sliding off the edge of the bed with the imbalance caused by the weight of the boot. She scowled down at it. “I need to go in and see if I can take this thing off yet.”
“I think they’ll tell you to wear it at least another week.”
“You’re a buzzkill, Lucas,” she chided, though she was obviously teasing from the fake pout on her face.
He didn’t care. Somehow, he’d gone from a man terrified of commitment to one who had asked a woman to move in with him and been the first to confess his love. What sort of mushy, pansy sort of guy had he become? This was what he’d meant about love changing a person.
But for Gillian, it was worth it.
Epilogue
“We should have picked her up at the airport,” Lucas muttered as he paced back and forth across the living room.
Gillian, standing at the stove and finishing up a pot of stew, shook her head and rolled her eyes. “I told you, my mother’s not that sort of person. I guarantee you, she’s much happier assessing the scenery and making up her own image of what you’ll be like on the way here in the car.” She understood Lucas’s nerves at meeting her mother. After all, it was typical of a male to worry about such things. But to be honest, the only thing Gillian was nervous about was her mother liking Lucas too much. Most women did, she’d come to notice.
They’d invited her to come visit before they decided to announce any kind of plans for an engagement, not wanting her to feel obligated to like him or be supportive of the relationship. Gillian really wanted to show Lucas that he was likable on the basis of his own personality.
They were going to spend the day with Gillian’s mom, and they would be joining Garrett and a very pregnant Shakota for dinner in town later, a way to relieve any tension that might build. Gillian had invited her aunt to join them, but Aunt Carrie had declined. She and Roger were on the brink of divorce, and Aunt Carrie had moved into an apartment in town temporarily.
Uncle Roger, however, was going to come and say hi for a while. That at least would be nice, since Gillian really wished she could keep her family together. But she was doing her best without giving up her own happiness.
Lucas’s nerves were going to drive her mad in the meantime, and when she heard the sound of tires on gravel, Gillian didn’t hesitate to turn down the heat on the stove and rush outside to meet her mother. They hadn’t seen each other in six months, and the older woman was radiant, looking healthy and fully recovered.
“Mom, you look great! You’ve put on a couple of pounds, and it’s so flattering!” she said, hugging her mother tightly.
The older woman waved it off, tears in her eyes. “Oh, honey, I’m just glad to see you. And you look so happy. I’ve never seen you like this!” She looked around at the surrounding forest. “This place is amazing. I hope this man you keep telling me about is just as amazing.”
“You’ll love him, trust me. Come inside.” Gillian brought her mother to the door, leaving the bags behind. Lucas could get those later. As they crossed the threshold, Lucas stopped pacing and smiled up at them. “Lucas, this is my mother, Amanda. Mom, this is Lucas.”
The greetings went well, and before the inquisition could begin, Gillian ushered everyone into the kitchen for lunch. She watched the interaction between her mother and the love of her life, and she was pleased. Neither was putting up a front, and both seemed to genuinely like each other.
At the diner later, the group got along famously, and Shakota and Garrett announced that they were having a boy. They were debating between Anthony James or Darren Alexander for names. That remained a topic of conversation throughout the evening, and at the end of the meal, Roger took Gillian’s mother aside, the two of them having a serious but quiet conversation.
Afterward, Uncle Roger excused himself, wishing Gillian and Lucas the best as he headed home. After saying goodnight to Shakota and Garrett, Lucas drove home with Gillian and her mother, and the older woman excused herself, saying she was exhausted. They’d given her the master bedroom and pulled out the sofa bed for themselves so she could have some privacy.
Alone at last, Gillian put her arms around Lucas’s waist and smiled up at him. “Well, what do you think?”
He nodded. “Well, I was afraid I’d hate her or that she’d hate me. But she doesn’t seem to hate me. And I really like her. In fact, I think she wouldn’t make such a terrible mother-in-law.”
“Is that a proposal, then?” Gillian asked jokingly. They’d discussed an eventual marriage, but they had talked about a couple of years down the road.
He sighed. “I suppose I should make sure you can handle my mother before I hold you to your response. If you say yes, we’ll make it conditional, okay? When you meet her, if you can’t stand her, you can change your mind.”
To her surprise, Lucas pulled a ring out of his pocket and held it out to her. She gasped. “Lucas, when did you…” She trailed off as he got to his knee and held it up. “No way, Lucas.”
“ ‘No way’ this isn’t happening? Or ‘no way’ you don’t want to marry me?” He smiled boyishly. Before she could answer, he asked, “Gillian, will you marry me?”
She wanted to cry and shout and giggle all at the same time. Instead, she covered her mouth and nodded, not quite trusting her voice. Apparently, that sufficed as a yes because he slid the ring on her finger and stood to kiss her. “I thought maybe you’d like to make it official while your mother is here.” His smile faded and he gave her a very serious, emotional look. “I love you, Gillian, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I don’t care how many ways you want to change me or how many limits you want to put on how I live. I just want to be with you.”
She hugged him tight. “And I want to be with you. I don’t care if you decide you’re tired of me in five or ten years, and I don’t care if you eventually become some bald, fat, lazy man who doesn’t work or pay for anything. I just want to be with you.”
It was all a matter of perspective, she proposed. Once you weren’t afraid to love, you could see the answer right in front of you. Gillian had spent too much time avoiding the opportunity to fall in love. It had taken a tragedy to help her see through the fog, and she’d still almost missed it. But now, she and Lucas had escaped their stigmas and faced a bright and unique future together.
~ The End ~
I do hope you enjoyed Lucas and Gillian’s story. If so, I’d like to ask you to take two. Take two minutes to do two things:
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~Thanks again, Charlene
Book Three, Courage to Fall, is still simmering in my mind and will hopefully be published in the fall.
About the Author
Charlene Bright is the author of several contemporary western romance novels. She’s a lifelong resident of the American South and currently residents in southern Oklahoma on a family-owned cattle ranch. She greets each morning with a hot cup of coffee and an optimistic smile. Traveling to America’s national parks is her favorite pastime. You can find out more about Charlene and her books at Charlene Bright and don’t forget to connect with her on Facebook.
Courage To Believe (Cowboys of Courage 2) Page 15