Page 61 of The Cowboy Who Looked Again

“I’ll tell him,” she said. “Thanks, Janie.” She hung up, her smile growing into laughter. “Link, guess what?”

“Seems like something you’re excited about,” he said as he arrived in front of her. He strung his first finger through the belt loop on her waist, wanting to be close to her.

She blinked at him. “Roberta found us a house in town.” She bounced on the balls of her feet. “Isn’t that great?”

He grinned at her. “Yeah, that’s fantastic.”

Her smile cleared. “I mean, we’ve loved living here too, Link. It’s just a long?—”

“Way to town,” he said. “I know. When can you move in?”

“This weekend.” She laughed and danced back over to the table. “Come on, baby. Let’s finish your hair and go celebrate with cookies and coffee.”

Link grinned at her. “Yah,” he said. “Let’s do that.” He returned to his seat, still feeling a little bit lost. But Misty had told him not to worry, and she had admitted that she was falling in love with him, and she had said she was seriously considering moving here.

Either he trusted what she told him, or he didn’t, and as she finished up his hair and they left the ranch to get cookies and coffee, Link took strength from the summer sunset. God had painted the sky with colors Link loved.

It reminded him that he was loved, and not only by God.

You’re special because you’re a Glover.

Misty had told him that, and it had sunk into his brain and refused to let go.

“Can we go by the house first?” she asked, and Link glanced over to her.

“For sure.”

“Great.” She looked at her phone. “Turn right up here then.”

He wanted to give her the dream house, the dream family, the dream life. Now, he just had to figure out how to do that—and how to be her dream man. Oh, and sooner rather than later would be nice.

“It’s just me,” Link called as he walked in the front door of his parents’ house. The scent of marshmallows hung in the air, and Link knew what that meant.

“Link,” Sunnie said as she came rushing out of the kitchen. “We just made rice crispy squares. Come see.”

“There better be some with coconut,” he said. “That recipe of Auntie Etta’s is my favorite.” He grinned at his younger sister and followed her into the kitchen. His momma worked there, pressing down another batch of marshmallowed rice cereal into a sheet pan.

“There you are,” Momma said with a warmth in her tone only mothers could achieve. “Your daddy is still out on the tractor, and Smiles is picking up Heather from the pool.”

“We got done early in the southern fields,” Link said. And he hadn’t gone home to shower first. He squirmed as he sat down, and though Momma wasn’t even looking fully at him, she paused in her work and did exactly that.

“What’s going on?” she asked.

Link opened his mouth to say nothing, but the word wouldn’t come out. “Mom, how did you know to marry Daddy?”

Sunnie opened the microwave, seemingly oblivious to the conversation. Momma cast a glance over to her and then went back to pressing the treats into the pan. “I knew, because I didn’t want to go to bed alone for another night.” She turned to help Sunnie with the bowl. “Just stir it as best you can, hon. Then it goes back in for another minute.”

Link let her look right at him as she faced him again. They’d talked about Misty before, but not much since Link had started seeing her again this summer. “Of course, I had to wait a few more months before I didn’t have to go to bed alone.” She smiled at him. “You and Misty are getting along?”

“Yeah, seem to be,” he said. “I mean, it’s not like we have every single thing in common or anything.”

“No one does.”

“What? Everyone does,” he said.

“Link.” She flinched as Sunnie slammed the microwave. After casting a glare over her shoulder at the girl, she sighed. “Of course they don’t.”

“You and Daddy do.”

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