Page 132 of Fall With Me (Sugarland Creek)

I already have so many plans for us there.

Quickly scooping her up, I set her down on the counter, and step between her legs.

“Geez, give a little warnin' next time.” She clings to my shoulders.

“I have a gift for you. Stay put,” I demand, then go to the living room where I hid it in one of the bookshelf drawers.

When we planned our wedding, we agreed to keep things as simple as possible, which meant no extravagant gifts to each other. But I've been working on something special for her and instead of waiting for Christmas or her birthday, I want her to have it now since this month marks one year out from next year's NFR.

“Close your eyes,” I tell her, walking back with the box.

She sighs, but then shuts them. “You better not be putting anything weird in my lap.”

“You suck at receiving gifts, don't ya?”

She shrugs, and when I place it in her hands, she opens her eyes. They widen when she realizes what it is.

“Is this a scrapbook?” She traces over the photo on the front. “Is that the lake?Our lake?”

Grinning wide, I nod. “I took a photo of it and had someone make it into a pretty watercolor version. I had a large one framed for the inside of our new house. Thought it'd look good in our bedroom or living room.”

“It's gorgeous, Landen! Wow…” Her gaze travels over every inch of the book.

“I'm glad you love it. But now open it.”

She gasps when she flips the cover and reads the first page.

“My Year to the National Finals Rodeo,” she reads aloud, then glances up at me. “You made this for me?”

“I know how important this next season is as your comeback year, so I thought we should document it. I already put some pictures of you and Ranger in there, but every month leading up to finals, we'll add a page with a new photo of you two and write an update on how things are going, what you're workin' on, what your goals are, and whatever else you want. When it's NFR month next year, you'll have a whole year of your progress to look back on. So no matter how you place, you'll have a reminder to be proud of yourself. Because no matter what, I'll forever be proud of you.”

Ellie will always be a winner in my mind, but I know she's much harder on herself.

“Goddammit, Landen,” she cries out, flipping through the pages. “This is the sweetest thing anyone's ever done for me.”

“I hoped you'd like it.” I tilt her chin, stealing a kiss.

“I'd marry you all over if I could. I'm glad you coerced me into gettin' hitched sooner.”

“Coerced orconvincedwith my tongue?”

She snorts. “What's the difference with you?”

I shrug playfully, twirling a strand of her hair between my fingers. I love when she wears it down and wavy. “I knew what I wanted, and I went for it.”

“You sure did, Major Ego.” She wraps her arms around my shoulders, pulling me into her for a hug. “Glad that you did, too.”

I wink and she tries to wipe her cheeks before I notice she's tearing up. “We could always do a vow renewal in a few years.”

“Maybe…but I love the memories we made on our wedding day. It was perfect. I wouldn't change a thing about that day.” She presses her warm lips to mine.

“Agreed. Best day of my life.”

SayingI Doto the girl of my dreams and then spending a week with her in their luxury treehouses just the two of us was another bonus. I showed her all around Willow Branch Mountain and everything their resort had to offer. We went shopping in their small town, tried out their restaurants, and then spent all evening in bed.

Although I hadn't made it up there over the summer when we were going to discuss a joint statement over Angela's parole, I'm satisfied with how things were resolved.

There are no more secrets between Ellie and me.

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