Page 90 of Just Say When

He didn’t reply immediately, and that’s when I realized he was holding a package of his own. A small square, wrapped in blue-striped paper, with a darker blue bow on top. His anniversary present for me, I assumed. Jewelry, maybe?

“Is that for me?” I asked.

“Of course it is,” he said, but when I reached for it, he shook his head. “Not yet. Let’s go for a drive.”

I bit back a groan. “A drive? I love you, but it feels like all I do is drive.” The forty-minute commute each way had seemed to breeze by when I first started at Lodestar Ranch, but it got old fast. And when the weather was bad? Ugh.

“It will be worth it, I promise,” he said. “Please?”

I couldn’t say no when he was looking at me so hopefully. “All right. Let me grab a few things first.”

I ran to our bedroom and pulled out the large box I had wrapped just this morning from under the bed. I put that in a bag along with the tinfoil package, some napkins, and a couple forks.

“Ready,” I said.

It was a gorgeous evening for a drive, and with Brax doing all the work, I didn’t mind being back in the car. Irolled down the window to enjoy the crisp autumn breeze. September was still my favorite month in Colorado. There was nowhere else I’d rather be than right here, my husband’s hand on my thigh, the splendor of the Rockies laid out before us.

“We’re going to Lodestar?” I asked as we turned on the familiar dirt road. I brushed my wind-strewn hair out of my eyes and looked at him. “Our spot?”

“That’s right.”

I should have known. There was a place deep in the pastures, nearly to the tree line, where we liked to go and park. It had the benefit of being a five-minute drive by four-wheeler—or fifteen minutes by horse—from the cabins and main house. Private, but convenient.

It was also, in my opinion, the prettiest piece of land on the whole property. The view was breathtaking.

Of course, the view was amazing on every corner of the ranch. It was possible the time we spent there, andhowwe spent it, made me biased.

Brax turned off the road and bumped over the field until we were far enough away that no one could see the truck. I hopped down while he grabbed our blanket from the backseat. I stood there, admiring the streaks of orange, pink, and purple left behind as the setting sun hovered over the ridgeline, and breathed. Contentment washed over me.

Nowhere else I’d rather be.

“Essie.”

I turned around and saw that Brax had spread the blanket out. There was a picnic basket on the blanket and a bottle of champagne in a bucket of ice packs. I blinked. He must have snuck everything into his SUV while I was grabbing his present.

“What is all this?” I asked, stupefied.

“It’s our anniversary. A full year of living under one roof and not murdering each other. Shouldn’t we celebrate?” There was something in his voice that made me squint a little. An uncertainty underneath his dry humor.

I moved toward him and looped my arms around his neck. “Of course we should celebrate. I have something for you.” I rolled onto my toes and kissed him.

“Thanks, I love it.”

I laughed. “Not a kiss, Brax. An actual present.”

I disentangled myself from his arms and grabbed the bag from the truck. “Let’s sit.”

We both pulled off our boots and made ourselves comfortable on the blanket.

“I have something for you, too,” he said, pulling out the small box.

I handed him the present I had wrapped. “Open yours first.”

He smiled and started carefully working the tape free of the wrapping paper. I rolled onto my knees and watched impatiently. Finally he slipped the box free andfolded the paper up in a neat little square. I would have rolled my eyes if it weren’t so darn cute. So darnhim.

“The Tecovas?” he exclaimed as he held up an ostrich-leather boot. “You said no self-respecting cowboy could wear them.”

“You’re not a cowboy,” I said. “You’re an attorney and a part-time rancher. Every self-respecting attorney should have a pair. Anyway, I was running out of ideas of what to get you for our anniversary because when you like something, you just buy it yourself. That makes it very difficult to buy you presents, you know. I had to be proactive. Do you like them?”

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