Page 104 of Christmas with Three Cowboys

He gently wipes the tears from my cheeks and plants a kiss on my lips. In public, he’s the one I’m with. We agreed on this in order to keep our relationship safe, especially with the twins on the way.

“You’re a free woman,” Mitch says as he steps closer, leaving Mr. Wilkes to have a final exchange with the prosecutor and his assistant. “What’s the first thing on your to-do list?”

“I’d kill for a burger,” I reply, prompting a hearty laugh from my men.

Ethan offers a wink and a smile. “We could stop by the Cavalier before we head home.”

“Home,” I mumble.

“It’ll be your home for as long as you want it,” Colton lovingly reminds me.

I give him a fluttering kiss on the cheek, reveling in the feel of his sandy stubble against my lips. “I absolutely want it forever, Mr. Avery. Our children will love growing up there.”

After a generous lunchat the Cavalier, where Louisa is no longer working, since she’s serving a one-year prison sentence for helping Jake with my abduction, much to her family’s chagrin, we head back to the ranch.

As soon as Colton’s truck passes the front gates, it’s as if the world is finally opening itself up to me again. Everything looks better. Everything smells fresher—including the manure. It’s ridiculous, what true freedom can do to one’s senses. You don’t even realize how precious freedom truly is until you’re stripped of it.

Darla and Sammy come out on the porch to greet us

“So?” Darla asks, her eyes wide with excitement as Ethan helps me out of my seat. I’ve gotten heavier, sluggish at times. Carrying twins takes a toll on the body. “How’d it go?”

“All good,” I say with a bright smile. “I’ve been exonerated. My record cleared. My sentence vacated. It’s truly over.”

“Oh, honey, I’m so glad,” she exclaims and rushes to hug me, albeit careful so as not to squish me and my growing bump.

“We were just about to take the lasses out on the pasture,” Sammy tells the guys. “If you care to join us, that is. The ranchhands are at the stables, getting our horses ready.”

“How are they coming along?” Colton asks Sammy, a tint of sadness lingering in his gaze. The memory of Kyle and Jason is still strong on the ranch. They were good men who didn’t deserve what befell them. Not a day goes by that they’re not missed. “Are they giving you any trouble?”

Sammy scratches the back of his head. “Not really. Omar’s a tad slow, but he’s a hard worker. And Jessie’s a real firecracker. I reckon he’ll break the grey filly by next month. Something tells me she’s gonna let him ride her before summer comes around.”

“That’s good to hear,” Colton replies with an appreciative nod.

“We’re not going to be able to join you, though,” Mitch says, snaking an arm around my waist. “We just had a monstrous lunch at the Cavalier, and we’d like to put our feet up for a while. It’s been a long morning, to say the least.”

Sammy chuckles and gives me a gentle pat on the shoulder. “I can’t blame you. Y’all rest up, Melissa, and what can I say? I’m glad you’re free of all that nonsense. I’m also glad you’re stickin’ around with us, sweetheart. You would’ve been missed. This place ain’t the same without you.”

“Thank you, Sammy.”

The housestill feels strange at times.

I expect to bump into Kyle or Jason at any hour, but then I’m immediately reminded that they’re no longer around. It’ll take a while for this sadness to wash away, but the prospect of littlekids darting about, laughing and squealing, quickly brightens my mood.

My room was recently turned into the master bedroom—our safe haven away from the world. It’s still my space, but I spend my evenings here in the company of my men.

“Gosh, you’re so beautiful,” Colton says, smiling as he and his brothers walk in.

I’m fresh out of the shower and wrapped in a delicate, rose-pink robe made of fine silk, one of the many gifts they’ve been gracing me with since the whole nightmare with Jake and the cartel came to a drastic end. My hair flows freely over one shoulder, capturing rays of sunlight in its dark waves. For the first time in a long time, I feel like my truest self.

“You fellas are quite easy on the eyes as well,” I say and laugh lightly.

With slow but sure steps, I walk up to them just as the door closes behind Ethan, his gaze shifting from a light blue to the very night sky that will soon grace the heavens above.

“Take that off, darling,” he says.

“Yes, sir,” I reply with a playful smile and let the robe fall to the floor.

I watch as their eyes travel from my head to my toes while they remove their clothes, one layer at a time. First, the shirts and the boots. I’m graced with a splendid view of their gorgeous torsos, muscles bulging and stretching seamlessly as heat gathers in my core.

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