Page 52 of Hope's Heartlands

I pull the little box from my pocket and drop to one knee in front of her.

She gasps, her hands covering her mouth. I know she’s surprised, but I fuckin’ hope it’s a good one.

I put my hands on her thighs because in order to do this, I have to be touching her. I have to have my hands on her. “I love you, Kate. You know I do. I love everything about you. I’ve never had a family, besides the Heartlands. But everything I feel when I’m with you tells me that I want to be a part of your family. I want to wake up next to you every morning and hold you in my arms at night. I want to be there for you and for Emma. I want to laugh with you, cry with you, fuck, baby, I want to do it all with you. You make me want to be a better man, and you would make me the happiest man on the planet if you would do me the honor of becoming my wife. Will you marry me, Kate?”

With tears rolling down her face, she nods her head. “Yes, oh yes. I love you, Bull. I want all of that, everything with you.”

I take the ring out and put it on her finger, and it fits perfectly. She looks at it for the briefest moment and then she’s in my arms, knocking me backwards to the floor with her arms around me. We’re both laughing, unable to contain the high that we’re both on right now.

“What’s all the commotion?” Emma calls from the doorway.

Kate looks at her hand and then back to Emma, and I can tell she’s searching for the right words. “Emma…”

“Did you say yes?” she asks her mom, and then turns to me. “Did she say yes?”

I nod my head at her.

“See, I told you she would say yes.”

“Wait.” Kate looks between Emma and me and then back to Emma. “You knew about this?”

Emma puts her hand on her hip. “Duh, he asked my permission last week, Mom. He wanted to make sure I was okay with it.”

Kate smiles. “So I guess you were okay with it?”

Emma just laughs. “Yep, I agreed, as long as I could call him Pops.”

“Pops!” Kate exclaims.

“Yeah,” I admit. “Emma seems to think Pops is a good name for me. But I don’t care. She can call me whatever. As long as I have the both of you in my life, you can even call me Oliver.”

Emma starts to laugh, and when she sees that I am serious, she stops. “Wait, Oliver? Your real name is Oliver?” She starts cracking up, holding her sides from laughing so hard.

“Har, har, Emma. Isn’t it past your bedtime?” I ask her.

She turns to go, but gives us one last laugh. “Yeah, goodnight, Oliver. I mean Pops. I love you, Mom. Love you, Pops.”

We can still hear her laughing as she goes down the hall, but I’m looking at the spot she just left.

Kate notices and touches my chin, to have me look at her. “Hey, you okay?”

“Yeah, but she just said she loved me.”

Now it’s Kate’s turn to give me that “duh” look. “Of course she loves you. You’ve been here for her more in the past six months than her dad has in a lifetime. She loves you, Bull. I love you too.”

I wipe at my eyes. Not because I’m crying or anything, but because my eyes are watering. “I love you both.”

She settles back onto my lap. “I know you do.”

Epilogue 2

Kate

Four Years Later

“You know your dad is about to have a heart attack right now. Right?” I tell Emma.

She looks over at her dad and he’s surrounded by a few of the men from the Heartlands. Even from across the way, I can see his discomfort. He’s used to being around people in suits and ties. I’m sure all the leather and boots are something new for him. I almost get out my phone to take a picture of him standing underneath the Ride or Die sign.

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