Page 52 of Last Chance for Her Rancher Boss

It didn’t leave Nash and Meg much time to just hang out. But there was lost time to make up for, lostyears, and both of them were determined not to waste a second. So when Nash said come on, I want to show you something, she went. When she said hey,come sit with me while I order new vaccines for the herd, he pulled up a stool and sat beside her. They carved out time with each other with all the care of a sculptor, making sure never to miss a day of being together. It had taken them this long to reconnect; Meg, for one, wasn’t going to take it for granted.

She climbed into the truck, still not sure what could warrant a full-on surprise, but happy to go along for the ride. Hopefully Opal wouldn’t burn the place to the ground while they were busy.

Nash drove through the pastures, and only when they arrived at the old oak tree where Meg had first spotted the buildings on the hill did she realize where they were.

“The treehouse?” she asked as they climbed out of the truck and wandered over to the rope ladder.

“Yep.”

“What are we doing at the treehouse?”

“It’s a surprise.”

“But we’re here now. You can tell me.”

“Nope.”

“You’re a pain.”

“Yep.”

Without any extra comment or even the slightest clue, Nash climbed up the rope ladder with that surprising grace of his and disappeared into the small building. Meg didn’t bother complaining or arguing; it would get her nowhere, so she started to climb up after him. She gave up halfway up the ladder though, hanging there with a huff. Her thighs were burning from chasingOpal around the yard all afternoon. Nash poked his head out of the entrance and shook his head at her.

“Come on,” Nash said. “Are you getting old or something?”

“I mean, yeah,” Meg said with a shrug. “I kind of am. I’m not exactly twenty-one anymore.”

He tutted in that old-man way of his that she secretly loved, grabbed her hand and hauled her up into the treehouse. Meg sat on the edge of the opening with a huff, her legs hanging, taking a second to get her bearings before she looked around.

She had been expecting some new renovations, and that would be the reason why Nash had brought her up here. Maybe he’d finally put curtains up? But there were no renovations and no extra decorations. Instead there was a full picnic spread out on a tartan blanket on the floor. The last picnic they’d had here had been sandwiches, supermarket bags and cans of lukewarm soda. This was something else entirely. On top of the blanket was an actual picnic basket, made of wicker, just like the movies. There was an ice bucket with a bottle of champagne resting in it, the sunlight from the window glinting off the glass. Champagne glasses sat beside it, ready and waiting. Meanwhile, on a platter in the middle of the blanket was an assortment of cheeses, crackers, meats and fruit, all laid out like some sort of still-life painting. It looked… perfect.

Then there was Nash, standing in the corner of the treehouse, looking about as awkward as a brand-new foal learning to walk. Which only made the whole scene more perfect, even as Meg grinned at the whole ensemble.

“What’s all this?” Meg asked, wriggling into the treehouse properly and trying not to knock anything over in the process. Against all odds, she actually succeeded.

Nash mumbled something, his neck burning bright red. He always got the most embarrassed by the things he’d put the most effort into.

“Nash, I love it,” she said, reassuring him. “It’s amazing. I just don’t know what it’sfor?”

“Our anniversary,” he said, much clearer this time but with his neck turning an even brighter shade of red. “It’s for our anniversary. It’s been a year since our last picnic in here, and I thought… you know… I thought I’d make a thing of it.”

Oh.

Well…

Meg simplyrefusedto cry. Absolutely not. She needed at least two glasses of champagne before she was going to let herself cry. So when a few tears leaked out the corners of her eyes, she swiped them away and pretended that they absolutely didn’t exist.

“Oh, I love it,” she said, smiling up at him. “This is amazing.”

“Yeah?” he asked, suddenly looking so much younger, desperately hoping that he’d done a good job.

“Yeah, absolutely. So stop standing there like you’ve forgotten how to use your feet and come sit down with me.”

He didn’t move though. Was he okay? Had he fallen out of the tree while setting this all up and banged his head or something?Because Meg had seen him nervous before, but right now he was just actingweird.

Nash hesitated a moment longer and seemed to be bracing himself for something. Meg briefly wondered if Gadget had thrown him from the saddle again and he had gotten a concussion that way. But then Nash seemed to be mentally prepared, and he moved towards Meg as she sat on the blanket. As he lowered himself, instead of sitting he got down onto one knee and looked at her like he was seeing her for the first time.

Meg, for a few seconds, turned into a complete idiot, all of her brain cells vanishing without a trace. She had no idea what he was doing, entirely perplexed, until he pulled a black velvet ring box out of his back pocket. Nash opened it up, his hands shaking ever so slightly, revealing a delicate ring cushioned within, a single diamond glinting in the middle of the gold band. Then all of Meg’s brain cells returned, hurling her into sensory overdrive.

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