Page 60 of Snowed in with the Rancher

She nodded, then croaked, “Melissa.”

Before he could answer her, the nurse came back into the room. “I have updates for both of you,” she sang with a smile.

Both Tate and Olivia turned toward her in anticipation.

“The girls have woken up, they've both had fluids and oxygen. We'll need to keep them on some bronchial dilators and anti-inflammatories and antibiotics for a week or so, but all signs say they're going to be fine.”

Olivia sobbed once—and it must have hurt like blazes because she pulled it back in, her eyes squeezing shut as her breath hitched. Tate leaned down and drew her into his arms gently, making sure not to disturb her various tubes. “It's okay, baby. They're going to be okay. You did so well. You're the best mother there is. The very best.”

The nurse smiled at them both. “Well, I have some even better news. We're going to bring them both in here so all four of you can be together. That way, Dad here can make sure if anyone needs anything, he tells us.”

Tate released Olivia, wiping his eyes. “They can stay here?”

“Absolutely—and that chair in the corner folds into a bed if you'd like to stay as well.”

“Yes,” he said quickly. “I'm not going anywhere.”

“Look at that,” Loren said, grinning as she patted Olivia on the arm. “You married a good one.”

Then she left to help transport the girls from the pediatric ward.

“Married?” Olivia whispered, the first inkling of a twinkle returning to her eyes.

Tate grinned. “Yeah, about that.” He took a deep breath. “She jumped to conclusions, and I didn't correct her. I'd feel terrible if she caught me in a lie, so I think we need to take care of that.”

Olivia blinked at him.

“And before you say it's the fire talking, just remember you're the one who had smoke inhalation, not me.”

“Are you saying you want to get married?” she croaked.

“I'm asking,” Tate answered softly. “I'm asking if you will please be my wife, my family, my love. I know I had a hard time adjusting to all this, but the last few weeks have been as close to perfect as any time in my life has ever been. The only thing that could make it better is if I could be with you and the girls every single day, from the moment I wake up until the moment I fall asleep. When I got the call tonight, I realized that I never want to be separated from the three of you again. I never want to wake up in the darkness and not know where you are or if you're all right. I've been so afraid of letting you in, but believe me when I say I'm far more afraid of losing you. And if you let me, I want to hold on to you for the rest of my life.”

He dropped to one knee next to her hospital bed, and Olivia gazed down at him.

“Will you please marry me, Olivia Wickham?”

Her voice was barely a hoarse whisper, but he distinctly heard her say, “Yes.”

Then he stood and bent over to kiss her on the lips, and as he pulled away, all he could think was that he'd do it all again, every painful, solitary minute, as long as he knew this woman was waiting at the end. She and the girls were worth it all, and he was going to make sure they never had to go it alone again.

EPILOGUE

Tate watched as Jackie slid down the long zip line that ran through the trees on the federal acreage he leased. The zip line was part of the adaptive ropes course that Dreams for Disabilities had installed during the year and a half since Olivia had taken over.

She's totally fearless,he thought as she yelled and kicked her legs wildly while zipping by.Just like her mother.

“Daddyyyy! Look at meee!”

He laughed. “I see you, sweetheart! You're doing great!”

Jackie was followed by the boy who was having his Montana outdoor dream fulfilled. Seven-year-old Jacob had been born with spina bifida, but Olivia's organization was ensuring that he learned anything was possible if you were brave enough to dream.

Tate waved to Jacob as the boy flew by overhead, smiling to see Jacob's parents jumping up and down as one of Olivia's staff members filmed the whole thing for them.

Then it was Melissa's turn. She looked down shyly at Tate, and he hooked up her safety harness to the line, tested it with a sharp tug, and gave her a quiet thumbs-up. He understood her, and they'd forged an unbreakable bond since he'd really stepped up and committed to being her father. Taking a deep breath, his quiet girl grabbed onto the handle and pushed off the platform. Her path along the line was slower than her sister's, but he saw the secret smile on her face under the safety helmet as she gained speed, and he knew she was having every bit as much fun as Jackie had.

He flashed to the night of the fire and felt a familiar shiver of fear as he thought about what could have happened if Olivia hadn't woken up in time to try to save the girls. That damn Norene and her miserly ways could have killed his family because she was too cheap to update the wiring. What was worse, she actually took Olivia to court to make her fulfill the remainder of the rental contract. The look on Norene's face when the judge not only told her no but ordered her to pay all the court feesandarrange for home inspections on all her properties was priceless, and he'd heard from others that she'd been hit with a list of housing code violations that would keep Jake Pickelner busy for the next year. At least none of her other tenants will find themselves in a similar predicament. He just wished their safety hadn't needed to be at the expense of his family. Thankfully, no one was seriously injured. Or worse.

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