Page 48 of A Surprise Wedding for the Cowboy

“And you?” Pastor Marshall asked Stephanie.

“The benefit of living and working at Sweet River Ranch means I’ve met all of Tate’s family. Both of his parents have flown in for meetings, while his grandfather, brothers, and cousins are part of the daily operations.”

The man turned to Tate. “Where do your parents live?”

Tate braced himself. “My father lives in Chicago, and my mother lives in Gilead, Kansas.”

The pastor shook his head, looking sad. “Divorced, I take it?”

“For many years, sir.”

“Having that sort of negative example—”

“Sir.”

Pastor Marshall’s eyebrows rose. “Yes?”

“Stephanie gets along great with everyone in my family. Next question?”

“Money. How will the two of you decide how to manage your finances?”

“In my family’s company, there’s enough to go around. I haven’t asked Stephanie for a pre-nup, and I don’t plan to, since I expect to remain married to her until one of us dies of old age.”

“And if she goes on a spending spree?”

Stephanie made a strangled sound.

“She’s proven herself to be responsible with money. Working at the bank for years probably helped with that. Plus, any expenditures she’s brought forward have been beneficial to Jamie and me. I’m not worried.” Should he be? Nah.

The man glanced at his notes, and his face colored. “Sex.”

“I expect to enjoy it a great deal.”

Stephanie clenched Tate’s hand, but he didn’t dare glance her way just now.

“Parenting.”

Wow, the pastor was ticking through his list about as quickly as possible. “I’ve seen how Stephanie relates to Jamie and disciplines him, and I think we can safely say that we’re on the same page there, as well.”

“Careers. You work for your family, you said. What are your expectations for your wife?” Pastor Marshall folded his hands over his papers and looked Tate in the eye for the first time in several minutes.

Tate turned to Stephanie. “What do you think, honey? What are your future career plans?”

She smiled at him. “Well, I’d like to be a stay-at-home mom for all our children while they’re young.”

He didn’t miss the slight emphasis on multiples. “And after that?”

“We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it. I’m sure there will be a position I can fill at Sweet River Ranch when the time comes.”

And there it was. The one thing they really hadn’t discussed. “Or… how about Chicago?”

Her eyes widened as her lips parted.

Oops. “Grandfather estimates two to three years of hands-on management of the ranch, then I expect to return to the city and to work from the offices there.”

“You… do?”

Oh, boy. He really should have thought this through. A quick glance at the portly pastor revealed the man leaning back in his chair, apparently enjoying the show.

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