Page 107

He gave her a rueful smile and shrugged when he saw that Ashton was already asleep. He hadn’t noticed the kid close his eyes because he was still in the same position – he was leaning against Tanner, arm around his waist, head on his chest.

Everly kissed Ashton’s head and said, “Love you, Ash. Goodnight.”

“Love you, Mom.” Ashton murmured as he let go of Tanner and turned over. Tanner couldn’t resist leaning in to kiss his head, too. That felt like a family tradition that he wanted to be a part of.

“Love you, bud. Goodnight.”

He started to get up from the bed, but froze when Ashton mumbled, “Love you, Dad.”

Tanner couldn’t breathe. There was a lump in his throat, and his heart felt as though it swelled in his chest. He had to blink a couple of times at a strange prickling sensation behind his eyes.

He slowly lifted his gaze to Everly, afraid of what her reaction might be. She looked as scared as he felt. At first, he couldn’t figure out why. Then, it hit him. He inclined his head toward the door and slid off the bed.

When they were out on the landing, he pulled the door almost shut, but left it open a few inches. Everly’s eyes were still wide as she eyed him warily.

He took hold of her hand and led her down the stairs. Neither of them spoke while he went into the kitchen and poured them each a glass of wine. He watched her take a big gulp and knocked back half of his glass before setting it down on the counter.

“Come here, darlin’.”

She still looked wary as she approached him.

“What are you so worried about?” he asked.

“You know. What Ash said. He… He was already asleep. You know what he’s like; he’s out like a light. He just goes through the routine of saying goodnight when I say it to him. It was just…”

He curled his arms around her waist and held her to him as he looked down into her eyes.

“Are you worried that it might be too much for me? That it might scare me off?”

She closed her eyes and breathed out a big sigh as she rested her forehead against his chest. “Yes. Of course I am. We only just talked about moving up there to be with you, and there he is… You know…”

He chuckled as he tucked his fingers under her chin to make her look up at him. “Yeah, I do know. There he is, calling me Dad.” He grinned; he couldn’t help it. “You have no idea how happy that makes me.”

Her eyes widened. “It does?”

“It does. Unless you have a problem with it.”

She stared at him. “I… It’s not that I have a problem with it. It just took me by surprise. I… How do you… When do you…? What do you think put that idea in his head?”

“The how? I don’t know. The when? Remember when we arrived at the ranch and he started calling Ford, Uncle Ford right away?”

She nodded.

“I asked him about it – because I was a little bit jealous. But I was only jealous until he explained. He said that if I were hisdad, Ford would be his uncle. Well, I guess you know that part already, but … That was when he said that hewantsme to be his dad. As for what put the idea in his head – I think that speaks for itself. He wants a dad. I think every little boy does, whether they know it or not.” He gave her a wry smile. “I know I did. I had a dad, but he was such a mean old bastard that I used to daydream about having a dad who loved me.”

Everly stared at him, still seemingly lost for words.

He sighed. “If it’s still too soon, I understand. The two of you have been your own little family unit for a long time. I don’t want to force my way into that. What I will say is that when you’re ready, that’s what I want. I want to be your man, and I want to be his dad.”

She met his gaze. “My man?”

He laughed. “Well, fuck! It’s all coming out tonight, isn’t it? I was trying to be more careful with my words than Ashton was with his. If you want the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, what I want, if you’ll consider it, is to be your husband. I want to marry you, darlin’ – make you my wife, and adopt Ashton so that he’s my son on paper. I know it’s too soon, but since I’m going all the way in, I might as well tell you, that in my heart, he already is.”

It was only when he stopped talking that he realized tears were rolling down her cheeks. “Shit! I’m sorry.”

She shook her head rapidly. “Don’t you dare apologize now!” she sputtered through her tears.

He swiped his thumbs under her eyes and kissed the tip of her nose. “I wasn’t apologizing for telling you the truth, only for saying it too soon.”