Page 35 of A Montana Fake Marriage (Sagebrush Ranch Sweethearts #1)

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

“We’re so happy you’re home,” Tana gushed, pulling Sammie into a tight hug.

Sammie shot Caleb a surprised look. He shrugged, his grin wide.

Sammie had been so worried to return back to Sagebrush. She’d thought Caleb’s family would hate her for leaving him—for leaving all of them without much of a goodbye. But as her mother-in-law held onto her, she slowly started to accept that she’d been wrong.

Tana pulled back, placing her hands on either side of Sammie’s face. Her eyes locked with Sammie’s. “I never thought the two of you were over. I knew you’d come back.” Her eyes darted to Caleb’s. “He was too much in love with you to let you go.”

Sammie’s skin prickled, and heat flushed through her body. She’d been too blinded to accept that Caleb might still want to be with her after she’d offended him. More than that, she hadn’t believed she was good enough for a kind man like him.

His hand slipped into hers, and he squeezed. She drew comfort from his touch. They were still married. They were still together. Caleb still had the ability to set her world on fire with just one look, and all she wanted to do was spend the rest of her life with him.

Tana released her, glancing between the two of them. “I’ll let you get settled, and then we’ll see the both of you for supper.”

Caleb nodded, and Tana stepped aside to allow him to lead Sammie to their bedroom.

“Oh, Caleb? Sammie?”

They stopped and faced Caleb’s mother.

Her smile was brighter than before. “Does this mean we can break ground on the house we planned?”

Caleb glanced over to Sammie, and a flutter ripped through her. They’d been married for a year, and yet their relationship still felt so new. Her insides churned with the anticipation of what this would mean for them. It was subtle, and she wasn’t sure Caleb noticed, but she gave him a short nod.

Then he brought her hand to his lips and nodded to his mother. “If the plans are ready, then so are we.” Caleb took Sammie’s duffle from her free hand and jerked his chin toward the stairs. “Shall we?”

She couldn’t put a finger on why there was so much anticipation for what might happen next. After they’d made up the night before, she’d opted to stay one final evening with Lacey. It was too late to move her things, anyway, and she’d felt she needed to sleep on her decision to return to Sagebrush.

She didn’t want to make a rash decision just because she missed him.

Now, with each step they took to ascend the stairs, she couldn’t stop her nerves from attacking her heart.

Caleb pushed the door open and waited for her to enter.

Their room looked exactly the same. Even the cot was pushed up against the wall. Caleb shut the door behind them and dropped the duffle bag on the floor. He came up behind her, his arms coming around her waist as he brushed a kiss to the side of her neck.

Sammie’s shiver of pleasure nearly shook her body. She closed her eyes and sucked in a shuddering breath before turning to face him.

He stared down at her, his arms still around her waist. “I love you so much, Sammie.”

“I know,” she whispered. “And I love you.”

Caleb tightened his hold on her with his left arm while lifting her chin with the hook of his right finger. He stared into her eyes, searching. His fingers shifted to her hair, tucking the strands behind her ear. “If I could do it all over again, I would have done it all over again.”

She lifted a brow. “All of it?” There was some teasing in her tone and yet a curiosity regarding the events that had torn them apart.

His eyes found hers. “If it got me back to you, then yes. All of it.” Caleb dipped his face closer to hers. “Even the hardships. Without them, I wouldn’t have learned a valuable lesson.”

“And what’s that?” Her breath hitched.

“That you’re more important than my insecurities. You’re more important than my judgments. You’ve become everything to me.”

She scoffed.

Caleb tsked and shook his head, a smile stretching his lips wider. “You might not believe me, but I’m being deadly serious. I won’t let you get away again. This is it, Sammie. You and me. Forever.”

His lips crushed over hers as he pulled her into him again. She reached up and pushed her fingers into his hair as she continued to cling to him. There was no promise of money, of an easy life before them, and yet he was promising himself to her.

Sammie’s father couldn’t have been more wrong about Caleb. Everything he’d said about Caleb sounded so ridiculous now. She’d been a fool to believe it.

Now, as his lips caressed her heated skin, she could finally accept that there was someone in her life that loved her for who she was as an individual and not what she brought to the table.

The warmth of his body soothed every painful memory. His gentle touch rejuvenated her heart. Their kisses grew more passionate, more desperate. It was as if the universe wanted to warn them that nothing is forever. Right here, right now, they had each other, and that would be enough.

Caleb walked her backward toward their bed. Her knees buckled against the mattress, and together, they fell. All Sammie could think about was how happy Caleb made her—how complete she could feel in his arms. If every single day ended like this one, she would die happy.

The following morning, Sammie lay on her side beneath a heavy comforter. But this time, something was different. An arm draped across her middle, and the warmth from Caleb’s body was pressed to her back.

His soft breathing went from being deep and even to something less so. He mumbled something next to her ear, eliciting a wave of goosebumps all over her body.

She smiled, shrinking into the covers even more.

“Good morning,” Caleb whispered.

“Good morning.” It took every ounce of control not to giggle.

His fingers traced idle circles across her arm. “How did you sleep?”

She twisted slightly so she could see his face.

His hair was mussed in the most distracting way.

A serene smile touched his lips. She didn’t have to utter a word for him to know the answer to his own question.

They shifted to where she rested her cheek against his chest and hummed a contented sound.

“I think I could be perfectly happy to spend the rest of my life laying here next to you.”

Caleb chuckled. It was a low, guttural sound that drew more joy than it should have from her heart. “Me, too.”

Sammie sighed. “Alas, I fear I have to get ready for work.” She moved to exit the bed, but Caleb held her tightly. She released a laugh. “I don’t know what you’re thinking, but I don’t have my inheritance. I’m going to have to do something to make money.”

He shifted and craned his neck to get a better look at her. “You’re my wife, Sammie. I’m happy to take care of you. I won’t prevent you from working, but if you really wanted to chase that dream of being a veterinarian or a horse trainer, then you should do it.”

She looked up at him with awe. “Of course I want to do it. But it’s going to be expensive. I can’t expect you to pay for it. I plan on saving up for it.”

He shook his head, disbelief in his gaze. “What I have is yours. You’re welcome to keep working, but we have what’s necessary to pay for your education if that’s what you want to do.”

Sammie stilled. “You can’t be serious.”

“Oh, I’m serious, all right.”

Her giggle ripped from her lips before she could hold it in. Her hand clamped over her mouth, and she laughed again. “Really? You’d do that for me? Of course, I’ll still put in hours at the restaurant?—”

He shook his head. “Bo said you can have your job back here. The hours will be more flexible, anyway. And you’ll get hands-on experience with the animals. I’m sure you’ll need that with whatever career path you want to take.”

“Really?” she repeated. “That sounds… too perfect.” It came out in a whisper.

He pressed a kiss to the crown of her head. “I just want you to be happy.”

“I am happy,” she insisted.

“Good.”

Everything couldn’t have been more perfect over the next week. Sammie researched different programs, weighing the pros and cons of each one. She got back to work, taking on the jobs that Bo assigned to her.

Every night, she went to bed with Caleb at her side.

Then one afternoon when she’d returned from her work, she saw him.

He was tall and foreboding, dressed in a fancy suit and speaking to Caleb.

Her husband stood with his arms crossed and a look of cool fury on his face. His jaw was rigid, and his stance spoke volumes about how prepared he was to pick a fight. Then his eyes cut to her, and everything about him faltered.

There was an anxiety in his eyes that she hadn’t noticed before. Just as quickly as it arrived, it disappeared.

Sammie’s father glanced over his shoulder, his gaze searching until it landed on her. He turned, and Caleb’s hand shot out to grab his upper arm. He said something then released her father.

For a moment, Sammie considered running toward the barn, avoiding the confrontation she knew would happen between herself and her father. But one look at Caleb, and she knew she had to finish this.

She didn’t move toward him, rather, she took on the stance that Caleb had held. When her father reached her, she lifted her chin. “Whatever you’re here to say, you can choke on it. I’m not leaving Caleb.”

Was that guilt and remorse that flickered in her father’s eyes? She couldn’t be certain. It was probably wishful thinking, anyway.

He glanced back toward Caleb then lifted a yellow folder in his hand. “I should have come sooner. I know.”

Sammie shook her head. “You didn’t need to come at all. I don’t need your money. I don’t need your approval. I’m happy here, and I’m not going to walk away from any of it.”

“I’m not here to ask you to do that.”

She nearly choked on her surprise.

He cleared his throat. “I didn’t do right by you. I can see that now.” He shook his head. “Your mother wouldn’t approve of how I handled things.”

“No, she wouldn’t have.”

He flinched but didn’t utter a word.

“So why are you here, then? Come to see for yourself that the divorce was never finalized? Sorry to disappoint you.” She probably shouldn’t have been so venomous with her words, but she’d been so hurt.

Lifting the folder, he let out a sigh. “This is the paperwork to finalize your inheritance. I’ve signed everything I’ve needed to.

I shouldn’t have kept it from you. I… I was wrong.

Clearly, that young man chose you out of love.

I just wasn’t willing to see it.” He held out the folder, and she stared at it like it might burst into flames at the first touch. He waved it a bit. “Please. Take it.”

Her hand trembled slightly when she accepted it from him.

“All you have to do is sign it. Then it will be released to you. There are no further stipulations.”

Sammie lifted her eyes to her father, tears prickling behind them. “And I don’t have to do anything else?”

He shook his head.

“Nothing at all?”

His lips pressed into a thin line. “All I ask is that you’ll think about mending our relationship. I know it’s a big ask, but I’d really like to have you in my life.”

Her jaw tightened. At this point, she couldn’t fathom a day when that would happen.

As if he sensed her answer, he nodded sharply. “Goodbye, Sarah Ann.”

She bit back the temptation to make an argumentative retort. Instead, she held up the folder and said, “Thank you.”