Page 65 of The Cattleman’s Unforgettable Love: Ford and Amelia (MacFarland Ranch #11)

Amelia awoke with a smile on Sunday morning when Ford curled his arm around her waist and pulled her back against his chest. "Morning, Lil’ Bit," he said as he rubbed his chin on her shoulder.

She reached up to run her fingers through his beard. "Morning," she said with a smile. "Are you ready for today?" he asked.

She rolled over to face him. "I think it'll go okay, don't you?"

She loved the way he grinned as he nodded. "I think it's going to be a great day," he said. "An unforgettable one."

That made her laugh. "I hope you mean that in a good way."

He nodded enthusiastically. "Don't worry. I do. I think it'll be fine – more than fine."

She gave him a puzzled smile. "Do you have something up your sleeve, Ford MacFarland?"

He shrugged happily. "Now, that would be telling, wouldn't it?"

"Anything I need to know about in advance?" she asked. "Do you think the kids are going to be okay?"

He looked more serious as he said, "I think they'll do great.

I've already talked to the rest of the family, and they're all on board.

They get it. They'll always think of this place as home.

They all grew up here. It's not like I'm forcing them out or anything, but when we have Sunday lunches here like this, they all need to bear in mind that it's our family home now.

And they all know how important it is that Nat and Hunter feel like they have a place that's their own.

Especially since they've never had that before. "

He pressed a kiss to her lips. "Don't worry about it, Lil’ Bit. It's all going to be okay." He frowned. "Are you okay with it? Do you feel like they're all going to be coming in, invading your space?"

She shook her head rapidly. "No, not at all."

His frown grew deeper. "Does it even feel like your space yet?"

"It does," she assured him. "I know what you're worried about, but you don't need to. You think that I'm going to feel like an outsider in their space, don't you?"

"Yeah, but you're not. I..."

She put a finger to his lips. "I know I'm not.

That's what I'm saying. It surprises me, but this house feels like my home now.

Home in a way that I've never known before.

I feel like..." She hesitated, but she had to say it because it was true.

"I belong here because of you. And the kids do, too.

I hope your family will always come over on Sundays. "

He chuckled. "Me too. But not every Sunday."

"No, but you know what I mean. I feel like a whole new era is beginning for us today."

He smiled big when he said, "Yeah, it is. What do you say? Should we get up and get started on the day?"

She wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed a kiss to his lips. "We absolutely should."

He crushed her to his chest, saying, "You want to watch yourself, Lil’ Bit." His hand closed over her ass as he added, "When you hold me like that, the last thing I want to do is get out of bed."

She kissed him again. "I'm the same, but there's too much to do this morning. Maybe tonight, after everyone's gone, you can carry me up here and make it up to me."

He leaned in close and claimed her mouth in one of his soul-searing kisses. When he finally leaned back to look into her eyes, he said, "You've got yourself a deal. But come on. The kids will be up soon, if they're not already. And I want us to have some family time before anyone else arrives."

Down in the kitchen, as she watched Ford make bacon and eggs before whipping up omelet rolls for Nat, it was obvious that he and the kids had something up their sleeves.

She kept catching them giving each other knowing smiles.

After a while, she had to ask, "Is someone going to tell me what's going on? What am I missing here?"

Ford grinned, and Hunter nodded at him enthusiastically. Nat smiled at her as she said, "I think Ford has something he wants to ask you," before turning to him and saying, "Are you ready? Have you got it?"

Ford patted the pocket of his jeans and said, "Yeah. I think it's time, don't you?"

Amelia loved seeing the three of them like that. Hunter came to her and took her hand. "Where are we doing it, Uncle Ford?"

Ford winked at Amelia as he said, "I think the great room. Let's go."

Amelia allowed Hunter to tow her along. Nat walked backwards in front of them, wearing the biggest smile Amelia had ever seen on her face.

Ford called, "I'll be right there."

When they reached the great room, Nat said to Hunter, "Stand her there in front of the big windows. That way, they'll be able to see the mountains." She pulled her phone out of her pocket. "And I'll be able to get them in the photos."

Amelia gave her a puzzled smile. "What photos?" she asked.

"Never mind that," said Ford as he came into the room carrying three boxes.

"What's in there, Uncle Ford?" Hunter asked.

"Yeah,” said Nat. “You never said anything about boxes.”

They’re for after," Ford said with a big smile.

"After what?" asked Amelia. "Will someone please tell me what's going on?"

Ford looked at the kids and said, "Are you ready for this, guys?"

They both nodded eagerly, and Ford came to stand in front of Amelia. Her throat tightened as he got down on one knee in front of her.

"Oh, my goodness. But Ford, you already..."

He grinned as he took hold of her hand. "I made a mess of it the first time. I didn't have a ring, and we weren't all here together." He jerked his chin toward the kids, who were watching eagerly. "So..." He fumbled in his pocket and brought out a ring box. "I want to do it right."

"Smile," Nat called, holding up her phone.

Ford laughed. "Give me a minute to ask her first, kiddo."

"Oh, shoot. Yeah. Sorry. Carry on."

Happiness bubbled up in Amelia's chest as she watched them, and it hit her that this was her family now. She offered up a silent thank you to Danny, promising him that she'd always do her best for Nat and Hunter. She came back to the moment when Ford tightened his grip on her hand.

"Are you okay, Lil’ Bit?" he asked with a frown.

She chuckled. "I've never been happier. I'm just taking in the moment."

"Okay, well..." He held up the ring. "You know I'm not good with fancy words, but I love you with all my heart.

" He glanced over at the kids. "I love these guys, too.

I didn't have a ring the first time I asked you, and we weren’t all together – and I want to do this right.

Will you marry me? I want to spend the rest of my life taking care of you and of these two. I want us to be a family."

He cleared his throat. "I told you before, you light me up. You take my breath away and you set my heart on fire. I want to spend the rest of my days trying to do the same thing for you."

"Oh, Ford." Tears were running down her face as she nodded. "You already do. You do all of that and so much more. I love you."

"Aww, you guys!" Nat was holding her phone up, taking photos. "This is beautiful. I love you both."

Amelia's hand came up to cover her mouth in an attempt to keep in the sob. Ford's eyes were shining as he made a face at her, making her laugh.

"Show her the ring, Uncle Ford. Show her what it says," said Hunter.

"Oh, yeah, right." Ford held the ring up, and Amelia's breath caught in her chest. "Oh, it's beautiful," she exclaimed.

"Isn't it? But look inside," said Hunter. "There's a special message for you in there. I helped with it."

Nat chuckled as she wrapped her arm around her brother's shoulder. "Let him show her, Hunter."

Ford got to his feet and held the ring up close for Amelia to see, running his finger around the inside of the band.

run(mainProgram: Lil Bit)

"Oh, my goodness, Ford!" she exclaimed.

He leaned in to press a kiss to her lips. "I need you to know that you're not some subroutine. Not to me."

"Not to us," added Hunter.

"You're the reason we're all together and that we're a family now," said Nat.

Amelia swept away the tears from under her eyes. "I love it. It's perfect. Thank you."

Ford slid the ring onto her finger, and she held her hand up to admire it. "I love the engraving, and I love the ring, too. It's beautiful. What is it?"

"It's a Montana sapphire." Ford looked a little bit concerned. "I didn't have you down as a flashy diamond kind of girl."

"That's because you know me," she told him. "This is absolutely beautiful. I love it. Thank you."

He nodded. "To me, it's special because it's of this land, and I hope that someday you'll feel that you're of this land, too."

She reached up to kiss him, and when he curled his fingers around the back of her neck and took the kiss deeper, she melted against him as the rest of the world faded away. She soon came back with a jolt when Nat called, "Okay, you guys, you can save that for later."

She and Ford broke apart, laughing.

"There's one more thing I want to say," said Ford. "You know how I said you might have to change your username? Since you're not a subroutine anymore, you're the main program."

She nodded, wondering where he was going.

He met her gaze and held it, and she could see the hesitation in his eyes. "I don't know if you'd want to..." He looked over at the kids. "This is a question for you guys, too, since I don't want you to be rootless anymore."

"I should have talked to you all about this before now, and you should all say no if you don't want to do it. But... when we get married and when we get the adoption thing sorted out, do you guys all want to be MacFarlands? When I talked about changing your name, that's what I meant."

Amelia hugged him. "I do. I like that."

She looked over at the kids, not knowing how they'd feel.

Hunter nodded eagerly. "Mateo and Ash already told me that being a MacFarland is a good thing to be around here. I want to be one." He looked up at Nat. "Don't you?"

Amelia held her breath, agreeing with Ford that it was probably a discussion they should have had before putting her on the spot like this.