Serious Cowboy (Cowboys of Duncan Ranch #2)

Epilogue

Callie peeked down at herself, then back into the cheval mirror in front of her. As much preparation and thought that had gone into this day, there was still a part of her that couldn’t believe it was really transpiring. Yet here she was at the Overlook Grand Mountain Lodge in a white satin and lace dress preparing to marry the love of her life.

Zeke Knight.

If anyone had told her when she first moved here to help out her brother that she’d be married to some guy who worked on a local ranch, she probably wouldn’t have believed them. As often as she’d imagined her wedding day, the groom had always been a mystery. She’d never been capable of nailing down the details about him. But it turned out that the man of her dreams just so happened to be a feed manager with a tragic background.

Who could’ve predicted that?

Not her.

Still, it felt right. Despite her tearful response to Zeke’s proposal, it had never once felt wrong with him. Not even when they’d been broken up or when he’d suffered amnesia. Deep down, something inside her recognized that man as her match, and seeing him on bended knee before her had caused an avalanche of emotions to overwhelm her.

But it’d been the healthy kind of overwhelm. A realization that although their romance had been forced to travel along one of the roughest roads ever, they were finding their happy ending. And that happy ending started with now, their wedding day.

She checked her makeup and hair which had pearls laced through the curls. The stylist Lindsey had suggested, a lady named Joy who worked at Salon 406, had made her look like a queen while maintaining the whimsicalness Callie preferred. Callie was so glad she’d hired her. And that wasn’t the only miracle Lindsey had performed. She and her team had also transformed the rather boring flat cement roof of the finest hotel in town into something special.

It reminded Callie of a garden, just like she’d dreamed of as a little girl. A colossal open-air tent had been installed to mitigate some of the August heat, and beneath it she’d laid some kind of temporary carpet that looked like white satin. All around the perimeter were ferns and flowering plants in pots with magenta, purple, and buttery yellow blooms. Her bouquet was made up of the same flowers, and she even wore a baseball sized purple blossom behind her ear.

Daisy had flown in for the occasion to serve as her Maid of Honor, and she’d asked Amanda and Erika to be her bridesmaids. Zeke had Tim as his Best Man, with Bryce and Cody as his groomsmen. Zeke had grown quite close to the organic farmer recently employed by the Duncans. The two men had quite a bit in common both professionally and personally.

Daisy chose then to pop her head into Callie’s dressing room. “How’s it going?”

“Great. You and Erika ready?”

“Oh, yeah. We’re bonding over our love of elaborately made coffee.”

Callie pictured it. She’s teased her bestie about her long coffee orders for years now. “You mean your half-caff latte with skim milk, heavy cream, extra sugar, with sprinkles and served in a flowerpot?”

“Shut it, you,” Daisy nudged her with her shoulder. “I would never order something in a flowerpot. That would just be gross.”

They stared at each other with their brows raised, then both exploded with gleeful laughter. Callie hadn’t thought of herself as tense at all, but strolling out there on the roof of this hotel in this fancy dress for the most significant event of her life had her shoulders tighter than she’d realized. Her BFF’s goofiness whisked all of that away.

“Thank you for being here, Daze,” Cassie told her.

Daisy huffed. “As if I would miss your wedding . Are you crazy?”

They embraced, and something about the contact had Callie going all misty-eyed. She’d heard of people being basket cases when getting married, and now, she understood why. There was just so much going on along with the recognition that after she and Zeke spoke their vows to one another, nothing would ever be the same.

Which was exactly what she wanted.

They’d decided to reside in Zeke’s house since she wasn’t all that attached to her own little rental. Also, his home had more square footage. It made sense.

Outside, Lindsey appeared. “Cassie? You and Daisy ready? It’s time.”

“Coming,” Daisy spoke for the both of them. Then, arm in arm, they ambled up the stairs to the roof, her bestie lifting her train.

She and Daisy met Erika who was already at the top of the stairs looking all dressed up. It was unusual for Cassie to see her in anything but scrubs. They exchanged a brief hug.

“You’re going to do great,” the RN told her, then as the music of the string quartet Callie had specifically requested provided a musical cue, and Daisy strode up the aisle with Erika following shortly after.

That music she’d chosen to walk down the aisle to started, and after taking a deep breath, she began her journey up the aisle. She located a few important faces as she walked forward. Her parents in the front row. Zeke’s parents on the opposite side and separated by three chairs between them. She didn’t know if Zeke had given them a stern talking to or what, but they’d been better behaved so far today than she’d ever seen them.

Then, there were all the Duncan brothers and their families. Zeke’s coworker, Aaron and his new wife—and the lady who’d done her hair—Joy. Her nieces and nephew were being kept in check by Beth until the ceremony was over. It was a small and intimate gathering, something not only Callie had desired, but Zeke, too.

Even now, he preferred to avoid huge crowds.

They’d all be dining downstairs in The Aviary for the reception, but right now, Callie couldn’t think about eating. All she wanted to do was become united with Zeke in holy matrimony.

That was when she caught sight of Zeke’s face as he stood at the altar, one festooned with the same types of flowers as the rest of the space. His gaze had latched onto her as if he couldn’t do anything else, and as she watched, a single tear rolled down his freshly shaven cheek.

She quickened her pace, needing to get to him sooner.

“Dearly beloved,” the pastor began. “We are gathered here today to celebrate the love of Callie Blum and Zeke Knight and to unite them forever.” He went on, espousing all the vows they’d agreed on beforehand to share.

“Do you, Callie, take Zeke to be your husband to have and to hold, to love and to cherish, from this day forward?”

How they’d managed to jump to this point in the ceremony was beyond Callie. She’d become lost in her groom’s devoted gaze. But she answered regardless.

“I do.”

When the pastor posed the same question to Zeke, his voice had come out in an emotion-laden croak. “I do.”

Callie brushed away Zeke’s tears just as he brushed away hers, then once encouraged to kiss, they did. And something about the vows they’d taken, the dedication they’d promised, felt different to Callie than she’d expected. Her mother had told her that she should focus on the marriage not on the wedding and she was taking that advice to heart. Her wedding felt sacred, just as she’d expected. Her reception was going to be super fun. But her marriage was going to further define who she was. She’d have a partner in life and a man who loved her as much as she loved him looking out for her every day. Marriage wouldn’t be a cakewalk every day. But after what they’d made it through to be together, focusing on the marriage first was going to bring rewards they could only dream about right now. Their love would deepen and mature. They’d have kids. They’d add friends. Callie was blissfully aware of all the possibilities waiting for them.

As the day proceeded, the cake was cut, and the excellent food consumed, Callie couldn’t take her eyes off of Zeke anymore than he could her. Loved ones and friends wished them well, and Callie knew she thanked them, but it was Zeke’s face and tender expression that she couldn’t get enough of.

And now, she’d have it to look at forever.