Ask him, Declan needed someone to tinker with instead of the tractor and this ranch.
Liz pulled two stuffed bags out of the back seat of her car and headed up to the house. He followed, hoping to brighten her day. He had a few ideas up his sleeve on just the right way to do that. After all, he knew her better than anyone.
He thought about proposing tonight, but didn’t want to tie their engagement to what happened with Clint this morning.
He wanted Liz to look back on the day he proposed and smile and not have a single thing darken the memory.
With Clint haunting her life, Tate wondered how long it would take to find the right moment.
Fuck that. He wasn’t going to let another man dictate when he proposed to the woman he loved. But he did have one thing to do before he asked her. Maybe it was old-fashioned, but his mama raised him to do things the right way.
He walked up to the house and found Liz in their room hanging some of her clothes in the closet. It did something weird to his stomach to see her clothes hanging next to his.
She turned and jumped back, pressing her hand to her chest as she gasped with surprise. “You scared me.”
“Sorry. I thought you heard me coming up the stairs.”
She dropped her hand. “Lost in thought, I guess. How was your day?”
“It sucked. I didn’t spend it with you.”
A fleeting smile tilted her lips. “I took some time to clean up my place in addition to packing some stuff, which led to sorting out my clothes and bagging some things up that I’ll donate. I’ve got way more than I need.”
“Said no woman I’ve ever known.”
Another quick smile. She was warming up and getting out of her head. “Oh yeah? Are you going to build me a huge closet with the addition to the cabin?”
“Anything you want.” He tilted his head. “Well, within reason. But I promise your closet will definitely be bigger than mine.”
This time the smile lasted a few seconds longer. “What did you do today?”
“Not much. Fixed a busted gate on the bull pen. Checked on the cows in the south pasture. Rescued a cow that got stuck in some mud. Helped the farrier shoe a couple of the horses and trim a couple others’ hooves. Tore apart the tractor engine. What else did you do besides sort and pack your clothes?”
“Stopped by and saw my parents. I updated them on the whole Clint situation. They’re worried, but happy I’m here with you and your brothers looking out for me.”
That made him feel better. “How are your mom and dad?”
“Good.”
“Did you mention moving in here with me?”
She stopped pulling clothes from the bag and looked at him. “Not specifically. Like your brothers, they think it’s inevitable we’ll be together now.” She set a pocketknife on the dresser by her phone.
“What’s with the knife?”
“I thought I’d carry it with me now. Just in case. My dad gave it to me when I moved in to my own place. It’s been in a drawer ever since. But now . . .” She thought she needed it to feel safe.
She’d spent her whole life living like nothing bad would ever happen to her. Not anymore.
Yep. He should have beat the hell out of Clint this morning.
“You know what? Let’s go out to dinner.” Tate moved past her and went to the closet and pulled out the sexy black dress she’d hung up. He turned and held it out to her. “Put this on.” He found a black lace bra stacked with the white and nude everyday ones in the drawer and handed it to her. “And this.” He let his gaze roam down to her hip-hugging jeans. “Panties optional.” He gave her a wicked smile. “Surprise me.”
The smile stayed on her face this time. “How long will that dress stay on me?”
“Most likely through dinner. Once you’re back in the truck, I can’t make any promises.” He tossed the dress onto the bed next to piles of T-shirts and pants, flung one side of the bra around her waist and caught the end with his free hand, and used the bra to pull her in close. “Put on that sexy dress, go to dinner with me, and let’s forget about everything but you and me for a little while.”
She clasped her hands at the back of his neck. “You are always the best part of