“I’ve never been happier.”
“Neither have I, and that never could’ve happened for me without you.”
“Same goes. No one else would’ve done it for me like you do. It was always you.”
“Tell me you love me. I need to hear it again.”
“I love you, Gavin. I’ll love you forever.”
He slid into her in one deep thrust that had both of them gasping from the sheer magic they created together. “I love you, too, Ella. I’ll give you everything I’ve got for the rest of my life. You can count on that.”
“That’s all I’ve ever wanted.”
EPILOGUE
With George and Ringo in tow, Lincoln headed out to the trees to check on the work Gavin’s men had completed while he and Molly had been in Burlington welcoming their first grandchild. And what a fine, strapping little fellow Caden Lincoln Abbott was. His son had surprised and delighted him with the baby’s middle name. You never knew for sure if you were having an impact on your kids, but at times like that, you felt like maybe you’d done something right.
The older kids were back home now, after a fun trip to the Caribbean to marry off their friend Dylan. He and Molly would’ve liked to have been there, too, but had declined Dylan’s invitation because of the baby’s pending arrival. They’d been where they needed to be to help Max through the first few uncertain days that came with new parenthood.
He was doing a fine job so far. If only the same could be said for Chloe, who had no interest—or so it seemed to them—in their son or their grandson. Max had some difficult days ahead of him. His youngest child had grown up awfully fast this last year, and Linc worried about what was ahead for Max and baby Caden.
“Hey, you’re back!”
Lincoln spun around to see his father-in-law crossing the lawn to him. “About a half hour ago.”
“How’re things in Burlington?” Elmer asked.
“Tense.”
“Ah, damn. How’s our Max holding up?”
“Admirably, all things considered.”
“What’s up with that girl? She’s got the best guy in the world and an adorable son.”
“Max thinks she’s depressed. He’s taking her to the doctor on Monday. In the meantime, he’s taking care of the baby pretty much on his own and doing a fine job of it.”
“You must’ve had to drag Molly out of there.”
“She didn’t want to leave him yet, but I needed to get back to work, and they’ve got to figure out what’s next. They can’t do that with us underfoot.”
“I guess not.” Elmer shaded his eyes for a closer look at the recently thinned thicket. “Gonna be nice to have a forestry specialist in the family. He does good work.”
“I was just thinking the same thing. Our friend Gavin has stepped up to the plate and hit one right out of the park.”
“I gotta be honest. I didn’t see that coming.”
“Neither did we, but we’re thrilled about it because we know it’s what she wants. He’s what she wants. We could hear the joy in her voice when they called us last night.”
“I could hear it, too. It was so good of them to call me. I must confess, however, I’m a little disappointed that our services weren’t needed in this instance.”
“Right? We’re going to have to call this one a draw.”
“Agreed,” Elmer said with a sigh. “We were no match for Ella after she set her sights on Gavin. Charley, on the other hand, is going to need all the help she can get.”
“How so?”
“Did you see her dancing at the Grange with Tyler Westcott?”
“Yeah, so?”
“That boy has his eye on her.”
“Really? He’s such a nice young man. What does he see in Charley?”
Elmer threw his head back and laughed. “It’s not very nice to say that about your own daughter.”