“The ceremony was beautiful, darling. Just beautiful! And you . . . you are the most precious thing I have ever seen!” Aunt Lacy said to me as she kept pulling me in for a hug and then pushing me out again to do a once-over. I was starting to feel sick from the constant pushing and pulling.

I was finally able to break free from her and tried to sneak over to grab some sweet tea.

“Ellie!”

Shit! Dammit! I was just five feet from my sweet tea. I turned around to see Shannon and James standing there. Oh, I still felt so bad about everything that had happened. Gunner actually missed their wedding because of the car accident. I felt my face burning up.

Shannon leaned in and whispered in my ear, “Don’t you even think about it, Ellie. I know what you’re doing and you will not feel guilty, do you hear me?”

I smiled as she pulled away and gave me a kiss on the cheek.

“Have you met my sisters yet?” Shannon said as she put her arm in mine and led me away from my sweet tea. I looked around for Gunner. Where the hell was he?

Then I spotted him. He was playing horseshoes with a few of the younger kids. He looked up at me and we smiled at each other. I just wanted to leave. Start our lives together. That, and I really wanted some fucking sweet tea! If I had to talk to another person and thank them for coming, I think I was going to hurl.

Shannon introduced me to her two sisters, Lynda and Clare. We talked for a bit and then I slowly started to make my way back to the sweet tea. I saw it . . . Oh thank God, my mouth was so dry!

Just as I was about to reach for a mason jar and fill it up with nice, cold, sweet iced tea that only Emma can make, I was stopped again by someone saying my name. Motherfucker, now I was going to go off on someone.

“Ellie?”

“Mom?”

Wait . . . what?

I turned around to see a woman standing in front of me. I instantly recognized her from the pictures in Gunner’s bedroom. Gunner was standing behind her and she slowly turned around to look at him. She ran into his arms as he picked her up and spun her around.

“Drew! Oh, Drew! I’ve missed you so much. I’m so sorry, baby boy, so sorry!”

Oh. My. God. I looked around for Gunner’s father but didn’t see him. Bastard! I wonder if she had just gotten there. That made me feel sad if she had; she missed a beautiful ceremony.

“Mom, why didn’t you let me know you were coming? Did you just get here?”

“No, Drew, I was here for the ceremony. It was beautiful. You look so handsome, Drew, and look at you—such a man now. You’re not my little boy . . . Oh my . . .” She started to cry as Gunner drew her back into his arms.

My heart was hurting. To think of all the time she missed out because of Gunner’s stubborn father.

“Mom, please don’t cry. You don’t know how happy you made me by coming. Thank you so much.”

“Drew, your father wouldn’t come, I’m sorry. He did tell me to congratulate you, though,” she said with such sadness in her voice.

Gunner laughed. “Sure he did, Mom! I don’t want to talk about him. I want to introduce you to my wife.”

I sucked in a breath of air. Oh God, I loved hearing him say that!

“Mom, may I introduce to you my wife, Mrs. Ellie Mathews. Ellie, sweetheart, this is my mother, Grace Mathews.”

I reached my hand out to shake hers but she came up and hugged me. More like squeezed the shit out of me. She pulled back and looked me up and down.

“So beautiful! You’re such a beautiful girl.”

“Thank you, Mrs. Mathews.”

“No, please, Ellie, sweetheart, call me Grace. Thank you so much, Ellie, for making my Drew so happy. I can see by the way he looks at you how happy and in love he is with you,” she said to me with a smile.

I smiled back at her. She really was a beautiful woman, and I could see so much of her in Gunner now that I saw her in person.

“Thank you, Grace. I feel the same way about him. He’s the most amazing man I’ve ever met.”

Gunner walked around his mom, took me into his arms, leaned down, and kissed me. Before he pulled all the way away from my lips, he smiled.

“Do you want some sweet tea, baby?”

I had to let out a giggle. I wonder if he had seen my many failed attempts to get that tea.

“God, yes!”

Gunner let me go and I watched as he poured me a glass of tea. I turned back to look at Grace, and she was smiling at us with a big ol’ smile on her face. I really was so happy she made it, and I know it meant so much to Gunner. I just wished his dad would have come.

“Mom, you remember how good Gram’s tea is? You want some?”

Grace laughed and shook her head no. “Drew, I just spent nearly an hour in Emma’s kitchen with her. She filled me up with three glasses of tea! I’m good, honey, thank you.”

Grace and I took a seat at one of the tables and talked forever. She told me stories about Gunner when he was little, how he got into trouble in high school with fighting for a bit. It was like she was trying to make up for the lost time we had to get to know each other before I became her daughter-in-law. She raved on and on about Emma, told me to learn as much from her as I could if I was going to be a rancher’s wife.

Jenny walked up to us and said Gunner and I really needed to have our first dance. We had both been so busy walking around and talking to everyone that the DJ and band just started up without us. I nodded, got up, and followed Jenny into the barn. Gunner was talking to Jack, the DJ. I’m guessing he was telling him what song to play. I saw Jack nod yes to Gunner and smile. Gunner pretty much left all the wedding decisions up to me except for the song he wanted for our first dance. I had no problem with that since he had a pretty damn good track record with songs.

Gunner walked up to me and held out his hand. Jack announced that we were finally having our first dance. Everyone whooped and hollered.

“Will you please do me the honor, Mrs. Mathews?” Gunner said as he kissed the back of my left hand and started to walk me to the middle of the barn.

As he pulled me into his arms he leaned down and whispered against my ear. His warm breath sent the butterflies into flight in my stomach, and I felt a shiver run through my entire body.

“Don’t ever forget how I feel about you—never, ever forget, sweetheart. I will always want you and only you. I would be lost without you, Ellie. I love you more than life itself.”

Then he leaned down and kissed me so passionately I felt the love pouring from his body straight into mine.

Then the song started. Oh my God . . .

“Wanted” by Hunter Hayes.

Gunner never let up on his kiss even when the song started. I felt the tears rolling down my face and Gunner grabbed onto me and held me tighter as I was slowly starting to sink down. I’m not sure how long he kissed me for, but I started to sob. He pulled his lips away from mine and smiled down at me. He reached up and wiped away at the endless tears running down my face.

“Happy tears, baby?”

I couldn’t find my voice. I loved him so much and he just made the most wonderful day so much more special. I didn’t think it could get any better, but again he showed me different.

I could barely talk, but somehow I managed to speak.

“Yes, Gunner, they are very happy tears. I love you so much. Th . . . thank . . . um . . .” I started to cry again. He pulled me into him and held me close as he started to sing the song to me so softly and sweetly.

I never wanted this moment to end. I never in my life felt so loved and wanted as I did at this very moment. I would love this man with everything I had in me for the rest of my life. I would do everything in my power to make him just as happy as he had made me.

I looked up at him and smiled as he smiled down to me.

“Drew, it’s another first.”

He looked at me confused. “What is, baby?”

“This . . . this feeling. It’s a first for me.”

“Tell me, Ellie.”

“I have never in my life, ever, felt so completely loved and . . . wanted.”

Gunner leaned down and captured my mouth again with his. It was perfect.

No, it was heaven . . .

Evening had already come, and someone had turned on the lights in the trees. Probably Jenny by the way that poor girl was running all over the place.

Gunner and I were both exhausted. I had never danced so much in my entire life, ate so much, and laughed so much. It was all coming to an end.

“So are you going to change or stay in that dress?” Ari asked with a wiggle of her eyebrows.

Gunner walked over and whispered in my ear for me to keep the dress on. He wanted to slowly peel it off at the hotel in Austin.

“I guess I’m keeping the dress on!”

Ari let out a laugh and hit Gunner in the shoulder.

“If you think she looks beautiful in the dress, wait until you see what she has on underneath the dress. Or all the little outfits I packed in her suitcase.”

Gunner pulled me against him and pushed his hips into my backside. Oh my! It was time to go . . .

“Ari, I always knew there was a reason I liked you so damn much.”

“Damn straight, asswipe, and you better spoil her rotten on the honeymoon, or I’ll punch you in the nuts and not think twice about it.”

With that, Ari turned and walked away. I had to laugh. I loved her so much. I thought about the whole situation with Jefferson. Ari didn’t know it, but Jenny was working double-time tonight with our wedding and also transforming the hunter’s cabin into a romantic paradise so Jefferson could ask Ari to marry him tonight. I noticed her getting in and out of her truck for the last two hours running back and forth.

“We need to do something special for Jenny and Aaron for everything they have done, Gunner.”

“Baby, I’m already one step ahead of you. I booked them a room at the Marriott in Austin for the next two nights. I had Jeff go and leave them some gift cards for a few restaurants, too, and Gramps hired a whole crew to come and clean everything up and take it all down. Jenny doesn’t have to worry about a thing.”

I turned around and looked at him.

“You really are too damn good to be true, do you know that?”

Gunner threw his head back and laughed.

Just then, Jefferson pulled up in Gunner’s truck. It was completely decked out in cans and ribbons and every window had something written on it.

Gunner grabbed my hand and pulled me to him.

“You ready to go and start our honeymoon, Mrs. Mathews?” Gunner said as he wiggled his eyebrows up and down. Then he took his hand and ran it down my face.

I could feel the heat rising in my cheeks just at the thought of what it was going to be like tonight. The thought of making love to Gunner as his wife for the first time had me blushing like mad.

“I’ll take that as a yes.”

Jenny came over and walked us around to the ranch house. She said Emma and Garrett wanted to speak with us in private before we left. We walked into the house and Emma was holding a bouquet of daisies and smiling so big. Garrett was holding an envelope and his smile was even bigger than Emma’s. Of course, he looked at Gunner and winked, which caused me to blush all over again. Emma handed me the flowers and hugged me.

“Welcome, my sweet darling Ellie, to our family. I loved you the moment you jumped out of Drew’s truck and smiled at me. I absolutely cannot wait for you to move out to the ranch. You truly are the daughter I never had, sweetheart. I love you.”

I was at a loss for words, again. I hugged her back as tightly as I could and whispered in her ear how much I loved her and what a wonderful job she did helping to raise such an amazing man.

She pulled back and smiled. “He is, isn’t he?”

I nodded my head yes. I looked over at Gunner, and he had a tear running down his face. I reached up and wiped it away.

“A happy tear, I hope.”

“Yes, baby, happier than you can ever imagine.”

Garrett cleared his throat and moved over to us. He looked like he was about to cry, which made me start to cry.

“Drew, you continue to make us so damn proud. I can’t begin to tell you how happy I am for you, son. You did well, especially with this fine young lady here.”

Gunner pulled me closer to him. I put my arm around him and felt his body shudder.

“I know you had your whole honeymoon planned out and wouldn’t let your Grams and I help you with anything, so this is our gift to both of you. I want you to open it now before you leave.”

Emma was standing there, wringing her hands like she was nervous as hell.

Gunner took the envelope and opened it. It looked like a bunch of legal papers, a check, and was that a deed to something? Gunner’s face dropped as he handed me the check and looked at his grandfather.

I looked at the check and almost fell over. Was I reading that right? $550,000?

“Gramps what are you doing? You can’t afford to give us this kind of money. I won’t take this.”

I looked up at Emma and Garrett, and they both looked pissed. I took a step back.

“Drew, don’t you ever again tell me what I can and cannot afford to do, young man. That house you lived in for four years in Austin? Well, I had a gentleman call me four months ago asking if I wanted to sell. I told him he could have the house the moment you and Jeff graduated and moved out here to the ranch. I sold it to him six days ago with the agreement that he give you until July fifteenth to move out. The money is from that house. Emma and I want you and Ellie to start right away when you get back from your honeymoon on building your home on the ranch. Anywhere on the ranch you like. That deed, son, that deed is for the entire ranch. It is now yours and Ellie’s.”

Oh. My. God. I had to sit down before I passed out. I looked up at Gunner, who now had tears just rolling down his face. He walked over to his grandfather and hugged him. They exchanged a few more words to each other, and then he hugged Emma. I couldn’t think straight. The ranch was ours?

“Gramps, Grams, I don’t even know what to say. Are you sure you’re ready to turn it over to me to run? What if I fuck it all up?”

Garrett laughed. “Drew, I’ll be here every step of the way to help you.”

Gunner turned and took my hand to help me up. We kissed Emma and Garrett goodbye again. We thanked them again for the incredibly generous wedding gift and made our way to the truck.

As we pulled away, I started to get excited. Gunner looked over at me, took my hand, and kissed my rings.

“You ready, sweetheart?”

I smiled at him and felt so nervous. I felt like it was my first time all over again.

“I’m so ready, you have no idea! Can you possibly speed just a little? I’m not sure I can wait another three hours to be with you.”

Gunner threw his head back and laughed as he drove just a little faster.