Maggie waited on the edge of the dance floor, a cup of punch in her hand that she hadn’t sipped once. Chase was late, and Chase was never late.

For some reason, her insecurities had been rearing their heads since he dropped her off at the store over a week ago. He hadn’t said anything about the financing or the ranch in Grape Seed Falls, and if she tried to bring it up, he changed the subject.

She was going to get answers from him tonight, no matter what—if he would just show up. She turned back to the refreshment table, intending to eat cookies until he arrived, and caught sight of a couple of cowboys heading her way.

She breathed a sigh of relief and tossed her punch in the trashcan. She met Chase halfway across the lawn, unable to wait for him to come to her. “Hey, pretty girl.” He grinned and swept her off her feet. She squealed as he twirled her, and when he set her on her feet, he claimed her lips.

“I thought you weren’t coming.” She glanced at the other cowboy. “Hey, Matty.”

“Who looks good tonight?” He focused on the dance floor.

“Lots of cute girls out there,” she said. “Go on. Be nice.” She waited until he moved away, then she turned her attention back to Chase. “So, what’s going on?”

He took her hand in his and led her slowly toward the dance floor. “Who says something’s going on?”

“I don’t know, I can just feel it.”

“Do you want to dance, or can we just talk?”

“Talking would be great.”

He found a bench and sat down. Instead of sitting next to him, Maggie sat right on his lap, wrapping her arms around his neck and shaking her hair over her shoulders with a laugh. When he didn’t respond past a smile, she sobered. “Okay, talk.”

“The bank in Grape Seed Falls called today.”

Maggie sucked in a breath and waited, praying for good news. Really good news. Please let it be good news.

“They’ll approve the loan if I can get a co-signer and a ten thousand dollar down payment.”

He kept his gaze locked on hers, his throat working as he swallowed. Her heart sank and bounced back. Sank and bounced back. She didn’t know how to deal with the emotion, and she felt sick.

“Well, that’s that, then,” she said. “You don’t have ten thousand dollars, do you?”

He chuckled. “Sweetheart, I had to pay the appraiser five hundred dollars when we left Grape Seed Falls, and then I had to call Frank to get an advance so I could buy gas to get us home.”

She lowered her chin. “So the ranch isn’t going to happen.”

His blue eyes danced with amusement, one of the first things she’d fallen in love with when it came to Chase. “Frank and Heidi gave us the money as a wedding present.”

Disbelief tore through her, and her eyes widened, searching his. “No.”

He laughed. “Yes.” He tipped his head up and kissed her. “Face it, Maggie. We’re going to get married.”

Joy infused her very being. This wasn’t great news. This was spectacular news. “We’re going to get married.” She giggled and pressed her smiling mouth sloppily to his. They both laughed and she tucked her head into the crook of his neck.

“So now I just need to find a co-signer,” he said. “I can’t ask Frank.” His voice tightened. “I could probably talk to my mom, but we’ll see.”

“When do you have to know?”

“The loan officer is mailing me the forms. I probably won’t have them until Tuesday. So I have a few days.”

“Could I sign?”

“Do you own any property?”

If she’d chosen the farm supply store over Chase, she would have property. But, she was forced to say, “No, but I do move into my new apartment tomorrow.”

“I wish I could come help.” He traced his lips across her collarbone. “But if I do, I can’t make it to dinner on Sunday.”

“Dinner on Sunday is more important.” She ran her fingertips along the back of his neck, right at the hairline. “I only have a few things. My dad will help, and my uncle is loaning us his truck.” Her brain landed on something, and she gasped. “Chase,” she said, her voice full of air and surprise. “What about my dad?” She sat up and peered down at him.

Chase frowned. “What about him?”

“Could he co-sign the loan? He owns property and has a successful business.”

Hope and wonder crossed his face, but he shook his head. “No, I can’t ask him to do that. He barely likes me as it is.”

“He likes you fine.”

“He thinks I’m stealing your whole future from you.”

Maggie didn’t like the way that sounded, even if her father had said something similar once. “He just wants me to be happy. The store used to make me happy, and he doesn’t have anyone else to pass it along to.” Maggie looked over his head and gazed into the darkness beyond the bench.

“I’ll figure something out,” Chase said. “I don’t want you to worry about it.” He nudged her, and she stood. “Let’s go dance.”

* * *

Maggie felt like she’d swallowed a ball of nerves encased in a box of jumping beans. Chase was due to arrive in five minutes. The house smelled like roasted meat and buttery potatoes. Her mother bustled around, pulling the rolls out of the oven and muttering to herself. She seemed just as anxious as Maggie, who’d arrived a couple of hours ago to help in the kitchen.

She tore her eyes from the activity in the kitchen and looked out the window again. A truck sat at the curb now, and Chase was halfway to the door, a bouquet of wildflowers in his hand.

“He’s here!” she called and moved to the door. She pulled it open before he could knock, the pristine sight of him soothing all her nerves. “Hi.”

“Hi.” He swept his arm around her waist and kissed her quick, his smile a little wooden on his face.

She put her hand in his free one and led him through the living room and down the hall to the kitchen. “Mom, you remember Chase Carver.”

Her mother dusted her hands on her apron and ran her fingers through her hair. “Of course. Chase.”

“These are for you, ma’am.” He handed her the flowers and she smiled at them before setting them on the windowsill above the sink. She embraced him and untied her apron. “Dinner’s ready. Let me get your father.” She tossed the apron on the stovetop and left.

Maggie introduced Chase to her sisters again, and they both received him with their best Southern manners in place. Daddy came down the hall and Maggie squeezed Chase’s fingers.

“Sir.” Chase removed his cowboy hat and extended his hand for her father to shake.

Daddy smiled and shook Chase’s hand. “How was the drive from Three Rivers?”

Chase chuckled, the sound full of nerves. “It felt really long, actually.”

“Well, we’re glad you made it.” He gestured toward the dining room table, which Bridgette had set immaculately. Maggie took her usual spot. Chase sat where Heidi had for years, between Maggie and her father.

They said grace, and her mother said, “We just sort of pass around here, Chase.”

He reached for the green peas, which sat in front of him. “Everything smells great.”

Once everyone had plates full of food, Daddy said, “So, Chase, Maggie’s told us very little about this ranch down in Hill Country. What can you tell us about it?” He ladled gravy onto his pot roast, but Maggie could barely move. She almost dropped the bowl of mashed potatoes her mother passed her, and not only because the ceramic was hot.

“Oh, it’s a beautiful ranch,” Chase said, accepting the mashed potatoes from Maggie. “Have you been to Hill Country? There’s something magical about it.” He went on to detail the Medina River, the vineyards, the quaint town of Grape Seed Falls.

“How far is it from here?” her mother asked, and Maggie heard the notes of sadness beneath the words.

“About eight hours in a car,” Chase said, though Maggie had told her mother on at least two separate occasions about the distance. They’d let Heidi go to San Francisco, but she’d settled permanently in Three Rivers, only an hour away.

Maggie patted her mom’s hand. “We’ll visit all the time, Mom. And Daddy’s going to retire soon, and you guys will be so bored you’ll want to come down to Grape Seed Ranch.”

“You’re talking like this is a done deal,” Daddy said.

Maggie exchanged a glance with Chase, who stuffed another bite of meat and potatoes into his mouth. “Well, some of it is,” Maggie said. “Chase and I want to get married.”

“Has the man asked you to marry him?” Daddy cocked one eyebrow, his food completely forgotten now.

“That’s comin’ soon,” Chase said quickly. “I’m just…saving up for a ring.”

“But you can afford a ranch?” Her father’s incredulity echoed throughout the house, and Maggie didn’t appreciate it.

“Daddy, enough.”

“I’m just asking questions.”

Chase set down his fork with deliberate gentleness. “Frank and Heidi gave me the money for the down payment on the ranch. Frank said it was a wedding present, and I took it because I’m desperate to provide a life for your daughter that will satisfy you.” He reached for Maggie’s hand and gripped it tightly. “I love her, and I want her to be happy too.”

Daddy blinked, stunned into silence for long enough for Chase to say, “If you’d like to help, I’d love to have it.” He glanced at her mother and then Maggie, who nodded.

“Chase needs a co-signer on the loan,” she said. “The appraisal came back and said the ranch will be profitable in the first year. It’s already well-kept, and Chase knows what he’s doing. He just doesn’t own any property or have any credit history, and—” She volleyed her gaze from her mom to her dad. “Will you co-sign, Daddy?”

* * *

Chase couldn’t swallow, though he lifted his water glass to his lips. He finally set it down, the tension in the air as high as a kite.

“I’d like to see the ranch,” Charles Duffin said. “And the appraisal.”

Chase pushed away from the table, his chair scraping on the tile floor. “I have the property packet in my truck. I’ll go grab it.” He couldn’t get his legs to carry him fast enough, and he returned to the dining room out of breath.

“We can look at it after we eat.” Charles took the folder but set it next to him on the table.

Chase couldn’t do much more than nod, so that’s what he did. He finished eating, but the food didn’t taste like much more than sawdust. A real shame, because Maggie was a good cook and she had to learn that from somewhere.

Finally, Maggie’s sisters started cleaning up the kitchen, and Chase went with Maggie into the living room. They sat together on the couch, while her parents perched on the loveseat. Charles flipped through the folder, his face a perfect mask as he tipped the photos and fact sheets so Dana could see.

After several minutes, he closed the folder. He stared at Chase, and then switched his gaze to Maggie, where his eyes softened considerably. “The ranch is beautiful.” He stood. “I’ll co-sign.”

Chase lost the ability to speak, to move, but Maggie leapt from the couch, squealing and jumping up and down, and launched herself into her father’s arms.