After Faith had saddled the horses, the three of them had ridden to the house so her mother could watch Callie. Then Faith took Rawley into town to see the doctor, while her father returned to the cabin with some ranch hands, got Cole into a wagon, and brought him to the sheriff. Once Rawley’s shoulder was treated—the bullet had gone through, nothing vital had been hit—they’d both gone to the sheriff to explain what had happened, how she’d been forced to shoot Cole in self-defense.
Then they’d returned to the house, where her mother had convinced her they needed to stay the night. Her parents were keeping Callie occupied while Faith had it out with Rawley. She couldn’t seem to stop shaking.
“I knew you had your gun,” he told her now, “but you couldn’t take advantage of that as long as he was using Callie for cover. I was hoping there was a spark of decency in him that would allow me to trade places with her. I knew you’d shoot him if he went for me, that you’d kill him and that you and Callie would be safe.”
“But you didn’t know if my bullet would stop him from killing you.”
“Because I wasn’t what mattered. When you told him that he was Callie’s father, it hit me.”
She came to an abrupt halt and stared at him. “What hit you?”
“That I loved her more than he ever could. It didn’t matter that he’d planted the seed. Here”—he punched two fingers to the center of his chest—“in my heart, she’s mine. If I had to, I’d lay down my life for her without hesitation or regret.”
He stood, walked over to her, and wrapped his good arm around her, bringing her flush against him. “And I’d do the same for you. Nothing in this world is more important to me than you and your little girl. I’d like to make an honest woman out of you.”
She gave him an impish grin. “Was that your idea of a proposal, Rawley Cooper?”
With a roll of his eyes, he started to lower himself to the ground. She stopped him. “Going to your knees once today was enough.” She wound her arms around his neck. “I love you with everything I am. When I thought you were dead, the light in my world dimmed. I’ll marry you on the condition you never put yourself in front of a gun again.”
“From here on out, darling, we’ll just lead a boring life.”
“I beat Grampa at checkers!” Callie yelled as she skipped out of the house. “Again!”
“He’s just not as good as you are, is he?” Faith asked.
“Uh-uh.” She grabbed the beam and swayed back and forth. “Mama, you told that man he was my father.”
With a deep breath, she released her hold on Rawley. She’d planned to have this discussion years from now. “I know. You see, Callie—”
“But he’s not,” she said in a tone that indicated there was no point in arguing the matter. “Uncle Rawley is.”
“Why would you say that?”
“’Cuz I love him so much.”
Rawley sat on the step. “I’d like to be your papa. Would it be okay if I married your mama? Then we could all live together.”
Callie nodded. “Rufus, too?”
Rawley grinned. “Rufus, too.”
Faith joined him on the step. Careful of his wound, she circled her arms around him. “Do you think we might give Ma and Pa a few more grandchildren?”
“I’m certainly willing to give it my best.”
Placing her hands behind his head, she brought him down for a kiss. She loved this man so much. She’d lost him once, didn’t intend to ever lose him again.
Chapter Sixteen
One month later
“Maggie, how did you know Rawley loved me?” Faith asked her maid of honor as they stood in the large parlor drinking champagne, waiting as Uncle Austin and the fiddle players tuned their instruments. “Did he confide you in?”
“Hell no, he didn’t tell me. I’m observant, figured it out on my own. The way he’d look at you—if a man gazed at me with such adoration, I’d marry him in a heartbeat.” She shook her head, smiled wistfully. “But my God, Faith, when you walked into the room earlier, the way he’d looked at you in the past paled in comparison to what I saw in his eyes today... he was holding nothing back. Everyone could see how much he loves you. I wasn’t the only one using a handkerchief to dab away tears.”
Faith was wearing the same white gown her mother had worn on the day she married. Faith and Rawley had exchanged their vows in the same room where her parents had promised to have and to hold until death parted them, with the same preacher who had married them officiating. So many of the ranch hands and townsfolk came to witness the ceremony that chairs had been provided to only the family members so enough space remained to accommodate everyone else.
“He does have a way of looking at me that speaks volumes.”
