“Happy New Year,” she said.
“Oh, is it New Year’s?” He stepped back and gave her a sly smile. “Let’s go make breakfast.” He took her hand in his and headed for the door.
“I put the bacon in the oven. Or I was going to.”
“Okay,” he said. “I was thinking we could eat outside today. It’s so nice.”
“Sunny but not overly hot yet,” she said. “That’s great.”
“Great.” Dawson got busy in the kitchen, and Caroline simply sighed with such supreme satisfaction that she was back here, in this cabin, with this man.
She slipped onto his couch and lay back, her feet up on the armrest, so incredibly comfortable here. “How’s the house coming?”
“Great,” he said over the sizzling of something, probably the potatoes he’d just shredded and was now going to crisp up. “We can go by after breakfast, and I want you to come look at the burrows too.”
“Of course,” she said, her heartbeat dancing a jig behind her ribs. Today marked a year of her official dating relationship with Dawson, and she’d be lying if this was the first time she’d considered him asking her to marry him today.
He’d been putting all the pieces in place for months now, starting with meeting with his brother and father about building a house for her and him right here on the ranch. It turned out, there was a small one-bedroom cabin that looked one stiff wind away from blowing away on the road that led north toward Shiloh Ridge Ranch.
That land had been deemed Dawson’s, and he’d started working with Bishop and Montana Glover to knock down the older structure and build a brand-newhouse. One she and Dawson could raise their family in, right here on the ranch.
Bishop had drawn up plans, and Dawson had included her in every decision along the way.
Now, all she needed was the diamond ring.
“We’re ready,” Dawson said as he went by the couch. “You didn’t fall asleep, did you?”
“No,” she said as she sat up. “I’m coming.”
He carried a big tray in his hands, and he’d already dished up two plates of breakfast, and Caroline sat on her side of the table and let him serve her. He set the tray aside and sat across from her. After taking her hand, he bowed his head and said, “Lord, we’re grateful for this food, our friendship, this land, and the New Year. Bless us to be happy and healthy, kind and patient, and we’re grateful to have time together today. Amen.”
“Amen,” Caroline murmured, and she beamed across the table to Dawson. He picked up his fork and nudged the bottle of ketchup closer to her with it.
When she didn’t move to use it or eat, he asked, “What?”
“I love you,” she said, wanting him to know in this moment.
He grinned at her, a hint of a flush crawling into his face. “I love you too, darlin’.”
She did pick up the ketchup bottle then, and Dawson cleared his throat. Alarms and alerts sounded through her, but when she took a sneaky peek at him,he’d simply cut into his over-easy eggs and started eating them. He picked up the salt-shaker, used it, and then did the same with the pepper. Another bite of egg, and her adrenaline eased.
She’d taken one bite of her ketchupped hash browns before she heard the distinct cawing of Nugget. “The crows are coming,” she said as she looked out into the front yard.
“Did you toss them something shiny?” he teased.
“Not today.” She smiled at him, because he wasn’t really upset about her tossing out nickels here and there.
Nugget landed on the porch railing, only a few feet from where she and Dawson dined, and cawed again.
“Not so loud,” Dawson told the crow. “We’re right here.”
Rocks didn’t land on the railing, but Caroline saw him down on the grass. She stood and moved over to the railing to see him better. “He’s got something,” she said, not really sure what her eyes were seeing. All at once, it clicked. “Beads.”
She turned toward Dawson. “He’s got a string of beads.”
“Does he?” Dawson got up too, but Caroline squished past him to get to the steps.
“I’ll check and see if he’s caught or if he’s just carrying them.”