Page 69 of More Than This Land

The booth was too small for all of them, but they made it work. Noah scooted over with exaggerated grumbling, and Graham pulled up a chair from an adjacent table. Luke kept Claire tucked against his side, his arm around her shoulders, unable to stop touching her now that he had permission.

“So.” Caleb leaned forward, elbows on the table, wearing his most mischievous expression. “How long have you actually been in love with each other?”

The teasing continued while Miss Jo made the rounds with the coffee pot and people stopped by the table to offer congratulations. Tom Martin shook Luke’s hand and told him he’d done good. The Henderson twins wanted to know if there was going to be a wedding soon. Elderly Mr. Peterson announced that it was about time someone in town had good news.

Through it all, Claire stayed pressed against Luke’s side, fielding questions with grace and humor, fitting into his family like she’d always belonged there.

“All right, all right.” Miss Jo eventually shooed people back to their tables. “Give these two some peace. They’ve had enough interrogation for one night.”

She winked at them when she said it, which meant the interrogation was far from over. This was Covenant Creek. They’d be talking about this moment for months.

He didn’t mind.

Dad stood, pulling Mom up with him. “We should head home. Let you young people celebrate.”

“Thanks, Dad.” Luke stood too, keeping Claire’s hand in his. “For everything.”

The old rancher clapped a hand to Luke’s shoulder. “That’s what family does, son. We don’t give up on each other.”

His brothers filed out with promises to see them both tomorrow, though not before Noah managed one more joke about Luke finally loosening up and Graham threatened to tell embarrassing childhood stories at the wedding.

Luke’s face flamed at that comment. How long did he need to wait before he proposed? He’d do it right now except they had too many curious onlookers probably hoping for exactly that.

When the diner had mostly cleared and it was just him, Claire, Miss Jo, and a few stragglers, Luke pulled Claire close and kissed her right in the middle of the Brand Iron Diner where anyone could see.

“I love you.”

“I love you too.” She smiled. “Think we gave them enough to talk about?”

“Probably not.” He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “We might need to make a scene at church on Sunday too. Just to be thorough.”

Claire laughed, and the sound filled all the empty places in his chest he hadn’t known were there until she showed up and turned his life upside down.

They’d found their way home. Together.

And sitting in the warm light of the Brand Iron Diner with his arms around the woman he loved and his community celebrating around them, he finally understood what his grandfather had meant.

The best things in life really did require a person to be brave enough to need them. And to admit to that need.

Chapter 18

Three Months Later

The key turned in the lock with a satisfying click. Claire tested the door handle twice before stepping back to look at the sign Graham had mounted above the entrance last Saturday. Wooden, hand-carved by a man named Brutus, a name which did not fit the small, bespectacled man at all and reminded her not to judge a person by a name or their looks. The letters read: Financial Consulting: Faith-Based Business Solutions, and underneath in smaller script: Claire Whitlock, CPA.

Her office. In Covenant Creek. In the converted feed store that still smelled faintly of grain and leather despite two months of renovations.

She’d signed the lease in May—after Tom’s outfit grew too large to remain in the building and had to be moved. It had been a hectic and frenzied rush to get her moved in two weeks ago, and it never failed to send a small thrill through her every time she locked the door at the end of the day. This was hers. This life. This choice.

She eyed the sign with a hand to her forehead to shield her eyes. How long would the Whitlock part of the sign be relevant? She’d halfway expected Luke to pop the question weeks ago, but she didn’t mind the delay either. It gave them time to get to know each other.

The afternoon sun slanted across Main Street, turning the pavement gold. Spring and summer competed in a stretch of long days and warm evenings, the kind of weather that made people linger outside and talk longer than necessary. Claire shouldered her bag and crossed the street toward the Brand Iron Diner, dodging a pickup truck that slowed to let her pass. The driver waved, and she waved back.

The diner’s door chimed when she pushed through, and the familiar smells of coffee and pie wrapped around her like a hug.

Miss Jo looked up from behind the counter, her face creasing into a smile. “There she is. Luke’s already in the back booth with his folks.”

“Thanks, Miss Jo.”