Page 71 of More Than This Land

They’d given her a home without even trying, their love folding her into the family in a way she could never repay.

Wade shook Luke’s hand, then hugged Claire. “Drive safe, you two.”

After they left, Luke and Claire sat in the booth, finishing their pie before they headed out. The diner hummed with conversation, but nothing pierced their little private bubble once Luke turned to look at her.

“You did a great job with the planning.”

Luke’s ears went pink. “It’s not that hard.”

“It used to be.” She bumped his shoulder with hers.

Miss Jo materialized with the coffee pot, topping off their cups. “You two are disgustingly cute together. You know that?”

“We try.” Luke sighed like it was a tremendous effort and kept a straight face.

Miss Jo snorted and moved to the next table.

They sat in comfortable silence until she scraped up the last bite of pie. She was content to be here, sitting beside Luke in a diner booth on a Saturday evening with nowhere urgent to be, but she still had responsibilities.

“I should get back to Granny Mama. I told her I’d help with dinner.”

Luke stacked their plates and handed them to Jo when she stopped and held out a hand. “What’s she making?”

“Your favorite.”

Luke grinned. “Is that an invitation?”

“It’s always an invitation.” She gathered her bag and slid out of the booth. “She asks about you if you’re not there.”

“Can’t disappoint Granny Mama.” He followed her out of the booth, and they walked out together, Luke’s hand warm on the small of her back. The evening air carried the smell of cut grass and distant rain.

Claire tilted her face up to the sky, eying the clouds building over the mountains. “Should rain later.”

“Good. We need it.”

Was it weird that she even loved these conversations? The ones that seemingly meant nothing? But to a rancher, rain often meant the difference between having enough hay to feed through the winter or not. They talked about weather like stockbrokers talked about markets.

Luke’s truck sat in the parking lot beside the diner, and they gravitated toward it without discussion. Claire leaned against the passenger door while Luke stood in front of her. He ran his knuckles across her cheek and across her shoulder before settling his hands on her hips, thumbs rubbing gentle circles through the fabric of her shirt. “Happy three-month anniversary.” He kissed her cheek. “Best three months of my life.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.” He leaned in, his forehead resting against hers. “Even though you reorganized my filing system and I couldn’t find anything for a week.”

“That filing system was chaotic.” She rested her hands on his biceps and tried not to melt when her knees went weak. “You had vendor contracts mixed with feed orders.”

“It made sense to me.”

“It made sense to no one.” A smile threatened as she remembered his expression when he’d discovered she’d spent an afternoon at the ranch office implementing a new organizational structure. He’d been annoyed for approximately ten minutes before admitting it was better.

“I love you.” The words still felt new and precious. She prayed they always carried a weight that made them unforgettable and never meaningless. “I love that I get to say that now. That I get to just tell you.”

“I love you too.” He kissed her. Soft and slow and sweet, the kind of kiss that made her forget they were standing in a parking lot where anyone could see. When he pulled back, his smile brightened his eyes. “Thank you.”

“For what?”

“For being brave enough to choose this. To choose me.” His hands tightened on her hips.

A slow blink brought him more into focus. “You made it worth the risk.”