Loving You (Love Wanted in Texas) (37 page)

Glancing over to my precious Kate, she was still fast asleep sucking her thumb.

“She’s having another little girl, Corinne! We have another girl in the family!” Liza cried out.

“Oh no. Not another girl!” Nicholas moaned as Walker picked him up and threw him into the pool.

“Will she be starting school with me?” Corinne asked.

Ava laughed and looked down into the pool. “She will have to wait a few years like Kate did.”

Ryder cupped Ava’s face with his hands and smiled. I glanced up and saw Reed’s reaction. I knew it made him happy to see how much Ryder loved Ava. Just like it did for me when I witnessed Walker’s love for my daughter and their two kids.

Nickolas walked up and stood next to Ryder and Ava. He was dripping with water from just climbing out of the pool. He puffed his chest out and I couldn’t help but smile. Damn how I loved that boy. He had already started asking his daddy if he could start working on the ranch. My heart ached for a moment. I’d have given anything for my parents and Mike to be here.

“Don’t worry, Uncle Ryder and Aunt Ava. My dad told me since I’m older it’s my job to protect the girls. If anyone hurts them, I’ll kick their ass!”

Corinne gasped and turned to Liza. “He said a bad word, Mommy! Nickolas said a bad word.”

Everyone looked at Walker as he took a few steps back.

Ava turned to Reed. “He’s your son, so this is your fault.”

Narrowing his eyes at her, he asked with a confused expression, “My fault? “How in the hell is this my fault?”

Corinne gasped again. “Grandpa!” Shaking her head, Corinne looked at Courtney. “Grammy, you better spank Grandpa for saying that bad word.”

Courtney sighed. “Oh, sweet little girl, if I did that Grandpa would like it too much.”

Liza and Ava both covered their mouths in an attempt not to laugh, but it was too late. Everyone started laughing. Even Nickolas and Corinne who had no idea why we were all laughing.

Standing up, I smacked my beautiful wife on the ass and pulled her in for a kiss. Moving my lips to her ear, I took in a deep breath and let her heavenly scent settle in. “I think that sounds like something I might like as well. Oh the wicked plans I have for you tonight after everyone leaves.”

Whitley hit me on the chest and pulled back. Our blue eyes each burning with desire. “How in the world can you make my stomach dip all these years later with something like that, Layton Morris?”

“Sorry we’re late!” Jase called out.

Turning, I grinned when I saw my son carrying his daughter, Emma, on his shoulders. Taylor held onto Mason’s hand as they made their way over to us.

“How was the party?” Courtney asked, holding her arms out for Mason. He quickly ran and jumped into her arms. “Grammy! Emma lost her tooth!”

Whitley gasped next to me as we all looked at Emma smiling with a huge smile on her face.

Jase peeked up and laughed as he said, “And tell Grandpa how much the crazy tooth fairy left you.”

Emma’s face lit up. “A hundred dollars!”

Everyone looked at Taylor.

“Thank God my child is sleeping and didn’t hear that,” Ava said with a chuckle.

Taylor chewed on her lip as she peeked over to Walker and Liza. Both Corinne and Nickolas had their mouths dropped open.

“She thought it was a ten!”

Corinne turned to Walker. “Daddy! Is she going to leave me a hundred dollars?”

“Yeah, Dad! Is she?” Nickolas asked.

Walker rubbed his hand on both their heads. “No y’all, she is not. Emma’s tooth fairy was one in training and probably got put in timeout for leaving such a large amount.”

Walker looked at Taylor who blushed and said, “Oh trust me. She did.”

Jase laughed as he leaned over and kissed Taylor on the cheek. “I love you.”

I sat back down and watched the whole scene play out in front of me. I imagined what it would be like to slow life down and do this every weekend.

My eyes soon found hers. Smiling, I couldn’t help but notice the tightness in my chest as Whitley smiled at me. She made her way over to me, reaching up and kissing me softly on the lips.

“Tell me what you’re thinking right this very second.”

With another quick scan of everyone, I placed my hand on the side of her face as she leaned into it. “How I’m the luckiest man in the world. Thank you for giving me all of this. Thank you for never giving up on me.”

Her eyes filled with tears. “Never. I love you, Layton.”

My lips pressed to hers as we heard Emma and Nickolas yell out.

“Oh gross! Grandpa and Grandma are kissing!”

Laughing, I kissed Whitley’s nose and looked up. “Who wants to see Grandpa do a cannonball?”

Gunner

Earlier that same day

Walking up from the barn, I stopped and took in the sight before me. My heart was filled with so much love and happiness, I needed a moment to stop and catch my breath.

Looking up, I smiled. “Gramps, you would have loved this.”

Focusing my attention back on everyone, I took it all in as I slowly let my eyes scan across the yard as twelve little ones gathered around a piñata. It was something we did every year on Gramps’ birthday. Today he would have been a hundred and five. My chest ached any time I thought about him and Grams.

Taking a deep breath in, I slowly blew it out.

“You okay?”

Turning, I smiled at the beautiful blue-eyed beauty in front of me. “Yeah. Thinking about Gramps and Grams.”

Ellie walked up to me and flashed me that same smile that melted my heart still to this day. She was a far cry from the young girl with the sprained wrist who sat next to me and watched Cars. She was so much more. She was my everything.

“I miss them too, Gunner. But do you now what makes it easier for me?”

I grinned and nodded my head. I couldn’t bring myself to say it out loud and Ellie knew that. “They somehow knew it was time and they went together, Gunner. Let that comfort you that they’re together forever.”

Grams and Gramps were found laying together in bed five years ago. Their fingers laced together. A love like theirs would only allow them to go together. There would be no way one could survive without the other.

Pulling in a deep breath, I smiled.

“Look at this crazy group we have.”

Ellie giggled and rested her head on my shoulder.

“We’re blessed.”

“Hell yeah we are.”

My heart felt full as I looked to each one of them.

Mireya. Libby and Luke’s first and the first grandbaby of the bunch born. Next to her was her younger brother, Trey. He was spit and fire like his granddad, Jeff. Trey was trying to push Mireya out of line and she was having none of it. I couldn’t help but smile as I watched Luke take Libby’s hand in his and kiss the back of it.

Then we had my sweet Bayli. Not yet a young lady, but itching to be one. She stood in heels that clearly belonged to Alex. Joshua Drew was next to her yelling for her to help him on his turn. She was a wonderful big sister to Joshua. I was pretty sure Ellie secretly hoped they fought like cats and dogs like Alex and Colt had.

Alex and Will were sitting at a table totally lost in one another. The way Will looked at my daughter made me smile. It was clear how much he loved her. My chest felt tight knowing my daughter had followed her own dreams and had accomplished so much.

The twins were standing a bit off to the side. Arabella was attempting to braid Charlotte’s hair as well as Grayson’s.

“Oh my. Meagan is going to be brushing out knots tonight in Charlotte’s hair,” Ellie said with a chuckle.

I grinned. “I doubt she’ll mind. I got to give props to Gray. That has to hurt with the way Arabella is putting all those little ponytails in his hair.”

Ellie laughed and agreed.

Jacob attempted to try and sit on his sister Hope’s shoulders while Grace started laughing.

“Jacob Bennet! You’re going to fall and break your arm!” Grace called out.

“No I won’t, Momma. Hope promised to break my fall if I fell.”

Grace frowned and shook her head. “Don’t count on it, Buddy,” she replied as Noah wrapped his arms around his wife and kissed her cheek.

The sight before me was something I found myself longing to see more and more. It warmed my heart when we were able to have everyone over.

“Grandpa!” Anissa yelled running as fast as her little legs would take her. I bent down and scooped her up in my arms. She was the spitting image of Lauren with her blonde hair and the bluest of blue eyes. “Hey, sweetheart. Everything okay?”

Nodding, she rested her head on me, causing that overwhelming sense of love to hit me hard . . . right in the chest.

“Oh, how we have our granddaddy wrapped around our little finger.”

I nodded. “And that’s okay. She is perfectly fine in my arms.”

Ellie winked and looked back over to everyone. “Dear lord, look at Hunter.”

I couldn’t help but laugh as I watched Colt and Lauren’s son running around in circles with a bag over his head.
Yep. That’s my grandson.

Shaking her head, Ellie said, “You wouldn’t know Hunter is three years older than Anissa with the way he acts.”

We both laughed harder when we saw Colt mimic his son. Lauren yelled for them to stop, prompting my son drop the bag, pick his wife up, and start running with her, eliciting cheers from all the kids.

Anissa lifted her head to see what was going on. Not seeming to care, she snuggled back onto my chest, which was perfectly fine by me. “She’s going to fall asleep in your arms again.”

“Then I’ll just have to hold her while she sleeps.”

Ellie’s breathtaking smile had me catching my breath.

“Aunt Ellie!” Emma yelled while running up and hugging Ellie’s legs.

Ellie gasped and said, “Why Emma Rose, look at your beautiful dress.”

Emma twirled around and gave us a huge grin. She was missing her front tooth.

I bent over and looked at her mouth as she snapped it shut. “I dare say, did you drop a tooth somewhere, Emma?”

She tried hard not to laugh, but lost her battle and went into a giggling fit. Her precious little blue-green eyes lit up when she finally looked up at me. “It fell out, Uncle Gunner!”

“I’ll say it did. Now where did you get that pretty dress?”

Emma blushed and looked away. Taylor and the girls teased me all the time over Emma’s little crush on me.

“My mommy made it. For our weddin’.”

Ellie covered her mouth with her hand to hide her smile. “Our wedding, huh?”

“Yep!” Emma said . . . doing another twirl in an attempt to win my heart.

“What if you get it dirty before the wedding?” I asked.

She frowned and lifted her eyes. Turning to look at Ellie, who lifted her shoulders, she glanced back at me. “Mommy will clean it.”

“Emma! Emma!”

A look of horror washed over Emma’s face. “Bye!” she yelled out as she took off running before her little brother Mason could find her. Taylor and Jase had their hands full with Emma and Mason, that was for sure.

“Oh lord, that little girl has it bad for you, Gunner Mathews. It’s those blue eyes and that dimple of yours. Not to mention you’re still rocking a body at fifty something.”

My heart hammered in my chest as I looked at my wife. “As much as I love this craziness we call our family, my favorite thing in the world is to lay on our quilt under our tree while I get lost deep inside of you.”

Ellie’s mouth dropped open as she lifted her hands and covered our granddaughter’s ears. “Drew Garrett Mathews. Don’t you talk like that in front of her.”

Wiggling my eyebrows, I leaned in to kiss her. Pulling back slightly, I stared into those blue eyes that still left me breathless.

Her eyes were filled with pure love as she softly spoke. “I love you, Gunner.”

Lifting the corner of my mouth into a smile, I replied back, “I love you more.”

KELLY ELLIOTT IS A NEW
York Times and USA Today bestselling contemporary romance author. Since finishing her bestselling Wanted series, Kelly continues to spread her wings while remaining true to her roots and giving readers stories rich with hot protective men, strong women and beautiful surroundings.