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They were all seated around mismatched tables in the backyard. Harley still couldn’t remember all their names—except for the women. It was nice to have some female friends, and Brielle was the only one who made sure she felt included in their get-togethers.
Mason reached for her hand, smiling at her as the rest of the family shouted over one another. Carter was the brother who was still missing, and it turned out everyone chose to avoid that topic altogether.
Harley could pick out Henry. He was the one who could make anyone laugh. His jokes left a lot to be desired, but she supposed that with the lack of a father figure, he took over the dad-humor that had been missing from the family.
Coming from a family where she was an only child, she could sit back and watch everyone interact with each other with great interest. One day, all these people could be part of her family.
Her heart fluttered and her focus shifted to Mason. Ever since they started dating, everything felt like it had fallen into place. She had found herself. She knew who she wanted to be and where she wanted to go.
Most of all, she knew who she wanted to be with.
“So, Mason, when are you going to finally pull the trigger and make an honest woman out of Harley?” Henry said out of the blue.
Everyone at the table stopped eating, chatting, and otherwise doing whatever it was they were doing to look in her direction.
Henry chuckled. “You know we’re all thinking it. I was just the one who was willing to say something.”
Mason squeezed Harley’s hand. “That’s between me and—”
“I’d like to know, too,” Harley spoke up, earning several chuckles from the group. Maybe they weren’t as judgmental as she thought. She smiled, her gaze returning to Mason. “I mean, there’s not much more I could do. I moved back here to be with you, didn’t I?”
Mason’s mouth dropped open. “You want to… you’d be willing to…”
Harley leaned into him. “There’s no one I would rather spend the rest of my life with than you. What do you say? Want to get hitched?”
“I—well, yeah—of course I do. I just didn’t think—”
She framed his face with her hands and pulled him in for a breath-stealing kiss. When she pulled back, the group cheered. “We should probably discuss one thing, though.”
“What’s that?” Mason murmured.
“I think it’s going to be better if we move out to my uncle’s place—especially seeing how he wants you to take over the whole farm.”
“He what?” Henry shot out of his seat. “You’ve been holding out on me!”
“Have not.” Mason laughed. “I’ve been working there, but there was no guarantee Abrams wanted me to take over the whole thing when he retired after the way I screwed up before. There’s been talk. That’s all.”
“Talk,” Henry muttered with disbelief. “I’d say that is more than enough proof of where everything is going to go. Congratulations, man! No one deserves it more than you.” He turned to the rest of their family. “I’m right, and you all know it. Out of everyone, Mason deserves to be happy—to start a family and everything.”
There were several nods of agreement, but Harley could hear something in Henry’s voice no matter how hard he was trying to hide it. There was a twinge of disappointment—longing, maybe. He didn’t want to be alone.
“And what about you?” Harley asked.
“What about me?” Henry brushed her off. “I don’t need anything.”
She glanced around at the Keagans. No one seemed to notice what she had. Perhaps she was reading too much into it. Henry very well could be as happy as he wanted to be.
He flashed her a smile and nodded to the house. “I’m going to get a refill. You guys start planning that wedding because I fully intend on taking Mason’s room for my own. Maybe I’ll turn it into a workout space.” He chuckled as someone tossed a balled-up napkin in his direction.
Harley leaned into Mason. “Wedding planning sounds nice.”
“Yeah? Got any ideas?”
She shook her head. “I can’t think of anything I want. All I need is you.”
“I couldn’t have said it better myself,” Mason agreed.
* * *
