“Not in a thousand years, sweetheart. You’re my everything now. Wherever you go, I go with you.”
She nestled against him, loving the way they seemed perfectly shaped for each other.
“Funny to think that when we first met, I believed you were just some wandering rancher who’d been hurt. I never imagined I’d come face to face with one of the legends from Dragonclaw Ranch.”
“The only legend I’m interested in is the one we forge together from here on out. But yeah, funny how my dragon seemed to know all along there was something special about this place.”
“Just like I felt something special when I saw you. I guess that’s just how fate works sometimes. You never know if the person you’re meeting might just be the rancher dragon you were destined to be with.”
Beck growled, apparently not liking the name she’d made up for him on the spot when the words “rancher” and “dragon” had been thrown in the same sentence.
“Sweetheart, I may be a dragon, and I may be a rancher to earn my keep, but I ain’t no rancher dragon.”
“So… a dragon rancher, then?”
“C’mere, you,” he growled, tickling her and placing sensual kisses on her neck and shoulders as she squeaked in delight, writhing against him as he kept her trapped. “I’m a mountain dragon. But I guess I’ll be a rancher dragon for you, if it means staying here on this ranch with the woman I love.”
She nodded, and he kissed her again, and in mere moments, she was breathless, the air heating between them quickly. They then shared a knowing look, a look that meant there was a lot more in store for Sierra than just kisses and cuddles in the coming minutes and hours.
So she just relaxed into Beck’s arms as he took her to new heights in her tiny bedroom in the old house on her family’s land, mind full of ideas and hope for the future that she couldn’t wait to share with her rancher dragon.
Epilogue
Beck took a deep breath as he shifted Clive’s reins from one hand to the other. He and Sierra were only a few miles out from Dragonclaw. They were coming back from an afternoon ride, and everything was perfect.
He sat up a little straighter, feeling her lean in against his back. At the same time, the small velvet box in his shirt pocket shifted, sending a wave of nervousness through him.
It had been a few weeks since they had officially mated. In that time, they’d been back and forth between Dragonclaw and her family homestead, working at the ranch when needed, then fixing up her place even nicer.
It was good to have time to focus on his mate, especially after everything that had happened.
And now he wanted to make things extra official.
“Where are we going?” Sierra asked, attempting—and failing—to look past him.
He grinned at her from over his shoulder. “Don’t worry. We’ll be there soon, sweetheart.”
They weren’t far now.
When they came to a stop, Beck stepped down off of Clive first, then held a hand up to help Sierra.
His mate.
Damn, he would never get tired of the way the word sounded in his head, the way his dragon roared its approval deep within his heart.
A warm, gentle breeze tousled her hair as she stepped down and looked around, then back up at him.
“This is on the edge between our properties,” she said. “Why did you bring us here?”
A small smile lit Beck’s face as he stared at the ground. More specifically, the shape of a certain dragon permanently imprinted from years and years of repeated landings.
They were standing smack in the middle of it, and he looked down and took her hands in his.
“This is where I used to come just to be near you.”
She looked confused for a second, then looked around and gasped at the shape in the ground.
“That’s right,” he said, laughing. “Every time I was drinking and feeling low, this was where my dragon would come. Deep down, he’s always known that you were the one for me.”
She smiled up at him, and it sent another wave of warmth, belonging, and affection for her through his body.
God, he loved this woman. More than anything.
Beck had never been one to be nervous, but he sure was now. But everything from the clear, beautiful day to the warmth of the sun’s rays on his face told him that this was right.
Even more right than the last couple of weeks had been, if that were possible.
So he pulled the small box from his shirt pocket and got down on his knee.
Sierra gasped and held a hand to her mouth. “Beck, you don’t—”
“I do, Sierra. I love you, and I’ll be damned if I don’t ask you to marry me,” he said. With that, he opened the box.
He watched proudly as she took in the stunning sapphire set in a beautifully gilded golden ring. It absorbed the afternoon light and refracted a million different shades of blue, all reflected in her eyes.
“This sapphire, along with the dragon talon, is the only thing I kept from my past life,” Beck said. “In the back of my head, I always thought I’d keep it for my mate. It’s beautiful, but I reckon it’ll be even more beautiful when you’re wearing it.”
Tears were shining in her eyes now. Tears he’d seen and caused before. Only this time, he was proud to know that the tears were from happiness. He hoped.
He took the ring from the box and held it out to her. “Sierra, will you marry me?”
Her response was instantaneous. “Yes! Yes, you big, wonderful dragon, I will marry you.”
Beck couldn’t help the huge smile that spread over his face as he put the ring on her finger. It was a perfect fit, and it looked even better on her hand than he thought it would.
She stared at it for a second, then threw her arms around him and kissed him. He held her back and kissed her in a rough, passionate embrace. Nothing tasted better than her lips on his. Nothing felt better than this moment.
Mated and soon to be married.
When they broke apart, she admired the ring for a second, then smiled amusedly up at him.
“You look relieved,” she said with a laugh. “Were you worried I was going to say no?”
“Nope,” he replied a little too quickly. “Not even a little. Well, maybe a little.”
Sierra was about to respond to that when the sound of a truck engine and tires on dirt broke through the silence.
Beck looked up, taking in a fancy, shiny bronze truck that he recognized as Clancy’s coming toward them, sending up dust clouds here and there.
Just in time.
When it came to a stop, Clancy got out of the driver’s side and held up a hand, looking fancy as usual.
“She say yes?” he asked.
Sierra held up her hand. “Absolutely!” she shouted back. “A million times yes!”
A bunch of hoots and hollers rang through the air as the rest of the gang got out of the car.
Everyone was here: Harrison, Marian, Clancy, Dallas, and Reno. Marian walked over to them as Reno and Harrison unloaded a large picnic table from the bed of the truck.
“Look at that shiny piece of jewelry,” she said, winking at Sierra. “The men at Dragonclaw really know how to do engagement rings, don’t they?”
“That’s not all they do well,” Sierra replied, laughing.