My Cowboy Boss Bonus Scene
Arizona
There’s a fire snapping at the logs in the fireplace, making the living room warm and cozy. Our rescue Dachshund is asleep on the rug on his back while our cat watches him, tail twitching, from the sofa.
I’m waiting by the back door for Flint to get downstairs and join me outside at the swing he built for me. We always end our days there sharing things we need to address or just taking a few minutes to connect.
The window where I’m resting my hand is cold, the chill from winter’s bite making me shiver.
Our teenage twin boys, Travis and Joel, turned sixteen a week ago and I’m having a difficult time with that. They’re ready to start driving and dating. They don’t need me like they used to.
Kayla headed to college two years ago and that was hard. And soon, probably in the amount of time it takes me to draw in a breath, the house is going to get quiet with just me and Flint living here.
My strong cowboy husband acts like it’s just part of life with the kids growing up and moving on, but I see the way his throat works when he stands at the kitchen counter watching our boys interact in the mornings.
He’s my best friend. My confidant. My steady rock. I’m more in love with him today than ever. I think that’s what the passing of time does to a couple. Love produces roots and those roots dig deep into the soil of marriage, growing stronger, and becoming able to withstand the adventures of life.
Flint walks down the stairs and that third step from the bottom squeaks like it started doing a couple of years ago after Joel dropped his skateboard on it.
The boys burst through the front door, back from their chores, bringing in the wind and snippets of conversation about a game.
“Boys, mind the fire,” Flint says, going to the hall closet to get a jacket. Then he comes up behind me, putting his hand on my shoulder. He gives it a gentle squeeze. Our hearts are so linked that he can tell when I’m struggling.
Outside, he reaches for my hand, and we thread our fingers together while we walk across the yard to the swing that holds a special meaning for me. He’s had to rebuild the seat due to the passing of time.
“I know,” he says when I sit, and he gently pushes me.
I swing up into the air and the wind stirs my hair.
We stay like this until Flint grips the rope tighter, slowing the swing until he brings it to a stop. “I can smell your sweet perfume,” he says, nuzzling the side of my neck. “My favorite.”
“Everything about me is equally your favorite,” I say.
“That’s not true,” he protests. “I do have some special favorites.” He wraps his arms around my waist, pulling me back against his solid form.
“Like what?”
His deep voice lowers to an almost-whisper, “I showed you last night. That’s what keeps my beard nice and silky.”
I laugh and get off the swing to swat at him.
He dodges me and jogs backward. “C’mon, you can do better than that.”
I stop, putting my hands on my hips. “You’re not going to fool me into this.” I glance backward at the house. “Besides, the kids are up.”
“Honey, I’m pretty sure they know how they came to exist.”
“I’m not playing.”
He grins. “Girl, you’re so sexy when you’re serious.”
I laugh. “Behave.”
“If I were a well-behaved cowboy, we wouldn’t have had so much fun trying to give Kayla siblings.” He moves around the swing, and I go the opposite direction.
“Flint, I’m really serious.”
“Ooh…sexier.” He moves his hips from side to side in an exaggerated swing as he begins to sing a song we always dance to every time it comes on the radio.
I turn to sprint away but with his long legs, he quickly catches up to me and twirls me around. “I know you’re feeling sad about the kids growing up and moving on, but don’t you fret, honey, I can fix that.”
“How?”
“We’ll just make another,” he says, twirling me again and then clasping me against his chest.
I laugh and loop my arms around his neck. “Yeah, right.”
“Okay, then. Challenge accepted.” He scoops me over his shoulder and acts like he’s going to run to the house.
“Flint! You put me down right this second!”
He lowers me to my feet, his body touching mine intimately as he sets me down. “Everything’s going to be okay, honey. I’m here by your side right where I’ll always be.”
I rest my head against his chest, listening to the steady beat of his heart as he holds me. And we stay like that for a long while.
I know that tomorrow my day will once again be filled with family responsibilities. I know that life might throw me a curve ball and I might not like all the changes heading my way. But I also know that I have a man who loves me fiercely through good times and bad and I know he’ll never stop loving me.
That is why no matter what goes on, every second of my life is so beautifully perfect.
***
If you loved Flint and Arizona’s story, you’ll enjoy reading Wilder and Aspen’s story in My Cowboy Date.