The Cowboy’s Midnight Kiss Bonus Scene

Gabi

Every summer for the last three years, I swear the same thing. We will not go camping. Absolutely not.

And every summer, I give in because our three kids love it. Star just turned ten, Kody is eight and Noelle is four.

Right now, they’re bickering about who’s going to help set up the tent and who’s going to help prepare dinner.

Kane turns his head to grin, and I return it with a frown. “I said no camping,” I say.

“What are we going to do, baby? We’re outnumbered.” He looks in the rearview mirror at our kids. He adores them and if left to his own devices would soon spoil them.

Moose, the German Shepherd puppy that my parents gifted the kids chimes in, barking his delight when the kids begin singing at the top of their lungs.

He got his name after Star said the dog was amusing and Noelle misheard and pronounced it moosing.

The windows are down, and warm air circulates through the truck, bringing with it the scents and sights of summer. Freshly mown grass. Honeysuckle. The endless blue sky. I take a deep breath. There’s a slight hint of rain on the horizon.

I hope it holds off until after our trip.

The truck is loud and messy with all the snacks and things the kids brought. Even though sleeping outside isn’t something that’s on my top ten list of fun things to do, I love every second of the laughter and chaos involved in getting there.

“Are we meeting Grandma Claudia at the cabin?” Star asks.

Claudia became a widow at the first of the year and like a lot of the other families in town, we asked her to move in with us.

She’d refused, saying we’d cramp her style.

“Not this time, honey,” I tell her. “Grandma Claudia is going to stay with your Uncle Adam at his ranch this weekend.”

“Aww…I wanted Uncle Adam to come too,” Kody says.

The kids adore my brother Adam. He’s another one I have to constantly remind to stop giving the kids everything they ask for.

It takes us three hours to get to our vacation spot that once held a cabin.

The place used to belong to Kane’s grandparents. They raised Kane and he became the wonderful husband and father he is today because of them.

When they gave us the land, they urged us to tear down the cabin and build a vacation home here, so that’s what we’ve been doing little by little.

Right now, we’ve got the foundation set and the framework started.

As soon as Kane parks, the back doors are flung open and kids and the dog scramble out.

Moose starts to race toward the woods followed by the kids, but a sharp “No!” from Kane and all four stop.

“We won’t get lost,” Kody says, straightening his shoulders. He scuffs the toe of one of his boots along the ground. “I’ll be in charge.”

“Help unload and let’s set up,” I say. I’ve learned over the years that redirecting the kids’ energy saves a whole lot of explaining and potential arguing.

Noelle tries to pick up the cooler by herself before anyone can stop her. She drops it, the lid pops off and the steaks Kane so meticulously chose flop onto the ground.

Moose is all over that, snatching the pack and tearing around the back of the truck.

“Well, fu—” Suddenly aware of the kids listening, Kane amends it to, “Fudge.”

He chases down the dog, wrestles the steaks away, and holds up the mangled pack.

“I guess it’s hotdogs,” I say with a grin, knowing how much he loves a good steak grilled over a campfire.

Moose slinks back, licking his lips at what he almost got to eat, and comes to sit by Noelle.

She wraps her arms around his neck and kisses his fur. “It’s okay.”

I clap my hands. “Firewood,” I say, and the kids scatter around the foundation to search for twigs.

Kane already cut and stacked wood, covering it carefully the last time we were here, so it doesn’t take long for us to get a fire going.

He leaves setting up the tent to come and shoo us away from the fire. “I’ll make the hotdogs.”

Though he tends to spoil the kids, he watches them like a hawk when we’re camping. He’s always on the alert.

We eat a dinner of hotdogs and toasted marshmallows, then the kids talk about how they want their rooms done in the vacation house.

“Moose needs a room!” Noelle declares.

“He sleeps with me,” Kody says as he finishes another marshmallow.

“He’s not your dog,” Star adds.

“We need two…no…three dogs,” Noelle says.

Kane glances at me.

“No,” I say, and drain the last of the lemonade in my cup.

“C’mon, Mom, pleasepleaseplease,” the kids beg in unison.

I shake my head even though I know it’s inevitable. “This crew is enough to handle without adding more pets.”

“But we’ll each be responsible.” Kody taps his chest. “I’m the most responsible.”

“You can’t even clean your room,” Star argues, then yawns.

“And that’s your cue.” Kane gets up and claps his hands. “Bedtime.”

We usher the kids to their sleeping bags and though they protest, they’re all asleep within minutes. It’s no wonder. We were all up at the crack of dawn taking care of chores around the ranch.

Kane sits on the log by the fire and stretches his legs out, crossing his ankles. “Got the circus act shut down for another night.”

I lean against him, putting my head on his shoulder. “Don’t act like you don’t love it.”

“I do.” He smiles down at me, kisses me with a lingering kiss, and whispers, “But my favorite night will always be New Year’s Eve.”

I blush at the memory of our first time together. “I’m a big fan of that too,” I say.

That fateful night is what led us to this point on our love and laughter-filled journey we call family.

***

If you enjoyed reading Kane and Gabriella’s story, you’ll like meeting Jack and Cassidy in The Cowboy’s Curvy Crush!