After Josh’s mother had died and he’d had to harden his heart to survive being thrown into the cold world of foster care, Charlie was the only one he’d been able to love. Until he’d met Meg, and then Haley.
As he gave the horse a quick rub, he had to bite his bottom lip for fear he might embarrass the hell out of himself and cry. He turned to Meg. “You bought Charlie for me? He’s ours now?”
She nodded. “Eric helped. He called and convinced Mr. J, who just dropped him off. He said you were always Charlie’s favorite anyway. Mr. Bower has that big farm just outside of town and said we can board him there. This way you can see him whenever you like. See? Much better than a ring, right?”
“Thank you, Meg. I don’t know how . . .” He couldn’t finish. There weren’t words to describe knowing that someone loved and truly understood him for the first time in his life.
Pulling it together, he said, “Yes, much better than a ring. But I want one of those too.”
Meg slipped her arms around his waist. “I found the perfect rings online this afternoon. Mine is going to cost you, so brace yourself. And we’re keeping Eric too, right? Forever?”
He lifted her up and held her close as he stared into her pretty blue eyes. “Yes. To any ring you want and to making Eric part of our family. Forever.”
When she wrapped her legs around his waist, he kissed her, taking his time about it, wanting to always remember this particular moment in the best day of his life.