The ceilings are tall, and it looks almost like a ski lodge inside. Different mounted game are displayed on the wall like deer and even a few hogs. As the fire crackles, we look over the menu and everything listed sounds delicious. We snacked on food at the rodeo, but we haven’t really eaten anything since breakfast this morning before we left.
A younger girl walks up, and she looks like she’s no older than sixteen. She smiles wide at us and takes our drink order.
“Anything you’d recommend?” Viola asks.
“Oh yes, ma’am. I personally love the chicken fried steak with homemade mashed potatoes and sweet baby carrots, but honestly, you can’t go wrong with anything on the menu. It’s all good.” She smiles before walking away to get our drinks.
Viola laughs to herself.
“What?” I look at her over the menu.
“Everyone here is friendly. It’s so crazy. Texans.” She shakes her head.
“So you wanna move?” I ask.
She shuts her menu and throws a smirk my way. “Courtney’s finally gotten to you, hasn’t she?”
I shrug. “Not right now, but maybe one day.” Texas wouldn’t be so bad. It’d be different from the constant noise of the city and once our kids are grown and moved out, then what?”
“Okay, Mr. King. How about I say, we’ll see?” She shoots me a wink.
The waitress walks up and Viola orders what she recommended, and I decide to get the same thing. I watch the light of the flames lick her skin. Noticing I’m watching her, Viola tuckers loose strands of hair behind her ears and smiles at me.
“I’m going to call your mom real quick and check on the kids,” she tells me, and I nod. Viola is such a beautiful woman without even trying. I look at her, and I’m so thankful she’s mine. While we’ve had our ups and downs over the years, I wouldn’t change any of it. I watch as she talks to each of the kids and tells them how much we love them. Our kids are so damn lucky to have someone so caring as their mother.
She hangs up and looks at me. “They’re doing fine. Your mother fed them tons of ice cream after dinner. TJ’s so wired right now. I hope he calms down or your mother’s hair is going to be completely white by the time we pick them up.”
“She raised me. I’m sure she can handle him,” I remind her. “Plus she loves spoiling them. I’m sure by tomorrow they’re all riding out the sugar high.” I chuckle. “After all the cookies and treats she feeds them.”
“Of course she will.”
Viola beams just as our food is being set down in front of us. It smells like home-cooked heaven, and my stomach growls just looking at the massive portion in front of me—another reason why I love Texas.
Viola and I dig in as we make small talk about the rodeo and the things we need to do around the house. It’s times like this I’m so thankful she gave me a chance all those years ago—though I didn’t make it easy on her at first. The back and forth of should we or shouldn’t we, the unexpected pregnancy, the proposal, and then having Ginny and planning a wedding. It was a whirlwind, that’s for sure.
As our waitress fills our drinks, I notice people crowding around the front of the restaurant to be seated. There’s not an empty table in the room, and we have prime seating in front of the fireplace. It looks as if it’s one of the most popular places in San Angelo, and I make a mental note to give John a big thank you for his recommendation.
Once we finish eating, the waitress asks if we want dessert, which we both refuse because, at this point, they’re going to have to roll us both out the door. We pay and head back to the ranch, and as I drive down the winding road, I can’t seem to get us back quickly enough.
“Today was amazing,” Viola and turns and looks at me, grabbing my hand and interlocking her fingers with mine.
“You’re amazing, Princess.” I kiss her knuckles as we turn onto the gravel road. Though the sun has set in the distance, our night has just begun.
“I know that look,” she taunts.
I arch a brow and shoot her a smirk as I turn off the car. Grabbing her hand, I lead her up the steps, inside, and up the stairs.
When we walk inside, she gasps and covers her mouth with her hands. I had John light candles and sprinkle flower petals around the room, only setting the mood for what’s to come.
“If I didn’t know better, I’d say you’re surprised,” I say along the shell of her ear.
She shivers against me, and when she turns around, our lips crash together causing a wave of want and need to surface. Pulling back, she giggles. “It’s like we’re twenty-somethings all over again.”
I place my hand on the scruff of my chin and rub as I look her body up and down. “I think we might have to relive our twenties tonight?”
“Hmm,” she hums with a glimmer in her eyes. She pulls her bottom lip between her teeth, which drives me absolutely fucking nuts, and I remove the space between us.
“Understand, Princess?”