“Sorry about that, Pops,” Daniel said, shuffling his feet. “I meant to call you guys and explain, but things have been too busy.”
“Too busy to give us the good news?”
Sarah whirled around at the sound of the new voice. The rear door of the blue minivan was already open, and the ramp extended as another person rolled out, stopping inches from her. “You must be Sarah,” the man in the motorized wheelchair said, his teeth white against his tanned skin. “I’m Thomas Rogers, Daniel’s dad.”
“Nice to meet you, Thomas” she said, taking the hand offered to her.
“And that’s my mate, Beau, Daniel’s other dad.” Thomas chuckled as he cocked his head at Stetson man. “From the look on your face, I’m guessing my son hasn’t told you anything about us.” He raised a brow at Daniel.
“Not intentionally,” he said defensively.
“I hope they’re good reasons, son,” Beau said.
“I’ll explain everything to you guys, I promise. But first, you should know, she’s my mate too,” Daniel added. “And we just bonded.”
A wide smile broke across Thomas’s face. “Mates? That’s fantastic.”
Beau slapped him on the shoulder. “Congratulations, son. I told you, you were gonna find your mate one day.”
“What’s going on?” Adam asked as he rolled toward them.
“Pops, Dad,” Daniel began. “This is Adam, Sarah’s brother. Adam, these are my dads.”
“What’s up?” Adam asked.
“Nice to meet you, son,” Beau said, walking over to him and giving him a vigorous handshake.
Thomas reached over and took Adam’s hand once Beau let go. “Hello, Adam. Lovely to meet you. I’m glad to see you’re making use of our other van.”
“Oh cool, thanks for letting me borrow it,” he said.
“Come on, let’s head inside,” Thomas suggested. “And you can tell us about the wedding.”
They let Adam and Thomas lead the way, with Beau opening the front door so the two of them could roll up into the house.
Things clicked into place in Sarah’s brain as she watched Daniel’s parents. The van. The ramps and ground floor bedrooms in the house. The ADA-accessible trails in the mountains. How did she not notice these things?
They went inside, following the trio into the kitchen, stopping at the doorway to give Adam and Thomas room to maneuver. Beau was already rooting around in the fridge.
“I’m sure you have a lot of questions,” Daniel whispered to her as he took her hand and threaded his fingers through his. “Beau is my biological dad, and my mom died giving birth to me. They weren’t mates, but they loved each other just the same. He was devastated when she died. We moved here from Texas when he got the job as a ranger. He never had a relationship after her because he was busy raising me, at least not for a couple of years. One day, while he was on patrol, he meets this hot-shot lawyer whose car broke down in the mountains.”
“That’s an amazing story,” she said. “They look like they’re still so in love.” She had seen it in the way the couple had looked each other, and how Beau kept his hand on Thomas’s shoulder, or how Thomas’s eyes tracked his mate wherever he went. It all made sense now, somehow. Why Daniel was the way he was, knowing these two had raised him.
“What are you two doin’ over there, standing around like a pair of lost calves?” Beau called as he put a six-pack on the table. “Git your asses over here and sit down.”
“I love what you’ve done to the house, Daniel,” Thomas said as they sat down. “I’m so proud of you.”
“Thanks, Dad,” Daniel said as he accepted a beer from Beau.
“So, did you know she was your mate right away?” Thomas asked. “Did your grizzly tell you?”
Daniel chuckled. “It sure did. And as you can tell, she couldn’t wait to put a ring on it.”
“Hey!” she protested, slapping him on the arm. “That’s not what happened. Er, at least not from what I can remember.”
He smirked at her. “Well, let me tell you what I can remember.”
The rest of the night proceeded with much merriment as they ate, drank, told stories, joked, laughed, and let Adam have one sip of beer. Eventually, as the hours passed, Thomas and Beau declared that it was time for them to retire.
Later, when everyone settled into their rooms, Daniel pulled Sarah into the empty living area.
“I like your parents a lot,” she confessed. “They’re good people.”
“And they like you too,” he said. “So …”
She frowned at him. “What’s wrong?”
“Well … I wanted to wait until I got a ring to ask you this but—” He got down on one knee. “Will you marry me, Sarah Mendez?”
“Marry you?” she chuckled. “We’re already married, silly. Aren’t we doing this in the wrong order by the way? Getting married, sleeping together, then falling in love?”
“I guess so.” He got up and kissed her on the tip of her nose. “Maybe one day, when we’re old and gray, we can look longingly at each from our wheelchairs, surrounded by our children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, and finally I’ll work up enough courage to introduce myself formally and ask you on a real date.”
“Be still my heart,” she said, rolling her eyes as she placed a hand on her chest. “Well, until that time, how about we just head upstairs and screw like rabbits?”
He chuckled. “Whatever you want, baby doll.”
Epilogue
Two weeks later …
The party in the ballroom of the Blackstone Grand Hotel was in full swing with the speakers blaring tunes the DJ played, champagne and food free-flowing, and the dance floor packed with guests. Some people might have called it a wedding reception, but the real wedding that brought together the bride and groom had taken place months ago in a little wedding chapel along The Strip in Las Vegas. However, the happy couple, along with their family
