Page 88 of Cowboy Elite 2: Mike

"Yes to all of it," Liv said, voice thick with emotion. "Especially the flower girl part."

"I'm gonna be the best flower girl. Better than any flower girl who ever flower girl-ed before. Even better than I was in Uncle Lyle and Aunt Heather's wedding." Charlotte was practically vibrating with excitement. "Can I tell Pudge? He needs to know he's invited too."

"Absolutely. Pudge is definitely invited."

Charlotte ran off to find the cat, already planning, her voice echoing through the house. "Pudge! Pudge! We're having another wedding!"

The family surrounded them then, Heather with misty eyes, pulling Liv into a fierce hug. Lyle shaking Mike's hand and pulling him in for a back-slapping embrace. Joe grinning like he'd won a bet. Kenny nodding once, which coming from Kenny meant approximately seventeen paragraphs of approval and affection.

Heather examined the ring, and her eyes went soft. "You made this?"

Mike ducked his head, embarrassed. "Yeah."

"It's beautiful. She's lucky." Heather squeezed his shoulder. "You both are."

Lyle studied the ring too, then looked at Mike with something like pride. "That's real craftsmanship, brother. Good work."

"Good choice," Kenny added, which was practically a speech from him.

Joe closed his laptop and stood, pulling Mike into a brief hug. "Proud of you. Both of you." He turned to Liv. "Welcome to the family. Officially, this time."

He pulled out his phone with that look that meant he was already planning seventeen steps ahead. "So when's the wedding? Because I might have a lead on a wedding coordinator if that’s something you’re interested in. Woman named Emma Blackstock. Supposed to be excellent. I could give her a call."

"We literally just got engaged," Mike pointed out.

"Just saying. Planning takes time and you might want some help with the details." Joe's eyes had that distant look that meant he was already organizing spreadsheets in his head. "I'll send you her information. She's in Austin, but she travels. We’ve been talking about expanding and offering this place as a wedding venue. Your wedding might be a good trial run."

Liv caught Mike's eye and they both tried not to laugh.

"This is what happens when you let a logistics genius near a major life event," Heather said. “It’s all about business.”

"I'm being helpful," Joe protested.

"You're being you," Lyle said fondly.

Dinner that night was loud and perfect.

Grandpa Quentin showed up in his flashy Corvette, somehow having heard the news before anyone called him, and came in holding up a bottle of whiskey. "Heard we're celebrating. Brought provisions."

They crowded around the big kitchen table, the one that had held three generations of Watkins family dinners. Charlotte insisted on sitting between Liv and Mike, announcing that she needed to "supervise the engaged people" to make sure they "did it right."

"What does supervising engaged people involve?" Lyle asked, amused.

"Making sure they hold hands and smile a lot and feed each other bites of food like in the movies," Charlotte said seriously. "It's very important."

"We'll do our best," Liv promised.

Heather had made chicken and dumplings. There was sweet tea and coffee and Grandpa Quentin's whiskey for anyone brave enough. Mike and Liv, normally the ones who fed everyone, were given a break from food duty due to the chaos.

They ate and laughed and told stories. Grandpa Quentin toasted "to Liv, who survived New York, the mob, and Mike's cooking. That's true love."

"Hey," Mike protested.

Quentin laughed at his own teasing. "Just keeping you on your toes, boy."

Charlotte announced her plans for the wedding in exhaustive detail. She would wear purple. Sparkle Thunder the imaginary horse would somehow be involved. There would be approximately seven thousand flowers. Pudge would carry the rings, despite everyone's objections that Pudge could not be trusted with anything important.

"Pudge is very responsible," Charlotte insisted.