God, he loved her. He loved her. She was everything—so much more than he deserved—and she was standing here, offering him something he could’ve never imagined. All of herself.
Jenner dropped to his knees in the loose dirt she’d dug from his den and lifted his gaze to hers. The sunset was streaking the sky with oranges and pinks behind him, and her cheeks looked rosy in the evening hues. Her shoulders were shaking as she cried, and he thought she couldn’t look any lovelier than she did right now, staring down at him, waiting for him to say the words that would bind them for always.
“Lena, I love you more than anything, and I can’t imagine my life without you. You’re already my mate, but will you do me the honor of being my wife?”
“Yes,” she said, nodding. She dashed her damp cheek against her shoulder and said it again, the word that changed his life completely. “Yes, I’ll marry you.”
Jenner launched upward and picked her up off the ground, holding her tight against his chest. He could feel her heart pounding against him, and he closed his eyes tightly as she laughed a happy tinkling sound.
“I’ll buy you a ring. Something pretty. Whatever you want.”
Lena laid tiny pecks all over his face before her lips pressed against his. She hugged his neck so tightly as she kissed him, as if she never wanted to let him go, and he understood. He didn’t want this moment to ever end. This was the best feeling in the world, declaring a future with her.
“Lena,” he murmured, staring at the cabin. “Did you get us a home?”
She was smiling big as she nodded. “Link fixed it up last winter to live in, but he got work in town and bought a place closer to his job. We all pitched in and fixed it just how I wanted it over the last couple of days. Oh, Jenner, I love Elyse, and Ian’s so nice, and Link’s crazy, but he’s awesome, and with the money I paid in rent, Elyse will be able to buy more cattle, and I bought curtains the same blue color of your eyes and a nice mattress because this is our first bed together, and Elyse is going to teach me how to can salmon. And Jenner! Everything just feels so perfect. I get you, and I get a home, and I have two whole months with you before you go to sleep, and we’ll make the most out of every moment. Even if I have to tag along on your guided tours and call myself the Silver Summit Outfitters’ resident photographer, I will. I get to be with you Jenner. I’m the luckiest.”
She wasn’t, though. His sweet mate didn’t see that he was the lucky one.
“Are you happy?” He could see it in her eyes, but damn, he wanted to hear it right now.
“Yes. I never thought I could be so happy. I feel like I finally belong somewhere. You did that, Jenner. I don’t have to run anymore.”
“You won’t ever have to run again. I’ll take care of you.”
“And I’ll take care of you because we are a team.”
“Team Silver.”
She cupped his cheeks again and laid a lingering kiss on his lips. Easing back, she grinned and whispered, “Team Silver.”
Chapter Sixteen
She couldn’t pull her eyes from Jenner. It was his smile, a grin she’d only seen flicker across his face now and again, but here, in the glowing lantern light of their new cabin, it stretched across his lips, transforming his face.
Short, dark scruff graced his jaw, and she ran her fingertips against it. His dark hair had fallen forward over his forehead, making his eyes look even brighter in the fading evening light.
“You haven’t shaved since I left,” she accused.
“I haven’t done much of anything since you left except stare at this picture I took of you.”
Her stomach filled with a fluttering sensation that had her melting against him. With a sigh, she rested her cheek against his chest. “Why did you let me leave then? If it hurt so bad, why did you let me go?”
“It’s not that I didn’t want you, Lena. It’s that I wanted better for you.”
“Well, that’s not how love works, you ridiculous man. You don’t set someone free against their will.”
Jenner’s lips pressed against her hair, lingering as he swayed slowly from side to side. At last, he whispered, “Can I see the cabin?”