Page 40 of Trusting the Grumpy Mountain Man
From his pocket, he produces a small wooden box, hand-carved with intricate patterns. My breath catches as he opens it to reveal a ring. Simple and elegant, a diamond nestled between two smaller sapphires the exact color of his eyes.
"I love you, Riley. Your brilliance, your determination, your heart that's big enough to fight for kids you just met and a man too proud to ask for help." His hands are steady as he holds the box. "Will you marry me? Be my partner in everything, officially?"
Tears blur my vision as joy bubbles up inside me. "Yes," I manage, voice thick with emotion. "Of course, yes."
He slides the ring onto my finger, then pulls me into his arms, his kiss tasting of chocolate and promises. When we finally break apart, we're both laughing, and I'm wiping away happy tears.
"Did you make the box?" I ask, examining the beautiful carving.
"With Darius. Part of his final project." Jax's smile is soft with meaning. "He said it was fitting since you two both broke through my defenses."
I laugh, curling against his side as we watch the stars. "How long have you been planning this?"
"Three months," he admits. "Wanted to do it here, where I almost lost you. Replace that memory with a better one."
"Mission accomplished." I hold up my hand, admiring how the ring catches the firelight. "Though I've had plenty of good memories here since then."
"First of many more," he promises, pulling a blanket around us as the night air chills.
We sit in comfortable silence, watching the fire and the stars. Six months ago, I arrived in Whisper Vale certain of my path and priorities. Now everything has changed, yet I've never felt more certain of anything than the man beside me and the life we're building together.
"The director mentioned expanding to other sites," I say after a while. "We could help set up programs throughout the state."
"Always working." He chuckles, pulling me closer. "Even during a proposal."
"It's called multitasking." I kiss his jaw. "A skill you mountain men could learn."
"I prefer focusing on one important thing at a time." His hand tilts my chin up for another kiss, deeper and more promising. "And right now, that's you."
Later, back in our cabin, wrapped in each other's arms, I reflect on the journey that brought us here. From adversaries to lovers. From evaluation to partnership. From uncertainty to this unshakable certainty that I'm exactly where I belong.
"What are you thinking about?" Jax murmurs against my hair, his voice heavy with approaching sleep.
"How sometimes the best things happen when plans fall apart," I tell him, tracing the scar along his cheekbone. "When you have to build something new from the wreckage."
"Like a survival shelter," he says, understanding immediately.
"Exactly." I curl closer, his heartbeat steady beneath my ear. "You taught me that."
"And you taught me that sometimes the most important rules are the ones you write yourself." His arms tighten around me. "For what matters most."
As sleep claims us both, I know with absolute certainty that what we've built together is stronger than any structure, more lasting than any regulation. A foundation made of broken pieces, carefully reassembled into something beautiful and enduring.
Something worth fighting for. Worth changing for.
Worth trusting.
