“I do.” He turned his head and kissed her palm. “So marry me, Everly.”
Her breath stuttered. She searched his gaze—for turmoil, for fear, for something to explain this sudden proposal. But all she found was the kind of warmth and love and security she’d searched for her whole life. “Damn, Hix, you know how to knock a girl off her feet.”
“Say yes and then let’s go check out what could be our new home. Our home as a family.”
She pulled in a shaky breath, shocked to realize how big a shift those words made inside her. To realize that there was a much deeper level of commitment to the idea of buying property when it was for them, not just for him.
“I…I’ve never owned anything before.” She looked at the house again, seeing it with fresh eyes. Austin took her hand and threaded their fingers. She imagined the house as their new full-time residence. She imagined returning from a mission. And, yeah, the idea of coming home to Austin and Bella, not just hanging her holster wherever Austin happened to be living or staying at the moment, held an appeal she’d never imagined.
“Putting down roots doesn’t mean you can’t fly, baby,” Austin told her. “It just means the nest will always be here for you when you get back. I really want to come home to you.”
His admission, raspy with love and emotion, gave her the bridge she needed to cross a gorge with rapids wild enough to drown her in seconds.
She took a deep breath. A breath so deep, her lungs filled to capacity and forced out the fear crowding her chest. When she exhaled, a whole new sensation filled her. A love as deep as that damn gorge and a happiness that turned those rapids into a stretch of sleepy river.
“I really want to come home to you and Bella too.”
He dragged her into his arms and held her tight. “I know it’s scary. But let the idea settle in. I’ll always be here for you, baby. Always.”
She closed her eyes, and tears burned down her cheeks. That was a promise she’d never had, one she’d grown to believe she didn’t need. But now, with his arms around her, she knew it was something she’d always wanted. She’d just been waiting for him.
He pulled back and wiped the tears from her cheeks with his thumbs, then kissed her. He grinned down at her. “Wait until Bella hears she’s going to be a flower girl.”
Everly huffed a laugh, but her heart filled with love. “Let’s hold off on telling her that until the sand beneath my feet stops shifting, or she’ll knock me on my ass.”
Austin chuckled. “So true.” He glanced at the house. “Are you ready to see this place as your home? Our home?”
As they started forward, Everly felt like she was leaving one world behind and stepping into something new. But with Austin’s arm around her, it felt safe. It felt good. And in another hour or two, once the shock wore off, she knew without a doubt, it would feel downright glorious.
They climbed the stairs, and Everly took a few steps onto the grand covered porch. She slid a hand over the smooth wood of handcrafted rocking chairs pointed toward a gorgeous view of the valley, and she could see Austin and herself sitting there at the end of the day, drinking wine, talking over his business, or sharing a story from her latest mission, all with Bella dancing around the porch or running around the yard with her friends.
The idea warmed her all the way through.
She slipped her arm around his waist and met his eyes deliberately. The love in her heart overflowed into her voice when she answered. “Yeah. Wow. Who’d have ever guessed?” She stretched up to kiss him. “I’m really ready.”
“Is that a yes?”
She laughed and kissed him. “That’s a yes.”