“Link and Ian offered to help me dig, but it felt right doing it myself.” She tugged his hand and led him off the porch, then around to the side of the house where there was a large opening under the porch. “Ian made sure the cabin was safe over it, though. Look.” She squatted down and pointed at the hole.
Jenner looked inside and shook his head, utterly floored by the enormous hole she’d dug. Ian had bolstered the legs of the house with metal, but underneath, the den was as wide as it was deep.
“Lena,” he drawled, reality niggling at him.
“Just wait until you hear everything I have to say before you tell me no, Jenner, because this is really important to me, and you said you love me, and if you do, you owe it to me to listen.”
Jenner stood slowly, pulling her with him. “Okay.”
“I don’t like that you pick a different den every year so close to where the boys are running guided hunts. I hate it. It doesn’t feel safe.”
“Here won’t be any safer because Ian will be hibernating too close. The only other time we tried, we went to war as soon as we woke up. Almost killed each other.”
“This was Ian’s idea.”
“It was?”
“Yes! Sort of. Elyse and I kind of planned this, and Ian gave his blessing, even said he liked the idea of you hibernating closer and having a relationship… Anyway, stop interrupting me.” She tried to look severe, but failed when she smiled up at him. “Ian said when he woke up last season, it was easy because Elyse had put him in a root cellar and he had plenty to eat as soon as he came to. And I’ll do that for you. I’ll have food here as soon as you open your eyes, and Bear won’t have to feel desperate.”
Jenner looked back at the den as the first tendrils of hope filled his chest. “What about your career?”
“I got a promotion.”
“You did? Lena, that’s great!”
“And then I turned it down.”
“What? Why?”
“Because I want to make my home base here, Jenner. I’ve paid Elyse the first year of rent on this place. It’s ours if we want it. And no, I’m not saying you have to quit guiding, but when it gets close to time to hibernate, I propose we come out here.”
“To home base.”
Lena nodded decidedly. “Yes. To our home base.”
“But don’t you see? This is why I didn’t want to do this. You’ve already turned down a promotion for me.”
“Well yes, I turned down that one, but then they gave me another when I explained I wanted to live in Alaska. That’s what I was grinning about the other day when I was emailing back and forth with my boss. I’m now Bucks and Backwoods’ Photographic Art Director of their Alaska Division. I mean, sure I’ll have to beg some plane rides from your brothers during the summer months to cover my responsibilities, and I’ll have to use the Wi-Fi in Galena to send in my work, but I won’t be giving up anything.” She squared up to him and slid her hands up his chest. “And I’ll be gaining everything. Look, I know you’re worried about me when you hibernate, but I won’t be alone like Elyse was. I’ll have her and Link, and if I get too bored, I can wait until fair weather and travel to the mainland. Pick up a couple of photo jobs. Travel around in the winters if I get the itch. But I’ll always, always be back here when you wake up. The hibernation part of this was never a deal-breaker for me, Jenner. Not if it means I get to keep you.”
Jenner brushed a wavy strand of her hair from her face and tucked it behind her ear. “This is crazy.”
“It’s not. It’s as normal as we can hope for.”
“You really think you can handle all of this?”
“I know I can. For the first time in as long as I can remember, I’ve never felt surer of anything. I want you. I want to grow our relationship and do this life thing together. And someday, when we’re ready, I want to give you cubs.”
“But they’ll be—”
“Bear shifters. I know and I don’t care. We won’t be like your parents. We’ll make them feel secure and teach them how to be bears the way you and your brothers should’ve been taught. And I’ll love them.” Her voice cracked and her face crumpled. “I’ll love them so much, and I’ll love you even more because I know you’ll make a great daddy someday. This is my proposition, Jenner Silver. You already chose me. Now stick with me.”
He huffed a shocked sound and shook his head in disbelief that this beautiful woman was claiming him back. She was declaring she wanted him to start a life with. She wanted him to start a family with. It made no sense, but he was tired of questioning everything. If she could be brave enough to rearrange her entire life for him, then he could be brave enough to make sure she never wanted for anything.
“I’ll make you happy,” he whispered, resting his forehead against hers.
“I know.”
“Marry me then, Lena. If we’re going to do this, I want my last name on you.”
Tears fell from her eyes, and she clutched his hands. “Well, ask me proper then.”