“God, Ember. I mean it, baby. Not one more day can I spend without you.”
I smile, feeling the ring on my left finger move when my hand shifts against the mattress, and I know in an instant what it will take to get him to realize that no matter how horrible last night was, I’m still here and never leaving.
“So here’s what we do. I apparently gained a fiancé last night, so he’s going to sit with me as I plan a wedding. I’ll have my dad put my house on the market and you make sure all my stuff stuck in storage is filling this house. I’m going to take over your man cave and you’re going to turn Dirty into the biggest club the South has ever seen. Then, the way I see it, we spend the next ten years making babies or practicing to make babies. I’ll let you know when I decide how we’re going to spend the next fifty plus years after that. Is that enough to convince you that you won’t have to spend another day without me?”
His eyes change and he looks at me with wonderment instead of sad trepidation.
“Is that all?” His voice is thick with emotion.
I shrug. “All for now.”
“I think that’s a great start, baby.”
He pulls me into his arms, and with a deep breath from us both, we fall asleep knowing that as long as we’re together, in each other’s arms, we will feel the beauty of our beautiful war won.
I woke up the next morning feeling a lot better than I had the day before. My headache was gone and my back no longer hurt. The scrapes I had were small and the slight redness was the only thing left. My neck looked bad, the bruising something that I would have to face for days before it faded away, but at least I could move without pain.
True to my word, when we woke up this morning, I had my dad contact a realtor. He didn’t question my decision, and I had a feeling that he was proud of the choice I had made.
I look down at the huge diamond on my hand and smile. Leave it to Nate to not even ask, but to slide the ring on and not mention it. He’s crazy, but I love him for it.
“Hey, Nate,” I call over to him. He turns, looking at me from the kitchen as I stay sitting on the couch, curled in the softest blanket I’ve ever felt. “Just in case our kids ask one day, I said yes.”
He tips his head to the side and looks at me as if I’m the crazy one. I hold my hand up and enjoy the hell out of seeing his face get soft when he looks at the engagement ring on my hand.
“But just out of curiosity, were you even going to ask me?”
He pauses in his dinner preparations and leans both hands down on the island. “There was no doubt in my mind, Ember, so I figured asking was just a formality. I’m sure I could have thought of something romantic, spent an hour after trying to dry your tears when you were overcome with happiness, and then taken you home and fucked you until you passed out with nothing but bliss in your eyes. But I didn’t want to see you cry any kind of tears, so I went with my gut and just took what’s mine.”
I laugh, the sound making him smile. “I love you, you crazy man.”
“I know; I’m easy to love.”
“I wouldn’t have cried for an hour,” I add a few minutes later.
He looks up from his chopping with a face that tells me he knows I’m lying through my teeth, his eyes sparkling with mirth. “You’re right, baby. It would have probably been more like two.”
I open my mouth to respond but stop when the doorbell sounds, waving him off and standing from the couch.
My parents come in and greet me with a hug, followed by Nate’s.
“How are you, honey?” Izzy asks after we move to sit around the kitchen table.
“I really am okay. It happened and it sucked, but I have to move on.”
Nate gives me a hard look
“Have the police found that man yet?” I look over at my mom and shrug.
“They won’t be bringing him in.”
Everyone looks over at Axel after his comment, and I feel a little spark of worry.
“And why the hell not?” His wife gasps.
I look over at Nate, terrified for what this might mean, and wait for him to take the lead, but he isn’t looking at me.
“He died last night. Lost control of his car and hit a tree head-on,” Axel answers.
“Good riddance,” my mom mumbles.
“I hope he suffered,” Izzy adds, nodding at her.
“Oh, I’m sure he did since his engine caught fire. From what the ME says, he didn’t die until after that.” Axel finishes talking, and I can see from his face that he’s happy that Levi didn’t die instantly.