Page 140 of Love Me Dangerous

“Hold on.” Gently, I push him back so I can see his face. “Are you serious?”

“Getting married or me being a cop?”

I stare him down. He’s messing with me. “Both.” The word comes out high and breathy.

“Sheriff Olson offered me a deputy position. I can start in September, after I complete the academy.”

“In Finn River?” I ask because I don’t trust my ears right now.

“Unless you’re planning on moving somewhere else after you finish college?”

I stare at him as it all sinks in. He’s choosing Finn River. He’s choosingme.

He grins, as if he can see the petals of my heart opening one by one. “I want to build my life here. Together.”

“What about William?”

“He’s one hundred percent onboard. I had no idea Finn River’s high school football team is the best in the state, but he did.”

I look at him in amazement. “You’ve really worked hard on all of this, haven’t you?”

“You think I’d come here with some half-baked plan?” His eyes turn serious. He lowers to one knee.

“Zach, wha?—?”

But the joy and pride on his face stops me in my tracks.

“I love you with my whole heart. I am yours, Sofie Whittaker. All of me. And I don’t want to wait another minute to make you mine once and for all.”

The emotions swirling inside me start leaking from my eyes. “I want that too. So much it hurts.”

He pulls a small pouch from his pocket and teases it open. Out slips a silver ring with an oval-shaped diamond.

I cover my mouth with my hands to keep from bursting.

He lifts the delicate ring so the diamond sparkles in the low light. “Will you marry me?”

“Zach, this is… I mean… wow.”

He laughs, and the harmony cuts straight to my core. “Is that a yes?”

“Yes,” I breathe as Zach slides the ring onto my trembling finger. “I love it. It’s perfect. This…” I gaze from him to the snowy woods and the pale blue sky and the glittering crystals, like it’s our own private palace, “is perfect.”

I lean down to kiss him softly, my lips lingering as I take it all in. Maybe we don’t have all the answers, but it’s more than I’ve ever dreamed of. “I love you, Zach. All of you.”

He stands and wraps his arms around me, swinging me around, laughing, filling my heart with so much joy. I laugh with him as the bright snow becomes a blur.

Finally, he sets me down, breathing fast, his gaze bright with so much love. Gently, he strokes my face. “When I look at you, I see my forever.”

Chapter Thirty-Four

ZACH

I standto the side of the stage, waiting for my turn, my gut fizzing like a bundle of hot wires.

“The Finn River Sheriff Department welcomes Zach Hayes,” the deputy director announces from the podium.

The people taking up the entire front row of City Hall’s auditorium jump to their feet, cheering and whistling as I walk to the center of the stage.

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