Page 107 of Guarded from Havoc

“Shit.” He grimaces. “I’m doing this in the wrong order.” Taking my hand in his, he looks at me with a depth of emotion I’ve never seen before. “I love you, Tate. With every part of my being. Meeting you… You changed my life. You helped me. You showed me what it really means to be happy. I thought I was happy before, but it wasn’t even close to what I feel when I’m with you.”

“Erik.”

“I never used to talk about my feelings,” he continues. “I didn’t want anyone to know if I was struggling. And I know I’m still not great at it. But you make me feel like it’s okay not to be this strong, Special Forces guy all the time. It’s okay to ask for help. It’s okay to tell the people I care about how I’m feeling.”

Erik plucks the ring from the box and holds it out to me, the delicate stones sparkling in his hand. “I can’t imagine my life without you in it, Tate. I don’t want to. And if you agree, I’ll spend the rest of my life doing everything I can to make you happy. To keep you safe. I know I’m not perfect. I’m overprotective. I curse too much. And I’ll always struggle with my PTSD. I’ll?—”

I shove the forgotten cinnamon roll aside and take both his hands in mine. “Youareperfect, Erik. To me, you’re perfect in every way.”

Erik stares at me, his eyes shining with a cautious hope. “Does that mean…” A beat. Another breath. “Tatum Golding. Would you do me the greatest honor of my life by marrying me? Give me the chance to make you happy for the rest of our lives?”

Oh.

My chin wobbles as I try to hold back my tears. “Yes.Yes. I would love to marry you. It’s all I want. To build a life with you. Do everything I can to makeyouhappy. Protect you. Being your wife…” The tears burst free. “Yes. Yes, Erik. I’ll marry you.”

Erik swallows hard, his own eyes damp with tears. With a shaking hand, he slides the ring on my finger. Then he kisses me, a slow, tender one this time. One that tells me without words just how much he loves me.

He glances at the ring on my finger before returning his gaze to mine. “Tate. Thank you. For trusting me even when you had no reason to. For giving me a chance. For accepting me just as I am. And—” He swallows hard again. “For loving me. For making me the luckiest man in the universe.” He brushes at my tears. “Don’t cry. Please.”

“They’re happy ones.” I sniff a few times, wondering distractedly if it would ruin the romance if I grabbed a napkin and blew my nose into it.

But after a few seconds, I get myself back under control.

I look into the eyes of the man I love more than myself.

“It’s funny, how things work out,” I start. “I remember standing at your front door in the rain, holding those bags and wondering if I was making a mistake. If I was bothering you.”

“You weren’t. When I saw it was you, I was surprised. But happy.”

I squeeze his hands. “Then you asked me inside. And there was a moment when I wasn’t sure.”

Erik nods. “I wasn’t sure if I should. If you’d think I was some creepy guy just trying to get you inside. But… I didn’t want to say goodbye to you, either.”

“I didn’t want to say goodbye to you, either,” I agree. “And then I thought—if I don’t go inside, I’ll regret it. There was just something deep inside me that knew.”

Erik winces. “But I got you?—”

“But it brought us here,” I interrupt. I kiss him again, tasting salt on my lips. “And that decision… going inside… I was right. If I hadn’t gone inside, I would have missed out on the most precious thing in my life. The most important person in my life. I would walk inside a hundred times. A thousand times. A million. Walking inside was the best decision I ever made.”

“Tate.” His voice throbs with emotion. Tears well up in his eyes. “I’m so,soglad you did.”

“Me too.”

Then I kiss the man who changed my life.

The man I love with all my heart.

“I love you, Erik Rivers.” Climbing into his lap, I kiss his jaw. His cheek. His lips again. “And I can’twaitto be your wife.”

Erik hugs me to him, burying his face in my hair.

When he finally lifts his head, his cheeks are wet. “I can’t wait to be your husband, Tatum Golding.”

“Tate Rivers,” I correct with a wobbly smile. Then my smile grows bigger. “And something else.”

His brows jump up. “What is it?”

“Now you’re guaranteed fudge dipped peanut butter chocolate chip cookies for the rest of your life.”

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