Page 49 of Protective Assignment
River lowered her voice.“Is everything okay?”
“I don’t even know,” she sighed.“I’m not even sure where to start.I feel like I’m going crazy.It’s been months, and I don’t know what I’m supposed to do with all of it.”
“With all of what?”
“With the way I feel about Xavier,” she admitted.“It’s just…it all feels like such a mess, that’s all.With Xavier kissing me and Lawson finding out, then the two of them arguing… Everything seems so strained now between us all.”She trailed off, and then shook her head.
“I’m sorry, this day is supposed to be about celebrating you,” she added.“Let’s not talk about my stuff.It’s all so jumbled right now.”
“I don’t mind talking about your stuff, but I understand,” River replied.“Just know you can always come to me if you need someone to talk to.”
“Hey, you’re already acting like a therapist.”Hannah joked.“You’re going to be at the top of your class in no time, I can feel it!”
River giggled.She was still trying to wrap her head around the fact she had actually made it into the school of her dreams.It all felt so surreal, when she thought about where she had been this time last year.Out on the road, alone and scared, fighting to get to her family, constantlylooking over her shoulder because she was terrified that Ryker would find her.
She never would have imagined she would feel this free and be this happy.She felt ready to take on the world.She didn’t have to stay on the run or worry for her life or the lives of anyone she cared about.Discovering who she really was underneath the programming of the Shepards and the fear and pain they had inflicted on her had been a joy.
Cade caught up with them again and slipped his hand into hers.He always held her hand when they were out and she loved it.It was like he wanted to make sure she was always next to him.She didn’t want to be anywhere else.She smiled over at him, the warmth of the sunshine bathing her face for a moment as he gazed back at her.
Hannah fell back with the guys for a while, and River looked over her shoulder to see how it was going.Carter was chatting with Hannah, while Lawson and Xavier were off to the side and seemed uncomfortable.River hoped they’d be able to work it all out.
But before she could mention it to Cade, he pointed over to the side.“Look, we’re at the viewpoint.”
He was right.They had already reached the spot that looked down over the town below.The sun shone through the trees around them, a soft breeze stirring the leaves, and the sky so blue above them it seemed to go on forever.
“It’s so beautiful up here,” she breathed, leaning her head against his shoulder for a moment.They had come up here a lot since the weather had started to warm up.It had become one of her favorite spots, and it was a perfect place to celebrate getting accepted into college.
“It is,” he murmured, turning toward her.The look on his face shifted to something more serious.
He took a deep breath.“River, there’s something I wanted to ask you,” he said, sliding his hand into his pocket.
“What?Is everything okay?”
“More than okay,” he assured her, smiling.“I… These last few months, they’ve been some of the happiest of my life.Being with you, it’s given me a purpose like nothing else.And I want to spend the rest of my life fulfilling that purpose—being here for you, supporting you and loving you while you achieve everything you were meant to achieve.”
Her lips parted in surprise.She wasn’t sure where this had come from, but when he pulled a small blue box from his pocket, it clicked.She felt a wave of dizziness rush over her and she pressed hand against her stomach to stop the butterflies.He dropped to one knee right there on the grass before her and opened up the box.The diamond sparkled in the sunshine.
He looked up at her, his eyes shining with love.“River, will you marry me?”
“Oh my gosh!Of course I will!”she shrieked, and she pulled him to his feet and leaped into his arms.
He laughed, pulling back just long enough to slip the ring over her finger, and then squeezed her against him once more.
“I love you, River,” he told her.“And I’m going to spend the rest of my life making sure you know how much I mean that.”
“I love you too,” she breathed back, and she kissed him again.
As their friends congratulated them and she showed Hannah her ring, she felt content and so excited for a future she never could have dreamed for herself.A life she couldn’t wait to experience with the man she adored right by her side.
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