Nicole threw the covers back and slipped into her warmest pajamas and slippers, then padded into the kitchen where Link was still humming the song. Wrapping her arms around his waist, she kissed his back, right between his shoulder blades. “How are you so warm?”
Link lifted her hand to his lips, then pressed her palm over his steadily thrumming heart. “One of the pros to being a shifter. Do you want me to build the fire up?”#p#分页标题#e#
Nicole released him and strode for the door. “Nah, I’ll do it.”
“I thought you wanted to lounge around in bed today.”
She turned and gave him a naughty grin. “Bed isn’t as fun without you.”
Link’s deliciously deep chuckle followed her out of the cabin.
Holy crap, it was cold out here. Nicole rushed to pull a couple logs off the woodpile, but when she turned to glance at the yard, she straightened up slowly and took a deep breath. It had stopped snowing in the night, and the sun was cresting the horizon now, casting the blanket of white in glittering sparkles. It reminded her of a snow globe Aunt Rita had given her for Christmas one year. It had a mountain covered in evergreen trees with piles of white on each branch, and instead of snow floating around in the water, it had been filled with glitter. In front of the mountains was a small plaque that read Alaska. She didn’t know why she’d thought of that snow globe after so many years, but at the time, it had struck her as strange because Aunt Rita, to her knowledge, had never visited Alaska to pick up a souvenir like that. But now, looking back, perhaps Aunt Rita was trying to give her something of her birthplace where Mom had refused.
Link slid his arms around her from behind, warming her instantly. “What are you thinking about?”
“How beautiful this place is. And,” she admitted quietly, “about my family back home.”
“Families are complicated,” he murmured, leaning forward until his cheek was against her temple.
She couldn’t help the laugh that left her throat. “Link, our families got so messed up.”
“Sooo,” he drawled, swaying slightly with her in his arms. “Maybe we should make our own family. We’ll do it better than our parents were able.”
With a tiny gasp, she turned in his arms just to look into his eyes and make sure it wasn’t Wolf teasing her. “Link,” she said on a frozen breath. “Are you serious?”
“I’ve gone back and forth about how to do this. Gone back and forth about whether I even should because I look at you and can’t help but wonder what you’re doing with someone like me. Before you came along, I thought I was unsalvageable, but you’re constantly reminding me that I’m not. You’re steady. You never grow impatient. You never lash out at Wolf or me when my balance is off. I was freefalling, and you caught me.” Gaze locked with hers, Link lowered himself onto one knee on the thin layer of snow that covered the porch. He pulled out of his pocket a thin, white gold band with a single, sparkling diamond in the center. With a steadying breath, he held it up as his offering.
Shocked, Nicole dropped the logs she’d been holding and pressed her fingertips over her mouth.
“Nicole,” Link murmured, his voice steady. “This ring is my pledge to be here for you. It’s my promise that Wolf and I will always be yours. I’ve had it for weeks, but I didn’t want to give it to you until I was sure I could do this. I’m in this. From here on, it’s me and you.” He grinned. “And Wolf.”
Nicole laughed thickly and nodded her head. “Yes.”
“Well wait, woman, I haven’t asked you yet.”
“The answer’s still yes.”
“You’ll marry me?”
“Of course I will!”
Link slid the ring onto her shaking finger, then launched himself upward and crushed her against him.
Laughing, she kissed his face all over. “Link, Link, Link,” she chanted, overwhelmed with happiness. “I’m so proud of you.”
#p#分页标题#e#
“For proposing?”
“No, you silly man. For fighting for us. For fighting to keep yourself. I’ve seen the work you’ve done and I’m so”—kiss—“fucking”—kiss—“proud of you.” Cupping his cheeks as she searched his clear gray eyes, she whispered, “Link, you stopped my freefall, too.”
And he truly had. She’d come to Alaska a lost soul, who didn’t know anything about herself or her heritage. He’d said she was the steady one, but Link didn’t see it. He’d sensed holes in her life and gone to great trouble to track down people who knew her father, just so he could give her a missing piece to the puzzle. He’d given her a pack and given her dear friends who had turned into family. He’d given her a sense of belonging and taught her how to survive this harsh life. He’d instilled confidence in her just by believing in her.