Charge Bonus Epilogue

Two months later

Gunner

A shriek from the other side of the house made me stop what I was doing—putting nails into the roof—and instead turn my attention to a jumping Freya.

“Fly,” she sputtered. “Fly, fly, fly.”

“What’s wrong, spitfire?” I called down, watching her jump from foot to foot while waving her hand in front of her mouth.

“I swallowed a fly,” she said. I could barely make out the words since she was talking with her tongue sticking out of her mouth. She lifted her shirt and proceeded to swipe her tongue with the material.

I chuckled, unable to believe that this was my life now. The worst thing to happen to us in months was Freya swallowing a fly.

I’d moved to Ferguson shortly after she went back. It was hell being without her, and after what happened with Blake, I needed a change. Especially since he seemed to have disappeared without a trace, leaving his daughter with Carter.

We were still trying to figure out where he’d gone, but so far all we found were dead ends.

Carter had taken to the role of guardian surprisingly well. Sofie had always had a special bond with Carter. It made sense to leave her with him since Blake had no family left. He once mentioned a dad somewhere, but it didn’t sound like they were close.

A few weeks ago, we decided to finally fix up the cabin. Freya wanted to become one with nature, and I loved coming out here, so I was all too eager to take some time off.

Despite a few bullet holes and a torn roof, there wasn’t much damage. Though the roof had taken a while to fix because I couldn’t get the parts I needed in town and they had to order them in.

“You’ll be fine, just drink some water. A little protein never hurt anyone,” I said, putting the last screw in and climbing down.

Freya was chugging water when I joined her.

“I think the fly’s now out of your mouth,” I said, chuckling.

She finished the whole bottle, taking a deep breath once finished. “I didn’t mean it literally when I said I wanted to become one with nature. I was thinking more of admiring it from afar. Maybe from the front porch of your cabin. Or while going for a hike. Minus the bears, of course.”

I put an arm around her and pulled her close, kissing her head. “Did you finish the cabinet?”

Freya was refurbishing old furniture for the cabin. It gave the plain room character and made it feel less like a hideout and more like a home.

“I sure did. It’s the last piece to complete your new cabin.”

She’d added a pantry and proper cupboards, the shelves now gone. There was also a “no baked beans” rule she’d instated as soon as we came back.

I’d installed the furniture if it needed to be attached to the wall and moved anything she wanted moved. But she was the mastermind behind it, and I loved the end result.

It helped that she’d put her stamp on this place, settling my worries that I might not be enough for her. Because why would she go through all this trouble if she didn’t intend to come back?

“Our new cabin,” I said, grinning down at her. I would never get tired of seeing her eyes soften and her face light up whenever she looked at me.

She turned into me and put her hand around my neck, pulling me down. Our mouths met, and I drank in the sweetness of her kiss.

No day with Freya was like the one that came before. We grew closer with every minute we spent together, and I didn’t think I would ever say this, but she was my everything. My day wasn’t complete without seeing her or hearing her voice.

“So now that the cabin is back in one piece, can we enjoy the fruits of our labor?” Freya asked, her mouth twitching in amusement.

“We could go for a hike down to the lake,” I said, lifting a brow at her. The small stream behind the cabin ended in a huge lake that was perfect for fishing and swimming. The weather was as good as it would get, and we could go for a quick dip.

Freya untangled herself from my embrace, her body vibrating with excitement, and I reluctantly let her go. “That’s a perfect idea.”

I knew how much she loved our daily hikes, which was why it was the first thing I suggested. And now that we didn’t have anything else that needed to be done, we could go for longer trips.

Once we had our backpacks ready to go and put on our hiking gear, we set off along a path we’d taken a few times already. The only difference today would be that we’d go all the way to the lake instead of stopping at the lookout.

Despite the shade the trees provided, we both got hot during the two-hour walk. Seeing the lake up ahead would never get old. And knowing Freya shared my thoughts made it even better. She dropped down on a log at the water’s edge.

“I’ve never seen water so blue,” she said, her eyes wide. The lake was so clear you could see all the way to the bottom. And since it was out of the way, you usually had the whole place to yourself. Which suited me perfectly at this moment.

I didn’t hesitate to leave my pack next to Freya and drop down to one knee in front of her, pulling out the ring that had been burning a hole in my pocket for over three months.

Turned out waiting for the perfect moment had paid off. Because this was it.

Freya turned, the awe on her face morphing into surprise, her forehead wrinkling and her eyes narrowing. “What’s wrong? Why are you on your knees? Are you having a heart attack?”

She jumped up, clearly not spotting the ring I should have held up higher. But I was nervous. I’d never asked anyone to marry me before.

“Did you bring the satellite phone?” She bent over me, tilting my head up, inspecting my face. “Is your arm hurting? They say that’s what happens when someone is having a heart attack. Wait, which side is your heart on? Because that’s probably the arm that would hurt.”

I stood up, wondering how I could have screwed this up so thoroughly. “I’m fine. Nothing hurts, and there’s no need to call anyone.”

She stepped back, studying me. “Then why did you kneel down? Is there a bug somewhere?” She swatted at her legs. “It’s in my boots, isn't it?”

I shook my head, a chuckle escaping. “Freya, can you sit back down?”

Her erratic movements stilled, and she narrowed her eyes at me. “Why do I have to sit down? Are you about to tell me you want to take a break? Because you should know I’m not okay with us seeing other people. It might work for other couples, but we’re not them. It’s all or nothing for me.”

I growled at the thought of Freya going out with another guy. “This is definitely not me asking for a break. Quite the opposite, actually.”

After wrangling her back onto the log, I kneeled in front of her again, lifting the ring.

“Is that a ring?” she asked, staring at the item in question, her eyes crossing since I was holding it so close to her. But I didn’t want to chance her missing it again.

“It’s an engagement ring, just so we’re clear,” I said, causing her mouth to hang open and her eyes to widen. A speechless Freya was a rare thing, so I had to forge on before she found her voice again. I had about ten seconds, tops.

“Let’s try this again, shall we?” I asked, taking her hand in mine. “Spitfire, I love you more than anything in this world. I think I fell for you the moment I first laid eyes on you. Even though I didn’t want to acknowledge how much I cared for you, I always knew you were special. And when I saw you again after such a long time, I knew you were the one. I don’t want to spend another minute of this life without you. Will you marry me and walk right beside me for the rest of our lives?”

A tear trickled down her cheek, and I caught it with the tip of my finger. Next thing I knew, I was lying flat on the ground, Freya on top of me, kissing my cheeks, chin, nose, and every inch of my skin she could get her mouth on.

“Is that a yes?” I asked, holding her to me.

“It’s a hell yes,” she said between laughing and hiccupping.

I found her hand and slipped the ring on. It was a perfect fit. Not surprising since I’d gotten the size from her mom.

Her brothers messaged me almost every day since I’d been to see them to find out if I’d asked her yet. The messages had become increasingly mocking the longer I waited.

 “I love you, spitfire,” I said, tangling one of my hands in her hair. She had sticks, leaves, and dirt stuck to it, but she’d never looked more beautiful.

“I love you too, Rambo. Now let’s go have crazy lake sex to celebrate,” she said and got up.

And since I was the lovesick fool who would follow her anywhere, I did exactly that.

She only lasted a few minutes in the freezing water of the lake, but after jumping out and racing back into the warmth of the cabin, we went right back to celebrating our forever.