Fallen Crest Book 7: Fallen Crest Forever

“Will you marry me?”

I didn’t know what to say.

“Mason.” No other words would come out of my throat. “I . . .”

I couldn’t breathe.

I couldn’t move.

The nightmare was my mother’s marriage. It was Mason’s parents’ marriage. It was all the cheating, lying, and bitterness. I would die if that happened to Mason and me.

I felt myself falling backward, like someone pushed me off a cliff I didn’t know was behind me. I was falling . . . falling . . . I reached out, trying to get ahold of something—anything to stop this fall. All I could find was air, and I was going to land soon.

I saw the wall first.

It slammed down behind his eyes, and he donned an unreadable mask. His jaw clenched, and he shifted backward on his knees until he could stand. Once he was up, he began turning off the tea lights that surrounded us, making the clearing twinkle. I could feel the physical and emotional distance between us.

I hit rock bottom.

“Mason.”

“No.” He shook his head. He was so cold now. “Let’s go.” He gathered up the blanket and headed back for the Escalade. He was almost there. He reached for the door handle—

“Yes.”

It came out as a whisper. I shocked myself.

“Sam?”

“Yes.” My voice was coming back to me. I nodded again. “Yes! I’ll marry you.”

He started for me. “Are you sure?” His head dipped down, still holding my gaze.

I nodded. I was. I really was. I lifted my arms as he met me, then swept me up in a hug.

“Yes,” I whispered again, burying my head in his shoulder.

He wasn’t James. I wasn’t Analise. We weren’t going to repeat what we’d seen growing up.

I lifted my head to find his lips. “I love you.” I kissed him with everything I had. I knew my hesitation had hurt him, and I needed to erase that. “Yes, I’ll be your wife.”

He held me tighter for a moment, then set me back on my feet. His hands fell to my waist, and he leaned back.

“Why the pause?” he asked.

He deserved the truth.

“Because I’m scared shitless about what our parents did. I’m scared of marriage. A part of me thinks it’s a crock of shit, after seeing what my mom did to David and hearing what James did to your mom.”

Understanding edged out some of the guarded expression on his face. He nodded, just once, just slightly. “Are you sure, Sam? I’ve always thought we’d get married, but I wasn’t planning on asking this early. It’s just . . . seeing your mom coming down that aisle, I wanted it to be you.”

Everything melted inside me.

My insecurities.

My worries.

My heart.

I was so humbled at that moment and wound my arms around him. What had I done to deserve this? Deserve him?

“I love you,” I whispered, my lips pressing against his skin. “So goddamn much.”

His hand came to the back of my head. “So goddamn much,” he repeated.

His phone rang, and Mason groaned against my skin.

“Fucking hell,” he cursed as he slipped his hand into his pocket.

When the phone appeared, we both glanced down. It was Logan, and we shared a look. He’d already called about the footage of the fight being leaked to Mason’s football coach. If he was calling again so soon, it wasn’t good news.

I started to untangle myself, but his arm just tightened around my back. He didn’t want to let go and, falling a little more in love (if that was even possible), I relaxed against him. My head rested on his chest.

“Are you coming back to Cain tonight?” Logan asked through the phone. He sounded tense.

I frowned, but didn’t lift my head. It felt too right to move.

“Uh . . .”

I looked up.

Mason lifted an eyebrow, wanting to know what I wanted to do.

We just got engaged. Time alone would be nice, though there was a huge crisis hanging over us. I wanted to stay in Fallen Crest, but I said, “We should go back. We won’t relax otherwise.”

He nodded, saying into the phone, “We’re coming back.”

“Good.” Logan sounded relieved. “I know you’re in deep shit because of the fighting, but I might need help with these guys that roughed up Taylor’s friend.”

“The same guy that we had to deal with a crime lord about?” Mason rolled his eyes.

“They beat the shit out of him because he’s gay. They deserve something worse happening to them,” Logan clipped out. “We can be inventive if you don’t want to do a beatdown with me.”

“You’ll be fine, but yeah, Nate and I will put our thinking hats on. See you when you get here.”

“Yeah.”

Logan suddenly called out, “Hi, Sam!”

I moved closer to the phone. “Don’t get Mason in trouble, please.”

He groaned. “I might start trouble, but he always delivers the knockout punch. There’s a reason we work as brothers.”

Anger glinted in Mason’s eyes. His lips pressed together. “Okay. Be there in a few hours.”

He hung up and looked down at me. “You didn’t say anything.”

“Neither did you.”

“I was letting you make the decision.”

I pressed a hand against his chest, feeling his heart beat just on the other side. “I know. Let’s keep our engagement between us for a minute. Once we tell, it’s no longer ours. It’s everyone’s to talk about—and give their opinions about everything.” I tilted back to look up at him. “You know what I mean?”

His eyes darkened. I saw the love there. “I do.” He cupped the back of my neck. “I love you.” His lips found mine.

I closed my eyes, savoring this.

My man.

My other half.

My future husband.

So much lies ahead of us, but he was mine, completely mine, in this moment. My lips moved against his, deepening the kiss, and he tightened his hold on me.