In Need of Protection
Author
Jill Elizabeth Nelson
Reads
15.7K
Chapters
1
EPILOGUE
Newly elected Teton County sheriff Ethan Ridgeway signed off on the last report from his deputies and put the sheet in the outbox on the corner of his desk. Smiling, he sat back and gazed around his office. The room wasn’t big or fancy, but it was up-to-date, efficiently organized and came with its own coffee machine—huge perk, no pun intended.
Late in the summer, when the former sheriff had announced he would be retiring at the end of his term, Ethan had thrown his hat in the ring. It had been a risky move for both his career with the US Marshals Service and for his relationship with Lara. He’d known if he won, he’d be changing career paths. He was fine with that, provided Lara said yes when he asked her to marry him later today. If she said no, it would be awkward with him as sheriff in the same town.
Yet, the joy in her eyes when he’d told her he was thinking about moving to Jackson and running for the office had made the decision for him. At that point, they’d been dating for only a couple of months, and popping the question had seemed premature. Thankfully, a former deputy US marshal had proved to be an attractive candidate for the citizens of Teton County. Now, four months later, here he was, sworn in as sheriff, and he wasn’t waiting any longer for the moment of truth between him and Lara.
He opened his desk drawer, pulled out a square jeweler’s box and tapped the top with a firm finger. “Don’t say no.”
Then he rose to head home and change for his date with Lara tonight. Funny how nervous he was. Their feelings for each other had done nothing but grow steadily over time, but he was under no illusions how difficult it had been for Lara to conquer deep-seated relationship fears. Those kinds of inner wounds took time and effort to heal thoroughly, and they persisted in little ways, cropping up out of the blue, despite people’s best intentions. He understood that. Lately, her signs of caution had grown few and far between, but he still couldn’t be sure he wasn’t rushing things, at least in her mind. He’d even settle for a long engagement if she’d just wear his ring.
An hour later, his breath puffing out steam in the cold January air, Ethan rang Lara’s doorbell. The door sprang open almost immediately, and a beaming Lara stood on the other side.
“You’ll never guess what’s happened,” she cried.
“What is it?” Ethan’s heart did a little jump.
She grabbed his hand and pulled him over the threshold. He shrugged out of his winter jacket and hung it on the coat tree in the foyer. Then she threw her arms around him, and he gladly returned the hug.
“It’s absolutely wonderful.” She gazed up at him with a brilliant smile.
“What is?”
Laughing, she released her hold around his waist and performed a little twirling dance into the living room area. The full skirt of the knee-length dress she was wearing swished around her.
She stopped and lifted her hands in the air. “Isabelle has had enough of Chicago with all its bad memories. She grew fond of Jackson when she stayed here, so she and Maisy are moving.”
“To Jackson?”
“Yes! That’s what I said.”
“That’s what you implied.” Ethan grinned. “Just making sure I have my facts straight.”
Lara stepped up to him and placed her palms against his chest. “Ever the lawman.”
Taking advantage of the moment, Ethan pulled her close. “So we’ll have the pleasure of the amazing Maisy’s company indefinitely.”
“Awesome, isn’t it?”
“Better than awesome. But I have some news of my own.”
“What news?” Her expression sobered.
“Well—” his gaze fell away from hers “—it’s more like a question I need to ask you.” Why did that box in his pocket suddenly weigh a ton?
“You know you can ask me anything.”
He couldn’t get a better invitation than that. Releasing her, he stepped back. He felt like a gangly, awkward teenager, but he managed to kneel in front of her anyway.
Her jaw dropped and both hands flew up to cover her open mouth. Was that a sheen of tears suddenly washing over her eyes? Should he take that as a good sign?
Ethan finally muscled the box out of his pocket. He mentally kicked himself. Should have taken it out before he knelt. But at last, he extended the box up toward her and popped open the lid.
“Lara Werth, will you marry me?”
A sob left Lara’s lips.
“Don’t worry. I’m not pressuring you to set a date,” Ethan babbled on. “However long you want the engagement to be, I’m fine with that. I only hope you can—”
Her forefinger across his lips effectively stopped more words as she dropped to her knees next to him. “You wonderful man, of course I’ll marry you. The sooner the better. And I don’t want a big wedding. Just get my mom out here...and Isabelle and Maisy. And Jake too, since he helped us so much.”
“And Terry,” Ethan put in, grinning fit to burst. “And Rogan and his wife, Trina. Rogan would shoot me if I left him out of my wedding when I was best man for his.”
“Invite anyone you want but do it fast. I can hardly wait to start our life together.”
He took the ring out of the box and slid the circlet onto her finger. It fit perfectly. Lara gazed down at the symbol of their fresh commitment, her eyes sparkling like the diamond he’d given her.
Ethan lifted her chin and lowered his head. Their first kiss as an engaged couple. A pledge of many more to come.
If you enjoyed this book, look for these other stories by Jill Elizabeth Nelson:
Lone Survivor
The Baby’s Defender
Keep reading for an excerpt from Under Surveillance by Jodie Bailey.
