Chapter 10
Six months later.
The cabin has become home.
Not officially, I still keep my apartment in town for when I need to film or meet with the book club. But most nights, I'm here. In Ty's space. In our space.
The threat that brought us together is long resolved. The investigation wrapped quietly, the bad guys are wherever bad guys go when the CIA is done with them, and my accidental footage ended up being a crucial piece of evidence that I'll never be allowed to talk about.
Ty got a commendation. And when I break the rules? I get a very stern lecture that ends with him bending me over and reminding me why rules exist.
Worth it.
My content has changed. Evolved. I'm more intentional now about what I share and what I keep private. My engagement is actually better, turns out people respond to authenticity more than they respond to constant availability.
Who knew.
The book club is thriving. We’re planning Holly’s wedding and I’ve been helping Amber with her podcast about healthy relationship dynamics.
And me? I'm learning what it means to be loved well.
This morning, I wake to snow falling outside the bedroom window and Ty's arm heavy across my waist. He's already awake—I can tell by his breathing—but he's letting me ease into consciousness instead of rushing me.
“Morning,” I mumble.
“Morning, sweetheart.” He kisses my shoulder. “How'd you sleep?”
“Good. Really good. But I always sleep good when I’m in your arms.”
He rolls me onto my back, settling between my thighs like that's where he belongs. Because it is.
“I have something for you,” he says.
I arch an eyebrow. “Is it what I think it is?” I laugh.
“Depends on what you think it is.”
I reach down between us and he catches my wrist with a laugh. “Not that. Not yet.” He reaches for the nightstand and pulls out a small box.
My heart stutters. “Ty—” So help me God if that man proposes to me while I have bedhead and morning breath…
“Relax. It's not that either.” He opens it, revealing a delicate silver bracelet. Thin, elegant, with a small charm dangling from it.
I sit up, taking it carefully. The charm is engraved with coordinates.
“Where we met,” he says quietly. “Where everything started.”
I flip it over. The inside of the band has three words: Chosen. Safe. Mine.
My throat tightens. “Ty, this is—"
“A promise.” He takes it from me and fastens it around my wrist. “That I see you. That I'll keep showing up. That what we have isn't just physical, it's real.”
I launch myself at him, kissing him hard, and he catches me with a laugh.
“I take it you like it?”
“I love it. I love you.”
“I love you too.” He pulls back, brushing hair from my face. “And I have a question.”
“Okay.” He better not ask me to marry him. He knows better, right? I mean… I’d say yes but… I’ve always dreamt of a fairytale proposal. Nah, I think. I love this man. He could ask anytime and I’d say yes. Being with him is all that matters.
“Move in with me. Officially. Make this home.”
“I'm already here most nights.”
“I know. But I want it to be official. I want your stuff here. I want mornings like this to be our normal.”
My chest feels too full. “Yes.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah. Absolutely yes, Daddy.”
He grins—that rare, unguarded slightly lopsided boyish expression that still makes my stomach flip—and kisses me again.
“Good. Because I already cleared space in the closet.”
I laugh. “Presumptuous.”
“Confident,” he corrects.
We spend the morning in bed being lazy. It’s warm, cozy and perfect. Later, we make breakfast together, and I film a quick video of pancakes and coffee and snow falling outside, with Ty carefully staying just out of frame.
Some things are still just ours.
That afternoon, Holly and Chloe descend on the cabin for what Holly's calling a housewarming celebration.
They arrive with wine, snacks, and enough chaotic energy to make Ty retreat to his office with a bemused expression.
“He likes us,” Holly insists.
“He tolerates us,” Chloe corrects.
“He loves that Madison loves us,” Holly says wisely. “That's what matters.”
We sprawl across the living room, talking over each other, sharing updates and gossip and relationship advice that ranges from sweet to absolutely filthy.
I am glowing. I can feel it. The kind of happiness that radiates from the inside out.
Later, when the girls are gone and the cabin is quiet again, Ty emerges from his office and pulls me into his lap on the couch.
“Your friends are very loyal,” he says.
“You say that like it's a bad thing.”
“It's not.” His hand rubs slow circles on my back. “They care about you. That matters.”
“They like you too.” I tell him. “We’re hoping the rest of the littles from our Naughty Little Girls Book Club can move to the area. They all have mobile jobs, like me. They can work anywhere. We’re trying to talk them into it.”
“The chaos will definitely grow. It’s loud enough when you are all on video call.” He shakes his head but I see the sparkle in his eyes. He knows how much I enjoy spending time with them and the amount of happiness they bring to my life.
I settle back against his chest, breathing him in. “This is good, isn't it? What we have?”
“This is everything,” he corrects. “Are you happy?”
“So happy it's scary.”
“Good. Because I plan to keep you that way for a very long time.”
“Pinky promise?”
“Pinky promise.”
That night, I post a photo to Instagram.
It's the cabin at sunset, snow-covered pines in the background, warm light glowing from the windows.
The caption reads: Found home in the mountains.
Found myself here too. Some rules are worth following.
Posted four hours after I took it, metadata scrubbed, location tagged as simply Aspen Pine, Colorado.
The comments flood in, so many heart emojis, congratulations, people saying they've noticed the change in my content and they love it.
And there, buried in the middle, a comment from Holly: Proud of you, babe. You found your person.
I show it to Ty.
His response is immediate, “She's not wrong.”
“Yep, you're my person.”
“And you're mine. Now get off your phone and come to bed. It's past your bedtime.”
I laugh, set my phone aside, and take his hand and let him lead me to our bedroom.
Because some rules are worth following.
And some men are worth trusting.
And some love stories start with getting lost in the mountains and end with finding exactly where you belong.