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“As a kid, I’d look up at the sky and watch the planes fly by, wishing I was on one. All I ever wanted to do was fly away.”
I swallow down the lump in my throat and wish he would’ve had the childhood he deserved. A family who loved him. But I can give that to him now, and I will.
“Aurora is so small, barely a blip on the map, so I entertained myself. Played in the woods and pretended I was a pilot. I didn’t care for school and didn’t have many friends. I was the kid with the ill-fitting clothes, hair that always needed a trim and the one whose parent never went to teacher conferences because he was down at the bar getting shit-faced instead.”
The image of him as a lonely child fills my eyes with tears. “I’m sure that wasn’t easy.”
“It’s a quiet town without opportunity. A place where people get depressed easily because they feel trapped. Hopeless. Like my dad. I’ve never been a drinker and I’m sure Alan Finn is the reason why. He never made it look fun. Just really lonely and depressing. I think he wanted more from life but didn’t know how to get it. So he just stayed lost in his own little, unhappy world. I didn’t want to be like that and I knew without a doubt that I would leave Aurora the first opportunity I got.”
“So you joined the Army.”
“The moment I turned eighteen. Alpha Mike Foxtrot were my last words to that town.”
I raise a questioning brow.
“Adios motherfucker,” he clarifies. “I only went back to Aurora the one time and caught my supposed girlfriend sucking some other guy off. At the time, I was naive enough to believe I loved her, but it was just an infatuation. So I returned to the base and nursed my broken heart for a while. I forced myself to forget about Autumn, but it was hard to let go of the pain she caused. I quickly realized it was so much easier to keep things light and flirty with women. I think that’s when I developed my carefree, happy go lucky attitude. And I embraced it.It was better that way. Safer. People just assume I’m happy because that’s what I project.”
“But you weren’t always happy.”
He shakes his head. “I tried to be, but no, sometimes it was too hard to fake. That’s when I’d get in a plane and fly around until I found my joy again.”
“Is your dad still in Aurora?”
“Yeah, he never left. He ended up drinking himself to death and currently resides in Calvary Cemetery.”
Although his tone is dry, there’s no anger or resentment. Just acceptance. “I’m sorry, Eric,” I whisper and wrap my arms around him. He returns the embrace, pressing a kiss to my temple. “You’re my joy, you know.”
He pulls back, mouth edging up in that smirk of his that I’ve grown to love so very much. “Am I?”
I nod. “Yep. Somehow you managed to fly into my heart, hijack it and now I can’t imagine my life without you.”
“Same,” he murmurs, brushing my hair back over my shoulders. “You’re the girl with the kaleidoscope eyes, my Ivy in the Sky, and I love you. So damn much.”
Tears blur my vision again. “I love you, too.”
“So you realize this means you’re moving here, right? And you’re damn well going to cuddle with me every night for the rest of our lives.”
“I’d like that,” I say and our lips meet, sealing the deal.
Chapter Nineteen: Finn
We’re over 12,000 feet up in the air, and for the first time in a very long time, I’m not the one flying the plane. Instead, I’m standing at the open cargo door wearing a parachute on my back. I haven’t done this since Jump School and I’m not going to pretend there isn’t a pool of sweat in my jumpsuit. But, hey, at least it’s not urine.
Ivy is strapped to my front and we’re about to perform a tandem jump. The wind is whipping her blonde hair around and I’m so damn proud of her for going through with this. She’s so much braver than she gives herself credit for, especially after what she’s been through.
I love being up in the air and I fly around all the time. The last thing I want is for her to be scared of something that’s so much a part of who I am. Plus, I want her up there with me, holding my hand as we chase the sunsets together.
So when I suggested skydiving, I wasn’t sure what kind of reaction I’d get. But Ivy is a trooper and she agreed. It may have taken a bit of cajoling but now here we are, standing on the precipice, and looking down at the ground thousands of miles below. Tuning out the roar of the engines and the wind, I pull in a deep, steadying breath.
One last thing.
And it has me way more nervous than jumping out of this plane.
Before we jump, I pluck out the diamond solitaire that’s been burning a hole in my pocket and lift my hand up in front of her, revealing it. The sun catches its facets and it sparkles outrageously. I feel her suck in a surprised breath and I lean in, my lips brushing her ear. “Ivy Monroe, I’m not doing this life with anyone but you. I want you with me, at my side, as my wife. Always. Will you marry me?”
“Yes!” she exclaims. “Oh, Eric!”
With a huge smile, I slip the ring on her finger and she tilts her face up to mine. “There’s no going back now. You’re stuck with me.”
