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Ella sensed Jhon’s eyes on her and turned to find him standing back a bit from the group, watching.
“How did you do this?” she asked him, moving to his side.
“It was easy,” he said, shrugging.
“Getting ten people passage from Terra-13 to Sigg-3 is not easy,” she retorted. “And it’s not cheap either.”
“Surprisingly, that wasn’t the expensive part,” Jhon said. “It took some doing, but I used the trade chain. We took their passage in lieu of payment on our last load of lichen. I hope you don’t mind.”
“Mind?” she echoed, shaking her head. “I can’t believe it. I’m so grateful.”
“I’m glad,” he told her, pulling her in for an embrace.
“Which part was expensive?” she asked him.
“It doesn’t matter,” he said. “Enjoy your family, everything is going to be just fine now.”
“You really don’t mind sharing the house?” she asked him. “There are so many of us.”
It hit her that she and Jhon might never have a moment alone again, and she felt guilty that it was her first thought. Of course, she would rather have her family here and safe. That was the most important thing.
“Okay, I was going to wait, but I bought them one of the abandoned islands,” he told her. “That was the expensive part.”
“A whole island?” she asked him. “How?”
“When I was on active duty, I saved most of what I earned,” he said, shrugging. “Food and lodging were part of the job. I knew I wanted a farm one day. And that’s exactly what I spent the money on, just not for me.”
“We’re going to pay him rent though,” Ella’s dad said, striding up to her. “Don’t worry.”
“Nonsense,” Jhon said. “It all worked out the way it was supposed to. I don’t need your rent. Ella and I have a farm of our own.”
Her father opened his mouth to protest, but Jhon cut him off.
“Actually,” Jhon said. “I do have something to ask of you. And your wife. Something that would be worth much more than the island.”
“Anything, Jhon,” Ella’s mom said, striding over with Bo on her hip. Taria walked alongside, holding onto one of his chubby feet.
“I wanted you here because you’re Ella’s family,” he said gruffly, as if he were giving a speech he had planned. “And I wanted you here so that I could ask your blessing. And if you say yes, I want you here because of course her family has to be here if there’s going to be a wedding.”
“A wedding,” Ella murmured.
“Of course you have our blessing,” her mother told Jhon, her voice breaking with emotion.
Her father nodded to him, as if he were too moved to speak.
“Ella,” Jhon said, dropping to one knee. “You accepted me as your mate. Now I hope you will accept me as your husband in the Terran way. As you honored my kind, I wish to honor yours.”
He held out something small and shimmering, but her eyes were already too wet with tears to make out the details.
“Yes,” she sobbed.
He slid the ring onto her finger, and then he was standing, pulling her close, and kissing her like he would never stop.
Somewhere in the background, she could hear Charl and Abbra, kindly distracting everyone for them.
“Now, Charl and I cooked us all up a feast in the event that she said yes,” Abbra was announcing. “So, we hope you all don’t mind coming right over for an engagement party, and to try out some Sigg-3 frontier cooking.”
“We’ve got a full barbecue going and I think Abbra’s hoping the children might help to frost the cakes,” Charl added.
