Winter in Kentbury (Kentbury Tales #6)

Chapter 16

Chapter Sixteen

Holden

I lie awake, watching Jenna sleep peacefully beside me, her face soft and relaxed, the morning light casting a warm glow across her features. It’s hard to believe how much my life has changed in just a year. I never thought I’d have her back in my arms, that she’d be here beside me like this, tangled up in my sheets, a part of my life again. After everything that happened during that winter storm, I was sure I’d lost my chance.

A little sigh escapes her lips, and she shifts closer, a small smile on her face even in sleep. I wrap my arm around her, pulling her as close as I can, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. She snuggles against me, her warmth grounding me, calming every part of me that had once been so restless. Her eyes flutter open, sleepy and full of warmth, and she gives me a soft, lazy smile.

“Hi,” she murmurs, her voice still heavy with sleep.

“Hey, princess,” I say, brushing a stray strand of hair from her face. “Go back to sleep. It’s still early.”

She blinks, nestling deeper into my side, her voice a soft whisper. “Why are you awake?”

“Just a little leftover anxiety, but I’m okay,” I tell her, meaning it this time. After a year of staying at a few centers and working with different therapists, I can finally say it and believe it. “Just . . . go back to sleep.”

She nods, her eyes closing again as she curls into me, her breathing evening out as she drifts off once more. I run my fingers along her shoulder, feeling grateful beyond words. She doesn’t know how much her being here means to me, how she’s become my anchor in ways I hadn’t thought possible.

I used to worry I’d never find someone who could see through the darkness, who would stay. But I didn’t need to find anyone. I just had to come back home, to Kentbury, to Jenna. The woman who was meant for me and brought so much light with her.

Two weeks later, I find myself pacing back and forth inside the jewelry store, my heart racing as I wait for the jeweler to bring out the ring. My hands are practically shaking with nerves, and the reality of what I’m about to do hits me harder than any mission I ever went on in the military. I never thought I’d be here, not after everything I’d put her through, not after thinking I’d lost her for good.

Landon leans back against the display counter, watching me with an amused grin, his arms crossed. “Will you stop pacing around like a caged tiger? You’re making me nervous, man. You’re not proposing here and now—we’re just picking up the ring.”

“I know that,” I say, trying to keep my voice steady. “But tonight, I could either be an engaged man or just . . . heartbroken. And I don’t know which one it’s going to be.”

Landon chuckles, giving me a reassuring pat on the shoulder. “Holden, it’s going to be fine. Jenna loves you. You know it, I know it, everyone in this town knows it. She’s going to say yes. Stop torturing yourself.”

Before I can respond, the jeweler comes out from the back with a small gift bag in hand, his face lighting up when he sees me. He’s known me since I was a kid, watched me grow up, and there’s a warmth in his eyes as he hands me the bag.

“Holden, seeing you this happy . . .” He shakes his head, smiling. “If anyone deserves it, it’s you. You picked a beautiful ring. She’s going to love it.”

Landon nudges me. “Come on, man, open it up. Let’s see what you got.”

With shaky hands, I pull the ring box from the bag and open it. The ring gleams under the store lights—a platinum band with a solitaire diamond at its center, surrounded by smaller stones that catch the light from every angle. It’s elegant and classic, just like Jenna. Landon lets out a low whistle, and I can’t help but wonder if Jenna will have the same reaction when she sees it.

“Do you think she’s going to like it?” I ask, my voice quieter than I expected.

“She’s going to love it,” Landon says, grinning. “And she’s going to say yes. This ring is just the icing on the cake.”

I shoot him a look, pretending to scowl. “Are you saying she’ll only say yes because of the size of the ring?”

Landon laughs. “No, man, she’d say yes no matter what. This just shows her how much thought you put into it. She’s going to love every bit of it.”

With one last look at the ring, I close the box and put it back in the bag, taking a steadying breath as we leave the store. The closer the evening gets, the more real it feels, and I can barely contain my nerves. I’ve faced plenty of terrifying situations, but nothing has ever felt as big as this. If she says yes, everything changes. And if she says no . . . I’m not sure how I’ll handle seeing her every day, knowing we could’ve had something more.

Later that evening, I drive over to her place, hands clammy on the steering wheel as I think over what I want to say. I’ve planned it out a hundred different ways, but I’m not sure which way is right for Jenna.

When she opens the door, looking beautiful and soft in the winter evening light, all the rehearsed words slip away. I take her to our favorite restaurant, the same one where we’d had so many moments together. I barely eat, my stomach is in knots, and my hands fidget under the table.

The hostess seated us in a quiet booth toward the back, giving us the privacy I wanted. Jenna looks at me, her brows furrowing slightly. “Are you okay? You seem . . . on edge.”

“Yeah, just . . . had a long day,” I say, trying to brush it off. But she sees right through me, just like she always does.

We finish eating, and I excuse myself, saying I need to go to the restroom. As I stand, my hand accidentally knocks my fork off the table, and I bend down to pick it up. Before I know it, I’m on one knee, looking up at her, and the moment feels both surreal and perfect.

Jenna’s eyes widen, and she tilts her head, a confused but hopeful smile starting to form. “Holden . . . what are you doing?”

Taking a deep breath, I reach into my pocket and pull out the ring box, opening it to reveal the ring I’d chosen just for her.

“Jenna . . . from the moment I met you all those years ago, I knew there was something extraordinary about you. You got under my skin in ways I couldn’t shake, and no matter how far away I went, you stayed with me.

“The way I felt about you then is the way I still feel now, only deeper. I wasted so much time thinking I wasn’t good enough, thinking my past would ruin what we had. But I don’t want to waste any more time.

“I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I want to make you laugh, to make you smile, to be the man who’ll be there for you through every season.”

I look into her eyes, holding out the ring with a hand that shakes, my heart thundering. “Jenna Santos, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”

Her eyes fill with tears, and a soft gasp escapes her lips as her hands fly to her mouth. She stares at the ring for a heartbeat, and then her gaze meets mine, her face full of love and joy I can’t believe is directed at me.

“Oh, Holden, yes! Yes, of course I’ll marry you,” she cries, reaching for me, her hands framing my face as she pulls me into a kiss that says more than any words could. Her lips are warm, and I taste the salt of her happy tears mixed with her laughter as I wrap my arms around her, deepening the kiss, feeling like the luckiest man alive.

After a moment, she pulls back, her cheeks flushed, her eyes shining, and holds out her hand. I slip the ring onto her finger, and it glimmers in the candlelight. We spend the rest of the evening lost in each other, planning a life, a future, a forever. And as I watch her gaze at the ring, a smile on her face, I know this is only the beginning of our story—one I’m ready to live, every single day, by her side.