Page 11 of A Very Grumpy Navy SEAL (Wolf Valley: Grumps #10)

ELEVEN

Lula

I’ve been pacing this room for what feels like hours, but it’s probably only been fifteen minutes.

The sun dips lower, casting gold and amber light through the old lace curtains. My laptop sits closed on the desk beside my completed job forms, and I keep looking at it like it might give me the answers I still don’t have.

I’m trying to be excited—I should be excited. I got a job. A fresh start. It’s everything I said I wanted when I moved here. Everything I swore I needed.

But now, there’s Koa.

Koa, with his warm hands and steady voice. He makes me feel safe and desired and seen. Koa, who looked like someone had cut out a piece of his heart when I told him I needed space. Koa, who I know would never hurt me but still terrifies me in all the ways that matter.

Because he’s not just a man. He’s a future. A big, life-changing one.

And I don’t know how to fit into his world.

I haven’t been here long, but I love Wolf Valley. I see myself living here and being happy. The quiet, the sense of community, the way I don’t feel like I’m drowning in memories. This place feels like mine. Like home.

But Koa? His world is orders and bases and deployments. A life on the move. And I’m so scared that if I step into it, I’ll lose myself again.

I press a hand to my chest and try to breathe. It takes me a moment to realize that the pain in my chest isn’t from a lack of oxygen. It’s from a broken heart.

A knock on the door breaks the silence, and I freeze. It could only be one person.

My feet move before my brain catches up, and I open the door. Koa stands there, his green eyes locked on mine. He’s not holding anything this time—not pizza or flowers or tools. Just his heart in his eyes.

“I love you.”

The words are so simple. So honest. So pure.

My breath catches. “Koa…”

“I have no idea what I’m doing,” he blurts, stepping closer. “None. This isn’t how I work. I like structure, Lula. I like plans. I’ve lived my life on five, ten, fifteen-year timelines. I’ve always known where I’m going and why.”

I nod slowly, my heart racing.

“But you…” He laughs softly, a little breathless, like I’ve knocked the air out of him. “You don’t fit into any of those plans. You blew them all up the second you ran into me outside that diner.”

I bite my lip because if I speak now, I might cry. And I want to hear all of this first.

“You’re messy and spontaneous and soft and real. You make me want things I never even let myself consider. And it scares the hell out of me.”

I reach out without thinking, touching his chest. His heart beats hard under my hand.

“But it’s also exactly what I need,” he says. “I need you. I want you. More than I’ve ever wanted anything. And I don’t care how much I have to shift, change, or figure out so long as it means you’re mine.”

The tears I’ve been holding back break free, falling hot and fast down my cheeks.

His eyes widen in panic. “Shit. No. No, don’t cry. I didn’t mean—are you okay? Did I say something wrong?”

I laugh through the tears and shake my head, grabbing the front of his shirt and tugging him inside before someone sees us in the hallway.

“You didn’t say anything wrong,” I whisper.

He cups my face, wiping the tears with his thumbs like he’s terrified they’re his fault.

“I love you, too, Koa. So much it hurts,” I say, my voice thick with emotion.

He lets out a shaky breath and pulls me into his arms. I can almost feel the wave of relief that crashes through him.

“I was so afraid I messed everything up,” he murmurs into my hair.

“You didn’t. But”—I pull back to meet his eyes—“I can’t live on a base. I can’t live in a big city or spend half my life waiting for you to call from halfway around the world. I don’t want your career to dictate everything. I want a life that’s mine, too.”

“I know,” he says. “And I want that for you. I swear.”

I search his face, and everything I see there is real. Raw. True.

“We can make it work,” he says. “Stay here in Wolf Valley. Build your life, your career, your community. I’ll deploy when I have to, but I’ll come home here. To you.”

“But you’re still in the Navy.”

“For now, yeah. I have to finish out this contract but after that…” He pauses, eyes burning into mine. “After that, I can come home for good.”

A sob breaks in my throat. “I want you to keep doing what you love.”

“I will. And I’ll love you, too. We’ll figure it out.”

My heart aches in the best way. Because I believe him. “What about when you’re home?

Will we split time?”

“You’ll visit when you can. I’ll fly you out. Your new job is remote, right?”

I nod.

“So you can work anywhere. I’ll rent us a place close to base while I’m stateside. But this”—he gestures around the hotel room, to the town beyond the walls—“this will be home base. We’ll keep a house here. For good.”

I blink at him. “You want to buy a house?”

“I already looked at a few.” He shrugs. “Didn’t feel right making an offer until I knew you’d be in it.”

“You’re serious.”

“I’m very serious,” he says. “And also—I want to marry you.”

My heart flatlines.

“Tomorrow.”

My mouth drops open. “Koa!”

“We don’t have to make it big. Just us. The courthouse. Maybe Cameron can be our witness. Or we can wait until Ledger gets back from his deployment and do it then. I don’t want to wait longer than that.”

I stare at him, trying to catch up.

“This isn’t heat or adrenaline or a reaction to the craziness of this week,” he continues. “This is the clearest I’ve ever felt about anything. I love you, Lula. And I want to start forever with you. Now.”

“I…”

“I’m not asking for a picture-perfect life. I know we’ll fight. I know I’ll screw things up sometimes. But I will never stop choosing you. Every day.”

I throw myself at him, arms wrapping around his neck as I press my lips to his.

The kiss is messy and wet and a little desperate. But it’s perfect. Because it’s us.

“I love you,” I breathe when we break apart. “I love you so damn much.”

He grins, that dimple peeking out like it always does when he’s happy. “You’re mine now, Bunny.”

“Only if you’re mine, too, SEAL.”

“Always.”

We collapse onto the bed in a tangle of limbs and heartbeats. My cheeks hurt from smiling, and my chest feels sore from how full it is. And for the first time in what feels like forever, I’m not afraid of what comes next.

We’ll make a plan together. We’ll change it when necessary, and we’ll continue to choose each other, no matter what.

That’s all I need.

That’s all I’ll ever need.