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Wade waves his hand at him. “Somethings never change. And I'm not just talking about Al. My brother has his work cut out for him this week because Darian Enterprises still has a problem with secrets.”

The group gets quiet, and I still can’t figure out what’s going on. Did Ander ask him to address something? But no, he wouldn’t?—

“Last year, everyone was keeping secrets. Now, no one can keep a secret.” He turns to Ander. “Does everyone know?”

He shrugs. “Sorry.”

What is he talking about?

“Not everyone,” Jared says and glances at me.

And I hate not knowing. “What’s going on, Wade?”

“This place—this team—is special to us. Why don’t you join me up here, sweetheart?”

I want to say no, but I also want to know what this is about. I refuse to let my imagination run away from me. So I walk to the front and glare at my boyfriend.

He laughs and takes my hand. “You said it yourself. We’ve had all our anniversaries here. So I thought, why not one more?”

Wade tries to release my hand, but I cling to him. My legs don’t want to work, and I really don’t want to fall on my ass. “Can? I need that hand.”

“Too bad.”

The others laugh, but Wade glances at Ander.

Ander rushes over to us. “Pocket?”

“No. Backpack.”

That’s when I notice Wade has one of the drawstring bags. When did he put that on? Ander digs in the bag and takes out something that he hands to Wade. He has to put it in his left hand because I'm still gripping his right. Wade shifts us slightly and then sinks to his knees.

Tears start before I can even process what’s happening.

“I love you so much, Canyon. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Go on lots of adventures together. Spoil our cat. I want to do everything with you.”

I cover my mouth with my hand, still in shock and still clutching his hand.

“Canyon Drake, will you marry me?”

“Oh my God.” I take a shaky breath. “This is how you propose to me? While we’re both working and stuck in the woods for five days?”

His eyes widen. “I thought—” He glances around at all our friends. “It’s romantic, right?”

Wade starts to get up, but I shake my head.

“Nope. I’ll come down there.” And trying not to fall, I sink to my knees and wrap my arms around him. “I never know what to expect from you.” I press a kiss to his mouth. “It’s very romantic.” I sniff back the tears. “And yes. I’ll marry you.”

“Thank fuck,” he says and crushes our mouths together.

Then there’s kissing and crying and more kissing and more crying.

“Oh wait. I forgot.” Wade shakes his head and opens the black box.

The ring is gold and beautiful. Not too elaborate.

It’s perfect. He slips the ring on my finger. “I love you so much.”

“I love you too.” I kiss him again to make sure he knows that I'm happy and not upset. Jared clears his throat. Right. We still have a retreat to run. Wade gets to his feet and helps me up. Good thing. My legs are still a little wobbly.

During the next fifteen minutes or so, everyone congratulates us. And I think I get why Ander wanted to start the retreat early.

Alex pulls me into a hug. “Look at you.” She wipes her eyes and laughs. “I guess this means I need to find a new hall pass.”

I give her my best annoyed look. “You’re just now figuring that out?”

She just laughs.

River moves Alex out of the way and pulls me into a fierce hug. “So happy for you, bro.”

I hold on for a minute longer than necessary. “So, wait. You knew about this?” I pull back to see his face. “Is that why you called this morning?”

“I had this weird feeling Wade might bail on me.”

I laugh, glancing from my brother to my fiancé. God, I love the sound of that. “I can’t believe you pulled this off. All of you.” I look around the room at all the support, not only for Wade but for me. “Thanks, everyone.”

“Anything for you, bro.”

“Anything? Because right now, I need you to do something for me.”

He hesitates and tilts his head to the side. “Okay.”

“Nothing major. Just handle everything while I take my man and celebrate this momentous occasion.”

His mouth drops open and he darts a glance at Wade. “You’re leaving?”

“No. Not leaving. But, um…we might hang out in the activities room. And do some…activities.”

He holds up a hand. “No details. Please, just…go.” He waves his hand, shooing me away.

Wade smiles at the group. “Thank you all for making this special.” He turns to me. “Ready, fiancé?”

I nod. “Ready.”

Then he scoops me into his arms, bridal style, and I let out an embarrassing sound of surprise.

“What are you doing?”

“It seemed like the right move at the time. Should I put you down?”

I wrap my arms around his neck. “What do you think?”

He shifts me in his arms until I’m secure. Then he lifts a brow and my body is already reacting. “This isn’t up for discussion. You’ll do what I say when I say it. Do you understand?” The boy is implied.

I bite my lip and gaze up at him from under my lashes. “Yes, Daddy.”

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