Page 17 of Hitched to my Boss (Viva Las… Oh, Sh!t #2)

JASON

T he first thing I see when I open my eyes is my wife's face.

Natalia sits in the hospital chair beside my bed, her dark hair falling around her shoulders, still wearing the business attire she must have traveled in.

She looks exhausted, worried, and more beautiful than I remembered.

Her hand rests on the edge of my bed, close enough to touch but not quite making contact.

"You're awake," she says, relief flooding her voice.

"You're here." My throat feels raw, probably from the breathing tube they'd used during surgery. "You came back."

"Of course I came back." She leans forward slightly, her brown eyes searching my face. "You're my husband, and you were hurt."

"Did you get my note?" The question comes out before I can stop it, vulnerable and uncertain.

"I got it." Her voice breaks slightly. "Jason, you were coming to Atlanta. You were willing to leave your mountain for three months to prove you could meet me halfway."

"I was terrified," I admit. "But I was going to do it. I wanted to show you that I could be brave enough to step into your world, that I wasn't just asking you to sacrifice everything while I risked nothing."

"And instead of being there when you landed, I was sitting in meetings.

" Tears shine in her eyes. "When I found your note and realized what time your flight was supposed to arrive, I thought you'd changed your mind.

That you'd gotten to Atlanta and decided I wasn't worth leaving your comfort zone for. "

"I never made it to Atlanta." I squeeze her hand, noting how she doesn't pull away. "I stopped by Hartwell's ranch first to wrap up some loose ends. I wanted to ensure everything would be handled properly during my absence. That's when I found the mother wolf stuck between the rocks."

"So you missed your flight to save wolves."

"I missed my flight because I couldn't abandon animals that needed help, even when it meant disappointing you." I meet her eyes. "I chose to be the man you fell in love with, even when it cost me the chance to prove I could change for you."

"You did prove it," she says, tears flowing freely now. "The fact that you were willing to get on that plane, that you'd planned to leave your mountain for three months... that proved everything I needed to know."

"Even though I screwed it up?"

"You didn't screw it up. You stayed true to who you are while being willing to grow." She traces her thumb across my knuckles. "I don't want you to stop being the man who saves wolf families. I just want you to be that man with me. That’s a part of what I love about you, Jason."

"You love me?"

"I love you." She says it like a vow, direct and unwavering.

"I love your careful way of thinking through problems. I love how you'd rather spend weeks doing something right than rush to a solution that might cause harm.

I love the way you make coffee at all hours of the day, and how you look at me like I'm something precious. "

"You are something precious."

"I love that you built a sanctuary in the mountains because you needed space to heal, and that you were willing to share it with me.

" Tears shine in her eyes, but her voice stays steady.

"And I love that you would risk your life to save a family of wolves because you believe every creature deserves a chance at happiness. "

"I love you too, Natalia." I pause, knowing I need to tell her what I'd planned. "You were right. About everything. I was asking you to sacrifice everything while I risked nothing. I was expecting you to fit into my life instead of building something new together."

She starts to speak, but I continue. "I’ll never do that again. If this is going to work, really work, it needs to be in a way that allows both of us to shine. Whether that means you moving to Whisper Vale, me moving to Atlanta, or us finding a home base somewhere in between."

Her eyes widen. "You would permanently move to Atlanta?"

"If that means I have you in my life, I would in a heartbeat.” I smile. "Our relationship stopped being an accident to me the moment I woke up next to you in Vegas."

"For me too. I just wasn't brave enough to admit it." She traces her thumb across my cheekbone, the gesture tender and familiar. "Jason, I don't want to go back to Atlanta. I don't want the apartment or the career that makes sense on paper but feels empty without you."

"What do you want?"

"I want to come home to our cabin. I want to finish setting up our life together and build a business that works for both of us.

I want to learn how to live in the mountains with a man who's brave enough to crawl into dangerous spaces to save wild animals.

" Her smile is soft, vulnerable. "I want to be your wife, really and truly, for as long as you'll have me. "

The declaration warms me from the inside out, healing something that had been broken since the moment she'd walked out of my cabin with her list of reasons why we wouldn't work.

"What about your career? Your professional reputation?"

"My career will adapt. I can do remote consulting from Whisper Vale, with travel for major clients when needed." Natalia's voice grows firmer. "And my professional reputation will recover from one mistake. But I might not recover from losing the best thing that ever happened to me."

"Which is?"

"You, Jason. You're the best thing that ever happened to me." She leans down to press her forehead against mine. "I should have fought for us instead of running away when things got complicated."

"You're fighting for us now."

"I'm fighting for us now," she agrees. "But Jason, I need you to understand something. I can't be the only one making changes. If we're going to make this work, really work, we both need to be willing to compromise."

"What kind of compromise?"

"The kind where you don't disappear into the mountains for weeks at a time without communication.

The kind where we make decisions together instead of you deciding what's best for both of us.

" She pulls back to look at me directly.

"The kind where we build something that honors both our needs instead of expecting one of us to disappear into the other's life. "

"You want me to check in more when I'm working remote sites."

"I want you to remember that you have a wife who worries about you. Who wants to know you're safe and when you're coming home." Her thumb traces across my knuckles. "I want you to trust me enough to let me be part of your life instead of just fitting into it."

The distinction is important, and I can see that now. I've been asking her to adapt to my existing life instead of building something new together.

"I can do that," I tell her. "I want to do that."

"And I want to support your work instead of seeing it as competition for your attention. I want to be your partner in all of it, not just the parts that are convenient for me."

"Partners," I echo, remembering how the word had felt when we'd shaken hands in my cabin four months ago. It means something completely different now.

"Partners. Husband and wife. Home." She brings my hand to her lips, pressing a kiss to my knuckles. "For better or worse, in sickness and health, for richer or poorer."

"You're quoting wedding vows."

"I'm making wedding vows. Real ones this time, instead of whatever we said to Elvis in Vegas." Her eyes shine with tears and joy in equal measure. "I love you, Jason Wallace. Will you stay married to me? For real this time?"

The answer comes without hesitation. "Yes. Absolutely yes."

"Good. Because I bought us rings that we'll actually remember getting."

She reaches into her purse and pulls out a small velvet box. Inside are two simple gold bands, more elegant than our Vegas rings but still understated enough for mountain life.

"When did you have time to buy rings?"

"Airport jewelry store, while I was waiting for my flight to Vegas. I figured if I was going to fight for my marriage, I should probably have better equipment than whatever we picked out while drunk."

I laugh, the sound rusty but genuine. "You bought our wedding rings at an airport jewelry store?"

"I bought our future at an airport jewelry store." She slides the larger ring onto my finger, her touch gentle around my bandages. "The rings are just symbols."

"What's our future?"

"Morning coffee on the cabin porch. You teaching me how to track wildlife safely.

Me helping you build the kind of business that attracts clients who value expertise over schmoozing.

" She takes my hand, admiring how the ring looks against my skin.

"Late night conversations about everything and nothing.

Shared silence when words aren't necessary.

A life that fits both of us instead of requiring either of us to change who we are fundamentally. "

"It sounds perfect."

"It sounds real." She leans over to kiss me, deeper this time, full of promise and commitment. "And it starts as soon as you're cleared to travel home."

"Home."

"Our home. Our life. Our chance to prove that accidental marriages can turn into happily ever after when the right people are willing to fight for them."

Vegas gave us an accidental marriage. But love, trust, and the courage to fight for what matters is giving us something much better, a real one.

And this time, we'll both remember every moment of it.