I had absolutely no idea this was planned.
Beside me, Aiden kisses me briefly on the cheek before making his way through the crowd toward the stage. I watch as he climbs the steps and accepts the medal from Lieutenant Mercer, then turns toward Finn, who is already there, waiting for him.
Aiden places the medal in his hands.
Finn barely looks at it before pulling him into a tight hug.
Tears fill my eyes instantly.
My hands move to my pockets, searching for my phone because I don’t want to miss a second of this moment, but everything happened so quickly that I wasn’t ready.
“Don’t worry,” Natalia says softly from beside me. “Some of the wives are at the front recording everything. I’ll send you the pictures and footage later.”
I glance at her gratefully.
“Thank you.”
She wraps an arm around my shoulders while we both watch the two of them standing there on stage, the crowd still cheering around them as my vision blurs slightly from the tears running down my face.
My God, I think.
I am so lucky.
Once Lieutenant Mercer continues the celebration and the crowd’s attention shifts back toward the harbor, Aiden slips quietly to my side. His fingers find mine, and he gives my hand a gentle tug, leaning close enough that his voice brushes against my ear.
“Come on.”
I follow him without question as he leads me away from the crowd.
“Where are we going?” I ask, glancing back toward the harbor where the procession is just about to begin.
“I have a perfect spot for us to watch,” he says, a wide smile spreading across his face.
Within minutes, we’re in his truck, weaving slowly through town. The streets are packed with people gathered along thebridge and sidewalks, everyone waiting for the boats to begin their procession out into the ocean.
Instead of heading toward the harbor, Aiden turns into our subdivision, and a few minutes later, he’s pulling into the driveway outside his house.
“Come on,” he says again as he jumps out of the truck and disappears inside his house. A moment later, he reappears with Neptune and Skye on their leashes, the two dogs practically vibrating with excitement.
He hands me one of my sweaters that I apparently left at his house.
“You might need this,” he says.
I slip it on while he takes my hand again, and together we start walking down the street that runs along the shoreline. We pass several homes I’ve grown familiar with over the past few months.
At the end of the street, he leads me into a small field filled with tall trees. The ground is soft beneath my boots, still damp in places, and I’m suddenly grateful I wore my rain boots this morning.
We move through the trees and along what looks like a narrow, hidden path between tall grasses and thick coastal vegetation. I follow him without asking questions, trusting the quiet certainty in the way he moves.
Then we step through the last stretch of greenery, and suddenly the space opens up.
I stop in my tracks.
Before us is a hidden scenic point overlooking the cliffs, a small clearing surrounded by wild vegetation where the ocean stretches endlessly in every direction. From here, the harbor is perfectly visible below, the boats just beginning to leave the docks and move out into open water.
“Wow,” I breathe.
As if the timing were planned, the procession begins the moment we arrive. One by one, the beautifully decorated boats pass in front of us, flowers spilling over their rails as people aboard wave toward the shoreline.
