My Special Forces Boyfriend Trilogy by Tiffany Madison

aren’t going to leave again.”
    Alex kissed me on the top of my head, as he placed his arm around my shoulder, instantly making me feel safe and secure.
    “I’ll never leave again, Lindsey,” he said. “My fighting days are over. They’re behind me, nothing more than a memory now.”
    There was sadness in his voice as he spoke, like he was grieving the fact that he was now ex- Special Forces and not active duty.
    “Well, your fighting days may be over,” I responded. “But your life isn’t. We’re still young, Alex.”
    Alex nodded in agreement.
    “You’re right,” he said. “But even so, I’m not going to squander time ever again. I spent a decade trying to find myself and figure out what I loved most in this life. I thought that what I truly loved was being a soldier. But it wasn’t. Everything I ever really wanted, I already had. I had it years ago and I couldn’t even see it. It was you, Lindsey. You were what I was looking for this entire time and I had to go to hell and back to even realize it. You were my beginning and my end and I got lost somewhere in between. But never again. I now know exactly what it is that I need.”
    As he spoke, Alex sat up on the bed and then slowly crawled off. I laid there and watched as he picked his jeans up off of the floor. Then he reached into the front pocket, pulling out a small, blue box.
    “Stand up,” he said, holding out his hand.
    He helped me to my feet and I stood on the floor in front of him.
    “What is that, Alex?” I asked.
    I wasn’t expecting a gift from him. I was plenty happy with just the fact that he wouldn’t be leaving for war again.
    “Well, I’m not sure how this works, since you’re technically still married and all,” he said, as he held the closed box gently in his hands. “But if there was one thing that I’ve learned over the last ten years, it’s that you should never be afraid of what your heart is telling you. And in this case, it’s telling me that I should be asking you a question.”
    My mouth opened and a burst of excitement shot through me.
    “Alex...” I said, my eyes beginning to fill with tears of joy. “Are you asking me to...?”
    Alex nodded and then cut my words short, as he dropped to one knee in front of me.
    “Lindsey, my beautiful girl. You’ve had infinite patience with me and I love you more than anything in this world,” he said, as he held the box up in the air, bringing it to the same level as my waist. “Will you marry me?”
    He opened the box, exposing the silver ring with a large diamond on top. It glimmered in the daylight as Alex removed it. Then he took my left hand in his. He was kneeling in front of me, looking up with his blue eyes and his boyish smile that I had always loved. Even though I knew it was going to be hard to let William go, I also knew what my heart wanted. And if I spent my whole life pretending not to listen to my heart, then my soul would suffer. And I didn’t want to suffer any more. So, the answer to Alex’s question was obvious.
    “Yes...” I whispered, nodding my head at the same time as tears began to overflow from my eyes, streaming down my cheeks. “Yes, Alex...of course. Yes.”
    Alex slipped the ring on my finger and then stood up from the floor, hugging me passionately. Then he brought his lips to mine and we kissed like we had never kissed before, with a passion that I had only read about in romance stories. I felt complete for the first time in my life. The boy who I had always adored had finally become the man that I loved. I didn’t even question my decision, because every part of it felt so right. It wasn’t going to be an easy transition for my son or for William, but in that moment, I realized that we all had to follow our hearts no matter what. It was the only way any of us would ever feel complete.
    Alex and I kissed and held each other for a while, still naked. Then suddenly, we were interrupted by the sound of the front door opening