"Have a good day." Erin gave a forced smile as the small family she'd been serving left the table. She let her smile drop once they were gone and started clearing the table and taking the money back to the register, pocketing her tip. She paused, bracing her hands on the counter and taking a deep breath.

"Tired?"

Erin lifted her head and gave her boss, Kate, a small smile. "Not really. Just…I don't know." she shrugged.

Kate gave her a knowing smile. "If I remember correctly, you asked for today off. So imagine my surprise when you walked through that door today."

Erin tried giving a smile, which looked more like a grimace, as she grabbed a rag to start wiping tables down.

"Yeah…Mia asked me to take her shift. I guess she got sick." Erin admitted.

"Hm. Sorry to hear that." Kate gave her a sympathetic smile before moving to check on her tables.

Erin sighed, leaning over and scrubbing a rough spot on a table. It was true, she'd asked for today off a month ago, and had been looking forward to having a day off. Unfortunately, Mia, the other waitress, texted her around six in the morning saying she got sick and asking if Erin could take her 3-8 shift. Erin already had classes from 9-1, with a break in-between to eat lunch. So she had just enough time to rush back to La Push, cuddle with Nick and Jake for a while, and then go to work. So, she was exhausted, both mentally and physically. And to make matters worse…

Today was Erin and Jake's third anniversary.

Sighing, Erin moved to grab some menus for a small group that had just entered the restaurant.

Her shift was mostly dull, and the dullness of it seemed to almost drag her mood down even more. Around 7:30, Erin was collecting the dirty dishes from a booth in the corner when suddenly a pair of hands landed on her waist. She jumped and instantly relaxed, recognizing the hands easily.

"How's work?" Jake's voice asked near her ear before he kissed her cheek. Erin peaked over her shoulder and gave him a small smile.

"It's okay. What are you doing here?" she asked curiously.

"Came to visit. Well, I have a couple people with me who would like some food, but they're taking it to go." Jake answered with a grin, nodding over his shoulder. Erin leaned to the side to look around his broad shoulders.

Embry was sitting in a booth near the door, bouncing a one year old Nick on his lap. When he met her eyes, he pointed at her, whispering something in Nick's ear. Nick instantly smiled at Erin and lifted his chubby hand to wave at her. A sincere smile stretched over Anna's lips at the sight of her baby brother.

Jake returned to their table while Anna rushed to drop the dishes off in the sink. She didn't have any other tables at the moment, so she walked over to talk to Embry and Jake.

Embry lifted a giggling Nick so Erin could take him.

"Hi Nicky." she smiled, holding him close on her hip.

"Win!" he squeaked, his attempt at her name. He'd come close a few times, as well as with a few words. He could say 'no' easily. He had a full head of soft, black hair, his cheeks weren't quite as chubby, and his brown eyes were a bit bigger and more intelligent. Erin and Jake had also decided early on that they weren't going to raise him thinking they were his parents. He would grow up knowing Erin was his big sister and Jake was her boyfriend who loved Nick like his own little brother or son. If, when he got older, he asked about his parents, depending on his age, they would tell him that his mother wasn't in a state to be the mother he needed. They would spare him the details until he was old enough to handle it.

Erin smiled, kissing the top of his head and cuddling him close. This was exactly what she needed after the day she'd had.

"Here's your dinner." Kate came over and placed a to-go bag on the table.

"Thanks." Embry smiled appreciatively before Kate turned to Erin and Nick.

"My gosh, he's gotten so big!" she cooed tickling Nick's cheek. He played shy and buried his face in Erin's shoulder. Of course, he wasn't actually shy. He loved attention and was very boisterous, which Erin suspected he'd picked up from the pack guys. "Did you want anything to eat, Jake?" Kate asked turning to Jake after a few moments of tickling Nick. Kate was one of the few adults who didn't know the full story and yet didn't judge Erin. Most of the reservation had heard rumors, some that Nick was Jake and Erin's son, and some that he was Erin's brother that Deborah dumped on her daughter. Pretty much only the pack, family members, and council knew the whole truth.

Jake smiled and shook his head. "No thanks, Kate. I'm taking Erin to dinner later."

Erin smiled, already looking forward to it.

"Well, Erin, you can clock out and go now, if you'd like." Kate suggested, turning back to the young girl.

Erin's mouth fell open. "Oh, no, Kate, that's fine. I can-"

"Oh, please." Kate waved her off, "We close in twenty minutes, and you don't have any other tables. It's been slow, I can handle it. You weren't even supposed to work today anyway, it's not fair for you to be here. I can tell by how disappointed you've been all afternoon that you had something big planned today."

Erin ducked her head sheepishly. "Well,…I mean, if you're sure…"

"Absolutely. Now, go. Have dinner with your boyfriend. Go on." Kate made a shooing motion with her hand, making the others laugh. Erin handed Nick to Jake so she could grab her things and clock out. When she returned, she took Jake's hand and walked outside. She was confused to see both the Rabbit and Jake's Explorer parked in the parking lot. She'd walked to work.

"Um, why are both our cars here?" she asked, looking up at Jake.

"'Cause Embry's taking Nick in the Explorer, since it has the car seat in the back. He's babysitting at our place, with Dad, while I take you to dinner." Jake answered.

Erin smiled sheepishly. "You already made me breakfast, Jake. I haven't done anything for you. You're making me feel guilty." she admitted.

"You being with me is enough." Jake countered casually with a shrug as he got in the driver's seat of the Rabbit. Erin waved goodbye to Embry and Nick before getting in the front passenger seat.

They drove a couple minutes to the beach and Jake parked the car in the parking lot. They both got out and Jake grabbed a picnic basket from the back seat, making Erin smile. She loved having picnics with him.

Taking Erin's hand in his free one, Jake lead the way to the opening of a path that lead up to the cliffs. When they reached the top, Jake released Erin's hand, got a blanket out of the basket, and laid it out on the grass a couple feet from the edge of the cliff.

"This is really sweet, Jake." Erin smiled as they sat down. Jake got the food out of the basket, sub sandwiches, fried chicken, cut fruit, brownies, and a bottle of lemonade.

"Thanks. Emily did the cooking, obviously." Jake grinned.

"I figured as much, considering there's no peanut butter sandwiches." Erin teased, making Jake glare playfully at her.

"Don't act like you don't love my peanut butter sandwiches."

Erin shifted and leaned into Jake's side as they ate, talking about their day and reminiscing over the last few years. As they talked, the sun started setting, turning the sky from gray, to orange, to pink.

Just before it became too late, Jake wiped his hands on his cutoffs and swallowed his bite of brownie.

"Erin." he whispered loud enough to get her attention. Erin swallowed her sip of lemonade and turned to him.

"Yeah?"

Jake cleared his throat. "Well, I'd like to say something, if that's okay."

"You're saying something now, of course it's okay." Erin laughed gently, making Jake crack a smile.

"Yeah, right. Anyway,…I love you. And the last three years have been some of the best of my life. I honestly can't even remember why, when I first imprinted on you, I didn't want to give you a chance. You're amazing. You're strong, and beautiful, and loving, and just the most perfect girl I could ask for."

Erin blushed, her eyes stinging at the words she could tell came from the heart. "Jake…"

"I mean it. With everything in me, I truly mean it. I love you more than anyone and anything in the world. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. And,…if you'd want to, I'd like to start now."

Before Erin could fully register what he meant, he reached into the far corner of the picnic basket and pulled out a small, black box. He held it in one hand and turned to face Erin more, while her hand flew to her mouth.

"Erin Jones, will you marry me?" he asked, opening the box to reveal a simple, silver ring with a single, small diamond.

Erin smiled at him, her eyes watering as she nodded her head. "Of course I will, Jake."

Jake grinned widely, wider than ever before as he plucked the ring from the box and slid it onto her third finger of her left hand.

"Jake, that looks expensive. You didn't have to-"

Jake shut her up by kissing her firmly on the lips, slipping his tongue between her lips and gently lowering her back to lay on the blanket. When they were both out of breath, he pulled away and rested his forehead on top of hers.

"It didn't cost a thing, babe. My dad gave it to me. It was the ring he gave to my mom when he proposed."

"He needs to stop giving us things. He has two daughters, too, you know." Erin pointed out lightly. Billy had already given Erin Sarah Black's old rocking chair, which she planned to give Rachel soon.

"Yes, well, he figured as it's the man's job to propose, he should give the ring to his only son." Jake explained with a grin. "Besides, Becca's already married, and Paul's been saving up like crazy to buy Rach a ring. Don't tell her that, it's obviously a surprise." he added at the last moment.

Erin laughed, lightly draping her arms over Jake's shoulders. "Obviously, I won't tell her Paul wants to get her an engagement ring, Jake."

"Good." Jake rolled to the side and laid on the blanket next to her. She pulled her arms from around his neck and he held her left hand in his, looking down at the ring before he kissed her knuckles. "I love you." he murmured, laying his head down and looking at her.

"Love you, too." Erin smiled.

"And you know, we don't have to get married right away. Whenever you want. I don't care about when or how big it is or anything. I just want you to be my wife." Jake admitted.

Erin smiled softly, shifting closer to him so he could throw his arm over her waist. "Well, typically I'd say I want to wait until after I graduate, but I'd rather not wait another five or so years to marry you. But we may have to wait until Nick's another year or so older. And I'd like to have a wedding on the beach or something. Just something small and simple, with the pack and our family."

"Sounds perfect." Jake whispered with a smile.

Erin tucked her head into the crook of his neck, her eyes trailing down to where her hand was resting on his chest, at the small diamond ring.

"Now I feel really bad that I didn't get you anything." she whined.

Jake scoffed. "You said yes to being my wife, Erin. If that isn't something I don't know what is." Pulling her closer, he pressed her whole front to his, ducking his head down to whisper in her ear, "But if you want to do something else for me…I can think of a few ideas to celebrate." His hand slipped under the hem of her T-shirt, his fingers tickling up her soft skin.

Erin giggled, his touch tickling her more than she'd like to admit as she tried to squirm away from him. "Jake!" she admonished, smacking his chest. "We're outside! Someone could see."

"No one comes up here except the pack." Jake argued with a smile. "And they know we're up here, they're staying away to give us privacy. Besides," he sat up and reached into the picnic basket to pull out another blanket. "I have this for cover."

"Oh, you just have this whole thing planned out, don't you?" Erin joked as Jake threw the blanket over them. "The whole proposing to me thing was just your way of seducing me, wasn't it?"

"Obviously." Jake grinned, leaning forward and kissing her again. It wasn't long before Jake managed to convince her to go along with his plans, turning her into putty in his hands.

A couple hours later, Jake and Erin walked back down the path back to the Rabbit, their clothes wrinkled and hair messed up. While Jake drove them home, Erin did her best to smooth her dirty blonde hair back down.

Jake carefully opened the door, letting Erin in ahead of him. The TV was on low and the only light on came from the screen and the lamp on the end table. Billy was sitting in his wheel chair next to the couch and Embry was sitting on the couch with his arm over the back. Both men looked up and greeted the couple with smiles.

"Hey. I tried getting him to go to bed, but he wanted to wait up for you." Embry whispered, pointing at the spot under his arm with his free hand. Erin walked closer and smiled at the sight of Nick in his PJs curled up asleep against Embry's side.

"So, how was your date?" Billy asked with a knowing smile.

Erin blushed, only because of the last thing they did on their date. "It was great." she answered simply.

"Anything happen we need to know about?" Embry urged with a smirk.

Erin rolled her eyes. "I said yes, obviously." she answered, showing him the ring on her finger before carefully picking Nick up without waking him. "I'm going to put Nick to bed. Thank you both for watching him."

"It was no problem, Erin. He's practically my grandson." Billy assured her with a smile, which Erin returned gratefully before turning down the short hallway to Nick's bedroom.

She carefully laid him down in his crib, tucking his Kung Fu Panda blanket around him and brushing his hair back from his face. She pulled away and leaned her arms on the side of the crib, watching her brother sleep peacefully. Her eyes drifted contemplatively to her left hand, where her engagement ring sat on her finger. It still amazed her sometimes that Jake wanted her. Even though she knew better, it often seemed like he could do so much better, like date a model or something.

A large, russet-skinned arm rested on the edge of the crib next to hers while another one slipped over her shoulder. Smiling softly, Erin rested her head on Jake's shoulder.

"We're probably going to need to get him a bed within the year." Jake whispered, looking down at Nick.

"Mhm." Erin nodded against him.

"That wasn't what you were thinking about, was it?" Jake asked knowingly, grinning down at her. Erin grinned, looking back down at her engagement ring.

"No, not really. Just…Just thinking, really. Nothing important or serious." she answered truthfully.

"Care to share, anyway?" Jake urged, leaning his head down a bit to be level with her.

"Just that…even though I know you love me and I know you want to be with me…You're way out of my league. Like, you should be with a model, or something." she answered with a smile, showing him she didn't take these thoughts seriously.

"Why would I want to be with a model?" Jake scrunched his nose up. "Too high maintenance. No, you're perfect for me." he said decidedly, kissing her cheek.

Erin bit her lip to muffle her laughter. "Good."