Total pages in book: 33
Estimated words: 30892 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 154(@200wpm)___ 124(@250wpm)___ 103(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 30892 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 154(@200wpm)___ 124(@250wpm)___ 103(@300wpm)
I frown. My brain feels addled from being up all night and working through the morning to get the shop cleaned up. Now I’ve got a flurry of phone calls to make, including one to my insurance company. “What do you mean?”
“You’re moving in with me,” he says it so casually, like it’s a foregone conclusion.
“Because of the damage?” I ask, surveying the boarded-up windows. The truth is, I’m not worried about them. Courage County is a sleepy small town, and Sheriff Luke is always watching over the residents. I don’t think paint dries on a house without him knowing about it.
“I don’t want to live apart from you. I thought I made that clear last night.”
“Barrett—”
Before I can even finish saying his name, he says, “Shit, I’m doing this out of order.”
He pulls a ring from the pocket of his jeans and drops to his knees. “Marry me, sweet girl. Let me take you on a million adventures, give you beautiful babies, pleasure you a dozen times every day. Let’s build a life together.”
My eyes fill with tears at his impromptu speech. I drop to my knees beside him. “Yes, to all of that. Yes, to the adventures and the babies and the orgasms. Yes, to the life together.”
The smile he gives me lights up the entire building. Maybe even the whole town. He slides the ring on my finger. “I love you, Sadie Maple.”
I stare down at the sparkly diamond. The weight on my finger feels so very right. After years of searching, I know I’ve found the place I belong. “Can we do it now?”
“Are you sure? We can wait and have a big, beautiful wedding in front of the whole town. I want you to have everything you’ve dreamed of.”
My heart fills with gratitude. He wants to make my every dream come true, which only makes me want to marry him more. “You’re what I dreamed of, my big teddy bear. The wedding is just one moment in our story. One perfect, glorious moment to let our family and friends know how much we love each other. I don’t need anything fancy for that. Just you and me, pledging our love to each other.”
He gives my hand a gentle squeeze. “If you want to do it now, nothing will make me prouder than to claim you as my wife.”
I grin at him. “I want to go to bed tonight next to my husband.”
“You have no idea what that thought does to me,” he answers. “I can’t wait to see you wearing my wedding ring.”
With a deep breath, I walk into Linda’s candle shop. Greer is sweeping up glass on one side of the store while Ginger is flitting about, working on one of the displays. Grizz is fussing over her. He keeps insisting she needs to sit down and let him do the work.
Linda is inspecting candles and setting aside ones that weren’t damaged from yesterday’s storm.
I hurry to her, my hands in the pocket of my blue jeans. “Can I talk to you alone for a minute?”
Linda smiles when she sees me and gestures for me to follow her into the inventory room. “What’s up? Is everything okay? I haven’t seen you around lately.”
I close the door, so we’re alone. “I haven’t been around a lot because I consider you a friend, and I didn’t know how to tell you that I think your son is hot.” My cheeks flame as soon as I admit that. “I can’t believe I just said that out loud.”
She chuckles. “There’s nothing to feel awkward about. I’m glad that Barrett found someone so sweet and kind.”
A weight that was on my shoulders rolls off, and I tug my hand from my pocket. “I’m so relieved to hear you say that. He asked me to marry him, and I’d really like to hold the wedding today.”
Linda whoops and hollers. “Congratulations! I’m so happy that Barrett has a girl like you to call his own.”
My eyes fill with tears. “You’re really happy about this?”
Linda says, “I just got myself a lifetime supply of donuts. I’m over the moon.”
I’m laughing and crying at the same time, happy tears and delighted giggles. I was so worried she’d be angry with me. “There’s just one more thing.”
“I’m not sure my heart can handle more news,” she says, her own eyes filling with tears.
“It’s just that I don’t have a family. Ever since I’ve met you, I’ve always thought that I would have liked my mom to have been just like you. So would you consider walking me down the aisle?”
“I would be proud to walk down that aisle with you and give you away. Now, come here. Give me a hug.” As she wraps her arms around me, she whispers, “I’m so excited to have a new daughter.”