Total pages in book: 25
Estimated words: 22710 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 114(@200wpm)___ 91(@250wpm)___ 76(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 22710 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 114(@200wpm)___ 91(@250wpm)___ 76(@300wpm)
The blanket is open in the middle with the picnic basket at the corner. Platters of food are in front of it, all covered. A bouquet of sunflowers is at another corner with a bottle of champagne and two glasses. Two pillows are at another corner. "I hope this is okay," he says, and I have no words.
"You did all this?" I ask, looking to see that he has a platter of fruit, another of cakes, another of sandwiches, and then one more of cheese.
"I want to say yes." He sits down in the middle of the blanket, pulling me down on it with him. "But my sisters did help me, and well, my mother." I shake my head. I have yet to meet his family in person, but we have met through FaceTime. "I hope it’s okay."
"It is," I confirm, and then I see the soft little candles he has put around the blanket for when the sun goes down. "This is more than okay." I sit with my legs to the side. He leans over and grabs the bottle of champagne and pops the cork, moving it off the blanket when it starts to bubble over, making me laugh. "Very smooth," I say as he hands me a glass of champagne and then grabs the bottle of water for himself, pouring it into the other glass.
"To us." He holds the glass of water up, and I can’t even try not to smile.
"To us," I say, clinking my glass with his and then taking a sip. I can’t help but look around again. "I can’t believe you did all this." I lean forward, giving him a soft kiss on his lips. "It’s just perfect."
"No." He shakes his head. "You are perfect." I can’t even control the butterflies in my stomach. Instead, I finish off the glass of champagne. Putting the glass down beside the food, I move toward him.
I get on my knees, lifting my dress, when I move my leg over to straddle him. I hold his face in my hands and say the words that I’ve been biting my tongue to say for the past five months. "I love you." I look into his eyes when I say the words and then see his mouth open, and I put my finger on it. "You don’t have to say it back. I just wanted you to know that these past six months with you have been more than I could ever imagine." I lean forward and kiss him softly.
His hands rub my back. "Promise me something." He says the words so softly, and I can hear the sounds of crickets in the distance.
"I will promise you anything," I say, knowing that he could ask me anything, and the answer will always be yes.
"Promise me that you’ll be there by my side on the happiest day of my life."
My fingers push back the hair on his forehead as the image of me walking down the aisle to him fills my mind. "I promise," I assure him.
"Good," he says, kissing me softly. My heart speeds up so fast in my chest I think I’m going to throw up from all this happiness. I don’t think it can get better than this, and then it does when he says the words I’ve been dying to hear. "I love you, Harlow."
ten
Travis
"I’m so nervous I think I’m going to throw up," Harlow says from beside me, sitting in the passenger seat.
My hand is stretched over the console to rest on her lap. "Would you relax? It’s going to be fine."
"It’s a big deal," she says. "Meeting the whole family is always a big deal." We are on our way home for my cousin’s wedding. She’s already met my sisters and my mother, but this weekend, she’ll meet all of them.
"I met all of your family," I remind her. "I thought your father was going to shoot me at least once that weekend."
She throws her head back and laughs. "He was just making sure you stayed on your side of the house."
"He put an alarm on my bedroom door. Every time I got up to go to the bathroom, the alarm was saying ‘door one opened.’" I shake my head as she rolls her eyes.
"It was one day, and my mother made him take it off." She lifts my hand and brings it to her lips. We’ve been together for a year and a half, and it’s been a dream. After we spent the summer interning at the emergency clinic, we each got part-time jobs there. We were together all the time. Although this semester was a tricky one, our class schedule was all opposite of each other, so our shifts at the clinic were split. There would be days we wouldn’t be able to see each other, and I hated it.