Page 125 of The Coppersmith Farmhouse (Jamison Valley 1)
“Okay,” I breathed. It was a deep breath, my shoulders sagging forward, releasing all of the tension I’d been holding in them for the past month.
“Roll off me. I need to see your face,” he ordered. “We need to talk about this birthday thing,” he said once I was on my back.
“It’s not a big deal, honey. I haven’t really celebrated my birthday since my mom died.”
“Big deal to me, Georgia. Birthdays. Holidays. My chance to make it special for you. Tough for me to do that when I don’t even know when it’s your birthday.”
“Well . . . now you know and you can do something next year. January twenty-sixth. Rowen’s is March fifth.”
I already knew his birthday was April thirteenth. I’d asked Noelle at Thanksgiving so I’d be sure not to miss it.
“First year together. I wanted to do something special.”
“That’s sweet,” I said, lifting my hand to stroke his cheek. “But just do it next year. I can wait.”
“I can’t. So guess we’ll just do it now,” he said.
“Do what now?” I asked.
“Put my ring on your finger.”
“What?” I breathed.
“Got a ring in the gun safe out in the garage. You feel like wearing it for the rest of your life?”
I blinked a couple of times and replayed his words in my head to make sure I had heard them right. Then my face split into a wide smile as my heart swelled with overwhelming happiness. Nodding, I whispered, “Yes.”
Jess’s proposal wasn’t a big show of flowers and diamonds. He didn’t try and wow me with a huge affair or a fancy surprise. But it was pure Jess. He felt like doing it right there, so he did it.
And it was perfect.
His wide, white smile matched my own. His ice-blue eyes were shining bright. He leaned down to kiss me but I couldn’t bring my lips together. My smile was permanent.
“Love you, baby,” he said into my teeth.
“Love you too.”
“You want me to go out to the garage and get your ring?”
“Later,” I said.
I forced my lips together so I could kiss him.
After he made love to me again, he pulled on some clothes and went to get my ring.
In one night, Jess had helped erase my fears. Because when I looked at him now, I didn’t see the hole in his side or all the blood. I didn’t hear his heartbeat flatline.
I heard him asking if I wanted to wear his ring for the rest of my life. And I saw the light dancing in his eyes after I’d said yes, gladly, knowing that ring wouldn’t leave my finger until the end of my days.
He was right. Anything could happen to us but while we had the chance, we were going to live it good. Together. With Jess as my husband and me as his wife. With Rowen as our daughter and, one day, her siblings that we made together.
We were absolutely going to live it good. The best.
Rowen and I were at the dining room table the next morning, eating our breakfast.
Since I had a few minutes with her before preschool, I could talk to her about Jess and me getting married. I wanted her to be the first to know.
And I wanted to tell her by myself.
