“
Hey, I’ll be back.” I
frown at him for leaving me.
“
Where are you
going?”
“
Something came up. But
I’ll be back very soon. Promise.” He kisses me again, lingering
longer this time. He let’s go and walks away.
After everyone has eaten and the dishes have
been cleared, my father stands up, as if to make a speech. Lucas
still has not come back and I start to panic, looking all over the
club for him. I tap on Brooke’s shoulder. “Hey, where’s Lucas?”
“
Um, I don’t know. He
should be back soon.”
“
Can I have everyone’s
attention please?” I look around as all eyes are on my dad. I
realize he’s actually gotten everyone’s attention and they are
staring at us. “It’s my daughter’s birthday today and she’s leaving
tomorrow to go to New York. I wanted to make this night special.
Well, her boyfriend and I planned this night and want it to be
amazing.” Soon people are shouting “happy birthdays” to me and I
can feel my face heat up in embarrassment. I nod in response to be
polite. Then the owner comes to the front of the stage.
“
Hey everyone, we are
having karaoke tonight. Let us introduce you to our first singer.”
I look around again, no sign of Lucas.
Where could he be?
Just then Mark
says Lucas’s name and I look up. He walks out on the stage with a
microphone in hand. Lucas sees me and gives me a wink, making me
blush from head to toe, and my mouth is hanging open in shock. Oh
my God, what is he doing? He used to tease me about singing in
public but only because he was scared to do it himself, and admired
me for being so brave. I’ve always loved his voice. He puts the mic
to his mouth and says “How’s everyone doing tonight?”
The crowd goes wild. “Well, it’s my
girlfriend’s birthday today and I wanted it to be special. This is
one of the many things on my gift list for her and I hope you all
enjoy this. And Abby, I love you and love the way you smile at me.”
I blow him a kiss as I bring my chair to the very front by the
stage. As soon as the music starts, I know instantly what he’s
singing and my heart skips a million beats. Our song, “When I See
You Smile” by Bad English. We used to sing it to each other when we
were young. My eyes start watering and I don’t bother to wipe the
tears.
When I see you smile
I can face the world
You know I can do anything
When he gets to the second verse:
Baby there’s nothing in this world
that could ever do
What a touch of your hand can do
He comes up and takes my hand, staring into
my eyes. I’m crying tears of happiness and surprise. I had no idea
he had planned this. I can only imagine what other surprises he has
up his sleeve. Everyone is in awe of his performance but he pays
them no attention. He continues to serenade me and I feel like I’m
living someone else’s life.
Once he finishes the song, everyone stands
and claps and I hug him tight. “Thank you. That was so beautiful.”
He grabs me by the waist and whispers, “It’s our song because when
I see you smile, I can face the world. I know I can do anything.” I
kiss him deeply, and the whole room disappears leaving only me and
Lucas. It is the best birthday a girl could ask for.
“
I have another big one.
Sit.” As I sit slowly, I wonder what he’s doing next. My heart
speeds up and I feel anticipation so fierce, I feel as if I may
faint. Yep this adventure we are going on is going to be
great!
Suddenly he gets down on one
knee.
And, I just about lose it, cause, I
know what he is going to ask. In my mind I had played out
this moment over and over again, and never in a
million years did I realise that it would come true. He looks me in
the eye, and all I can do is nod my head. My answer is,
Yes!
Epilogue
4 Years Later
As I stare at myself in the mirror, the girl
looking back at me can’t believe this day has finally come. A girl
dreams of this day forever and sometimes, it doesn’t ever come but
then there are those that are fortunate to find that special
someone. I thank my lucky stars for sending me my angel whom I’ve
loved for such a long time. We’ve come so far and overcame so many
obstacles, I was afraid my dream would never come true. But I
realized after all this time that if you have faith and believe in
miracles, anything is possible. But, you need to believe in
yourself above all.
I look away afraid to get too emotional as
my father enters the room, ready to walk me down the aisle to my
future. A future that is uncertain, but one I’m willing to share to
take. I sigh and smooth my hands over my long white gown. He takes
a good look at me and smiles, running his fingers through my veil,
which is keeping my hair swept up in a bun. My sister Sarah is my
Maid of Honor and my best friend Brooke is a Bridesmaid. Their
dresses are blue, which my lovely sister picked out. I didn’t care
what they wore, so long as they both agreed. And they did.
“You look beautiful!” My dad beams and I can
see his eyes getting watery. He gives me a quick gentle hug. “I
don’t want to get all sappy before you’ve even gotten to Lucas.” He
lets go and steps back.
“
Thanks dad. You’ve been
amazing!” I give him a sweet kiss on the cheek. He holds out his
elbow for me to put my arm through. “Let’s do this
baby.”
As we enter the little church, in our home
town of Green Acres, Colorado, the music begins to play and
everyone stands. I look around at all the faces, to each side of me
and then up at the front where my Groom awaits. He sees me and
smiles. I can read what is written all over his face. He, standing
before me is a man who loves and admires me completely.
I look to his brother Ashton who is his Best
Man and Brady his Groomsman, and they both smile. I smile back.
Ashton and Sarah are an item now and I couldn’t be happier for
them. They’ve been together since her senior year of high school.
Brooke and Brady are engaged and plan to marry next spring. I’m so
happy for them too. I look around and can’t believe how lucky I am
to be surrounded by wonderful friends and family. I am truly
blessed beyond words and I can feel my eyes getting teary.
My father and I reach just before the front
of the chancel steps, he lifts my veil and we exchange kisses.
Lucas meets us there. Before my dad turns to sit down, he puts my
hand in Lucas’s right hand. We then proceed to the steps and take
our places. “You look gorgeous.” He whispers in my ear. Butterflies
take flight in my belly and I blush a shade of red. “So do you.” I
reply softly and smile. He looks good in anything to be honest.
He’s wearing a black tux, with a white button down shirt underneath
and really nice black shoes.
We’ve come far alright. After spending two
years in New York, we realized it wasn’t the place for us. We moved
back and had our dream home built by our favorite river, so we can
spend every day by the water. It was the perfect place for us to
live. No matter what I did or where I was, as long as Lucas was
beside me, nothing else mattered.
And here we are now, with
our future before us and I couldn’t picture a better ending. He
leans in and says, “How are my girls?” I smile, gaze into his eyes
and say, “Your girls are happy.” I gently rub my belly and
think;
Yes.
we
are the happiest girls in the world.
Acknowledgments
There are way too many people I want to
thank for this incredible journey I have started on. First of all,
I want to thank God for giving me this talent I never really took
seriously. I loved writing as a kid and kept many diaries and
journals, but never thought about writing and showing it off. Thank
you God, for giving me a creative and crazy mind and a passion for
reading I didn’t have in high school.
Secondly, thanks to my family for their
endless support. My mother, thank you for helping me with the girls
when I needed quiet time to write, and for being patient with me
through it all. Thanks to my daughters for trying to understand why
I couldn’t play with you as often as I wanted. Love you girls!
Thirdly, I want to say a BIG thank you to
Jean and James. Jean, for your beautiful, kind heart and your
encouragement that got me this far. You pushed and demanded that I
finish writing after you read my first few chapters of my first
book that still needs to be finished. Because of you, this is
happening to me. Thank you so much for believing in me. I will be
forever grateful. You’re one of my very best friends and I love
you! James-thank you for putting so much effort, time and patience
into my making my cover so amazingly gorgeous! I want you as my
artist for future books, if you’re up for it. I just love your work
and couldn’t imagine a better artist! You’re amazing!
Thank you to Sylvia, who has been there with
me every step of the way. Not only in my writing, but in my
personal life as well. You’ve become one of my closest friends,
whom I can always count on for anything, almost anything. Ha ha. At
least to cheer me up and get me out of my funk. I love you very
much and hope to always remain close, no matter how far we are.
Laters baby!
To all of my GR gals who’ve become my
family: Mary, Shreya, Erin, Adriana, Brooke, Marni, Tara, Barbie,
Stormy, Emily, Amina, Nicole and so many others that I probably
left out. Just know, I love you all. Thank you for your love and
amazing support in my writing, not just in my book but also in my
reviews. I appreciate and love you all!
And last of all, thank you to the readers
for believing in my work. You’re the reason I write and I love
every bit of it! I hope to never disappoint! Stay tuned for more
books in the future.