Not My Hero

Until the world stops turning. Always yours.

Colton.

I stare at the words until they begin to blur, and I don’t get any time to try and process what I just read because Colton holds another note out to me.

My eyes dart to his face and seeing how serious he looks, my heart begins to pound in my chest as I take the paper from him.

I suck in a deep breath of air, then open it.Will you marry me.

Yes. ?

No. ?A sob instantly bursts free from my lips, and I struggle to say, “I don’t have a pen.”

A pen appears in my line of vision, and I’m a mess as I laugh and cry at the same time. I tick one of the boxes, and wetting my lips, I lift my eyes to Colton’s as I hand it back to him.

A smile plays around his mouth, and for a moment, he stares at me before his gaze drops to my answer.

“Thank God.” He darts to his feet, pulling me up, and then engulfs me in a hug. “I’m going to make you so happy.” Framing my face with his hands, he presses a hard kiss to my lips.

The second he gives me a chance to talk, I say, “You’ve already made me happy, Colton. So very happy.”COLTONI pull the engagement ring from my pocket and taking Brie’s left hand, I slip it onto her finger. I take a moment to drink in the sight of my ring on her finger, then I lift my eyes to hers. “No pressure, but I want to get married this year.”

Brie sputters out a breath of laughter. “You know it’s July, right?”

“Yeah?”

She shakes her head, and with a happy smile on her face, she frames my jaw and presses a kiss to my lips, then whispers, “Anything for you.”

We sit down again, and my gaze keeps going to her left hand as we pick up the flutes. Brie holds hers in the air. “To us.”

I clink mine against hers. “To our happily ever after.”

We spend the rest of the afternoon eating while planning our future. There’s still so much we want to do. We’ve just bought a new house closer to the center, and want to renovate it.

“How are the plans coming along for our bedroom and ensuite bathroom?” Brie asks.

“I saw them yesterday. James said he’ll submit them for approval by the end of the week.” We’re breaking down a whole section to build another master bedroom. That way, we’ll have our own space, and Mom will have hers.

“Good,” Brie murmurs. She glances around, then says, “It’s starting to get dark. Should we pack up and head home?”

“Just one more thing.” Reaching for her, I pull her closer.

Brie wraps her arms around my neck. “I like where this is going.”

Cupping her cheek with my one hand, I stare into her eyes. “I can’t wait to change your name to Lawson.”

A soft smile forms around her lips. “That makes two of us.”

I claim her mouth and express everything I feel as I kiss her. How much I love her. That I can’t live without her. She owns every part of my heart and soul.

Breaking the kiss, Brie whispers, “I love you just as much.”

I help her up, and we quickly pack up the picnic. Brie takes the blanket while I carry the basket. With our hands interlinked, we walk across the lawn, both our gazes drifting over the dream we created together.

I got my masters in social work, and I’m ready to start helping kids. Brie will focus on helping them express what they feel with art while Mom will take care of the administration side of things.

We’re going to make a difference.

The drive home is quick, and when we walk into the house, Mom jumps up from the couch. “Tell me. Tell me. Tell me.” And then her eyes fall on Brie’s left hand, and she lets out a shriek of happiness. “Let me see!”

“You knew?” Brie laughs as Mom grabs her hand.

“Yeah, but he wouldn’t show me the ring,” she complains. “It’s so beautiful.”

Mom finally lets go of Brie’s hand, and it gives me the chance to ask, “Did you have dinner?”

“Yeah, I had a chicken and bacon sandwich.”

“I’m going to shower. Want to sit out back after I’m done?” I ask as I begin to walk to the stairs.

“I’ll pour us coke while the two of you clean up,” Mom offers.

Brie follows me to our room, and once we’re inside, I say, “I’d ask you to shower with me, but then Mom’s going to be waiting a while.”

Chuckling, she shakes her head. “We can’t have that. You go first.”

When we’re both finished and dressed in comfortable clothes, we join Mom outside. I stare out over the backyard then say, “Now that the center is done, I need to get to work on the garden.”