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Page 21
A chorus of “awws” could be heard in the audience, and tears streamed down Jolie’s cheeks as Corbin and his guitar serenaded her with an acoustic cover of Ring of Fire.
When the song ended, the crowd cheered when Corbin stood up from his stool and placed his guitar on the stand. Then, he reached into his pocket, and the entire arena exploded when he dropped to one knee in front of her.
Then she remembered.
“Did you know that Johnny Cash proposed to June while they were on stage in Ontario?”
Corbin had told her that, while standing in her bookstore, when he’d been in desperate need of a job. She never dreamed those words would come back to haunt her in the most beautiful of ways.
“Jolie Daniels, you are everything I’ve ever wanted but never dreamed I’d find. I don’t deserve you, but I want you . . . for the rest of my life. Will you marry me?”
His face was a mixture of so many emotions. Fear. Excitement. Happiness.
Nausea.
Jolie couldn’t help it. She laughed.
Does he really think I’ll say no?
“She’s laughing!” he said to the crowd. “I’m ready to throw up and she’s laughing.”
The crowd laughed, too.
Jolie wiped away her tears and caressed his sweet face.
“I’m only laughing because you look so nervous. As if I could ever say no to you.”
The audience started to chant.
“Yes! Yes! Yes!”
She smiled into his shining eyes and whispered.
“Yes.”
The arena erupted as Corbin slipped the ring on her finger. Jolie jumped into his arms and he lifted her off the ground, twirling her through the air.
Five years later
“Daddy, tell me the story.”
Avery James climbed into her father’s lap. With a smile, Corbin closed his book and placed it on the porch as his daughter snuggled into his arms. The rocking chair creaked gently, filling Corbin with a sense of peace that wasn’t unfamiliar these days, but was welcomed all the same.
“What story?”
Avery rolled her eyes. “You know . . .”
The little girl pointed to the yard, where Jolie was working in her flowerbed. Corbin’s heart clenched with joy when she stretched her arms above her head, exposing her beautifully round stomach. She glowed these days, despite her swollen ankles and crazy mood swings.
“You could tell that story,” Corbin said. “You’ve heard it a thousand times.”
“But I want you to tell it.” Avery rose to kiss her dad’s cheek before snuggling into his arms once again. For a preschooler, she was really quite the little manipulator.
“Her dress was white,” he said, as his mind recalled with startling clarity the vision of Jolie on their wedding day. “It was made of lace, and she was the prettiest girl Daddy had ever seen.”
“Until me!”
“Until you.”
Corbin pressed a soft kiss to the top of her head. Once again, he was amazed that his life—once so lonely and hopeless—was now filled with more happiness than he’d ever thought possible.
After fulfilling his contract with Callum Records, Corbin and Jolie picked a blueprint and built their house at Echo Point. He signed a publishing deal with the label, and Jolie took the librarian job at the public library. With the success of his new album, the label had offered him another record deal, but then Avery came along, and there wasn’t enough money in the world to drag him away. Instead, he wrote songs in his basement studio—or right there on the front porch—and enjoyed listening to far more talented performers bring his music to life.
The house, rustic and brown, was another dream come true. Two stories, with a wraparound porch and two rocking chairs, perched side by side.
They lived comfortably. Peacefully.
That’s all he’d ever wanted.
Corbin glanced down to find Avery asleep against his chest. With a contented sigh, he stroked her face and kissed her hair. Looking across the grass, he watched his beautiful wife as she climbed to her feet and dusted off her pants. Jolie took one last look at her rose bush before slowly making her way to the porch. She picked up Corbin’s book before sitting down in her rocking chair.
“She won’t sleep tonight.”
Corbin shrugged. “It’s the weekend.”
“True.” Jolie smiled when she glanced at the cover of the book. “You’re still reading this?”
He nodded. Family Happiness by Leo Tolstoy.
“Seemed appropriate,” he said.
“I love this. I bet I’ve read it a thousand times.”
Corbin grinned. “I know. You were reading it the day we had lunch with the twins at the Sub Shop. Do you remember?”
She shook her head.
“I hadn’t been in town long. For some reason, I was babysitting the twins. I forget why. But you took them to the restroom, and I saw this book on your table.”
Jolie frowned as she stared at the cover.
“How in the world do you remember that?”
“I remember everything about you.”
She rolled her eyes, but Corbin could tell she was impressed.
“I was just getting to my favorite part.”
“Read it to me,” she said softly, handing him the worn paperback.
Corbin turned to the bookmarked page.
“I have lived through much, and now I think have found what is needed for happiness. A quiet secluded life in the country, with the possibility of being useful to people to whom it is easy to do good, and who are not accustomed to have it done to them; then work—which one hopes may be of some use; then rest, nature, books, music, love for one’s neighbor—such is my idea of happiness. And then, on top of all that, you for a mate, and children, perhaps—what more can the heart of man desire?”
With tears in her eyes, Jolie walked over to his chair and lifted their daughter into her arms. Corbin watched through his own tears as Avery nuzzled her mother’s shoulder. He reached for them, pulling them down into his lap and holding them close.
They rocked contentedly, peacefully, and as Corbin closed his eyes, a thought entered his mind, reminding him that in his arms, he held his greatest treasures.
This is my idea of happiness. My wife. My daughter. My son. And I.
Sydney Logan writes heartfelt romances that feature strong women and the men who love them. In addition to her novels, she has penned several short stories and is a contributor to Chicken Soup for the Soul. She is a Netflix junkie, music lover, and a Vol for Life. Sydney and her husband make their home in beautiful East Tennessee.
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To my editing team: Kathie Spitz, Ginelle Blanch, Shaina Hanson, Terri Gislason, and Wendy Depperschmidt. Thank you for your honesty, advice, and friendship.
To the wonderful authors of Enchanted Publications – I’m proud to be part of such a supportive group of writers.
Thank you to T.M. Franklin for another beautiful cover and to Lindsey Gray for formatting.
Thank you to the bloggers, reviewers, author friends, and to my ARC team who are always so encouraging and supportive.
To my husband – I love you.
Last but not least – thank you for reading!
Psalm 42:8
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www.enchantedpublications.com
Novels
Lessons Learned
Mountain Charm
Soldier On
Pros & Cons
Songbird
Listen to Your Heart
Turn the Page
Novellas & Short Stories
Breathe Again
Once Upon a December
Force of Nature
Halfway to Anywhere
Winter Song
Stupid Cupid
It's All In Your Head (Chicken Soup for the Soul: Find Your Inner Strength)
Silencing the Should Monster (Chicken Soup for the Soul: The Joy of Less)
Meet-Cute (What the Heart Wants: An Opposites Attract Anthology)