Suki kissed her daughter’s cheek and left. Anna made her way toward a group of friends. Time for Elaine and her daughter, Romy, to do some baby-admiring while they attended to last-minute party details. Liam’s birthday dinner was catered by the apprentice-chef who bought one of Elaine’s food trucks, and the young woman was rightfully proud to unveil her new menu at the gathering. And Romy was on a heart-mending visit home.
Three long, rectangular tables filled the center of the deck. They were protected by soaring canvas awnings designed to look like abstract bird wings. Anna had designed them specifically for the house. Awnings and party tents were just two of the new products her outdoor living workshop had started to produce, and orders from both coasts were beginning to fill her inbox.
What made her most proud was the series of sculptures taking shape in her studio. Over the summer, a gallery owner from Vancouver visited and made an offer of representation before he left. She wasn’t ready to unveil her work publicly, but she was getting closer.
She twirled Liliana around the tables and settled her in a baby carrier when it was time to eat. After dinner, more candles were lit and placed in glass holders. Anna excused herself from the table and enlisted Romy’s help with hanging a few from the awnings and scattering others around the edges of the deck. The setting was perfect for a rousing round of “Happy Birthday” and passing out slices of fresh-baked pies, laden with island-grown fruits.
When everyone had a full plate and a refilled drink, Liam attacked the pile of gifts with gusto. Anna saved hers for last, calling for quiet as she placed it in his hands and kissed him on the cheek.
He peeled the paper off the small box, glancing over at her as he took hold of the lid and lifted. A tiny card lay folded on a bed of fragrant wood shavings. His hand shook when he plucked the card from the box, and his voice wasn’t much steadier when he read what she’d written in rose-red ink.
Liam stood so fast he knocked over his folding chair. Grabbing Anna, he lifted her off her feet, pressed the full length of her curvaceous body to his front, and proceeded to share a very private kind of kiss in a very public place.
Setting her on her feet, he turned to the cheering crowd. Old friends sat alongside new friends. Sleeves were rolled up, drinks were raised, and a few kids ran around the lawn, squealing.
Liam tapped his plate with his knife, and waited for the noise to die down. “I have a little story to tell you all this evening.”
He cleared his throat and swallowed half a glass of champagne before continuing.
“As some of you might know, I asked this woman to marry me a few months ago.” He wrapped an arm around Anna’s waist. The dress she was wearing—short, white, and sexy—rode up one thigh. She let it stay. More cheers and whistles erupted. Liam patted the air with his palm, shook his head, and forced a pained grimace onto his face. “She said no.”
A few of their more vocal friends faked a chorus of tears.
“But today, today she might have a different answer. Anybody here think I should ask her again?”
Feet stomped the wood deck and flatware smacked against tabletops. The vibrations traveled through her body, adding to the trembling in her legs and chest.
Turning to her, Liam dug into the front pocket of his shorts and pulled out a shiny object. The size of the sparkle left no doubt what it was. He interlaced their hands and looked out over the people who had gathered to help him celebrate a birthday. The slight tremor in his fingers had nothing to do with his cancer treatments and everything to do with what they both invested in getting to this moment.
Anna let him pull her to the center of the deck, where dancing was scheduled for after dessert, and melted inside as he went to one knee. She would do anything for this man’s happiness.
“Anna. Will you do me the honor of marrying me?”
It had been so long since she had shed tears of exquisite joy. She stood tall, a fully formed flower amongst the field of friends, and answered his proposal from every cell in her body.
“Yes.”
THE END
About the Author
Coralie Moss is an author who specializes in seasoned romance based out of British Columbia, Canada.
For news, giveaways, and excerpts of upcoming stories, please visit Coralie at www.coraliemoss.com
Twitter: @moss_coralie
Facebook: facebook.com/CoralieMossWrites
Instagram: instagram.com/authorcoraliemoss
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Read on for a sneak peek of Summer Rules,
the story of Elaine’s ‘Happily Ever After’ with the island’s number one tree guy.
Sneak Peek at Elaine’s novelette Summer Rules
As far as Elaine is concerned, when summer's tourist season arrives on Salt Spring Island, it's the off-season for romance. Her mini-empire of gourmet food trucks needs her undivided attention, and from the end of June through Labor Day, her ironclad Summer Rules are in effect. Sex is off the menu.
Richie's a local tree trimmer, focused on building his business. He's on hiatus from relationships until he meets the renowned entrepreneur, Elaine Atkins. She needs an experienced lumberjack to take down a tree that threatens to land on her most popular food truck. And when her cook can't make it into work, Richie can't say no to Elaine's plea for a temporary sous chef.
The saucy rapport and spicy heat inside her popular taco truck aren't all coming from what's cooking on the stove. Elaine's a vital woman in her mid-forties, and though Richie is twelve years younger, he deftly handles everything she tosses at him, starting with her resistance. By the end of the lunch rush, he's ready to ask her for a date. And that's when Elaine finds out just how hard it is
