Lindy wiped tears from her cheeks. “And now who’s amazing? Dara, this is phenomenal. I’m so glad you came to meet me, and I’m so glad you told me this. You’re giving me hope.”
“I’m giving you hope? How’s that?”
“You have a flicker of light deep inside you that has never gone out—it just needed to be rekindled. Darkness can’t live where there’s light, did you know that? Even the tiniest match makes the darkness go away. Even a little flicker.”
Dara looked down at the table. “I think it’s still in there.”
“I know it is. I can see it.”
The waiter brought their food and they began to eat, but Lindy couldn’t be distracted from the joy she felt inside. Dara was a sweet, beautiful girl who deserved to feel her own worth. So was Trix. So was Lindy—and so were millions of women and men who had been through the same thing.
Dara threw her head back and laughed at something Alan said, and her flicker of light grew just a bit brighter. Lindy smiled. This was a very good day.
***
Dara and Celeste hit it off the minute they laid eyes on each other, and they were engrossed in a card game when Alan reached for Lindy’s hand. “Come for a walk,” he said.
She followed him outside. “What, we haven’t been for enough walks? It doesn’t matter how many times we come out here—I’m never going to use the fire hydrant.”
He laughed. “I don’t want you to use the fire hydrant. I want to talk to you, but it’s so hospital-like in there.”
“Probably because it’s a hospital.”
“Exactly. And so we’re out here.”
He led her around to the back of the hospital, where there were a few trees planted around a stone bench. “You’re right, you know,” he said as they sat down. “This whole Sense and Sensibility thing. You’re right.”
“Of course I’m right,” she replied. “Wait. Just how am I right?”
“You and the rain. You’re Marianne. You both have an unhealthy penchant for getting yourself thoroughly soaked.”
“But I didn’t nearly die because of it,” Lindy pointed out.
“I appreciate that, but there’s another similarity. It was the rainstorm that brought Colonel Brandon and Marianne closer together, and it was during the rainstorm that I realized just how very much I love you.”
Lindy’s heart thudded. “You love me?”
“Yes. There you were, drenched, looking like a drowned rat, and I realized that I’m in love with you. You’re my Marianne, I’m glad we ditched Willoughby, and I want to be your Colonel Brandon. Now, I’m not as perfect as he is, so don’t get your hopes up. I’ve been on my very best behavior around you, but Dara tells me I have a terrible temper when it comes to losing board games. We should get that out in the open so you know what you’re getting into.”
“Hmm. I like winning board games too. This might be a problem.”
“But only if we let it be.” Alan slid down onto one knee. “Lindy, I love you. I love everything about you. Your strengths, your weaknesses which have become your strengths—all of you. I want to cheer you on through vet school and be by your side as you open your practice. I want to love you all the days of my life. May I?”
Lindy took a deep breath. She knew that if she answered now, her voice would squeak, and that wouldn’t be good at all.
“There’s something you need to know first,” she said.
“Anything. It won’t make a difference.”
“Yes, I think it will. Alan, I’m a college dropout.”
He looked confused. “What?”
“That’s right. I called this morning and told them—I’m dropping out. I’m a disgrace to my family and to my college professor mother. I can never hold my head up high again.”
“And . . . you dropped out . . . why?”
“So I can be business partners with my aunt.” She grinned. “She called her lawyer, and he’s drawing up the papers right now. I’m going to run the place, she’s going to teach me all the little ins and outs I don’t know, and down the road, she’ll step back and I’ll be the sole proprietor. I can’t even tell you how excited I am about it.”
Alan grinned. “This is so great. That’s where you belong, Lindy—I see it all over you when you’re there.”
“I know it’s where I belong. I just wish I’d figured it out a lot sooner.”
“Okay. Let’s try this again.” Alan cleared his throat. “Lindy, I love you. I love everything about you. I want to cheer you on as you run your aunt’s business and be by your side as you stick labels on bottles. May I?”
“Yes,” she said, throwing her arms around his neck. “Yes, and yes, and yes.”
“Ribs,” he cried out.
“Ooops. Sorry.”
As she helped him up from his knee and guided him to sit next to her on the bench, she had thirty seconds to kill while she waited for him to get his breath back, and in those thirty seconds, she realized all over again just how very lucky she was.
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About Amelia C. Adams
Amelia C. Adams is a wife, a mother, an eater of tacos, and a taker of naps. She spends her days thinking up stories and her nights writing them down. Her biggest hero is her husband, and you just might see bits and pieces of him as you read her novels.
You can reach her at [email protected].
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The Kansas Crossroads Series:
A New Beginning (free!)
A Free Heart
The Dark and the Dawn
A Clean Slate
A Clear Hope
The Whisper of Morning
A Careless Wind
A Narrow Road
The Bitter and the Sweet
The Calm of Night
A Begrudging Bride
A Broken Wing (A Kansas Crossroads novella)
A Twisted Fate
An Unspoken Dream
A Joyful Noise
The Echo of Music (A Kansas Crossroads novella)
The Risk and the Reward (A Kansas Crossroads novella)
A Passing Glance
The Nurses of New York series:
Sea of Strangers (free!)
Cause of Conflict
Touch of Tenderness
Heart of Hearts
Test of Time
The American Mail-Order Brides series:
Hope: Bride of New Jersey
Tabitha: Bride of Missouri
The Hearts of Nashville series:
Whiskey and Women
Records and Rebels
As part of the Brides of Beckham series by Kirsten Osbourne:
Mail Order Molly
As part of the River’s End Ranch series:
Accidental Agent
Rugged Rockclimber
Welcome Wagon
Santa’s Shopkeeper
Delivering Destiny
Lucky Lifeguard
Poinsettia Promises
Christmas Catch-Up III
Candy Crush
Paislee’s Path
Pet Peeves
Karaoke Kisses
As part of the Grandma’s Wedding Quilts series:
Meredith’s Mistake
As part of the Magnolias and Moonshine series:
Sweet Georgia Peach
As part of the Burnt River series:
Ashley’s Hope
Phoebe’s Fate
As part of the Rocky Mountain Romances series:
Utah Sunrise
As part of the Mail Order Mounties series:
Bride for Joel
Bride for Jonathan
Bride fo
r Samuel
Bride for Calvin
Bride for Peter
Bride for Michael
Bride for Richard
As part of the Seven Sons series:
Benjamin
Daniel
Frank
As part of the Cowboys and Angels series:
Bribing the Blacksmith
Tea for Two
Loving the Landlord
Defying the Darkness
Rhyme or Reason
As part of the Main Street Merchants series:
And Something Blue
For Love or Money
Five Golden Rings
Just Desserts
In the Stars
Sugar and Spice
As part of the Brody Hotel series:
Generations
Heartstrings
Connections
As part of the Pinkerton Matchmaker series:
An Agent for Lucy
Short Fiction:
The Ghost of Dunlow Manor
The Best of Me
Scented Sensibility Page 9
