The unEXpected Plan

by Harper, Leddy

  Finally, Mom turned her pride-filled eyes to me. “That’s a truly honorable thing to do, sweetheart. I can’t say we’re not disappointed that you won’t be taking control of the family company, but that’s simply because we’re sad to be losing someone as smart and talented as you. Hopefully, by doing this, you’ll be giving others the chance to take your place in the marketing world.”

  “I agree,” Dad added. “We wish you nothing but the best.”

  “Thanks, you guys.” Their acceptance allowed me to breathe again.

  In the end, it didn’t matter if they approved of my choices or not. It was time to live my life for me, and that meant making decisions that I could live with. I wanted to accomplish more than just ticking off boxes on some master plan my parents had choreographed for me. And more importantly, I needed to march to the beat of my own music. Not theirs. But that didn’t mean that their acceptance wasn’t fully appreciated.

  Nellie clapped and said, “Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way…let’s eat!”

  Epilogue

  Brooke

  Corbin’s parents held a party for every holiday, but Fourth of July was my favorite.

  We’d been dating for almost a year and a half, so I’d officially attended every celebration they held during that time. And the fireworks over the lake was hands-down the best. Granted, they did something similar on New Year’s Eve, except it just wasn’t the same. There was something about the warmer weather coupled with the bright colors in the sky and crickets chirping in the distance that completed the entire evening.

  “They’re about ready to set them off,” Corbin said, coming up from behind me and catching my attention. “Come on.”

  I shrugged at my three best friends, trying not to read too much into their smiles.

  Corbin had never been much of a holiday person…until we started dating. Even still, while he enjoyed attending parties at his parents’ house, he hadn’t shown much enthusiasm for the events. However, over the past month, it was like he couldn’t wait for this one, which we’d all found a little odd. So strange, in fact, that all three girls had become convinced that tonight was the night Corbin would pop the question.

  That thought excited me, but I didn’t want to get my hopes up. Plus, we were so happy. An engagement wouldn’t change anything except enhance it. It wasn’t necessary for him to prove his commitment to me, but it would be fun to plan that next part of our lives together.

  Over the last several months, there had been a couple other instances where we’d all thought the same thing, yet he hadn’t proposed any of those times. So this could very well be the same. And if I were being honest, I didn’t know how many more times I could get my hopes up without actually feeling let down if it didn’t happen.

  I wanted to marry Corbin more than anything. It was something we’d discussed a handful of times at the beginning of our relationship, yet it hadn’t been mentioned since. I’d felt positive he’d revisit the idea after I moved in with him, which had happened shortly before Christmas after Phyllis opted to live in an assisted care facility.

  But still, nothing had been said about marriage—or the future at all.

  Then again, we’d both been busy with preparing ourselves for a future. I finally became a real teacher at the school I’d assisted at, and Corbin had busied himself with his non-profit organization, which had taken off and surpassed either of our dreams.

  My assumption was that he was simply happy to have us living together, that he didn’t feel rushed to make it down the aisle. Which I was okay with, just as long as I didn’t continue to get my hopes up for a proposal that would never happen. If tonight turned out to be like all the others—meaning it’d end without a ring on my finger—I’d have to man-up and initiate a conversation. For no other reason than to know where his mind was.

  “Good luck,” Nellie whispered while giving me a hug.

  Corbin laughed. “We’re not leaving. No need to say goodbye.”

  “Oh, then where are you taking her?” Thank God for Mady’s ability to play dumb. She’d done it enough times that even when she knew the answer, it was believable that she didn’t.

  I rubbed her small belly and smiled at her in the moonlight that lit up the entire yard. “We’re going to watch the fireworks from the dock. It was a little too loud last year, so Corbin wants to sit far enough away to enjoy the show while still being able to carry on a conversation.”

  “What kind of conversation does he want to have while watching the fireworks?” Mady wouldn’t let up, likely trying to prod Corbin into answering for himself.

  Which she got when he said, “Nothing specific, but if I want to talk about the colors or point out which ones I like best, it’s hard to do when my ears are ringing and I’ve got about a hundred people gathered around. Not to mention, I got eaten up by mosquitos last year from sitting in the grass, so I’m trying to avoid that happening again.”

  Mady rolled her eyes and shooed us away. “Fine. Go on, then. Enjoy your conversation.”

  Julie grabbed my hand and squeezed my fingers. “Have fun.”

  I nervously laughed them off and followed Corbin through the back yard toward the dock. The lake curved around the back of the property, and where he wanted to go was the furthest point away, which offered nearly complete privacy. However, it wasn’t the first time he’d opted to take me there, be it during a party or after dinner on a random Sunday night. So really, his desire to sit out there didn’t necessarily mean anything.

  “What’s up with your friends?” he asked while holding my hand, leading me around the curve of the lake. “They were acting weird.”

  “They always act weird.” And they did. It really wasn’t anything unusual.

  “This is true, but they’re just… I don’t know, worse than normal tonight.”

  I hummed to myself, refusing to answer his question. He was right, though. The girls were acting obvious, but I couldn’t exactly tell him why. If they were right, it might keep him from following through with the proposal. If they were wrong, I wouldn’t want him to think there was pressure on him. In the end, humming seemed like the best response.

  When the dock came into view, my breath caught in my chest. Twinkling lights were strung about inside the gazebo, and from what I could see, a bottle of champagne sat in an ice bin on the bench. At some point, he must’ve come out here—probably while I was with the girls—and spread out a blanket on the floating dock, a lone candle flickering from the center.

  As hard as it was, I needed to keep my hopes at bay. He was a hopeless romantic, so this didn’t necessarily mean anything. But it would be a lie if I said my stomach didn’t flip with excitement at the thought of being proposed to beneath fireworks on my favorite day of the year.

  “Wow, Corbin…what’s all this for?”

  “We never get much alone time together during any holiday, and I know how much you loved Fourth of July last year, so I wanted to do something special this time.” He released my hand and took the few steps to the gazebo to grab the bottle of champagne.

  Pointing to the paddleboat, I asked, “Why don’t we take that out and watch the fireworks from the water? I can’t think of anything more romantic than that.”

  He glanced at the covered boat and then back to me, the moonlight highlighting the creases in his brow. “You want to go out in that? It’s dark, and there’s no telling what’s in the water.”

  I was well aware of his objections when it came to the boat. He’d told me once a while ago that he’d gone out on it with Lindsey at last year’s Easter egg hunt, and he didn’t want to taint our experience with that memory. But it had been over a year since that happened.

  It was time to make new memories.

  “I’m not concerned about what’s in the lake. I’m not asking to go swimming in it. I just thought it would be nice to be surrounded by the colorful reflections of the fireworks on the surface of the water.”

  “What about your clothes? You’re wea
ring a new skirt; I wouldn’t want it to get dirty.”

  “Corbin…I know how to do laundry.” I laughed. “If my skirt gets dirty, I’ll wash it. But if you don’t want to—”

  “We’ll go. If that’s what my baby wants, then that’s what she’ll get.” He kissed my forehead, set the champagne bottle down at my feet, and then trotted into the grass to remove the hard cover on the two-person paddleboat.

  Once he had it pushed into the water and pulled up to the side of the dock, he held my hand and helped me in. It was a little wobbly at first, but as soon as he had himself settled into the seat beside me, it evened out.

  “You might want to—” He glanced at my bare feet on the pedals and chuckled beneath his breath. “Never mind…I see you’ve already taken off your shoes.”

  “Well, yeah,” I said, practically singing the duh tune.

  “You fucking amaze me, Brooklyn Bridge.”

  I didn’t understand why he’d said that, but I didn’t ask. If taking off my shoes amazed him, then I wouldn’t question it. Instead, I linked my arm with his and rested my cheek on his shoulder. We hadn’t gone out too far, but we were far enough away from the dock to enjoy the colors littering the night sky. They’d only just started the show, and based on last year, it would last at least half an hour.

  “Shit,” he muttered beneath his breath, catching my attention.

  I pulled away to look at him. “What’s wrong?”

  “I brought the champagne, but I forgot the cups.”

  “That’s okay. We can just drink from the bottle. Your parents aren’t around to see us, so we should be safe,” I teased. It was a good thing he saw the humor in his parents’ rigidness; it’d become a bit of an inside joke between us, as well as with Nellie.

  He popped the cork and held the bottle over the side to keep himself from getting soaked by the overflow. Then he passed it to me with a smile. “We can’t exactly cheers each other, since we can’t drink it at the same time, but regardless…cheers.”

  I brought it to my lips and took a sip, enjoying the feeling of the fizzy liquid on my tongue. The entire time, I kept my eyes on his. The moonlight blanketed his face, which allowed me to take in his gorgeous features. He hated it when I used words like pretty or beautiful, but that’s exactly what he was—as well as hot and sexy.

  “I love you,” I whispered as I passed him the bottle.

  He took it from my hand, though he didn’t drink from it. Instead, he held it in his lap and stared at me. “I love you, too. Where did that come from?”

  I shrugged and glanced up at the glittering colors in the sky. “Nowhere. I just wanted to tell you how I feel. And this moment seemed like the perfect time to do it, sans cups and all.”

  He leaned forward and kissed my cheek. “Feel free to tell me as often as you’d like, my love. I never get tired of hearing it.”

  We enjoyed the rest of the show while polishing off the champagne. Well, technically I finished it off. Corbin only had a few sips, but considering he was driving, I didn’t think too much of it. The only problem was that since I’d had the majority of the bottle, I was a bit tipsy by the time we made it back to the dock.

  And tipsy meant loose lips.

  “Looks like I just made fifteen dollars,” I said, laughing to myself.

  Corbin finished dragging the boat onto the grass and flipped the cover on top, ready to latch it closed. “How’d you do that?”

  “The girls made a bet with me.” Somewhere, in the back of my brain, a small voice told me to shut the hell up. Yet I didn’t listen to it. Instead, I kept talking and threw all caution to the wind. “They were convinced you were going to ask me to marry you tonight. I, of course, didn’t think so, so I took the bet. And it looks like I won.”

  He dropped his head back, stared at the sky, and howled to the moon like a coyote high on marijuana. When that finally subsided, he put his hands on his hips and faced me. “Why on earth would they think I was going to propose?”

  “Hell if I know. Pulling me off to the side for a bit of privacy beneath the fireworks.” I shrugged again. “They’re girls…they overthink every romantic situation.”

  “But you didn’t?” He stared to walk closer. “Tell the truth, Bridge. Did you think I was going to pop the question tonight?”

  Well, shit. I didn’t think he’d turn it around on me. Then again, I didn’t know what the hell I expected him to do or say to that. And considering all the alcohol I’d just consumed, there was no way I could come up with anything before I blurted out, “Maybe a small part of me did.”

  “Babe, I can assure you that when I do ask you to be my wife, it will be when you least expect it.” He winked at me and then continued to latch the cover on the boat.

  I couldn’t say I didn’t feel a little sad at that, but not enough to bring down my mood. There wasn’t a doubt in my mind that we’d spend the rest of our lives together. If it took him ten years to marry me, then so be it.

  Corbin grabbed my hand and kissed the corner of my mouth.

  “Aren’t you going to pick up all this stuff?” I asked, pointing to the unused blanket and now extinguished candle that still remained on the dock, as well as the empty bottle of champagne in the gazebo.

  “Nah. I’ve got someone to take care of that for me.”

  Must be nice, I thought to myself as I followed him toward the back yard where everyone else was gathered. The fireworks had ended, which meant the guests would likely start to make their way home. Some lived in the neighborhood and had walked, while others had driven. So I assumed we were heading back to start saying our goodbyes.

  However, that didn’t happen.

  Corbin led me past the crowd to the other side of the property, which wasn’t as desolate as the dock, but there weren’t many people around. I was about to ask why he’d taken me to this side of the lake when he stopped, took my face in his hands, and covered my mouth with his, effectively silencing my question.

  And after thoroughly kissing me, he silenced me again.

  By getting down on one knee.

  I hadn’t seen him pull a ring box out of his pocket—nor had I ever seen him put it in his pocket to begin with—but there he sat, on one knee, an opened ring box in his hand, and his eyes shining in the bright-white light of the moon.

  “You kissed me for the first time right here in this spot. So it’s here that I’m asking you, Brooklyn Miller, if you’ll please make me the luckiest man alive and be my wife.”

  “But…” I covered my mouth and shook my head in shock. Then I realized what shaking my head might’ve looked like to him. “I mean…” Again, I struggled for words.

  Thankfully, Corbin knew me and just laughed under his breath. “It seems I succeeded in asking when you least expected it, huh?”

  At that, I nodded. But then I followed it up with, “Why did you drag me all the way to the dock and do all of that over there if you were planning to ask me here?”

  “I had every intention of asking you over there, but someone insisted we watch the fireworks on the lake. In a boat. And I can’t get down on one knee in a boat, so I had to come up with another plan.”

  “You mean I ruined your proposal?”

  He laughed again, though this time, it was much louder. “You’re about to if you don’t give me an answer.”

  That was enough to snap me out of my shock. I covered my mouth with both hands and nodded, crying out a muffled “Yes!”

  “Thank God. You had me worried for a second there, Bridge.” He took my left hand and slid the most gorgeous diamond onto my ring finger. Then he stood, held my face one more time, and kissed me like it was our first time all over again.

  I used to get embarrassed anytime I thought about the move I made on him in this spot. But now I couldn’t stop celebrating my brazenness that night, for that had led to this. And I couldn’t imagine anything better than this.

  “Looks like you didn’t win that bet.”

  “That’s okay. I won somet
hing so much more.”

  Leddy’s Notes

  It feels like it’s been forever since I last sat down to write one of these. And while yes, in a way it has, the real reason it feels that way is because so much has happened in my life since then. In fact, the last time was for The Reality of Wright and Wrong. Looking back on it now, I can’t believe I’ve actually made it to this point—writing another Leddy’s Note.

  I like to write these to explain my journey through each book. And while it started as something to let you, my readers, have a bit of an “inside look” into the process of that particular book, over the years, I’ve discovered that it’s just as much for me as it is for you. Because it lets me go back and physically see how far I’ve come. And I’ve got to say…between the last book and this one, I’ve come SO far.

  After finishing The Reality of Wright and Wrong, I took some time to myself. I spent a lot of time with my kids, friends, and family. I was struggling with a lot in my personal life, and for the first time ever, I had no desire to write. I felt lost without characters in my head or a story I was working through, but I just didn’t have it in me to write anything. I know now that I needed that time, because it allowed me to find happiness. And I can honestly say, I’m in the best place of my life. I’ve never been happier, never felt more positive. Which was why I started this book.

  I’d heard a song called “I Hope” by Gabby Barrett, and it inspired this story. But rather than focus on the angry, vengeful side of the song, I decided to concentrate on the hopeful aspect of it all. And the more I thought about it, the lighter and more fun the story became. By the time I finished the first chapter, I was excited to keep going. Which was a big deal for me, considering how badly I had struggled for months prior to that.