He handed the baby to Daisy who was sitting on the couch next to Ethan watching the entire scene unfold before them. Lily perched herself on the arm of the couch right next to her husband John, dabbing at her eyes.
June and Marty were Colin’s parents- not Ethan’s?
“Mom, Dad – I see you met my pen-pal Ava and her daughter?”
“She’s just as wonderful and sweet as you described her.”
What? Colin told his parents about her? When?
“Isn’t she though? I’m glad you like her because it makes all of this so much easier to do,” Colin said nervously. He reached into his pocket and got down on one knee in front of Ava. Complete silence filled the room except for the sounds of the television, to which Mike Cooper leaned over and promptly turned off without asking.
“Wilkes- do your thing, my man,” Mike said, grinning and winking at them. He clasped his hands and stood there at attention. In fact, Ava realized no one was moving – they were all watching her. Colin opened a small velvet box and smiled shyly at her.
“I think you captured my heart from the very beginning…”
“Yes!” Ava blurted out, interrupting him as she saw the glittering gold ring laying against the black velvet. Daisy laughed merrily and Lily elbowed her. She saw June was frowning at Martin at the interruption. Colin looked utterly shocked at the interruption before he grinned happily.
“You are supposed to listen to the whole thing,” Cora whispered to Ava.
“I did have quite the speech prepared,” Colin admitted, chuckling.
“I don’t have to have a speech,” Ava confessed as Colin slowly removed the ring from the box and slid it onto her finger. She realized that his hands were shaking nervously.
“Can I go ahead and say my spiel?”
“Would you feel better about it?”
“It would make things feel a little bit more legitimate if I got to say the words,” he joked, giving her that endearing half grin that made her heart melt with happiness. Several people around them chuckled as they waited for the moment to continue.
“I only plan on doing this once in my life and this is it, darling.”
“By all means, do your thing,” Ava teased, magnanimously.
“You’ve captured my heart from the very beginning… your words, your smile- just the way you care for those you love. I need to be a part of your world. I want to love you, protect you, and help raise Aurora into becoming an incredible woman just like her mother,” Colin said tenderly, his eyes staring into hers as he held her hand that he’d just slid the ring onto. “Will you marry me, Ava?”
“You sound like you’ve practiced this a few times,” she admitted softly, stroking his cheek with her hand just to make sure she wasn’t dreaming of this moment. The feel of his warm cheek against her fingertips made it all seem so real.
“I’ve practiced a lot and could say it in my sleep.”
“Good,” she murmured playfully. “Do you think you can do this again on Thursday when we have Thanksgiving at my parents’ home?”
“Absolutely,” he vowed. “It gets better and better each time I say it too.”
“Guess you better keep on practicing for a long time,” Ava sighed dramatically, looking at her ring and then pressing her hand to her forehead playfully. The sound of clapping echoed around them as she nodded again, reaffirming her original answer.
“Years?” he teased gently, leaning forward to kiss her.
“I was thinking decades… or maybe forever.”
“I love you so much,” he whispered against her lips.
“I love you too.”
Epilogue
Cora watched the scene unfold around her, utterly torn. She knew that coming today took her away from much needed time to work and now she was face-to-face with the man that irritated the fire out of her.
Mike Cooper.
Ava had told her the man was lonely and wanting a pen-pal. She claimed he was an expert on the game she’d been playing on her cell phone during lunch one day. Even Daisy seemed to be pushing her towards reaching out to someone so she was a part of the world around her and found a way to unwind, relinquishing control. She couldn’t help the stringent morals that she’d had to develop to get by. No one else would ever take care of her and she had been alone since she was fifteen – abandoned.
Now, this man wouldn’t leave her alone and she’d regretted the initial email. She’d written him, saying hello and confessing about her deepest darkest secrets. There had been no chance that anything would come of it and it was cathartic to get it out on ‘paper’ it seemed. Only, Mike had written back – with an understanding and offer of friendship that scared her.
And he had never stopped writing!
For every few letters he’d send, she would respond with just a quick note out of guilt. The man was pouring out his guts to her and she felt like an absolute heel. An entanglement meant distractions… distractions meant loss of production – which lead to loss of income.
Cora would never be homeless again.
Ever.
She didn’t understand it – and Mike confused her to no end. She liked order, craved it, needed it, in her life. Control kept her safe – and safe kept her fed. Mike was just going to disrupt her life- in more ways than one!
Her pen-pal across the world was standing not five feet from her and utterly gorgeous. Just how many Mike Coopers were there in this tiny circle of friends? Just the one and only – and it was only a matter of time before he realized that she was his absentee pen-pal.
What was she going to do?
Afterword
Thank you for taking the time to read Remember Love. If you enjoyed it, please consider telling your friends or posting a short review. Doesn’t have to be much, just a simple rating and a few kind words work wonders. Your thoughts, opinions and feedback are much appreciated.
Sincerely,
Ginny
Remember Joy
Remember Joy this holiday season!
Cora Dillion thrives on control. After being abandoned and homeless on the streets, it had taken everything in her to climb back to a life she recognized. A self-proclaimed workaholic, she remains focused to prevent anyone from disrupting the existence she’s built for herself. When she receives a flurry of emails from a soldier, she realizes that the man pouring out his soul could be dangerous to her structured world… and her heart.
Mike Cooper lived for the moment. Reckless and arrogant- that was the image he presented to his buddies in the barracks. Deep down inside, he needed a friend to keep him focused and was desperately afraid of the nightmarish world he existed in. Envious of the relationships around him, Mike puts his very heart on the line hoping that Cora will be the one to snatch it up.
Will Cora realize that Mike could be the very man she needs to come out of her shell? Can both of their hearts find strength in each other’s weaknesses? Will the spirit of the season remind them both how to remember joy?
Lawfully Gifted
CPO John Griffin’s story - the book that launched the series Healing Hearts
Dear John…
For teacher Lily Hogan, those words would come to mean so much. She knew that giving back to the community brought joy into people’s lives. When her fourth-grade class writes letters to the military overseas in Afghanistan, she takes up her own pen and leads her students by example – writing a letter to an unknown soldier.
CPO John Griffin and his K-9 dog, Radar, have been through so much together over the last several years. Sniffing out bombs, searching the hills and mentoring his team, he feels so alone and unsure of his future- until a letter reminds him that there’s more to life in this world he’s protecting. Simple words, a kind gesture and feeling that he isn’t forgotten out there in the desert, compels him to write back. Before long, he finds himself looking forward to the care packages and letters from his pen-pal halfway across the world.
With every letter and every word, they begin to develop a fr
iendship and wonder what the other person is truly like? Major life changes are scary enough as it is - but is it possible to fall in love with someone before you’ve even laid eyes upon them? Can the magic of the season bring the sweetest gift of all?
Perfectly Matched
Available on Kindle Unlimited
Nikki Eben has had a rough start to her life and learned a few harsh lessons, one of which is about trusting people. Kicked out long ago for a single mistake—she lost her friends, reputation, and family, but gained a loving child and her faith. It took a long time to get on her feet and raise her child by herself, but knowing that there’s always a hand guiding her has kept her strong at her weakest moments—until she met Jakob.
Dr. Jakob Marlin was aghast at the sight of his new car being destroyed by the mischievous toddler running amok, and the fact that he was being reprimanded for it by the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen. Between the fierce verbal lashing from the young woman, to the chastising he was getting from his own mother on how he was raised not to yell at a woman, he knew something had to give!
Who says that everyone is happy and jolly during the Christmas season?
But when fate throws them together once again, perhaps it’s a sign from Above that part of being a good Christian was forgiveness and caring for others. Sometimes love comes when you least expect it. Discover a story full of tenderness, laughter, and joy as two lost hearts suddenly find that they are Perfectly Matched.
About the Author
Ginny Sterling is a Texas transplant living in Kentucky. She spends her free time (Ha!) writing, quilting, and spending time with her husband and two children. Ginny can be reached on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or via email at [email protected]
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Remember Love, Copyright © 2019 by Ginny Sterling
These books are works of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental.
All rights reserved. No part of these books may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any manner whatsoever without express written permission from the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. Thank you for supporting the author’s rights.
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