“He is my forever and…”
“Stop!” I shout over the heads in front of me. I know where the rest of that sentence is heading, and I refuse to let her steal the words that she deserves to be told. I have waited since the moment I woke up in her dorm room for the chance to ask her to marry me, and I’ll be damned if she asks me first.
The attentive crowd turns to see the source of the disruption, and I begin to race as quickly as I can to the stage, to Vivian. As I pass, people begin to separate, allowing a path for me, and when I reach my destination, I hop onto the stage. Instead of rushing to Vivian right away, I fight that instinct and proceed towards her slowly, waiting for a green light from her. When she smiles at me, that all-consuming body tingling-smile, I storm forward. As soon as I’m within arm’s reach, I cup her cheeks and pull her into me, crashing my lips to hers. I want her to feel my forgiveness, my gratitude for hers, and I want her to feel every ounce of love I have for her.
With a slow lingering kiss, I feel her smile against my mouth. “You’re here,” she whispers.
“My place is where you are, Clover; that is never going to change,” I murmur back to her, sealing it with a kiss on her palm.
Looking into her inviting eyes, I see that this my moment to claim this woman as mine forever, and I plan to seize it. I always thought I would be nervous, that I would feel hesitation and stumble through the words, but instead, I’m overwhelmed with the light of this woman and the love she has for me. “Vivian, I have something I need to say,” I tell her. She nods, but I can tell I’ve made her a little apprehensive. I maintain a serious expression, squeeze her hands, and begin my own speech for her.
“I have scars on my heart that you will never begin to understand, but make no mistake, they don’t make me weak. They make me strong enough to love you. They make me want to love you more fiercely than anyone will ever be able to love you.” I see emotions swirling in her eyes, threatening to pour over onto her rosy cheeks, but I continue. “For a long time, I didn’t think I deserved someone as perfect as you, but Vivian, after all of these years, I’ve finally realized something.”
“What’s that?” she asks through the tears that have escaped.
“That we are perfect together, and because of that, we deserve each other. I want a forever with you, Red. Will you marry me, and live a forever with me?” I let go of Vivian, reach into my jacket pocket, and take out her ring, holding it out to her, hoping like hell that she’ll take it. The spotlight shines on the center diamond, causing sparkles to refract off the ceiling of the club, earning gasps and awes from the entranced crowd.
Vivian’s face has morphed into an ugly-cry expression that she tries to use her hands to hide. She manages to nod an answer, and I quickly take her left hand, sliding the ring into place. When I kiss her once again, slamming my body into hers, the audience erupts into applause. Even when the band fills in behind us, their roars don’t soften. Within seconds, the girls surround us to yank us backstage, pulling Vivian and me into a group hug. The scene has left me floating. I’ve entered a bubble of bliss knowing that I now have everything I’ve ever wanted…my Clover.
The End
Colorado native M.L. Steinbrunn is new to the literary community, but has been in love with the world of fictional characters and plot twists since she was a child. Writing short stories and reading anything she could get her hands on, it could be argued that her hobby borders on an obsession.
She works full-time as a middle school and high school educator and coach in rural Colorado where she and her husband are raising their young children. Through education she has enjoyed guiding others on their paths and helping students build their stories. After countless evenings of discussing story ideas, it was her husband who encouraged her to follow her own path and publish her first novel.
In her free time M.L. enjoys travelling, Amazon one-clicking, watching movies, chauffeuring her children to their one and half million activities, and people watching.
She would like to add a big thank you to everyone that has been overwhelmingly supportive of this incredibly scary and exciting journey.
Where to follow her….
Goodreads
There will be many people that know me and my own history that will attempt to piece together scenes of this book as autobiographical. However, I must stress that this story is entirely fictional. The characters and events are creations of my own imagination. While there are some slight similarities, those similarities are pure generalities.
With that said, I would like to thank the many people that helped me to take the first step on this journey…
My Family: The idea to write this book was not my own, my wonderful husband is responsible for this book ever seeing the light of day. After seeing my nose stuck in a Kindle, reading hundreds of books, he encouraged me to pursue writing something for myself. Every time I thought that the task was too large or that no one would want to read the book, he was there to push me forward. He read scenes, gave me input, and took care of the house in the evenings when I needed to reach my word count goal or meet an editing deadline. He and my children have been extremely understanding of this project. Thank you, you guys; Mom will finally cook some good meals and do the laundry.
My Hometown: The first two hundred people that liked my Facebook page, and who continuously commented on my updates were the people within my hometown community. Even knowing that this was a romance novel, my tiny, conservative community supported this endeavor and has encouraged me every step of the way. A few of you even proofread my synopsis, gave input on my cover, and were my behind the scenes cheerleaders.
Indie Author/Blogger Community: I have found this online literary community to be one of the most inspiring and compassionate groups. There have been so many authors and blogs that stepped up to help me, talk me off the ledge, donate, and share announcements. I appreciate every one of you. There are individuals that had a major hand in this project and deserve a special thank you. Becky, Kayla, and all of the betas at Hot Tree Editing: Debbie, Jacqueline, Kristin, Peggy, Sue, and Teri. This team took my ideas and made it a story worth reading. Ari with Cover it Designs thank you for my gorgeous cover. Jovana at Unforeseen Editing did the formatting for this book, and she made it a work of art, not just words on a page. Tiffany at Chainsdesigns designed my wonderful swag and Lindsey with Daisy Dog Photography and Design created all of my awesome teasers. Nita at BookChick Blog Reviews made my fabulous trailer. All of the blog tours, review tours, and release blitz events were organized by Rachel at Dreams Come True Promotions and Kim with LipSmackin’GoodBooks. You ladies did a wonderful job, and I appreciate all of your hard work.
Readers and Fans: Thank you all so much for taking a chance on this newbie, no name author. This book and all future books in the series are possible because of you. None of my efforts would have mattered if I didn’t have your support. Thank you so much for allowing me the opportunity to follow this dream.