Elle was so excited when she heard the news that she immediately decided to come down the following week for a girls’ weekend. The moment she walked through the door, she practically demanded to see everything.
I pulled out my phone and showed her the pictures of the proposal.
Cole had arranged for a photographer to discreetly capture the moment without me noticing. I had been so overwhelmed in the moment that I never even realized someone else had been there, quietly documenting one of the most important moments of my life.
The photographer had done an incredible job.
In the photos, the soft glow of the candles and fairy lights surrounded us while the mountains and water formed a breathtaking backdrop. One image showed Cole on one knee, looking up at me. Another captured the exact moment I said yes.
“So,” Elle said, leaning closer as she scrolled through the pictures with me, her excitement practically vibrating through her voice. “When do you plan to get married? Have you guys talked about it?”
“Not yet,” I replied.
Even saying the words out loud still felt strange. I was still in shock. I could not quite believe that I was engaged. The idea that someone had askedmeto spend the rest of my life with them—and that I had said yes—felt like a dream.
For so long, I had never imagined a future like this for myself.
In my past relationships, I had often been forced to hide pieces of who I was. I had kept walls around my heart because getting too close to someone always carried the risk of everything falling apart.
Then I had met Caleb.
I had believed things might finally work out, that perhaps I could build a life with him.
But that dream had shattered too.
I had been forced to run again, leaving behind everything I had hoped for and starting over once more.
Building trust again after that had not been easy.
Even when I met Cole, there had been a fear inside me about how much of my past I should reveal and when. I had worried that if he knew everything, he might walk away the same way others had.
But with Cole, I no longer felt the need to hide or run.
I trusted him completely… with my life, my children, and the pieces of myself that I had once believed were too broken for anyone to accept.
Cole had taken my past without hesitation. He had accepted Lucas and Emma as if they had always been his own children. He had embraced my life and blended it seamlessly with his.
“It is your turn to be happy now,” Elle said, placing both hands on my shoulders and giving them a gentle squeeze. “Enjoy this moment and cherish it. Cole loves you immensely. You are a lucky woman. Don’t overthink it.”
Her words settled into my heart.
She was right.
I had spent so much of my life worrying about what could go wrong that sometimes it felt hard to allow myself to be happy.
“By the way,” I said after a moment, hesitating slightly before speaking again, “would you be my maid of honour whenever we decide on the wedding?”
Elle looked at me for half a second before bursting into laughter. “Hell yeah!” she said immediately. “You didn’t even have to ask. I thought I already was.”
I laughed along with her.
With that decided, I did my best to follow Elle’s advice.
For the rest of the weekend, I let myself relax, laugh, and enjoy the moment instead of worrying about what the future might bring.
“What doyou think about a fall wedding?” Cole asked, sitting at the dining table.
I turned slightly from the stove and looked at him over my shoulder, my eyebrows lifting in surprise. “This fall?” I asked.
