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Until I opened my mouth to speak. “Andres, I had no idea you were going to come into my life and organize it.”
Chuckles erupted behind me.
I smiled through my tears. “I thought I knew control. I thought I knew happiness. But I didn’t know either of those things until I was challenged by you. I’m so happy that real relationships aren’t made of arguments and accusations…”
He squeezed my hands when I trembled.
“I’m glad I don’t have to worry about making mistakes,” I whispered, “because I know you’re going to make mistakes too. Thank you for being patient with me. Thank you for wanting to help me heal. I owe you my life.”
Andres teared up when I stopped talking. He stood for a moment in rapturous silence, imbibing me in my entirety like he hadn’t seen me in ages.
His grin widened. “Sadie, you’re fired.”
Everyone cackled. I threw my head and laughed, completely forgetting about the fact that I was his personal assistant. I totally forgot about everything outside of the wedding. The past couple of days had been such a haze.
“And I mean that as kindly as possible,” he added when the crowd calmed down. “I say that because I want you to prepare for the next phase of your life—ofourlife together. I’ve got a surprise for you.”
He reached into his pocket and procured two simple silver rings.
“I’m sorry they’re not diamonds,” he joked, “but I promise it’s because I’ve saved my money on something much better.”
He slipped one of the rings over my ring finger and invited me to do the same for him. I stared at our joined hands, enamored by the sight of the rings. I didn’t care that they were simple.
I just cared that they existed.
Andres stroked the back of my hand. “It’s still in the works, but…” He glanced at Raven who nodded. “…we’re converting the basement of the gym building into an ice-skating rink.”
My knees wobbled.
He had to be joking.
“But Andres,” I whispered. “You…when…how?”
He chuckled while leaning close to me. “I have ears and hands everywhere.”
“But why?”
“Because you’re obsessed with ice skating.”
Bella chirped beside me, “It’s true!”
More laughter from the crowd. More eye-rolling from me. And enough love to make my heart burst.
I clung to Andres while looking into his eyes. “You really did that for me?”
“Yes, I really did that for you. Now you can use it to skate. Everyone can.” He gestured wide to the audience behind us. “You’re all invited to learn how to ice skate with us!”
Applause echoed through the garden as I looked at our friends. So much joy lived here. So much happiness sprouted in these flowerbeds. Where I thought destruction lived was actually life waiting for a chance.
And it was up to me to take that chance.
When the applause faded, I held onto Andres and said, “That’s the best gift you could ever give me.”
“I know you said you wanted to pursue something different. I don’t want you answering calls for the rest of your life. Even if you do look cute doing it.” He winked. “You said you want to find a purpose. Maybe this is it.”
I smiled weakly. “I’m willing to try.”
“That said, Sadie, I want to thank you for giving me a chance.” He kissed each of my hands. “I want to thank you for coming back to me whenever you didn’t have to come back. Thank you for taking care of me. You showed me how it’s okay to not have everything under control.”
