Total pages in book: 106
Estimated words: 98226 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 491(@200wpm)___ 393(@250wpm)___ 327(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 98226 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 491(@200wpm)___ 393(@250wpm)___ 327(@300wpm)
“Getting Dawn’s Light ready to cruise, of course,” she said with a wink. “And I have some pretty good help, too.”
Her eyes flicked behind me then, and Wayland was there, shaking Theo’s hand before offering him a cold glass of champagne.
I gasped, flying across the deck and into his arms — which opened just in time to catch me. He laughed and gave us a little spin before he set me back down on the dock.
“Ah, I see he did manage to keep the surprise, eh?”
“The best surprise!” I said, squeezing him again before I looked at Theo. “I don’t understand, I thought we weren’t going to be able to take the boat out yet?”
Theo shrugged. “So I told a few little white lies… Captain Chuck is here, too. He’ll join us later.”
“What else do you have hiding up your sleeve?”
He tucked his hands into his pockets, looking around with an innocent whistle, but then his eyes locked somewhere behind me.
When I turned, I nearly burst into tears.
Both of our families were sitting in the main salon — his parents talking to mine, and of course, Juniper lounging back behind them on one of the sun decks.
“Go put your swimsuit on, loser!” she yelled, sipping the fruity drink in her glass before she added. “You’re missing all the great sunshine!”
I laughed as tears filled my eyes, and then Mom was up out of her chair and hugging me while Dad shook Theo’s hand. Theo hugged his father next and kissed his mother’s cheek while my dad wiped a tear from the corner of my eye before it could fall.
“I think you’ve got a pretty special one here, Aspen,” he said, glancing at Theo.
As if I didn’t already know.
And as Wayland turned up the music and Emma refilled drinks, the rest of the crew who I’d yet to meet yet worked together to get Dawn’s Light out onto the water for her maiden voyage. Juniper danced in her swimsuit, my parents swapped stories with Theo’s, and all the while, I stared at him from across the salon with a heart fit to burst.
I found myself remarking how beautiful and unexpected life could be, at how sometimes, in the most precious moments, not even a photograph taken by the most talented photographer in the world could truly capture all the magic.
And as Theo crossed the room and put his arm around me, kissing my hair before he looked down lovingly into my eyes, I knew one thing was for certain.
Whether tonight, next week, a year from now, or ten years down the road, I was going to marry that devastatingly handsome man.
And when I did, I’d vow to fall in love with him a little more every day, knowing it would be the easiest promise to keep.