Total pages in book: 80
Estimated words: 74450 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 372(@200wpm)___ 298(@250wpm)___ 248(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 74450 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 372(@200wpm)___ 298(@250wpm)___ 248(@300wpm)
“Back to my single life. Back to the routine. The daily grind. Back to the random women, to shades of gray. To the silence. The torment. My plan, apparently, wasn’t Mrs. Florence’s plan. They didn’t match. It wasn’t… It wasn’t my mama’s plan, either.”
He cleared his throat and paused. Those gorgeous eyes of his sheened over once again, and this time, he let a tear fall freely. “It wasn’t Aunt Angel’s plan. That’s for certain. My plan didn’t match… it, uh, didn’t match God’s plan, either. I wasn’t sure God existed until I was lost in the cornfield… and you came and found me. I didn’t wanna be found because I didn’t even know I was lost. I thought I was okay. I thought I knew everything. I didn’t believe anybody could tell me anything. I am a man who honestly thinks most people are ignorant and stupid.”
She chuckled at that and shook her head.
“I’m just bein’ honest.”
“I know you are, baby, and that’s what I love about you.”
“But I met my match.” His lower lip trembled. “You have an astuteness that would take me a million light years to reach. I’m not on your level. Your intelligence is paired with an insight into the human psyche that I could only dream to grasp. You have immense empathy and understanding for others. You love without condition. You color outside of the lines… You’re an old soul in a beautiful new body. You’re purple leaves and roots on a twisted yet impeccable tree.”
She shook her head, crying. Her heart so full.
“Azure, you’re the lavender music on my noiseless nights. You’re the violet kisses in my quiet cold evenings. I was lonely in crowds. I was lonely with women all around me. I was lonely and didn’t know it. I found out how lonely I was when, after the first time we made love, you were gone… and I didn’t hear from you right away. I knew then, I had met someone who was my match. Someone who didn’t need me but wanted me… and that is amazing. You’ve invited me to walk with you on your journey called life. Agreed to be exclusive with me. What an honor, baby.” She patted her cheek with her palm, silently succumbing to her emotions. “But now I want to go even further than that. You’re the sparkling amethyst in my life. You understand the language of my heart.
“I picked out this specific engagement ring, had it custom made, because it represents us so well. The clear seven carat center diamond is how you’ve changed me. In seven days, God made the world, the Bible says. It took me seven days after meeting you to realize I was in trouble. You were what I had wanted all along. The black diamonds represent your love for me. The purple gems, the amethyst, are our past and our future. It’s my peace. You’re my peace, baby! I ain’t never had peace and good silence with no pain! You’re the voice that I lost! You reminded me to speak! Find my true voice. I had lost it! Thank you!”
His voice cracked as he looked into her eyes, giving her his heart. “You reply to my silent words. I don’t even have to open my mouth and you know what I’m about to say before I say it. You hear me when no one else does. You speak for the dead and the living. I am both of those things. You are the only person in this world, and I’ve known a lot of people in my lifetime, who has been able to get me to listen to a language I didn’t want to hear or understand. Words scribbled on paper in purple crayon that I don’t want to see. Words that refuse to come out of my mouth ’cause I don’t wanna speak for fear of not being heard, seen, or understood!
“With you, it’s a call to action. Not by demand, but by example. To think differently. To question myself. And to answer to myself, too. I am not an easy person to understand or know. There’s not much I can do about that—it’s just my personality. I will never be exactly what you expect, when you expect it. I keep secrets, baby. Some will go with me to my grave, but one thing that will never be a secret is my love and care for you.”
He grabbed her hands and squeezed them together. She couldn’t look at him without falling apart. So deep in love that she allowed herself room to get lost… To be surrounded by tall stalks of the uncertain. To let her guard down. To walk into love, eyes wide open.
“You will always be my top priority, baby. Life is wonderful. Life is challenging. Life can be both unpleasant and painful. I want to have all that life has to offer—with you. I want to marry you because you taught me sign language. Not with the use of my hands, but with my heart. Azure, will you marry me?”