Page 118 of Left Behind

“I’m ready, Bubba! Bye, Dani. See you tomorrow.”

“Where’s my goodbye hug?” Dani asked.

“I’m a-holdin’ it,” Ava said, and opened her arms as Dani leaned over for a quick hug and kiss.

“Thank you for being such a good helper today,” Dani said.

Ava beamed, and then she went out the door talking, telling Wiley all about her day.

Chapter 18

As soon as they got home, Ava dropped her bag in her room and came running.

“Bubba, Linnie’s not home. Can I go swing?”

“Yes, you can. Be careful, though. You’re my best little sister, and I don’t want you hurt.”

“I’ll be careful!” she said, and flew out the back door with her curls bouncing.

He watched from the doorway, thinking about how she’d changed, and did not have one regret about the decision he’d made to fight for her. He was still watching her play when he heard the front door open, and Linette called out, “I’m home!”

“In the kitchen,” Wiley said, and then her footsteps were behind him, coming closer, and then her arms were around his waist, and her cheek against his back, hugging him.

“I’m glad you’re back,” she said.

He turned in her arms and pulled her closer. “And I’m glad to be here. No cooking tonight, love. We’re going out. We have much to celebrate.”

She slid her hands across the front of his chest and looked up at him. Those black eyes. Hair always in need of a cut. Shoulders six ways wide to Sunday. And that stubborn jut of his jaw. Too good-looking for his own good, and he didn’t care about any of it. All that mattered to Linette was that he loved her. “Ava’s secure in this family now. That is something to celebrate.”

“There’s one more thing. I know you don’t wear rings at work for obvious reasons, but I’m putting one on your finger now, because when you wear it, I want the world to know you’re taken.”

Linette gasped at the sight of the ring he pulled out of his pocket.

“Wiley! Oh my God! It’s magnificent!”

“So are you,” he said. “I proposed before you barely knew me. I have been calling you my fiancée ever since. You already know I cannot live life without you. This just makes it official,” he said, and slid the ring on her finger.

“It fits! Oh, Wiley! I love you…so much,” she cried, and threw her arms around his neck and kissed him.

At that moment, they heard the back door open. They turned. Ava was standing in the door, watching.

Linette immediately held out her hand. “Look Ava. Bubba and I are engaged!”

Ava was still staring. “Is that the same as ‘almost a wife’?”

“Yes, it is,” Linette said.

Her eyes welled. Her chin quivered. “Will I still be Bubba’s girl, too?”

Wiley crossed the room in three long strides and swooped her up. “You’re ours forever, and I have the papers to prove it. Today, a judge told me I am forever and ever your legal guardian. Linnie and I are always going to be your family. No more worries, okay?”

Ava’s eyes widened. “What did those papers say about Corina?”

“Nothing,” Wiley said. “Because she doesn’t count. She can’t bother you. She can’t come get you. She can’t ever, ever hurt you again.”

“Not ever?” Ava whispered.

“Nope. Not ever,” Wiley said.

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