Page 142 of Whispers in the Dark
Reception Tent, 7:03 p.m.
Charlotte had just set down her wine glass when Sophie stepped onto the small stage with a microphone. “Can I get my mom up here?” she asked, smiling slyly.
Charlotte blinked warily. “What are you doing?”
“Just trust us,” Olivia said from beside the dance floor, grinning with the mischief only a daughter can wear.
Charlotte made her way onto the stage as her daughters lined up beside her—Sophie, Molly, Olivia, Izzy, and Ruth—each now married, radiant, and completely in on something.
Sophie reached into her bouquet and pulled out a small box, passing it to Charlotte.
“This,” Sophie said, “is from all of us. And from someone else too.”
Charlotte opened it slowly—inside was a locket. Silver. Simple. Elegant. She clicked it open. Inside was a photo: her and Alex, sitting together on the porch swing, fireflies glowing behind them.
On the other side of the locket, one engraved line: You brought me home. Charlotte covered her mouth, eyes filling.
Behind her, Alex stepped onto the stage, dressed in his black tux. He took her hand as the girls stepped aside. “Charlotte,” he said, voice shaking just enough to make her breath catch, “I was supposed to wait until we were alone. But the truth is… I didn’t want to waste another second.”
He reached into his jacket and dropped to one knee.
Gasps. Cheers. A few teary laughs.
Alex held out a velvet ring box, the diamond inside catching the soft light above them.
“You saved me. You brought me back to myself. Your love guided me through it. I want to spend the rest of my life showing you what that love gave me. Charlotte Everhart,” he said, steady now, “will you marry me?”
The world slowed.
Charlotte stood on the small wooden platform, heart racing, tears slipping freely down her cheeks as Alex knelt in front of her, ring extended. The locket still dangled from her hand, open—You brought me home glinting in the soft light.
She didn’t answer right away. Not because she was unsure. But she needed to speak before she lost the moment.
She reached down, took his hand in both of hers, and looked into the eyes of the man who had survived so much with her. “I need to say something before I say yes,” she whispered, her voice thick with emotion. “I owe you that.”
The guests quieted again, the crowd still and reverent, like they knew what was coming mattered more than anything else said that day.
Charlotte turned slightly so she could speak to him and to everyone. “Alex… there was a time when I thought shutting people out made me strong. That pushing away pain meant I wassurviving. I thought if I stayed in control, if I stayed detached, I could protect myself—and protect the people I care about.”
She drew in a breath, her voice trembling but clear. “But the truth is… I was wrong. I pushed away the one person who saw me clearly. The one who never stopped showing up. Even when I was cold. Even when I told you I loved you with words but not actions. You stayed.”
Her eyes searched his. “And then I almost lost you. All I could think was how little time I’d given us—how afraid I’d been to feel everything you were trying to give me.”
She took a step closer, sinking to her knees with him, holding his face in her hands.
“But I’m not afraid anymore. I will never let that happen again. I will never take one second for granted. You didn’t just come back to me—you brought me back to who I used to be. To who I want to be.”
Her voice broke, but she pushed through. “So, when I say yes… I’m not just accepting your proposal. I’m choosing to live with you. To feel everything. To be open. To build a life that isn’t built around fear or loss—but around us.”
She kissed him once, soft and slow, before whispering, “Yes, Alex Marcel. I will marry you. With all my heart. With all I am. I love you.”
The crowd surged to its feet, cheering and crying and clapping, but all Charlotte heard was the sound of his breath, the feel of his hand in hers, the thrum of his heart against her palms.
In that moment, on that stage, beneath a canopy of light and love, Charlotte Everhart let go of the past…
And stepped into forever.
Charlotte’s and Alex’s Home, later that night
