Page 40 of Wrong Number

“Sweetheart, you know that you’re the love of my life. You are the cherry in my cocktail, the Kahlúa in my hot chocolate, and you’re the only person I would ever allow to talk through a movie.”

I paused as all the people around us laughed.

Tana’s bottom lip was shaking as her eyes grew huge. I lifted up the bowl so that she could take a good look. Inside the crystal clear ball of ice was a diamond ring.

“Tana, my love, will you marry me?”

Her chin was nodding up and down before I could even finish getting the words out. I nearly dropped the bowl as she threw her arms around me, kissing me so hard I felt bad pushing her away. “I think I need you to say it out loud,” I said.

“Yes, Tyler, I’ll marry you,” she squeaked.

A gigantic round of applause circled us, as I handed her the bowl. To my absolute delight, she tipped it up and carefully took a sip. “Wow, this is amazing! Try it,” she said, passing the bowl to me.

It was somehow sweetly symbolic that the first thing we did as an engaged couple was to share something together. We passed it back and forth until it was empty, except for the ice cube rolling around in the bowl.

“How am I supposed to try it on?” Tana laughed.

“I’ve got it,” Sylvia said, taking the bowl from Tana’s hand and dropping the ice ball into a mug of hot water.

I stood up, holding Tana close. Sylvia dried the ring, handing it to me so that I could slip it on Tana’s finger.

“Wow, it fits perfectly,” she smiled

.

“I’m good at measurements, remember?”

Our friends descended on us, hugging and laughing and taking a ton of photos while Tana proudly waved her hand in front of everyone.

“Don’t worry,” Stanley assured me, “We got some brilliant photos of the ring in the ice beforehand.”

“Good thinking,” I said. “Thank you so much for your help.”

Grabbing Tana’s hand, I pulled her into my arms, swinging her around in a circle.

“The ring is beautiful,” she said. “Thank you.”

“You’re beautiful,” I said. “Thank you for saying yes.”

She laughed lightly, her beautiful warm brown eyes sparkling. “I hope that you didn’t think for one second that I could possibly have any other answer.”

“Not really, but you know, it’s good to be certain of these things.”

Her fingers wound into the back of my hair as she stretched up to kiss me. “I’ve never been more certain of anything in my life,” she grinned.

EPILOGUE TWO

* Tana *

*** Nine Years Later ***

Walking through the living room, I picked up a sketchbook and a handful of colored pencils that were in the middle of the floor, setting everything on the coffee table on my way to the kitchen to make tea. Picking up toys as I went was somehow as natural as picking things up around the office. I was always straightening up after everyone, but it was my job wherever I was, and I loved it.

One might think that with two daughters, our house would be filled with pink sparkles, ballet outfits, and dreams of becoming a princess, dancer, or artist.

No. My daughters both wanted to be a carpenter and builder like Daddy.

They devised plans for an extension on the house when they were just six and four, trying to convince us that we’d have room for horses. Now that Kasey was seven and Nicole was nearly five, they were working on plans for a backyard fort, which was a bit more reasonable.

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