Page 77 of Spotlight on Poppy

"I told ye to follow your heart because that is what ye needed to do. Ye needed to get out of your head and out of yer own way. There is no spell that can do that. Ye finding yer own magic was just a happy coincidence, but I stopped believing in coincidences a long time ago,” Bridget said with a wink. “Besides, it didn't take magic to see just how in love with ye Josh was, ye just needed to figure out how much ye love him too."

A sigh of deep contentment filled Poppy. She really did love Josh, and sometimes she could kick herself for taking this long to realize it. But everything happens in its own time at its own pace. Now she just needed to get the house so they could both start living their lives.

"Thanks for everything, Bridget. Really." She reached across the counter and squeezed her hands. Her mind was still reeling from the news that had just been shared, but as out there as it sounded it made sense to her. All the pieces of herself she could never explain, this explained them. This was not what she was expecting when she asked her for a spell at the wedding, it was even better. Her current state was beyond anything she could have imagined, and now finding out she had a little bit of magic was just the cherry on top of a truly magical few months.

"Ye're welcome my dear. Come see me after ye save yer house and we will have a long chat about magic," said Bridget.

"I am going to take you up on that! You are going to wish you never told me,” she said with her kilowatt smile lighting her face up. “But I do need to get going. See you soon!"

CHAPTER33

Poppy

By the time Saturday morning rolled around Poppy was amped up. She had thrown herself into this event and was working hard to get it off without a hitch. She knew she wanted this house for her and for Josh, but she also wanted it for the town. Poppy may not be getting in-laws, but in some weird way she felt like the town would serve as that role. She had been told by more of them than she cared to think about not to hurt him, and she didn't intend to. This was it. This was home, even if the Whitney house wasn't theirs, Mystic Falls was.

The only person happier than Josh about her change of heart involving the town was Sam. He loved this town, and he loved their orchard, the two things Poppy had spent a good portion of her life trying, but failing, to get away from. Now those two things felt like a complete gift. After she and Sam had that talk in the kitchen, she was picturing things more and more. She would bake and help her Gran make all the jellies, and Josh would make his amazing sandwiches. She thought this would work out great. With all the improvements Sam and Graham had been working on at the orchard they had the best season yet, and a cafe would be a perfect fit.

"Where are we setting up shop?" Sam asked, carrying a crate full of gallon jugs of the orchard’s apple cider.

"That tent next to the gazebo." She pointed him over to set up the food and cider from the orchard.

She knew they were pushing there luck with the weather planning an outdoor event in November, but luckily it was a gorgeous day. The leaves had already dropped, of course; they had been gone for over a month now. It was sunny and warm for November, but warm for November still isn't warm, so hot cider from the orchard would be perfect.

She had just finished setting up the galleries. There were collages of all the pictures the town people had given her and in the middle of that was the popsicle stick replica. Some of the town people had volunteered to share their stories and Josh wanted to speak. She was looking forward to that, knowing he would speak from the heart.

Josh stepped up behind her and rubbed her arms to warm her up and then slipped his arms around her waist. She could feel the heat radiating off of him warming her.

"Things are really shaping up. I can't believe you did all of this," he said.

"WE did all of this." Poppy leaned back into him and set her hand on his. She looked around from the art hung, to the vendors setting up, to the band setting up at the gazebo. This was going to be a great event.

She could just kick herself for the years she spent trying to find her dream and it had been right under her nose the whole time. And honestly, it just kept getting better. She was reminded of that when Hannah and Graham, the newest members of town, approached. She smiled at Poppy and gave her a hug.

"This is quite the shindig," Hannah said.

"Yeah, hopefully it will work," said Poppy.

The band started to play, and people filtered in. Everyone came from Ms. Maple to Theo and Vivian Williams, and of course, the mayor. Person after person got up and shared their memories of the Whitney house. It was an amazing afternoon. The only person missing was Mitch Alsup.

The sun was starting to set and soon it would be time to start getting packed up. Josh was the last one to speak. Poppy didn't know what he was going to say, but she knew he would make everyone happy. That is just how he was. He had a way of making you think about things but also making you feel comfortable. That is probably the reason he was so beloved by every single person in this town.

She watched in awe as he stepped on the stage and smiled a genuine smile warmly out to the crowd.

"I've known most of you my whole life," he started. "I have seen you at festivals and town events just like this over the years. I have fixed some of your doors." He smiled at Ms. Maple. "I have probably bagged all of your groceries." He smiled at Mr. Fipps. "I've given some of you Uber rides, mowed your lawn, fixed your bikes, raked your yard and all the other little ventures I have had over the years. I can honestly say Mystic Falls has saved my life. The kindness you have all shown to me and my sister has helped us more than you will ever know, and I am forever grateful.

All your support has put me in a place where I am able to do something for the town. Poppy and I are hoping to restore the Whitney house to what it used to be. Make it the heart of the city where we gather for parties and holidays and all the other milestones we share. We have all shared many milestones over the years, and I am hoping to share one more tonight. As most of you know, Poppy has been putting this whole thing together. And let's face it, her unstoppable energy is what got this event thrown together so quickly, but we put this together because we hope to buy this house together. Poppy, can you come up here with me?"

Her heart started to pound in her chest and her knees shook a bit as she made her way up the stage. She didn't know why she felt so nervous, she had been performing in front of these people in one way or another her whole life. He reached out and took her trembling hand and helped her up the stairs. She wasn't sure how, but she made it up. Everything but him fell away as she watched him drop to one knee in front of her. Her hand flew up to her mouth and tears pooled in her eyes as she watched him reach inside his coat pocket.

"Poppy, we may not have been together long, but I have been in love with you since I sat beside you on the bus in the fourth grade. So, in a way I have been in love with you most of my life. That is how I know for certain, without a shadow of a doubt, I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you, Poppy Smith, do me the honor of marrying me?"

She nodded her head at a fevered pace. "Of course, I will marry you!" she shouted. She was only mildly aware of the cheering of the entire town as he stood up and wrapped her in an embrace and kissed her.

He leaned his forehead to hers. "I've got you now, Princess."

She smiled up at him, hoping he really would get her tonight, especially when he called her princess. Poppy was pulled out of the moment by someone tapping on Josh's shoulder. Mitch whispered something in Josh's ear with a smile on his face.

His arms fell away and he turned to face him fully. "Are you serious?" he asked.

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