Thirteen (Love by Numbers Book 4) (33 page)
“This place is incredible.” The awe in her voice is exactly one of the reasons that I planned for Japan to be one of our first stops, that and I wanted to show her the place that brought her to me.
The day I wrote,
I want to live,
on a wooden tablet and attached it to the wishing tree, I never dreamed I’d not only get to live but to feel so
alive.
Lilah is the essence of all the vibrancy in my life and I think this place not only listened to my hopes of surviving ‘The Big C’, but it gave me something I didn’t even know I was missing…
her.
I look at the woman who stole my mind while dressed as a giant bunny, then proceeded to quickly steal my heart. Her hair is slightly longer than when we first met and I reach out to push back some errant strands that have blown into her face as she stares at the wishing tree in all its ethereal beauty.
“Are you going to make a wish?”
Her head turns slowly towards me and her eyes sparkle in the soft rays of the afternoon sun.
“No. I don’t need to make a wish. I have almost everything I could ever want.”
“Almost?” I raise an eyebrow at her hoping she tells me whatever it is that she desires so I can make it come true.
“Yes, almost. But I plan on doing something about that.” She gives me a wickedly sweet smile before she gracefully gets down on one knee.
I can only imagine the look on my face because it causes her to laugh, and I snap my jaw shut while forcing myself to stay standing when all I want to do is join her on my knees.
“I’ve never been a girl that does things the way they are expected to be done. If I wanted to do something, I worked out a way to do it, if I wanted to have something, I tried my hardest to get it.”
She slips up the edge of her long, maxi skirt and rests it on her thigh just above Ally-tastic. She ignores the stares of other tourists and locks her smiling eyes with mine as she slowly rolls down a garter that hides a little blue box strapped to her thigh.
“I adore you, Harry David Brown, but more than that, I
love you.
I always have and I always will.”
She flicks open the lid of the box and pulls out a platinum band set with single stone. “Make an honest woman out of me?”
A flicker of insecurity passes over her features but is quickly replaced by hope.
I stare down at this woman, this beautiful, strong, inspiring, funny woman,
my woman,
and then look over to the wishing tree, ignoring the crowd gathering to gawp at us.
“Bloody hell, Harry, I’m on bended knee here, which isn’t easy for someone with a bionic leg, are you going to answer me or what?” She tries and fails to keep the worry out of her tone, despite the smile on her face.
I slowly lower myself down onto one knee, mirroring her pose and pull out the box that’s been burning a hole in my pocket for the last few weeks.
She watches as I unfurl my hand and display a similar box to the one she holds.
When I open the lid, she gasps. Nestled in velvet is a platinum ring, with a single stone, albeit a significantly larger one.
It’s not how I planned on doing this, but I turn her words back on her, “I
love
you, Delilah Chastity Tremere, but in addition to that I
adore
you. I always have and I always will. Make an honest man out of me?”
Her eyes shine with both surprise and relief, as well as something
more.
They sparkle with love. Not adoration.
Love.
She doesn’t use words to answer my question. Instead, she speaks with her heart, via her lips on mine.
Rapturous applause rings out all around us but we don’t break our kiss.
We kiss like it’s the first time, and it is.
It’s the first time of the rest of our lives.
It’s the moment a broken boy and a broken girl pledged themselves to each other for always, and became whole.
T
hirteen… unlucky for some, but not me.
Read other books by e.s. carter
Tracks of My Tears – Smokey Robinson & The Miracles.
Best Fake Smile – James Bay
She’s So Lovely – Scouting For Girls
Fix You – Coldplay
Chocolate – The 1975
Waterfall – The Stone Roses
Take Me Home – Jess Glynne
Lay It All On Me – Rudimental
Be Mine – David Gray
I am blessed to have met so many amazing people since I hit publish on my first book.
To all the authors who have supported me on my writing journey, including the amazing SITL group and Vixen Writers; you ladies ROCK!
Sws fawr to my ‘Southern Hemisphere Twin’, the lovely KA Sterritt, who keeps me sane, listens to my crazy ramblings and always has my back.
To the crazy ladies in my reader’s group ‘E’s Elite’. All the best people are bonkers and you lot definitely are. Thank you for your support, your friendships and your random posts that often require me to pull out my bottle of eye bleach. (Don’t you dare say it’s my fault or I’ll cook the goat, banish the nuns and drown the mermaids!)
HUGE thanks to my super special beta readers. Sharon #GoatQueen, Nicola #TheVirginTwin, Diane #ARCQueen and Alexandra #TeaserQueen, your support is unending and this book would not look the way it does without you.
To all the blogs who took a chance on a new indie author and not only read and reviewed, but recommended, pimped and promoted me and for no other reason than they love to do so. BIG SNOGS for you always.
My final shout-out is for my readers.
I wouldn’t be here without you. Thank you for your passion, your reviews and your support of authors, be they traditional or indie. With so many amazing books out there, I’m honored that you’ve bought mine.
Bookworms will rule the world!
Eli Carter is a mum of three from the U.K.
She is a stay-at-home mum and a part-time advocate for families of children with special needs.
Her life is pretty manic and she often gets asked, “How do you find the time to write?”
The answer is simple, she never sleeps, but not from lack of trying.
Reading and writing is her therapy, her solace and often the one thing that get’s her through the long nights. (That and copious amounts of caffeine and sugar!)
She loves to connect with readers, so please feel free to friend/follow her on Facebook, follow her on IG and Twitter or join her reader’s group, E’s Elite.
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escarterauthor
Copyright 2016 by E.S. Carter
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