me for three months, Brian. What if you wake up one morning and decide that you don’t want me anymore? I couldn’t bear it.”
“That will never happen. You are my once-in-a-lifetime dream come true. I’ll spend the rest of my life loving you. I’ll never hurt you, and I’ll always be there for you, I promise.”
Brian’s proposal was so sudden, so wonderfully breathtaking, and Stephanie felt like she was floating in a dream. “Oh, Brian,” she finally answered. “I want to marry you, too.”
“You’re saying yes?”
She nodded. “Yes – yes I want to marry you.”
She saw the corners of his mouth bend upwards into a nervous smile. He pulled her into his arms and sealed his commitment with a passionate kiss. “I don’t want to wait, Stephanie. I’d be just as happy to stand before a judge if that’s okay with you?”
“I want the magic, Brian,” she said, shaking her head. “I’ve always dreamed of wearing my mother’s wedding gown. There’s even a matching diamond tiara. And cake, and flowers – I want it to be special. I want it to be a day we’ll never forget.”
“I want you to have your special day, Stephanie, but I don’t want some long drawn-out engagement, either. Like I said, I don’t want to be without you any longer.”
“Well then,” her mind quickly went to work. “We can have an intimate gathering right here. I already have my wedding dress, and I’ll ask Jan for help. I’m sure she won’t mind helping me coordinate all of the details. She has a friend who owns a cake shop, and there’s a florist right beside her boutique. I’ll bet we could pull it off in a short amount of time. Are there a lot of people you want to invite?”
“Simple works for me – my parents, my brothers, my grandparents, a few friends, and of course our mutual friends from Walter Reed.”
“I’m guessing fifty altogether. I’ll work on the invites right away. How about if we set the date for the last Saturday in September – I think it’s the 25th.”
“That sounds like a wonderful date for our anniversary. There’s only one problem, Stephanie – your dad. This is going to break his heart.” Stephanie heard the front door open and then she heard her dad’s familiar footsteps. He was walking toward his study. “Let’s go and get this over with,” Brian said.
Stephanie took a deep breath as though it would give her enough courage to break the news to her dad. She reached for Brian’s hand and searched his eyes for strength. Together we can do anything. They walked hand-in-hand to her dad’s study where he was digging through a pile of paperwork. He looked up when they approached his cherry desk. Stephanie could see that he obviously knew what was coming next.
“I’ve asked Stephanie to marry me,” Brian said in his usual, straightforward manner. “I would like your permission.”
Stephanie saw a flash of disapproval race across her dad’s face. “Don’t you think this is rather sudden?”
“I’ve given the matter a lot of thought. I love her very much, and I’ll take good care of her.”
Robert stood. “I’m not questioning your integrity, Brian. I would be proud to have you as my son. It’s Stephanie I’m concerned with.” Robert walked to the front of the desk and approached Stephanie. He looked sternly into her eyes. “You’ve only known Brian for three months. I want you to live your life before you go rushing into a lifelong commitment. And that’s my final word.”
Stephanie’s heart sank with disappointment. But that can’t be your final word. You’re just afraid of losing me. Robert turned around and headed back to his desk. Stephanie followed him and put her hand on his back to gently stop him. “Daddy, I love Brian,” she insisted. “And I want to spend the rest of my life with him. But Dad, no one can ever take your place. We’ll be
“That will never happen. You are my once-in-a-lifetime dream come true. I’ll spend the rest of my life loving you. I’ll never hurt you, and I’ll always be there for you, I promise.”
Brian’s proposal was so sudden, so wonderfully breathtaking, and Stephanie felt like she was floating in a dream. “Oh, Brian,” she finally answered. “I want to marry you, too.”
“You’re saying yes?”
She nodded. “Yes – yes I want to marry you.”
She saw the corners of his mouth bend upwards into a nervous smile. He pulled her into his arms and sealed his commitment with a passionate kiss. “I don’t want to wait, Stephanie. I’d be just as happy to stand before a judge if that’s okay with you?”
“I want the magic, Brian,” she said, shaking her head. “I’ve always dreamed of wearing my mother’s wedding gown. There’s even a matching diamond tiara. And cake, and flowers – I want it to be special. I want it to be a day we’ll never forget.”
“I want you to have your special day, Stephanie, but I don’t want some long drawn-out engagement, either. Like I said, I don’t want to be without you any longer.”
“Well then,” her mind quickly went to work. “We can have an intimate gathering right here. I already have my wedding dress, and I’ll ask Jan for help. I’m sure she won’t mind helping me coordinate all of the details. She has a friend who owns a cake shop, and there’s a florist right beside her boutique. I’ll bet we could pull it off in a short amount of time. Are there a lot of people you want to invite?”
“Simple works for me – my parents, my brothers, my grandparents, a few friends, and of course our mutual friends from Walter Reed.”
“I’m guessing fifty altogether. I’ll work on the invites right away. How about if we set the date for the last Saturday in September – I think it’s the 25th.”
“That sounds like a wonderful date for our anniversary. There’s only one problem, Stephanie – your dad. This is going to break his heart.” Stephanie heard the front door open and then she heard her dad’s familiar footsteps. He was walking toward his study. “Let’s go and get this over with,” Brian said.
Stephanie took a deep breath as though it would give her enough courage to break the news to her dad. She reached for Brian’s hand and searched his eyes for strength. Together we can do anything. They walked hand-in-hand to her dad’s study where he was digging through a pile of paperwork. He looked up when they approached his cherry desk. Stephanie could see that he obviously knew what was coming next.
“I’ve asked Stephanie to marry me,” Brian said in his usual, straightforward manner. “I would like your permission.”
Stephanie saw a flash of disapproval race across her dad’s face. “Don’t you think this is rather sudden?”
“I’ve given the matter a lot of thought. I love her very much, and I’ll take good care of her.”
Robert stood. “I’m not questioning your integrity, Brian. I would be proud to have you as my son. It’s Stephanie I’m concerned with.” Robert walked to the front of the desk and approached Stephanie. He looked sternly into her eyes. “You’ve only known Brian for three months. I want you to live your life before you go rushing into a lifelong commitment. And that’s my final word.”
Stephanie’s heart sank with disappointment. But that can’t be your final word. You’re just afraid of losing me. Robert turned around and headed back to his desk. Stephanie followed him and put her hand on his back to gently stop him. “Daddy, I love Brian,” she insisted. “And I want to spend the rest of my life with him. But Dad, no one can ever take your place. We’ll be
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