She wrapped her hand around his, ate the ice cream, and then took the spoon from him. She filled it with hot fudge and vanilla ice cream and offered it to him. He ate it and smiled for the first time.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “You’re right. I’ve been measuring you by Luis, and that’s not fair. I thought we had to live together a year before I really made a commitment. I wanted to be sure that we would last, but I really believe in you and trust you.”
“I apologize for not speaking my mind, but, honey, I am serious,” he said as he slid out of the booth. He dropped down on one knee right there in the Dairy Queen, took her hand in his, and said, “Teresa Mendoza, will you marry me? I don’t have a ring yet, and it doesn’t have to be next week, but I want to know that we are committed wholly to each other, that the past is totally gone from our lives.”
“Yes!” She leaned in to kiss him. “And, Noah, you have my whole heart, every bit of it. I think you always have.”
He kept her hand in his as he stood up, and then he slid right next to her. A verse from the Bible came to her mind. “And they two shall become one.” She had no idea why it popped into her mind, but it sure made sense right then. Her heart and Noah’s were one, and there would never be room for anyone else ever again.
“I love you,” she whispered, “and we don’t have to wait a year.”
Epilogue
One Year Later
Teresa picked up the two pink gift bags on her way out the door that Sunday evening. The sun was just setting, and a cool breeze let her know that summer was gone and fall had arrived. Queenie was sprawled out on the porch that fine fall morning. Noah had been right when he said she’d be half the size of a Shetland pony. “You protect the place,” she told the dog. “Don’t let any mice or two-legged critters on the property until we get home.”
“Are you ready for this?” Noah slipped an arm around her waist, and together they crossed the yard to the truck.
“Yes, and I’m ready to start our family,” she said. “If we have a baby nine months from now, we might have four or five by the time we’re forty.”
Noah’s bright smile lit up the truck. “We’ll see what we can do about that when we get home from church.” He started the vehicle, and loud music filled the cab. “Guess I know who was driving this last.” He turned it down far enough that they could talk above it.
“Yep, I like my music loud when I’m alone.” She wasn’t afraid to have children anymore. She no longer believed that she would be a terrible mother. Miss Janie had taught her better than that. She and Noah had been married six months now, and there had been a few arguments, but they’d worked their way through them. Every day they were together, their love for one another seemed to grow even more.
“Remember this song?” he asked when Miranda began to sing “Storms Never Last.”
“It’s kind of been our theme song for the past year, hasn’t it?” she said. “Did I ever tell you about my drive up here last year? About fifty miles out, I thought for sure I’d run out of gas or that one of my tires would blow out. That song came on the radio, and I remember wishing that it was true, that storms didn’t last, but I sure didn’t believe it. Now I do.”
“I believe it has been our song, and I’m glad that you changed your mind about it.” He laid a hand on her shoulder. “The wind really has taken any bad times with it, just like the words say.”
She covered his hand with hers. “I’ve heard that the first year of marriage is the hardest. If that’s the case, we should make it all the way to that eternity you talked about the night you proposed to me.”
“Maybe after the party this afternoon, we should go to the Dairy Queen and share an ice cream sundae just for good luck on starting our family,” he suggested.
“Couldn’t hurt a thing.” She smiled as he found a parking spot at the church.
Kayla forgot to pick up the hostess gifts and didn’t