Changing Her Heart (16 page)

“This is a proposal, isn't it?”

His eyes sprang open, and he looked up at Lacey as she stood, looking down at him. Randy remained with one knee on the floor. He pulled the brochure for the engagement rings out of his pocket. “Yes, it is.”

“I suppose you consider this traditional, don't you?”

She motioned her hand, encompassing the silk flower, complete with the shiny red ribbon, the top hat, his CD player, still crooning a modern rock ballad from its perch on top of one of the sale racks and the brochure, which he still hadn't given her.

“Well, uh, not really. I guess. But it's as close as I could get on short notice.”

“Life with you is going to be full of surprises, isn't it?”

“I'm not sure how to answer that.”

“Then I have an answer for you. Yes, I do trust you. I trusted you then, but everything I saw told me otherwise. Then I checked your drink, just to prove
that it wasn't what it looked like, but then it was. The facts were right in my hand. Even still, I wanted someone, anyone, to tell me you hadn't been drinking, despite overwhelming evidence. No one could. But now you have. I know you're telling the truth, and in a way that proves I'm not crazy after all. My heart was right. I'll never doubt you again.” Her voice quieted. “Because I love you, and I won't ever not love you.”

He reached up to cover her hand, pressing it gently but firmly into his cheek. “I want to do this right. Lacey, I love you with all my heart and soul. Will you love me, trust me and marry me, until death do us part?”

She glanced from side to side. “We've been lucky. You know someone is bound to come in any second now.”

“I know. But I believe in miracles. Even small ones.”

Lacey didn't back away. Instead, she sat gently on his bent leg, draped her arms around his neck and lowered her head until their lips were so close he could feel the heat. “I want to do this right, too. Yes, I'll marry you. Now give me a kiss,” she whispered against his lips. “Make me see fireworks.”

And he did.

Dear Reader,

Welcome once again to Faith Community Fellowship!

Often, when we get to know a person, we learn something that makes us wonder if we really knew them at all. Many people have things from their past they would like to keep buried, but when God calls, sometimes the painful lessons we learned can be used for His glory in mighty and meaningful ways.

Such is the case with Randy. If you've read the previous two books featuring Adrian and Bob, you've seen glimpses of the playful part of Randy's personality. But like most people, what we see on the surface doesn't always reflect who he is deep inside. It's hard to know what made someone the person we see today.

In the story, Randy used experience borne of old hurts and past wrongs to guide another person in his path to a better life, despite its difficulty. He had to put something else that was important, his growing relationship with Lacey, at risk. However, in the long run, the things we value most are the ones that withstand the bumps and difficulties.

I hope and pray that your hard lessons also can be used one day to ease someone else's burden. Even though it's often hard, it's worth it.

May God bless you in your daily journeys.