Three days later, they arrived back in Peters Junction in time to decorate the Christmas tree. Apart from the twelve weeks he’d spent in New Zealand filming Clone, Lachlan had cancelled all his work engagements to be with April. He also no longer hid himself away from the Peters Junction community. There was no need, everyone knew he was there. A day after April had given her initial statement to the police, the first reporters had arrived and since then, their presence had drastically increased the economy of the small town. Now that the case was over, however, April sincerely hoped they would all go away. She’d hired Lachlan’s PR firm to manage the publicity and they were remarkably good at diverting the media’s interest.
Lachlan helped her haul the Christmas tree box out of the shed while she grabbed the plastic storage container with all their decorations. “The tree’s almost as big as your house!” He exaggerated a wince as he stretched his back and April giggled. It was really good to have him around.
Between the three of them, they managed to get the tree looking half decent and then Marie left them alone to go and visit one of her friends. Despite being thrilled that April hadn’t been charged with kidnapping, her sister had been down in the dumps for the last few days and April suspected it was because Ben hadn’t been at the hearing and had declined their invitation to come for Christmas. He would also be away for work when the three of them headed to Melbourne to spend New Year’s Eve with Lachlan’s family. She didn’t like to see her sister like this, but Marie was getting older and April had finally discovered how to step back and give her the space to deal with her own problems.
Lachlan flicked the switch and the tree lights came on. Then he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her back up against his chest so they could both watch the colourful display.
“I have a present for you,” he murmured against her ear.
“But then I won’t have anything to open on Christmas day.”
“I never said it was a Christmas present.” He held out a tiny square box in front of her and when she didn’t immediately grab it, he gently guided her hand to take it. She trembled as her fingers closed around the soft velvet. Gently he turned her around in his embrace, then he lifted one hand to her cheek and his sapphire eyes locked with hers. She could see his apprehension, his vulnerability, but when he spoke his voice was full of confidence.
“I’ve been carrying it around since I got back from New Zealand, but I didn’t want to give it to you before because I thought you’d use the court case as an excuse to say no and I couldn’t bear it if you did. I love you. I want to marry you. There’s no more uncertainty, there’s nothing preventing us from being together. Please say...”
“Yes,” she breathed, then pressed her mouth to his. “Yes, yes, yes.” She said it again and again just in case he didn’t hear it the first time.
“What?” She laughed at his stunned expression.
His face melted into a grin and he tightened his grip around her waist. “I’m not used to you saying yes without an argument.”
“Well get used to it. I love you and I want to marry you.” She pulled his head down and kissed him slowly, lovingly.
“You haven’t even seen the ring yet,” he murmured a moment later. Extracting the box from her hand, he withdrew the ring and guided onto her finger. Finally, when it was in place, he held the tips of her fingers and allowed her to see it. The band was made of yellow gold with three unobtrusive gems mounted across the top, a ruby flanked by two slightly smaller emeralds. “It reminded me of your garden,” he said shyly. “Of Fire Mountain and the Horseman Plains.”
“Shaewal,” she whispered, staring at the ring, tears collecting in the corners of her eyes. “It’s perfect.”
“I thought this way you would always carry part of your garden with you. So you’ll always have your sanctuary when you need it.”
She looked up at him and smiled. For the first time in her life, she was happy. Truly, undeniably happy.
Also by Nicola Sinclair
Promise (Peters Junction Series Book 2)
He broke her heart when he broke his promise…
When Ben Kennedy fell in love with Marie Pope, it was a matter of being in the right place, with the right person, at completely the wrong time. She was too young and too innocent, so he left with the promise to return. Only he never came back.
Five years later, Ben finally returns to Peters Junction nursing a heavy burden of hurt and betrayal. The place hasn’t changed, but Marie has and she has a boyfriend, so the timing is still against them. Yet, when Marie finds herself in trouble, Ben realises there is still nothing he wouldn’t do for her.
The choice is simple, can he put aside his anger and pain and start again with Marie, or will he let the past ruin the only chance he has to be with the woman he loves? More importantly, can he convince Marie to give him another chance?
Redemption (Peters Junction Series Book 3)
Sometimes what you’re looking for isn’t what you need. Sometimes, what you need has been right in front of you all along.
Paul Blakely is rude, obnoxious and hell bent on spending the rest of his life alone and miserable. It’s what he deserves after the way he treated his ex-girlfriend. But when Stacey Michaels talks her way into his car on a trip to the city, she doesn’t give him a chance to say no.
Bouncy, chatty, happy Stacey Michaels can’t stand being depressed. Even more, she can’t stand other people being depressed and she sees it as her mission in life to help people be happy. So when she notices Paul struggling in broody silence night after night in the pub, she can’t help but stick her nose into his business. They’re friends after all, and that’s what friends do.
The more time they spend together, the more Stacey realises there are sides to Paul she never even imagined. Combating seriousness with whimsy, she slowly begins to crack the rigid shell of his misery, only to discover that her own insecurities might be the greater barrier to their happiness.
About the Author
Long before she first put pen to paper, Nicola Sinclair was a daydreamer. Whenever she wasn’t working (and sometimes even when she was!) she would get lost in her own thoughts, imagining characters and stories until one day, she just couldn’t go on without writing it down. Now, when she’s not writing, she spends her days justifying her daydreaming to her family because it can be called ‘plotting’ and not just ‘zoning out’.
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