In a carriage.
Like this one.
The evening skies were just turning that sort of orangey-purpley-pink that I loved so much. Very pretty against the twinkling lights of the coach. As the coachman took his place, I waved at my family—my wonderful, awesome, quirky, wacky family. They waved back, never moving from the veranda. I had a feeling they’d still be waiting there when we got back.
If we got back.
I had the weirdest feeling that D.J. was really going to fly me to the moon. Or, at the very least, take me on an adventure I’d never forget.
He slipped his arm over my shoulder and held me close as the carriage moved down Broadway. We garnered a few looks from passersby, mainly folks in cars who paused to point and stare. One woman even took a picture.
Turning to D.J., I giggled. “So, what’s this about? Are you about to break some big news? Maybe you’re moving to Hollywood to take a part in a movie? Or maybe you’ve decided you’ve had enough of me, and you’re moving back to Splendora where life was … splendiferous?”
“No, silly.” He placed a kiss on my forehead. “I told you before … I just want to spend a little time with my girl. That’s all. No big deal. Just relax and enjoy the ride.”
“Okay.” I drew in a deep breath, doing my best to relax. Not an easy task for a girl like me who rarely relaxed. Still, I gave it my best shot.
If you have to think about relaxing, are you really relaxing?
Though it was only early October, the evening had turned a bit cool. I shivered, and D.J. smiled. “You cold?”
“No.” I shivered again, and he held me a little closer. Perfect
For a while neither of us said anything. I didn’t want to break the spell. It was like we’d drifted into our own movie scene, complete with Hollywood backdrop. Only I had no idea how this particular scene would end. I had a feeling D.J. did.
He wasn’t talking, however. We rode in silence for so long, I finally felt compelled to say something. I was reminded of something that had happened earlier in the day. “D.J., you’re not going to believe this.”
“Believe what?”’
“This morning I heard Rosa tell Laz something shocking.”
“What’s that?” D.J. asked. “She’s decided to take the Food Network up on their offer?”
“No.”
“She’s investing in some mascara and lip liner?”
“Definitely not.” I paused, then delivered the punch line. “She can’t stand Frank Sinatra.”
“W-what?” D.J. looked at me with disbelief in his eyes. “You’ve got to be kidding me. She loves Ol’ Blue Eyes.”
“Apparently she used to love his music years ago. So this whole thing didn’t start out as a lie. But somewhere along the way, she apparently just got sick and tired of listening to Sinatra tunes day and night.”
“No way.”
“Yep. Can’t say I blame her. That’s kind of how I feel about Guido and ‘Ninety-Nine Bottles of Beer on the Wall.’”
D.J. laughed. “So why did she do it? She could’ve just turned off the music and dropped the argument. Why make such a big deal?”
“That’s not how she is.” I grinned as I pondered the real reasons behind her attachment to Sinatra. “She might’ve been sick of his music, but something about him still linked her to Laz. If she let go of the illusion of loving Sinatra … ”
“She was letting go of her love for Laz?”
“I guess so. Maybe on some subconscious level.”
“So she was toying with his emotions.” D.J. grinned. “That part doesn’t surprise me, now that she’s come clean.”
“Exactly. But there’s more to this story. It turns out Laz never cared for Dean Martin at all. Ever.”
“What?” At this revelation, D.J. sat straight up in the seat, a stunned look on his face. “No way! Parma John’s is filled with Dino posters. And every pizza on the menu is named after a Dean Martin song. The Mambo Italiano. The Simpatico. Pennies from Heaven. You name it, it’s a Dino song.”
“I know. But it turns out he only said Dean Martin was the better singer to get Rosa riled up. Of course, that was eons ago. But once he got that ball rolling …”
“It was hard to stop.”
“Yeah. Can you imagine? What in the world was wrong with those two? They used every means, every method, to keep from telling each other how they felt. Isn’t that just … silly? Think of all the years they wasted stirring up trouble when they could have been, well …” I giggled.
“Doesn’t make much sense to me.” D.J. kissed me, then leaned back against the seat. “I’d rather just get things out in the open.”
“Exactly.”
“Which is exactly why I decided this carriage ride was the right thing. This is the perfect place to get something off my chest.”
“O-oh?” I looked at him, mesmerized by that last statement. “What is that?” My mind reeled with the possibilities.
D.J. let out a whistle to get the coachman’s attention. The carriage drew to a halt directly in front of Parma John’s, which was just closing up for the day. D.J. slipped out of the seat, dropping to one knee on the tiny floorboard. My heart leaped into my throat. I could hardly breathe.
“W-what are you doing?”
“Oh, I think you know.” He gave me a boyish wink, one that sent my heart fluttering.
For a second I thought I would faint again. I was getting pretty good at that, after all. Instead, I found myself giggling … and even more so as passersby began to cheer.
“Say yes!” one man hollered out as he walked by.
I would. Once he asked the question. If he asked the question. D.J. reached into his pocket and came up with a box. “I’ve been carrying this around for quite a while now,” he said.
“But I wanted the perfect moment.”
“This is pretty perfect.” With my hands now trembling out of control, I gestured to the Cinderella carriage and the twinkling lights.
“Thanks.” He paused a moment, then looked into my eyes with a soul-piercing gaze. “Bella … I told you awhile back that I’m not very good with the fairy-tale stuff.”
“You’re better than you think.”
He grinned. “Thanks. But it’s probably a good idea if I get right to this. I’ve been practicing these words for weeks and don’t want to blow it.” His cheeks turned crimson, and in spite of the cool evening air, I saw little beads of sweat pop out on his brow.
How cute is that?
D.J. looked at me with such love that I wondered what I’d ever done to deserve him.
“Bella, I love you with everything inside of me.”
“I … I love you too,” I whispered in response, fighting to get the words out over the lump in my throat.
D.J.’s eyes filled with tears. “I can’t think of anything that would make me happier than having you as my wife. Will you … will you make me the happiest man on Planet Earth by saying you’ll marry me?”
At this point, my heart went crazy. I thought it might leap from my chest. “Will I? Of course I will!”
As he opened the box, revealing the most beautiful marquise diamond I’d ever seen, I let out a Texas-sized holler. My robust “Woo-hoo!” must’ve spooked the horses. They took off galloping, which knocked D.J. from his kneeling position and left him scrambling to keep from falling out of the carriage. The coachman did his best to get the horses under control, but they continued barreling full steam ahead down the cobblestone pavers on the Strand, creating quite a rocky ride. Hanging on for dear life was really the only option at this point. Well, that, or falling overboard.
Great. I’d botched my own proposal. What was next? A patrol car pulling us over to issue a ticket? Paparazzi hiding in the bushes? Aunt Rosa chasing the carriage with a broom in her hand? Why oh why couldn’t I get anything right? Why did every event in my life—good, bad, or otherwise—have to end in chaos? And why did this angel of a man want to spend the rest of his life with a goofball like me? Sure
ly he could see that I was a walking disaster.
In that moment, I half expected the trio of sisters from Splendora to appear on the sidewalk, singing a perfectly harmonized version of “Call Me Irresponsible.”
In all the mayhem, D.J. had somehow managed to make it onto the seat with the box in his hand. The horses finally slowed, though my heart never did. D.J. reached inside the box, took out the tiny ring, and slipped it on my finger. I stared at the diamond, completely blown away. Seconds later, I was wrapped in his arms, giving him a kiss he wouldn’t forget anytime soon.
Afterward I gazed into his eyes, happiness settling over me and wrapping me like a blanket. “So, are you really sure you want to spend the rest of your life with me?” I asked. “Because I can be quite a handful. That’s what they tell me, anyway.”
“Oh, don’t I know it!” He gazed into my eyes and then laughed.
“I mess things up a lot, D.J., and stuff has a tendency to fall apart when I’m around. I set out to do right, and things go terribly wrong. And I usually blow things in a major sort of way, say, in front of a television camera. Can you really live with that?”
“Yep.”
I loved a man of few words.
He took me in his arms and whispered, “Bella, you can argue all you like … tell me every flaw you’ve ever had … but I’m not changing my mind. I’m going to spend the rest of my life with you. You’re the Juliet to my Romeo. You’re the lady-in-waiting to my knight in shining armor. And I’m the one with your glass slipper.”
I smiled as I realized he was repeating the line I’d spoken to him days before. Funny. He must’ve been working on it all this time to get it just right. Turned out D.J. really was pretty good at the fairy-tale stuff. He didn’t give himself enough credit.
He lifted my chin with his fingertips, gazing into my eyes. “God didn’t make a mistake when he brought me all the way from Splendora to Galveston Island, Bella Bambina.”
“O-oh?” My heart raced as I pondered his next words.
“I thought I was coming just to build houses,” D.J. said, his eyes now filling with tears. “Turns out … I was coming to build a life.”
Wow.
Now that was a line even the Hollywood scriptwriters couldn’t match.
Sister Jolene’s Top Ten Cruising Tips
1. Be polite to others on karaoke night, even those who don’t have the same God-given talents you do.
2. Take advantage of the all-you-can-eat buffet. You may never get this opportunity again.
3. Make sure your pants have elastic waistbands, as you will likely put on a few pounds on the trip.
4. Wear your sequined dress on formal night so you stand out in the crowd.
5. Only fall in love with one handsome stranger per cruise day.
6. When you purchase your pantyhose for the trip, remember one size does not fit all.
7. When snorkeling, be sure to use the mask and breathing tube.
8. Take extra makeup. You never know when you might meet a sister in need.
9. Don’t be afraid to let your little light shine, especially in the midst of a storm.
10. Travel with your sisters in Christ. Where two or more are gathered … there’s bound to be a party!
Acknowledgments
I am forever grateful to my editor, Jennifer Leep, who fell in love with Bella and the whole Rossi clan. And how can I ever thank my copyeditor, Jessica Miles? You’ve given this book a Texas spit shine!
I’m also extremely blessed to have a great agent like Chip MacGregor, who not only champions my work but prays for me as well. And I’m tickled to have some of the greatest critique partners in the world: Kathleen, Martha, Linda, Janetta, and Ane. You ladies buzzed through this one in record time, responding with laughter and helpful comments.
I would be remiss if I didn’t mention my awesome cruising buddy, Kay, who endured seven days on the high seas with me during the writing of this book. Many of Twila, Jolene, and Bonnie Sue’s antics came from our week at sea on the Royal Caribbean cruise liner.
Finally, to my Lord and Savior—my reason for writing in the first place. Your grace (as Guido sings) is truly amazing.
Janice Thompson is a Christian freelance author and a native Texan. She is the mother of four grown daughters, three beautiful granddaughters, and a brand-new grandson. She resides in the greater Houston area, where the heat and humidity tend to reign.
Janice started penning books at a young age and was blessed to have a screenplay produced in the early ’80s. From there she went on to write several large-scale musical comedies for a Houston school of the arts. Currently, she has published over fifty novels and nonfiction books for the Christian market, most of them lighthearted and/or wedding themed.
Working with quirky characters and story ideas suits this fun-loving author. She particularly enjoys contemporary, first-person romantic comedies. Wedding-themed books come naturally to Janice, since she’s coordinated nearly a dozen weddings, including recent ceremonies and receptions for her four daughters. Most of all, she loves sharing her faith with readers and hopes they will catch a glimpse of the real happily ever after as they laugh their way through her lighthearted, romantic tales.
Books by Janice Thompson
WEDDINGS BY BELLA
Fools Rush In
Swinging on a Star
Table of Contents
1 High Hopes
2 Lost in the Stars
3 All or Nothing at All
4 Swinging on a Star
5 Call Me Irresponsible
6 Come Fly with Me
7 They All Laughed
8 Everybody Loves Somebody
9 My Kind of Town
10 Blue Skies
11 I’ve Got the World on a String
12 The Way You Look Tonight
13 From Both Sides, Now
14 Strangers in the Night
15 Just One of Those Things
16 The Tender Trap
17 That Lucky Old Sun
18 How About You?
19 Too Close for Comfort
20 Come Rain or Come Shine
21 Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea
22 Young at Heart
23 Send in the Clowns
24 Goin’ Out of My Head
25 That’s Life
26 Something Stupid
27 In the Still of the Night
28 My Way
29 From This Moment On
30 Let’s Face the Music and Dance
31 Love and Marriage
32 The Best Is Yet to Come
33 After You’ve Gone
34 Just the Way You Are
35 The Good Life
36 These Foolish Things
37 Fly Me to the Moon
38 I Wish You Love
39 Our Love Is Here to Stay
Sister Jolene’s Top Ten Cruising Tips
Acknowledgments
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Janice Thompson, Swinging On A Star
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