Page 112 of Words of Love
“I’ve been here a lot longer than I thought I would.” He twisted his mouth. “I only planned to stay for a few weeks while I finished the first draft ofTripwire. Then I found out about the bookstore, and next thing I knew, I had another reason to stay.”
Her heart bumped as she recalled his reason for stopping in Bliss Cove in the first place.
“Your wanderlust must be kicking into gear again.” She tried to keep her tone light. “After all the places you’ve been and things you’ve done, I can see how our little town would start to get boring.”
“It hasn’t been boring at all. Just the opposite.”
The audience burst into applause. Sam looked toward the stage again as the young actors took their bows to a standing ovation. A sudden tension radiated from him.
“Uh…” He stepped back and cleared his throat. “I should—”
“I didn’t mean to—”
“Extra, extra, read all about it!” A boy, Tommy Perkins, wearing a cap and carrying a satchel full of newspapers, wove his way through the crowd. He held up a rolled paper. “Breaking news! Get the latest headlines in this special edition ofThe Bliss Cove Gazette!”
Turning back to Sam, Brooke gave a small laugh. “I’ve never known Charlie to participate in the Book Fair performances.”
“First time for everything, I guess.” Though his tone was nonchalant, he shuffled his feet and shoved his hands deeper into his pockets.
“One dollar apiece, all proceeds going to The Reading Project!” Tommy paused to conduct transactions with several customers. “Get the special edition now, folks! Only available while supplies last.”
He came closer to the Title Wave booth, still waving the rolled-up newspaper. “Read all about it!”
Read all aboutwhat?
“I’ll take one, Tommy.” Brooke dug into her bag for a five-dollar bill and held it out to the boy.
“Sure thing, Ms. Castle.” Tommy hurried over, eyes bright with excitement. “I know you’re into breaking news.”
He stuffed the bill in his pocket. Waving away his attempt to give her change, Brooke thanked him and took the special edition.
She opened the paper. There, in 72-point Helvetica bold print, right underneathThe Bliss Cove Gazettemasthead, was the headline:
SAM LOVES BROOKE
She blinked and closed her eyes. A rollicking combination of disbelief, excitement, and outright joy swirled through her like ribbon candy. When she opened her eyes again, the words were still there. Thewordwas there.
Loves.
The earth tilted a little under her feet. Around her, the crowd had gone oddly quiet, their chattering lessened to whispers and a few giggles.
Tightening her grip on the paper, Brooke lifted her head and looked at Sam. Her breath caught. He was watching her warily, his arms folded and his expression unreadable.
But she’d read his dark eyes a thousand times, and they contained a straightforward message of hope.
Lowering his arms, he walked around the table. Though her heart began pounding so hard it echoed in her head, she was distinctly aware ofthe townclustered around them as if they were the stars of the next stage play.
“Brooke…” Sam stopped in front of her, his gaze searching her face.
He wasn’t going to…he wouldn’t…not in front of all these people…
“I love you,” he said.
Oh my god, he did.
She just stared at him. She couldn’t move. It was as if she had to remain very still to absorb the power and beauty of his confession.
Taking a breath, Sam pressed a hand to his heart. “You were right when you said I’ve done a lot. I’ve been to almost every continent and lost myself in more cities than I can count. I’ve watched sunsets that look like fire and climbed mountains taller than the heavens. But it turns out the best damn thing that ever happened to me was walking into a cabin during a blizzard and finding you.”