Free Louisiana Sky (Love in Belle Pont #2) by Ashleigh Zavarelli Page A

long until we were dishing up food, and eating until we were about ready to burst.
    Bentley was beside me, whispering back and forth with Archer the whole night. When he stood up and disappeared into the house, I went to follow, but Archer stopped me.
    “Heya Rox, you know those lotions you make at Bits N’ Bobs,” he said, real interested like. “Do you mind tellin’ me what all you put in em?”
    I must have been staring at him like he was crazy, because he just started laughing and shaking his head.
    “Okay, you got me,” he admitted. “It ain’t really my thing, I guess. But just stay put, will ya? For a minute.”
    I didn’t know what him and Bentley were up to, but I agreed, tapping my foot impatiently. Mrs. Daniels stood up and gave a little toast to thank everyone for coming, and got a little teary eyed talking about how much Bentley meant to all of us.
    And then almost as if right on cue, he walked out of the house towards me. He had a real mischievous smile on his face, and I didn’t know what the heck he was doin’ when he kneeled down in the dirt before me. There was a little black box in his hand, and I was staring at it in confusion.
    Mrs. Daniels voice continued to narrate for all of us as she watched with amusement.
    “Now, my Bentley has something else he’d like ya’ll to be party to, if you don’t mind. So if you’d all just turn your attention towards him…”
    She trailed off as realization hit me and Bentley grasped my hands in his. He stared up at me with an expression so filled with love and adoration, I wanted to burst. I already knew there were tears streamin’ down my face, but I couldn’t be embarrassed. I forgot everyone else around us when he spoke.
    “Roxy Hart,” he began in a nervous voice. “You are the feistiest, smartest, most charming and beautiful woman I have ever laid eyes on. You keep me on my toes, and you’re constantly surprising me. It’s no secret that I love you with everything that I have, but after what we went through recently, I realized I didn’t want to waste another minute without you. I know we’ve had our share of issues in the past, but I promise to devote the rest of my life to making you happy, if you’ll let me. There isn’t anyone else that I could ever imagine spending forever with. So will you please do me the honor, and make me the happiest man on earth, by agreeing to be my wife?”
    I let out a sob and a laugh, the most God-awful sound I’ve ever made as I flung myself into his arms and nearly knocked him backwards.
    “Yes,” I cried. “Yes, Bentley Daniels. I want to be your wife.”
    The folks around us erupted in cheers of applause and well wishes, but Bentley just kept holding me for a real long time.
    Then he finally stood up and gave everyone a polite thank you before he snuck me off to his house on the other side of the property.
    The minute we were inside the door, he was all over me, and I was still half laughing, half crying.
    “I can’t believe you said yes,” he said between kisses. “I was so damn nervous.”
    I pulled back to stroke his face and stared into his eyes.
    “You should have known I’d say yes, you silly boy. I’ve always loved you Bentley.”
    A huge grin broke out across his face. “So forever then?”
    “Forever,” I agreed.

Acknowledgements
    Thanks to my mom for instilling into me a love of the written word, and for being my biggest cheerleader when I needed it. To my lifelong friend and partner in crime, Amy, for sharing in all things tall, dark, and brooding. And to Lacee, Dad, and the rest of my family and friends for giving me adventures worth writing about. Last, but not least, my Beta Readers, and all of the amazing new writer friends who have helped me along the way.
    If you want to see more information on my upcoming projects, you can find me on Twitter under @AshZav
    If email’s more your thing, you can contact me at [email protected]