Total pages in book: 49
Estimated words: 46152 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 231(@200wpm)___ 185(@250wpm)___ 154(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 46152 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 231(@200wpm)___ 185(@250wpm)___ 154(@300wpm)
He nods, and I get passed back to Huddy and his fiancée, Elle. Elle is hugging me. “I’m sorry to be pawing you the very first time we meet, but I have to hug you. You saved me this week. I was way over my head. I can’t believe you sold all those tickets. And what a great idea with the performers. It was perfect.”
Overwhelmed with everyone’s kindness, all I can stutter out is “Thank you.”
Huddy puts a hand on my shoulder. He hasn’t been home from the military for a long time, but obviously being home has been good for him. “My brother fucked up.”
My mouth drops, and I look over at Beau. The smile is gone from his face, but he doesn’t look like he’s mad or anything. Huddy continues, “He fucked up, but I have no doubt he loves you. Don’t give up on him, okay?”
I look at the massive man in front of me. He’s intimidating to most everyone, I would think. Especially me, since I have to practically lay my head backwards to look up at him. I’m pretty sure his hand could stretch all the way around my neck. But I’m not scared of him. Not in that sense. “Okay,” I mutter.
“Okay, okay. I think we should take our seats. The show is starting soon.”
Beau brings our hands up and kisses mine before walking with me to our seats. We take up a whole aisle with his family. I’m a little giddy as Elle moves to make sure she can sit next to me. There’s small talk all around us, and I sit here and pray that everything works out, not only on stage but with everything else too.
Ford speaks first and welcomes everyone. The atmosphere is electric, and I love seeing everyone excited and happy. Ford talks about the importance of the facility and mentions how it’s going to serve the wounded heroes and make a difference in so many lives. I get a little overwhelmed emotionally being a part of all this. Beau leans toward me and whispers, “You okay?”
I nod my head as I wipe a lone tear. “Yeah, I’m fine. I’m good.”
“I need to go up to present the check. You want to go with me?”
Vigorously, I shake my head side to side. There’s no way I’m going up there in front of all these people. “No, thank you. I’ll stay right here.”
He laughs quietly. “All right, I’ll be right back.” He kisses me before walking down the aisle and then toward the front of the auditorium.
Ford introduces a few businesses that are sponsoring tonight's events. Each of them comes forward and announces their donations. Beau is standing to the side, his eyes on me the whole time. When it’s his turn, he goes to the podium and talks. “Uh, I have something planned to say, but first I wanted to thank someone special. Earlier this week, we had a bit of a hiccup with this event. In the span of a few hours, we lost our catering, and our entertainer had to cancel. I want to thank my wife, Natalie Blaze, for all the hard work she put into tonight. She recruited our caterers—Sugar Glaze Bakery for the desserts and Red’s Diner for the hors d'oeuvres. And the entertainment, the performers, dancers, cheerleaders, and band—she’s put together a great ensemble and I’ll tell you I saw dress rehearsals earlier today, and it is amazing. Anyway, Nat, please stand up.”
My mouth drops. I would sink farther into my seat if Elle wasn’t sitting next to me, dragging me up to stand. I look around the huge convention center. The whole town of Whiskey Run is here. I know my face is red, and it gets even worse when everyone around us starts to clap.
When it dies down, Beau continues, “Thank you, Nat. I love you, and I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
I mouth the words I love you too. He smiles and continues his speech. He talks about how important the facility is to Blaze Whiskey as a company. He talks about his brother Huddy, who just got back from the military and how the services are going to help so many lives. He presents the check, and there’s an audible gasp in the crowd when he announces the amount. He’s making his way back to where I’m sitting and watching me the whole way. When he sits down, I can feel all the eyes on us. If there are people in town that didn’t know Beau Blaze was married, they do now. And heck, anyone not here tonight will know tomorrow. All my insecurities are suddenly lifted. I lean into him, and he puts an arm around my shoulder. “Yes.”
He puts a finger under my chin. “Yes what?”