He had slipped a brilliant, shiny diamond ring onto my finger before we began kissing. “Oh, Dale,” I said, marveling at my ring. “It’s beautiful!”
Tears ran down my cheek as he took his seat next to me when the carriage started moving again.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, cupping my chin in his hand.
“It’s just. It’s so beautiful. The whole night… the dinner, the carriage ride, the ring. Everything! You’re such an amazing man.”
“You’re an amazing woman. I always pictured myself with a caring woman who always put her family first. That woman is you. You’ve shown me what love is, and I couldn’t imagine my life without you in it.”
“Wait until I tell Lorraine! She’s going to flip!” I squealed.
“She knows,” Dale smiled at me. “When I asked her to watch Nevaeh, she asked me why so I told her. She’s so happy for you. I’m sure she can’t wait to hear all the details.”
“She knows? And she didn’t tell me? That rat!” I laughed.
“Yep. I figured since your parents are gone, I’d ask your best friend for permission to marry you. She definitely approved.”
“Did you show her my ring?”
“No, I only told her my plans over the phone. I bet she’s dying to see it.”
“I bet! It’s absolutely gorgeous!” I exclaimed, holding my hand out under the moonlight as the diamond shined under the St. Louis skylight.
The next morning when I picked up Nevaeh, I showed off my ring to Lorraine. “Look! This is my engagement ring, Lorraine! My engagement ring! I’m going to get married!” I sang as I held out my hand.
“That’s some rock!” Lorraine said, holding my hand to get a better look at the gem.
“When are you going to get married?”
“I don’t know yet. I’ll have to start planning the wedding. I’d say sometime next year. That should be plenty of time, right? A year to plan a wedding? Plus, I have to tell my family!”
“I’d say so. I planned mine and Tyrone’s wedding over the course of six months. It was kind of crazy and hectic, but you know me. I’m never boring,” we laughed.
“Well, this weekend is Valentine’s weekend. I was thinking of making a special dinner at home with Dale. Could you keep Nevaeh for me or do you and Tyrone have plans?”
“No plans that I know of. I’m sure we can watch her. I’ll come pick her up so you have time to get everything ready.”
Later that week, Nevaeh had her second injection of her new drug. She hadn’t had many improvements after the initial loading dose, but she didn’t let that stop her. I drove to her school on a daily basis to pick up her class work so she didn’t fall behind and the two of us did her lessons together. By the end of the week, Nevaeh was actually moving around a bit more; comfortably.
“Nevaeh, I think you might be able to go to school next week,” I told her.
“I think so too. I probably could’ve gone to school this week, but I didn’t want to push myself too hard. I’m ready to go back!”
“Good, I’m glad. Listen, Lorraine’s going to keep you this weekend while Dale and I spend some time together.”
“Yeah right, mom! I know it’s Valentine’s Day. You can’t fool me,” she laughed.
“You’re right. I can’t fool you. Dale’s coming over early Friday afternoon, but I think Lorraine’s going to pick you up that evening.”
When Friday rolled around, Dale came strolling in right after lunch. Nevaeh saw a present in his hand.
“Is that for me?” she asked, trying to see what was in his hand.
“It is! But you have to wait for your mom to come in so she can watch you open it.”
She started calling for me to come into the living room. “Momma! Look what Dale bought me for Valentine’s Day! Can I open it now?” she looked at the two of us for approval.
Nodding our heads, she ripped the paper off the box. Then she opened that box to find another box. After several boxes, she started getting frustrated. “Is this a joke?”
“No, there’s a present in there. I had to disguise it,” he smiled at her.
Finally, when she got down to the last box, she noticed how tiny it was. “What’s in this?” she asked, ripping the last box open.
A small white jewelry box was inside. She recognized it immediately as I had several of these in my jewelry box. Carefully, she opened it and saw a gold locket necklace.