Every Kind of Heaven (16 page)

He would always be devoted to her. Always ten thousand percent committed. Love moved through him of a strength and breadth that knew no bounds. That would never know a limit or an end. “Here is something you should know about me, something I haven't told you yet, but I intend to spend the rest of my life proving this to you. I will never give up on you. I will never lose faith in you. I will never fail you. Even if you ever give up on me, I will still
be here. On your side. Come what may. I love you, Ava.”

Her heart took a long tumble. Could he be any more wonderful? And wasn't that the scariest thing of all? Because right here standing before her, was every kind of heaven she could dream of having on this earth. Every blessing of love and faith and commitment she could ever wish for, and she would spend the rest of her life cherishing.

Totally scared, and yet more scared of not reaching for him, she pressed her hand to his, trapping the big curve of his palm against the side of her face. “I love you, Brice. Forever and ever.”

“Then you'll marry me, when I get around to asking you properly?”

“Consider it a guarantee. You are my Mr. Wish Come True.”

“And you, you are perfect for me, just the way you are, and that is never going to change. Can't you see that?” He looked so vulnerable for such a big man. All heart. All honesty. “You are the sun come into my life. I was in the dark before you.”

He smiled. Not the dazzling one she'd so fallen for. Not the one that made his goodness of spirit show in his eyes. But a better one, a deeper one. One she'd never seen before. It was serious, too, and sincere, soul-deep.

He leaned closer and then closer still until his mouth slanted over hers. Slowly, his lips brushed hers with a brief, tender reverence. She was so in
love all she saw was him. He filled her every sense and every thought. He was the reason for the beat of her heart now and forever. Her Mr. Wish Come True.

T
he first customer to officially walk through the newly opened bakery door looked very familiar. Ava squinted through the fall of light from the cheerful windows to the broad-shouldered handsome man closing the door behind him. Was he Mr. Perfect or what? Her soul sighed. She closed the cash register drawer, and her engagement diamond glinted in the bright sunshine.

“May I help you?” she asked courteously.

“I sure hope so.” Brice Donovan carried a vase of yellow and red rosebuds and placed them on the counter between them. “I've come to check on the progress of my cake.”

“Lucky for you, Mr. Wonderful, I just finished boxing up your order.”

“Say, you wouldn't want to go get a cup of coffee afterward all this, would you?”

Call her happy. Why wouldn't she be? She was engaged to the best man in the entire world. Okay, she might be just a little biased when it came to Brice, but only a tad, a dash, a smidgeon. “I'll have you know that I'm engaged to be married.”

“Lucky guy.”

“No, lucky me.”

His kiss was the sweetest heaven. The way his love filled her was the best of blessings.

The bell on the door chimed, and more customers tumbled in. Aubrey and Katherine, dressed for work at the bookstore. “It's a little quiet in here,” Aubrey said.

Katherine took a look at the two who'd quickly stepped apart and smiled. “And for a good reason. Ava, after you finish my wedding cake, you'd better start on your own.”

“I know.” They hadn't set a date yet, with Jonas still recovering in the hospital, but they weren't in a serious hurry. They had the rest of their lives together. How amazing was that? “Wait, does this mean you've decided on a design for your wedding cake?”

“Yes. Finally.” Katherine beamed her own happiness.

Wasn't this a wonderful world? Okay, so it wasn't perfect, but look at the blessings the Lord gave every day. Love and families and sisters. Hope, dreams to come true and chocolate cake. Lots of chocolate cake.

“The climbing roses design, right? I knew it.” Ava rolled her eyes. The door chime rang again.

More customers? Then she recognized Brice's grandmother, Ann, and his mother, Lynn, who was
almost
actually smiling.

“We thought we'd stop by and support your business,” Ann explained, pausing to press a kiss to Brice's cheek. “And to pick up some treats for our garden club meeting this afternoon.”

“You came to the right place.” Delighted, Ava went to box up a chocolate dream cake, only to have Aubrey step in to do it.

“Go,” her twin shooed her away. “Mr. Perfect needs you. I can help out until the teenager gets here.”

“Cool. Thanks, Aub.” Did she mention what a great blessings sister were? They were absolutely wonderful.

“Come with me,” Brice said, taking her by the hand and pulling her into the kitchen. He wanted a moment with her all to himself. He waited until the door swung closed and they were alone before he pulled her into his embrace. It was a long day and would probably be a busy one, and he wanted to say this while he had the chance. “I'm proud of you, sunshine. You know how much I love you, right?”

“Sure, but a girl always likes to hear it on a daily basis.”

“I do love you.” He cradled her face with his hands, sheer tenderness.

She kissed him sweetly, so happy she was floating like a big helium balloon, but this time there was no doom in sight. How could there be?
They were in this together, a team. Between the two of them and with the Lord's help, they could solve any problems that came their way.

“I love you, too,” she told him, this man who was her idea of heaven in this imperfect world, and would always be.

Wow, was she turning into an optimist or what?

With joy in her heart, she thanked the good Lord before giving her husband-to-be another sweet kiss.

 

Dear Reader,

Thank you so much for choosing
Every Kind of Heaven.
I hope you enjoyed Ava's story as much as I did writing it. Ava has learned to expect doom—she's dated a few too many less-than-stellar men. But when Brice walks into her life, his steadfast goodness and caring make her rise to the challenge of changing her view of herself and embracing the heavenly blessing of true love in her life. I hope Ava's story reminds you of how gracious God is and the wonderful gifts He sends into our lives with every day.

Wishing you heavenly blessings,

1. At the beginning of the book, Ava believes that the kind of man she needs, one perfect in every way, does not exist. What's a nice girl to do? Settle for Mr. So-so or Marginally Moral? Have you ever felt this way? What does it say about Ava's character that she refuses to settle for Mr. So-so?
   
2. What is Ava's first impression of Brice? How does her impression of him change after learning his real identity? How does this change her feelings toward him?
   
3. Brice is charmed by Ava's insults, when other men might be offended. Why isn't he offended? What does this say about his character?
   
4. Why is Brice truly the most eligible bachelor? What traits make him a good man?
   
5. What real fears are behind Ava's no-men, no-dating policy? Why does Ava look at Brice and decide only romantic disaster awaits her if she dates him? How does Brice convince Ava to amend her no-dating policy
   
6. As Ava and Brice get to know each other more, what aspects of their character does each come to admire?
   
7. What does the work that Brice does for Ava represent?
   
8. Why is Ava the perfect woman for Brice? Why is he the perfect man for her?
   
9. Ava's mother abandoned her family when Ava was seven years old. How does that affect her? How does that keep her from trusting others? What pattern is she afraid of repeating by falling in love with Brice?
   
10. How important are the values of family to Ava? How does her family help her through the hardships in life? How important are those values to Brice? How does this influence their growing relationship?