Page 50 of Secret Admirer

Little does he know or expect, but I didn’t take a chance on him. I could always see the man he had been hiding from the world. The one waiting for someone to believe in him so he could finally shine. Bodhi has always radiated strength and kindness. He is everything good I could want in a man and he’s mine. Now and forever.

“Thank you for saving me each and every day.”

A bright smile spreads across his chiseled and scruffy jaw, reaching up into his blue eyes that never stop reminding me of the Caribbean. He’s been my shining light on the dark days after Dwayne.

My knight in shining armor.

My savior.

A throat clears to our right. We break apart, yet Bodhi still keeps one hand on my hip as we turn to see who it is. I lean into his strong frame to find the timid yet amazing woman we hired to cater the event smiling meekly at us. Her smile might be weak, but the stars in her eyes for Bodhi are going strong and have been since the moment we met her. It’s cute, and if I was any other woman and Bodhi was any other man, I’d be worried, but I have no need. Bodhi looks at me like I created the world just for him, and I know I look at him like he hung the moon and stars to light our nights.

“I’m sorry to disturb you during a private moment, but I was told to find you. It’s time.” Her gaze darts from Bodhi to me and back again half a dozen times.

“Thank you, Shondra. We’ll be right there.” I smile at her before turning back to look at the man beside me who’s body is now physically trembling. Bodhi’s come a long way; however, he doesn’t do well with big groups of people unless they’re kids. “Hey,” I cup his prickly cheek, “you’ve got this. I’ll be by your side the whole time. Just remember why you’re doing this.”

He gives me a barely perceptible nod. “The kids.”

Every time I get a chance to see Bodhi in action with the kids at the shelter, it warms my heart. My ovaries feel as though they might explode from how hot and adorable he is helping and listening to them. Someday he’s going to be an amazing father and if my reaction to him with the kids at the shelter is any indication, we’ll probably have enough kids to make our own baseball team.

Clasping my hand in his much larger one, his warm fingers stroke my skin at my pulse point. Even nervous, he walks tall and proud—which he has every right to be—over to the podium. His fingers stop their movement and he clears his throat.

“Thank you all for coming out today. For as long as I can remember I’ve never felt a part of anything. Be it school or my peers…that is, until I came to Oasis. I was immediately drawn to this town and each day that I’ve been here at least one person has made me feel like I belong.” He chuckles, shaking his head. “I never thought someplace that could be so warm during the day would get so cold at night. I was desperate for warmth and started staying at the Oasis Sanctuary to stay warm at night. I met a wonderful woman named Lucille.” He pauses to smile at her. A woman who’s taken Bodhi under her wing and become a mother figure to him. “To this day I don’t know how she knew what I needed when I didn’t even know myself, but she did. Lucille —didn’t know my love for art or that I once dreamed of being an artist and yet she gave me a job as a sort of after school art teacher. This was another step in my journey. To this moment.”

Bodhi’s Adam’s apple bobs as he swallows roughly. Squeezing his hand and smiling over at him, I let him know he’s doing a great job.

“One night, a little over a year ago, this amazing woman standing next to me asked me if I could do anything in the world, what would I do. My answer was simple and complex at the same time. I told her I wanted to open a place for kids to come to express themselves; whether it be in art, music, reading, or writing. One of the setbacks at the shelter is there’s a limited budget and they obviously can’t use it all on art supplies or whatever projects I come up with.” He smiles at the kids lined up in front of him and they all smile back. “I’m not sure if many of you know this, but I did the pumpkins at Tricks Salon last Halloween and they won. Once word got out that I’d provided my services for Tricks, businesses asked me to lend my artwork to their decorations. Each holiday I’ve had the kids help me and every time one of those businesses has won. This helped the kids become a part of the community and the shelter didn’t have to pay for any of the supplies. Doing this might seem insignificant to many of you, but when you have very little or nothing at all, having an outlet to express yourself makes a difference. Having that outlet can be the difference between a bad day and a good day. It can be what helps them become the person our children are meant to grow up to be.”

He takes a deep breath and scans the crowd. Everyone is captivated by every word he says. There’s something about him that makes you listen and consider what he’s telling you.

“Oasis Academy is for everyone. You don’t have to be a child looking for a way to express yourself. Maybe you’ve had someone close to you die and you need an outlet for your pain, or perhaps you just love art but can’t afford the supplies. Your child wants to play an instrument, but you can’t afford the classes or instrument; we can help. We want Oasis Academy to be a place for anyone who has a love for the fine arts to shine.”

Looking down at himself, Bodhi smiles. He’s in a button-down light blue shirt and dark wash jeans with black boots, nothing resembling what he wore when he first got here. When he looks back up, his chin is a little higher and his shoulders a little straighter.

“Sometimes art, music, or writing isn’t enough. Sometimes we need something more, someone to talk to, and at Oasis Academy, we’ll always have a counselor on staff for anyone to talk to no matter their financial status. There’s no shame in asking for help. We only want you to be the bestyou, you can be and we’re hoping we can help in any way possible.

“I want to thank all of you for coming out today to support Oasis Academy along with myself and my beautiful girlfriend, Coco. We can’t thank you enough for making our dream not only a reality but a success.”

The audience breaks out in applause.

Bodhi’s cheeks pink up as his smile grows wider and wider. I watch in wonder as he greets person after person thanking them for coming out and supporting Oasis Academy. In reality, I think everyone in Oasis would support anything Bodhi dreams up and is willing to share with them; they all love him so much.

After a few minutes of Bodhi and me thanking people, we make our way over to the cake. The caterer wants us to cut it and has gathered everyone around to watch. I don’t question her or how quickly Bodhi agrees to her request. I’ve only seen people cut the cake like this at wedding receptions. Maybe she’s living out a fantasy.

I watch in shock as Bodhi gets down on one knee and pulls out a red velvet box. Holding my hands in both of his, Bodhi swallows hard before clearing his throat. “Coco, I knew you were the woman for me from the first time I saw you. Even crying, you were and still are the most beautiful woman in the world. A goddess amongst all us ordinary creatures of the world. You believed in me when I’d lost all faith in myself and made me want to be a better man. I can’t think of a better way to start this new journey with you by my side then for you to be my wife. Coco Beckett, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”

Throwing myself at him, I pepper kisses all over his gorgeous face. “Yes! I can’t wait to spend the rest of my life with you and become Mrs. Coco Rivers.”

Resting his forehead against mine, Bodhi looks down at me with happiness shining from every pore of his body. His lips are only a millimeter away and yet it feels like miles. “You’ve made an already wonderful day extraordinary. You’re proof that wishes do come true.” Closing his eyes, Bodhi’s full kissable lips meet mine in an all too short kiss.

The crowd cheers and applauds and this time it’s me who blushes. I hug myself to Bodhi as he stands up with me in his arms. “She said, yes!” he yells as if they all hadn’t heard my answer.

Tilting my head, I wonder. “Is that why you were so nervous today?” He nods sheepishly, but still can’t wipe the giant smile off his face. Whenever I see this man smile, I can’t help but mimic him. “I can’t believe you proposed in front of all these people.”

“I wasn’t sure when I’d do it, but I couldn’t wait any longer or I’d be throwing up in the bushes.” He closes his eyes and shakes his head. “That wasn’t very romantic, was it?”

“You’ve had better moments,” I agree with a laugh.

One lone brow rises as if in challenge. “How about something like I think we need to christen this moment in my office. Any better?”

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