Chapter 19
Sarabelle
It’s amazing to me how much a person can change when someone comes into their lives. I’ve seen friends through the years who had changed for the worst when it came to the person they were dating but I think it’s the opposite for me.
Of all people, Christian Wilde has changed me for the better. Who would have ever thought they would hear that? The womanizer who would never settle down for anyone had such an impact on my life that he actually made me a better person. It sounds crazy but it’s true.
I’ve really grown as a person since Christian and I became a couple. I’m not nearly as shy as I used to be and I’m certainly nowhere near as quiet. Sometimes I think I get on his nerves with how much I talk to everyone around us all the time but if I do, he never says a negative thing to me.
We’ve been together for quite a while now and I am crazy about him. I didn’t know it was possible to have these kinds of feelings for someone. I fell very much in love with him, regardless of how scared I was to do so.
There were times when I used to worry that he was too much of a bad boy for me but the worrying ended each time I looked into his eyes.
I hadn’t seen much of Christian in about a week and I’d been missing him terribly. I wasn’t used to going more than a day or two without spending time with him and I didn’t like it one bit.
He said our time apart would only be temporary and that he was busy taking care of several very important clients but I wasn’t sure that I believed him. Something seemed off. It felt like he was trying to keep something from me. I didn’t like feeling as though he was hiding something from me.
I decided that I wanted to see him that evening and I wasn’t going to wait any longer. I tried calling him on his cell phone but didn’t receive an answer, which was strange because he’d normally answer my calls no matter how busy he was. Since I couldn’t get him on the phone, I decided to send him a text message.
Christian, I tried calling you but I didn’t get an answer. I’d really like to see you tonight. Let’s meet up.
I figured it would be a while before I heard from him since he didn’t answer my call. I was surprised when I received a return text almost immediately.
Hey babe, can’t meet up with you tonight. I’ve already got plans and they can’t be canceled. Maybe in a day or two?
What in the hell did he mean he had plans that couldn’t be canceled? We talk every day and he didn’t once mention that he had any plans with anyone. This upset me quite a bit and I was sure he was blowing me off to go be with some other woman.
I tried telling myself that I was overreacting but I couldn’t help what my mind was thinking. I wanted to text him back and let him know what was going through my mind. I was so sure that I was correct and wanted to lay into him for doing that to me. Instead, I took a deep breath and replied to his text.
That’s fine. We haven’t seen each other for a while and I figured you’d want to see. I guess have fun with whoever your plans are with. Just call me whenever you actually want to see me.
I expected another text back right away. I expected him to message me back and let me know that everything was okay and I had nothing to worry about. These were things I expected but never got.
In fact, I didn’t hear anything from him for the rest of the day. His sudden radio silence only made the thoughts going through my mind worse. I figured if he could go out with God knows who, then I could do the same thing.
I knew my sister typically went out every night but she wasn’t home. I called her to try to make some plans with her. She answered after a couple rings.
“Hey Sarabelle, what’s up?”
“Not much. Christian is kind of being shady and I need to get out of the house. Where are you going tonight?”
“Tonight? Oh, I’ve got plans for this evening.”
“Yeah, I figured you would. I want to go with you. Wherever you’re going, why don’t you take me with you?”
“Sorry sissy, I can’t. Maybe another night. Gotta go.”
She hung up before I could even start to make an argument. It didn’t surprise me that my sister had already made plans but I didn’t think she would be so rude as to hang up on me. Oh well, who needs her? I called Liam.
I hadn’t seen a lot of him since I started dating Christian and thought it would be nice to spend some time with him. His answer was very much like my sister’s. He was busy and couldn’t get together.
He offered to go out with me the following weekend but I told him I’d think about it. I felt like everyone was blowing me off and I didn’t like it.
As a girl with no plans on a Saturday night, I felt like a giant loser, especially considering that all my friends had plans that didn’t include me. What does a girl do when she’s all alone with nothing to do? That’s right, it was time for a Netflix marathon. I was going to sit down and wallow away with the Pretty Little Liars.
I popped a bag of popcorn, grabbed a soda out of the fridge and sat down on the sofa to start my show. I was about twenty minutes into the second episode when my doorbell rang.
Who in the hell would be ringing my doorbell now?
I wasn’t expecting anyone and everyone I knew was out doing fun things without me. Imagine my surprise when I opened the door and a well-dressed man was standing in front of me, a limousine behind him in the circle drive.
“Can I help you?” I asked, utterly confused as to why he was at my house.
“Are you Sarabelle Williams?” he asked.
“Yes, I am.”
“Great! I’m just here to let you know your limo is here.”
“My limo? I didn’t order a limo.”
“No ma’am, you did not. I was just dispatched here to pick you up. Please come with me.”
“Oh my God, I have to change my clothes. I’m in my pajamas.”
“I’m sorry Miss Williams. There’s no time. I need you to come with me right away.”
Curiosity got the best of me and I grabbed my coat and got into the limo. I had no idea where I was going but started to put things together as we drove along. Eventually, I realized what the destination of the limo was. I was being taken to Christian’s house.
When we arrived, it was pitch black. There wasn’t a single light on in his house and all of the outside lights had been turned off as well. The driver parked, got out and walked to the back of the limo, where he opened my door for me.
“Is something wrong? Is there a power outage? It’s so dark.”
“I’m not sure, Miss Williams. I was just told to bring you here.”
I had no clue what was going on but I got out of the limo and started making my way towards the house. As I walked up the incredibly long driveway, I couldn’t shake the eerie feeling that I was being watched. Every tiny hair on my neck was standing on end.
Just as I started to turn to go up the stairs to the front door, I heard the sound of a large switch being flicked on and suddenly, the back yard lit up with gold and silver lights everywhere. I jumped when it happened as it took me by surprise but it was beautiful.
The way the yard had been lit up was so pretty that I had to get a look at it. Once I turned the corner to make my way to the side of the house, Christian appeared right in front of me. He was down on one knee and had a box in his hand.
“Sarabelle,” he said to me. “You’ve changed me both as a man and as a lover. I am forever grateful to you for showing me what kind of beauty can lie within myself as well as others. You’ve managed to take a womanizer and show him what real love is and make me never want to go back to the type of life I had before you and I met. I love you so much and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you marry me?”
I wanted to scream yes right away but I couldn’t. I was too busy being choked up and starting to cry. There I was, thinking the worst about this man and him being so busy was just an elaborate ruse to set everything up for this perfect moment.
I put my hand over my mouth in an attempt to prevent my sobbing from becoming too loud. I witnessed movement out of the corner of my eye and saw Lexi and Liam standing there, watching the whole thing go down. They were in on it too. Eventually, I was able to get a hold of myself.
“Yes. Yes, Christian, I’ll marry you.”
He stood up and wrapped my arms around him, squeezing him tightly. He kissed me and told me that I’d made him the happiest man in the world. Everything was coming together for me. I couldn’t believe it.
After everything I’d been through, I was actually going to get my happily ever after.