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The sun is beginning to set in the sky as Sawyer turns off on to a dirt road. They drive down the deserted road until they reach a dead end. He parks the truck, gets out and opens Hannah’s door. He then walks to the bed of the truck, pulling out a blanket and a basket. He takes her hand and leads her through a field to a cluster of trees.
Hannah feels overwhelmed with nerves when they start walking through the trees. Her grip on Sawyer tightens with fear as she begins to recall running through trees when she escaped. Sawyer notices her trembling, quickly turning to face her.
“Babe, what’s wrong?”
She tries to play it off, but the tears in her eyes betray her. She reaches up to wipe them away, but he beats her to it. He gently cups her face in his hands, carefully looking at her.
“It’s nothing, I’m sorry. Let’s go,” she tries to change the subject, but Sawyer doesn’t budge.
“Hannah, please talk to me. I can’t stand it when you are upset. Did I do something?” Hannah is surprised by this. How can he possibly think that he has done anything wrong?
“No, not at all. It’s silly. I just remembered running through trees like this, almost exactly like this when I was escaping from Chester,” her voice trailing off as she looks down in embarrassment.
He lifts her chin to look him in the face.
“Babe, I’m so sorry. I didn’t think about that. I wanted to bring you to my favorite place. I haven’t been here in a few years, and I completely forgot about everything that’s out here. We can leave, I don’t want you to be uncomfortable.”
“No, I’ll be fine. Will you still take me there? I want to see it.”
He looks down at her then grabs her hand in his, placing a soft kiss on it, then resumes leading her through the vegetation. When they pass the trees, Hannah sees a pristine lake with lily pads floating on the surface that is surrounded by wildflowers. She gasps as she looks all around, soaking up the beauty before her. She looks at Sawyer and smiles brightly. They continue walking until they reach the lake. Sawyer releases her hand and spreads the blanket out for them to sit on, then starts to unpack the basket.
“I wanted to do something really special for our first date. I thought you might like it out here. This was the place where my parents and I would come whenever we could. My mom loved the flowers and my dad and I would fish in this lake. We were always the only ones out here, so we thought of it as our own private oasis,” he chuckles.
“I can see why. It’s so peaceful and beautiful here. I would be happy never leaving this place,” she smiles at him. She notices his expression change from joy to seriousness, it worries her. She looks at him questioningly. He scoots closer to her and takes her hands in his.
“Hannah, I have to tell you something. I have never said this to anyone else, so I will probably mess it up but promise you will listen to what I’m trying to say. Please,” he pleads with her. She feels nervous, not knowing what to expect but agrees. He draws a deep breath and continues.
“Before I met you, I thought I was fine. I was stupid enough to believe that I was happy on my own, that I didn’t need any more than I already had. When you came into my life, you knocked me on my rear,” he laughs, causing her to smile.
“If someone would have told me that I would be head over heels in love with this short, brunette beauty, I would have laughed in their face or even punched them. I don’t know when it happened, but I fell for you. I love you Hannah Randoff. I love everything about you. When you weren’t with me those horrible weeks, I went out of my mind. I couldn’t function properly, it felt as if my heart had been ripped out of my chest,” he brings his eyes to hers and smiles. Hannah has started trembling again, he holds her hands tighter.
“Babe, you are like the air I breathe. I have to have you around, I need you. Nothing tastes the same without you, nothing has any beauty without you. I love everything about you. The way you blush whenever I give you a compliment, the way you stick your tongue out when you draw, the way your eyes light up when you see me staring at you from across the room. You were wrong when you said that I saved you, you really saved me. I was living a dark life, but you brought me into the light. Everything I look at, I see joy and happiness—because of you. My speech is going all over the place, and it is not at all how I practiced,” he chuckles, making her giggle.
“I realize we haven’t known each other very long, but I can say with one hundred percent certainty that you are the one for me. I believe God put you in my life for a reason, He knew what was missing even when I didn’t. You have opened my eyes and caused me to evaluate my life. I want you in it, forever. I have already talked to your dad and got his blessing so,” Sawyer moves to kneel in front of Hannah.
“Hannah Lynn Randoff, will you do me the immense honor of being my wife?” he looks shyly at her, waiting for her response. She sits motionless, stunned by the man before her. Sawyer quickly begins to feel rejected and drops her hands from his, while looking away from her. He is berating himself when she starts to speak.
“Sawyer, don’t move. I’m sorry, you just surprised me,” she sighs and smiles at him. He isn’t sure what to think yet, so he stops and waits for her to continue.
“I love you too, and it scares me that I can feel so strongly about you when I haven’t known you for that long. I feel safe with you, something I haven’t felt with anyone else. I love how you put me first and care so much. You did save me, in more ways than one. I know God brought you to me, and I thank him all the time for you. I love you so much that it hurts. I would like nothing more than to spend the rest of my life with you,” she says while tears fall from her cheeks. Sawyer stares at her in disbelief.
“Let me make sure I heard you, you said yes right?”
“Yes, yes, yes, a million times yes! Sawyer Monson, I love you and I said yes!” she yells while laughing. He swiftly scoops her up in his arms and passionately kisses her while spinning her off the ground. They both laugh and kiss, shocked that the evening has turned out this way.
“This is just the beginning babe. I know that we will be happy. I will spend my life making you happy. I love you,” he tells her again, embracing her small frame to him.
She pulls back slightly and gazes into his face. She sees nothing but peace and happiness across his features. Just looking at him gives her a feeling of joy and love.
“I love you too Sawyer. You brought me into the light, saved me from the darkness. You are the one, only you. I can’t wait to spend my life with you,” she softly says against his lips as she rises up and kisses him again. He returns the kiss with equal love and passion. Then he pulls away, smiling broadly as he reaches into his pocket.
“I have to make this official,” he says as he pulls out a tiny velvet blue box. He hastily opens it and reveals a diamond solitaire ring on a shiny platinum band. The sun’s rays are dancing off the diamond, creating small rainbows of light around them. Hannah gasps, placing her hand over her mouth. She looks up at him and smiles, holding out her left hand to him. He delicately places the ring on her fourth finger and gently kisses it. Hannah holds her hand away from herself, admiring the simple yet perfect ring on her finger. She tears her gaze away from it, then throws her arms around Sawyer’s neck pulling him down.
“It’s the most perfect ring in the world, exactly what I always imagined my engagement ring to look like! When did you get it?”
“When you were missing. I knew you would return to me, I just didn’t know when. I prayed for you to come back to me and promised myself that when you did, I would tell you how I felt and hoped that you would feel the same. I couldn’t picture my life without you, I knew then that I wanted to marry you. I went out one day and ended up at the jewelry store. I saw this ring and knew it was the one for you, that no one else could ever wear it, it was made for you.” Sawyer states and kisses her hand again. She embraces him while sinking back down to the blanket. They hold each other while enthusiastically talking about the future that they will share.
Nothing can ruin Sawyer and Hannah’s happiness. They know it will be hard at times, but they have each other and that is all they need.