You give and you give, you never pause,
Today we tend to you because.
Go where the quiet softens stress,
Where hands remind you how to rest.
I laughed, but it came out watery, like my joy and my nerves were sharing the same throat. Tears burned before they even fell. “He is so stupid,” I whispered, fond as sugar, shaking my head. But in my chest, it wasn’tstupid. It was . . . intentional. Roman didn’t do random. He didmapped-out,thought-through,I-listened-to-you-when-you-thought-I-wasn’tkind of love. He loved like a man who had studied what life stole from me and decided he was going to return it in small, practical miracles.
The clue was so him, not flashy or loud, just accurate. He’d watched me pour myself into everybody else until I didn’t have enough left to taste my own sweetness. Instead of lecturing me about rest, he was sending me into it—gentle, strategic, unavoidable.
NanNan kissed my cheek. “And you love every bit of it.”
Inside, the spa staff greeted meby name, not “ma’am,” not “sweetie.”Solè, as if I belonged in softness, like rest wasn’t something I had to earn with exhaustion.
I turned slowly, blinking. “How long has he been planning this?”
Mel smirked. “Longer than you think.”
And I believed her because Roman loved like a strategist—quiet, thorough, and intentional.
As the warm hands worked the tension out of me, NanNan held my hand like an anchor. “That man loves you something serious,” she murmured. “Ain’t no guessing with him. I love that for you, baby.”
When it was over, Mel slid an envelope into my palm. “Don’t open it yet. Wait until the car pulls up for you outside.”
Sunlight hit my face like a blessing, and I unfolded it with shaky fingers.
Clue Two
You teach all day, you pour your heart,
Shaping minds, you play your part.
Now let them dress you like a dream,
The woman you’ve already been.
My Constellation, my Pretty Litte Dipper, my Queen.
I covered my mouth. “Oh my God.”
Because the words weren’t just pretty; they were accurate. He wasn’t trying to make me into something new; he was insisting I finally receive what I already deserved. And as my heart thumped like a drumline in my ribs, I realized the scariest part wasn’t the surprise. It was the certainty. He meant it. He’d been meaning it. And for the first time, I didn’t feel like I had to shrink to be safe in someone’s love. I just had to follow the clues and let myself be found.
At the bridal boutique, Mellonie squealed when she saw me.
“This man!” she yelled. “I been holding this secret for months!”
As she zipped me into the dress, she whispered, “You look like peace.”
I swallowed hard. “He really did all this?”
“Every detail, down to the thread,” she said.
When I stepped out, NanNan cried openly. “That’s my baby.”
Mel handed me the next clue.
Clue Three
