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The greatest sacrifice is when you sacrifice your happiness for the sake of someone else."

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Silence.

Pin drop silence.

The air around the table that they sat was so thick that Sharleen could barely breath. Her mouth hung open and her eyes bulged out, temporarily forgetting to blink and were it not for her heart beating you could mistake her for a statue.

The rate at which her heart was beating one could have thought she was about to pass out any moment now.

The customers around their table were slowly catching some interest in the two of them, wanting to see how the proposal will turn out.

Sharleen never liked being the center of attention. She was fine with one or two people looking at her but not this much.

Tingles of sweat were quickly forming on the palm of her hands as her whole body started to slightly shake, as if trying to pass a message to her mind on how much uncomfortable she currently was.

Kevin who had been kneeling silently the whole time cleared his throat, gave her a small assuring smile and started his memorised speech, "For the few days that I've known you, you've brought out the better side of me that i never knew existed. I've been laughing and smiling more these days. Feeling more carefree than I've never been. This is the life that i want. I've never been a selfish person in my life, but just this once, I'll be selfish. I want you to be mine. Please be mine, Sharleen?"

Sharleen's mind was in chaos as she quickly thought about the situation at hand. Kevin was a good man, hell of a good man too. He was kind, funny, thoughtful, handsome and let's not forget, loaded. He was the whole package that a lady could want. Right?

But why wasn't she feeling lucky right now? Why wasn't her heart beating with happiness at his sight or why was her stomach not filled with butterflies like how people usually describe it? She knew the answer.

She didn't love him

She didn't love him but she couldn't admit it loud.

And how could she when this man had been nothing but God sent to her family? This man saved them from bankruptcy, they could be currently wallowing in poverty if it were not for him.

This man had been a perfect gentleman to her during all the time they had been together, not even once had he been angry at her, let alone lay a finger at her. He was the perfect man in her eyes and the eyes of her parents.

But - The heart had it's own mind

The feelings of her heart were very different from her rational thoughts. In her heart she knew he was not the right man for her.

Glancing down at him, she saw that his hands were slightly shaking and she knew he was starting to get worried. Shit. She was taking too long to give her answer. She started thinking of what would happen if she either said no or yes

If she said no, Kevin would probably storm out of the hotel angry and embarrassed, her parents would not be happy with her decision and even she herself would not be happy for her happiness lies in her friends and family.

If she said yes, Kevin would be happy, her parents would be happy, and she would be happy that they were happy too. But her heart? Well, that she was not sure.

Weighing the pro's and con's, she decided she would not be selfish. This man deserved happiness and if he loved her then she would learn to love him too. How many people had arranged marriages and fell in love in the process? If others did it then she could do it too.

With a firm decision in her head and a broad smile on her lips, she nodded a yes and gave out her left hand for him to slide the ring. She saw his face change from worried to relief and then to full blown happiness. He slid the ring on her finger and stood her up to give her a kiss - her first kiss.

The kiss was... fine. She thought. No fireworks or any of that. Their lips moved together perfectly and they stopped seconds later when people started clapping and congratulating them. She hid her face in his chest, shyness creeping in at the thought of kissing a man in public.

"You don't know how happy I am that you said yes. You are now officially my fiancee" He beamed proudly.

"You are a great man, Kevin, and i couldn't let a good man go, could i?" She answered with a smile of her own.

"Let's go tell your parents the news. I know they will be happy." Kevin suggested walking her out of the restaurant securely with his hand around her waist, the chocolate cake completely forgotten.

True to Kevin's words, Sharleen's parents were exited upon hearing the news. Her mother embraced her in a bone crashing hug screaming with joy while the father patted Kevin's right shoulder as a sign of acknowledgement and smiled at his daughter with pride.

Since then they had been going on several dates when they were not busy, and got to know each other more.

But...

There was still a certain part of Sharleen that was not reacting to all that. Her heart. She had done everything possible to make her heart see that Kevin truly loved her and she needed to love him back, but her heart was still silent.

They had even set the wedding dates which was in a week's time. She really needed to love him, and she needed to love him fast.

I will fight for him, I won't give up on Kevin. We've reached too far, she thought firmly.

"Sharleen you've been staring at the pot for almost an hour now," Her best friend and workmate, Nicole asked her out of nowhere, "Oh my God, are you on drugs?"

"What!? No i am not on drugs Nicole! Why would you ask that stupid question? You know me, we've been together since high school." Sharleen exclaimed at her friends ridiculous judgment.

"Well, The Sharleen i know does not space out in the middle of the afternoon."Nicole scolded her and sighed. "Tell you what, you can come over to my place tonight and we can have a girls night. You need to relax so if you can't do it then I'll do it for you. Because that's what best friends are for, making sure your shit is together." Nicole teased, winking at her.

"Language, Nicole! And yes, thank you very much. I'll be there tonight. Planning the wedding has taken its toll on me and i need some time to relax." Sharleen thanked her and went to the counter while Nicole went to the backyard to store the remaining flowers before they left since their time here was almost up.

The bell at the door made a sound signaling Sharleen that they had a customer. She looked up from the book that she was writing records of the day so as to serve her customer.

Holy shit! This man looks good. That was her first thought as she looked at the face of her customer. He was new here, that she was sure of it. She would NEVER forget such a face if she ever saw one. Never.

"Hi, Can I get some flowers?" He suddenly asked her.

Sharleen neither knew that she no longer had her pen in her fingers nor felt it drop on her feet.

The man's voice did not only make her heartbeat rise in micro seconds but it also made some of her body parts react in a not normal way.

Her nipples were painfully hard in her bra and her thighs automatically clenched together while her stomach had some funny feelings.

A very unusual feeling.

Get a grip on yourself Sharleen. You'll scare off the handsome customer. She lectured herself.

Trying to regain her composure, she cleared her throat and took deep breaths. Answer. He's waiting for an answer. Her subconscious reminded her.

"For your wife?" Jesus! What questions am i asking? She scolded herself.

"No"

"Girlfriend?" Shit! Please kill me now! She was very sure her face was red from embarrassment.

"No, it's for my dad. Could you help me choose?" He asked her politely with a hint of smile.

Fuck! I think i need a fresh pair of panties. That is not a smile a normal human being should have.

Sharleen was very sure if angels exist then this is what they would look like. Or maybe this was an angel that was lost? She still had not gathered courage to look below his neck yet.

"Ummm... What's the... , um, occasion? So i can get you... ah, the right flowers." That was the longest sentence she had ever made, she thought. She never knew she was a stammerer till that moment.

"Well... Am visiting his grave today." He answered, sadness in his eyes.

Sharleen automatically felt his sadness the moment she saw his eyes and one thing was for sure.

She did not like it one bit.

The man deserved happiness and if it was her wish she would do anything, absolutely anything, for this man to live a happy life.

"Am so sorry for your loss, is there anything i could do to help?" She didn't care that she sounded like a creep, offering help to a stranger.

"No no, thank you. He died some years back so it's fine really." He assured her with his killer smile.

"Oh... umm... If you need someone to talk to feel free to come to me." She offered after recovering from the second smile that he gave.

"Thanks, I'll keep that in mind. So which flower is which? There are so many different flowers here." He asked her looking at the flowers that were on display.

"Let me come and help you with that"

BIG MISTAKE.

The moment she left the counter to help him with choosing the flowers her eyes roamed over his body.

And... There goes my ovaries.

The man in front of her was sinfully hot. He made simple t-shirt and jeans look like modeling clothes. From the way his muscles were packed she was very sure this man hit the gym as many times as she had her meals. She could bet on all her money that the man was a model.

Double shit! I totally need the fresh panties now. She thought.

She could feel her thighs were wet and she was very sure that was not sweat. Surprisingly Sharleen did not feel embarrassed. At all.

" Ummm... Here are some lilies, they represent the restored innocence of the soul of the departed and some crimson roses which represents grief and sorrow. Those are appropriate." She said, handing him the bouquet of flowers.

He thanked her and shoved out his wallet so as to pay the bill.

"What is your name?" She rambled out of nowhere.

What are you doing!? That is not professional. He's your customer dumbass. She scolded herself again.

"Devlin" He replied with a knowing smile.

Devlin. Who knew names could be hot!

"Well thank you Devlin, we just needed that for our records." She said trying to be professional while going back to the counter.

"Thank you too for your help too, you know, with the flowers. I better get going." He said while slowly retreating towards the door with the flowers in hand.

"You are welcomed. And come again soon." She said to him. He nodded and was went away before she could even blink. Or was it because she was staring? She didn't know.

Come again soon?? Seriously!! Way to go Sharleen. You probably scared the man off with your hormonal self. She scolded herself another time and then sighed. She didn't know what was happening to her but she was sure of one thing.

She needed to use the bathroom. This very moment!

She also made a mental note to be carrying extra panties to work starting the next day.

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