Читать книгу The Matchmaker's Apprentice - Karen Toller Whittenburg - Страница 9

Dear Diary,

It’s finally appened. I’ve met the man I’m going to marry!

I’m in love!

Deeply. Passionately. Awesomely in love with Ivan Patrick Donovan.

Ivan Patrick Donovan…. Ivan. Ivan. Ivan.

It was love at first sight for him, too. I know it was!

It happened the very minute Matt introduced us tonight. Ivan smiled at me and my heart stopped. I mean, it really stopped! I could hardly breathe. He’s so handsome! So tall! So gorgeous! His hair is blond, but darker than Miranda’s honey blond. Not reddish-blond like Andrew’s, either. And it’s way darker than mine. Ivan’s is like the sun…except deeper. Sort of brown, but with a lot of gold, too. His eyes are dark. Not black—that would be too ordinary, too…one-dimensional. They’re like the color of winter midnights—dark and mysterious and…No, winter is too cold, too frozen, too blue to describe anything about him. His eyes are more like summer nights—misty and profound and…fiery. Fiery eyes. They blazed into my very soul!! He has passionate eyes…with hidden depths. And his voice—it sent shivers right through me! It’s deep and husky—he could be on the radio if he wanted. But he’s going to be a doctor. He told me. “I’m going to medical school,” he said. Just like that. So confident. So positive. I told him I’m going to be an astronaut and he didn’t laugh. Not like Matt and Miranda did when I told them. Ivan thinks I’m smart enough to be anything I want. He didn’t say that, but I could see he believes I can do it if I want to. He shook my hand, too, like I was twenty instead of only thirteen. He smiled—did I mention how wonderful his smile is? He might have worn braces, but I don’t think so because he has this one sort of crooked tooth. Just the tiniest bit of a slant…but it makes his smile seem really real. If you know what I mean. He is more handsome even than Matt, who is plenty handsome…for a brother. And his laugh is even nicer than Andrew’s, who has the best laugh I know, even if he is my twin. Ivan acted all surprised and startled when he saw me. Well, really, I ran right into im. Andrew and me—I mean, Andrew and I—were skating in the ballroom and I was so determined to win I didn’t know anybody was there and I skated right into Ivan. Kind of hard, too. But he just laughed. Matt scolded me for not watching what I was doing, but Ivan smiled at me and I knew he didn’t think I was just a silly kid.

I think that’s when Ifell in love, but it wasn’t until Ivan said, “You’re Ainsley? Matt’s little sister, Ainsley? The way he talks about you, I was expecting an adorable little toddler, not a beautiful, young lady. Shame on you, Matt, for not warning me your baby sister is already a heartbreaker,” that I knew for certain. Me? A heartbreaker? I could have died!! My heart, my soul, my whole being just melted!! He talked to me all through dinner, too, pretending he didn’t know which fork to use or which glass and stuff like that. He said it was because he grew up on a farm and they didn’t have fancy dinners, but he was only being funny. And he liked talking to me. I could tell. And it didn’t make any difference that he’s older than me. Or that he’s in college and I’m only in seventh grade. Our hearts were made to beat as one. It’s like we knew each other in another life! And when I had to go upstairs to do my homework—I’ll never forgive Miranda for being so bossy!!!—Ivan said in his deep, wonderful voice, “I can’t tell you how glad I am finally to have met you, Ainsley.” Finally. He said it just like that. Like he knew it was our destiny to meet. Like he’d expected us to fall in love at first sight. Like it was kismet or something. Like he recognized that I was his destiny, just as I know he is mine.

I hope he comes home with Matt next weekend, too. And every weekend from now on. By the time they graduate from college, I’ll be almost sixteen. Old enough to date. Old enough to be taken seriously. Old enough to marry Ivan and live happily ever after! Forever and ever and ever….

Mrs. Ivan Donovan. Ainsley Elizabeth Donovan.

Ainsley Danville Donovan.

Ainsley loves Ivan. Ivan loves Ainsley.

Ainsley and Ivan forever.