I spent the next few days in bed, indulging myself in the biggest sugar spree of the decade. Aside from getting my takeout lunch and dinner deliveries from the front door, I didn’t budge. So far, I’d ignored all the calls from Grace and all but one of my dad’s, in which I told him Jack wouldn’t take me back after all and I didn’t want to talk about it. That didn’t stop him from calling though, repeatedly. Then there were the texts and a few calls from Jeremy. All left unanswered.

I didn’t blame him. I never did say goodbye; however, by now I was sure the point had gotten across. I’d moved on.

It was the very last text that came in late that night, as I settled myself deeper into the pillows and pushed my top knot further up on my head, that had me sitting upright faster than I’d moved all week.

Come open the door.

I clicked off the TV that was blaring so loud, just so I didn’t have to listen to the vibrating walls. The club down the way had really ramped it up for a Friday night. It only made me think of going there with Grace and where that night led, and it hurt all over again.

I tightened my top knot and glanced in the mirror. Yuck. I groaned. No time.

I hopped down the stairs two at a time and yanked the door open. There Jeremy stood, looking well put together and polished like he always did, though there were a few creases here and there. Instinctively, I pulled at my shirt.

Like it would change how terrible I looked.

“What are you doing here?” I asked.

“You didn’t answer my calls or texts. I had to make sure you were okay.”

He stepped inside and pulled me into his arms, shutting the door behind himself with his foot.

“You look a mess,” he said into my hair. “And . . .” He sniffed.

“I know, I smell.” I pulled away and tugged my hair down, then threw it back up, though I wasn’t sure it made a difference.

“And this is your place?” He stepped into the living room.

“Yeah. How’d you know where I live?”

“Your dad.”

I nodded.

I stared at the gray couch Jack helped me move in here. I could still hear him teasing me for not paying the extra fifty dollars for delivery. Of course, the tank of gas in the borrowed truck had cost me almost as much, and we’d still had to carry the thing ourselves. I never admitted he was right, but he was. Now it didn’t matter anyway.

“It’s really nice. Exactly what I’d pictured for you.”

“Ha! You should have seen it when I moved in. I think the realtor thought I was crazy.”

“Oh, yeah?”

I nodded.

“Look, I took such a late flight, I didn’t have time for dinner. You mind if I order Chinese food or something?”

I stared at him. The thought that he’d be staying hadn’t really occurred to me. “Oh, ah, of course. There are some menus on the fridge. I’m going to go take a shower . . . ah . . . I wasn’t expecting anyone.”

He grinned, scrunching his nose. “I figured.”

I stuck my tongue out. I could hear him chuckle as I left the room.

When I returned, clean and fresh smelling, my living room and kitchen had been cleaned, and Jeremy had set the coffee table for two.

“You cleaned.”

He shrugged. “Had a few free minutes.”

“Thanks.”

It wasn’t until he finished eating and it was well into the early morning hours of the next day that I finally asked him the burning question.

“Why’d you come here?” It came out a lot harsher than I’d meant it, though it didn’t seem to faze him.

“I told you. I was worried about you.”

“So?”

He looked at the floor, then back at me. Hurt flickered in his eyes, but then it was gone. “I know I’m not the one. It wasn’t one hundred percent clear to me until I showed up here tonight.”

I froze, my breath held in my lungs.

He gave me a timid look. “I may have had some ideas about how tonight was going to go.” He paused. “It’s hard letting you go. I think you and I are more alike than I’d ever realized because this mess . . . it was me too . . . when you left.”

“I’m sorry.”

He shook his head. “Our history doesn’t change our relationship; it only makes it stronger. We were friends first. Best friends. We always will be.”

“You’re the best.” I leaned my head on his shoulder and yawned.

“That.” He pointed at my open mouth. “Me too. I should get going. You don’t have plans tomorrow?”

“That would be correct. I planned one more day of sulking.”

He chuckled. “Good. You have to show me around your new town.”

“Where are you staying?”

He made a face. “The first hotel I can find.”

“What?!”

“Truth be told, this was a bit spontaneous.”

“Well, forget it. You can stay here if you don’t mind the couch. I do have an air mattress, but I think the couch is a lot more comfortable.”

“Are you sure? It’s not a big deal to find somewhere.”

“Of course. I’m not going to send you out at this hour, trying to find a place to stay, when I have a perfectly good couch right here.”

He smiled. “Thanks. I’ll go get my things.”

“I’m going to head up to bed. Okay?”

“Goodnight.”

“Night.” I turned back halfway up the stairs, just before he stepped outside. “Jeremy?”

“Yeah.”

“I’m really glad you came.”

“Me too.”

The next morning, I woke when the smell of coffee and bacon drifted up to me. Curiosity pulled me out of bed. I didn’t even own a coffee pot, and I was sure there wasn’t a single package of bacon in the house.

Jeremy sat on the couch with a newspaper in his hands, sipping coffee from a paper cup. He’d gone down to the coffeehouse, somewhere I’d been avoiding like the plague despite the craving deep in my gut. A second cup and paper bag sat on the coffee table.

I watched him for a moment, taking in the sight. It felt so good having him here, like a little piece of home had made its way in.

“Hey. Morning.”

“Morning,” I grumbled, my voice garbled from sleep.

“I got you some coffee and breakfast. I hope you still like what you used to get.”

I sipped the coffee, the vanilla-flavored warmth slid down my throat as he pulled out the contents of the bag. “You remembered.”

“Of course. They thought I was strange for wanting syrup for your bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich though.”

I giggled. “They’re all just missing out.”

He shook his head, making a face. “I don’t know about that.”

He put down the paper and glanced at the corner where I’d left the sewing machine set up. “You’re sewing again?”

I nodded. “That night I found my sketchbook, I drew a new dress and sewed it. Stayed up all night.” I laughed.

“It always gave you so much joy to finish something. I remember how excited you’d be when you’d call to tell me you’d finished.”

I thought of the thrill I’d felt just over a week ago. “Still does. I’d actually decided that’s what I was going to do. And now. . .” I trailed off, unsure of what I wanted now.

After we finished eating, I grabbed all the garbage and headed into the kitchen to toss it. Jeremy followed behind.

“I think you should. You’ve always been really talented at creating beautiful things.”

I smiled. “What do you want to do today?”

“You’re the local. You tell me.”

I thought for a second and smiled. “Actually, I was planning to go for a hike. Figured it’d be a good way to clear my head before I go back to work on Monday. There’s this trail that’s practically in my back yard. It’s really pretty.”

“I’m in.”

“You have shoes, right?” I glanced at his flip flop-clad feet.

“Of course.”

Two hours later, we made it to my favorite place on the trail, a small stream. The calm waters trickling through the rocks relaxed me. I sat on the big rock I always tended to gravitate towards.

Jeremy came up behind me and rested his hands on my shoulders. For a while, we just stood there and watched the water, listening to it run through the rocks.

“What’s on your mind?”

“Facing Jack on Monday at work.”

“At work?”

“Jack’s my boss.” I looked into his eyes, knowing he wouldn’t like that. Nobody did, though he showed no emotion.

“That’s going to be rough.”

“I know, I know. That’s why you don’t date your boss. Trust me, I never would have if I’d known he was my boss before I let my thoughts go there.”

“No judgment.” He held up his hands.

“Right.”

“Are you okay?”

I sighed. “I will be.”

He pressed his fingers into the knots in my shoulders, rubbing in circles. “Is there anything I can do?”

“You’re already doing more than I realized I needed.”

Jeremy let me have a few more minutes locked away in my thoughts before he spoke again. “Come on, let’s go explore.” He pulled me to my feet.

I followed him around for a while before we stumbled upon the tiniest of waterfalls. Maybe it couldn’t even be considered a waterfall, since it only fell about ten inches.

“It looks like there’s a hole behind it.” Jeremy squatted down, squinting against the glare of sunlight cast off the water.

“Is there?” I leaned down behind him, trying to see. “Reach in, see how big.”

“No! You don’t know what’s in there.”

“Come on. Don’t be a sissy. You know you want to know what’s back there just as bad as I do.”

He glared at me before he knelt and looked at the waterfall again. His hand disappeared inside, the water cascading around his wrist. I held my breath.

“Oh my gosh. What do you feel?”

He made a face and pulled his hand out. “Slimy stone.”

“Anything back there?”

He shook his head and wiped his hand on his shorts. “Nope, but it’d be a good hiding place. It’s a little bit bigger than my hand.”

“How cool. I might have to come back and hide something in there.”

“Ha! I’d love to see you stick your hand in there!”

My hands went to my hips. “Rude!”

We made the trek back a few hours later, after exploring the area more than I’d been adventurous enough to do.

“I could really go for a big pepperoni pizza right now. I’m starving.”

“Mmm,” he groaned, “you’re making my stomach grumble. Those sandwiches we packed didn’t stay with me for very long.”

Jeremy pushed the door closed behind him as I pulled out all the menus.

“Mind if I take a quick shower?” he asked.

“Go ahead. I’m going to take one too, but I’ll order the pizza first. Want anything else?”

“Nope, just pizza.”

Thirty minutes later, I was toweling off my hair when the doorbell rang. “That’s probably the pizza, will you grab it? I’ll be right down!” I yelled.

“Okay,” Jeremy called up the stairs.

Seconds later, loud voices penetrated my quiet house.

“What are you doing here?” someone shouted.

“Melanie?” Jeremy’s worried voice drifted up to me.

In seconds, I was at the foot of the stairs. Jeremy had backed away from the door, and Jack stood just inside the door, bright red in the face. He was fuming.

“Jack.”

“What the hell is this, Melanie?” he demanded. “It’s only been a few days, and you’ve already moved on? I should have known.”

“Jeremy came to make sure I was okay.”

“I can’t believe I came here, thinking I’d been a jerk, ready to apologize for ending things the way I did. And you are here . . . with him.”

“This isn’t what you think.”

“Really? Because it looks like you’re with your ex-boyfriend, the same one you went on a date with while we were still together, on the very weekend we were supposed to go away together.”

“We’re just friends.”

“Right. Friends who look like they’ve both just showered. Perfect.”

“Separately. We just got back from a hike.”

He put up his hand to stop me. “Save it.”

“Jack.”

He turned and marched down the steps.

I spun to face Jeremy.

He mouthed, “Go.”

It was all I needed, and I took off running. This was it. My last chance to go after him like I hadn’t before. After this moment, there was no going back. I’d never be able to work for him again after this, if I couldn’t get him to change his mind.

“Jack,” I shouted. “Wait.”

He froze with his back to me.

“I love you. Please. Can we talk?”

“What is there to talk about? It looks to me like you’ve already moved on.”

“I haven’t. I’ve spent the last few days in bed, ignoring everyone. I’ve been so . . . heartbroken. Jeremy was worried, so he flew out here to check on me. He got me out of bed, but as a friend. There’s nothing between us anymore, he knows that. And if you’d ask him, he would tell you.”

He whirled around to face me. “How am I supposed to believe you? You’ve been lying to me for months.”

“I haven’t. I told you something bad happened, and I didn’t want to talk about it. But I should have. I should have told you everything right from the start. I know that. I’ll tell you anything you want to know. No more secrets, I swear. From now on, nothing but honesty.” I reached for his arm.

His eyes closed, but he didn’t shake it off, so I stepped closer.

“Melanie,” Jeremy said from behind me. I glanced over my shoulder. His bags were already at his feet. “I should go.”

“Yes, you really should.” Jack ground his teeth together.

“Jack.” I placed my hand on his arm. He threw it up, knocking my hand off. I sighed and looked over at Jeremy. “I thought you weren’t leaving until tomorrow.”

“It’s time.” Jeremy eyed Jack.

I nodded, knowing what he meant. He was stepping out of the situation to let us figure things out. “Thanks for coming. I owe you.”

“It’s what we do for friends. Take care of yourself. Okay?” He loaded his bags into the trunk of his rental car but stopped and looked at Jack. “She’s pretty special, not someone who betrays on purpose. Take care of her, okay? Better than I did.” He nodded to Jack and got in the car.

The last part of his statement hit me right in the gut. The guilt he still felt over the accident, which ultimately had pulled me away from him.

It appeared as though Jeremy’s words were what gave Jack the last nudge he needed. His eyes were on me when my attention flickered back to him, intense and searching.

“There’s really nothing between the two of you?”

I shook my head. “I swear.”

The next second, he kissed me. I gripped onto him, and I never wanted to let go. I’d been craving his touch all week, ever since I’d walked out of his office, crushed. And now I had it, and it was better than it ever had been before.

“Ahem, I have a pizza delivery,” a timid voice said from behind Jack.

I laughed against Jack’s lips. “You hungry?”

“Always.”

I took the pizza, letting the guy get back to work. Jack turned to walk inside when a thought struck me.

“Ah, one more thing . . . you know, with the ‘no secrets’ thing . . .”

He turned slowly, his face serious.

“I never told you, but I feel like I should.” I pressed my finger to my lip. “I have a trust.”

Relief flooded his features. He pulled me into his arms, tossing the pizza box onto the hood of his car. “You didn’t want to tell me you had money?”

“I guess we both didn’t want anyone to distinguish us because of it.”

He laughed. “Now I know we’re perfect for each other.”

 

***

Three weeks later . . .

 

“Are you ready yet?” Jack called up the stairs.

I pushed my suitcase to the edge of the stairs. “Yes.”

“Finally!” Then he looked at the size of my bag. “Really?”

“What?”

“You could fit inside of that bag.”

“So?”

“It’s only going to be a couple days.” He came up the stairs to retrieve it.

“But it’s Christmas.”

He grinned down at me. “It’s going to be the best Christmas.” He kissed my forehead. “Even if I break my back carrying this bag around.”

“Ha. Ha.” I made a face at him.

An hour later, Jack pulled the car into a drive, which I could tell hadn’t been driven on since it snowed last. Not a single tire tracked through its whiteness. The trees, however, were heaping with snow, allowing a thin powder to fall between their branches. We curved around through the large pines before a huge cabin appeared before us. The enormity of it was startling.

“How many bedrooms does this place have?”

Jack chuckled. “Six.”

Nothing like the average persona he tried to keep up back home.

He opened the door, and the cold air whipped me in the face. “Brrr.” I shivered.

“Well, I’d be willing to bet Rose has a fire going inside.”

I clutched my purse to my chest, absorbing the last of its warmth, as he got my bag out of the back. I bounced up and down, trying to keep my legs warm. “I hope so. It’s sooo cold!”

“Come on.”

The moment we stepped through the double front doors, the cold was long forgotten as the warmth from inside welcomed and the beauty from within captivated me.

“Pretty amazing, right?”

“Yes.” I spun around, looking at the entryway from all angles.

“My mom spent a fortune trying to get it just right.”

“I bet.”

He led me upstairs and showed me to a room to the right. “This will be your room. Unless . . .” He paused and stepped from the room to the room across the hall, which was quite a bit larger. A fire was already warming the room. “You’d like to stay in the same room. I’m fine either way, but I didn’t want to be presumptuous.”

He acted like he was going to wait for my answer, then quickly turned around. “I’m going to find Rose and let you make that decision.”

I muffled my giggles behind my hand. I’d never seen him nervous before. What he didn’t realize was, I never pictured us staying in separate rooms.

I heaved my bag onto its wheels and rolled it into our room. Our room. I liked the sound of that.

I found Jack, after at least ten minutes of searching, in the kitchen with an older woman. She had graying short hair and was plump around the middle. They were hunched over the stove, talking in hushed tones, while she stirred something in a pot.

“Mmmm, what’s that I smell? I can almost taste it.”

Both Jack and the woman jumped at the sound of my voice.

“Fresh apple cider. Would you care for some?” the woman asked.

“Yes, please.”

“Rose, I’d like you to meet my girlfriend, Melanie.”

“It’s good to meet you.” She held out a steaming mug.

“You too. Thank you.”

She smiled at the two of us like a grandmother would, with love and fondness.

“Come on,” he said.

He led me out of the kitchen. I couldn’t be sure, but I thought I saw him turn back to her and wink.

“Where are we going?” I asked.

“Snowmobiling.”

“What? It’s freezing out there!”

“Trust me, you’re going to love it!”

I stopped just short of the door leading to the garage, breathing in the warm spice from my mug, and took one last gulp, allowing it to glide down and warm me from the inside before I stepped out into the garage. I braced for the cold. It didn’t come.

“It’s warm in here.”

“The garage is heated.”

“What? That’s crazy.”

“Not after you’ve been in the cold for an hour and need the warmth.”

I shook my head. “No, that’s still crazy. You just go in the house.”

He chuckled. “Here.”

He handed me a pair of snow coveralls with full arms and full legs. I stepped into it, and he stepped into a pair that was similar.

“Whose are these?” I asked.

“My mom’s.”

Phew. I was glad they weren’t Bianca’s. Somehow, I didn’t feel comfortable wearing anything of hers. I wasn’t sure how much she actually approved of me, even though she’d been perfectly nice ever since the barbecue.

He climbed onto the seat of one of the three snowmobiles and patted behind him for me to get on. “Unless you’d prefer to drive yourself?”

“Oh no, I think my hands would be frozen.” I hurried and climbed on the back of his.

He took me all over the woods without any particular goal in mind. I could tell this was where he felt the most at home, the woods. And he was right, I was having a lot of fun. Who’d have thought?

He sped up as he approached a small mound of snow, launching us into the air just a little. I squealed, reaching around his waist, giving him a squeeze. He slammed on the brakes and turned around.

Before I knew what he was doing, his mouth was on mine. The warmth of his tongue sent sensations through my lips I’d never experienced. They tingled like your whole body would when immersed in a hot tub after being in the cold, and it was heavenly. He pulled away too quickly, and I tugged him back. His mouth lifted at the corners against mine. When I pulled back, I rested my forehead on his.

I sighed, content.

“Had to make sure your nose was staying warm,” he said.

“Oh, yeah?”

“What did you find?”

“I think it’s in need of a little warming up.”

“I concur. What do you suggest?”

He pressed his nose against mine and rubbed back and forth. “Eskimo kisses.”

I giggled. He planted another kiss at the tip of my nose, spun around, and took off again, zipping over another mound.

It wasn’t until the sun dipped out of view that the cold really set in and the coveralls stopped doing their job. I shivered as he hurried to get us back to the house.

He pulled straight into the garage and shut the door. It was then I realized how right he was. A heated garage was amazing after coming in from snowmobiling.

Jack immediately started stripping out of the coveralls. “The faster you get out of them, the faster you’ll warm up. It’s a fact.”

I grinned at him. “Sure it is.”

He waited at the door and held it open for me to go in before him. The lights had been dimmed in the entire house. Red and white rose petals littered the floor.

Jack slipped his hand into mine. I looked up into his green eyes.

“Go on.” He gestured for me to follow the path the roses created.

White candles were lit on every table, in all different shapes and sizes.

“What is all this?” I smiled back at Jack.

We turned the last corner towards the dining room, where the table was set for two. Silver cloches covered two plates, and two tall candles rose up in the center.

Jack came up beside me and lifted the cover on the closest plate, and my mouth fell open. I’d never before gawked at a plate with such scrutiny. My mouth fell open.

Scrolled in chocolate were the words, “Will you marry me?”

Jack dropped to his knee and flipped open a tiny box. “I know it hasn’t been very long, and things got a little rocky, but I’ve never felt the way I feel when I’m with you, ever. I know, deep within my heart, this is my destiny. Our destiny. I hope with every part of me you’ll say yes and make me the happiest I’ve ever been in my life. Marry me.”

I bit my lip as the corners of my mouth lifted. “Yes.”

“Yes?”

I nodded, laughing. “Yes.”

He slipped the ring on my finger and pressed his lips to mine with a hunger he often had. That hunger pulled me in and swooped me off my feet, making me feel like I was floating. And now I’d feel that way for the rest of my life.

“I love you,” he whispered into my hair.

“I love you too.”

“She said yes!” Jack yelled, turning away from me.

I scrunched my face, squeezing him around the neck. “Nobody can hear you, crazy. We’re alone, remember?” I giggled.

Footsteps and loud whoops came flooding into the room. I pulled away just as Jack’s family came bursting in, full of excitement. Much to my surprise, my mom and dad rounded the corner behind them.

“Mom? Dad?” Tears stung in my eyes.

My worlds were finally colliding in a way I never dreamed they could. My home had nothing to do with geography and everything to do with the people I called family, and ones who soon would be.

Sometimes things happen, unexpected and out of the blue. Things you never thought could, or would, happen. Things you would never want to prevent. The ones you dream of, hope for, sure they’ll never come true.

Sometimes those things are put in your lap and all you have to do is take them. Those are the moments that every wager up until that point has been leading up to. Every choice.

This was that moment. The point in my life I knew, no matter how much I’d struggled with every choice I’d made, I knew they were all the exact right ones because they’d led me to a happiness I could never have dreamed possible.

As our families descended upon us, hugging and grabbing my hand to steal their first looks at the ring, I looked up at Jack, smiling, with his eyes alight. This man would be mine forever, and nothing excited me more.