Ten Months Later
“Where are we going?” Josie asked, stumbling on something and clutching at Cameron’s hand. The blindfold was a little much.
“Can’t you trust me?”
“I think we left trust behind with the blindfold, Cam.”
“That’s not what you were saying the other night,” he joked, and she blushed. Ten months of sex with Cameron and her body went swimmy at just the thought of him. The idea of him. It was her own wild luck that she got to have that man in her bed all the time.
They were outdoors. She was guessing that she was in the woods because what she kept tripping over felt like tree roots. The sun was warm on the top of her head despite the cool late-October breeze blowing through the Catskills. They wore sweatshirts and running shoes. Which was kind of what they wore all the time now. Her NYC television executive wardrobe was moldering in boxes in her parents’ house these days.
“One…more…step,” he said and then stopped.
“Can I take off this blindfold?”
“Yeah. Here, let me help.” He tugged on the blindfold, lifting it off her head, and he was standing right in front of her, so his beautiful eyes and beloved face were the only things she could see. Which was never a bad thing.
“Hi,” she said and kissed him. He gave her a loud, smacking kiss and then leaned back. His eyes looked all around, like he was unable to focus. He’d been weird all day. And she thought she knew why but didn’t understand why he might not want to talk about what was making him weird. They talked about everything. Like they had to make up for the years of silence.
“Are you all right?” she asked.
“Yeah? Why do you ask?”
“I mean, is it about the Netflix deal? Because we don’t have to take it.”
“No! I love the Netflix deal. The Netflix deal is perfect.”
They’d made a trip out to the Riverview after their week-long stay in the city, pitching their idea for a show to Netflix and a bunch of other streaming channels. And he’d been a little strange, but she might have just been projecting her own nerves onto him. She wasn’t nervous about the show or the contract with Netflix. No, she’d decided to compound the drama of the last few days by slipping a little gift for Cameron into her backpack when he asked her to go on this hike. And she was nervous about what he was going to say about the gift.
“So, where are we?” she asked, stepping back to try and see around him.
“Here.” He turned sideways and she caught sight of an icy-blue lake surrounded by the muscular green shoulders of the Catskills. The lake was so clear it looked like a puddle of sky. Bright and blue.
“Oh my gosh, how pretty,” she said.
“I wanted to bring you here the night of your graduation,” he said. “But I got real weird about it and I always regretted that I never took you here.”
“Well, better late than never,” she said and pressed a kiss to his mouth. Then she stepped forward, pulling her backpack off her shoulders. Now, she thought. Do it now.
“Josie,” he said, putting his arms around her from behind. “I can’t tell you how happy I am. This last year has been the best year of my life.”
“Me too,” she whispered. Even with everything that had happened to Helen and the grief that lay over the inn like a veil, she and Cameron had managed to have real joy. “More than I ever thought possible.”
“Well, once you quit that job,” he said, making the same joke he’d been making all year.
“Yeah,” she said. “It has nothing to do with you.”
He chuckled in her ear and kissed her neck before stepping back. She pulled the box out of the backpack, clutching it to her stomach, and set the backpack down on the hard dirt.
“Cameron,” she said. “I really want to ask you something.”
“Me first,” he said, and she turned.
And found him on one knee holding a little back box in his hands.
Oh, she thought. Oh my.
“Will you be my wife?”
“Well,” she said, tears in her eyes. “It’s funny, but I was going to ask you the same thing. I know it’s not a ring, but…” She held out the box in her hand, another, newer version of the high-tech camping coffeemaker she’d gotten for him years ago. “I want to be with you on all your adventures.”
He took the box from her and she opened his to find a beautiful diamond and sapphire ring. “Alice and your mom came shopping with me when they visited us in France last month.”
“That’s what you three snuck off to do,” she breathed. “It’s beautiful. It’s perfect.”
He pulled the ring from the box and she held out her hand. Of course it slid right onto her finger like it had been made for her. “You’re perfect,” she said.
“So? Is this a yes?”
“Of course it’s a yes,” she said. “I’ve loved you…” Forever. Since the moment she saw him. For most of her life. Since before she even knew him. All of those were right.
“Me too,” he said, and stood and pulled her into his arms. The morning fell in beautiful golden sheets around them. And it felt like a benediction. A prayer. A holy agreement that they were the right two people for this promise.
“I brought some coffee,” she said. “To make in the coffeemaker. A toast…I mean, it seems a little ridiculous compared to this ring.” God, it really did glitter and shine in the sunlight. Had there ever been a more perfect ring?
“Come on,” he said, linking their fingers. “I know a perfect spot.”
And she went with him, right by his side, because for the rest of her life, the best spot for her was right by his side.
Hey Readers—thank you so much for picking up Christmas at the Riverview Inn. Cameron and Josie have been waiting a long time for their HEA—I hope it was worth it. Now, I have a sneak peek at Helen’s book for you, but I have to warn you, it starts with heartache. So if you want to hold on to your Christmas happily ever after glow—maybe turn the page another time. But if you’re intrigued (and ready for a little heartbreak) go ahead and read a sample of Second Chance at the Riverview Inn.