“Can you believe it?” Avery asked Sophie as they lounged on the deck at Aria’s house, beneath flashing lights and red and green tinsel. “This time last year, we were all singletons. Now, Aria has snagged a guy who’s rich as bejeesus and has a baby, you’ve bunked down with her sexy brother, and I’ve—”
“Finally got over your pride and given your high school sweetheart another chance,” Sophie interjected, laughing. “It only took nine years.”
Avery rolled her eyes but could hardly object when the past few months had been the happiest of her life. “Yeah, yeah.”
“And,” Sophie continued, smacking her palm on the arm of the chair for dramatic effect, “you killed it in court and put a murderer in prison for a really long time.”
“Broderick deserved it.” And thanks to the conviction, she’d been assigned a team to speed up the process of rebuilding her soil library to make sure others like him didn’t escape justice. She’d coordinated the team from Timaru while training a pair of research assistants to do the analyses. They’d already collected and tested eighty percent of the necessary samples, with the work on track to be completed before the end of summer.
“Not to mention…” Sophie trailed off as Cooper approached.
“Hey, lover,” he said, and a blush spread down her cheeks and neck.
“You’re shameless,” she replied, not looking like she minded at all.
Cooper turned and winked at Avery. “Can I steal Sophie away from you for a moment? I promise my intentions are anything but honorable.”
Avery’s lips twisted into a smirk. “Go ahead.” She waved her hand. “If anyone deserves a good roll in the hay, it’s Soph.”
“You’ll get no arguments from me.”
Sophie offered Cooper her hand and he yanked her to his side. They strolled toward the back of the yard together.
Avery checked her watch and wondered where Gareth had gotten to. They’d spent the morning with his family, unwrapping presents while his nieces shrieked with delight, then indulged in a cooked breakfast and adjourned to his house, where they’d lived for the past five months. She’d had her own place bulldozed and sold the vacant lot for a tidy profit, which she’d squirrelled away and planned to use to take Gareth on a vacation to the tropics.
At their home, they’d wished each other a merry Christmas in the most delicious way, and then they’d come here. Aria’s place was always the best spot to be on Christmas if you wanted to feel connected.
“Earth to A-Bee. You in there?”
She snapped to attention. Gareth was looming over her, his palm splayed in front of her face.
“Sorry,” she said, stretching in the sun, her muscles languid. “I was miles away.”
He took the chair Sophie had vacated, and reached over to hold her hand. She entwined her fingers with his and squeezed. They felt sticky.
She raised an eyebrow. “What have you been eating?”
He ducked his head, sheepish. “Aria’s spicy date cake.”
“Typical.” She chuckled. “One day, all of those cakes she feeds you are going to catch up with you.”
“You’ll love me anyway, right?” he asked, a dimple appearing in his cheek.
“Maybe,” she hedged.
He smiled the smile of a man utterly confident in his woman. “You will.”
“If you insist.” Her eyes fluttered shut and she basked in the warmth of the high summer sun. Birds chirped in the trees, and the bustle of people in the house behind her blended into a pleasant hum. She couldn’t remember enjoying a Christmas more.
“I do.”
“Hmm?”
“Insist.”
Gareth extricated his hand from hers. Sensing his change in mood, and the underlying tension that had gripped him, she sat up and focused. He slipped his sticky fingers into his pocket and withdrew a small, black box.
“In fact, I insist you love me for the rest of your life. Marry me, A-Bee?”
He flipped the box open to reveal a sparkling solitaire set in a white gold band. Simple, elegant, beautiful. She extracted it from the box and noticed an engraving on the inside of the band.
One love.
It was absolutely perfect. The moment, the man, the ring. A girl couldn’t wish for more. She eased the ring onto her finger. When she replied, she’d never felt more certain of anything.
“Yes, Gareth. I’ll marry you. After all, someone has to help you with your walking frame when you’re ninety.”
He kissed her, and she stopped talking.
“Congratulations!”
They both turned, separating reluctantly. Clarissa clacked across the path on heels that would give Avery vertigo, and hurried to embrace her.
“I’m so happy for you,” Clarissa exclaimed, kissing her cheek. She shot Gareth a warning glance. “Take care of my girl.”
Something about Clarissa seemed…different. Lighter, even. And who was that behind her?
Avery shook her head. It didn’t matter right now. What mattered was the man beside her.
“I love you,” she whispered.
“Show me how much.”
She did.