Page 26 of Holiday Promise

She laughed again, but this time there were tears. “I guess I wanted to have some degree of control. There’s your irony. I wanted to push you away before you could do the same to me.”

Blake frowned. “I can’t say I don’t understand. I did my share of pushing you away.” He shook his head as he looked away.“Funny, isn’t it? That when we look back on what happened, we can see where we went wrong.”

“I suppose,” she whispered.

“And yet, at the same time, my son had it all figured out from the start.”

This time, her laugh felt more genuine. It drew Blake’s attention, and he smiled.

“I love it when you laugh. I’ve missed hearing it these last few days.”

Melody sobered. “I suppose I lost my reasons to laugh lately.”

“That’s not good.”

“No,” she agreed. “It’s not.”

He tugged her back into the swirl of movement on the section of ice they were skating. They drifted in and out of groups of people, neither one of them speaking. She lost track of time as she leaned into him. It was almost too easy to forget that they were in a moment of limbo. Was Blake interested in starting their relationship again? Or had he realized just how dangerous it was to love her?

Melody’s stomach twisted painfully, and her heart thundered with the anticipation of what he might say next. If she wanted a say in their future, she needed to speak now.

“I love you, Melody,” he rasped.

Her heart, her lungs, every part of her froze. Only her feet continued to move across the ice.

“I think I’ve loved you for a long time. I simply didn’t allow myself to see it.” Blake glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. “Does that even make any sense? It was like something woke me up from a stupor I’ve been in.”

Throat dry, Melody couldn’t bring herself to comment. She didn’t want to destroy the happy cloud that had descended around her.

Blake came to a stop and pulled her around to face him. He held onto both hands. “Please say something. Please tell me that you’re willing to consider trying again. I don’t want to waste a single moment more.”

All she could do was focus on her breathing. Everything he’d said was everything she’d wanted to hear from the moment Thomas had put those doubts in to her mind. She wanted to be something more than just his nanny. She wanted him to want her with no strings attached.

Melody nodded, a surprised and teary laugh escaping her lips. She threw her arms around his neck, standing on the toes of her skates as she did so. When she pulled back, she was all smiles. “Nothing would make me happier.”

A smile lit up Blake’s face. He grinned, lifting her into a hug as he spun her around. When he placed her back on her feet, he hooked his finger beneath her chin. “You’ve brought magic back into my life. Maybe Max was right after all. Wishes can come true.”

“This is the best Christmas wish ever.”

Her laugh was smothered by his kiss. Breath left her lungs and stars appeared behind her eyes. Melody’s whole body sang along with the Christmas music that continued to fill the air. She couldn’t have asked for a better Christmas gift than to be loved by this man.

“I promise you won’t be sorry about giving us another chance.”

She smiled. “I know.”

EPILOGUE

One Year Later

Blake heldonto Melody’s hand as they skated on the lake. This was one tradition he could get behind. Max skated a few feet ahead of them. He skills had improved a lot over this season, a fact that Melody reminded Blake about frequently.

He glanced over at her, finding her smiling. Little did she know what he had planned for the evening. They wouldn’t do it here. He’d always thought that a proposal should be done in quiet, intimate surroundings. For now, he fully intended on enjoying this moment with Melody.

The last year had been one of the most memorable ones he’d had in a long time. Spending more evenings at home had been difficult to accomplish, but he’d prioritized it.

“What?” she asked.

His brows lifted, and he shook his head. “Nothing.”