Page 32 of Silent Nights and Vampire Lights

Nick slid into the booth across from me with a heavy sigh. “I made a mistake, okay? I knew as soon as you left, but I had convinced myself that I was protecting you.”

“You were protecting yourself,” I corrected sullenly.

He gave a nod. “You’re right. I was. I convinced myself that no one would accept you in my hometown and never even gave it a chance. Yet, I didn’t take one thing into consideration. You.”

I lifted my head and met his gaze, hope kindling in my soul. His eyes were burning into me, filled with passion and something else I dared not define.

“You are pure light and joy, Holly. I was empty, drained of everything when I headed for home. I was retreating, feeling like I had nothing left when I met you. You brought light, joy, and laughter into my life, even when I didn’t want it. You dragged me, kicking and screaming, into the holiday season and made me live again. If you could do that for me, you could make anyone love you. After all, you made me fall in love with you.”

My jaw fell open, and I stared at him, not daring to believe what I was hearing. “In love?”

He reached out and took my hands. “Yes, Holly. I love you. Leaving you was the single hardest thing I ever had to do, and I did it because I was afraid. I thought if you came with me, you would realize that life with me was too hard, too confining for your light, and you would leave me. But I can’t live without you.”

“What about what I want? You never asked me. You just made assumptions about what I want for myself.”

He froze, his expression growing still. “You’re right. This is not about me, but about you and what you want. I won’t force you to do anything you don’t want.”

I pulled my hands back, already regretting the lack of contact. “So, if I want to leave and go my own way, you’ll let me? Even if I want to go back home?”

He sucked in a deep breath, then nodded. “Michael is on his way there to handle your problem as we speak. You will be safe. I promise you.”

I studied him for a long moment, watching as he struggled to contain himself. “What if I want to go to Grimm Mawr and kick your father’s ass for kicking you out?”

Hope flared in his eyes, and one corner of his lip curved up. “I would gladly drive you, but I feel I should point out that he has welcomed me home and strongly suggested that I bring you back with me. Grimm Mawr has changed. It’s not the same town it used to be.”

Disappointment pricked the balloon of happiness that had been growing inside of me. “So that’s why you’re here? It’s now okay to have me back there?”

“No, I was coming for you, anyway. I knew I could never be happy living without you. But now we have a place where we can live together, openly, and not worry about anything.”

His open and earnest expression was so opposite to everything I had seen from him to this point. He had been so remote and closed off except during select times in our journey. But now, I felt like I was seeing the real Nick. Could I trust that he really wanted me? What had Michael said? Be brave. He wasn’t wrong. I had lived my life on the move, never getting close to anyone for a long time since my grandparents had died, never trusting that anyone would stick around. Nick’s life had been so very similar. He was offering me a home, a place to belong, by his side. And I already knew I was in love with him and would never love another. Would I let pride get in the way of my happiness?

The waitress dropped a plate with a well-done burger and a side of onion rings on the table in front of us. “Will there be anything else?”

We both stared at the unappealing meal and shook our heads. I reached for Nick’s hands. “We have to be going home now. Thanks!”

I slid out of the booth, dragging him with me. He pulled me into his arms. When his lips met mine, the entire world faded away—the dank diner, the cracked vinyl, the waitress popping her gum. There was only Nicholas, his cool lips moving against mine with infinite tenderness, his hand sliding into my hair as he deepened the kiss. I clutched at his shirt, pressing closer, and felt him smile against my mouth.

When he finally pulled back, just far enough to rest his forehead against mine, his breath was uneven. "Let's go home," he whispered.

"Home?" I echoed, my fingers still twisted in his shirt.

He kissed me again, soft and quick. "Home. To our ridiculous, magical, changing town. To my family who already loves you because you brought me back to them. To wherever you are, because that's home now."

The ancient linoleum creaked under our feet as I pushed up on my toes to kiss him one more time. "Take me home, then."

EPILOGUE

NICHOLAS

Iwatched Holly's face as she took in the grand Christmas tree in our family's parlor, her eyes reflecting the hundreds of tiny white lights that twinkled among the antique ornaments. Some of those delicate glass baubles were older than I was, carefully preserved through generations. Now they shared branches with newer additions—including the handmade ornament Holly had bought at one of the Christmas markets on our journey, a delicate silver snowflake that caught the light perfectly.

“Your sister's children are adorable,” Holly whispered to me, nodding toward where my nieces and nephews were sprawled on the Persian rug, playing some complicated card game that seemed to involve a lot of giggling. Their parents—my sister Lillian and her husband Marcus—sat nearby on the velvet settee, taking turns dealing cards into the game.

“They're cheating, you know,” I murmured back, wrapping my arm around her waist and pulling her into my lap. “Vampire hearing. They can tell when the kids are bluffing.”

Holly stifled a laugh against my shoulder. “And you're not going to call them out on it?”

“And risk Lillian’s wrath on Christmas? I may be immortal, but I'm not stupid.”