Chapter 32 #2
“Hey,” I say, butting in. “Why don’t we just—”
“What’s going on out here?” a woman who I think is Mrs. Dankworth says as she comes out of the store holding a pillow.
Why on earth would she need a pillow?
“He ran over the statue.”
“The statue shouldn’t be there,” Uncle Dwight shouts.
“I think if we all just calm down,” I say, but it’s too late as Mr. Dankworth takes the pillow from his wife and whips it around to hit Uncle Dwight.
At the last second, Uncle Dwight ducks, and the pillow whacks me in the face, sending feathers flying everywhere and pushing me backward as I trip over something behind me.
I twist, I turn, and then I stumble . . . right into the arms of someone behind me.
As I’m being held right above the ground, I glance at my feet, where I spot two paint cans, the culprits for tripping me. When did those get there?
And as I’m about to turn around to thank whoever is holding me up, people start filing out of Baubles and Wrappings. But not just any people: all the people from town. Sherry, Tanya, Bob Krampus, Cole, Storee, Taran, Guy . . . and then Atlas, who’s holding a bouquet of chocolate-covered cherries.
“Give him a chance to explain,” a deep voice says into my ear. I turn around and see BKJ right before he brings me back to my feet.
Everyone parts, and Atlas steps forward.
My heart beats rapidly from the mere sight of him. God, why is he so beautiful?
“Betty.” He clears his throat as I take in everyone watching—everyone who is conveniently here at the same time.
Even his parents are off to the side, along with Martha and Mae.
“The moment I heard about you on the farm, I knew I had to figure out who you were and what you were planning on doing. The instant I saw you, I knew that task wasn’t going to be so hard, because you were the prettiest woman I’d ever seen, and I found myself needing to see you every day.
” He clears his throat again and takes another step toward me.
“And then I got to know you, I saw myself in you, I saw how well we meshed, how I felt comfortable around you, and I immediately knew, this is my person. And I went from seeking revenge to attempting to get you to like me. To make you see who I was past what Dwight was saying. I fell for you . . . hard. And my biggest regret to date is not giving myself a chance to get to know you before I started planning to stop your endeavors.”
He takes another step forward, and tears well in my eyes as I glance at Uncle Dwight, who’s nodding.
Cole and Storee, gleefully hopeful.
Tanya and Sherry, holding hands.
Bob Krampus . . . popping Tic Tacs into his mouth.
“I know I messed up and that asking for a second chance is bold, but I can’t imagine you not being here . . . with me. With us. This entire town loves you.”
“We do,” Tanya says.
“So much,” Sherry adds.
“You’re a good friend we can’t lose,” Storee says, tears in her eyes.
“And someone who makes our boy and everyone else happy,” Cole says.
“So please, forgive me . . . forgive us, because we don’t want you to go. We want you here, contributing to this town, adding friendship and laughter and smiles. Please stay, Betty, because . . . I love you and I can’t fathom you leaving. Not when I just found you.”
Tears spill down my cheeks while he takes one more step forward and wipes them away.
He cups my face and then whispers, “Please forgive me. I’m so fucking sorry.”
I wet my lips, staring into his beautiful eyes, and all I can think about is that even though I was hurt, I feel the same exact way.
I can’t fathom leaving this town. I can’t fathom not seeing Atlas every day, and a part of the grief I was feeling was not just from being hurt but from putting myself in a situation where I wasn’t a part of this town, a part of Atlas’s life.
I couldn’t stomach it.
And I can’t stomach it now.
I lean into his touch and say, “I love you too.”
A smile crosses over his face, and he pulls me in tighter. “Please tell me you forgive me. Because I promise, I will not hurt you again. I won’t fuck this up.”
I nod and whisper, “I forgive you.”
He scoops me into his arms and then captures my mouth with his, his body relaxing into mine as his lips lead the way, claiming me as his.
Cheers erupt all around us while I part my mouth ever so slightly for him, melting into his hold and grateful for this town and everyone in it.
When he pulls away, he presses his forehead to mine and whispers, “I love you.”
“I love you too,” I whisper back as he hands me the bouquet. Chuckling, I say, “Where did you find this?”
“I made it. Took some time.”
“What else did you do?” I gesture to everyone around us. “Because this seems very convenient.”
“Well, I went back to my roots. I had to trap you to talk to me somehow, and I’m just glad I had more hands on deck.”
“Can we get hugs too?” Storee asks, waiting patiently. I nod, and she comes running up to me, pulling me in close. “I’m so sorry. Please know, our friendship has always been real.”
“I know,” I say.
“Good, because I don’t think I could stand helping Atlas that much unless I actually liked the person he was hanging with.”
I chuckle and pull away just as Uncle Dwight comes up to me and gives me a hug.
“You approved of this?” I ask.
He looks over at Atlas and says, “We had a chat and worked some things out. He’s on probation.”
Uncle Dwight pulls away, and Atlas scoops me into his arms again, kissing me on the lips. “Fuck, it’s going to be a great Christmas now. I have so many things planned, starting with turning the power back on at your cottage.”
I gasp, pulling away. “You turned that off?”
“Not the first time,” he says in defense. “But today, yeah, as I had to get you out of your cottage somehow.”
I shake my head. “I’m not sure if I should be impressed or scared.”
“Impressed.” He takes my hand and brings me around to the side of the store, out of earshot of everyone else. Growing serious, he says, “I want to make sure you’re okay, that you can express your feelings without an audience.” He continues to hold my hand, waiting.
“I’m not happy about what happened,” I say honestly. “But also, I’m not innocent in this whole thing either. I shouldn’t have gone after you so hard. I should have gotten to know you as well before taking Dwight’s opinion on the matter. You deserved better.”
“I deserve you,” he says, squeezing my hand.
“I deserve you as well,” I reply. “And I think we can launch from here, forget everything else, and just . . . just date.”
He nods. “In that case, will you go out with me tomorrow?”
“It’s Christmas Eve,” I say.
“Yeah, which means you’re going to have to double up on days, because I’m going to need to see you on Christmas too. And the day after that, and the one after that . . .”
I chuckle. “I’m seeing a pattern.”
He tips my chin up and moves in close. “Thank you for loving me and giving me a second chance.”
“Thank you for loving me and supporting my second chance.”
“Anything for you,” he says right before his lips land on mine and I sink into his hold.