Chapter 38 December 22, Present Day
I’m back, which means the whole fiasco with Austin and the tree-lighting proposal never happened.
This Christmas, I’m single, and therefore there’s no need to explain anything to Liam—he’s never met Austin, and I’m not engaged to be married to my ex-boyfriend.
We’ve been broken up for months in this timeline.
But… wait… wait a gosh-darn minute …
I rip my glove off, see the ring. Sparkling its fractals in the twinkling evergreen lights. Any relief I felt a moment earlier melts away, like a snowman in the late-winter sunshine.
How is this happening? I’m sure it’s Christmas present, right?
Amelia’s in her wedding dress, about to marry Beckett; Mom’s ankle is clearly fine.
I glance down at my legs, expecting to see my beloved suede boots.
Instead, I’m wearing practical winter boots with a rim of fluffy faux fur around the top. But these aren’t Mom’s Sorel boots.
What’s going on?
“I need to get this off…” I sit up quickly, ignoring the stars that cloud my vision. Then I twist at the ring. It’s snug, and my fingers are cold and slow to work, which makes the task much harder than it should be.
“Why can’t I get this off?” I mutter, frustration seeping into my words.
“Libby, stop.” Liam’s crouched beside me. He gives Mary’s leash to Beckett and sets his warm hands on mine. It feels wonderful, and I let out a small, contented sigh. “What are you doing?”
His voice is low, his tone underpinned with worry. His brow furrows as he watches me closely. Those emerald eyes… I almost forget where I am, and what’s happened.
“Liam, I’m not sure exactly what’s going on, but I need you to know it’s over.”
“What’s over, hon?”
Something in me snaps to attention. Hon? But I keep going, wanting to get this explanation out and over with.
“With Austin. It’s over. And I don’t understand why I’m still wearing this…” I pause, for I don’t know how to explain the ring and how a year has passed in the blink of an eye.
“I think you hit your head, Libby.” Liam glances over at my parents, then back to me. “I’m going to drive you to the hospital, okay? Kirby’s there, and Claire said he’ll meet us in the ER.”
“Claire?” I look at the small crowd around me, searching for my friend. I find her, and she gives me a little wave—then I see she’s holding Lucy’s hand, the toddler (no longer a baby) bundled up in an adorably puffy snowsuit. Further confirmation I’m back in the present.
“But I don’t need the hospital. Like I said, I’m fine. I don’t think I hit my head.”
I take my hand out of Liam’s. “Just let me get this off, and we can talk, okay?” Twist, twist, twist … I feel some release. Good. “I don’t know where this came from, honestly, but it’s almost off.”
“Libby… I gave you that ring .” Liam sets a hand to my face, forcing me to look into his eyes.
Waves of shock move through me as I stare at him. What does he mean, “I gave you that ring”?
But before I get the question out, Liam’s lips are on mine, and he’s kissing me. My eyes close, and I breathe him in. Scents of cloves, cedar, freshly baked bread… and I’m kissing him back, fiercely, because I’ve been waiting to do this almost since I first laid eyes on him.
I’ve imagined what it might be like to kiss Liam, and I’m delighted to learn the reality is even better than the fantasy. My heart races, my skin tingles, the rush of blood to my head makes me woozy—all the while his lips stay on mine—and then…
I am struck by an unshakable truth: I may have returned to the present, but the past year of my life has been irrevocably altered. Reshaped by the choices I made… in the past. Like an explosion of fireworks, the memories surge, flooding my mind in a dazzling cascade.