Chapter 12 #2
Instead of the flooded kitchen she’d been dreading and another big bill she couldn’t pay, she saw her club transformed into pure Christmas magic. And everywhere she looked, familiar faces smiled back at her.
The big printed banner stretched across the back wall swam in her vision as fresh tears welled up: “THE HAIR OF THE DOG GRAND REOPENING.”
She’d always thought that accepting charity would taste bitter. But it was so sweet to realize that everyone she knew—and a bunch of people she didn’t—had come here tonight because they wanted her to succeed.
And she owed it all to her lover Gabriel and her best friend Maggie.
Her heart overflowed with happiness.
“Your loan request is approved,” Mandy Jacobsen said.
It took a moment for her alpha female’s words to sink in.
“I think she’s still in shock,” Maggie commented.
Kymberlie drew a shuddering breath, trying to regain control of her emotions as tears streamed down her face. “What?” she asked, positive she’d heard wrong.
She wiped frantically at her eyes. How many times had she cried so far this week?
“The pack council met yesterday,” Bill said, beaming at her. “We reviewed your business plan and financials and agreed that everything looked solid.”
Kymberlie’s mouth fell open.
It sounded too good to be true. After her meeting earlier this week, when twenty-four hours had passed with no word from the pack, she’d convinced herself they’d rejected her request.
“Congrats!” Gabriel squeezed her shoulder.
“But I thought—” she began.
“We were saving the good news for his party,” Mandy interrupted.
Bill added, “The pack has watched your place become a community hotspot. We know you’re a responsible business owner who just hit a streak of bad luck.”
See, Kymberlie’s wolf said smugly. Our alphas came through for us.
Mandy said, “The loan terms are in the documents we just emailed you. Once you’ve reviewed them, call me and we’ll set up a meeting at the bank for you to sign the paperwork.”
Kymberlie stared at the alpha couple in disbelief and growing joy. “I don’t know how to thank you… or the pack.”
“You can thank us by making this place the success we all know it can be,” Bill told her.
“And maybe by acknowledging that asking us for help isn’t a sign of weakness,” Mandy added, winking at her. She quoted the pack motto: “‘Stronger together.’”
Then she hooked her arm through her mate’s. “Enjoy your party, Kymberlie. You deserve every good thing that comes to you.”
The alpha couple moved away to join the growing crowd on the dance floor, leaving Kymberlie still feeling like she was dreaming.
After weeks of struggling to overcome one roadblock after another, she’d suddenly stepped into an alternate reality where all her problems were magically solving themselves.
She and Gabriel made her way to the bar, where Micah grinned at her.
“I can’t believe you gave up working Christmas Eve at the Bearpaw Springs Resort…and all those tips you would’ve gotten,” Kymberlie told him. “I can’t thank you enough.”
“Eddie Ornelas heard about this party and gave Zoe, Karl, and me the night off at full pay. We’ve all been worried about you, boss. You’ve had a lot on your plate lately.”
She thanked him again.
Then, hand in hand with Gabriel, she made the rounds of the packed club, greeting the people she knew and introducing herself to the people she didn’t.
She caught fragments of conversation from nearby tables. Gabriel’s name came up repeatedly, always with approval.
These were the same people who’d spread rumors about Gabriel’s mysterious past, and who’d questioned why a professional firefighter with his credentials had ended up in tiny Bearpaw Ridge! Now, they all sang his praises.
“Gabriel cleans up nice,” Maggie said a while later, sidling up beside her with a knowing grin. “Didn’t I tell you that your future mate was out there somewhere? I’m glad you found each other.”
Kymberlie followed her gaze over to where Gabriel stood talking with Tyler.
“We haven’t talked about the future yet,” Kymberlie protested. “I’ve been a little busy, remember?”
“Mmm-hmm. But not too busy for him to spend nearly every night at your place for the past three weeks?”
Of course people had noticed Gabriel’s truck parked in front of Kymberlie’s house! This was Bearpaw Ridge, after all.
“It’s a long commute from his place at the Cougar Lake Ranch,” she said reflexively.
“Still in denial?” Maggie laughed and handed her a sprig of mistletoe wrapped in a cheery red ribbon. “Here. You clearly need this. That man is head over heels in love with you. He’s spent the past few days moving mountains to make this party happen.”
Before Kymberlie could respond, the music stopped. The deafening chatter in the club faded away, replaced by expectant silence.
She and Maggie both turned to see Gabriel stepping onto the stage. He accepted the microphone from Rob Swanson with a nod of thanks.
The sight of him standing there—powerful, assured, yet somehow vulnerable—sent a flutter through her chest that had nothing to do with gratitude and everything to do with the connection that had been building between them for the past month.
“Hey, everyone, I’m not really a speech-making kind of guy,” Gabriel began, his deep voice carrying easily through the room. “But tonight is special. I wanted to thank you all for coming tonight and supporting The Hair of the Dog, and say a few words about why we’re all here.”
The crowd quieted further. Kymberlie felt herself holding her breath.
“The Hair of the Dog isn’t just a bar,” he continued.
“It’s part of what makes Bearpaw Ridge home for many of us.
When I first arrived, I hoped that someday I’d belong here.
” His gaze found hers across the room, intense and unwavering.
“And now I do. I need to thank Daniel Langlais and the rest of the Cougar Lake leadership council for that, but I also owe a lot to this place… and to Kymberlie.”
Something warm unfurled in Kymberlie’s chest, spreading outward until she felt it in her fingertips, her toes.
“I’ve seen a lot of businesses fold under the same pressure she’s faced,” Gabriel went on.
“But not her. She’s fought for this day with determination and passion.
I admire her refusal to give up on her dream even when things seemed impossible.
” He paused, his eyes locked with hers, then continued.
“She inspires all of us to fight for our dreams. And that deserves to be honored. And a big thank you to all the volunteers who stepped up and made tonight’s celebration happen.
You make Bearpaw Ridge the special place it is. ”
The words were direct—just like Gabriel himself. But beneath them ran a current of emotion that vibrated through the air between them.
He thinks I’m inspiring? Me? The hot mess who blamed him for stuff that wasn’t his fault and said some awful things to him?
Someone raised a glass. “To Kymberlie!” The toast was taken up around the room, a chorus of voices lifting in her honor.
But Kymberlie barely heard them. The crowded room seemed to fade away until there was only Gabriel on that stage, his eyes saying everything his careful words did not.
Her hand tightened around the mistletoe in her hand. Hell yeah, I’m going to use this the minute I can corner him.
He stepped down from the stage to thundering applause and made his way toward her through the crowd. People patted his back, shook his hand, but his focus never wavered from her.
When he reached her, Kymberlie realized she was crying again. She’d been doing that way too fucking much over the past few days. But tonight, her tears were happy ones as her gratitude and joy and love for him overflowed.
“Thank you,” she said, the words woefully inadequate for what she felt. “Not just for the party. For everything.”
Gabriel’s smile looked almost shy. “You’re welcome. And you deserve every bit. People love you, Kymberlie. I—” He cleared his throat. “I love you. You’re magnificent, and you’ve made Bearpaw Ridge feel like home to me.”
The band struck up again, playing a slow, romantic tune that sent couples drifting onto the dance floor.
Around them, the party continued, but Kymberlie stood transfixed, aware only of Gabriel’s presence, of the mistletoe clutched in her hand, of the desire humming between them like a perfectly tuned string.
“Dance with me?” he asked, extending his hand.
“Sure.” She placed her hand in his much larger one, feeling the warmth of his palm against hers like a promise.
Then she went up on tiptoe and dangled the mistletoe over their heads with her free hand. “But first, I’d like to thank you properly.”