38. Kristin
38
KRISTIN
I enjoyed working the week after Christmas. There were a couple of special events, but reservations were lighter, so there weren’t as many rooms to clean. The guests who were here usually booked their stays from Christmas Eve until New Year’s Day. That meant fewer checkout rooms to turn over, and simply tidying up and changing linens for the stay-overs.
We were oddly well-staffed today. Usually, the crew was bare-bones since everyone traveled or spent time with their families for the holidays. Maybe it was just Karina, the assistant manager, trying to make nice after the hell Rich put me through.
I certainly wasn’t complaining. The sooner I got through the rooms, the sooner I could get home to Will.
The curious looks hadn’t gone away. Other staffers still gossiped about how I landed a billionaire. I overheard a landscaper telling someone that I had signed up to be a mail-order bride. I wasn’t totally sure how that whole arrangement worked, but it seemed like a logistical nightmare.
Besides, Will and I weren’t even engaged. I was far from being a bride .
I looked at my watch. Only twenty more minutes until my shift was over. I ran through my mental to-do list while dropping a stack of neatly folded towels onto the bathroom vanity.
I needed to stop by the grocery store on my way back to New Bern. I needed to run a load of laundry so I could pack the kids’ clothes. Their Christmas break was almost over. It was our second to last night at Will’s house, and I knew it was going to be impossible to get them to leave.
Logan and Will had been working night and day on the Stingray. It only gave me a mild heart attack when the two of them took me into the garage and told me the plan. They didn’t ask how I felt about the plan. They told me what the plan was.
I only threatened to choke Will a little because the second I saw the light in Logan’s face, I fell further in love with Will. I hadn’t seen that kind of light in Logan in five years.
When they needed to go to a junkyard to pull parts or hunt something down on Craigslist, Will and the four kids piled into his truck and made an adventure out of it.
Five years ago, life threw me into an insta-family. Sure, we were already related, but our world had turned upside down that day, and I’d been given more responsibility than I knew what to do with.
Little did I know, four months ago, the five of us would become six, and things would be complete.
Will and I had talked about it. Moving in together wasn’t an option at this point. His house was too far away from the kids’ schools and the inn. An hour-long commute wasn’t realistic in the long run.
But the school year would be over in a few months, and we had decided to revisit that conversation over the summer.
A little normalcy and stability would do us all good before any other significant changes.
According to him, having the kids over for their winter break was the most fun he’d had in years. I would have called his bluff, but I saw the way he lit up around them. The way he jumped at the chance to get involved with whatever they were interested in.
For Logan, it was fixing up the Stingray.
With Hunter, they talked about books, books, and more books.
Kylie had opened up and told him that a boy at school she liked had asked her out. That didn’t fulfill Will as much so much as it sent him into an overprotective tailspin. The two of them spent hours doing a full internet deep dive on the poor kid.
Much to his dismay, sixteen-year-old Josh Tanner had never been arrested, done anything on the DarkNet, or worked for any of the “acronyms”, as Will called them. On top of that, he was a straight-A student. There was literally no reason for Will to dislike the kid, but he was determined to dig up some dirt.
Will said he wouldn’t get caught, but I drew the line at hacking the boy’s phone and laptop.
The only thing that could get him out of his chivalrous big brother spiral was Zoey grabbing his hand and demanding his full participation in playing beauty salon. My six-year-old sister was a beast with some nail polish, and Will’s hot pink manicure was proof of that.
He was such a good sport.
And oh God—the sex. I never wanted to sleep alone again. Going back to my sofa bed was going to be absolute torture. Not only because his mattress was literally heaven, but because waking up safely tucked inside his arms was my favorite thing in the world.
I turned the lights off in Room 326 and moved the cart one door down.
I smiled every time I cleaned this one. I wondered if the guests staying in Room 328 knew that it was the room where two people from different sides of the tracks met and fell in love.
On more than one occasion, I was tempted to write our story down and hide it in there. Maybe someone would read it and be brave enough to fall in love too.
I tapped out three quick knocks followed by, “Housekeeping!” When there was no reply, I yanked on the master key clipped to my badge reel, and unlocked the door.
The roll of trash bags in my hand fell to the floor. “What the…”
Flickering candles and red roses covered every surface. Will stood in the middle of the room with his hands in the pockets of his jeans.
He never looked like what I imagined a billionaire would. Instead of suits and patent leather loafers, he preferred Levis and Ariats. The bill of his ball cap was tucked into his back pocket.
I didn’t mind one bit.
The man had the best ass I’d ever seen, and those tight work jeans gave me an unobstructed view for maximum ogling.
I think that’s what I loved most about him. He was humble. He didn’t apologize for having done well for himself, but he didn’t flaunt it either.
“Hey, Sunshine.” Will was smiling, but there was a nervous tremor in his voice.
“Will—” I looked around at the mass of flowers and candles. Oh no. It was going to set the sprinklers off. “What are you?—”
Before I could get the rest of the words out, he reached into his pocket, pulled out a small box, and lowered down onto one knee.
“Kristin.” He looked at where I was frozen in the doorway and laughed. “C’mon, sweetheart—you’re not gonna make me do this with you standing all the way over there, are you?”
My feet moved of their own volition, carrying me closer and closer. I bent my knees to get down on his level, but he grabbed my hips and laughed.
“I’m the one who’s supposed to be on one knee,” he said with a chuckle. “You gotta stand up, Sunshine. ”
My lip quivered, and I wiped away the tears that were already streaming down my face.
“Sorry,” I said, laughing through gasping sobs. “I’ve never done this before. You’re the one with experience proposing.”
Will let out a loud crack of laughter. “I’m pretty sure that etiquette states that you’re not supposed to make fun of the person trying to propose.”
“Sorry! Sorry!” I giggled and cupped my hands over my mouth.
“Can I get on with it now?” he asked.
I nodded furiously, not saying another word.
“Kristin,” he began. “The day I met you in this room changed everything. I was minding my own business, and you barged in here and scared me half to death.”
Will paused and gave me a warning glare. “And none of your ‘almost-over-the-hill’ jokes either,” he said. “You walked in here and asked if you could open the curtains to let the sunshine in. Before you, my life was dark and lonely, but you’ve filled it with more love and light than I know what to do with.”
He blinked back tears in between nervous breaths.
“You have so much goodness in you. It can’t help but spill out and brighten everything around you. Your work ethic, how fiercely you love and protect the kids—you are an incredible woman. Four months ago, you walked in here and let the sunshine in. From that day on, I knew I didn’t want to live without it. Without you .”
Tears fell fast. I was smiling, crying, laughing, and probably looked downright silly. “Will…”
“Go open the curtains.”
Carefully, I tiptoed through the narrow path lined with candles that led to the balcony. I grabbed the middle seam of the heavy fabric and threw the curtains back. Logan—who was holding a fire extinguisher—Kylie, Hunter, and Zoey stood shoulder to shoulder on the balcony, each holding a sign with one word on it.
Together, it read, Will you marry him ?
I gasped when I saw the four of them there, holding their breath, waiting for me to say something. Will stepped past me and stood on the balcony. He pulled a ring out and handed the box to Logan.
“What do you say, Sunshine?” Will said with garbled emotion in his voice. “Will you marry me?”
“Yes!” I said it so quickly that I wasn’t sure it actually came out of my mouth before I launched myself into his arms. “Yes!”
Will caught me with ease, kissing me and spinning around. Then, in a chorus of simultaneous cheers and disgust from the kids, he set me on my feet, took my left hand, and slid the ring on my finger.
The six of us shuffled into Jokers and were met with a giant banner that read, Congratulations Kristin & Will. Apparently, the surprise engagement party was Kylie and Hannah Jane’s idea. The poker club and a few staffers from the inn were there, ready to celebrate.
Bridget had a tray of mocktails ready for the kids so they wouldn’t feel left out.
After a quick hug and congratulations from Steve, he pulled Logan away to talk about the car and see how the restorations were going. It wouldn’t be long before Logan joined the poker club too.
Hannah Jane pulled Kylie aside to talk to her about a job as an event assistant for the upcoming wedding season.
“Welcome to the club,” Bridget said with a smile as she pointed to the stunning, pear-shaped diamond ring on my finger. “How does it feel?”
“Surreal,” I said as I slid onto a barstool. “I can’t believe it, and I feel like I have so much to do!” I laughed. “It’s only been like five minutes, and I’m already thinking about dresses, cakes, and flowers. How did you decide what to tackle first?”
Bridget shrugged. “I’m taking it slow. We don’t even have a date yet.”
I raised my eyebrows as I took a sip of champagne. “Really?”
She nodded. “I’m just so busy right now. The only thing I’ve gotten is my dress. Kyle and I have talked about other stuff, but nothing’s set in stone.”
Well, that was some news. Before Maddie married Luca, we piled into bridal salons to help as she tried on gown after gown. I imagined that when Hannah Jane and Isaac finally got engaged, we would do the same.
“Oh, wow. That’s, uh… Exciting.”
Bridget nodded, but the smile on her face was as fake as a three-dollar bill. “Yeah, Kyle’s mom wanted to go with me, so we did it with just the two of us. It was… nice.”
“Well, I’m happy for you,” I said. “I bet it’s going to be beautiful.”
“Oh my God!” Maddie squealed as she bolted across the bar, still in her chef whites from her shift at Revanche. “I’m so happy for you! Okay! We need to talk about catering and cake. I’m picturing five tiers. You seem like a textured buttercream kind of girl, so what do you think of brushed buttercream lace and fresh flowers for your cake? It works in pretty much any season, and I can make the piped lace look like your dress if your dress has lace on it. Hannah Jane! we need to book dress appointments!”
“On it!” Hannah Jane shouted from the other side of the bar. She and Kylie were poring over her big-ass wedding binder.
“Lord have mercy,” Mel said with a laugh. “Are you ready for Abbott and Costello to be back in wedding planning mode? We almost didn’t survive Mad’s wedding, and now we’ve got Bee’s, yours, and Erica’s baby shower coming up.” She oohed and ahhed over my ring for a moment .
“When’s it gonna be your big day?” I asked. “Anyone caught your eye?”
Mel laughed. “Nah, I just keep getting shitty Tinder matches. Nothing even remotely worthy of a second date.”
“You’ll find yours,” I reassured her. “I wasn’t even looking for love, but it fell in my lap and knocked me on my ass anyway.”
I used to believe that I was secondhand smoke—something vile and ugly. The things my parents did weren’t my fault, and I knew that. Still, it didn’t change the fact that I was the byproduct of something deplorable.
But I didn’t think that way anymore.
I was done putting my head down and simply getting through each day. Nothing had changed about my circumstance, except for the amount of love I allowed myself to receive. I was worthy of the love they had to give.
Will came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist. “Hey, Sunshine.”
I leaned the back of my head against his chest and surveyed the bar.
Hannah Jane was deep in conversation with Kylie, as were Steve and Logan.
Maddie had pulled Hunter out onto the dance floor. Sure, she was a solid foot and a half taller than him, but his enthusiasm made up for it as they swung around to Johnny Cash.
Chase had his Zoey Bear balanced on the toes of his boots. He carefully waddled in circles, dancing with her feet on top of his.
Will kissed the top of my head. “What are you thinking about?”
“Just thinking about how wonderful life is,” I said with a blissful sigh. “How wonderful it’s always been, even when I didn’t see it.”
“We’ve got a lot to be thankful for,” he murmured.
I nodded. “Blessings in spades.”