Chapter 56
KENT
The moment Sylvie’s lips touched mine, the rest of the world disappeared. The cold, the exhaustion from hours of stringing lights, the uncertainty about what her answer would be. All of it vanished in the warmth of her kiss.
Blood flowed south to my toes and finally moved through my fingers. She was a lifeline. There was no way in hell I could live without her.
And judging by this kiss, I wasn’t going to have to. As long as I kept my word and didn’t screw things up again.
Her hands found the front of my coat, gripping the fabric like she was anchoring herself to me.
I pulled her closer until there was no space left between us.
She tasted like hot chocolate and I was guessing peppermint from a candy cane.
She made a soft sound against my mouth. It was a trigger. I wanted to gobble the woman up.
The kiss deepened, became something desperate and hungry and full of all the longing we’d both been holding back.
My hands tangled in her hair, messing up whatever careful styling she’d done for the evening.
She pressed herself against me like she was trying to crawl into my coat.
I would gladly welcome her body against mine.
We were both wearing way too many clothes for my liking.
Snow began to fall in soft flurries, reminding me why it would be a bad idea to strip down right here among the trees. The truck bed was rough enough. I couldn’t imagine getting down and dirty right on the snowdrifts.
I traced the line of her lower lip with my tongue before gently pulling at her lip with my teeth.
This was better than any fantasy I’d allowed myself during the long, miserable week since I’d left Northwood.
This was Sylvie choosing me. She was choosing to believe in the possibility of something beautiful despite all the reasons she had to protect her heart from me.
We finally broke apart, both of us panting in the cold air. Her eyes were dancing with joy mixed with desire and just a hint of the mischief I’d fallen in love with from the very beginning.
“I want to take you up to my apartment,” she said. “You can’t sleep in that cabin.”
My body responded immediately to the promise in her voice. I couldn’t have asked for a better way to end my night. The lights might have been a foolish idea, but she had loved them, making all the cold and misery worth it.
But then she bit her lip in a way that suggested there was a complication coming. I replayed what she said. She wanted to take me up to her apartment but she didn’t say she was going to do it.
“Okay,” I said, waiting for her to clarify.
“But I’m still on the clock,” she said, glancing back toward the lodge. “The Santa event doesn’t officially end for another hour, and I can’t just disappear on our guests.”
I nodded, though every cell in my body was screaming in protest. My cock was demanding to be inside her. “Of course,” I said, restraining myself. “Duty first. Can I meet you after?”
She grinned at me, that brilliant smile that could power half of Manhattan, and grabbed my hand. “Come on. Let’s go inside.”
I planted my feet, sudden panic overriding desire. “Sylvie, I’m not sure going in there is a good idea. I’ll just wait for you to finish.”
“Why don’t you want to come in?”
“Your brother is going to beat me to a pulp,” I said, looking toward the lodge where I could see figures moving around inside. “And your dad will probably help hide the body. Maybe throw me in the same ditch I tossed that Christmas tree into.”
Sylvie laughed, actually laughed, at my very reasonable concerns about my physical well-being. “Hush. I’ll explain everything. It will be fine.”
Before I could protest further, she was dragging me through the snow toward the front door of the lodge. My heart hammered against my ribs as we approached the building, but there was something infectious about Sylvie’s confidence that made me believe maybe everything really would be fine.
I didn’t want to ruin their party. That was certainly not going to win me any points with the Northwood family.
We walked through the front door in a rush of cold air and melting snow.
Every head in the room turned toward us.
I felt like a deer caught in headlights, suddenly very aware that I was still holding Sylvie’s hand.
I glanced at her and saw the swollen lips and messy hair.
Anyone with eyes could probably tell exactly what we’d been doing outside.
Brom noticed us first, of course. His eyes went from our joined hands to my disheveled appearance to the satisfied flush on his sister’s cheeks. His mood went from confused to thunderous in about half a second.
Fuck.
He stalked toward us. The expression on his face suggested I was about to become intimately acquainted with his fist.
“What the hell?” he started, raising his hand in what was clearly meant to be a gesture telling me to get out before he decided to physically remove me.
But before he could finish his threat, Alder and Aspen came rushing past him toward the windows. Their faces pressed against the glass as they took in the light display outside.
“Wow!” Alder exclaimed. “Dad, look at this!”
Brom’s attention was diverted as his kids squealed with excitement.
“Who did this?” Aspen demanded. “It’s awesome!”
Their commotion drew the attention of the other children staying at the lodge. Soon there was a crowd of kids against the windows. Their breath fogged the glass as they pointed and exclaimed over the transformed tree farm.
Wesley, still in full Santa regalia, clapped his hands together with theatrical delight, playing it up extra for the kids.
“Well, would you look at that! Someone has been very busy spreading Christmas magic. What do you say we go outside and investigate? Be curious, my young friends! But jackets first!”
The children needed no further encouragement. They raced for the coat closet, chattering excitedly as they bundled up in preparation for exploring the light show that had appeared in the last couple of hours.
Wesley caught my eye and winked before following the parade of children outside. Within moments, an impromptu snowball fight broke out. Delighted laughter echoed through the trees.
The exodus left the main room significantly quieter, with just some of the adult guests remaining by the fire with their wine and conversation. It also left me facing the full attention of the Northwood family without the buffer of chaos to soften their focus.
Sylvie squeezed my hand. “Come on.”
Her family all watched me. She pointed to one of the tables.
“Sit,” Sylvie said in a commanding tone. “Everyone, sit.”
Even Brom complied, although he did so with obvious reluctance. And he made sure we knew he didn’t like it.
“I need you all to listen,” Sylvie said, taking the seat beside me. “And I need Kent to speak. Really speak. About what he’s proposing.”
All eyes turned to me. The weight of the moment settled on my shoulders like a lead blanket. These people had every reason to distrust me, every reason to throw me out into the snow and never look back. I wasn’t sure how to even start.
Sylvie’s hand found mine under the table, giving me the encouragement I needed to face them. I looked each of them in the eye and had a feeling no matter what I said, they weren’t going to be happy.
No pressure at all.
“I want to be an investor in your lodge,” I said. “Not as a representative of Bancroft Industries, but personally. With my own resources.”
Her father leaned forward slightly. “What kind of investment?”
“I want to help you restore this place to what it once was,” I said, the words coming faster now.
A snowball rolling downhill. “Fix the place up while preserving the character. Work on getting the word out, expand your marketing reach. I have other ideas, like adding some luxury cabins or a spa component, but all of that will be up to you. The general goal is to turn Northwood Lodge into the kind of destination that draws people from all over the country.”
Brom scratched his chin, frowning. “So we wouldn’t have to change everything up?”
I held up my hand and shook my head. “The traditions will be a big part of the appeal of Northwood Lodge. There’s plenty of money to be made doing what you’re already doing.
” I looked around at all of them. “And people need places like this now more than ever. Places where they can slow down, reconnect with each other, make some memories and some traditions of their own.”
I thought about my own transformation over the past few weeks, about how this place had changed me in ways I was still discovering.
“I’m proof of that,” I continued. “When I first came here, all I could think about was getting back to the fast lane in New York. Closing the deal, impressing my father, climbing the corporate ladder. This place was just another acquisition target.”
I turned to look at Sylvie, taking in the way the firelight played across her face. She was looking at me like she truly believed in me.
“Now I can’t imagine leaving all this behind.”
Silence followed. I could hear the crackling of the fire and the soft murmur of conversation from the other guests, but from the Northwood family table, nothing.
Then Harold cleared his throat. “What kind of numbers are we talking about? This place needs a lot of polish. It won’t be cheap.”
Before I could answer, Brom exploded. “Are you seriously considering this?” he demanded, turning to his father. “This is the same guy who tried to screw us over two weeks ago! The same guy who lied to Sylvie and made us all look like fools!”
“He wasn’t honest with Sylvie, which is unacceptable,” Harold said firmly. “But he didn’t try to screw us over. He gave us the paperwork to read through. All the terms were in there in black and white.”
“He could have been straight with us from the beginning,” Brom said.
“He also just strung lights through our entire tree farm in the middle of winter,” Stacy pointed out quietly. “That had to take hours. In the freezing cold.”
“So what?” Brom shot back. “A grand gesture doesn’t erase what he did.”
“People can change,” Sylvie said. “People can learn from their mistakes and choose to do better.”
“Can they?” Brom’s voice was rising now. “Or is this just another way for the Bancrofts to get what they want? Maybe this time instead of buying us out, they’ll just buy their way in!”
Harold held up a hand. “What would your father think about this investment?” he asked me, his eyes sharp and assessing.
I took a breath, knowing honesty was the only way forward with the Northwoods. “He’ll probably disown me, cut me off from my trust fund.”
That sucked the oxygen out of the room. Brom’s anger seemed to falter slightly, replaced by confusion.
“He doesn’t know about this,” I continued.
“I tried to sell him on a different version, forgetting about the oil reserves and focusing on making the lodge a successful getaway destination. It would have been a corporate partnership that would preserve what you’ve built while still generating profit for Bancroft Industries.
He didn’t say no outright, but he made it clear that sentiment doesn’t drive business decisions.
To him, there’s more money in oil in the short term, so that’s the route he thinks is best. But who cares what he thinks?
I’m here with the offer now, totally independently. ”
“So we wouldn’t be partnering up with your family’s company?” Harold asked.
“No, you’d be partnering up with me.” I looked around the table, meeting each of their gazes. “This isn’t a purely business decision. This is me choosing to invest in something I believe in.”
“And what about us?” Brom demanded. “What happens when you get bored of playing small-town businessman? What happens when daddy cuts off your trust fund, and you need quick cash?”
“Brom,” Sylvie warned. “Don’t be rude.”
“No, it’s okay,” I said. “He’s right to ask. You all are.”
I leaned forward, putting everything I had into making them understand.
“I’ve spent my entire adult life trying to earn my father’s approval, trying to be the kind of son he wanted.
It cost me relationships, cost me happiness, nearly cost me the chance to be with the most incredible woman I’ve ever met. ”
I squeezed Sylvie’s hand under the table.
“I’m done living my life for someone else’s expectations. I want to build something here. With Sylvie, with all of you, if you’ll have me. I want to wake up every morning and know that the work I’m doing matters, that I’m helping preserve something beautiful instead of destroying it for profit.”
The room erupted into passionate arguments.
Brom was adamant that this was a mistake and I couldn’t be trusted.
He was trying to convince them they’d be fools to get involved with a Bancroft in any capacity.
Stacy was more cautiously optimistic, pointing out that they needed help whether they wanted to admit it or not.
Harold was asking practical questions about timelines and legal structures and return on investment.
Through it all, Sylvie sat beside me, her hand steady in mine, watching her family debate the future of everything they’d built together.
She gave me a smile that was both reassuring and full of promise.
Whatever they decided, whatever happened next, we were in this together.