Chapter 18
Harper
It had been way too long since there’d been a Christmas where I wasn’t the one in the kitchen cooking for charter guests or high-profile clients instead of family and loved ones. Even longer since I’d had a holiday that I actually got to spend with those loved ones.
I liked it.
A lot.
With dinner over and the dishes cleaned up, the chaos of the feeding frenzy had shifted to a new type of craziness.
This time centered around the Lyons’s traditional Christmas game of Pictionary.
In the living room, Preston and Reid were arguing over a drawing that could have either been a horse or a fireman, and Quinn loudly challenged her dad’s addition skills when it came to the score while everyone else sat back, laughed, and shook their heads.
I’d settled Grandma into a chair in the corner with her new blanket when she insisted she wanted to stay and enjoy all the games, even though she looked like she might fall asleep at any moment.
I almost got sucked into the drawing debate when Grayson caught my eye from the hallway and gestured for me to follow him out to the porch.
Outside, the cool air was a welcome contrast to the heat of the house. He wrapped a heavy fleece blanket around my shoulders and pulled me in for a quick hug.
“This was nice,” I said against his chest. I breathed deep and settled into his arms. “Is nice. Your family hasn’t changed a bit.”
He pulled back and raised an eyebrow until I laughed.
“Okay, obviously, some things have changed. Quinn is an excellent addition.”
“She is.”
“And Avery and Delaney are amazing, too.”
“They really are,” Grayson agreed. “I’m actually surprised Lauren isn’t here, but I can’t keep up with whatever’s happening with those two.”
“Your mom doesn’t come up for the holidays anymore?”
Grayson shook his head. “She doesn’t come back to Trickle Creek for much these days.
” His voice held a thread of disappointment.
“But she’s happy down south,” he continued.
“She has a full life, and her arthritis is so much better in the heat. Hopefully she’ll come up this summer when Delaney and Ethan’s baby is due. ”
“That would be nice.” I let myself get pulled back into his arms. “Being with family is so important.” It was something I was feeling more and more.
Grayson turned me in his arms, so I was pressed up against his back and could look out onto the snow-covered yard.
The soft glow of the Christmas lights strung above the porch cast a colorful display of light onto the snowflakes that fell lazily from the sky.
I leaned my head back against his chest with a contented sigh.
“This is the best Christmas I’ve had in a very long time,” I confessed after a moment.
“Really? It beats out a sunny, beach holiday?”
“In every single way.”
Behind me, Grayson shifted, his arm moving to his pocket. I turned to see him produce a box from his pocket. My heart leapt into my throat in a moment of panic.
“Grayson, what—”
“Don’t worry.” He laughed. “It’s not like that. Just a little Christmas gift.”
Some of the panic receded. “But I didn’t get you anything. I didn’t even think about—”
“Harper.” He stopped me with a shake of his head before lifting the lid of the box to reveal a simple silver ring.
I knew that ring.
There was nothing flashy about it. A simple stone in a silver band with a deep-purple amethyst.
I remembered the night he gave it to me. We were seventeen, full of love and hope. Grayson had promised me forever that night, and I’d promised it right back with my whole heart.
Just as clearly, I remembered pulling the ring off my finger and throwing it at him the night we broke up, hot tears blurring my vision, my heart shattering into a million pieces. I remembered the ring bouncing on the gym floor before skittering away, a painful symbol of everything I’d just lost.
“You kept it,” I whispered.
“I did.” His voice was low and rough. “Of course I did.”
My throat tightened, my heart stumbling over itself.
These last few weeks with him had been so nice, but we’d never talked about the elephant in the room.
We’d never addressed the fact that he’d broken my heart.
“But, why?” I tore my gaze away from the ring to look him in the eye.
“Why would you keep it after…after that?”
He blew out a slow breath, his eyes never leaving mine. “Because when I told you I didn’t love you, I lied.”
My heart stuttered.
“I knew that if I didn’t let you go—no, push you away, you would have stayed in Trickle Creek.”
“I wouldn’t have—”
“You would have.” He cut me off. “We both know that’s true.”
I closed my mouth and nodded. He was right.
“The truth is, Harper, I loved you too much to let you stay for me. You deserved to chase your dreams and live the life you were meant to live. And I knew, even then, that wasn’t in a small town with a small-town boy.”
My heart broke all over again. Deep down, I think I always knew why Grayson had done what he’d done.
Maybe selfishly, I didn’t want to face it because by not admitting the truth to myself, it was easier to let myself leave.
Because as much as I loved him, and I did, going to culinary school in Paris was my dream, too.
“And it worked.” He shrugged. “You left. And the things you’ve accomplished…” He shook his head, his eyes bright with pride. “I wouldn’t change what I did. But I couldn’t let go of this.” His eyes dropped to the ring again, and mine followed. “This has always been yours.”
The tears pricked at my eyes before I could stop them. My hand trembled as he lifted the ring from the box and pressed it into my palm. It felt heavier than a thin silver band should, like all the years between us were weighing down on us.
“Grayson…” My voice broke, and I had to clear my throat.
“These last few weeks…this Christmas…being with you, it’s been…
” I shook my head and laughed a little at my inability to find the words to tell him my news.
“It’s been the best month…can you believe it’s only been a month?
” I shook my head in disbelief before continuing.
“But it’s been the best I can remember in a very long time. ”
His jaw tightened at my confession. “Harper, I—”
“There you two are.” We both jumped back to see Grandma in the doorway, already bundled in her coat. “I think I’m ready to head home.”
Grayson straightened and tucked the ring box into his pocket before she could see. “I’ll grab my keys.” His voice was steady, but I caught the flicker of something in his eyes before he turned away.
I closed my fingers around the ring, my chest aching with everything left unsaid.
“I’ll go say goodbye.” Grandma went back inside, leaving me alone on the porch.
I opened my hand and looked down at the ring still resting in my palm. My chest squeezed, but it was no longer uncomfortable.
My heart thudded as I turned it over once, twice, and then slid it onto my finger. It fit perfectly, as if it had never been gone.