Chapter 7 Riley
Riley
Christmas Eve morning dawned crisp and clear, fresh powder sparkling on the pine trees like nature's own decorations.
I stood at the kitchen window, watching Holly fuss with the coffee maker, still marveling that she was here, that she was mine, that somehow this broken soldier had gotten lucky enough to deserve her love.
It had been two weeks since the competition, two weeks of falling deeper in love with her every day.
She'd driven back to Vancouver to close up her apartment and wrap up her business, and every day she'd been gone had felt like a year.
But now she was back for good, all her belongings crammed into a moving truck that had somehow made it up the mountain road.
Our mountain road. Our cabin. Our life.
"You're staring," she said without turning around, but I could hear the smile in her voice.
"Can't help it. Still can't believe you're real."
She turned then, crossing the kitchen to wrap her arms around my waist. "I'm real. We're real. And it's Christmas Eve."
"Best Christmas Eve of my life."
"Mine too." She rose up on her toes to kiss me, soft and sweet and perfect. "What do you want to do today?"
I knew exactly what I wanted to do today. Had been planning it since she'd said yes to staying, yes to building a life together. The ring had been burning a hole in my pocket for a week, waiting for the perfect moment.
Christmas Eve seemed pretty damn perfect.
"Actually," I said, trying to keep my voice casual, "I thought we could go through more of Edith's things. You said there were still boxes in the attic you hadn't looked through."
"That sounds perfect. I love learning new things about her."
If everything went according to plan, she was about to learn something very special indeed.
An hour later, we were up in the cabin's small attic, surrounded by boxes and photo albums and a lifetime of memories. Holly had found Edith's collection of Christmas ornaments, exclaiming over each delicate piece like it was made of gold.
"Look at this one," she said, holding up a tiny wooden angel. "She must have had this for decades."
"She did. She told me about that one. Said it was the first ornament she and your grandfather bought together."
Holly's eyes grew misty. "I wish I could have met him."
"You would have liked him. Edith always said you had his stubborn streak."
"Is that supposed to be a compliment?"
"From Edith? Definitely."
We worked in comfortable silence for a while, sorting through decades of carefully preserved memories. I was starting to worry that I'd miscalculated, that the box I was looking for wasn't up here, when Holly made a soft sound of discovery.
"Riley, look at this."
She was holding a small wooden box I recognized, carved with Edith's initials. Inside were letters, dozens of them, tied with faded ribbon.
"Love letters from your grandfather?" Holly asked.
"Some of them. But not all." I moved closer, my heart starting to pound. "Edith showed me that box once. Said it held her most precious correspondence."
Holly untied the ribbon carefully, reverently. The letters were in chronological order, the oldest ones on the bottom. She read a few from her grandfather, tears streaming down her face at the sweet, simple declarations of love.
"They were so happy together," she whispered.
"They were. Edith always said she'd been blessed with one great love in her lifetime."
Holly continued through the letters, finding cards from friends, notes from her father as a child, and then, near the top of the pile, letters in my handwriting.
"These are from you," she said, surprise clear in her voice.
"Yeah. I wrote to her after I moved here. Thanked her for everything she'd done, for giving me a place to heal."
Holly opened one of my letters, reading silently. When she looked up, her eyes were bright with tears.
"You told her you were learning to live again. That she'd given you hope when you thought it was gone forever."
"She did."
"And look." Holly opened another letter, this one more recent. "You wrote to her about me. Before you ever met me."
I felt heat rise in my cheeks. "She talked about you all the time. Made you sound like this amazing woman who could take on the world."
"What did you write?"
"Read it."
Holly cleared her throat and began to read aloud.
"Dear Edith, you talk about your granddaughter so much I feel like I know her.
She sounds like the kind of person who brings light wherever she goes, who makes everyone around her better just by being herself.
You're lucky to have her in your life, and she's lucky to have you.
I hope someday I get to meet this remarkable woman who puts such joy in your voice every time you say her name. "
She looked up at me, her expression soft. "You wrote that six months ago."
"I meant every word."
Holly reached for the last letter in the box, but instead of a letter, she found a small jewelry box wrapped in tissue paper. Her breath caught.
"What's this?"
"Edith said it was for someone special. Someone who would understand its value." I moved closer, my heart hammering against my ribs. "Open it."
With trembling fingers, Holly unwrapped the tissue paper and opened the small velvet box. Inside was a simple but beautiful engagement ring, a classic solitaire that caught the afternoon light filtering through the attic window.
"Riley," she breathed.
"There's a note."
She found the small piece of paper tucked under the ring, unfolding it carefully. Edith's handwriting was shaky but clear:
For the woman who captures Riley's heart. I may not live to see it happen, but I know it will. This ring belonged to my mother, and her mother before that. It's meant for a love that lasts forever. Use it well, my dear boy. You deserve all the happiness in the world.
Holly's hands were shaking as she finished reading. When she looked up at me, tears were streaming down her face.
"She knew," she whispered. "Somehow, she knew."
"Edith always was too smart for her own good." I took the ring box from her trembling hands, then dropped to one knee in the dusty attic, surrounded by memories and Christmas decorations and the scent of cedar and time.
"Holly LaBelle," I said, my voice rough with emotion, "I spent four years thinking I was too broken for love, too damaged for happiness. Then you showed up with your Christmas lights and your stubborn determination and your huge heart, and you changed everything."
"Riley..."
"You made me believe in Christmas miracles. You made me believe in second chances. You made me believe in love." I opened the ring box, the diamond catching the light. "Will you marry me? Will you let me spend the rest of my life loving you?"
For a moment, she was speechless, her hands pressed to her mouth, tears flowing freely. Then she launched herself at me, nearly knocking me over as she kissed me with everything she had.
"Yes," she said between kisses. "Yes, yes, a thousand times yes."
My hands shook as I slipped the ring onto her finger. It fit perfectly, like it had been made for her. Like Edith had known all along.
"I love you," I said, holding her close.
"I love you too. So much." She held up her hand, admiring the ring through her tears. "It's perfect. She's perfect. This whole thing is perfect."
"Even the dusty attic proposal?"
"Especially the dusty attic proposal. It's exactly what she would have wanted."
We held each other in that small space, surrounded by Edith's memories, both of us crying and laughing and completely overwhelmed by the magnitude of what had just happened.
"When?" Holly asked finally.
"When what?"
"When do you want to get married?"
"Tomorrow. Today. Right now." I cupped her face, wiping away her tears with my thumbs. "I've waited long enough for you. I don't want to wait anymore."
"How about New Year's Eve? Small ceremony, just us and a few friends from town."
"Perfect. Absolutely perfect."
We made our way back downstairs, both of us giddy with happiness and the promise of forever. Holly kept staring at her ring, twisting it on her finger like she couldn't quite believe it was real.
"I should call someone," she said suddenly. "I should tell someone we're engaged."
"Who do you want to call?"
"I want to shout it from the rooftops. I want everyone to know that I'm going to marry the most wonderful man in the world."
The rest of Christmas Eve passed in a blur of phone calls and impromptu visits from neighbors who'd heard the news and wanted to congratulate us.
Word traveled fast in a small town, and apparently everyone was thrilled that Edith's granddaughter and the quiet veteran next door had found love together.
As the sun set, we found ourselves standing outside in front of our memorial display, now permanently installed and glowing softly in the gathering darkness. The stars of light pulsed gently, like heartbeats, like promises kept.
"Think she would have approved?" Holly asked, leaning against my side.
"Edith? She would have been over the moon. This was her plan all along, I think."
"What do you mean?"
"Think about it. She writes to my unit for three years, becoming the most important person in my life besides my family.
Then she offers me a place to heal, helps me buy the cabin next door.
She talks about you constantly, makes me fall half in love with you before we ever meet.
" I tightened my arms around her. "Then she leaves you the cabin, knowing you'd have to come here to settle her affairs. "
"You think she was matchmaking from beyond the grave?"
"I think Edith knew exactly what she was doing. She wanted to make sure the two people she loved most in the world would take care of each other."
Holly was quiet for a long moment, considering this. "She always did like to meddle."
"This time, I'm grateful for it."
"Me too."
We stood there as full darkness fell, watching our memorial display honor the fallen while celebrating the love that had brought us together. In the distance, other houses were twinkling with Christmas lights, the whole mountain community preparing for Christmas morning.
The stars pulsed gently in their constellation patterns, each one a reminder of sacrifice and hope. Holly's engagement ring caught the light as she held up her hand, still staring at it in wonder.
"I can't believe this is real," she whispered.
"Believe it." I pulled her closer, breathing in the vanilla scent of her hair. "You're stuck with me now."
"Good," she said fiercely. "That's exactly where I want to be."
We went back inside as the temperature dropped, the warmth of the cabin wrapping around us like an embrace. The engagement ring caught the firelight as Holly curled up against my side, and I still couldn't quite believe this was real.
"What are you thinking about?" she asked softly.
"Last Christmas. I spent it alone, avoiding town, avoiding anything that might trigger the nightmares. I was convinced I'd always be alone."
"And now?"
"Now I can't imagine being anywhere else. With anyone else." I pressed a kiss to the top of her head. "You saved me, you know that?"
"We saved each other."
As the clock approached midnight, marking the beginning of Christmas Day, Holly fell asleep against my shoulder. I should have woken her, should have gotten her to bed properly, but I couldn't bring myself to disturb this perfect moment.
Instead, I sat there watching her sleep, this amazing woman who'd turned my world upside down in the best possible way. The fire crackled softly, the memorial display glowed outside the window, and for the first time in years, I felt complete peace.
"Merry Christmas, future wife."