Chapter 19 #2
It’s a Valentine’s Day sweater; probably one of the gaudiest I’ve seen. It has hearts made of sequins and the word Love is written in tiny sparkle balls. As he holds it up to look at it, Winter says, “It’s from me. Hazel told me how much you loved the Christmas sweater, so I thought…”
“It’s perfect,” Alec replies with a grin. “Now I just need to find a matching one for Hazel.”
Once he folds it back up and sets it aside, Alec turns to me. “What did you get, Haze?”
I carefully separate the edges of the paper and peel them away from the box beneath. As soon as I read the words on the box, my heart squeezes.
It’s the Epic version of the newest World of Warcraft expansion pack, complete with the best flying mount, a special gryphon pet, and a transmogrification set for my armor.
“Alec said you didn’t have this one yet,” Gage explains. “And since you’re playing WoW with us now… I thought you’d like it.”
Hugging the box to my chest, I reply, “I do. Thank you, Gage. I can’t wait to try it out.”
“When we get back from my parents,” Alec offers. “Maybe on Sunday, we can all run some quests together.”
“Sounds great,” Knox agrees. “I’m down.”
“I’ll ask Jess if she’s free,” I add. “I bet Kane got her the expansion pack, too.”
Though it was sad saying goodbye to Tenebris Veil—despite the terrible part of it, I had a lot of good memories as well—I couldn’t bring myself to play it anymore.
But now I’m playing World of Warcraft with Alec, Gage, Knox, their friend, Webb, and Jess.
And this time, when I play, I know Alec’s taken all the precautions to make sure my identity is completely concealed.
From across the room, Ronan lets out a loud cheer. He holds up a six-pack of beer for display and says, “Lark. This is great. Hill Farmstead is one of my favorite breweries.”
Max pulls a large geode from a tissue-stuffed box and calls out with a smile, “Rory. I love this. I’ve never seen one this nice before.”
She beams at him. “Oh, good. I bought it from this place in Utah. They’re supposed to have the best geodes.”
When I first heard about Max’s rock collecting hobby, I was surprised. It didn’t fit with his intimidating appearance. But seeing him smiling so widely, his eyes lit up with enthusiasm… Well, it just goes to show we never really know what’s going on inside a person.
Or the struggles they’re going through.
Alec lifts me off his lap and sets me onto the cushion beside him. He catches my hand and says, “Actually, I have a gift for you, too.”
I look at him in surprise. “But we’re doing presents tomorrow.”
“I know.” He reaches into his pocket and draws out a small box in a robin’s egg blue. “But I wanted to give you something on Christmas Eve, too. Start another tradition.”
“Alec. I didn’t bring anything for you.”
“That’s okay.” He smiles. “If you like it, that’s the perfect gift.”
As I look at the box, my heart flutters. It’s the right size for a ring, but we haven’t even talked about something like that.
“It’s not that,” Alec adds quietly. “Not yet.” He strokes my cheek. “But I will. When we both think the time is right. That’s a promise.”
My chest squeezes.
“When you ask, I’ll say yes,” I tell him. “That’s a promise, too.”
Emotion tightens his features. “Okay. Good.” Swallowing hard, he nods at the box in my hand. “Open it.”
His arm slides around me as I lift the lid of the box. “I picked it because it… Well. You’ll see.”
I lift the lid slowly, wanting to treasure each moment.
Finally, I open the box to reveal a sparkling necklace inside.
“Alec.”
“It’s a key,” he says unnecessarily. “Well, a key necklace. Not a real key.” A nervous tremor shakes his voice. “Obviously, it’s not a real key. That would be weird. But—”
“It’s gorgeous.” And it is. The small rose gold key is decorated with tiny diamonds and hangs from a delicate, shimmering chain. It’s the perfect size to rest at my collarbone, picking up the light and casting rainbows from the perfect facets of the gems.
“I wanted something that represents how I feel about you,” he explains. “And a key…” He swallows. “Before you, I kept my heart locked up. I thought it was safer that way. But you showed up with the key. And you unlocked my heart. You showed me what it really means to be in love.”
“Alec.” My voice wobbles.
“That’s why I picked this necklace. Because you hold the key to my heart. I know that sounds cheesy, but it’s true.”
Tears prick at my eyes. “It’s not cheesy. It’s beautiful.” I kiss him hard. “And you hold the key to my heart, too.”
Alec stares at me, emotions working in his gaze. “I love you, Haze. So much.”
“I love you, too.” I take the necklace from the box with trembling fingers. “And I love this. It’s perfect.”
“No.” Alec takes the necklace from me and fastens it around my neck. “You’re perfect, sweetheart. And I feel so damn lucky to have found you.”
“We’re both lucky,” I tell him.
And we are. In so many ways.
When I came here, I thought Bliss was just an aspirational name for a town.
But now I know the truth of it.
I found my own Bliss. Right here. With Alec.