Christmas in Good Hope (A Good Hope Novel Book 1) (26 page)

The joy of the holiday season wrapped around Ami like a pretty ribbon. Only two days until Christmas and she was in a warm, fragrant kitchen surrounded by those she loved, doing what she enjoyed most—baking.

Yet her delight was tempered with melancholy. It was as if a critical ingredient in a recipe had been left out. Unlike the lavender cookies, Ami knew exactly what was missing . . . Beck.

Trying not to think of him had proved an impossible task. So she let the image of those dark brown eyes simmering with passion dance before her while she stirred sugar, butter, egg, and vanilla in a saucepan for tonight’s bread pudding.

Nearby, Marigold rolled peanut butter in cornflakes for the balls that were her favorite. She heard Prim humming as she placed the M&M’s in the “belly buttons” her boys loved.

Ami leaned over, snatched one of the buttons off the waxed paper. You didn’t have to be a six-year-old boy to love a sweet treat made out of pretzels, Hershey’s chocolate Kisses, and M&M’s.

Fin had taken a call about some crisis in the office. Ami surmised the conversation hadn’t gone well when her sister returned with a scowl on her face.

“Is everything okay?” Ami kept her tone light.

“At the moment, ‘Take this job and shove it’ seems an appropriate response to that question.”

At Ami’s concerned glance, Fin smiled. “I’m kidding. Just another minor crisis with a high-profile client. All is good.”

“I wish I could say the same about my job.” Prim popped the last M&M’s into the chocolate Kiss and sighed. “Rumor is there’s going to be another wave of layoffs where I work after the first of the year.”

Marigold’s blond brows pulled together. “Any chance you’ll be out?”

“I don’t think so.” Prim’s confident tone may have satisfied the other two, but Ami saw the worry in her eyes. “I hope not.”

“I realize you love Milwaukee.” Ami rested a hand on her sister’s shoulder. “But remember you always have a place here.”

“I sense a group hug coming on.” Marigold’s droll tone had Ami setting down her stirring spoon and moving close.

Fin rolled her eyes but obligingly closed the circle.

A “power of four” hug ended up being just what Ami needed on this brisk December afternoon.

“Is there room for one more in that hug?”

Ami stiffened. She stepped back from the sisterly embrace to regard Beck. “Who let you in?”

She wondered why she sounded cross when she was so wholly glad to see him.

“I let myself,” he said sheepishly. “The door was unlocked.”

Fin shot him a pointed look. “You could have knocked. Or, I don’t know, rang the bell.”

Prim chuckled before turning back to the belly buttons.

“I wasn’t sure you’d let me in.” Beck’s dark gaze remained firmly focused on Ami. “Can we talk?”

Even as he saw her hesitation, he kept his gaze fixed on hers. “Please.”

He didn’t know what to think when she turned to her sisters.

“Your call.” Prim spoke gently in a barely audible tone.

Marigold moved to Ami’s side and touched her shoulder. “We’ll support you, whatever you decide.”

Fin also voiced her support before shooting Beck a withering glance.

Ami turned and studied his face for a long moment, her gaze searching his.

Even as sweat trickled down his spine, he willed her to see the love that was in his heart.

Finally, she turned back to her sisters. “Can one of you finish up the bread pudding?”

Fin lifted the stirring spoon from Ami’s hand and stepped to the stove. “I’ve got this covered.”

“Thank you.” Ami gave Fin’s shoulder a squeeze, then motioned to Beck. “We can talk in the living room.”

She sat on the sofa, taking a seat at the far end. She wore a simple green Henley, worn jeans, and UGGs. Her hair was pulled back from her face with two clips. He thought she’d never looked lovelier.

Beck removed his coat and laid it across a chair, then sat at the other end of the sofa. When he opened his mouth to speak, she held up a hand.

“There’s a couple things I need to say first, that I want you to understand.” She met his gaze unblinkingly. “I planned to tell you after Christmas that I’d been drinking when I was in that accident. Not knowing how you’d react, I wanted to wait so I didn’t ruin your—or my—Christmas. I realize now that was a mistake.”

She folded her hands in her lap, which he took as his cue.

“I read your piece in the
Open Door
.” Beck rubbed his chin. “Writing that article took courage.”

Her eyes widened. He could see he’d surprised her.

“It’s not easy owning up to mistakes, much less making them public knowledge.”

Ami’s face remained solemn. “If just one person thinks before they drink and drive, perhaps something good can come out of my carelessness.”

“Your article certainly made me take a hard look at myself.” He cleared his throat, recalling his conversation earlier that day with Nina. “You were able to move on, while I’ve held on to my anger and pain as if it were a righteous shield. In the end, all that accomplished was keeping me stuck in the past.”

Ami put a hand on his arm. “You had a good reason—”

“I called Nina Holbrook this morning. I told her I forgave her. She broke down and cried in gratitude.” His eyes grew moist, remembering the woman’s response. “It was the right thing to do. I feel like I’ve turned a corner and now I can finally move forward with my life.”

“I’m happy for you, Beck.” Her green eyes filled with tears. “That took real courage.”

Ami began to rise, but he grabbed her hand and pulled her down beside him.

“I’m not finished.” His tone was low and urgent. “I was wrong to walk out on you last night.”

“You were shocked, disappointed.”

Despite the soft-spoken, understanding words, Beck could see her father hadn’t been the only one he’d disappointed.

“That’s no excuse.” His jaw jutted out. “A man doesn’t walk out on the woman he loves.”

Ami’s gaze turned questioning.

“I love you, Ami.” He smiled ruefully, wishing the pronouncement could have been uttered in a more romantic way. Taking her cold fingers, he warmed them between his hands. “I’m asking for your forgiveness for walking out yesterday. It won’t happen again.”

She pulled her hand away, her fingers fluttering to her neck. “I don’t know what to say.”

“Saying you love me would be a good start.”

Whatever response she’d been about to make was silenced by the twins bursting through the front door, yelling that they’d seen a werewolf on the side of the road with fangs and glowing yellow eyes.

Ami rose to her feet and sighed. She shook her head at her dad. “Didn’t I warn you not to tell the twins about the werewolf sightings in Jefferson County?”

“I think it was a big dog,” was all he said. “Or a bear.”

At the commotion, Ami’s sisters spilled into the living room and everyone began talking at once. Beck heard the words
claws
,
dog face
, and
pointed ears
more times than he cared to remember over the next couple of hours. He accepted an invitation to dinner and pronounced the bread pudding excellent.

With everyone around, there was no opportunity for him and Ami to speak privately. On the way home, Beck consoled himself with the fact she’d given him an extra helping of dessert.

That, coupled with a kiss at the door, gave him hope there might be a merry Christmas in his future, after all.

C
hapter
T
wenty-
S
ix

“You didn’t have to rush over here,” Fin told Ami the next day as she pulled the car into Beck’s driveway. “Just because he snaps his fingers doesn’t mean you have to jump. Tonight’s Christmas Eve. We’ve got dinner, church, and caroling in the town square. He needs to understand you’ve got a lot on your plate.”

Ami had been at her father’s house when she’d gotten Beck’s call. “He didn’t snap his fingers. He asked nicely. Besides, did you really think I wanted to hang around the house with Anita there?”

“Why do you think I offered to drive you?” Fin lifted a brow. “Five minutes around that woman and I-Need-a-Drink.”

“Make mine a double.” Ami laughed and reached for the door handle. “I’m sure Beck will drive me back to Dad’s house. If not, I’ll give you a call.”

Fin leaned over, grabbed her arm. “He had that look in his eyes last night.”

Ami cocked her head. “What look?”

“Just remember, if he wants you—and you decide you want him—make the guy do some groveling before you forgive him.”

Ami only smiled. She stood for a moment in the drive, gazing up at the massive house that seemed so familiar. The sudden feeling of returning home gripped her as she navigated the last step.

The door swung open before she had a chance to knock.

Beck stood in the doorway, looking incredibly sexy in all black. His hair was slightly damp at the edges, as if he’d just stepped out of the shower. And he smelled terrific. Had he known the spicy scent he’d put on was her favorite?

Desire curled low in her belly, but she forced a serene, Madonna-like smile. It was safer if he didn’t know how he affected her. She handed him her coat.

“Thanks for coming.”

“Thanks for inviting me.”

“You look lovely.” The gleam in his eyes put a different spin on the simple comment.

Ami glanced down at the pencil skirt and cashmere sweater Fin had loaned her. She had to admit her sister had been right; the way the sweater hugged her curves added a certain allure to the outfit.

The footsteps of the heeled boots she’d also borrowed echoed in the empty foyer. She turned to Beck. “It looks so bare.”

“We’ll make it more beautiful than ever. I promise.”

We’ll?
Ami’s heart gave an involuntary leap when he put his palm against the small of her back and ushered her toward the stairs.

Ami glanced down the hall. “I thought we were having tea.”

That’s what he’d promised when he’d called.

“The pot of Earl Grey is waiting for us upstairs in the sitting room.” He shot her an innocent smile. “I’ve got a fire going. We’ll be more comfortable.”

He was right, she thought, when she reached the upstairs. Through the lace curtains, Ami could see snow gently falling in large, white flakes. A cheery fire burned in the hearth, heating the room to a toasty warmth. It was cozy and intimate, the perfect place to relax on a cold winter afternoon.

She poured them each a cup of tea, then took a seat in front of the fire with her cup.

Beck seemed on edge, pacing in front of the fire while she sipped.

“Is something wrong?” she asked, growing concerned.

“You never gave me an answer.”

Puzzled, she inclined her head. “I don’t remember any question.”

“I told you I loved you.”

Just hearing him say the words had her heart breaking into a samba. But she covered the thrill by taking another sip of tea and lifting a brow. “That appears to be a statement, not a question.”

“Don’t be flippant.” He raked a hand through his hair. “This is serious. I’m serious.”

Make him grovel. Wasn’t that what Fin said? But that wasn’t Ami’s style. Still, there was something she needed to make clear.

“Driving that night after drinking was a mistake. I learned from my mistake. I can’t—I won’t—be with someone who holds that against me.”

He dropped down beside her.

Dear Lord, he smelled good.

“I made an even bigger mistake when I walked away from you the night of your father’s open house. I learned from my mistake. I don’t want you to hold that against me, to think I can’t be trusted to stand by you.”

“It hurt,” she admitted. “But you’d just been smacked up the side of the head with a revelation you didn’t expect.”

“Sounds as if we’re both human.” A smile touched his lips. “I have a confession.”

“You’re not human?”

“Very funny. No, I opened your Christmas gift.”

She shook her head and made a tsking sound. “You’re as bad as the twins.”

Beck rose and took the sun catcher from where he’d laid it on the mantel. It dangled from his fingers on a circle of fishing line. “A wise woman once told me that a star says ‘home.’”

“That’s exactly right.” Ami glanced around. “Have you decided where to hang it?”

“I believe that’s something we should decide together.” Beck carefully placed the star back in the box.

“It’s your home,” she pointed out.

“My home is with you.”

Ami was still processing the words when Beck moved to her side, dropped to one knee, and took her hand in his. He caressed her palm with his thumb, then cocked his head as if listening.

“Do you hear something?”

“Thankfully, no.” He chuckled. “I really don’t want anyone spoiling this moment by rushing in with talk of werewolves on the side of the road.”

Their gazes held and Ami found herself smiling at him.

“I think we’re safe.” She was amazed she could respond so coherently with the blood rushing in her ears. “You may continue.”

Her control nearly shattered when he brought her hand to his mouth for a kiss, his dark eyes burning with emotion.

When he spoke, his voice was low, raspy, and not quite steady. “From the first moment you walked through the door of Muddy Boots, I knew there was something special about you. I wasn’t looking to fall in love, but there you were.”

His gaze, so full of love and tenderness, had tears springing to her eyes.

“I can’t imagine going through life without you by my side. You bring out the best in me and make me want to be a better man. My life is richer and fuller, beyond measure, and the only thing that could make it more complete is if you’d be my wife.”

He paused, and searched her face as if trying to decipher her expression.

“I would give you the world if I could.”

“I don’t need the world,” she began.

His fingers closed over her lips before she could say more.

“I know you wanted to turn the house into a bed-and-breakfast, but I would like it if this could be our home, where we trim the Christmas tree together and have friends over for barbecues on the back patio, where our children can run up and down the stairs in their pajamas.” He spoke quickly, as if determined to get it all out. “If you’re set on running a B and B, I’ve heard the Dunlevey house might be coming up for sale. We could—”

“I don’t want to turn our home into a B and B. I don’t want to run one, either. I love the bakery.”

He arched a brow as if that surprised him. “You said you’d always dreamed about turning this house into a bed-and—”

“Because that’s the only way I thought I’d be able to afford this house.” Still, seeing uncertainty on his face, she continued. “Don’t you see that this will be
our
bed-and-breakfast?”

As comprehension began to dawn on his face, she cupped his cheek briefly in her hand. “We’ll go to bed together every night and have breakfast together every morning. I can’t think of a sweeter, or more wonderful, life.”

“There’s only one thing missing from that picture.”

“What is it?”

“A ring and a promise.” He reached into his pocket and flipped open a black velvet case. Nestled inside was an emerald-cut diamond in brilliant platinum.

Tears slipped down her cheeks. Happy tears from a heart overflowing with joy.

“I love you so much. I can’t imagine anything better than spending my life with you here in Good Hope, building a home, a family, and a life together. If you love me even half as much as I love you, I’ll be a happy man. Will you marry me?”

“I love you, James Beckett Cross. More than I ever thought possible to love anyone. And yes, I’ll be happy and proud to become your wife.”

He slipped the ring on her finger. “Forever.”

Then, before Ami even had a second to breathe, Beck’s lips were on hers, exquisitely gentle and achingly tender, with the promise of a long and happy life together.