Riley suddenly fought back tears. “I’m sorry,” she said, embarrassed. “I don’t know what’s gotten into me. I’m never like this . . .”
“Christmas, that’s what’s gotten into you, and it’s nothing to be sorry about,” Luke said as he gently touched a tear that had escaped.
Riley’s heart beat faster when she felt Luke’s touch.
Caylee reappeared, interrupting the moment. She took Riley’s arm. “Sorry, Luke. I’m going to steal Riley away from you. Maryanne and I need to get her upstairs and start getting ready for the dance.”
“She’s all yours,” Luke said.
Riley let herself be led away by Caylee, but when she glanced back over her shoulder at Luke, she smiled when she saw he was still watching her. When he smiled back, her pulse quickened even more.
“Everything okay?” Caylee asked, giving Riley a curious look.
Riley dragged her attention back to Caylee. “Yes. Everything’s great.”
She didn’t miss Caylee’s knowing look.
“What?” Riley asked.
“I just thought I saw sparks,” Caylee said. “Between you and Luke.”
Riley stopped dead in her tracks. “What? That’s crazy. You didn’t see anything.”
Caylee put her hands on her hips. “I saw what I saw. You’re the one always saying in all your books there has to be a spark, and now you’re telling me you don’t recognize it in yourself? What about with your exes? Do you have a spark with them?”
“I don’t know,” Riley answered, feeling flustered.
“Well, if you want to have your own Christmas love story, I’d definitely try to figure it out sooner than later, if I were you,” Caylee said.
Before Riley could respond, Colin came up to them holding two glasses of Champagne. He handed them each one. “Riley, can I talk to you for a moment?”
Riley looked back at Caylee.
“Go ahead,” Caylee said. “We still have plenty of time, and Riley, weren’t you just saying you were looking for something with Colin?”
When Riley shot Caylee a warning look, Caylee just smiled back at her. “You two kids have fun,” she said before walking away.
Riley took a sip of her Champagne and smiled at Colin. “What did you want to talk about?”
“Us,” Colin said. “I really want to talk about us.”
Chapter Thirty-Six
Riley recognized the look on Colin’s face. It was the look he always used to get when he wanted about to talk about something serious.
“I thought we could do a toast before everything gets going tonight,” Colin said.
Riley held up her glass. “Okay, but then you’re going to need some Champagne. When she saw Maryanne passing out Champagne, she quickly walked over and took a glass.
“For Colin,” Riley explained to Maryanne.
“Good luck,” Maryanne said with a wink.
“Thanks,” Riley said before taking the glass back to Colin.
When Colin took the glass, he smiled back at her, but then when they both spotted Paul hovering nearby with his camera, Colin turned to her. “Let’s go in the library for a little privacy.”
Riley smiled. “You read my mind.”
But as they were turning to go, Paul stopped her. “Riley, I have that picture you wanted.” He walked over and handed her a printout of her childhood photo with Santa. “Does this work?”
Riley nodded, looking at the picture. “It works great. Thank you, Paul.”
Colin smiled when he saw that picture. “That’s a classic. You’re so cute. Looks like I have some serious competition with the Big Guy there.”
Riley laughed as they headed into the library and was relieved to see they were alone. She slipped the photo into her cocktail purse.
“This is turning out to be quite the night,” Colin said. “You should be really proud of all that you’ve done here at Christmas Camp. People seem to really love it—and you, though that’s not surprising. You’re very loveable.”
Riley laughed. “And you’re very sweet and great for a girl’s ego.
Colin held up his Champagne. “A toast to Christmas surprises and finding a way back to each other.”
Riley hesitated a moment before clinking her glass to his. Looking at Colin, she knew that she’d always love him, but she didn’t know if she could see herself in love with him.
Caylee’s voice was in her head talking about the importance of having that spark . . .
She knew what she needed to do.
She stepped closer to Colin and kissed him.
He was surprised for a moment, but then he kissed her back, putting his arm around her, drawing her in closer. As they kissed, she waited for the spark.
It never happened.
She slowly pulled away and looked into Colin’s eyes. She saw so much love and kindness there. It would be so easy to start a relationship with him again. He would always be the safe choice, someone to protect her, who she could count on.
But she had grown over all these years and was a strong person herself. She didn’t need the safe choice anymore. She wanted someone who would challenge her, help her grow. So as much as she loved Colin, she didn’t see herself loving him the way he should be loved, and she knew they both deserved more than that.
She was about to tell Colin how she felt when Brendan walked in. He was carrying two glasses of Champagne. “Hey, sorry to interrupt,” Brendan said, “but can I steal Riley away?”
For one surreal moment, Riley actually felt like she was on an episode of The Bachelorette where the contestants were always cutting in on others’ one-on-one time.
“We had just started talking,” Riley said to Brendan.
Colin took Riley’s hand, looked into her eyes, and smiled a confident smile. “It’s okay. We can talk later.”
“Are you sure?” Riley asked.
“Absolutely,” Colin said and turned to Brendan. “She’s all yours.”
After Colin disappeared, Brendan handed Riley a fresh glass of Champagne. “I hope I wasn’t interrupting something.”
Riley gave him shrewd look. “Yes, you do.”
Brendan laughed. “That’s what I always love about you, Riley. You don’t pull any punches. But seriously, I wanted to show you something.”
“Okay,” Riley said, giving him a curious look.
“It’s in my room,” Brendan said.
Riley laughed. “You really think that line’s going to work on me?”
Brendan laughed loudly. “It’s not like that. You know me better than that.”
When he held out his hand to her, she took it. “This better be good.”
“Don’t worry,” Brendan said. “It is.”
When they got to his room, he set down both of their glasses and walked over to the dresser and picked up an impressive-looking antique globe. It was about a foot tall.
“I wanted you to see this,” Brendan said, placing the globe on the table in front of her. “I found it in town, and I thought it would make the perfect Christmas present for you.”
“It’s very nice, but you already got me that beautiful compass,” Riley said.
Brendan smiled back at her. “This is different.” He picked up a white envelope from the table and handed it to her. “Open it.”
When Riley opened the envelope, she was even more confused. She took out a voucher for a plane ticket, but there was no destination or date.
“What is this?” she asked, checking both sides of the voucher.
“Spin the globe,” Brendan said, excited. “Pick any spot you want, and wherever it is, we’ll go there together. It will be our next trip—the start of a whole new adventure.”
When Brendan spun the globe, Riley just stared at it going around and around . . .
“Go ahead,” Brendan sai
d, pointing at the globe. “Pick a spot.”
The globe kept spinning, but instead of picking a place, Riley leaned in and kissed him.
It only took him an instant to get over his surprise and kiss her back.
Riley could hear the globe still spinning. She could taste the Champagne on Brendan’s lips, but what she couldn’t do was feel a spark.
As she gently pulled away, Brendan reached out for her hand. His eyes were full of hope. “That was a great surprise,” he said.
Riley struggled to find the words to tell him that while the adventures she’d had with him would always be something she cherished, she was ready to go on new adventures, just not with him. She could be brave now on her own. He had helped her with that. And while she was grateful, grateful wasn’t enough to build a relationship on. They’d had a great journey together, and now it was time for both of them to take a different path. Brendan deserved to have someone fall head over heels in love with him, the way she had once. If Brendan had taught her anything it was to always be courageous and to keep moving forward, and that’s what she needed to do now, even if it meant she didn’t end up with him.
The globe stopped spinning.
“Riley—” Brendan started but was interrupted by Comet barking outside the door.
When Riley went over and opened the door, Comet barked again and then trotted down the hall before stopping to look back at her, almost as if he was urging her to come with him.
Riley turned to Brendan. “Comet wants something. I need to see what’s going on.”
“I’ll come with you,” Brendan said.
When they got downstairs, the first person they ran into was Tyler. He was holding two glasses of Champagne and smiled when he saw her.
“Oh no, not again,” Riley said under her breath before she could stop herself. Luckily, it didn’t look like Tyler had heard her.
“There you are,” he said. “I’ve been looking for you.” He acknowledged Brendan with a nod. “Is it okay if I steal Riley for a few minutes?”
“Only if you bring her back,” Brendan said, and by the tone of his voice, he was only half kidding.
Tyler handed her the full Champagne glass he was holding, and Riley had to bite her lower lip to keep from laughing. By this point, she didn’t even try to argue. She’d seen how it worked on The Bachelorette. It was better to just go along with it and follow the Champagne.
“I’ll catch you later,” Brendan said as he walked off. “The globe will be waiting.”
“The globe?” Tyler asked, confused.
“Long story,” Riley said and then took a sip of her Champagne. “Have you seen the library?”
“Yes,” Tyler said.
Riley took his hand. “Come on. There’s something I want to show you.”
By the time they got to the library, Riley’s stomach had tied itself into nervous knots. What if Tyler wasn’t the one, either? The changes he was talking about making in his life aligned with hers. He had been right when he’d said that of her three exes, he knew her the best now. He’d met her after she had grown and changed from dating Colin and Brendan.
Tyler could so easily be the Prince Charming on the white horse, or in this case in the stretch limo, to sweep her off her feet.
Riley couldn’t wait any longer. Still holding her Champagne, she kissed Tyler.
He didn’t hesitate before kissing her back, and he kissed her with a confidence Riley had always been attracted to. She waited and hoped . . . but it wasn’t there.
Still no spark.
As she pulled back, she honestly wasn’t surprised, even if she was a little disappointed. A life with Tyler would have been such an easy life to slide back into. But she wanted more than just easy. She wanted to be challenged, to have success on her own, and to shine on her own, not be someone else’s star.
“Well, that was worth waiting for,” Tyler said, quickly kissing her again before holding up his Champagne. “A toast,” he said with confidence. “To the new Riley Reynolds Library Books Foundation.”
When he clinked his glass to hers, Riley just stared back at him. “What are you talking about?”
“This is your real Christmas present,” he said. “I’ve been talking with Margo, and together, we’ve found a way to start a foundation for you so you’ll not only be able to donate books to libraries in need but a percentage of each book you sell will go into a foundation fund that will continue to help libraries. The publisher has agreed to pay that percentage because it’s going to get you great publicity. Isn’t that wonderful?”
Riley was speechless and still trying to process what he was saying. “When did you talk to Margo?”
“We’ve been talking all weekend,” Tyler said. “She’s pretty amazing to work with. She totally gets it.”
Riley still had too many questions to be excited. Her first one being, would Tyler still want to do this once she told him she wasn’t getting back together with him? She also needed to know a lot more before she put her name on anything.
As if Tyler was reading her thoughts, he jumped in. “Don’t worry,” he said. “This is just a proposal. It all hinges on your approval and your feedback, but I helped with the legal work to get the ball rolling.”
Riley relaxed. “That is amazing. I’m sorry. It’s just a lot to take in. I don’t even know if my publisher is going to keep me. It all depends on if I can deliver a good outline for this next novel.”
“I have faith in you,” Tyler said. “You can do this. We make a great team, Riley, and this is just the beginning of what we can do together.”
Just as Tyler leaned down to kiss her again, Luke entered the room.
“Oh, I’m sorry,” he said, taking a step back. “I didn’t mean to interrupt.”
When Riley tried to pull back, Tyler took her hand.
“You’re not interrupting anything,” Riley rushed to say. “Do you need me for something?” She dropped Tyler’s hand.
Luke nodded. “There’s someone who wants to talk to you.”
“Then let’s go,” Riley said, already heading out the door. She turned back to Tyler. “I’ll see you later.”
Tyler smiled back at her and lifted his glass. “I’m counting on it. We have a lot to celebrate.”
Chapter Thirty-Seven
As Riley hurried out of the library, Luke followed her.
“So I guess congratulations are in order?” Luke asked, his expression impossible to read.
“Congratulations on what?” Riley asked.
But before Luke could answer, Riley heard a familiar voice.
“Riley?”
“Mom?” Riley said, stunned. “What are you doing here?” She hurried over and gave her mom a huge hug. Her heart was bursting with love. “This is amazing. I can’t believe you’re here.”
“Surprise!” Riley’s mom said as they continued hugging. “You can thank Luke. He made it all happen. He thought you should have family here to celebrate this big event, both Christmas Camp and Christmas.”
Riley gave Luke an incredulous look. “You did this for me?” Her voice was almost a whisper.
Luke smiled. “You’ve done so much for my family, coming here and hosting this Christmas Camp, I thought you might want your mom here. I mean, after all, it’s Christmas.”
Riley went and gave Luke a heartfelt hug. “Thank you.” When she stepped back, she looked into his eyes. “This means more than you know.”
“My pleasure,” Luke said.
“This is the best gift you could have ever given us,” Riley’s mom added. “And Riley, your stepdad wanted to come, but he thought he’d give us a little girl time. I think he just wanted to stay home and eat all the Christmas cookies.”
Riley and Luke both laughed.
“Well, we have those here, too,” Riley said. “So he’s missing out.”
Riley leaned down and gave him a hug. “Mom, this is Comet.”
“Well, aren’t you a handsome fellow?” Riley’s mom said to Comet. “It’s good to see you have a new man in your life—finally.”
Riley’s eyes flew to Luke’s.
He was laughing and looking down at Comet.
But when her mom caught her looking at Luke and gave her a curious look, Riley quickly gave Comet another hug. “Comet is the best.”
“But he’s far from the only man in Riley’s life right now,” Luke told her mom.
When Riley gave him a look to zip it, he just smiled back at her.
“What’s this?” Riley’s mom asked, instantly alert. “You two?” She eagerly pointed at Luke, then Riley. “This is great. I knew I liked you, Luke.”
“No,” Riley and Luke both said at the same time.
“He has a girlfriend,” Riley rushed to finish.
“She has a boyfriend,” Luke said at the same time.
Riley and Luke stared at each other.
“I don’t have a girlfriend,” Luke said.
Riley gave him a look. “Hello, what about Brianna?”
Luke laughed. “Brianna’s a friend, not a girlfriend.”
“What?” Riley asked, trying to process the news. “But I saw you two together. I see how she is with you . . .”
“We dated growing up, but that’s it,” Luke said. “Since I’ve been back helping my mom, she’s wanted more, but I’ve told her it’s not going to happen. We’re friends. That’s all.”
Riley’s mom grinned back at Luke. “So then you and my daughter are—”
“Nothing, Mom,” Riley interrupted, flustered and embarrassed. “We’re nothing.”
Luke’s eyebrows rose, and for a moment, Riley thought he almost looked . . . disappointed.
Riley’s mom put her hands on her hips. “Then who is Luke talking about, Riley?”
“I hope it’s me,” Colin said as he came around the corner with Brendan and Tyler.
Christmas Ever After Page 30
