She held on, grinning. “Wait—I forgot to tell you that he started planning this in, like, September. Which was a good thing, because the old sleigh needed a lot of work and he had to train the horse to pull it.”
“Dedicated man.” If Great-Grandma was anything like Diana, she was worth it. Heck, he’d been working on her for over a year. Not that he’d known that was what he was doing at the time.
“He was. I’ve always thought it was beautiful that he put so much work into the hope of returned love.”
“That’s because you’re a romantic.”
“I like to think so.” She winked. “So, December rolls around and Great-Grandpa gets up the courage to ask Olivia out. He picks her up in the sled and she’s blown away—says it looks beautiful. He blushes and says it’s not as beautiful as her. And then she blushes. And things are going so well that he stops under a branch where he’s hung a sprig of mistletoe. They shared their first kiss, declared themselves soul mates, and were married on Christmas Day.”
He brushed his thumb along her palm.
She shivered in response. “What do you think?”
“I think Grandpa was pretty gutsy to hang that mistletoe.”
She laughed. “Look up.”
He did. Barely discernable in the lantern light were dozens of sprigs of mistletoe. They moved slowly under the canopy of trees, and the small plant was tacked to maples, aspens, and pine trees. The care and time it took to plan and execute something like this was downright magical. “How?” he asked in wonder.
Diana brushed her hand down his cheek. “It’s tradition.”
He brought his gaze away from the branches and found her blue eyes. “I like it.”
“Me too. Do you believe in soul mates?”
He paused. Feeling vulnerable and open didn’t come easy. With Diana, he didn’t think he could hide his heart, even if he wanted to. “I did. Then I didn’t. But … I think it’s possible that two people could be destined to be together.”
She glanced down. “I always wondered how they knew they’d found their match.”
He cupped her face in his hands, lifting her eyes to meet his. “Maybe there was a bit of Christmas magic involved.” He considered her lips. “Or maybe it was knowing they were better, happier together than they would be apart.” He thought of the half dozen ways Diana was a part of his everyday life. He took comfort hearing her move around in her kitchen in the morning. He didn’t settle in for the night until he heard her come home.
“Maybe,” she whispered.
The sleigh pulled up short.
“Why are we stopping?” He glanced at the driver, who kept his head forward.
“It’s the kissing tree.” She pointed up. Above their head was an oversized plastic mistletoe. “We’re supposed to kiss.”
He frowned. He didn’t want to kiss her for the first time for show. “No one’s watching.”
“I know.” She slid her fingers to the back of his neck and lifted in her seat, bringing their lips together.
There was a burst of cold as their skin touched, and then fire ignited. He moved his hands, tipping her head to deepen the kiss quickly. He wasn’t slow on the uptake, and he wanted this—wanted this woman in a way that dispelled rational thought.
She tasted sweet, like ginger cookies covered in frosting. His heart hammered so loud it should have startled the horse. Holding Diana was like nothing he’d ever experienced before. No woman had captivated his every sense, his every thought so easily. He pulled back to get a breath but then had to kiss her cheek, her temple, her forehead. She sighed with pleasure, and his heart soared. She tugged him back for another kiss, and he knew he’d fallen for her, this sweet, big-hearted woman who apparently wanted more of him. He was happy to oblige.
Chapter 15
Diana
Cliff moved to kiss her neck, and Diana caught sight of the barn in her peripheral vision. “Cliff,” she whispered urgently, pushing him away. “We’re here.”
“Hmmm,” he hummed against her skin, testing her resolve to at least look innocent before going to the Christmas Eve devotional.
She sank into him even as she said, “We’re back.”
He bolted upright, looked her over quickly, fixed her hat, and then kissed her nose.
She giggled, burying her face in the front of his coat. She was probably a thoroughly kissed mess.
The sleigh stopped, and Cliff lifted her chin with his finger. “You look stunning.”
More like stunned, she thought. Cliff could kiss! All this time he’d seemed reserved and grouchy, when in reality he was a rock star. She smiled wickedly, thinking of how much fun it had been to surprise him with a kiss. She’d thought he’d pull away before she made contact, but he’d flipped the tables on her and kissed her senseless. If she hadn’t needed to breathe, she wouldn’t have seen the barn looming close.
She lifted up to whisper in his ear, “Best sleigh ride ever.”
He grinned down at her as he took her hand and helped her from the sleigh, gathering their discarded gloves in the process. “Agreed.” He pecked a perfectly chaste kiss on her lips. It wasn’t enough to satiate the desire coursing through her body, but they were in the open and there were children nearby. She sighed. They’d have to keep it PG.
Inside, the barn was warm, heated by a freestanding stove.
“So your great-grandpa built this place?” Cliff tipped his head back.
Diana did the same, taking in the exposed beams and sturdy construction. “No. The two of them started the horse-drawn sleigh business, but it never really took off. They bought the land, though. The barn was built by my grandpa and then restored by my parents.”
He nodded, doubt clouding his eyes. She snuggled closer, hoping he remembered what she’d said earlier: that she liked him just the way he was. She more than liked him; she was in love with him. She probably had been for a while; she just hadn’t recognized the emotion, because it had grown slowly inside of her. Privately. She thought of all the goodies she’d baked for him. He’d teased her about the unicorn cupcakes, so she made them again and again—just to get a reaction out of him. But she’d also made fresh rolls and soup. And at Thanksgiving she took him a turkey casserole so she could have a few minutes on his porch. When something broke, she was excited for the excuse to invite him over. And he came. Every. Time. Showing that he was a man she could count on. Trust meant more to her than all the money in the world.
Cliff was the only man she could picture spending her life with—making a life with. Christmas really was a time of magic and miracles.
Aunt Willow got up and called everyone to attention. She started singing “Angels we Have Heard on High,” and everyone joined in.
Diana bit back all the words she wanted to shower over Cliff. Now wasn’t the time to declare her feelings. In fact, she’d have to wait until they were home and this whole fake dating/engagement was behind them. At least no one but her parents knew about the engagement part. Thankfully, they’d kept their lips sealed.
She glanced at Cliff as he sang quietly. His reverence for the beautiful song turned her heart to him even more.
If she could wait and do things right, then she might just be able to keep this man forever. Then every year she’d tell the story of how she fell in love with him on the Mistletoe Mile.
Chapter 16
Diana
Christmas morning dawned, and the sound of children tearing through wrapping paper filled the house. Each family had their own private tree in their room, where Santa would leave gifts and fill stockings. The extended family would gather for breakfast and then gifts after. Mom made sure everyone had something to open. Sometimes the gifts were personal. The children always got a toy, because she believed every child should have a toy for Christmas. Teenagers received Amazon gift cards except for the year they turned 16—that year they got a key chain and driving gloves to celebrate the milestone in their lives.
Diana loved the traditions her parents so ca
refully carried out each year. They were thoughtful and wrapped in love. She couldn’t wait to share them with Cliff. She’d taken extra care with her hair this morning, styling it in a messy, cute bun on top of her head and bringing sections down to frame her face—like his hands had done the night before. Oh my gosh, if she started thinking about his kisses, she was going to melt like a piece of caramel in front of the fire.
Deeming herself “kissable,” she rushed to the dining room. Cliff was already at the buffet table, his plate loaded with Christmas casserole and a sticky bun. He licked the stickiness off his fingers as they made eye contact. He was so yummy in his red Christmas sweater and jeans. Her body tingled all over.
She moved slower getting to him, savoring the anticipation. “Morning.”
He leaned over and kissed her cheek. “Merry Christmas.”
“Merry Christmas to you.” She returned the kiss. He turned his head a little and their lips met. The room, the holiday music, and the clinking of silverware against plates all disappeared, and she wrapped her arms around his neck, ready to pick up where they’d left off in the sleigh.
“Ahem!” They broke apart to find the pastor standing before them. His glasses had slid down his nose, and his blue eyes were full of mischief. “I’d like some of that casserole—if you don’t mind.” His white eyebrows pumped.
Diana’s face flushed with embarrassment. She stepped back. “Sorry, Pastor Williams.”
He chuckled. “Don’t be. Young love is a reason to hope.”
Diana bit her lip, studying Cliff for his reaction to the word love. He didn’t say anything or give an indication that the word was a big deal.
“In fact,” continued the pastor, “I hope I’ll be the one to marry you two.”
A spike of panic shot through her veins. Her family grabbed on to weddings like children on Santa.
“You’re getting married?” shrieked Celine in horror and shock. Okay, she would be the one person who wouldn’t be excited. Celine had probably measured herself against Diana her whole life, figuring that as long as she was married before Diana, she wouldn’t be a total failure.
The whole room feel silent, and fifty heads swiveled their direction.
“Well. Uh …” Diana looked at Cliff for help. “We—”
“Oh!” Mom flapped her hands. “You might as well tell everyone.”
“Mom!” Diana scolded. She glanced at Cliff, who was looking at his plate like he’d just lost his appetite and couldn’t figure out what to do with it.
“They’re engaged!” Mom pronounced, completely oblivious to the distress she caused Diana—and Cliff.
The family applauded and yelled congratulations. Someone said something about a great Christmas surprise.
They chatted happily for a moment before the pastor waved his hand to silence them all. He beamed so big he could light that star on top of a tree. “I was going to wait to announce this after the meal, but in light of this revelation, I’ll go ahead and tell you. Did you know that my great-grandfather married your great-grandfather 100 years ago today?”
That brought another round of happy chatter.
Diana took the opportunity to offer Cliff an apologetic smile. She hadn’t meant for things to escalate in their fake relationship. In fact, she’d hoped they wouldn’t—because it would make putting this whole thing behind them and moving into something real that much easier. Now … now she had to figure out what to do with a fake engagement sitting between them.
“I still have Great-Grandma’s dress,” Mom announced. “We should get it out.”
Aunt Willow waved her hands excitedly. “I was just thinking …” She rounded the table and came to stand in front of Diana and Cliff.
Cliff shuffled his feet as if he could tell something big was about to happen and he wasn’t sure he wanted to stick around. He reached for Diana’s hand, and she grabbed on, not sure where this was going to go. Knowing her family, she had an idea of what they were about to unleash, but she hoped it wasn’t what Aunt Willow was thinking.
“—it would be so amazing to have another wedding today. One hundred years after Great-Grandma and -Grandpa’s. You two are already engaged—what do you say?” Aunt Willow clapped her hands excitedly.
The noise level in the room went up 100 decibels. Even the children noticed and began to try to talk over one another. Diana couldn’t have answered if she wanted to.
“It would mean so much to me!” yelled the pastor toward Diana and Cliff.
“You have to!” added Sadie. Her eyes filled with happy tears. “It would be incredible.”
“Everyone’s already here,” added Tucker.
Cliff broke in: “My family isn’t.” Things quieted down as his words carried over the circle of people around them, and they hushed.
Diana let out the breath she’d been holding. “We can’t have a wedding without Cliff’s family. That wouldn’t be fair to them.”
“Where are they?” demanded Tucker.
“My brother’s a doctor upstate. My parents are in Germany for the holidays.”
“Call them up!” Tucker insisted. “See what they think.”
Diana held tighter to his hand. He glanced down at her, and she smiled, hoping he understood that she was fine with putting a stop to all this. His parents being gone was the perfect excuse to hold off.
“Okay, I’ll see what they say …”
Wait—what? “You don’t have to do that,” she hurried to point out.
“Of course he does.” Mom began shooing her out of the room. Her fingers slipped from Cliffs, and she felt a wave of homesickness for him wash over her. “While you’re working on that, we’ll go find the dress. Men!” She got their attention. “You’re on dishes. Willow, will you take a crew out to make sure the barn is righted from last night?”
The barn? She’d always wanted to be married in the barn. “But I should really talk to Cliff—”
Sadie came up behind her and put her hands on her lower back. “You’ve already seen the groom on your wedding day—no more.”
“But—” If only someone would stop for a moment and let her think!
“Stop lollygagging.” Mom tugged harder on her arm, dragging her to the master suite. “We need all the time we can get.”
Diana glanced over her shoulder. Her last glimpse of Cliff was him staring at his cell phone in shock and dismay. She needed to make a plan, but she needed to talk to Cliff. He might be fine with all this—if the feelings in his kisses were real.
Then again, his family wasn’t here. The whole thing was sudden—like in-your-face sudden. And maybe … maybe he didn’t want to marry her.
She’d have to find a quiet moment with him and soon to talk this out. Or run away together. Which was kind of funny. Usually people ran away to get married, not to avoid it. If it came down to it, they’d hijack a sleigh and head to town.
But if he was game to get married … She’d be happy to say I do. One of them really should propose to the other, though. So, she had a decision to make: was she proposing planning an escape?
Chapter 17
Cliff
“You look like you’ve been hit upside the head with a two-by-four.”
Cliff ripped his eyes off his phone. He’d been trying to remember how to dial. He had to call his parents, but he had no idea what to say. Hey, Mom, Dad, I’m getting married this evening sounded crazy coming from anyone, but it sounded insane coming from him—the man who’d sworn off women and marriage after being passed over for his former best friend.
Diana’s brother laughed and smacked him on the back. “Marriage is great. I promise. You’re going to love it.” He roughly gathered up several of the serving dishes, probably chipping them, and headed for the kitchen.
“Just don’t have kids too soon—enjoy the honeymoon phase for as long as you can,” added Tucker as he hauled their screaming toddler out for a diaper change.
Honeymoon? Children? The room began to spin. He flashed back to waitin
g in the groom’s chambers, checking his tie and cuff links. The happy euphoria of knowing Julianna would be his wife. And then the horror of her words sinking into his brain like stalagmites growing slowly. The understanding. The betrayal. The brokenness that held him captive for months.
He had to stop this before it went any further. “Listen.” He turned to the man closest and grabbed his sleeve. “This has gotten out of control.”
The man turned out to be Diana’s father. He looked around the room and nodded slowly. “I think you and I need to take a breather.”
“A breather?” That sounded like heaven.
“I’m taking Cliff to get more firewood for tonight,” he called over his shoulder.
Cliff numbly followed him through the process of putting on their winter gear and going outside, grateful someone around here had a level head on their shoulders. David would set things straight. They’d have a nice little talk, and everything would be okay again. His blood pressure began to decrease. Everything would be fine. He wasn’t getting married. The demons of his past would stay behind the curtain, and he wouldn’t have to face them today.
David twisted the key on the snowmobile, and nothing happened. He growled. “This thing’s been testy all week. I should have taken it in, but with the holiday, I just didn’t have time.”
Cliff dusted off his hands. “Let me take a look.” He pulled the seat off and checked the battery. Sure enough, one of the cables was loose. “Try it now.”
The sled roared to life. David revved the engine and smiled at Cliff. “I’m going to enjoy having you in the family.”
Cliff’s heart stopped. “What?” Wasn’t David supposed to stop this crazy wedding train?
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