Wy was so uncomfortable. He was sure he was sweating though his suit coat. He shouldn’t have come to this stupid party. He was only there to make Blair happy. He had promised he would try to get back with Dottie, and this was the only place he could do it.

He had tried to go to her house, but she wasn’t home, and neither were her parents. He was sure they had gone back home for Christmas, but then Jen had texted him. She and Dottie were going to be at the work party, and she was hoping he would be there too. At first he thought she was trying to make sure he and Dottie wouldn’t cross paths, but that was wrong. When he said he was thinking about it, Jen told him that for sure he had to be there.

It was so hard to keep his nerves in check. He was going to feel so stupid if Dottie didn’t want to see him. But it didn’t matter. He had to do this. He had to be sure she knew how he felt. Even if she turned him down, it would be better than never trying. Blair was right about that. He would never be able to stop thinking about Dottie unless he tried to do this.

He looked himself over in the mirror to be sure he didn’t have pit stains. He took a few deep breaths to steady himself and then left the bathroom.

There weren’t many people in the pavilion. Most people had probably skipped the party to be with their families or travel. It was easy to spot Jen.

She hugged him. “I’m so glad you decided to come.”

“Thanks. I’m glad I’m here, too.” He looked around. He couldn’t see Dottie. “Is this it?”

“I think more people are coming. Want to get a drink or some food?”

Wy nodded. “I guess I could use some water or something.”

They went to the snack table, but there was no water or drinks of any kind. Wy saw that other people were holding red cups or cans of pop.

Jen put her hands on her hips. “Darn. We’re out of punch again. We should go tell Tim.”

Wy looked around. “Where is he?”

“Hmmm. I don’t know. Maybe he snuck off to his office.”

“Want me to go check?”

“Yeah, that’s a good idea. I don’t know where any of the party supplies are. And it really isn’t a party if there’s no food.”

The hallways were dark, and their footsteps echoed as they walked.

“Are you coming to my misfits’ dinner?” Jen asked him.

“Yeah. I have a party tomorrow night too.” He was keeping himself busy. Even though he was sad, there was no way he could spend Christmas alone. Even if Dottie turned him down, he wanted to be around people he loved for Christmas.

The light in Tim’s office was on when they got there. “He must be inside,” Wyatt said.

“Yup,” Jen agreed. She opened the door. “After you.”

Wy stepped in, and she closed the door behind him quickly. The lamp in the office went off, and he was left in darkness.

“What?” He spun quickly and grabbed the doorknob. It didn’t turn easily. “Are you holding the doorknob?”

“I am. But I think you’ll like this much better than the party out there.”

For a human, she was surprisingly strong. Wy could easily have forced the door open, but he didn’t want to hurt her. He sighed and rested his forehead against the door. Whatever she was doing, he didn’t have time for pranks. He needed to find Dottie.

“Hi, Wyatt.”

He turned around, and Christmas lights snapped on. At the back of the office, there was Dottie, smiling shyly. She was wearing the elf costume with all the makeup that she hadn’t been able to wear at work.

“Hi, Dottie.” He didn’t want to assume anything, but he was so glad to see her.

“I want…”

“Wait.” He slowly made his way to her and took her hands in his. “I want to apologize again for barging into your house the other day. It was silly of me and creepy.”

“It wasn’t creepy. I overreacted. We’re dating. It isn’t weird for you to come into my home.”

“But we were fighting, kind of. I shouldn’t have done it. I upset you, and I apologize.”

“You don’t need to apologize.” Her voice was thick with tears. “I’m the one who was acting weird. I shouldn’t have been so mad at you.”

“It’s okay.” He hugged her. It felt good to have her in his arms again. Even if this was it, at least he had a positive way to remember her. “You look really pretty.”

“Thank you. I really wanted to get to wear this costume. I shouldn’t have listened to everyone when they told me it was silly. I should have listened to you. You were right. I looked great, and it was appropriate for work. I should have trusted myself and fought back when Tim told me no. Just like I should have fought harder for you.”

Wyatt froze. “What did you say?”

She pulled back and looked at him. “I was so wrong, Wyatt. I never should have broken up with you. I was being so stupid. I let everyone get inside my head, and I let their doubts shake me.”

“Whose doubts?”

“My parents. They’re so cautious. They like you, but they weren’t sure if you were the one for me. But who cares what they think? I knew you were the one for me. I should have trusted my butterfly.”

“It wasn’t just you,” he said. “I didn’t even fight you when you said you wanted to break up. I was so sure that something was wrong with me, I couldn’t believe that someone like you could be my mate. I let you go too easily.”

“You think something is wrong with you?”

“Dottie, no woman has ever liked me. No one has ever wanted to live with me for very long, either. I was sure there had to be something wrong with me.”

“Oh, Wyatt…”

“I know, it’s crazy. But I realized that it didn’t matter. Maybe something is wrong with me, and maybe not. Either way, it doesn’t matter. As long as you like me, that’s all I care about. I’m good enough for you, and you aren’t going to go anywhere.”

“I’m not. I’m not going anywhere ever again.” She kissed him through her tears. “I’m so sorry.”

“It’s okay. It’s fine now.”

“Does this mean you’ll get back together with me?”

“Of course it does.” He laughed. “I love you, Dottie.”

“I love you too.” They kissed again. “Now, let’s get out there. I want everyone to see how good I look.”

“And see what a dummy Tim is.” Wy put his arm around her. “This is totally appropriate for work.”

“I don’t care if it is or not. I know I look good.”

Wy kissed her again. “I guess I can’t be hard on Tim. He did lend you his office, after all.”

Dottie frowned. “I don’t know. I never actually talked to him. Jen put up the lights and told me to wait in here for you.”

Wy laughed. “You know, that’s just like her. I bet she didn’t ask him at all.”

Dottie laughed too. “I don’t care if she did or not. It’s a good thing I had someone like her to talk me into doing this. I was so scared. I was sure you were going to tell me to go fly a kite.”

“It’s the middle of winter. I would never tell you to go fly a kite. I don’t even think it would work that well.”

Dottie laughed and kissed him again. “I love you, Wyatt.”