Chloe

Chloe laced up her skates, tugging to make sure they were tight.

“Quit stalling,” Ethan teased, pulling her to her feet.

“I’m not,” she argued. “I’m just taking it all in,” Chloe said, looking over the perfect ice in awe. “I’ve wanted to do this for a very long time.”

Ethan grinned. “Me too.”

He held Chloe’s hand tightly as she stepped onto the slick surface of the ice. At first she felt unsteady, but with Ethan by her side she knew she had nothing to fear. It had been that way ever since last Christmas.

Chloe could hardly believe another Christmas was just around the corner. She looked at the smiling faces of all the people on the ice at Rockefeller Center. The first snow of the season had just begun to fall. She couldn’t believe she was actually here.

Ever since she was a little girl, Chloe had wanted to come ice skating in New York City. Now she was living here. She’d moved into an incredible apartment with Ethan, Margot and Owen. It was close to their campus. And she loved all of her classes. She even got to intern two days a week at a hospital. She was living her dream.

And if that weren’t enough, she was dating her soulmate. She and Ethan had been dating since last Christmas and in that time, she’d seen him blossom into the most incredible man. Before him, she hadn’t really known if she believed in miracles or a higher power, but now she did.

It had been an absolute Christmas miracle that blessed Chloe’s family with the Hall brothers. She hated that it had taken them being abandoned by their birth family and adoptive family to bring them to hers. But she was glad for it, too. Because Chloe couldn’t imagine her family without them.

Margot had given birth to a beautiful baby girl a few months ago and it had brought their already close family closer. And watching Ethan with his niece made Chloe fall in love with him all over again.

The broken boy she’d met almost a year ago was a ghost now, who rarely visited. Together, her family had helped Ethan grow into the strong, confident, caring man he was always meant to be.

After spending all of his school breaks helping Chloe and her family at the lodge, Ethan changed his major to hotel management. She loved watching him chat animatedly with her parents about ideas for their business. Sometimes, on days when Ethan was feeling even more joyful than usual, he talked about the future he wanted with her. ‘Let’s move back to Pine Island and have lots of kids. We can help your parents run the lodge and make them babysit so we can take the snowmobiles up to the ridge.’

On days when he said things like that, Chloe thought her heart might burst. And she finally understood what her grandfather had meant about smiles ending famine. Because Ethan’s now easy smile, would sustain her for a lifetime.

“What are you thinking?” he asked as they glided around the rink.

Chloe felt tears prick her eyes. “I’m thinking about how much I love you.”

He gave her a breathtaking smile. “I love you more.”

She shook her head. “Not possible.”

Ethan turned his skates abruptly and skidded to a stop. Chloe laughed as he pulled her into his arms so swiftly she lost her balance. But not once did she worry he would drop her. She knew he never would. They were bookends, designed to hold each other up the way no one else could.

“So, what do you think?” he asked. “Was it worth the wait?”

“Rockefeller Center? Absolutely.”

He gave her a crooked smile. “I’m glad you like it, but I was talking about us.”

Chloe planted a sweet kiss on his lips. “Ethan, you are everything I hoped for and so much more. I’d wait for you forever.”

He kissed her deeply before steadying her onto her feet. Then, with a smile bright enough to melt all the ice in New York City, he dropped to one knee and pulled a ring from his pocket. “Waiting is overrated.”