I kept watching William’s face as we rode up the long, winding road toward the Biltmore House, his old truck sputtering the entire way.

“We could’ve taken my car,” I said, grinning wide.

William chuckled. “Big Blue can handle it. Don’t doubt her.”

“Sure, I can do that . . . until we have to walk home, that is,” I teased.

He patted the steering wheel. “She hasn’t let me down yet.”

We were almost to the parking lot at the main gate entrance. In my dream, it was only a dirt road, and we’d walked most of it. That was why I had to change out of my dress and into pants. I could still feel the way his fingers felt as he touched my bare shoulders.

William parked the truck and we walked toward the gate. There were a lot of people around. I couldn’t wait to see all the Christmas trees and lights. “Dinner was great,” I said, still feeling stuffed. We’d eaten at the Grove Park Inn, and it was absolutely delicious. Jessica and I used to go all the time, before she started working long hours at the hospital.

My arm brushed up against his and he reached down for my hand. “I thought so too. I’d never been to the Grove Park Inn before.”

“I can’t believe you’ve lived here most of your life, and yet you never went there.”

“I know,” he said, laughing. “We’ll have to go there again soon.”

I looked up at him. “That could be arranged.” When we walked through the gate and got a good look at the house, I was in awe. “This never gets old,” I breathed. “I love this place.”

He squeezed my hand. “It’s amazing.”

The trees by the fountain were lit with tiny lights, and the house was illuminated by all the different spotlights in the ground. We only had a couple of minutes before our tour time, so we walked to the entrance and they let us in. Every single room on display was decorated from top to bottom for Christmas.

I pulled out my phone and took tons of pictures. Everyone was so quiet, except for an occasional ‘ooh’ and ‘ahh’ as we all entered new rooms. It took a while to get through the house, but not once did William let go of my hand.

Before we walked out, I stopped at the main Christmas tree in the foyer. “Hold on, I want to get a better picture of this.” William nodded and let go of my hand. I took it with my phone, but then, a woman walked over and smiled at us.

“Do you want me to take your picture in front of the tree?” she asked.

Brows lifted, I looked up at William and he smiled. “Come on.”

We stood by the tree, and he put his arm around my waist, holding me close. The lady held up my phone and the camera flashed. “Looks good,” she said. “You two make a cute couple.”

My cheeks burned. “Thank you for taking the picture.”

“You’re welcome, sweetheart.” She handed me back my phone and I pulled up the picture. It was perfect.

William leaned over my shoulder, his hands on my waist. “Want to get some hot chocolate and walk around?”

I slipped my phone back in my purse. “You read my mind.”

There was a bake shop connected to the Biltmore House, where they served pastries, coffees, and some of the best hot chocolate I’d ever tasted. I ordered mine with extra whipped cream, and after we drank our hot chocolates, we walked past the house to the gardens. It was chilly, but the wind wasn’t too bad. The last time we’d walked this space together, it had been an open meadow. I could still see in my mind what it all used to look like.

“We should come here in the spring, when the flowers are all in bloom.” I leaned against the stone balcony and looked out toward the mountains. It was dark, but there were lights scattered here and there.

William mirrored my stance, his elbow against mine. “You know, I never realized how much I missed home until now. Don’t get me wrong, California is great, and I did a lot of good things for my company out there, but it doesn’t compare to this.”

I giggled. “It’s about time you realized that. My grandfather made me promise I wouldn’t sell Hamilton Manor. He should’ve known I would never leave this place. It’s my home, and it always will be.”

Taking my hand, he pulled me away from the balcony and drew me in closer. His gaze landed on my locket. “I like your necklace. What’s that on the front?”

“My family crest. It belonged to my fifth great-aunt, Adeline-Jane Hamilton.”

His eyes widened. “That’s really cool. You have her name, and you have her jewelry. You really are steeped in family history.”

I nodded. “It’s been passed down through the years. The crazy thing is, I didn’t know anything about the locket until Jessica asked Margaret to buy me something at the antique store. She gave me this necklace, and I fell in love with it. But it wasn’t until I saw a picture of Adeline-Jane wearing the same locket that I realized they were the same.”

“Wow.” He touched the locket and turned it around.

“Margaret had it engraved with my name.”

“What’s inside it?” he asked.

Gently, I opened it up and the piece of mistletoe was still inside. “Margaret said mistletoe can bring happiness, so she put a piece of it inside there.”

His lips tilted slyly. “Are you trying to say I could’ve kissed you this whole time?” When I nodded, he stepped closer. “Because I’ve been dying to, since the moment I met you.”

I shrugged. “Maybe it’s the mistletoe drawing you in.”

“No, that’s not it.” He shook his head. “I don’t know what it is about you, but I feel something that I’ve never felt before.” Bringing his hands up to my face, he looked deep into my eyes. “I don’t want you to think I’m moving too fast, but I can’t seem to think of anything but you.”

“I’m having the same problem.” Holding my breath, I waited for his lips to touch mine. When they did, I melted against him. Everything about him was just as I’d remembered. His scent, his touch, and even the way he kissed me was the same. Closing my eyes, I relished in the moment. I wanted to believe that he’d remember everything after the kiss, but when I looked into his eyes, I could tell he didn’t.

What was it going to take to make him remember?

His phone rang and he sighed. “Sorry about that. Let me see who it is.” He pulled out his phone. “It’s my mother.”

“Answer it,” I said, urging him on. “It’s okay.” He answered the call and I could hear her on the other end, her voice excited. Once they were done, he chuckled and put his phone away. “Everything all right?”

He nodded. “She wanted to remind me about our family dinner on Christmas Eve. I wanted to see if you’d like to join me.”

“Ah, I wish I could,” I said, “but I promised my mother I’d bake with her. We do it every year. Guess you can say it’s a tradition.”

“I figured you’d have plans, but thought I’d check,” he replied, taking my hand. We started back toward the parking lot.

“Believe me, I’d be there if I could. There’s just so much I have to get done for the party Christmas day.”

“I know what you mean. I’m going to spend all day tomorrow getting everything settled into my house.”

“Good luck with that. So, I guess the next time I’ll see you is Christmas?”

He nodded. “As much as I’d like to see you before then, it doesn’t look like we have much of a choice.”

We made it to his truck and he opened my door. “What about after Christmas, when our lives get back on a normal schedule? Where does that leave us?”

His devilish grin made me tremble. “We’ll go to work each day, and then afterward, we can spend evenings together. I’m hoping to see you as much as you’ll let me.”

“Does that mean what I think it means?”

He kissed me and leaned his forehead against mine. “It means I want you to be mine. That is, if it’s what you want.”

“Yes,” I breathed.

When he pulled back, I slid into the passenger seat. As soon as he got in the car, he glanced down at my locket and grinned. “In the meantime, do me a favor and don’t tell anyone you have mistletoe in your locket. I’m afraid of what I’ll do if I see another man kiss you.”

Frozen in place, I sucked in a breath. That was exactly what he’d said to me in my dream, when we were on my front porch and we kissed for the first time. Never in my life had I ever believed in magic, but the more time I spent with William, the more I believed it was real.