ELLIE
I CLOSED MY eyes and sighed happily, listening to the Christmas songs playing quietly on the radio. This was definitely my happy place.
“Ellison, I made you a coffee,” my mom called from the back room.
“Thanks, Mom,” I acknowledged, opening my eyes and grinning when I saw the snow falling outside the window. The weatherman had predicted snow today, but my mom had been adamant the sky didn’t look right for it. Seemed the weatherman was right, for a change.
I loved this time of year, I loved the snow, and I loved the cold. Winters in the Poconos were the best, and in a couple of weeks, we would spend our first proper Christmas here.
It had been almost nine months since we packed up the car and moved in with my nana, and we’d all mutually decided not to go back. Almost nine months of fresh mountain air and time to reflect and rebuild our family without my dad. It had been hard, but things were looking up for all of us: Kelsey loved her new school, my nana loved the company around the house, and my mom, well, she had found her calling late in life—fronting my store and doing the books.
My store, aptly called Jellie’s Boutique—a name that Jamie had come up with and I had fallen in love with immediately—sold one-of-a-kind items of handmade clothing from a local designer...me! We also sold beautiful costume jewelry that I had commissioned from another local designer and jams that my nana made. The store had been open for six months now and was doing well. We weren’t millionaires by any means, but we were holding our own and making a decent profit.
I worked long hours, often sketching or stitching late into the night when my creative brain wouldn’t sleep, but it didn’t feel like work. When you find something you love in life, doing it is never a chore. The pride of seeing someone wearing one of my designs was immense. Last week I had just finished an order of five bridesmaids’ dresses for a lady who had driven all the way from Philadelphia to have them commissioned after she’d found me online—on a website my mother had set up all by herself! Who knew she was such a marketing whiz? Knowing that something I created was going to be included in someone’s special day filled me with incredible pride and satisfaction. I was loving life at the moment and wasn’t sure it could ever get better than this.
The store had all been Jamie’s idea. He’d always loved my designs, and after we had moved here, my creative spark came back with a vengeance, but my newly crafted designs were just wasting away in a sketchbook. Jamie had been the one to convince me to make a few of them and sell them online. They had been a hit and sold like hotcakes. From there, he’d started talking about me opening my own store in town. It was just a pipe dream for me, a nice idea, but something I could never afford—until the day that Jamie handed over the keys to the newly purchased store to me. He’d sold his apartment, his cars, and one of his clubs to pay for it, giving up everything he had in favor of me achieving the dream I once had of owning my own clothing line. The store had taken a lot of work to get up and running, lots of late nights decorating, renovating, and outfitting, but we’d gotten there, and six months later it was thriving.
I never allowed myself to think of the bad things that happened before we left or the fact that I killed a man. I blocked it all out and just got on with my life. Ed and the Salazar people wouldn’t steal any more of my life and happiness—I wouldn’t let them. We moved on, all of us, and we were happier than we thought possible after losing my dad.
The bell above the door chimed and in stepped the genius who created the beautiful jewelry that I sold here. Simone was a thirtysomething single mom with pink and green in her hair, her style quirky and different. She lived just down the street from my nana’s house and was a lovely woman. “Hi, Ellie.”
“Hey, Simone.” My eyes zeroed in on the box she was carrying and I squealed. “Is that the new line you were telling me about?” I asked, haphazardly hanging the last couple of dresses on the display rack before rushing to her side excitedly.
She nodded, lifting off the shoe box lid, exposing her beautiful creations. I gasped and my mother leaned in too, her eyes excited as we all reached into the box and pulled out pieces, setting them on the counter. “Oh, they’re beautiful! I can already see these selling out,” I gushed, picking up a silver bracelet with a bumblebee design intricately engraved on it.
My mom nodded in agreement, reaching into the drawer and pulling out her camera. “These are going straight on the website and social media pages. Great work, Simone.”
Simone’s face lit up; everybody liked compliments from my mother and took them to heart. “Thanks, ladies,” she chirped before turning to me. “Hey, I just saw your man getting into his car and driving off. Where’s he going in the middle of the day?”
“No idea,” I answered, absentmindedly heading to the front window of the store and looking out across the street. When Jamie had sold his apartment, his club, and all of his cars so he could buy my store, he’d also purchased a little something for himself that just so happened to be across the street. A large brick warehouse that he’d opened up the front of and converted into his own workshop and garage. Jamie was living his dream too, fixing up cars instead of stealing them.
I loved that he was so close because it meant I got to eat lunch with him every day, and if I so desired, at any given point throughout the day, I could look out the window and marvel at the sight of him dressed in his greasy overalls, with his cap on his head, bent over a car with that delectable ass in full view. Every single time it made my heart thunder in my chest and my knees weak.
Jamie hadn’t moved with us at the start, but after he drove to my nana’s house practically every day for two months, my mom had finally suggested that he just move in too because he was already there so damn much anyway.
Until I lived with him and woke to him every single day, I hadn’t realized I could love him even more than I had before, but I was wrong, oh so wrong.
Simone was right, though; he’d closed up shop and his car was gone. I frowned, hoping he drove safely in the snow. More than likely he’d gone to pick up a part for a car. There wasn’t any other real place he would need to go to today, unless...
I gasped and turned to my mom. “Oh my God, do you think the sale has gone through? Maybe he’s gone to pick up the keys or something?!” I jumped on the spot, my excitement bubbling up inside me like I was a little kid. I couldn’t stand still. “The lawyer said it wouldn’t happen until late in the afternoon, but it could have gotten done early, right?” I prattled.
Simone cocked her head to the side. “This for the house you two are buying? Is it going through today, sugar?”
I nodded, reaching up to cup my cheeks as my face flushed with heat and excitement. “Yes!”
“Calm down, Ellison. He’s most likely gone to collect a part for a job he’s on or something. If it’s not due to go through until tonight, then it’ll most likely be tonight, not lunchtime.” My mom was always the voice of reason. That was my first thought, too.
My excitement slowly fizzled out. I’d been on tenterhooks all day, waiting for the phone to ring and tell me that Jamie and I were homeowners, but I could wait a few more hours for it. I sighed and nodded, resigned. “Yeah, I guess. Anyway, let’s get these new beauties photographed and on display,” I suggested, trying to keep my mind off our new home as I headed back over to the new array of jewelry we had to sell in the store.
* * *
Less than an hour later, Jamie was back. I heard the roar of his car engine as he pulled up outside. I resisted the urge to run to the window and just continued staring at the phone, waiting for the lawyer to call with good news.
When the bell above the door chimed again, I looked up in time to see the love of my life walk in carrying a bunch of pale pink roses. His smile stretched across his face and my heart skipped a beat. “Hey, little girl,” he called.
I spun on the stool I was perched on and hopped off, heading around the counter to meet him. “Hey yourself.” I went up on tiptoes, and his mouth came down and connected with mine. His face was chilled from the wind, his hair messy where it had been hidden under a cap all morning, but he had never looked more appealing. Jamie could be covered in mud, and I would still want to jump his bones.
He pulled back, his eyes sparkling with excitement. I smiled and looked at the flowers. “Those for me?” I inquired, biting my lip.
He shook his head quickly, reaching in and plucking a single rose from the bunch. “This one is,” he replied, holding it out to me. “But the rest are for...” He looked up and smiled at my mom before walking over and handing them to her. “...You,” he finished.
My heart melted even more at the sweet gesture. My mom gasped, her eyes widening as she put them to her face and inhaled their sweet aroma. “Aww, Jamie, they’re lovely. Thank you!”
My boyfriend had completely won my mother over with his charm and sweetness during the last nine months. She’d been hesitant about our relationship at first, but her new philosophy in life, after losing my dad, was that people needed to live life every day and grab happiness wherever they could get it. She just wanted me to be happy and recognized that he was the one who was going to make that happen. Now she treated him like the son she’d never had.
“What are these for, then?” she asked, inhaling the flowers again, her eyes shining with gratitude.
Jamie shrugged and turned back to me. “For having such a wonderful daughter and for letting me be part of her life.” He reached into his pocket and brought out a bunch of keys, dangling them from one finger. “And as a going-away present, because we’ll be moving out soon.”
My mouth popped open. He had gone to get the keys earlier! “What? Are you freaking kidding? Are they seriously the keys to the house?” I bounced on the spot, staring, transfixed, at the keys and our new beginning that was just around the corner.
“Not kidding. I just went to pick them up.” Jamie grinned. “Want to go check out our new pad?”
I squealed and nodded, already running to the back to grab my jacket and scarf. When I was all bundled up, I headed back into the shop, seeing Jamie finishing off my hot cocoa that Mom had made ten minutes ago.
Mom grinned, coming to my side and reaching out to zip up my coat the last couple of inches and fiddle with my scarf. Her eyes were misted with tears as she smiled over at me. “I’m so happy for you two, and I just want you to know that your dad would be incredibly proud of the young lady you’ve grown into.”
I smiled and reached out, pulling her into a tight hug. “Thank you. I love you.”
“Love you, too,” she replied. That was another thing she’d changed since the accident—she was now very forthcoming with her affection. It was a little weird to accept at first, but now I reveled in it. We had a superb relationship.
I pulled away and turned to Jamie, who was holding out a hand to me. “Ready?” he asked.
I nodded. “Hell yes!” I’d been ready to settle down with him since I was seventeen years old. This day hadn’t come soon enough.
JAMIE
As we stepped out of the store and into the chilly wind, a young couple sitting on the wooden fence, kissing, caught my eye. I smiled but then cupped my hands around my mouth and shouted, “Kelsey Pearce, put that boy down!”
She jerked away, her face flushing pink, just like Ellie’s did when she was embarrassed. “Shut up, Jamie,” Kelsey called back, laughing and reaching up to wipe her mouth with the back of her mitten-covered hand.
Kelsey had turned fourteen last week, and as far as teenagers went, she was pretty cool and a good sister to Ellie. We actually got along great. She was around the same age my sister would have been now, so I liked to step in and do my big brother part.
“Just let me know if this gets serious so I know if I have to come kick his ass.” I winked at her as the boy’s body stiffened and his hand dropped from around her shoulders.
She grinned and waved me away with a flick of her hand. She’d really come into her own here; living in this beautiful place suited her. It suited us all.
Ellie smiled up at me, her eyes shining with excitement as I dipped my head and planted a deliberately noisy kiss on her lips before leading her to my car. On the fifteen-minute drive to our new home, she could barely sit still, fidgeting in her seat and babbling about all the things we still needed to buy. Luckily for us, the previous owners of the house were downsizing and had sold the house partly furnished—which meant we already had a sofa and some of the most important furniture. We’d make do for a while until we could afford our own stuff.
When we pulled up outside and looked at the building in front of us, Ellie let out a happy little sigh. The two-story house was a cozy three-bedroom set among the trees in a picturesque backdrop. The drive was curved and led up to the single garage. The house itself had wood siding that had been painted a slate gray. It was wonderful and was right at the top of our mortgage borrowing budget, so anything we wanted to do to the house would have to be done over time as we could afford it. Luckily, the house was essentially perfect for us as it was.
I dug into my pocket, pulling out the keys and jangling them, drawing Ellie’s attention from our new home. “Want to go inside and look around?”
She squealed, the sound making my insides quiver with happiness as she reached out and took the keys from my hand. Seeing her so joyous made my heart ache and my skin tingle. “Yes! Come on!”
She climbed out of the car in a rush and almost slipped on a patch of ice before righting herself. I chuckled to myself and walked to the front of the car, waiting for her to reach my side.
The birds chirped from the snowy trees above our heads, singing loudly as we walked arm in arm toward the front door. As Ellie slipped the key into the door, she held her breath and my hand slid down her back. I was so overwhelmed with love for her that it almost knocked me sideways. We’d done this; we’d made it out and we’d just closed on our first home.
The door opened with a slight creak that I made a mental note to fix. Ellie exhaled in one big gust and turned to me, her eyes sparkling with tears. “I can’t believe this is ours. I’m so happy.”
I nodded, bending and capturing her lips with a soft kiss. “Me too.”
Suddenly her excitement seemed to overcome her, and she grabbed my hand, pulling me inside, her eyes wide as she looked around the hallway. On the sideboard was a bottle of champagne and an envelope with our names on it. Ellie picked up the card eagerly, ripping it open and making an “aww” sound. “It’s from the previous owners. It says: ‘We hope you’ll be as happy here as we were. We’re so pleased that the house will feature in such a lovely couple’s new memories.’”
I smiled at the thoughtfulness.
Picking up the bottle of champagne, I nodded toward the stairs. “We should open this on the balcony.”
Ellie nodded eagerly, unable to contain her smile as her fingers interlaced through mine, and we walked up the wooden staircase. Ellie had fallen in love with the house immediately; the quirky upside-down layout really worked. Having the living area upstairs made wonderful use of the beautiful view. As soon as she’d seen the large picture window in the living room overlooking the lake, she’d turned to me and whispered that she wanted it, that this was the one. I’d made an offer to the sellers there and then, not wanting to go through the usual channels and have to wait for a reply from the agent. Seeing how in love with the house Ellie was, they’d accepted and the rest was history. That was eight weeks ago, and this was the first time we were back.
As we stepped into the living room, the huge picture window showed the trees lining our small yard, and in the distance, the lake and snow-capped mountains beyond. There were bifolding doors leading out to the large wooden balcony, the table and chairs all set up ready for people to soak in the spectacular view.
To the right, the seating area faced another large window that practically covered the whole wall. A solitary welcome home helium balloon was anchored to the coffee table.
“Aww, they bought us a balloon, too,” Ellie cooed, heading over to it and catching the string.
“Actually,” I said, “I bought that. I snuck in after I collected the keys and put it there.” I grinned sheepishly, my heart beating erratically. A sudden rush of nerves made me shift on my feet as I set the bottle of champagne on the table.
Ellie turned and smiled lovingly at me. “You’re so cute, Jamie Cole.”
I took a deep breath, clenching and unclenching my hands, willing my nerves to subside as I stepped forward. “Did you notice the weight on it?” I asked, nodding at the balloon’s string, which she had wrapped around one finger.
Her eyes traveled along the string until they got to the little red box tied at the bottom of it. Her eyes widened a fraction, but she didn’t move. I smiled at her stunned expression and was grateful that her mom, grandmother, and sister had been able to keep this a secret; they’d all been bursting with excitement when I’d told them of my plan.
Ellie gasped as I got down on one knee, tugging the little box loose from the string and looking up into her face. She was now covering her mouth with both hands, her eyes swimming with tears as she looked back at me.
Come on, Jamie, don’t screw this up! “Ellie, I know this isn’t Paris, and we’re not standing at the top of the Eiffel Tower, or in some amazing restaurant in Rome, or floating on the Dead Sea, or anything spectacular, but it just feels right to me to ask you the most important question right here in the middle of our new home,” I began.
My hands were trembling as I lifted the lid of the ring box.
She squealed, her eyes widening as a lone teardrop fell down one cheek.
“I love you with all my heart, and I always will,” I said, trying to keep my own tears in check. “I swear I’ll keep making you smile for the rest of your life, just like I promised your dad I would.” She whimpered as I said that, and I smiled. “Will you marry me, little girl?”
There was no hesitation in her answer, no indecision or thought needed. “Yes! Oh God, hell yes!”
I laughed as she bounced on the spot excitedly when I held the box out to her. The ring was the same one I’d bought for her all those years ago, the one I’d showed her dad. I’d never gotten rid of it. But it now had a subtle difference.
“I had it engraved inside,” I told her as I stood, watching her squint to read the writing on the inside of the band.
“Scars and all,” she read. Her eyes flicked up to mine and the smile that stretched across her face stole my breath. “I love you,” she whispered.
“Scars and all.” I nodded in agreement before wrapping my arms around her and crushing her against my body as I kissed her, showing her with that one kiss how much I adored her and how grateful I was that she would give a guy like me a chance.
When I pulled back, we were both breathless. I took the ring and slid it onto her finger, where it would stay for at least the next eighty years.
It turned out happily-ever-afters could happen, even to people like me. All it took was something worth fighting for.