Maggie couldn’t stop doing laps of the restaurant. She must have hugged Anna and Joshua and Elise five times each, and the rest of the staff almost as much.

Joshua had insisted on managing the kitchen for the evening, noting that Maggie would have plenty of time to cook later, and that she should just enjoy having her restaurant back. He did have her approve the menu and taste everything before it went out, so she spent half her time in the kitchen and half the time walking through the dining room, talking to their guests.

She knew that Raffaele had thrown everything he had into getting BienVille back for her, and every time Maggie met his eyes, she saw nothing but love there. He held Mardi as he worked the dining room, introducing their daughter to all the guests and charming them.

Maggie stopped at the host stand and Anna nodded over her shoulder at the Prince and the baby.

“Maybe I should give him my job—he’s pretty good at this front of house stuff,” she said.

Maggie laughed. “I’m sure his parents would love that.”

Anna shook her head. “If they saw how happy he is right now, I don’t think they’d care.” She studied the younger woman. “You know, he was determined to make this right for you. He wanted so much to give you back your dream.”

Maggie nodded. “I know.” She turned to Anna with tears in her eyes. “Is this really all happening?” she asked her godmother.

Anna smiled. “Oh, baby girl, it is. That man is crazy about you, and he’s crazy about that little girl of yours. He’s not going anywhere.”

Maggie nodded again. “Okay.”

Raffaele caught her looking in his direction and walked toward them as Anna greeted a couple that had just walked inside the restaurant.

Maggie met him and pulled him off to the side. “Have I said thank you yet?”

Raffaele grinned. “I told you, I have a fairy godmother on staff.”

Maggie shook her head. “No, really. This took a lot of work, and I’m just…I’m overwhelmed, Raffa. I can’t thank you enough.”

He matched her serious tone. “You don’t have to. I’d do this again and again for you, because that’s how important you are—you both are—to me.”

Maggie reached out to touch his arm. “Why don’t you stay with us tonight? It’s Christmas Eve, and we’d love to spend it with you.”

Raffaele nodded. “Yes. I’d very much like that, too.”

Joshua and Anna chased them out before the restaurant closed, promising to take care of everything and see them on December 26. As Maggie left the kitchen, Joshua handed her a large bag filled with three take-out boxes.

“Because I know you didn’t eat tonight,” he admonished her with raised eyebrows. “Happy Christmas Eve, chef.”

Maggie hugged him one more time and gratefully took the food.

“Thank you. Happy Christmas Eve.”

When they reached the apartment, Maggie opened the door while Raffaele carried Mardi. As she flipped on the lights, she realized something.

“I’m so sorry,” she said, turning to him before he got too far into the apartment. “I haven’t decorated at all. I just haven’t had the time.”

Raffaele waved the apology off.

“I understand. You had your hands full with work and this little one.”

He tickled Mardi under the chin, making her giggle softly. Raffaele looked at Maggie, who knew she looked uncertain.

“Really, Maggie. It’s fine.”

Maggie nodded. “I need to put Mardi to bed, but once I do that, dinner?”

She held up the bag in question and Raffaele held out a hand to take it.

“Here. Why don’t you take Mardi, and I’ll get dinner heated up.”

Maggie passed him the food and took their daughter. “Deal.”

She carried Mardi into her little nursery and quickly got her changed and ready for bed. When she returned to the main living area, Raffaele had reheated and plated the food and set the table. He had glasses of wine waiting; when he saw Maggie walk into the room, he stood and held her chair out for her.

Maggie sat, glad to stop moving for a few minutes, even though the day had been wonderful.

“Thank you, again.”

Raffaele took a sip of wine.

“Thank you, for asking me to stay tonight. I know seeing me the other day was a shock. I’m sorry for that.”

Maggie shook her head as she twirled pasta on her fork.

“I’m sure it was a shock for you, too. Still, I’m so glad to see you.”

Raffaele was silent for a moment as they both ate, but finally, he said, “I wish I’d known. About Mardi.”

Maggie sat back with a little sigh. “I know. Me too.”

Raffaele leaned forward.

“I’m not blaming you, Maggie. You are amazing. You did everything you could, and then you made sure that our daughter was healthy and safe and cared for. I am in awe of you.”

Maggie blinked tears from her eyes.

“Thank you, Raffa.” She gathered her thoughts and then said, “But it’s not your fault, either. You had no way of knowing, and you did what you could when you sent me that letter last Christmas.”

She smoothed a hand over her belly, remembering.

“You know that’s when I went into labor? Right after I got your letter. It wasn’t the same as having you there with me, but it was something, and right then, that was enough. I knew you were okay and still thinking of me.”

“You mean she was born on Christmas?” Raffaele asked, his voice full of emotion.

Maggie nodded. “Just before midnight. My Christmas miracle.”

“I didn’t know when my letter would get to you. I made my father promise it would get to you, but they were still worried about my location leaking, so I knew it might be a long time before it arrived.”

Raffaele took a deep breath.

“I thought about you on Christmas. I was in the middle of the desert with my unit, and we didn’t have a mission scheduled for that day. I spent all day thinking about you—walking around your park and cooking elaborate meals at the restaurant—it was the only thing that got me through the day.”

Maggie studied him for a long moment. “How was it?”

Raffaele was quiet and Maggie waited patiently.

“I’m proud of our role in the operation and the work my unit did. It wasn’t easy. But I have a deeper understanding of the work our military does, and endless respect for the men and women who serve in it.”

He sat back and sighed.

“Dust got into everything—and I mean, everything. The hours between missions were filled with busy work, or boredom. Even though I was on an active base, they wouldn’t allow me to go on active missions for the first year.”

He fell silent again, and Maggie asked a question. “What did you end up doing? Didn’t they train you?”

Raffaele gave her a small smile.

“They did. I learned how to fly helicopters.” Maggie’s eyes got wide and Raffaele nodded. “The second year, I flew doing mostly rescue missions. They decided it was safer than putting me on the ground in a firefight.”

Maggie tilted her head, studying him. She’d never seen him look quite like this—he had a calmness and a quiet pride that he hadn’t had before.

“You loved it, didn’t you?”

Raffaele laughed. “I did, actually. And I found out I’m pretty good at it.” He shrugged. “I guess all that time spent in jets was worth something. I like being in the air.”

Maggie hesitated before asking her next question. “Are you going back?”

“No,” Raffaele said firmly. “They won’t let me, even if I wanted to. The security risk is too great.”

“Do you want to go back?”

Raffaele paused and Maggie knew that his time in the military had indeed changed him. Finally, he nodded.

“My unit is headed back over for another tour. I’d go again to support them if I could.” Then, he looked intently at her. “But that was before I knew we had a daughter. All I want now is to be a family, with the two of you.”

He leaned forward and took her hand.

“I don’t know that I’ll ever be able to explain just how worried I was that you would take one look at me and slam the door in my face. Even with my letter, I disappeared for almost two years. You would be well within reason to not want to see me ever again. We were just starting our relationship, and if you’d found someone else or just given up on me…well, I couldn’t blame you for doing that.”

Maggie squeezed his hand. “I’ve known since we met that you are a kind, honorable, good man. I didn’t give up on you.”

Raffaele smiled. “I’m not sure if we should start over or pretend these last twenty-one months didn’t happen.”

Maggie gave him a wry look. “Given who’s in the next room, I don’t think we can pretend they didn’t happen.”

Raffaele chuckled. “Fair enough.”

“But I don’t want to start over, either,” Maggie said. “Can we pick up where we left off?”

Raffaele was about to reply, but just then, Maggie yawned, and he tugged at her hand.

“Yes, we can. But right now, that means we pick up this conversation in the morning and you go get some sleep.”

She opened her mouth to say something, but Raffaele held up a hand.

“Let me clean up here, and keep an ear out for Mardi. When she wakes up, I’ll be here.”

Maggie couldn’t do anything but nod. “Honestly, a good night’s sleep is the best Christmas present I could get.”

“Then go and sleep. Don’t worry about anything.”

He stood as she did, and Maggie leaned forward to give him a hug.

“Thank you, Raffa. I’ll see you in the morning.”

Maggie was asleep almost before her eyes closed. When she woke up in the morning, she stretched in bed, enjoying another minute of calm before she had to go out and deal with the world. Then, she got out of bed, changed into something a little festive for her daughter’s first Christmas morning, and went into the living room.

The sight that met her eyes made her stop dead in her tracks. There was a small, beautifully decorated tree in the corner, lights on the window, and Christmas music playing softly. It looked like a Christmas card had come to life in her living room.

She could smell coffee and something baking, too, so she went into the kitchen. Raffaele was standing there singing a Christmas song softly to Mardi, who was sound asleep in his arms.

Maggie couldn’t help herself. This right here—the man she loved holding their daughter—made her so happy. Through tears, she said, “Merry Christmas.”

Raffaele’s head turned to look at her, moving carefully so as not to disturb the baby. His smile sent a thrill through Maggie. “Merry Christmas.”

Maggie made up her mind and moved quickly. She rapidly took the few steps to Raffaele and stood on her toes to kiss him deeply, holding onto to his arm to steady herself. He leaned into her, mindful of Mardi, and kissed her back. When she broke the kiss, she laid a hand on his cheek.

“I love you. I’ve loved you since the first time we kissed, and I’ve known it since I got on the plane to come home.”

Raffaele rested his forehead against hers.

“I love you, too. I have since you tucked a little mask into the flowers on my birthday cake, just so I would have something that was special for me.”

Maggie tucked herself under his arm and wrapped her arms around his waist. He held her and their daughter, and it was perfect.