CHAPTER 18
Emma
The chilly air hits me the moment we step outside, a shock after the warmth of the cabin. My breath fogs in the early morning air, and I tuck my chin deeper into the collar of my puffer coat.
The vineyard stretches out around us in neat rows, the bare vines silver-white with frost. In the distance, rolling hills fade into mist. It’s beautiful, with the sun slowly warming the sky but pink and orange strips still lingering from the earlier sunrise.
“You sure you don’t want to just drive?” Theo asks, pulling me against his side as we start down the path.
“Absolutely not. It’s beautiful out and I intend to enjoy every bit of it. A little cold isn’t going to kill us.” I wink and he shakes his head, laughing softly.
We passed a cute looking coffee shop just down the road from the vineyard on our way in yesterday, and it looked to be about a thirty minute walk, so this morning we decided to bundle up and head out for coffee. Our boots crunch on the frozen path, neither of us in any hurry. Happy and in love and radiating after last night, I feel like I’m glowing from the inside out and everyone who sees me must be able to tell.
As we round a bend near the edge of the property, a small wooden shop comes into view with a hand-painted sign that reads “Cascade Carvings.” Out front, a collection of chainsaw sculptures stands on display, including a black bear, an eagle with its wings spread, a salmon leaping upstream, and an orca breaching out of an invisible wave.
“Chloe would love that one,” Theo says, nodding toward the orca, and I smile. The sculpturescreamsChloe, and I get a funny small pang that she’s not here. That she doesn’t know about any of this yet. “You know,” he continues, as though he’s reading my mind, “we should probably talk about Chloe. How we handle things with her.”
I squeeze his hand. “I’d like that. What are you thinking?”
“I think we tell her.” He smiles down at me. “After the festival she hasn’t stopped asking when we’re all going to hang out again. She adores you. And this isn’t some temporary thing for us.” He glances at me like he’s checking and I smile.
“No,” I say. “This definitely isn’t temporary.”
He nods. “Good. Then it feels wrong to keep it from her. She’s already so attached to you, and pretending you’re just her teacher when you’re not...” He shakes his head. “It felt right for a while, to keep her world stable. But now I feel wrong not having her know. Especially when I know how thrilled she’d be.”
The thought of Chloe knowing, of the three of us being some kind of unit, makes my heart feel fuller than I ever thought it could. I squeeze his hand. “I’d love that more than anything.”
He pulls me closer. “Then I’m going to tell her when we get back, and then maybe we can all have dinner together.”
“That sounds perfect,” I say, and it really does. I lean my head against his shoulder, and we walk on toward the coffee shop, the vineyard glittering around us.
A few days later, I sit in my car outside Theo’s house for a full minute before I can make myself get out. This is ridiculous. I know Chloe. I adore Chloe. She’s been my favorite student since the first week of school, this funny, brilliant, opinionated kid. I’ve spent time with her at school, at the fall festival. I know this child. I care about this child deeply.
But tonight I’m not showing up as Miss Hayes, her first-grade teacher who makes learning fun and lets her talk about marine biology during free time. Tonight I’m showing up as Theo’s girlfriend. And for some reason, that distinction has my stomach doing somersaults.
I glance at the passenger seat where I’ve set the tin of cookies I spent all morning baking, my Swedish grandmother’s recipe, the same butter cookies with cardamom and pearl sugar that she taught me to make when I was Chloe’s age.
Mormor was the one who gave me my love of European candy, who sent me packages of Swedish licorice and chocolate when I was away at college, whose giant care package of imported treats ended up scattered across the post office floor the day I literally bumped into Theo Midnight and changed my life forever.
I take a breath, grab the cookie tin, and walk up to the front porch. The house and yard really are beautiful. Theo’s built a lovely home here, and as I walk up the steps, I smell something incredible coming from inside.
Before I can even knock, the door flies open. Chloe’s standing there in leggings and an oversized sweater with a whale on it, her dark hair pulled back in a slightly lopsided ponytail that suggests she did it herself. She’s practically vibrating with excitement, bouncing on her toes, her whole face lit up like Christmas came early.
“You’re here!” she squeals, the words coming out as one long excited sound.
“I’m here,” I confirm, laughing at her enthusiasm as shelaunches herself into a hug. I squeeze her tight, and every bit of nervousness I had evaporates, replaced by something that feels a lot like coming home.
“I’ve been waiting forever,” Chloe informs me, grabbing my hand and tugging me through the entryway. “We’re having sustainably sourced salmon with a lovely flavor profile.” I cover a laugh at that, fairly certain she’s quoting her Uncle Alex verbatim.
We round the corner, and there’s Theo. He’s at the stove with his back partially to us, stirring something in a pan that’s sizzling gently. The kitchen smells like butter and herbs and the whole scene is so warm and domestic. He looks up when we come in, and his face breaks into a smile.
He sets down the spoon and crosses the kitchen toward me. “Hey,” he says, and then he leans in and presses a quick kiss to my cheek. “You look lovely.”
“Ooooooh,” Chloe squeals, dissolving into giggles. She looks between us with obvious delight, like she’s watching her favorite movie.
Theo laughs and reaches down to ruffle her hair affectionately. “Okay, you little stinker,” he says. “Go grab the appetizer from the fridge. Show Emma what we made.”
“Okay, Emma follow me!” She scrambles over to the fridge and I follow as she pulls open the door with both hands, tugging out a platter of bruschetta topped with what looks like whipped ricotta and honey. She holds it up, beaming at me like she’s presenting a trophy.
