He grips my upperarms and gently pushes me back so he can meet my eyes. “Are yousure you don’t want to go out somewhere nice since it’s yourbirthday? I’d happily take you anywhere you want to go.”
I shakemy head, leaning in to press my lips to the hollow of his throat.“AndI’llhappilytake a rain check. For tonight, I just want to be here withyou.”
“Ifyou’re sure,” he says, and I nod. “Okay. I’d rather be alone withyou too. Andsincewe’ll be alone, maybe we could ditch the robesanyway.”
“Playyour cards right and maybe we can make that happen.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
When the foodarrives, we spread it out on the coffee table in the living room.Cole pours us each a glass of the prosecco he found in my fridge;Evie left a bottle when she and the girls came over lastweek.
He hands me a fullglass and raises the other in my direction. “To you, Sylvie, onyour thirty-fifth birthday. I’m so honored I get to spend it withyou, and even more honored the universe saw fit to bring ustogether once again. I hope the year ahead is full of love andmagic and serendipity.”
My eyes sting athis heartfelt words. We clink our glasses together and share aquick kiss before sipping the wine. The bubbles help loosen thethickness in my throat. “Please assure me this is real,” I say.“And that you’re going to be part of the love and magic in the yearahead.”
“I am.I absolutely am.” He sets his glass down and hands me one of thetakeout containers, motioning for me to start filling my plate.“The short version and the most important part is that I have a joband an apartment in Bellevue.”
My eyes bug. “Wow,okay. Long version, please.”
He chuckles. “Iwas enjoying my job, but something about it felt…hollow. I knew Ishould be loving all the traveling and meeting new people since itwas what I’d always wanted, but I was lonely. Every once in awhile, I’d look at job listings online, mostly in Toronto, butoccasionally in Bellevue too. Last month, there was a listing for ajob at the Village. They were looking for someone with writing andphotography experience to run their blog and social media accounts.My initial reaction was that I was overqualified, but when Ichecked out the site and their socials, I was blown away. Whoeverhad the job before was clearly a professional. I used myconnections to contact Hugh MacKinnon personally.”
“Impressive,” I say. Hugh MacKinnon is the owner of BellevueVillage, and he’s also a wealthy philanthropist. He’s the one whohand selected me last year for the job working in the Village’s newfamily support center.
“Hughhimself is an impressive man,” Cole says. “I was actually scaredshitless when I got him on the phone, but he treated me like along-lost friend. He invited me up to Bellevue to interview mepersonally. We spent an hour talking about travel and family, andthen he told me I had the job and offered to help me find anapartment.”
Laughter spillsout of me. I’m not quite sure why—shock, delight, disbelief. Onecorner of Cole’s mouth twitches and he nods his head as if hecompletely understands.
“Iofficially start work the first week of January,” he says. “I movedinto my apartment last week, and get this: Stella and Evie livedown the hall.”
I nearly choke onthe bite of food I’ve just taken. “You’re kidding!”
“Theday I moved in, I dropped something and it rolled down the hall.Stella was coming out of her apartment and she grabbed it. As shewas handing it to me, she froze and called me by my name. She saidshe recognized me from photos you showed her of our time togetherlast year.”
My cheeks burn,even though a voice in my head points out I shouldn’t beembarrassed because otherwise Stella never would have recognizedCole. “So were you hoping you’d run into me eventuallyor…?”
“Iwanted to get settled before I tracked you down. Everythinghappened so fast, and I didn’t want to freak you out or make youfeel pressured, especially if you happened to be dating someone.When I ran into Stella, she asked me a million questions and then Iasked some of my own. She said you were still single and she knewyou still cared about me, then she invited me to your birthdaylunch and said it would be, and I quote, ‘the best surpriseever’.”
Tearssting my eyes, and I let out a shaky laugh. “Itwasthe best surprise ever. Won’t youmiss traveling, though? And your family?”
“Mybrother and niece moved to Kingston earlier this year, so I’mactually a lot closer to them now than I was in Toronto. Themleaving added to my loneliness, especially not having my niecearound. As for traveling, I can still do that, but now it’ll be forfun instead of for work. There were some assignments where I got tosee an entire area without really enjoying it because I was takingpictures and jotting notes the whole time. Now I can travel whenand where I want to, and hopefully I won’t have to do italone.”
“You’vegot it all figured out.” My voice is quiet, but even I can hear thenote of awe in it.
“Almost,” he says. “I just need one thing.”
“What’sthat?”
“Tellme you’ll be part of my fresh start,” he says. “Tell me we canfigure out a life together without a countdown clock and impendinggoodbyes hanging over our heads. One where weneverhave to say goodbye to eachother again.”
The tears thatwere stinging my eyes before slip down my cheeks now. Cole’sforehead creases as he reaches out to swipe them away with histhumb. I grab his hand and use it to pull myself closer to him,swinging one leg over his lap so I’m straddling him.
“Inever told you this, but I ran into Santa Elvis that night in thebar when I went to the bathroom. He told me to make a wish and thenI made another wish later when you presented me with that cupcake.Do you want to know what I wished for?”
He nodsslowly.
“Onewish was to have an amazing year, which I did. The other wish wasfor this.” I squeeze his shoulders. “I mean, not this exactly,but…this. I wishedfor a happily ever after, whatever it may look like, and I know inmy heart this is it.You’reit.”
For a second Iworry it’s too much pressure to put on him. We haven’t evenexchanged I love yous yet, and here I am telling him with completeassurance I think he’s my happily ever after. But his face breaksinto a slow smile that warms me from the inside out.
