Liam kisses my nose. “We’ll be sure to make the most of it.”
“Where’s that dog?” my sister asks.
“In the car,” says Liam. “I didn’t want him to steal my moment.”
Gretta bounds out to the car. I follow with Liam close by my side. I’m way too stunned and excited and happy to feel the cold. Fitz jumps out. He greets me and then Gretta.
As we pet Fitz, I ask Gretta. “How did you know about Fitz?”
“Did you think I’d bring a dog without checking with your parents?” Liam asks.
“They knew?” I turn to Gretta. “You knew. How long did you know?”
“At least three days.”
“But you lied... ” I turn to Liam. “You said your sister and mom were coming back and you were going to Tahoe.”
“I said they were coming home, and we were going to Tahoe. And that it should be a good Christmas. We are going to Tahoe for New Year’s, and it should be a VERY good Christmas.”
“Does that mean you’re staying for Christmas?” I ask breathlessly.
“Your parents agreed. But, of course, you have the final say.”
“Yes! I want you to stay. It’s all I want.” I pull him in for another long kiss while real snow, the type money can’t buy, falls gently upon us.
I’m certainly the most fortunate creature that ever existed! —Pride & Prejudice
Epilogue
We have a very merry Christmas. I give Liam a doughnut cat, which my dad helped me make in November. Liam promptly declares he’s going to keep it on the counter year-round. Outraged, my mom tells him that’s sacrilege. “The doughnut cat only comes out in October.”
Liam says his doughnut cat, which he promptly named Jiji, likes to be on the counter serving doughnuts year-round. Tilly sides with Liam. Gretta with my mom. She lobbies my dad to join the debate, but Liam decides to end the dispute by handing me a wrapped box, a Christmas gift. I lift the lid to find four handkerchiefs embroidered with violets. On top rests a notecard, which reads, “For happy tears.”
I told the truth when I said I never cry happy tears, but reading that note, my eyes prick a little. “Liam, I love them. Did your mom... ”
“Yeah, she made them. When I asked her to in October, she was very excited.”
I venture the question I’m afraid to ask, “And what does she think of me now?” Liam might have forgiven me for what I wrote in that book. But I can’t imagine his mother could forgive me so fast.
“She was angry, but in the end, she was the one who convinced me to come back. Honestly, I think she didn’t want these handkerchiefs to go to waste.” I pretend to be offended and throw a wad of wrapping paper at his unshaven face. He throws it back, and Fitz wanders after it. “I would have come around, eventually.” He continues, petting Fitz, who, good dog that he is, returns the tossed wrapping paper to Liam. “But Mom and Georgie made me see reason much faster than I would have on my own. They insisted I spend Christmas with you. I really didn’t need much convincing. But it’s a good thing I listened to them. I was already in Boston on my way home when Carmen texted me about the emergency board meeting.”
“What! But if you were already planning on spending Christmas with me, why didn’t you just fly back with me?”
My siblings, who have been opening gifts, all pretend not to listen, when, in reality, they breathlessly wait for Liam’s answer.
“Georgie told me I owed you a grand gesture, but we were kind of at a loss for what that should be. I had decided flying back to the States was a big enough gesture. But when Reynolds messaged me asking what to do about getting the Audi to Iowa, I knew what I needed to do.” He takes my hand. “Though it about killed me watching you leave that meeting without talking to you in person.”
“It kind of killed me that you didn’t follow me.”
“That’s why I texted you as soon as I could. Are you mad?” He looks genuinely worried.
“No.” I stop and think about it. “I mean, if you had talked to me face to face, there’s no way I would have flown home, and I would have missed Gretta’s birthday.” Realistically, I know it will get trickier to be home for my sister’s birthdays in the future. “I’m glad I was here for The Nightmare Before Christmas. And you got Gretta’s car here, and it was truly the most wonderful surprise.”
“Phew! I wouldn’t have done it if you hadn’t told me you like surprises.”
“I do, and I’m so happy.” I snuggle up to him. We are both wearing pajamas, even though it’s afternoon. Liam takes the Benson family Christmas traditions seriously. Instead of packing the jogger pants and T-shirt he usually sleeps in, he brought traditional red plaid pajamas with a monogram on the pocket. “Opening the door and seeing you there will forever be one of my favorite memories.” I might be a bit forward saying something like this. But Liam doesn’t even blink, which tells me we both know we’re in this for the long haul.
Gretta interrupts us to give a gift to Fitz. In the few days leading up to Christmas, she knitted him a doggie sweater. Fitz is skeptical about this gift. When my sister tries to put it on him, he runs and hides behind the couch. However, he receives my mom’s gift more graciously. She crafted him leather dog boots with scraps from past projects. Still wearing pajamas (it’s tradition), but with coats, gloves, and snow boots, we take Fitz on a late-afternoon walk to try out his new Christmas present. Liam thinks Fitz will be more willing to wear the boots if he first walks the icy sidewalks with bare paws a few minutes. When we reach the end of the block, we stop to put on his new boots. Fitz immediately sees the usefulness of this gift. As Fitz scampers ahead of us on the snowy sidewalk, testing out his new boots, I give my real gift to Liam.
