A Perfect Christmas Night, page 12
“Five minutes. That’s all I’m asking.”
“No.”
“I drove all the way from Dallas—”
“I said no.” Her voice cracked. “I don’t want to talk to you. I don’t want to see you. I want you to leave.”
“After everything we’ve been through? After two years together?” David’s voice went soft, wounded—the tone he used when he wanted people to think he was the victim. “I deserve at least a conversation.”
“You deserve nothing.” Rose took Lili’s hand. “You heard her. Leave.”
“Hello, Rose.” He shifted his smile to her sister.
Lili lifted her chin. “If you don’t walk out of here in the next thirty seconds, I’m calling the sheriff. I’m sure you don’t want to head back to jail to finish out that sentence.”
David’s pleasant mask slipped. Lili saw the flash of anger underneath. The real David. The one who threw things and broke phones and cursed at her.
Then the mask was back. “Fine. I’ll go.” He glared at Lili. “But we need to talk. Soon. There are things we need to settle.”
“No,” Miles’s voice was steel. “Leave. Now.”
En masse, all the men stepped forward, arms folded over their chests. A physical statement that David had run out of time.
Something shifted inside Lili. All these people, standing with her. For her. People who barely knew her but were willing to face down her ex-husband without hesitation. She wasn’t alone. She stepped forward, past Miles’s protective stance. She needed to do this herself.
“There’s nothing to settle.” Her voice didn’t shake, and she was proud of that. “I’m not afraid of you anymore.”
David’s smile faltered. “Lil—”
“Don’t call me that.” She moved closer, fist raised.
He took a step back.
“You have no power over me. Not anymore. These people know what you are. Law enforcement knows. My lawyer knows. You have nothing.”
“I just came to—”
“To intimidate me? Make me feel small?” She gestured at the crowd around her. “Look at them, David. Really look. You’re outnumbered. You’re unwelcome. And you’re done.”
David’s gaze swept the room. Scott and Ryan flanked him. Tom and Miles stood ready. Jenny had her phone out, recording everything. The entire barn full of people stared at him with expressions ranging from disgust to fury.
“You mess with her, you mess with us all,” Jenny said.
His pleasant mask cracked. For the first time, Lili witnessed something she’d never seen before. Uncertainty. Fear, even.
“Fine.” His voice was tight. “You want to wallow around with hayseed hicks, have at it. I wash my hands of you.”
He turned and stalked toward the exit. Scott and Ryan followed him, making sure he left.
For a moment, nobody moved. Then the silence broke.
“Are you okay?” Rose was at her side.
“I—yes.” Lili’s knees shook. “I think so.”
Jenny lowered her phone. “Got the whole thing recorded. If he tries anything else, we have proof he violated the restraining order.”
“Thank you.”
“Did you mean that? That you’re not afraid of him anymore?”
Lili locked eyes with Miles. At all the people still gathered around her, Brenda and Marie, Tyler and Becca, Nina and Ryan, Audra and Kevin, Tom holding Emma, who started crying. Her entire community, standing ready to defend her.
“Yes. I meant it.”
Rose squeezed her hand. “I’m so proud of you.”
“I should—” Lili’s voice wavered. “I should probably go. Let everyone get back to the party.”
“Party’s over anyway,” Jenny said. “People are heading out. It’s late.”
She was right. Families were gathering coats, collecting children. The band packed up. The festive atmosphere evaporated.
“I’m sorry,” Lili said. “I ruined your party.”
“You didn’t ruin anything.” Scott appeared, panting. “We made sure he drove away. Ryan is following him to the county line just to be safe.”
“You didn’t have to.”
“Yes, we did.” Scott smiled at her. “That’s what neighbors do.”
Mrs. Dalton appeared with Lili’s coat. “You’re trembling, dear. Let’s get you warm.”
Someone pressed a cup of hot cider into her hands. Someone else offered her a chair. Everyone seemed to be moving at once, taking care of her, making sure she was okay.
It was overwhelming. Beautiful. Terrifying.
“I need some air,” Lili said.
“I’ll come with you,” Rose said.
“Actually.” Miles stepped forward. “I’d like to go with her, if I may.”
Rose looked between them, then nodded. “I’ll be inside if you need me.”
Miles guided Lili toward a side door, away from the remaining crowd. They stepped onto a deck off the back of the barn. Christmas lights strung overhead cast a soft glow. A propane heater glowed in the corner.
Lili set down the cider and gripped the deck railing. Her whole body wired, not from fear but from adrenaline.
“That was incredibly brave,” Miles said.
“I didn’t feel brave. I was furious.”
“Sometimes they’re the same thing.” He stood beside her, close but not touching. “Are you really okay?”
“I don’t know.” She laughed, but it came out rough. “I’ve spent months being terrified of him, running from him. And tonight, I just… I couldn’t let him make me small anymore. Not in front of you.”
Miles was quiet for a moment. “Are you still going to Denver?”
“No.”
He grinned ear to ear. “When did you decide?”
“On the dance floor. After you told me you had feelings for me. I was going to tell you then, but David showed up before I could. All these good people standing up for me just proved I was making the right choice.”
“You were going to say yes? Before all that?”
“I was going to say I wanted to stay. That I wanted to see where this could go. That I have feelings for you too.” She stepped closer, her gaze searching his face.
“You do?”
“Yes.” She managed a shaky laugh. “I’ve been falling for you since you threw barbecue sauce on me. What do you want?”
“I want you to stay. I want to see where this goes. I want Sunday dinners and cocoa at the Kringle Kafe and flag football— all of it. I want to fall asleep thinking about you and wake up knowing I get to see you. I want— I want you, Lili. In my practice and in my arms.”
“Miles…”
“I know it’s fast. I know it’s crazy. But watching you stand up to him in there, watching you be that strong…” He cupped her cheek. “I can’t let you walk away without fighting for you, even if I’m making a complete fool of myself.”
Tears blurred her vision. “You’re not making a fool of yourself.”
“Then what am I doing?”
“You’re giving me even more reasons to stay.” Her voice broke. “You’re giving me everything I’ve been too scared to ask for.”
She looked up at him. At this man who gave her a job when she needed one, who made her laugh, who stood between her and danger without hesitation, who told her the truth even when it was hard.
Who wanted her, not who she used to be. Not who she might become. Her. Now. Messy and scared and strong and free.
“I’m staying.”
He kissed her. Soft at first, tentative, like he was afraid she might change her mind. Then deeper, more certain, his arms pulling her close.
She kissed him back and felt everything else fall away. Denver. David. Fear. All of it gone.
Just this. Just him. Just now.
When they finally pulled apart, she was crying and laughing at the same time.
“I need to email Denver,” she said.
“Right now?”
She pulled out her phone and wrote a draft.
Thank you for the opportunity, but I’ve decided to remain where I am. I appreciate your understanding.
“Short and sweet,” he said.
“I’ll write something more professional tomorrow. But I needed to do this now. Make it official at least in my head.”
“It’s real.” He pulled her close again, pressed his forehead to hers. “You’re staying.”
The door opened. Rose stuck her head out. “Everything okay?”
“Everything’s perfect,” Lili said.
Rose’s face broke into a huge smile. “You’re staying.”
“How did you—”
“I know my sister.” Rose stepped onto the deck and hugged them both. “Welcome home, Lili.”
CHAPTER 15
Lili woke to her phone buzzing on the nightstand. She squinted at the screen.
Nina.
Merry Christmas! Miles is making me nervous. He’s been texting me about turkey temperatures since 6 a.m. Please go help him before he burns down his house.
Lili smiled and typed back:
On my way.
She’d barely slept. Every time she closed her eyes, she replayed last night. David’s face when she stood up to him, the way Miles looked at her on the deck, the kiss, the decision to stay.
The email to Denver declining the offer.
She sent a more professional version at midnight after Miles announced he was hosting Christmas dinner. (He took the turkey Nina planned to roast and claimed it was time he started to learn how to enjoy parties.)
This morning, in the quiet of Christmas Day, she felt giddy.
She was staying.
She dressed in jeans and her red sweater with the glorious moth hole, grabbed the gift she wrapped for Miles, and drove to his house. The sun was just coming up, painting the sky pink and gold. Christmas lights still glowed on houses throughout town.
Miles lived in a one-story craftsman-style home on Maple Street. She had driven past it dozens of times but had never been inside. His truck sat in the driveway, along with another vehicle beside it.
She knocked.
Miles opened the door, flour on his shirt, hair standing up like he’d been running his hands through it. “Thank God. I’m drowning here.”
“What’s wrong?”
“Everything. The turkey’s too big for the oven. I forgot to thaw the rolls. My mother’s recipe for stuffing makes no sense. What does ‘season to taste’ even mean?” He stepped back to let her in. “Gee’s been trying to help, but he keeps telling me stories about Christmases past instead of doing anything.”
“I heard that.” Gee said from the kitchen.
Lili followed Miles inside. The house was small but charming—hardwood floors, built-in bookshelves, a fireplace with stockings hung from the mantel. A Christmas tree stood in the corner, covered in eclectic ornaments. The whole place smelled like coffee, pine, and the cinnamon candle flickering on the table.
Gee sat at the kitchen table with a mug, looking too pleased with himself. “Morning, Lili. Come to rescue my grandson from culinary disaster?”
“Something like that.” She set down her gift and surveyed the kitchen. “Okay. Show me what you’ve got.”
For the next four hours, they worked together. Lili talked Miles through spatchcocking the turkey so it would fit in the oven and figured out his mother’s cryptic recipe by calling Nina, who walked them through it step by step.
Gee regaled her with tales of the year Miles tried to use science to prove Santa existed, the Christmas he gave everyone homemade coupons for “medical advice,” and the time he got stuck in the chimney trying to catch Santa, and the fire department had to come.
“I was five,” Miles said.
“You were ten,” Gee snorted.
“Still a child.”
“A child who should have known better.”
Lili laughed, watching them bicker. This was what family looked like: comfortable, easy, teasing with love.
By noon, everything was ready. The turkey was just out of the oven, sides prepped, and the table set for eleven. Miles even found cloth napkins.
“Not bad,” Lili said.
“I couldn’t have done it without you.” He took her hand and pulled her close. “Thank you.”
“For what? Keeping you from poisoning everyone?”
“For being here. For staying.” He kissed her forehead. “For making this Christmas perfect.”
The doorbell rang. Then again. Then someone just opened the door and Nina’s voice said, “We brought pie.”
The house filled with people. Nina and Ryan brought enough desserts to feed an army. Rose and Tom arrived with the kids; Emma found the tree and started counting presents. Jean and Gee canoodled in the corner.
Lili stood in the kitchen doorway, watching Miles navigate the crowd. He looked happier than she’d ever seen him. Relaxed. At ease in a way he never was at other people’s parties.
Because this was his event. His house, his family, his choice.
“He’s different.” Nina appeared beside her with a glass of iced tea. “Because of you.”
“I think he was always like this. He just needed a reason to show it.”
“Maybe. But you’re the reason.” Nina clinked her glass against Lili’s. “Welcome to the family.”
The turkey was a tad dry, but nobody cared. Emma spilled her milk twice. Kevin argued with Audra about whether Die Hard was a Christmas movie. Gee told the chimney story again. Everyone talked over each other, reached across the table, laughed at jokes, and sang Christmas songs.
After the meal, they opened presents. Emma got a doll that resembled her, and she squealed so loud that Gee covered his ears. Kevin got books about dinosaurs and started reading one aloud to anyone who would listen. Audra received earbuds and disappeared into her music.
Miles got Lili a gift, a small box wrapped in silver paper. She opened it to find a delicate silver necklace with a small charm, a tiny house with a heart-shaped door.
“It’s not much,” he said. “But I wanted you to have something that reminds you that you have a home here. With me. Whenever you’re ready.”
Her throat tightened. “Miles…”
“No pressure. No timeline. Just whenever you’re ready. The door’s open.”
She kissed him in front of everyone. Nina whooped. Emma said, “Ewww.” Rose dabbed at her eyes.
By four o’clock, people started leaving. Gee and Jean headed home before it got too dark. Nina and Ryan carried the dishes Miles borrowed to their car.
Rose hugged Lili tight at the door. “Merry Christmas, big sister.”
“Merry Christmas.”
“I’m so glad you’re staying.”
“Me too.”
At last, everyone left. Just Lili and Miles in his living room with the tree lights glowing and wrapping paper scattered across the floor.
“That was perfect,” Lili said.
“Indeed.”
She picked up the package she brought. “I got you something too.”
He opened it. Inside was a T-shirt, the one from the Christmas market that said, “GO AWAY, I’M INTROVERTING.”
Miles laughed. “It’s perfect. I got you something else.”
“Two gifts? You didn’t need to do that.”
“Oh yes, I did.” He got up and pulled it from behind the tree.
She opened it up. Inside was her vintage blouse, cleaned pristine from the barbecue sauce. She started laughing. “How did you get the shirt?”
“Stole it.” He grinned. “The night I came up to your apartment.”
“The night David texted me.”
“I felt so bad about ruining it, but my dry cleaner is a wizard.”
She snuggled against him. “I’ll say. I know you hate parties, but you threw one for me.”
“For us.” He pulled her onto the couch beside him. “I’m done hiding from my own life. Done pretending I don’t need people.”
“What changed?”
“You did. You showed up in my clinic looking for a temporary job and turned everything upside down.” He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “You made me want more.”
“I want more too.”
They sat together in the quiet house, wrapped in each other, the tree lights casting shadows on the walls.
Outside, snow began to fall, rare for Texas but perfect for Christmas. Big, soft flakes caught the light and turned the world white.
“Look.” Lili pointed.
They moved to the window, watching the snow transform the street into something magical.
“A white Christmas,” Miles said. “In Kringle, Texas. That almost never happens.”
“It’s perfect.” She leaned against him. “A perfect Christmas night.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Lori Wilde is the New York Times, USA Today, and Publishers’ Weekly bestselling author of 110 works of fiction. A three time Romance Writers of America RITA finalist, she has four times been nominated for Romantic Times Readers’ Choice Award. She has also won numerous other awards, sold over ten million books worldwide, and inspired seven Hallmark movies, including A Kismet Christmas, based on her breakout book.
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Did you love A Perfect Christmas Night? Then you should read A Perfect Christmas Dance by Lori Wilde!
This Christmas, sparks are igniting in Kringle, Texas…When a sprained knee leaves grumpy rancher Ryan Danvers stranded, sunny, biscuit-baking beauty Nina Ellis comes to his rescue. Between roasting chestnuts and sipping hot cocoa, a festive friendship blossoms. But when Nina considers selling her bakery to pursue new dreams, their relationship is put to the test.Will Nina and Ryan take a chance on love and gift each other a future together? Or will misunderstandings leave them with nothing but fruitcake and regrets?Join the residents of Kringle for heartwarming holiday hi-jinks, mouthwatering treats, and sweet chemistry that proves Christmas is the season for wonder and miracles. Discover if Nina and Ryan’s romance is naughty or nice in this delightful romance that will have you believing in the mistletoe magic!
