Page 11 of The Replacement Fiance

Logan switches off the engine. "What date?"

"A wedding date! We haven't set one. If I were really engaged, I'd have set one by now," I say as the front door bursts open and everyone steps outside. Mom, Dad, Harper and Emily, all of them with broad smiles on their faces.

"Not everyone sets a date right away, Mariah. We both own businesses, remember?" Logan says as my sisters hurry toward the SUV.

"Mariah, you're finally here!" Harper has her phone in her hand, and I don't need to ask if she's filming us because she already is. They both stop when Logan steps out of the truck and stare at him.

"Oh, my! He's gorgeous." Emily says. "You never told us he was tall, dark, and handsome. Definitely an upgrade from–"

"Emily!" Harper shoots her a look before facing us again, her stern face breaking into a smile. "Now I know why you kept your engagement a secret. I know I would. I'd hate sharing him with anyone."

I roll my eyes at their silliness although their attempt to embarrass me and Logan is working. He's blushing as my sisters approach him.

"You must be Harper and Emily. Mariah's told me so much about you," Logan says as my sisters each give him a hug.

"And he gives amazing hugs, too!" Harper exclaims before running around the SUV toward me. "I need to see the ring, Mariah. The ring!"

"Don't film it," I mutter. "It's not one of those big rocks."

She scoffs. "Like I care if it is or not. You're engaged. That's what matters."

"Why don't we all go inside where it's warm," Dad says as he envelops me in a hug followed by Mom, who smells of patchouli and lavender.

"I'm so happy you made it, Mariah," she says as she draws away to look at Logan who's shaking Dad's hand. "And I just love Logan's energy. It's so refreshing… so light and almost purple along his third eye."

"Thank goodness for that," Emily says, laughing. "Because if he didn't, then she'll be watching him like a hawk guarding her young the whole time. And I'm sure, Forrest will be, too."

"Where is he?" I ask.

"He's checking on a guest who rented one of the cabins but has no clue how to use the wood stove," Mom replies. "We can't have freezing guests now, can we?"

"Nope." I shake my head, giggling. We've had our share of guests from the city who've never seen a wood stove before and we usually refer them to one of the twelve rooms in the main lodge instead where the gas fireplaces are more manageable.

"But you'll see him in time for dinner," Dad says.

"Are they here?" I ask, my voice a whisper as I glance at the Rivers' house in the distance, the lights in the living room on.

Mom nods. "We ran into them this morning and they said hello."

"You never wait this late to come up," Dad says as we head to the house with Logan next to me. "But I'm glad you made it, honey. The news of your engagement has definitely made the holidays more exciting around here. The whole town knows."

I stare at Logan in horror before mouthing, I'm so sorry. But he just shrugs. What can he do anyway?

Inside, Emily's two-year-old son Jonathan is playing by the Christmas tree next to his father, Brad. He gets up to greet me and introduce himself to Logan while Emily and Mom take over watching Jonathan. From the corner of my eye, I see Logan follow Dad up the stairs with our bags and return a few minutes later. I can almost feel my panic rising.What if she asks him a question we didn't cover during the drive?

For the next twenty minutes, we talk about the flower shop and the drive up while Dad and Logan set the presents I'd brought with me on the living room floor in front of the Christmas tree.

"You need help with dinner, Dad?" I ask as he gets up from the floor a few minutes later, brushing the tinsel clinging to his trousers.

"Nah, you know the drill, honey. You guys make yourselves at home while your mom and I get dinner ready."

As Mom and Dad head to the kitchen, Logan gets his share of questions from everyone, most of them about how we met and what he does for a living. When the topic turns to motorcycles, Brad is all ears. Turns out he's been thinking of getting one although Emily isn't too happy about the idea.

Harper beckons for me to join her by the window where she's been taking pictures of the view.

"You were really cutting it close, Mariah. You're usually here by the 20th. It's Christmas Eve," she says as I lean against the window frame. "When you hadn't arrived yet this morning, I thought you weren't going to show up at all. And all becausehewas spending Christmas at home." She jabs her thumb toward the lodge in the distance next to the fence.

"Come on, Harper. You really think I'd be scared of seeing him again?"

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