Page 55 of The Holiday Fail

It was late by the time we finished, but Levi’s friends, Austin, Jim, Felix, and his boyfriend, Bruce, all stayed until both the dining room and the outside tent were set up and decorated.

This was the first time I’d met Felix and Bruce. Felix was apparently Levi’s best friend who had moved away last year. Icould tell they were close as they chatted animatedly while they worked.

They glanced my way a few times, which made me wonder if Levi was talking about me. And by the smiles and cute blush that graced Levi’s skin when he peeked at me, I hoped it was something good.

“Were you talking about me with your friend earlier?” I asked Levi later that night as we slipped into bed. Levi took his spot snuggled by my side, his head resting on my arm—or at this rate, it was quickly becoming his arm.

“Maybe,” Levi hedged with a grin. “Felix says he’d love to go on a double date with us before they leave town. He wants to get to know the man who makes me incredibly happy.”

I rolled him over so he was half on top of me, making my body as warm as my heart was feeling right about now.

“I make you happy?” I asked. His pops had mentioned something about that before, but I couldn’t be sure that I was the source of Levi’s happiness.

“You do. You make me so happy,” he admitted, eyes shining with joy. Levi had always worn his emotions on his sleeve, and right now, he was showing just how much he felt for me, and fuck if it wasn’t tugging my own feelings to the forefront.

“I love you,” I blurted out, and those sweet dimples appeared on Levi’s face. I hadn’t meant to tell him that now since we should be sleeping. Especially if we didn’t want to be running on only a couple of hours of sleep for the event, but it felt right. Levi was always so honest about his feelings, and he deserved that I gave him the same.

“I love you,” he said, pressing the words into my mouth, and it was everything.

I almost told him right then and there that this was what I wanted. To be with him. Here. But I didn’t want him thinkingI was only saying it because I was caught up in the moment.

I’d been thinking about it for a while. I kept telling myself, Levi, and everyone else that I was leaving once my time here was up. I had big dreams that led me back to New York, but these days, when I thought about the penthouse in the city, all I felt was the coldness of being alone.

When I imagined working in some fancy restaurant, making my name known, it suddenly didn’t seem as fulfilling as the heartfelt compliments from the guests who’d visited our tiny restaurant these past few weeks.

Staying in Wintertown hadn’t been the plan, but neither was falling in love with Levi. Now, however, these two things were all I could see myself wanting. So I held Levi tight as I drifted to sleep, planning to tell him tomorrow that I wanted this life with him.

If he’d have me.

We knew the Thanksgiving event would be packed, but the turnout was beyond our imagination. It felt like there was an endless stream of people coming as soon as the event started.

I was so busy in the kitchen that I didn’t even have time to take a peek outside, but from what I heard from Levi, the dining room, living room, and the tent were at max capacity, yet there were still more people wanting to stay for dinner. So they’d had to set up chairs in the lobby for guests.

It was only hours later, when new guests finally stopped showing up, that I got a chance to look around. Henry and Peter had helped me in the kitchen earlier, but they were now sitting with a group of familiar faces from town, finally getting a chance to have their Thanksgiving meal. Guests who were staying the night at the B&B were mingled with the Wintertown residents, chatting like they were old friends.

Levi came to my side and tucked himself under my arm.

“We did it,” he whispered, looking around at all the happy faces. Singles, and even couples who would have spent the holiday by themselves, had all come together to enjoy the evening as a community. “It’s beautiful, and none of this would have happened without you.” Levi faced me, happiness blooming on his face.

“No.Wemade this happen. It wasn’t just me,” I replied and plopped a kiss on each of his sweet dimples.

Levi laughed but sobered not long later. “You say that, but without you, we wouldn’t even have any food to feed everyone. I don’t know what we’re going to do next year.”

“Well…I might know someone who’s willing to cook for next year’s holiday event and maybe even all the ones in the foreseeable future,” I stated with a grin.

“Who?”

“Me.”

Levi flapped his mouth open, closed, and then open again to ask, “Are you saying you’ll come back for the holidays just for the events?”

I pulled him into my arms, chest against chest, and breaths mingling as I said, “No. I’m saying I want to stay here with you. I don’t want to leave when my contract is up. In fact, I was hoping we could make a morepermanentarrangement.”

The utter shock on Levi’s face had me smiling with amusement.

“But what about your goals? Your dreams back in the city? You can’t give all that up for…me.” Levi’s voice cracked at the end, and it broke my heart to hear.

It was obvious Levi’s exes had made him feel like he wasn’t someone worth choosing, and that couldn’t have been more wrong. Levi said I made him happy, but he also brought morehappiness intomylife than I ever could have imagined. He loved me when I felt unworthy of it.

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