Page 32 of Keeping Happily Ever After

Not that it mattered. Any way he put it, it would only darken their day. And that was the exact opposite of what Jeremy had planned for them.

“Besides,” he said, forcing a lightness back into his voice. “The day isn’t over. Not even close.” He pushed himself up to his knees and offered a hand out to her. “We still have a few hours of daylight, and if we go down this trail for like five more minutes, there’s a surprise.”

“A surprise?”

Her face lit up and Jeremy grinned. If she was excited just hearing about a surprise, she would be completely ecstatic when she saw it.

“What is it?”

He laughed as she took his hand and he hauled her up to standing. “It wouldn’t be a surprise if I told you about it. But I promise it’s amazing. You won’t be disappointed.”

She narrowed her eyes and gave him a sly smile. “Okay.” She wiped some snow from her arms. “I trust you.”

“You do?”

Bella laughed again. “Of course I do.” She gave up the futile exercise of trying to rid herself of the snow that clung to her and straightened up, a glimmer of mischief in her eyes. “Want to race?”

Jeremy’s mouth dropped open and she laughed. “I’m kidding,” she said. “But if we don’t get going, I am going to freeze to death and won’t be able to enjoy this surprise you’re telling me about.”

“Fair enough.”

He led the way down the trail again, moving a little quicker than before. Because she had a point—she had taken a pretty big tumble into the bank, and shewascovered in snow. If they didn’t keep moving, Bella could get really cold. For a moment, he questioned the logic in continuing on at all. Maybe they should turn back and get to the car, where they could warm up? But…the surprise was really only a few minutes away and it would be worth it. He knew it. He looked back over his shoulder at her.

She smiled and waved. “I’m fine, Jer!”

He laughed at her mind reading ability and shook his head before focusing once again on the path in front of them.

A few minutes later, just as he’d predicted, they turned around a bend in the trail, and there it was. The surprise.

Jeremy turned quickly to catch Bella’s reaction when she saw it for the first time and he wasn’t disappointed.

Her mittened hands both flew to her mouth. She shook her head in wonder and after a moment looked at him. “Is that…how did it…”

Jeremy nodded.

“That’s an actual waterfall?”

He nodded. “It’s called Angel Falls.”

“Angel?”

She didn’t take her eyes off the waterfall that had frozen into a spectacular ice sculpture. It didn’t matter how many times Jeremy saw it, Angel Falls was one of the most spectacular winter sites around. His mom and dad had brought him and Charlotte out there when they were kids, and ever since, it was one of his favorite places. Glacier Falls right in town was beautiful, but this was…special in a completely different way.

“See how it’s frozen?” Jeremy pointed to the sides of the ice. “It kind of goes out into—”

“Wings.” Bella nodded the moment she saw it. “Like angel wings?”

“Exactly.” Jeremy walked a little closer to the ice. “In the summer, it’s just a waterfall. Pretty, of course, but not like this. Somehow the water freezes just so over the rocks along the side so it looks like wings. Cool, right?”

“Very cool.” Bella joined him on the ice. They were walking directly on the frozen stream. “Are weonthe river?”

He laughed. “It’s not a river really, but yes. It freezes solid in the winter. In fact, if you were into ice climbing, you could even climb up the waterfall.”

Bella looked at him in wonder. “Have you done it?”

He shrugged. “A few times when I was younger. But I’m not so much a rock climber. It turns out that I like to keep my feet on the ground.”

She laughed. “Me too, I think.”

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