Page 84 of The Runaway Bride of Blitzen Bay (Blitzen Bay)

“No, I can’t take any of it. Those are good memories of her.”

“I’m going to give you something in my will anyway,” Sam says, trying to muffle a yawn. “You might as well take it now.”

Izzy hugs him again. “Well, since you’re never going to die, I’m never going to get it. And I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

I stand up. “I should go, too. Thank you so much for a wonderful Christmas.”

Sam hugs me. “Do you promise to come and see me?”

“I promise,” I say, kissing his cheek. “And I want to see more of these pictures the next time.”

I grab Nash’s coat as we walk out. He’s standing on the porch, staring out toward the lake. He looks over at us.

“Is the party breaking up?” He looks right at me.

“Yeah,” Izzy says. “We’ll take Noelle back to the inn.”

He walks over and takes my hand. “No, it’s good. I can take her back.”

“That doesn’t make any sense.” Izzy grabs my arm.

I pull it away. “You know, it’s such a nice night. I think I’ll walk. I need to work off those Christmas cookies anyway.”

Izzy stares back and forth from Nash to me a few times before Gabi grabs her. “Okay, we’re going home. Merry Christmas to both of you. Noelle, make sure you say goodbye before you head back to L.A.”

“I will.” I hug both of them. “Merry Christmas.”

“I’m going to tell Sam goodbye,” Nash says as we watch them get in their car. “Wait here for me.”

When he comes back out, he takes my hand and leads me down the sidewalk toward his house. I pull back on him as we reach the driveway.

“What’s wrong?” He turns around. I’m standing a few steps higher than him, so we’re face-to-face.

“Nash—”

“Elle, it’s fine,” he says, putting his arms around my waist. “If the moment’s passed, it’s passed. I told you I’m not in a hurry. If you’re not ready, it’s fine.”

“My body’s ready—like really ready,” I say as he pulls me closer to him, “but my mind isn’t there yet. It’s just—”

“You don’t have to explain,” he whispers as he pulls me into a hug. “You never have to explain what you’re feeling. If you’re feeling it, it’s the right thing.”

“The right thing for who?”

He pulls his head back and looks right into my eyes. “For you. It’s the right thing for you and that’s all that should matter to you. Everyone else can take care of themselves, including me.”

I take a deep breath and nod. He helps me down the final few steps to the driveway.

“Do you want to go back to the inn?” he says, putting his arm around me.

“I think I should go back.” My words sound as sad as I feel, but my gut’s screaming at me that it’s the right thing. It hasn’t failed me yet. I guess I need to keep listening to it.

“Okay, I’ll take you back.” He kisses the top of my head as he starts guiding me toward his truck.

“Do you mind if we walk back? It’s so pretty out tonight.”

“Not at all,” he says, smiling as he takes my hand. “I get to spend more time with you that way.”

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