“You were the first girl I ever kissed. And I was in love with you, too. I went back to the cove every time I could, hoping you’d be there again. But you never came back.”
Gelsey slipped her fingers through his, her gaze fixing on their hands locked together. “Thank you for bringing it back.”
“There’s something inside,” he said. “Besides your treasures. Open it up.”
She pulled off the lid and recognized all the contents except for one thing. Gelsey pulled out the key and held it up. “What is this for? The cottage?”
Kellan shook his head. “No. It’s for your future. If you decide to stay here, to make a life here, then that key will open up an interesting opportunity.”
“What is it?” she asked.
“You’ll just have to come to Ballykirk and find out for yourself.”
“I’m coming for Nan and Riley’s wedding,” she said. “Before that, I’m going to New York to see my mother. My father will be there, too. He has some meetings in Washington after the first of the year.”
“You are coming back,” Kellan said.
She nodded. “Yeah. I’m just going to be gone a few days.”
Kellan slowly stood. Gelsey wanted to pull him back down, to stay with her for the rest of the evening. But she knew he had places to be. Christmas with the family and church after that. “Thank you for coming,” she said. “I’m sorry I didn’t have a gift for you.”
“But you did.” He pointed to her face. “That smile. I’m going to enjoy that for weeks. And you said you love me. That’s better than a lump of coal in a guy’s stocking. I guess I’ll see you at the wedding then,” he said.
“I’ll walk you to the door.” Gelsey slipped her arm through his and they slowly strolled out into the foyer. She wanted to lead him right up the stairs and into her bedroom. She didn’t want him to leave. Yet, she had to force herself to let him go. Making love to him now would only confuse matters.
When they reached the door, he turned to face her. “Happy Christmas, Gels.”
“Happy Christmas, Kellan.”
They stood there for a long time, just looking into each other’s eyes. “Where is the mistletoe when you really need it?” he murmured.
She laughed softly. “I think a Christmas kiss wouldn’t do either of us any harm.”
With a low sigh, Kellan cupped her face in his hands. Her gaze fixed on his and he bent close and kissed her, lingering over her mouth for a long time before drawing away.
“There. Now the world is right again,” he said.
“Please give your family my best wishes,” she said.
“I will.” He reached for the door, then paused before he opened it. “I love you, Gelsey. I hope you won’t forget that.”
“And I love you,” she said.
He nodded, then opened the door and walked out. Gelsey watched him as he got in the car. Kellan gave her a wave before he drove away. She smiled to herself. It was a beginning, like the kiss they’d shared in the meadow all those years ago.
She glanced down to find that she was still holding the tin in her hand. “My box of dreams,” she said. Funny how her dreams had grown so large that a tiny box could never contain them now.
KELLAN STOOD in the front of the church dressed in his best suit and tie. Danny stood beside him in Kellan’s second-best suit and tie. Guests had begun to arrive a half hour before the wedding ceremony and he scanned the crowd, searching for Gelsey. She sneaked into church just before the bride started down the aisle, and Kellan realized she’d probably been helping Nan and Jordan get ready.
“You can take a breath now,” Danny whispered. “She’s here.”
“Yeah,” Kellan said. “All right. So things are definitely looking up.”
As the organ began to play the processional, the three brothers walked to the railing and waited there for Jordan and the bride. Riley and Nan had planned a simple ceremony, but they’d spent time decorating the church with vivid red poinsettias, fragrant pine garlands and hundreds of candles.
Nan looked beautiful, but Kellan’s full attention was focused at the rear of the church, on Gelsey. She wore a fashionable hat and pretty green coat, almost the color of the dress she’d been wearing the morning he found her on the beach.
When Nan took Riley’s hand, Kellan was forced to turn around, but not before talking one last look. She smiled at him and gave him a little wave and Kellan sent a silent thanks to the heavens. She’d shown up and she was smiling at him. Things were going quite well.
Throughout the ceremony, Kellan was tempted to glance back at her, anxious for another look. Although the focus of the guests should have been on Riley and Nan, Kellan got the impression that there were just as many people wondering about the state of the relationship between him and Gelsey. The town of Ballykirk missed their very own celebrity, almost as much as Kellan missed Gelsey’s presence in his bed and in his life.
To his relief, the ceremony was short and sweet. Vows were repeated, rings exchanged and before Kellan knew it, Nan and Riley were husband and wife. They walked down the aisle hand in hand, as happy as any two people ever deserved to be. Kellan and Danny followed the couple down the aisle with Jordan walking between them.
“Gelsey is here,” Jordan murmured as they walked out of the church.
“I know,” Kellan said. “I saw her.”
“Everything is ready at the shop. Are you going to take her there now or later?”
“Aren’t we supposed to hang about for photos?” he asked.
“We’re going to take those back at the pub. Nan and Riley will stay here for a formal portrait.”
“What are you two whispering about?” Danny asked.
Kellan frowned at his brother. “Didn’t you tell him?”
Jordan shook her head. “He can’t keep a secret. He was supposed to wait until Christmas morning to ask me to marry him. He had the whole thing planned and then he asked me the day before, right before we walked over to the pub. Needless to say, I was surprised when he got down on one knee as I was curling my hair.”
“It was like the ring was burning a hole in my pocket,” Danny commented. “I couldn’t wait anymore. I couldn’t stop thinking about it.”
The moment they got outside, Kellan wandered through the crush of guests, looking for Gelsey. He found her standing near the bottom of the steps, her green wool coat draped over her shoulders. To his surprise, she wore the green mermaid dress beneath it.
“Gels!” he called.
She waved and waited for him to make his way over to her. When he stood beside her, Kellan gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. “Hi. You’re here.”
“I am. I wouldn’t have missed it for the world. Nan looks so beautiful. And Riley. He looks so happy.”
“How have you been?”
“Good. My trip to New York was nice. My parents were…well, they were civil to each other. My mother has a boyfriend and she’s thinking of getting remarried, which would mean my father would be free of alimony payments, which seemed to put him in a cheerful mood. They didn’t get into a screaming match, so I’d say the trip was a success.”
“You’re staying for the party, aren’t you?”
“For a little bit,” she said.
He took her hand, then drew it to his lips and kissed the tips of her fingers. “You look beautiful.”
“So do you,” she said with a smile. “Can I give you a lift back to the pub? I’m parked just down there.”
“It’s not raining. Why don’t we walk. I have something I’d like to show you. Something I need your opinion on.”
“What is it?”
“It’s right down there,” he said.
“Come on, then, let’s go.”
They strolled silently in the chilly night air, each breath they took clouding in front of their faces. Gelsey looked up at the sky. “I wish it would snow.”
“We don’t get snow very often.”
“I know. But it would be nice just this once. There was snow in New York.”