“You absolutely get to wear it,” Luke said, sliding the ribbon from the ring and placing the solitaire diamond onto Jolene’s fourth finger. It was a perfect fit.
“How long have you had this planned, Luke Handley?”
“Since last Christmas.”
Jolene’s eyes widened.
“Of course I knew I had to wait, but there was no question in my mind that I would one day ask you to be my wife. Oh!” He held up a finger. “Wait right there. I forgot one thing.”
Jolene couldn’t make a guess as to what this next surprise could be. She waited anxiously as Luke rushed to the backroom. When he returned, his hands were cupped one over the other.
“These were delivered a few days ago and I’m not sure what do to with them since they are just too beautiful to throw away, so I was hoping maybe you might have an idea as to what we could use them for.” Luke opened his hands to reveal several dozen red rose petals just like he had the night they’d met.
“Luke. They’re beautiful.” Taking a few in her fingers, Jolene tossed them into the air.
Luke threw the remaining rose petals up between them, and they trickled down slowly, landing in their hair and on their clothes.
“You certainly are quite the romantic. Who knew?” Jolene kissed Luke on the lips. Then, realizing the time, she said, “You have to get going! Devon should be here any minute!”
As if on cue, a horn bellowed a blaring ahooga! just outside the coffee shop doors. Devon waved at his friends through the passenger side window of the massive truck, which had once been home to Cat’s Coffee Cart. Now it boasted the words Handley and Manning Handyman Services across the broad exterior length of it.
Not long after Luke’s big coffee house reveal, Devon surprised Luke with a secret project of his own. Unbeknownst to Luke, Devon had repurposed the ailing truck with the hopes of using it as a work vehicle for his new business with his friend. Over the course of the last year, the two had repaired boats, installed cabinetry and flooring, landscaped lawns, and even did a little farrier work at the Silent Night Stables. Their schedules were constantly booked and Luke found he loved nothing more than helping his Merrylark neighbors.
Luke was living his dream job. In fact, he was living his dream life. And now he would have Jolene forever by his side to live it out with him.
“Looks like duty calls.” Luke lifted Jolene’s hand to his mouth and kissed the back of it. “I’ll see you after work, fiancé.”
“Oooh, I like the sound of that!” Jolene said, beaming.
Luke gave Jolene one last hug and then collected his canvas jacket and scarf from the coat rack near the coffee shop’s door.
“Wait! Don’t forget Ozzy!’ Spinning on her heel, Jolene snatched up the overweight orange tabby from his cozy bed underneath the tree. “He’ll be so mad if you forget to take him to work with you again.”
As it turned out, Ozzy hadn’t at all been run over back when he’d slipped out Millie’s front door on that fateful day last winter. In fact, they soon discovered Ozzy made a daily habit of sneaking out of Millie’s place and onto Cat’s Coffee Cart when it came through the neighborhood. It could’ve been the free cat-uccinos that Cat fed him or it could’ve been the alluring draw of the feline of similar likeness painted onto the side of the truck that kept him coming back for more, but Ozzy had turned out to be a more adventurous cat than any of them had realized.
His new favorite activity involved accompanying Luke and Devon on their house calls. He’d become their unofficial handyman mascot, much to Mildred’s chagrin. No cat of hers would be caught gallivanting across town, drinking fancy coffees and sleeping in once food trucks. That was likely the reason she was so quick to offer Ozzy to Luke and Jolene. They’d grown to love the quirky cat, so it was a win-win all around.
Scooping the fluff ball from Jolene’s arms, Luke turned to go.
“Don’t work too late. Tonight’s the annual tree lighting and I want to make sure we don’t miss it this time,” she teased.
“Devon and I plan to take off early after we help Thomas get the horses ready for their big sleigh ride. Don’t worry. I don’t want to miss my chance to make another Christmas wish, either. I’ll be back in plenty of time.”
Remembering back to the year before, Jolene said, “You never did tell me what you wished for.”
“You really want to know? After all this time?”
Jolene nodded. It had been something she thought back to often throughout the last year.
“I wished that you would get to live a life where you felt cherished and loved by a man that was truly worthy of you. I wished that I could become that man, but even if I couldn’t, that you would still find him. Because all that matters to me is your happiness, Jolene.” He leaned in to kiss her on the forehead. Ozzy meowed, sandwiched between their two bodies. “Always.”
“Looks like that wish definitely came true. So what wish do you plan to make tonight?”
“I’m not sure yet. I’ll have to think about it. All of my wishes seem to be coming true these days. Not sure I could ever wish for anything more than what I’ve got right here, with you.”
“How about a white Christmas?” Jolene suggested. “I know you’ve always wanted to experience one of those. That would be magical.”
“You are all the Merrylark magic I will ever need, Jolene,” Luke said before propping the door open to join Devon out in the truck. “I hope you know that.”
She did, and she celebrated the fact that the two would spend the rest of their lives in Merrylark Lake, making magic together.
The End
About the Author
Growing up with only a lizard for a pet, Megan now makes up for it by caring for the nearly forty animals on her twelve-acre flower farm in Northern California. A UC Davis graduate, Megan worked in the political non-profit realm prior to becoming a stay-at-home mom. She then spent nearly ten years as an award winning photographer, with her work published in magazines such as Professional Photographer and Click.
In 2012, her creativity took a turn when she wrote and published her first young adult novel. Megan is both traditionally and self-published and A Lake House Holiday is her eighth publication. She can’t go a day without Jesus, her family and farm animals, and a large McDonald’s Diet Coke.
To keep up with Megan online, please visit:
A Lake House Holiday: A Small-Town Christmas Romance Novel Page 21