Chapter 24

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

Spencer's stomach was so tied up in knots, he thought he might be sick. He knew in a town as small as Evergreen Hollow, there was no way that Margo wouldn't find out about what had happened at Rockridge Grill. It would get around, one way or another, and it would be so much worse if she found out from someone other than him.

It wasn't as bad as Chris cheating on her, not by a longshot, but he knew that wouldn't be the part that mattered if she found out from someone else. It would be that he'd tried to hide it from her, and he'd promised to be honest with her. Not to lie or omit things. He knew that honesty was what she needed out of a relationship, after what she'd had to deal with in the past. And he had to give that to her, no matter how difficult it would be.

He had to own up to what happened, and clear the air.

His appointments for the day couldn't be finished fast enough. It was hard to focus on his work, but he did his best to apply himself, knowing that mistakes as a doctor could have much worse consequences than just an administrative error. He put the altercation out of his head as best as could, but he knew he needed to go straight to see Margo, as soon as he was free.

The moment his last appointment for the day was over, he hung up his coat and hurried out to his car, before the receptionist and nurses had even left for the day. He was usually the last one out, but he couldn't wait any longer.

He headed straight for The Mistletoe Inn, hoping she would be there. He felt relieved when he saw her bundled up on the front porch, snuggled in a thick sweater under a knit blanket in one of the rocking chairs, with a steaming cup of something clutched in her hands. As he walked up the steps, he smelled chai tea.

As anxious as he was about her reaction, he was glad that he had at least found her. She didn't look angry, so he thought maybe he'd gotten to her first. He couldn't be sure, but he was hopeful that at the very least, even if she had already heard, the fact that he was coming to her and coming clean would matter.

He'd wanted to defend her, but the truth was, he'd acted on impulse. He hadn't really thought about the consequences, something that he never did. He thought it said something about how much he felt for her, but he also understood that she might not see it that way. And the last thing he wanted was for something to come between them again.

"Can we talk?" he said quietly, and Margo nodded.

It was hard to read her expression, and he felt that nervous twist in his stomach again. He sank into the chair next to her. It was frigid out, and she had the only blanket, but he didn't care. He just needed to talk to her.

"Did you hear about what happened?" he asked.

She nodded again. "I did." Her face was still impossible to read.

"I'm sorry. It just… it made me angry, to hear him talking about you like that. Like he deserved better than you, when the truth is that you've always deserved better than him. And the thought of him continuing to talk about you like that, while you're here, knowing that you said it made it harder for you to want to stay?—"

He broke off, knowing that he was rambling, trying to defend what he'd done, and unsure if any of it would matter.

"I got carried away," he admitted. "I know that. I'm sorry if I crossed a line, and I would understand if you never wanted to speak to me again."

Margo's face had been perfectly calm and composed while he'd been speaking, giving nothing away, but as he finished, her eyes went wide.

He froze, shocked, as she set her cup down with a thud and threw the blanket back, pushing herself to her feet. He stood at the same time, uncertain, and was utterly startled when she threw her arms around his neck, pressing one hand to the back of his head as she kissed him deeply.

"I'm not angry," she said softly a moment later as she pulled back, breaking the kiss. "I'm really not. Hearing that you defended me like that? It meant the world to me."

"It did?"

He blinked at her, trying to process what she'd just said. That hadn't been what he'd expected at all.

Margo nodded. She was still standing very close to him, her arms looped around his neck, and he was no longer cold, although the temperature hadn't changed at all.

"I care about you so much, Spencer, and knowing that you care about me enough to want to stand up for me like that? It means everything. I've never met anyone who's made me feel the way you do. I think… I think I'm falling for you," she whispered softly.

Her eyes met his as she finished speaking, the same nervousness that he'd felt earlier reflected in her face.

His pulse stuttered. He knew what it meant for her to admit something like that, to say it out loud. How far she had come since the day they'd first met, for her to let herself feel it. His heart swelled with the possibilities, with everything that unfurled in front of them with that knowledge that she was allowing herself to feel that way, despite all of her fears and reservations.

"What do you mean?" he asked softly, wanting to hear it again. Needing to hear her explain.

He had to make sure that he hadn't misheard, because this meant everything to him. The woman in front of him was everything he had ever wanted, and more.

Margo hesitated, and his heart skipped a beat again, for a different reason this time. He thought that maybe his fear had been right, that she hadn't meant it the way he'd heard it. But then she dropped her gaze, looking down at the small space of porch between their feet, and he realized she was nervous.

Her wide blue eyes came back up to meet his, and the look in them made warmth bloom in his chest.

"I'm not just falling for you," she said softly. "I've already fallen. I'm in love with you, Spencer."

There was no doubt or hesitation in her voice, and her words sent Spencer's heart soaring.

He picked her up without thinking, spinning her around in a circle, feeling as if he'd been given everything he'd ever wanted in one split second. He spun her again before setting her back down onto the porch, brushing her hair back with both hands as he looked down into her eyes.

"Say it again," he murmured.

"I love you," she repeated, never breaking his gaze even for a moment, and Spencer felt like his heart might burst.

"I love you too."

He brushed his thumbs over her cheekbones, not wanting to let her go. Not all that long ago, he thought he was going to have to do exactly that, and going to have to be okay with it in the end, because it was what she needed. And now she was standing here in front of him, telling him that none of that would be necessary. That she would be his.

"I'm the luckiest man in the world for having met you," he murmured, brushing his hands over her hair again, her arms still around his neck. "You're the most incredible woman I've ever met. Every single moment of my life has been better since I met you. Everything I hoped I'd find one day—someone who challenges me, who is smart and curious and fun and makes me laugh, someone beautiful and vivacious—that's all you, Margo. Every bit of it. I'm so lucky that you love me too."

"I feel lucky," she whispered, leaning against him. "I've never been with someone who makes me feel so loved and supported and accepted, just the way I am. You were willing to let me go, rather than change me. And weirdly enough—" She huffed a small laugh. "That made me want to stay. You want me for me , and that's all I've ever really wanted from someone else."

"I love you exactly as you are," Spencer affirmed. "I never want you to change a thing."

"I really am glad you stood up for me to Chris," she murmured. "I wasn't angry at all. I liked it."

He raised an eyebrow, a smile on his lips. "You'll always have a defender in me," he promised.

As he kissed her again, he knew he would do anything that he needed to in order to keep her right there in his arms.