1. Chapter One

Chapter One

Noelle

"This one." I point at the six-foot balsam fir before me, not even trying to hold my smile back. "It's perfect!"

The crisp New York air has my face stinging, my fingers numb, and my body vibrating. I finally found exactly what I was looking for.

"Are you sure?" Jason, the employee at the Christmas tree stand, asks.

I nod my head vigorously. "Positive."

This will be my first Christmas at home in over a decade and the first after my divorce. I want it to be flawless.

I blow warm air on my fingertips as I walk across the gravel path, leading Jason toward my red Volkswagen Beetle so he can secure the tree to the roof.

"We don't see many of these around here with the snow, ice, and all." He smirks as he looks over Belle. "Hopefully, you'll arrive at your destination before bad weather hits."

"I'm heading to my friend's cabin for the holiday. It's only about ten minutes from here, and I'm confident Belle will make it without a hitch."

"Belle, huh?" His lips quirk, and his brows rise when I mention the name of my car. It's the usual reaction from people. He chuckles. "Well, she's definitely a beauty."

"That she is!" I rub the hood of my baby and smile at him. "Thank you so much for your help in finding the perfect tree!"

"It was my pleasure." Jason's eyes sparkle and crinkle at the corners. "Have a very Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas," I return as I climb into Belle and stick the key into the ignition, blasting the heat. The radio blares with Brenda Lee singing her classic Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree, and I find myself singing along as I head back onto the highway.

As I get closer to Melanie's family cabin, the trees pass in a blur, and memories from my childhood flashback. Spending holidays there with them were some of my best teenage memories. Melanie's parents eventually stopped celebrating holidays at the cabin as they got older and decided to travel the world instead. Despite that, Mel and I would make it a point to come up and spend as much time as possible once we could drive ourselves.

After my father cheated on my mother, she divorced him and moved us halfway across the country just to spite him. Even though he didn't earn any Father of the Year awards, he was still my dad and loved me. But she knew he wouldn't be able to come to New York to see me.

When I moved from Utah to New York after my parents' divorce, Melanie took me under her wing, and we became instant friends.

My chest clenches as I remember that time in my life. Mel was like a healing balm to my lost soul, and we've been friends ever since.

A heaviness overcomes me as I can't help but see the mirror reflection I'm living from my mother's life almost twenty years ago, but I shake it off.

"You are not your mother, Noelle!" I chastise myself even though a light quiver crosses my stomach. Just then, my phone rings and I look to see Dean's name across my screen. My finger punches the decline button and I send the call to voicemail.

"Perfect timing, Dean. As always." I'm no longer in love with my ex-husband, but I can't stop the bitterness from rising after all the time I spent unhappily married to him.

I take a deep breath and blow it out slowly. All the joy I was feeling at coming home drains from my body. Our divorce was finalized last week. It was only a matter of time before he called me. He always liked to have the last word. I clench my jaw and snort.

"He is your past, and you are driving into your future!" I force my jaw to relax and attempt to put a smile on my face, hoping the tightness in my chest will ease if I force myself into happiness. "Act as if, right?"

Without warning, a pair of green sparkling eyes and a smile to die for crosses my mind. Cole. My heart beats a bit faster while my stomach drops. I remember the last time we spent Christmas together, ten years ago, before everything went topsy-turvy.

For the second time in five minutes, I take a deep breath and work to push that memory out of my mind. Cole has popped into my head more times than I want to count over the past six years since last seeing him at Melanie and Mike's wedding.

I shake my head and chuckle sardonically while one of my many regrets fills me. I let the love of my life walk away from me because I didn't believe that we could make things work, and instead, I settled for a man who would never love anyone but himself.

Even though marrying Dean was a huge mistake, his cheating on me was exactly what I needed to move forward with my life. I'm grateful to him, in a weird, slightly sadistic way, but I know that if he hadn't had an affair, I would've stayed in a loveless marriage, forever regretting my choices, which would have been infinitely worse.

Jingle Bells breaks through my reverie, and I look to see Melanie's name on my phone. I turn down the radio and answer.

"I'm almost there." I can't hold back the smile that spreads across my face. "How far away are you?"

Mike and Melanie are meeting me at the cabin, and we planned to arrive at almost the exact time, so Mel and I won't miss a minute of girl time.

"We haven't gotten on the road yet." Melanie's voice carries through the speaker, and my stomach twists. " Mike was called into the firehouse to cover for one of the guys whose wife went into labor."

"Oh." I force a cheerfulness I don't feel. "Well, that's exciting. And it's good for Mike to help. His co-worker should be at the hospital for the birth of his child."

"I'm so sorry, Noe. I know you wanted to start all the holiday fun as soon as possible. We plan to head up tomorrow, so it will only be a small delay."

"I understand," I respond. "Really. Things come up. And when babies are ready to come into the world, nothing will stop them. I can wait another twenty-four hours."

Mel chuckles. "You're still a terrible liar."

"Isn't that a good thing?" I feel a crooked smile creep across my lips.

"A very good thing," she teases. "The cabin is all stocked up, so you won't have to worry about food for tonight."

I hadn't forgotten about food; I just thought we'd stop at the store when we got settled. I did make sure to bring hot chocolate and marshmallows, however. At least I have my priorities straight.

"Mike and I made sure that all your favorites are there," she continues. "I made sure to include everything you need to make cookies from scratch. So make sure to have them coming out of the oven by the time we arrive."

"You're so demanding." A warmth fills me as I shake my head at her excitement.

"I've had to live without fresh-baked cookies from you for almost a decade. I'm going to make sure that I get my fill this year!" Melanie says.

"You make it sound like you haven't gotten cookies in the mail for a decade."

"It's not the same!" Melanie squeaks. "You aren't attached to them. I'm so glad you're moving back."

My lips lift, and tenderness expands in my chest. I've missed being away from her so very much. Yes, we talked almost every day but it's not the same as getting to see her.

Another blessing from Dean.

"I'm happy too, Mel." My smile widens, and my chest feels light. "I can't wait to see you tomorrow. I love you."

"I love you too." As the phone beeps, I let her words flow through me from the inside out. I turn my focus back to the road and realize I don't recognize where I am. It's changed since I last was here. I pull over to the side of the road and try to pull up my GPS to reorient myself, but the screen just glows. No bars available .

"Great," I mutter.

I make a u-turn across the two lane highway and double back over the road I just traveled to see where I still have reception. Thankfully, it's only about fifty feet before reception comes back and I'm able to enter the address for the cabin. Turns out I drove past the street.

I continue heading in my current direction. Before I know it, I reach Mountain Road and turn left, driving another two miles before hitting the cabin's driveway. It's at least another mile before I can see the roof.

A grin splits my face, and my body starts to vibrate. I tighten my grip on the wheel as Belle wobbles. Dirt roads are not Belle's friend, and her shocks will not be happy with me, but I don't care. However, I stop myself from stepping on the gas to get there faster.

Little by little, the cabin comes into view, and I feel my heartbeat elevating. The wrap-around porch is still the stuff of my dreams, but the exterior is slightly worse for wear. It's not surprising since it's almost eighty years old.

My brow furrows as a pick up truck appears ahead of me. I pull Belle up beside, wary; we weren't expecting anyone else.

I know it's not Mike or Mel. Maybe a neighbor they had stop by to make sure I could get in?

Oh darn! Mel never told me where to find the house key. It's possible the spare is in the same spot it's always been, which is why she didn't mention it.

I kill the engine, push open the car door, and head to the old hidey spot, lifting up the rock.

Nothing.

"Darn," I grumble. Maybe whoever is here knows. If not, I'll need to call Mel back.

"Ladybug?" My heart stops, and my stomach swoops as my name falls from the lips of a voice I would recognize anywhere. If I'm honest, it's a voice I've dreamed of hearing again for years.

As if moving in slow motion, I turn to see a man holding a stack of logs. His handsome face has a wide smile, and his eyes sparkle—bright green eyes, to be specific.

I feel my body heat, and my heart moves to my throat. My eyes move down the length of his body of their own accord. My lips lift into a half smile before turning into a scowl. When my eyes meet his again, I see a flicker of emotion before an amused expression fills them.

What on earth is Cole Nichols doing here? More importantly—why didn't Mel tell me he was coming?