16. Hudson

16

HUDSON

I checked the locks and made sure I hadn’t left the Christmas lights on before tossing my duffel onto the passenger’s side seat. The steering wheel was icy cold, and the windows were glazed with a sheen of frost. It would take a minute or so to warm the truck up, so I pulled my cell out, intending to send a quick text to my mom. Or maybe I’d surprise her.

I’d lined up a few ranchers to take care of the animals, so…this was it.

Time to go home.

My fingers froze over the screen as “Last Christmas” blasted through the speakers.

What the fuck? I hadn’t turned the radio on…or had I?

Weird.

I set my phone aside to adjust the volume and was immediately hit with a memory of trudging through the Christmas lot with Moody. He’d been so cranky and grumpy and so fucking adorable. And the time he’d met Nelly and laughed his ass off in the kitchen…or when he put a Santa hat on and dared anyone to give him heck about it.

Heck . Yeah, that was Moody.

I swallowed around the ball of emotion lodged in my throat and blew out an exasperated breath.

He was right.

This was too much, too soon. We both came with baggage and fuck, it seemed heavier than usual right now.

On that melancholy note, I reversed the truck and veered past the ranch, heading west at the main street. A tactical error for sure. It would have been faster to go east and avoid the narrow winding roads that led to the coastline beyond. I had a long drive ahead of me and a plane to catch, but I stayed on course and fifteen minutes later, I spotted the exit for Christmas Town.

I should have kept going. I was already behind schedule, but like the very first time I’d passed the sign, something pulled me in.

Five minutes. Just one peek at the decorations. I’d take a pic for Mom, so she’d see how cool this place was.

I wasn’t going to park, but a spot opened up in front of the biggest tree on the West Coast and that almost never happened. I hopped out and snapped a few pictures of the tree, and another of the garlands and bows on the lampposts leading to Holiday Lane.

“So beautiful.”

So joyful. Like Moody.

Fuck, what was I doing?

“It sure is,” someone commented behind me.

“Oh, hey, Bud.” I gave the older man a lazy up-nod. “I was just taking a few pics for my family.”

“You should get one with Milt too.” Bud pointed at the Santa statue, then moseyed along. “Merry Christmas, Hudson.”

“Merry Christmas.”

I aimed my cell at the jolly Santa, but the sun’s glare made for a crappy pic. I moved closer and tried again, leaning in to read the inscription engraved on a plaque at the bottom.

“You were never lost. You simply made a detour.”— Milt Moody, Christmas Town’s original Santa and a firm believer of second chances and happy endings. May you keep the spirit of the season in your heart all year long.

The words blurred and bended, and my pulse skyrocketed through my veins. I swallowed around the grapefruit in my throat and read the dedication a second time…and a third. I studied the statue of the kind-faced man with a full beard, twinkling eyes, and round belly.

You were never lost. You were never lost.

Look, I was a fucking adult. I didn’t believe in Santa or in the stuff of childhood fantasies, but damn it, I believed in second chances, happy endings, hope, and love and?—

“Moody.”

I raced to my truck and peeled out of my spot, leaving a vapor trail behind me as I turned up the hill into town. It was early, but there were customers in line at the diner and the café. The bookstore wasn’t open yet. He had to be home.

I punched the gas but came to an abrupt stop just as a van from Morningside Senior Center flashed its hazard lights.

Fuck. This was going to take a while. I clicked my blinkers to signal a U-turn when Moody strolled into view, head bent on his way to the bookstore.

And there went my heart. Boom, boom, boom.

My instincts kicked into triple gear. Move fast, now, don’t wait, don’t let the real thing slip away. I pulled my truck into a red zone behind the van and jumped out.

“Moody!”

He did a double take, adjusting his glasses as he squinted, and my God…he was beautiful.

Boom, boom, boom.

I knew what this was. I could be brave and give it a name.

He was twenty feet away, ten feet, five feet…

I stopped in the middle of the sidewalk in front of Rudolph’s Fudge Shop, tipping my Stetson, my heart tripping over itself as he neared.

“Moody,” I said with a reverence reserved for prayer.

He widened his eyes, peering left and right before closing the distance between us. “What are you doing here? You’re supposed to be in Colorado.”

“Yeah, but it’s Christmas Eve.”

“I know. Are you sick? You look pale and kind of dopey.”

I smiled. “I do?”

“ Mmhmm . Did you take an antihistamine? Oh, I hope not. My cousin, Flo, got in a doozy of an accident after mixing mouthwash and cold medicine…and probably vodka, though she swore she?—”

“I’m not sick, baby,” I said with a laugh. “I’m just…”

He cocked his head curiously. “What is it?”

I licked my lips and opened my arms in surrender. “I love you.”

“You—”

“Yes, and fuck it. Maybe it’s too much, too soon, but when you know, you fucking know. And I know that you’re the coolest, kindest, sexiest, most amazing person in the whole damn world. You need to know that there is someone who will put you first, look out for you when you’re feeling low, and celebrate every win. That someone is me, Moody. Me. I’m your guy.”

Moody blinked like an owl. “I-I love you too.”

I swooped him in my arms and spun him in a circle, kissing him breathless. My Stetson fell off, but who cared? “Merry Christmas, my love.”

“Merry Christmas.”

I bent to pick up my hat, then set it on Moody’s head, loving his sweet chuckle. I cupped his chin and traced my thumb along his smooth jaw. “By the way, I’m staying home for the holidays…with you.”

“But your mom…”

“She’ll understand, and she’ll be happy for me. For us. She knows I’ve been lost for a while…looking for escape, looking for change. I just saw your dad’s statue and read that quote and—he was fucking right. I made a detour, and I got my second chance…with you. I’m not going to blow it. I won’t waste a single day. Fuck January. I want you now.”

Moody’s eyes sparkled and welled with tears. “You have me. Always.”

If life were a rom-com, gentle snowflakes would drift from the heavens and a band of carolers would sing “Holly Jolly Christmas” or something everyone knew the words to right then and there. Real life was better.

We swayed together on a bustling street, oblivious to the traffic, the long lines in front a few shops, and the skinny guy in an ill-fitted Santa suit with a cell glued to his ear as he paced on the corner.

It all faded to nothing. Just a steady boom, boom, boom .

My heart swelled in my chest as the enormity of the moment hit me. This was love.

Real love.

And a chance at forever with this intriguing, intelligent, beautiful man was the greatest gift ever.