The Holiday Bride (13 page)

She reached up and lightly stroked his cheek. “I know. I
believe, too.”

He settled his arms around her, holding her close. “I love
everything about you, Lucy West. The way you eat your blueberry pancakes and
burn the bacon... The way you are with Carmella and somehow broke through to
Justin... The way you charmed my parents, and also me.”

Tears glistened in her eyes. “And I’ve fallen for you,
William. All of you. I never really knew what having a family of my own was like
until I found you. And now that I do, I can’t imagine a life without it.”

“Then
don’t
. Marry me, Lucy. Be my bride.”

“Oh William,” she said with a happy gasp, “if I had a whole
yard full of grooms to choose from, I’d pick you.”

“I’m glad,” he said, closing the distance between
them with a kiss. Her lips met his, warmly and willingly. He deepened his ardor
and she returned it, every bit the taste of heaven he’d imagined.

Somewhere high above them, music chimed.

“Did you hear that?” she asked, pulling back. “It almost
sounded like... bells?”

“Did it now?” he asked with a happy laugh. She was
incredibly beautiful, so warm and feminine against him, and she was going to be
his.
His bride
forever. Yearnings
stirred within him he hadn’t felt in a while. And boy, was he eager to make
good on them. He bent low to scoop her into his arms, billowy white gown,
winter coat, and all.

“I’m awfully glad you landed on my sofa,” he said with a
husky rasp. “You’re welcome back there any time.”

She wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly
as he carried her toward his SUV. “If that’s an invitation, I accept.”

“Shall we head back and tell my folks and the kids?”

She shot him a mysterious smile that made his heart soar.
“Something tells me they already know.”

Not far away, Grammy and Poppy stood with the kids, peering
out their bay window.

“That’s funny,” Emma said. “I could have sworn I heard
something. How about you, Grant?”

He shook his head and stared outdoors. “Just a slight
ringing in my ears.”

“Well, I heard it,” Carmella said. “And I know who it was,
too.”

“Don’t be silly, fuzz brain,” Justin said, but this time
with affection. Just then, he saw a flash of light up in the sky and something
far away, trailing off into the night. “Oh no, no... no.”

“What is it, Justin?” Grammy asked.

“Just been gaming too much, that’s all.”

“Sure,” Carmella said. “But you know that there’s a Santa
because you got what you wanted, too.”

“Yeah? What’s that?”

“The same thing that I did,” she said confidently.

“How do you know so much?” Justin asked.

“I asked Grammy and Poppy about
man-a-tory
.”

Justin pursed his lips to steel his emotions. The truth was,
he hadn’t thought he was ready for a new mom, and didn’t even believe he wanted
one. When Lucy came along, though, everything had changed. “Do you think she
said yes?” he asked his grandparents.

Emma and Grant exchanged glances and grinned. “Do reindeers
fly?” they said together.

THE END

A Note from the Author

Thanks for reading
The
Holiday Bride
. I hope you enjoyed it. If you did, please help other people
find this book.

1. This book is lendable, so send it to a friend who you
think might like it so that she (or he) can discover me, too.

2. Help other people find this book: write a review.

3. Sign up for my newsletter so that that you can learn
about the next book as soon as it’s available. Write to
[email protected] with “newsletter” in the subject heading.

4. Come like my Facebook page:
http://www.facebook.com/GinnyBairdRomance
.

5. Comment on my blog at:
The Story
Behind the Story
.

6. Visit my website:
http://www.ginnybairdromance.com
for details on other books available at multiple outlets now.

Also by Ginny Baird

The Sometime Bride

Real Romance

Santa Fe Fortune

How to Marry a Matador

The Christmas Catch