Grace smiled. “Shame on them. I remember you telling me you didn’t like the holidays. Is this why?”
Max nodded. “Kayla died on Christmas Eve, two years ago. She’d just found out she was pregnant.”
“Oh Max, how terrible for you! I’m so sorry.”
“Yes, I was too. More than I ever imagined. That first year was hard. Then it got a little easier, and when it did, I felt so guilty that I’d plunge myself right back into that dark place just to ease the feelings of guilt that I had for being alive.”
“It’s called survivor’s guilt and is quite common. Mother went through a period like that when my father died. She’d always been the one to catch everything from the flu to ear infections. My father never had a sick day in his life. He dropped dead of a massive heart attack while he was teaching a history class.”
“I guess you never get over it, you just learn to live with it.”
“That’s true. We all have our own ways of dealing with grief. There’s no right or wrong way, Max. Guilt is a terrible thing for those who are left behind.”
“Which brings me to the reason why I came here in the first place. Or one of them.”
“I’m listening,” Grace said.
“You’re good at this stuff, but I suppose you already know that.”
“I’ve done it a time or two.”
“First tell me about Bryce.”
Grace’s eyes lit up like the tree back at the cabin. Home, he corrected himself, it’s home now.
“He’s absolutely wonderful. I can’t imagine my life without him. We don’t get to see one another as much as we used to, but we’re okay with it. We talk on the phone whenever we can. Bryce isn’t too good at answering his e-mail, but I’m sure once he gets settled into his new routine, he will. From what I understand, most colleges use their e-mail systems to communicate with their students. Bryce is going to teach history at the University of Colorado after the first of the year. He’s very excited about his career.”
“I guess I don’t stand a chance. A ski bum versus a college professor.”
“Max, Bryce is my brother.”
His eyes brightened like two blue moons. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I guess I just assumed you knew. When Bryce was in junior high school, he was one of your biggest fans. He followed your career, watched you win all those Olympic medals. For a while, Mom and I feared he might take to the slopes instead of going to college, but he’s too much of a history buff, just like my father.”
“So does this mean I have a chance? A slight chance of asking you out on a date?”
Grace was so thrilled, everything around her blurred. “You can ask all you want, Max.”
“But you don’t have to say yes. Am I right?”
“No, you’re not. Listen, there’s something I want to ask you. It’s a bit…personal, but since you drove all the way here and on Christmas Day, there’s no reason not to. When you kissed me, did you really mean what you said? That it was just a kiss?”
“That’s the biggest lie I’ve ever told in my life. I wanted to wrap you in my arms, drag you upstairs, but I couldn’t. It took a lot of soul-searching for me to realize that it’s okay to be happy. That’s why I’m here.”
“There’s just one more thing,” Grace asked. “Do you think I’m practical?”
“You? Practical? No way. Not in the least. Though I have to admit I don’t know you very well, but I intend to.”
“You’re sure,” Grace teased.
“One hundred percent, cross my heart. Why do you ask?”
“Bryce told me I was practical, said it could be one of the reasons I’ve never settled down to raise a family.”
“Well, I’m going to have to tell your brother a thing or two. If you were practical, you’d be married with a houseful of kids. Where is he?”
“Actually, he’s upstairs sleeping,” Grace said. “Follow me. No, never mind. Wait here. I’ll be right back.”
Grace didn’t bother knocking when she saw the light shining beneath his door. Shoving the door aside, Grace stepped into the room. Bryce was sitting up in bed, reading. “You ever heard of knocking?”
“Yes, but this is my house, remember?”
“So?”
“I have your Christmas present. It’s in the kitchen.”
“And it’s something that can’t wait until everyone else is up?”
“No, actually it can’t. If you don’t want it, I can give him, I mean it, to someone who’ll appreciate it.”
“All right, you’re not going to give me a minute’s peace until I see what you’ve cooked up. Oh crap, Gracie, is this about that cookbook you said you were giving me? Because if it is, I’ll see it soon enough.”
“Bryce, march your ass downstairs to the kitchen right now. Don’t ask me another question. Now go.”
“Okay, okay. Women,” he muttered as he slipped a T-shirt over his head.
Grace felt like a kid at Christmas. Max wanted to get to know her better. Bryce was about to get the surprise of his life. And it was going to be the best Christmas she’d ever had.
Max sat at the table sipping his tea when Bryce entered the kitchen. “Hey, Bryce, what’s up?” he asked casually.
Bryce looked at Grace, then Max. “Tell me I’m not dreaming. Please.”
“See?” Grace said to Max. “I told you he was your biggest fan.”
Epilogue
Christmas Day, 2009
Grace paced back and forth inside her suite. She looked at her Rolex, a gift from Max. It was almost time. She couldn’t believe she’d agreed to this, but wanting to prove to everyone that she, Grace Landry, was anything but practical, when Max asked her to marry him, she agreed to his request about the location of the ceremony. And so, her wedding ceremony was about to take place on a ski slope at Maximum Glide. She smiled. She was anything but practical.
So there she was, thirty-six years old, decked out in a five-thousand-dollar white ski suit, waiting for Stephanie, who was now her dearest friend and also her maid of honor. Ashley, nine going on twenty, would act as lead flower girl, and, of course, Amanda would do whatever her sister told her to do.
A loud knock startled her. It was time.
“Don’t you look gorgeous, all decked out in white,” Stephanie remarked as she perused the white ski suit she’d chosen for Grace. Stephanie had become the manager of the sporting goods’ shop at Maximum Glide. When she wasn’t selling ski equipment, she acted as an instructor. Both her girls were now expert on the slopes. Max had high hopes for Ashley in the 2018 Olympics and her sister four years later.
Max had high hopes about everything. Grace couldn’t be happier. Though it had only been a year since she met Max, she’d fallen in love with him the very first time he kissed her. She wouldn’t have admitted it then, but now she would.
Bryce was beside himself when she told him she was marrying Max. He said it was a dream come true for him. Grace told him she was happy her dream made his dream come true, but if he thought for one minute that