he tells me. “I know it’s fast but—”
I cut him off. “But sometimes you just know.”
He nods. “And Bella, I know.”
“Me too,” I say, my heart hitching in my throat. This is more than getting swept-off-my-feet. This is the fairytale ending to a dream come true.
“Now,” he says with a smile. “You need to put on a dress. I have a party to take you too.”
I erupt in a fit of giggles and kiss him again.
There is so much to learn about one another but some things in life don’t need an explanation.
We are one of them.
-----
As I walk down the marble staircase, I feel overdressed. And I’m assuming Ronan—who I’ve only see in blue jeans and flannel shirts—won’t have dressed up for this party he wasn’t even properly invited too.
But once I see him at the foot of the stairs, in a suit and tie, my doubts fade. His long hair is pulled back, revealing his soulful eyes. The fabric of the suit stretches tightly over his broad shoulders and all I want is for him to scoop me up in his arms and hold me forever. And while the cut of the suit is fine, his rugged good looks still announce that he is wild at heart.
It’s like he really does know me.
“You look so beautiful,” he tells me, taking my hand as I reach the bottom of the staircase. He lifts my hand and twirls me around as if we truly are from a fairy tale, my yellow dress swishing as I move.
“You like it?” I ask, smoothing the fabric that reaches my knees. “My best friend Lacey made me buy it. But it might be a bit fancy.”
“It’s perfect.” He moves a hand from behind his back and reveals a red rose. “For your hair.”
I take it, smelling the richly scented blossom. “Where did you get a red rose in the dead of winter, during a snow storm?”
“There’s an indoor rose garden in the west wing.”
“I haven’t explored well enough, obviously.”
“There will be plenty of time for that.”
I smile, still unsure where all this will lead. Love in a snowstorm is one thing, but after? “I’ll be going back to school after the holidays to finish up my degree.”
“To be a teacher,” he says smiling. “See, I was listening.”
“So you were.” I tuck the rose into the bun on the top of my head.
“But I don’t know how your finishing school matters, besides the fact that it’s important.”
“We’ll last the long distance?” I ask, already knowing we will.
Ronan laughs. “Oh, Bella, we’ll last. In fact, I think we’ll become a tale as old as time.”
Epilogue 1: One Year Later
Ronan
The light snowfall this morning left a perfect dusting for the ribbon-cutting ceremony. It has been a long year, full of hard work and dedication but I was determined to make the town proud and this resort will certainly put them on the map.
“It’s with great pride I present Hollow’s End Resort!” I hand the oversized scissors to Bella’s father, Jules, and cameras flash as he cuts the ribbon, marking the opening day of the resort.
The crowd erupts in cheers and skiers begin moving toward the ski lift ready to put this hard work to good use.
Bella squeezes my hand. “You did it, Ronan,” she says, beaming up at me. “Look what you did for so many people.”
I feel her pride in me, and I wrap an arm around her, kissing the top of her head. I’m waiting for the right moment to pop the question, but I also want to catch her off guard. I’m thinking once we finish our first official ski run down the mountain, I’ll ask.
“Should we get on the lift?” I ask, nodding toward the massive ski lift that was installed. This resort is massive in scope and there are jobs for everyone. Nearly more than we could handle. And since all the rooms are booked for this first season and more lift tickets have been bought then we expected, there is no reason to believe this won’t be better than planned.
“Um, I don’t want to ride the lift,” Bella says, which is unusual for her. She usually jumps in with two feet. You should have seen her this fall when she set up her classroom for her first year as a teacher. She was all in and it’s paid off. Her students love her, with good reason.
I frown. “We spent all last winter practicing when you had time off school, I know