but we’ve never been tempted to sell. She may not be as grand as the homes you’ve just toured, but she is not without her charm.”
Peggy spoke exactly as she would have if she were leading the tour through one of Nantucket’s oldest and most beautiful homes. Pru tried to pay attention, not wanting to be rude, but she couldn’t help but check her phone.
Where was Hayes? Why hadn’t he called or at least texted her? Things were so uncertain between them, and dragging this out was agony.
“Perhaps my favorite feature of this house,” Peggy said now, “is the back yard. It’s got a stunning view of Brant Point Lighthouse, and tomorrow, if you’ve got a pair of binoculars, you’ll even catch a glimpse of the Coast Guard cutter bringing Santa into town.” She opened the door and motioned for Pru to walk through to outside, but when she did, the door closed behind her and she found herself standing on the deck—alone.
By now, the daylight had begun to fade, and when she looked up, she realized there were swaths of greenery and white lights strung through a pergola overhead.
She turned around just as Hayes came around the back of the house and stopped in front of her, several feet away.
What was he doing here?
He stood still for a long moment, watching her, the two of them doing nothing but breathing, and it took every bit of her willpower not to run straight to him and let out the string of emotions she’d kept bottled up for so many years.
“Pru.” Her name left his lips in a hush.
Confusion turned a circle in her head, but she said nothing.
The weight of his gaze pressed down on her, and the words she’d been replaying in her mind over and over had vanished. She couldn’t think of a single thing to say.
He walked toward her, bathed in the warm glow of the white lights above.
“Hi,” he said.
She smiled. “Hi.”
“Did you have a good day?” Something sparked in his eyes.
“Did you set that up?” she asked.
He shrugged. “Maybe. I had some things to work out.”
“I did have a good day,” she said. “But mostly I’ve been wanting to find you.”
“Is that right?”
She looked away, losing her nerve.
He took a step toward her. “Do you want to dance?”
“There’s no music.”
He pulled out his phone, tapped around on it and landed on Michael Bublé’s rendition of “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.” The orchestra swelled, and then the deep, rich tone of his voice. She’d always loved this song.
She’d always loved this man.
He opened his arms to her. “Shall we?”
She waited a beat, then stepped closer, not noticing at all the way his hand felt on the small of her back or how he pressed her body ever-so-slightly toward his own. And definitely not paying attention to his delicious, masculine scent or the way his cheek was practically pressed to hers. He took her hand and held it to his chest as they swayed to the music, and Pru was certain she’d just gotten lost in the most perfect moment of her life.
He spun her around, and behind them, she could see several pairs of eyes watching from inside. Both of Hayes’s parents, Harper, Peggy and—Pru stiffened. “Is that Howie?”
Hayes followed her gaze inside, where the nosy onlookers finally got the hint and moved away from the window.
“Are they holding hands?” Pru stopped moving.
Hayes grinned. “I think they worked it out.”
“Really?” Pru was surprised how happy that made her. Sure, she was rooting for them, but also, seeing Howie and Peggy together made her feel like anything was possible—even best friends falling in love.
“What do you think changed?” Pru asked.
“I think Howie finally figured out how to show Peggy he was serious about her,” Hayes said.
“Oh?”
“Yeah, he’s going to stick around for a few months,” Hayes said.
They began to sway again, and she relished the way it felt to be in his arms.
“And so am I.”
The words hung between them, but she didn’t dare move for fear of realizing she’d misunderstood.
“Did you hear me, Pru?”
The music swelled, and Hayes held her tighter, looking out past her as they danced. His face was next to hers, his arms firmly around her, and they moved like that for long moments, their breathing synchronized in the movement of the dance.
She nodded.
“I brought you here because I wanted to show you my new place. I signed a year lease on this house,” Hayes said. “I wanted to show you I’m