Page 80 of Saved By Noel
A blush floods my cheeks seconds before Clark leans in to kiss the heated skin. “Who are you, and what have you done with the grumpy Mayor Noel I know?” I tease back.
“What can I say? Clark-and-Clara brings out all the best in me.”
After a lighthearted birthday dinner with Clark and my parents, we make our way to the Kauffman Center for the ballet. Clark even suggests taking a photo together in the lobby. I’ve been quietly in love with this juxtaposition of a man for a while now. But this extra-sweet, overtly thoughtful version of Clark has me ready to walk down the aisle tomorrow.
My mom takes several photos as we pose in front of one of the exquisite Christmas trees. Clark leans down and whispers in my ear, “Have I mentioned yet tonight that I love you in this dress?”
I giggle. “Only about twenty times.”
He smiles down at me. “Emerald green is your color.”
“Matchesyoureyes,” I reply with a smile in return. He responds with a soft brush of his lips against mine, then threads our fingers together to head into the auditorium.
We take our seats, and I give Clark an overview of the story ofThe Nutcrackeras the orchestra warms up. “What’s your favorite part?” he asks.
“The snow,” I whisper as the curtain rises. “It was Aunt Gloria’s favorite role to dance.”
Clark holds my hand on his thigh as we watch the ballet. I can’t help sneaking glances over at him to take in his reactions. He’s as transfixed as I feel every time I watch.
As the Snow King and Queen dance between the graceful Snowflakes, I’m physically overwhelmed by the gratitude and joy and happiness spilling over the edges of my heart. The fake snow slowly drifts down, swirling around the dancers. I peerover at Clark, and maybe it’s just the blur of my own tears, but his eyes appear full of moisture.
I lean over and press a kiss to his cheek, relishing the sensation of his beard beneath my lips. He inclines his head to mine and whispers in my ear. “I get it now. I understand how Christmas is so magical.”
My eyes sting with evenmoregrateful tears. “I love you, Clark Nole.”
He smiles at me. “Only for you, I’m Clark No-el.”
Chapter forty-four
Epilogue - Clark
One year later . . .
“Hurry up, hon! You can’t miss the start of your own movie!”
“I’m coming!” Clara calls from across the room in the kitchen. She waltzes over, balancing two mugs of hot cocoa—mine plain, hers brimming with whipped cream.
I pretend not to notice the dollop of whipped cream Clara offers to Chase. Let’s just say he’s been spoiled with alotof unsanctioned people food ever since Clara and I got married.
Our relationship might have seemed fast to some people. But we both knew the day we professed our love by the tree at Crown Center that we were in this forever. Not to mention, long-distance relationships are the literal worst.
Clara continued working for WritInc and living in Kansas City for the first three months we dated, but we saw each other almost every weekend. I took a handful of long weekend trips to KC to join her and her parents for their Thursday night dinners. But Clara almost always wanted to travel to Noel. That Hindu Rope Hoya I bought for her did the trick, apparently.
We’ve both made adjustments and compromises as we’ve learned to blend our very different personalities and preferences. Even without Syd’s frequent reminders, I know that Clara has made me a better man. She’s forced me to grow and stretch in ways that I never would have done on my own—like finally seeing a therapist to work through my complicated childhood and family loss. Admitting I needed Clara in my life opened the door to admitting I needed help from a professional, too.
When Clara’s movie script was officially purchased for production by the Heartmark Channel, they asked her if she had ideas for additional films. Needless to say, Clara’s mind is chock full of “Christmas love stories,” as I affectionately refer to them. She resigned from her role at WritInc in order to move to her cabin in Noel and write movie scripts full time. Heartmark has already purchased the rights for two more, and I’m 100 percent confident that this is only the beginning.
Davis and Syd helped me plan a second annual float trip in June, complete with another “surprise injury” by Junior. Of course, it was a ruse for them to leave so that I could get down on one knee and ask to be Clark-and-Clara for the rest of our lives. Syd and Davis were ready with fireworks down the beach the moment that Clara screamed yes and jumped into my arms.
We got married in downtown Noel the day after Thanksgiving, surrounded by the Christmas magic that Clara dreamed up. It means delaying our honeymoon until after Christmas, but neither of us wanted to miss out on the second annual Christmas Fest—even bigger and better than last year.
The festival ended the day before the air date of Clara’s Heartmark movie, “Christmas Saved Our Town.” Syd is hosting a watch party at their house, and I’m sure every other television in Noel will be tuned to the channel tonight.
But Clara and I are curled up together on the couch at home, just the two of us. And Chase.
We decided that I would move into her cabin after we got married, rather than us living in my childhood home. My family legacy is still too complicated for me to want to begin my new family with Clara among the ghosts of those memories. For now, I’m renting the house out to Beau and Abby. The pet food production facility opened in October, and Beau was able to secure a position and wrap up his job in Joplin. They moved back to Noel just in time for Christmas Fest.
After several long conversations with Clara, Davis, and Syd, I resigned from my position as mayor. Emily took over the job, completely capable and willing to lead our town. Noland’s has been doing well enough financially to hire more full-time employees. That means Emily has had more time—and far better ideas—to devote to the mayoral office than I ever did. She’s also enjoyed lording her civic authority over their three teenagers to keep them in line.
