Page 29 of A Winter Romance
“We should put some here,” Ila said as she dumped her armful of branches onto his kitchen counter.
“Not there, Ila,” Sero said. “Remember, I bake there.” Coming up behind her, he placed a hand on her hair. She frowned and reluctantly moved them. He laughed at her expression. “You can put them anywhere else, but I need this space to make Solstice cakes.”
“Why not over here, Ila?” Aryn said.
Ila smiled brightly at him, and they set about placing them by the kitchen windows.
“We should make wreaths later,” his father said. “Hang them over the windows. We can collect some pinecones and Solstice berries. It will be perfect. You’ll also want some candles. They set the Solstice mood, especially when the nights are long.”
Ila and Ethred arranged the boughs with Aryn, whilst his father continued to plan out more festive decorations. It seemed strange to him that not that long ago, Aryn had been a stranger and now here he was, arranging Solstice greenery in his home, fitting in almost perfectly with the chaos of his family. It made his heart ache and yearn for more than just this small snippet of time.
“He fits so well with you, my Sero,” his mother said quietly, stepping up beside him.
He shook his head and gave his mother a sad smile. “It’s only temporary, Mother. He goes home after the Solstice. It’s where he belongs.”
“Why? He is not happy in Bordertown.”
“He told you that?”
“He didn’t need to tell me. You can tell when he talks of it.” She shook her head, grimacing. “And I don’t think his family treats him right.”
Aryn and the girls laughed as his father helped them to right the boughs that kept falling.
“His occupation is in Bordertown,” Sero said.
“An occupation that makes him unhappy.”
“What would he do here? There are no perfumeries.”
“He can do whatever he likes.”
Sero gave her an unconvinced look.
“He’ll find his place in the village in time. He can help you bake, or find things to make him happy, or be useful to those around. It isn’t so complicated.” She touched him on the shoulder. “He will look after you and you, him. And you will both be happy. That is what is important.”
“He doesn’t belong here. He doesn’t belong with me.” He swallowed. “I don’t want it to be like all the other times.”
“Oh, Sero.” She sighed. “You’ve always wanted someone to love. You’ve always wanted it too much. So you kept giving your heart away, without really paying attention to whom you were giving it.” She squeezed his shoulder. “None of the others were right for you, my darling. You just wanted them to be.”
“Aryn isn’t right for me. We’re too different.”
“You are different. But to be honest, I’ve never seen you fit so well with someone. Can you tell me truthfully, does it feel the same as all the other times? Because from my eyes, it looks nothing like them.”
Sero’s chest tightened at her words. Aryn laughed at something Ila said, and it took Sero’s breath away. She was right: he’d never felt like this with any of the others. Aryn fit him. Perfectly.
“He laughs so brightly here with you. And you are brighter with him,” his mother said. “It makes me so happy to see you together.”
“But what if he doesn’t want to stay?”
“Perhaps you should ask him.”
He couldn’t speak, his throat too tight. It seemed too much to hope, to dream of a life, a future, with Aryn. But as Sero watched Aryn lift Ila to put a branch on top of a shelf, Sero felt his heart ache. He wanted, and he hoped.
ChapterTwenty
“Do I need to chop the berries or can I just mix them in whole?” Aryn asked. He wore a faded red apron he had borrowed from Sero.
“Just put them in whole,” Sero said.
