Page 28 of Wish You Faith (Christmas Sweethearts #1)

“I don’t want you to date any riffraff.” Mom stole a peek at the front door. It was still closed. “I think he’s in love with you.”

I’m in love with him too.

A lifetime of love if Evan wanted it.

Rosie felt ready for some reason. A peace settled in her heart. She had missed him so much when they were apart, but now she was at ease. Even if he flew back to Seattle, she knew now that he had plans to move back to Savannah.

“We’ll wait and see,” Rosie said to Mom.

She selected a towel and a new bar of soap from the linen closet outside the guest bedroom.

She had made the bed eight days ago when they moved in because she thought Dottie was coming to visit Mom for a few days.

Unfortunately, Dottie caught a cold and didn’t want to leave her house.

So the guest room would now be ready for Evan instead.

As Rosie put the towel on the towel bar in the bathroom, she heard someone walk in. She felt like she shouldn’t be here alone—even though Mom was in the kitchen within hearing range if the door was open.

“You in there, Rosie?” Evan asked.

Rosie walked out. “Your towel is on the bar and the soap is on the vanity.”

“Thank you.” Evan held her hands. “Is there a time we can talk?”

“Sure. After breakfast and presents.” Rosie smiled. “But first, you need to get some sleep.”

“I will after I shower.”

“There’s a hair dryer in the cabinet under the sink.” Rosie let go of his hands. “I need to help Mom make breakfast. Do you want us to wake you up for lunch?”

“When is lunch?”

“What time is it?” She lifted Evan’s wrist to check his watch. It was 9:25 a.m.

“If we eat breakfast now, we might not be hungry until at least one or two o’clock.”

“I’ll sleep until then.”

“Or whenever. Don’t worry.”

Evan brushed his nose against her face and planted a quick kiss on her cheek. “See you at lunch.”

Rosie nodded and left the bedroom, closing the door on her way out.

Breakfast came and went, and then lunch came and went. Evan didn’t emerge from the bedroom until three o’clock in the afternoon.

By then, Mom was taking a nap, and Rosie was reading the news on her iPad as she sat on the sofa in the living room.

Evan ambled past the kitchen, his hair all tousled. He was wearing a pair of gray track pants and a fleece sweater. No socks.

“Looks like I overslept,” Evan said.

“You traveled a lot. Your body needs rest.” Rosie put down her iPad on the coffee table. “Are you hungry? I can heat up lunch for you. We ate ham.”

“I can make my own ham sandwich.”

“Ham and slider buns are in the fridge.” Rosie opened the refrigerator door to take out the sliders and bone-in ham. “If you want salad on the side, I can make you some.”

“Thanks, but I think I’ll be okay with just the ham sandwiches. I can have salad for dinner.” Evan washed his hands at the sink.

“You can stay and chat with me.” Evan dried his hands on a hand towel that Rosie handed to him.

“Sure. What do you want to talk about?” She almost forgot about the big news. “I guess you can tell me more about the project to move you from Seattle to Savannah.”

“I’ve been trying to convince the parent company—literally my parents—to open a Savannah branch and put me in charge of it.

” Evan found a knife to cut slices of ham off the bone.

“Mom was resistant at first because she didn’t want to split the company into two.

However, I’ve explained that this was a new branch that I can start from scratch with new hires. ”

“What kind of new hires?”

“It will be a small replica of the headquarters. I would still need to fly to Seattle every quarter for corporate meetings, but I don’t have to live there.” Evan leaned down and pecked Rosie on the cheek. “I can be with you. What do you think of that?”

“Have you prayed about it?”

“Yes, many times over.”

“How long have these talks been going on?”

“Since a week ago to the day.” His reply was quick and without hesitation.

“But you just now told me.”

“I wanted to tell you in person.”

Rosie had been missing him so badly the last week. If she had known that he was planning to do something big with his career, she would have liked to pray for him. However, this wasn’t the time to sweat the small stuff—even though withholding information wasn’t trivial.

“So your goal is to come back to Savannah,” Rosie concluded.

Evan nodded. “To be with you on a daily basis.”

“What if corporate says no?”

“Then I’m stuck.” He turned his attention to slicing cheddar cheese to put on top of his ham slider.

“Not just you, Evan. We are stuck. We are in this together. You’re not alone.” Standing behind him, Rosie wove her arms around his waist and leaned against his strong back.

She rested her head on his shoulder blades. She felt his muscles tensing up. She sensed that something else was going on that Evan wasn’t telling her.

They adjourned to the old dining table that Rosie and Mom had brought over from their old house. It had scratches all over it.

Evan placed his dinner plate on the table. Rosie sat down in the next seat over. They held hands as Evan prayed for God to bless his lunch.

“Amen,” they said in unison.

They chatted about work as Evan ate. He let Rosie take a bite of his ham slider. It was pretty good.

“I might eat just that for dinner,” Rosie said.

After Evan had finished eating, he turned to Rosie. “Do you like surprises?”

“Depends on what the surprise is.”

“If I surprise you with something, would you be objective about it and consider it carefully?”

“What on earth?” Rosie chuckled. “Are you thinking of Christmas riddles?”

Evan shook his head. “May I ask you an important question?”

Rosie nodded. “What is it?”

Evan went down on one knee on the wood floor, and his hand went to his pocket. “Rosemarie Hamilton…”

Rosie’s eyes welled with tears. Evan was almost transparent to her now. She could guess what he was about to ask her, but today wasn’t the right day, was it?

She put up both hands. “Stop.”

Shock registered on Evan’s face. “Why?”

“As much as I’d love to hear your question, I’m also acutely aware that today is Christmas Day.” Rosie helped him to his feet. “Today is a sacred day that belongs to Christ.”

“So is every day.”

“But Christmas is not every day. It’s like if you asked me this important question on Easter Sunday.”

“Oh I see.” He sighed. “So you know what I wanted to ask you.”

Rosie nodded.

“When can I pop the question?” Evan asked.

“After you’ve prayed a lot and gotten a confirmation from the Lord.”

“Yes. For sure.”

“On any day except Christmas and Easter Sunday. Sacred days that should be devoted to God. Imagine celebrating an anniversary that overlaps these days.”

“Ah. I get it. You’re more objective than I thought.” He sounded disappointed.

Rosie blinked away tears, as though she had just turned him down. It wasn’t her intention.

Evan tugged at her arm, and pulled her over to sit on his lap. “I don’t have a problem with it, but since you do, I will save this for another time.”

Another time?

Rosie tried not to cry. That felt like forever. Had she missed an opportunity of a lifetime?

Evan hugged her tightly as she sobbed. “Please don’t cry.”

“I’m sorry, Evan, that I have such strong opinions about Christmas.”

“Don’t be. You spoke your mind, and I respect that.”

Rosie didn’t feel comforted.

“How long do you plan to be with me?” Evan asked.

“For the rest of my life, Lord willing.”

“So do I.” Evan tipped her chin down so that they could see each other eye to eye. “For now, would it be okay with you if I hang out with you and your mom all afternoon and evening?”

“Sure.”

“What do you usually do on Christmas Day?”

“Well, after a hearty brunch or lunch, Mom takes a long nap. Then the neighbors come over to play board games. I clean up the kitchen and read a book.”

“How about this afternoon?” Evan stroked Rosie’s arm.

“Mom’s taking a nap. I want to go for a walk on the beach.”

“I’ll go with you.”