Page 125 of Merging Wright

I tip my head toward the door. “Go ahead. I’ll be right down.”

Jane glances from me to Willow and back. Her expression is puzzled. Eyes bright while her brows pinch. Her teeth dig into her lower lip.

“I just need a minute,” I whisper, releasing her hands and turning toward the window.

I couldn’t say I loved Wrightwood, or it had come to terms with me, but with Jane at my side, I’d learned to appreciate my hometown. I’d come to an acceptance of it, or maybe I finally accepted that I’d had things wrong for too long.

I’d lost so much time and that needed to change.

“Mr. Wright.” Jane’s teasing yet stern tone interrupts my thoughts. I’d thought she’d gone down the stairs with Willow. Instead, she stands by the door frame holding out her hand. “Let’s go see what we’ve done.”

She beams a smile at me. One bright and luminescent like the bulbs crisscrossing Bridge Alley. In that moment, I’d go wherever she wanted to lead me.

+ + +

Instead, Willow leads us to the storefront windows covered in wood. She proudly points. “Here’s my picture. It’s a snow family.”

The image includes three snowmen, complete with an adult man and woman and a little girl between them. The dark flowing hair gives away the gender along with a pink scarf around her neck.

“How cute,” Jane coos, bending at the waist to take a picture with her phone of the painting. She points at blue squiggle lines behind the family. “What’s this?”

“It’s the river.” Willow traces over the lines with her little fingertip.

Jane scowls and glances up at me. We both know Willow’s story. She’s very open to telling people about her parents’ death. Does this picture mean she hopes to join her parents in the river? The morbid thought has my blood rushing like the river water can.

“Uncle Theo told me I’m going to a new family. One with a mom and a dad.” Willow’s small voice is difficult to read. Is she happy about leaving her uncle? Is she disappointed? Or is she simply stating a fact?

“Oh.” Jane stands and crosses her arms over her middle. She blinks once before peering at me. Then she looks down at Willow, her lips twitching as if she’s struggling to form a smile. “This is a good thing.”

Jane gazes over my shoulder, and I twist enough to see Theo Clarke down the block. He casually waves at Jane, and she lifts a hand. The smile on her face doesn’t reach her eyes as she calls out to him. “Merry Christmas.”

He nods.

“Jane, can we go get hot chocolate from Stella?” Willow reaches for Jane’s hand and tugs.

“Sure, baby,” Jane says to Willow, swallowing hard. “How about if you ask Uncle Theo if he’d like to join us?”

Willow skips off toward her uncle, and Jane’s shoulders fall. “Oh my God, does she think new parents will come from the river?” Her voice croaks.

“Maybe she just wants to memorialize her parents. The snow melts away into the river and her parents did too.”

Jane swipes a hand through her hair. “She’s so young for such thoughts.”

However, Jane and I can’t know what a five-year-old is thinking. All we can know is she’s waiting on Jane to take her to On The Curve for hot chocolate.

“She needs someone like you,” I say, rubbing a hand up Jane’s back. I need her, too.

“She breaks my heart,” Jane whispers.

“Let some hot cocoa and time with her seal it back together for now. This night is about celebration. Not sadness.” I tip up her chin and tug her to me, offering what I intended to be a chaste kiss. A soft brush against her lips, like snowflakes dusting the air. But the second our mouths meet, I can’t pull back.

I need a better kiss before I lose her for another night. The town is going to eat her up like a peppermint stick—sugary sweet and sharply satisfying. That’s my Jane to these people.

Jane responds, opening for me, gifting me with her tongue. I pull her closer to me until my name muttered against my lips reminds me where we stand.

Reluctantly pulling away, I try to explain myself. “There’s mistletoe over us.”

Jane looks up and giggles. “There is not.”