Page 74 of The Christmas Accomplice

Once Reece had walked off, he turned to Nick. “What do you know?”

“What? I don’t know what you mean.” She tried to look innocent, but couldn’t quite pull it off.

“Nick…”

“Fine. He got the job.”

Welton let out a shout that attracted a lot of attention, and he gave the people in the lobby an apologetic wave as Nick laughed. Reece returned soon after, face glowing and smile even bigger.

“What did Edward want?” Welton asked, playing dumb.

Reece grabbed him in a bear hug, lifting him off his feet and spinning him around. Welton laughed and heard Nick and Ursula laughing as well. Once he’d been set on his feet again, Welton looked around with a little anxiety, unused to public displays of affection. None of the guests in the lobby paid them any mind, so he steadied himself with a hand on Reece’s chest, feeling his heart pounding fast beneath his palm. His own heart seemed to mimic each beat, and Welton suddenly realized in a moment of startling clarity that he was absolutely in love with this man.

“I got the job. I start the first week of January. And I owe a lot of it to you.”

“You did the hard work,” Welton said, trying to keep his focus on Reece as the word love echoed in the back of his mind. “It wasn’t just about storming Castle Claus.”

Reece hugged him again, then raced around to the employee entrance of the front desk area. Nick yanked the door open, and he hugged and twirled her as he had done with Welton. Ursula moved in for a hug as well, but when some guests queued up at the desk, Nick shooed Reece out from behind the desk so she could work. Reece took Welton’s hand and led him toward the doors. Again, no one looked twice at them, and Welton allowed himself to enjoy the feeling as they stepped out into the sunshine.

“You know what I want to do?” Reece said.

Welton studied him, then shook his head. “Not a clue.”

“Build a snowman.” Reece smiled and squeezed his hand. “That’s when I really knew I had to get to know you, no matter how long you were going to stay.”

Tears threatened, again, but Welton forced them down. “I’d love that.”

Snowball battles interrupted the snowman building, so it took longer than expected for a finished product. When Reece put an arm around him and held him close against his side, Welton thought it was quite possibly the best snowman that had ever been built. They returned to the toboggan run for a few more trips down the track, then decided to see if Nick wanted to join them for dinner at The Upper Crust, the restaurant near the top of the ski lifts. Reece surprised Welton by suggesting he text Dean and see if he wanted to join them.

“Really?” Welton said.

“It’s Christmas.” Reece smiled. “And, besides, he encouraged you to help me out.”

“Okay, I’ll see.”

Nick was just about finished with her shift and happily accepted their invitation to dinner. Ursula declined due to family obligations, but she wished them all a Merry Christmas. During the walk to the restaurant, Nick and Reece talked about work stuff as Welton sent a text to Dean, surprised to receive an enthusiastically affirmative response. That was followed by the question if Trent could join as well. Reece and Nick agreed, and after a short wait, all five of them were seated and looking over the menu. Once they ordered, Reece told Dean and Trent about his promotion, and everyone toasted him. Dean said he and Trent had been “carving up the slopes” all day, which Trent tempered. “Well, starting late morning, after we unwrapped each other.”

Dean cast a quick, nervous look at Welton, but he simply smiled and raised his wineglass in a toast. Dean looked so smitten, how could he be anything but happy for him? During dinner, Dean laughed a lot, mostly at things Trent said. It was surprising to see Dean so taken by someone, but it was also gratifying. Dean had really stepped up to make this a very special Christmas for Welton, and pushed him to make it the same for Reece.

After dinner, Reece and Welton hugged the others goodbye and wished them all a Merry Christmas. Welton told Dean he could have the cabin that night as well, and then he and Reece walked along an asphalt path, the staggered lights along the edges glowing under caps of fresh snowfall from the day before.

“So, I have one more kind of gift for you,” Reece said. Welton pulled him to a stop.

“Wait, a ‘kind of gift’?”

“Yeah. I’ve planned something for us to do tonight, but you don’t have to if you don’t want to.”

“Okaaaay,” Welton said, drawing the word out.

“Trust me?”

“Yeeeeah,” Welton said, again drawing the word out, then added, “He said, nervously.”

Reece chuckled and set off again, holding his hand. A few minutes later, Reece led them off the main path on to a narrower one. The moon was out, about a week away from full, and its white light filled the woods and smoothed the imperfections from the snow. Welton had no idea where Reece was leading him, but when he saw the small kiosk set to the side of the path, he immediately understood and a strange mixture of nervousness and happiness filled him.

A sign above the kiosk was lit by a couple of small accent lights so it could be read at night: SNOWSHOE TRAILS.

Reece stopped and assessed Welton’s expression. “Is this okay?”