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“I thought…” She was blown away by seeing them both there. She’d wanted them to come so much, but she’d lost hope.
“Wait—we brought you a present.” West held up a big paper bag. “Some of them broke, but they still taste good. We put in extra ginger to give them a kick.”
“A kick?” Sarah took the bag, baffled, and peered inside. “Hold on, are these…didyouguys bake these?” She grabbed a misshapen cookie—a snowman, maybe, or a fat centipede. A snowtipede?
“Try it,” said Tad. “I promise they don’t taste as bad as they look.”
Sarah took a bite, and she blinked back fresh tears. “Sue’s Market cookie mix. How did youknow?”
Tad frowned. “Know what?”
“I’ve made these every year since I was a kid. But this year, with everything…” Sarah held up the bag. “Kids! Tad just saved Christmas. The cookies are here.”
A swarm of kids descended, dashing for the bag. Beth swooped in and grabbed it, and they all gave chase. West ran off with them, and Tad watched him go.
“He’s happy,” he said. He turned to Sarah and took her by the hands. “I was happy too, till I went and blew it with you.”
Sarah stopped breathing, her pulse loud in her ears. Was this an olive branch, or a sweet goodbye? She knew what she wanted it to be, but she was afraid to get her hopes up. She felt dizzy, unmoored, all her dreams of love hanging in the balance. Hanging on Tad’s next words—and she couldn’t let him say them.
“Let’s dance,” she said, too loud, too eager. “Or—oh! You didn’t get a cookie. I’ll grab Beth, and—”
“I had one already. And we can dance in a minute, but if I don’t say this now, I might just burst.” He took a deep breath. “You were right.”
Sarah stared. Was this real? Was Tad really—
“You wereright,” he said, louder, then again for the room. “Sarah was right, and she’s smarter than me.”
A few laughs went up at that, but Tad wasn’t done. His next words were half-whispered, only for her.
“My dad used to say, if it seems too good to be true, it probably is. But my dad said all kinds of things, and a lot of them were wrong. I was listening to him, to his voice in my head, waiting for the other shoe to drop, but—”
“Other shoe?” Sarah laughed. “What shoe? I don’t—”
“Your family,” said Tad. “I never had what you have, that support, that…that…You’re like the Three Musketeers, only there’s about a million of you, and you’re all all-for-one. All one-for-all. I wanted to be part of it, but that voice just kept shouting in my head, telling me what you had wasn’t possible for me. I kept waiting for the catch. For that other shoe.”
“And now?” Sarah gripped his hands tighter, her heart in her throat.
“Everyone inthisroom’s wearing both shoes.” Tad’s smile grew wider. “West saw what I couldn’t. What I wouldn’t believe. This is agoodplace, and you’re good for me. And I think, if you let me, I could be good for you too. If we could start over. If you’d give me a—”
“Yes.” Sarah rose up to kiss him and hugged him tight. She could feel his heart racing, in time with her own.
“You were right too,” she said, as he stroked her hair. “I was hiding behind cookies and sweetness and smiles when I needed to stand up and believe in myself.” She drew back, flush with pride. “I went to Will with my business plan instead of a tray of brownies.”
“And he loved it, right?”
“He read it right in front of me, beginning to end. And you know what?” She grinned. “I wasn’t even nervous.”
“Why would you be?” Tad plucked a stray rhinestone out of her hair. “You have the experience. You have the skills. You deserve to be confident.”
“I do, don’t I?” Sarah squared her shoulders. “You pushed me to see that.” She kissed him again, a deep, fiery kiss filled with all of her longing, all her joy, all her love. She only pulled back when Will cleared his throat.
“Are you kidding right now?” she asked her brother.
Will only laughed. “Not to spoil your moment, but it’s time for the photo.”
Tad gasped in mock-horror. “You mean, there’ll be arecordof this?” He crossed his arms over his sweater.
“That’s your other shoe,” said Sarah. “We take pictures ofeverything.”
