Page 30 of The Cuffing Season

I want to thank all of you who have become loyal readers of The Cuffing Season. As you know, my mission was successful: I found the perfect woman, a yee of yees, and I’m cuffing myself to her not only for the season but for the rest of our lives.

Now that’s what we call a happy ending.

But wait! There’s more.

I ended the last column just before Friendsgiving Dinner, and honestly, wasn’t that the best way to fade to The End? All the best stories come to a close on a kiss.

But what happened next? Yes, I’m fully aware that you want to know that answer. Your emails and social media messages have made that abundantly clear.

I’d like to say that I swept Sophia into my arms and took her off into the sunset, making sweet love to her for hours, but the truth is that the woman had a turkey in the oven and guests arriving all too soon. So once we kissed to our hearts’ content (for the time being), she put me to work on peeling potatoes and plating up food.

Vivian, Charlie and baby Gus arrived, and there was much joy when they heard our news. Vivian insisted on taking my place in the kitchen, helping Soph, and Charlie suggested it would be good for me to get used to babies, which was how I ended up with a grinning, drooling Gus in my lap for the next thirty minutes.

But you know what? He’s a pretty great kid. I have to say, I could see myself wanting one of those someday in the future.

The DISTANT future.

About ten minutes before dinner, Preston showed up, but that was our next surprise because our boy did not arrive solo. No, friends, Preston was accompanied by a yee—specifically, by Amber, the yee who had caught his eye and stolen his heart. As we found out later, Amber had popped into the juice bar and taken back her early refusal. She told Preston that she thought maybe she could try a relationship again, as long as they take things slow. Preston is all over that. And my boy was grinning ear to ear when he saw me holding Sophia’s hand.

“We did it, Harry.” He nodded enthusiastically. “The Cuffing Season is an official success—for real this time. It’s you and Sophia, and me and Amber . . . no lonely hearts this Christmas.”

I hope that’s true. I know Sophia and I are meant to be, but I was a little worried about Amber—maybe she was just looking to be cuffed for the holidays? I can’t say at this point, but time will tell. They might have to navigate a long-distance relationship soon, because the day after Friendsgiving, our local outdoor adventure store committed to sponsoring Preston. He’s going on the circuit, starting right after the holidays.

A week after my Friendsgiving column went live, Vivian called me squealing—quietly, because it was Gus’s nap time—that a publisher was interested in my work. I now have an agent (the same one who reps Vivian) and in February, Sophia and I are taking a romantic trip to New York City to talk about selling my very first book.

Life is good, my friends. Again, thanks for taking this journey with me. I appreciate all of your encouragement and cheering—and Jake S., glad you were so excited to find an adult leisure park here in Florida that you can enjoy. You do you, boo.

This is the final edition of The Cuffing Season. Next week, Vivian’s Fifty Frogs will return. I’m grateful for the opportunity that she gave me here, and I hope you all enjoy jumping back into the frogs.

So until we meet again . . . happy holidays. And keep your eyes open: true love might be closer than you think.

“I read your last column.” Sophia snuggled closer to me on the sofa. We were sitting in her apartment, and the only lights in the entire place came from the tiny bulbs on her tree. “It was a perfect way to end things.”

“Hmmm.” I nuzzled her neck, breathing in her scent. “Do you think we’d be here, where we are now, together, if I hadn’t taken over the column when I did?”

Sophia considered that question. “I like to think we would have found our way to each other anyway, but the way things worked out . . . I don’t have any regrets. We have amazing friends, including Vivian and Charlie now. You’re on the verge of a book deal. Preston’s with Amber—”

“For as long as that lasts,” I interjected.

She rolled her eyes. “They’re happy together. They’re enjoying each other and taking it day by day—why can’t you just accept that?”

I shrugged. “Okay. Preston’s with Amber. What next?”

“I got that sweet contract with the marketing firm based on my work with Tyla’s park . . .”

“Ugh.” I buried my face in Sophia’s neck. “Don’t remind me about Tyla. That embarrassment is going to linger.”

She giggled. “But it was so much fun for the rest of us . . .okay. No more Tyla talk. Although, you know, she offered us free memberships to her park.”

I glared at Sophia. “No, thank you. If you’d gotten a load of what I did, with the volleyball and the bouncing—” I shuddered. “Just no.”

“Fine. No naturist parks for us.” She sighed in contentment and rested her head on my chest. “This might possibly be the most perfect Christmas in the history of Christmases.”

I thought about all of my plans for the future, for the vision I already for the two of us . . . and how, if things went well, I planned to celebrate next Christmas with a diamond ring . . . and I smiled.

“Merry Christmas, Sophia.” I brushed my lips over her cheek. “I love you.”

“Merry Christmas, Harry,” she answered, shivering. “You better.”

The End