Page 100 of Close to Heaven

“I wouldn’t mind some more of these cookies,” he said with a grin.

Avery wanted to crawl on his lap and kiss him, but she restrained herself. There’d be plenty of time for that later.

“I’ll bring a whole tray of cookies,” Carolyn said, looking thrilled at the prospect.

“I’m anxious for you to meet the rest of Jax’s family,” Avery said to both Carl and Carolyn. “And the resort is all decked out for Christmas.”

“That sounds wonderful,” Carolyn said.

Her dad had gone quiet, and Avery noticed he looked tired. All this activity had probably worn him out. She gave Jax a subtle nudge, and he immediately took the hint.

“Well, we should probably get going. I’ll look forward to seeing you both on Christmas.”

“I’ll just take our plates to the kitchen,” Avery said as they both stood.

“No, no. I’ll take care of them, dear,” Carolyn said.

Avery shot her a grateful smile. Then she went over to her dad and kissed his forehead. “Bye, Dad. See you soon.”

“Love you, my girl.”

My girl. He hadn’t called her that in a long time, and her throat tightened. Jax gently took her hand and led her to the door.

Avery held herself together until they were back on the road leading to the resort. She was looking out the passenger window when her tears began to fall.

“Sweetheart, you okay?”

His sentiment caused her to cry even harder. Sniffling and swiping at tears, she nodded.

He chuckled. “You don’t seem okay.”

“These are mostly happy tears.”

Jax pulled off the road and into the parking lot of an antiques store. After he parked, he undid their seatbelts, leaned over, and wrapped his arms around her. She leaned her head against his chest and let it all out, sobbing and trying not to get his flannel shirt too wet.

“It’s okay. I’ve got you,” he whispered against her hair.

She took every ounce of comfort he provided, soothed by his warm hands on her back, his steady heartbeat against her ear, and the intimacy of his embrace. With each day that passed, she loved him more, and once she pulled herself together, she planned on telling him that.

“I love you, Avery, and I’ll always be here for you. Always.”

At this rate, she might never get it together. “I love you too,” she said between sobs. He held her close until her tears began to abate. Then she took a few deep breaths, tipped her head up, and gazed at him. She was surprised to see that he had tears in his eyes too.

“Thank you for inviting my dad and Carolyn to Christmas dinner.” That was all she could manage for the moment.

“Meeting your dad reminded me of how precious life is and how important…” His throat caught, and he took a moment to compose himself. “Love and family. Those are the two most important things in life.”

Then she kissed him like she’d wanted to do all afternoon. Love and family. He was both for her, and if his kiss was any indication, she was the same for him.

When they finally parted, they were both a bit breathless, and the windows had fogged up.

“Speaking of family, one meeting down, one to go,” she said.

“Dakota.”

“I hope she takes the news as well as Cody did.”

“If not, heaven help us,” Jax said.

When he turned into the resort, Avery was flooded with a sense of peace. She now knew that coming to Sawyer’s Ridge had been the right decision, not only for Carl, but for her and Jax. Now, if she could get her best friend to agree, everything would be perfect…