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“We’ll see,” Joy said in a sing-song voice, then turned to face Kian, who motioned her toward the door.

“After you. I’ll grab our coats,” he said as they headed for the front door.

“Where are we going?” she asked, slipping into her coat and zipping it up before pulling on her hat and gloves. “I don’t want to spend too much time outside. We have a busy weekend ahead.”

“I know,” Kian promised, kissing her forehead in a way that told her just how comfortable he was being affectionate with her now. That made her happy, but she also had to ask herself whether she was as comfortable as he was with where their relationship was headed.

Cripes, it was just a forehead kiss. Don’t overthink it.

Trying not to snort at herself, Joy waited while he opened the door and they stepped out into the early-evening darkness. “The sun sets so early now.”

“That works in my favor this time,” he promised, rubbing the back of her neck as they walked. She’d noticed he did that a lot, maybe because he couldn’t hold her hand. One day, she’d ask him about it, but not today. She enjoyed it too much and didn’t want him to stop. Joy could admit that much to herself without fear racing through her system. “Why?” she asked as they rounded the corner.

Her gasp was loud in the night air as she took in the path ahead. “Kian, it’s stunning.”

“Do you think Mom would like it?”

He whispered the question, but she heard the crack in his voice. Tearing her gaze from the luminaries lighting the garden, she carefully wrapped her arms around his waist to keep the crutches from hitting his knees, then hugged him tightly. They stayed locked together for a moment before she spoke.

“She’d love the luminaries, but more than anything, she’d love that you were part of the event. For her, it wasn’t about the estate being chosen for the light show’s finale. It was about spreading the joy of Christmas, and there was no brighter light during this season than Lorelei.”

“I wish I’d realized that much sooner in life,” Kian whispered. “That’s why I decided to do luminaries this year. She’d only gotten as far as wanting to use locally sourced decorations and to make them earth and animal-friendly,” he said, stepping back. “So I took her idea and ran with it.” He motioned for her to head down the walkway.

Pausing by the first luminary, Joy realized it was a canning jar filled with birdseed and cranberries, with a candle nestled in the middle. The jar's exterior was frosted with an angel in the center, letting the light shine through.

“These are gorgeous, Kian.”

“The high school art class made them,” he explained as they walked, each jar featuring a different image representing the season. They all had red bows wrapped around the tops. “I sourced the jars from every thrift shop I could find this summer, which surprisingly made me feel closer to Mom. As though she approved of my idea. Sure, I could have ordered new ones and been done with it, but that defeated the purpose of being earth-friendly, in my opinion. The pinecone ornaments on the Middleburg tree sparked my imagination, but I’m not artistic, so I brought them all the supplies and let the kids run with it. Mom would have loved getting the kids involved.”

“She so would have,” Joy agreed, stopping by the pond. The fish were hibernating in their basement tank, but thanks to a bubbler that circulated the water, the pond wasn’t completely frozen. Small bowls with candles flickering inside floated in the center. “Wait, is that her cranberry china?”

“It is, but don’t worry. It won’t be damaged. The bowls are on a floating base, and the candles are rechargeable.”

Joy grasped his arm and smiled. “I’m not worried about it getting damaged. It’s a fantastic idea and a gorgeous presentation. My only concern is if you leave it out here until Christmas Eve, it might not hold up.”

Leaning down, Kian planted a kiss on her lips before speaking. “This is for demonstration purposes only. Everything will come back inside until Thursday afternoon. We just wanted to get a sense of how long it would take to set up. Look up.”

Tipping her head back, she gasped. All the trees were lit with fairy lights and strung with popcorn and cranberry chains. “The elementary school made the popcorn chains while they watched a movie. From what I heard, they ate as much popcorn as they strung, but they had a great time. We can enjoy the beauty, and the birds can enjoy a treat, so it’s a win-win.”

“Kian, I love this so much!” she exclaimed, laughter coloring her voice. “It’s so unlike you to have done all this. Lorelei always said you didn’t have an ounce of Christmas spirit.”

“She was right back then. That changed after I learned how much she loved the season. I wanted to make her proud, and lighting up Wintercrest Estate on Christmas Eve in her honor will hopefully do just that.” Kian said, his eyes filled with wonder and hope.

“It will,” she whispered, dropping her crutches and cupping his face in her hands. “She was always proud of you, even when she didn’t understand you. Thank you for showing me before Christmas Eve. It’s such an honor to be part of it, even in a small way.”

“Try again,” he whispered, lowering his lips to hers. When they kissed, he let her take the lead. She tipped his face to the side so she could slip her tongue inside and taste him. He tasted, if she were honest with herself, like forever. What did forever taste like? Chocolate, forgiveness, and respect, all wrapped in the warmth of a man she never saw coming three weeks ago. Now she struggled to picture her life without him.

Gasping for air, she broke the kiss and rested her forehead against his, a reminder that maybe she was as comfortable with intimacy as he was. “Try again? I don’t understand.”

“That you’re part of this in a small way. You’re the most important part of it.”

Patting her hips, she smiled. “Glad you noticed my contributions.”

Tickling her side, he didn’t relent until she was giggling. “Keep that up, and I’m going to show you how much I’ve noticed these contributions, especially these hips that drive me mad in so many ways every time I see you. But that’s not what I meant, though the word contribution is on point.”

“I had nothing to do with any of this, Kian. I buried my head in the sand about the event and hoped she’d left orders for the house staff to handle it. When she died six months ago, the light at Wintercrest Estate went out. You’ve brought it back in a way that honors Lorelei and what she believed about the season.”

“Only because you showed me how. I’ve spent so much time over the last three months studying how you run the mall, engage the community, and keep my mother at the center of the business that I’ve been able to emulate you. You taught me how to love my mother again, to appreciate who she was and what she did for people, and to keep her in my life not as a painful reminder of what I’d lost, but as a shining light. I can fall back on what she did and what she taught me when times get hard.”