The Bachelor on the Shelf (Reindeer Falls)

One figure’s tall, with messy brown hair, holding a baseball bat.

Another figure’s short, with curly blonde hair and a stack of books in her arms.

And the last figure’s the smallest of all, an adorable black and white dog that looks just like Rudy.

On the bottom, the ornament declares: “Our First Christmas.”

As Carter lifts it out of the box to examine it, a small card falls out. I reach down to grab it, and there, in Joe’s scratchy handwriting, are two sentences.

If you haven’t figured it out by now, I’ve done all I can. Get your life in order.

“That wily old fox,” Carter says, awe plain in his voice.

Is it true? Did Joe spy a real-life love connection between us all those years ago? Or did he watch us grow up into the people we are today, knowing we’d be a perfect fit? Or… was I that painfully obvious when I’d sit on Joe’s couch, watching Carter’s baseball games with him?

“But what about your spring break Shepphoe convention?” I ask, voice breaking a little. I can’t bear the thought of this being fake, so I’ve got to double-check. And perhaps I’m being a bit dramatic about the Shepphoe convention. The beach reservations I spied were for two, not two thousand. And maybe… just maybe he was making those reservations for the two of us? Deep down that’s what I’ve been hoping, but he hasn’t once brought it up. And he didn’t tell me he’d gotten his endorsement deal.

Carter sighs. “Lexi, for the last time, what are you talking about?”

I swallow my pride. “You keep checking out beaches when you think I’m not looking. And I heard you booking a flight. I figured you were planning a celebration to move on from me and Reindeer Falls.”

“Oh, sprite,” Carter says, shaking his head. “I was looking at beaches because I wanted to take you somewhere you could actually wear your bathing suit. You know, as a Christmas present.”

My heart is beating so fast I very nearly think I might faint.

“For real?” I question, wanting to hear him say it again. Needing the confirmation, because I’m an insecure idiot. “You’re not just saying that?” I press, an embarrassed blush covering my face.

Carter smiles, stepping closer to me as he takes my hand. “I said it because I mean it, Lexi. So what do you say?”

My heart skips about twelve beats. “To a beach trip? Hard yes.”

“Sure, to the trip,” he says, running a finger along my jaw. “But to my bigger question? To us? Should we extend this relationship indefinitely?” He runs his finger down, down, down until he gets to my hand, where my fake ring is. He circles it with his thumb. “You want to be my fiancée for real this time?”

It’s funny. As a librarian, so many questions take time, research, thoughtful processing. But this question doesn’t take me any time at all.

“Yes,” I say. “Absolutely yes.”

Epilogue

One Year Later…

Christmas Eve

* * *

As usual, I’m in trouble because of a dog.

“Rudy, what did you do with the rings?”

Rudy blinks up at me innocently. I’d be furious with him, but he’s blinking his brown eyes at me as if he couldn’t possibly be to blame for this issue. I reach out and adjust his bow tie, an evergreen color that perfectly matches Sutton and Maggie’s bridesmaid dresses.

“I’m telling you, any of my goats would’ve done a better job,” Sutton says, turning over one of the chairs in the bridal suite as we search for the box.

“Sutton, they would’ve eaten the box and you know it,” Maggie says with a laugh. “And don’t worry. I’ve got them right here.”

Maggie holds up the heart-shaped box, carved out of the bottom of one of this year’s Christmas trees. I breathe a sigh of relief.

“Thanks for that, Rudy,” I say. “Every bride needs a jolt of fear right before she walks down the aisle, right?”

“It’s the law,” Sutton agrees, coming over to pluck the ring box from Maggie. “But I’m going to hold onto these for the rest of the day, all right?”

“What, you don’t trust me?” Maggie says, putting her hands on her hips.

“Oh, I definitely trust you,” Sutton says. “That’s why I’m trusting you with Rudy.”

Maggie rolls her eyes. “Watch it, Sutton. I’ll write you up.”

Sutton sticks out her tongue. “Can we focus on what’s important, please? Lexi’s getting married!”

The words ring out like bells in the room, and even though I’ve had months to get used to those words, they still seem impossible. As if the last year has been a dream, and I’m not actually marrying the love of my life today. I glance at the diamond on my ring finger. The diamond that Carter admitted had been real all along, a few minutes after asking me to extend our relationship from temporary to forever, a year ago today. Looking back, I suspect he was playing me the entire time. Playing me into taking him seriously by faking it.