Hannah spoke into the mic, detailing the simplicity of her recipes and going over their ingredients for a final time. Nicholas moved towards the front of the stage, carefully working his way around people watching the show.
He’d managed to make his way through the entire crowd, which was a feat he didn’t even think was possible a few minutes ago. Yet, he'd been able to find a clear path, leading him right up to Molly Carmichael.
When Nicholas got up on the stage, he had no idea what to do next. A
ll he knew was that his hands were shaking with nerves, his mouth had gone dry, and neither one of those things had anything to do with the cameras nor the crowd.
It was Molly having this effect on him. She could turn him down, reject him. He was about to put his heart on the line and offer to give up everything to be with her.
“Nicholas, what are you doing?” Molly’s eyes went big as she saw him. She glanced around the stage. “I thought you were already gone.”
“Sir? Do you want some turkey, too?” Mr. Tony asked, looking at the strange person now walking up on his stage.
“I was. I was gone, but then my car broke down—” he started to explain. Nicholas looked over at Hannah, offering her an apologetic shrug. “I’m so sorry for doing it like this, Hannah. I really don’t know what came over me but—”
“Oh, no, no, no. Don’t apologize to Ms. Johnson. Surprise proposals are great for holiday ratings!” Mr. Tony motioned for the nearest cameras to keep rolling. “Keep your eyes on BakeTown, USA, folks! Where anything and everything can happen!”
“Wait, wait. It’s not a proposal. I just wanted to say something,” Nicholas told him, reaching out for Molly’s hands, holding them with his own. “Molly Carmichael, these past two weeks with you have been amazing. Unbelievable. Magical. Fun. So much fun. And just... perfect.”
Nicholas heard a few people in the crowd make an aww sound.
“And I know this is a crazy thing to say, but uh...” Nicholas stumbled over his phrase. He found Molly's eyes and his mouth found the words easily. “Molly, I love you. I love you, and I’m sorry if I realized that too late. But I love you, and I want this to work, for however long it works, because when I think about getting back in my car and heading back to Manhattan, when I think about heading anywhere without you, it breaks my heart.”
“Do you think she’s gonna say yes?” whispered someone in the crowd.
“Oh my gosh! She better say yes!” another person replied. “What a great proposal!”
“Not a proposal. It’s not a proposal!” Nicholas yelled to the crowd. He returned his focus to Molly. “Molly, all you have to do is say the word. All you have to do is tell me that you either want something with me or you don’t, and if you don’t, then I’ll go back to Manhattan with a broken heart, but I had to know. I had to try. Not trying for you would’ve made me the dumbest man in the entire world.”
“Dumbest man in the entire world...” Molly repeated Nicholas’ words, a slow smile growing on her face. “Do you think it would’ve easily put you in the top five?”
Nicholas smiled right back at Molly, his heart starting to hope. “Is that really all you have to say to me right now, Ms. Molly?”
“No, there’s more.” Molly took a step closer to Nicholas. She looked up into his eyes now, and he into hers. They were so dark and beautiful. He felt like he could drown in those eyes and die a happy man. “How do I know you really mean it, Nicholas? What’s to stop you from getting on the first plane out of here in the morning? There’s nothing keeping you here, besides me, and you might get tired of me by the time New Year’s Eve rolls around.”
“Molly, do you love me?” Nicholas whispered, his voice suddenly failing him. “Do you love me, too?”
“Yes.” Molly’s response came out soft, her face stoic. “Yes, Nicholas Kerstman, I’m in love with you. I love you, too.”
“Alright then,” he said with a grin.
“Alright then?” Molly shook her head. “Nicholas, what is that supposed to mean—”
Nicholas didn’t respond to Molly. Instead, he reached for the sales documents for Christmas Wishes tucked away in the pocket of his jacket. He placed them down on the table in front of him, reached for the turkey gravy, and proceeded to ruin the documents by pouring the gravy right onto the pages.
Nicholas then grabbed onto a bowl of Hannah's special cranberry sauce and dumped that all over the documents, too.
“What was that? What just happened?” Mr. Tony asked, moving closer to Nicholas and pointing at the mess on the table. “Was that symbolic? Or?”
Nicholas now remembered that there were cameras everywhere. He'd forgotten them completely.
“Oh, right. Um, to the viewers at home—” Nicholas waved a hand at the nearest camera. “Before I fell in love with this woman, right here, I’d decided to sell the rights to my family’s Christmas store to the highest bidder. I would’ve received a million dollars, which would’ve bought me out of the company.”
“And are those the papers for the sale?” Mr. Tony asked, his voice quivering with excitement. “Sir, are you saying that you’re giving up ONE MILLION DOLLARS just to be with this woman right there?”
Nicholas nodded, his heart light as he knew he was making the right decision. “Money’s really not worth all that much, is it?”
“Money’s really not worth all that much...” Mr. Tony repeated Nicholas’ words with awe, a grin taking over his entire face. “Ladies and gentlemen of BakeTown! Here you have it! A man in love!”