Riley laughed as she continued to pet him. “Yes, he is.”
Brendan picked up a backpack off the couch. “So, I have everything we need, if you’re ready to go.”
Riley eyed the backpack. “I thought you said this was a breakfast date. I hope you have food in there. I’m starving.”
Brendan laughed. “Don’t worry. I know you need to eat breakfast or you get hangry.”
Riley laughed. “Lucky that you remembered that. In that case, I’m ready.”
“Let’s do this,” Brendan said as he slung the backpack over his shoulder.
For the next two hours, Brendan did exactly as he’d promised and took her on an adventure. He reminded her of what it had been like when they’d traveled the world together, how they’d always get up for the sunrise whenever they were in a new place.
For this sunrise, Brendan had planned a snowshoeing trip up to Christmas Lake Point. Riley laughed when Brendan told her that Luke had been the one to suggest snowshoeing, saying how much she loved it.
At least this time she was able to get the snowshoes on.
It was tricky getting up to the lookout with all the fresh powder, but by working together, they’d made it just in time to toast the sunrise with the mimosas Brendan had brought along. A sunrise toast was another one of their favorite travel traditions.
For breakfast, Brendan had packed her favorite granola bars and also some homemade croissants and fresh fruit Maryanne had put together for him. It was the perfect picnic. Riley smiled. It had been a long time since she’d done something like this—too long.
And Brendan was as fun-loving as she’d always remembered him. She liked that he also now had a more mature side, sharing with her how he’d turned his passion for traveling into a successful, profitable business. He now owned his own touring company, with almost a hundred tour guides that did tours all around the world.
As she listened to the amazing places he’d traveled to, she had to admit she was jealous. She’d put aside her love of travel to do what she thought was the right thing, to buckle down and be an adult and get a real job. Now, listening to how happy Brendan was, she wondered if she’d made the right decision in giving up one of her true passions and walking away from Brendan.
He also wanted to hear all about her life as an author and had asked a bunch of questions, seeming genuinely interested in her writing process. He’d admitted that he’d followed her over the years, keeping track of her success. He admired her gutsy move to start over and move to New York to be an author.
It had been funny hearing him say that because Riley had never thought it was gusty. She had just thought it was survival. She liked Brendan’s version better.
After their sunrise toast and breakfast, Brendan had another surprise for her.
Riley watched with curiosity as he pulled a leather pouch from his backpack. When he unzipped it, Riley saw a folding saw, and she backed away a little.
“Uh, what are you planning to do with that? Tell me this date isn’t going to have a bad ending,” she joked.
Brendan laughed. “You and your imagination. No, actually, I thought this could help us start a new Christmas tradition.”
Riley’s eyebrows arched. “Really?”
“Yeah,” Brendan said. “I was thinking about when we dated, and one of the things I regretted is that we never really celebrated Christmas together.”
“We were together at Christmas,” Riley said.
“We were together, but we didn’t celebrate it,” Brendan corrected her. “We were always traveling, and you said you weren’t into Christmas so we never put up a Christmas tree or did anything like that.” Brendan held up the saw. “So I thought we’d change that.”
Riley gave him a skeptical look. “What are you thinking?”
“That we needed to get a Christmas tree together,” Brendan answered with a grin.
Riley didn’t even pretend that she thought it was a good idea.
“We can’t do that,” she said with conviction.
“Why not?” Brendan asked.
“We can’t cut down any of these trees. They’re Luke’s family’s.”
Brendan laughed as he looked around. “And there are hundreds of them. I’m sure he won’t mind.”
Riley shook her head. “Actually, I think he would. He’s all about conservation and protecting the environment, and they don’t even cut down their own tree at Christmas. Did you see the one in the lodge? It’s a live tree so it can be replanted.”
Brendan looked impressed. “Okay, that’s pretty cool.” He looked around and walked over to small tree. “Then how about we get this one? I can come back later and dig it up, and it can be replanted later, too. Then we can still have our first Christmas tree together. What do you say?”
When Brendan smiled back at her, he was impossible to resist.
Riley laughed. “I would say that you haven’t changed a bit. You still don’t take no for an answer.”
Brendan stepped closer to her and looked into her eyes. “Not when it’s something I care about and want.” He put the saw in his backpack and pulled out a small wooden box with a red bow on it. He handed it to her.
Riley felt her heart race. “What is it?” she asked in breathless voice.
“Open it.” Brendan smiled at her.
Riley slowly opened the box and held up an antique bronze compass. She read the inscription on it . . .
So you can always find your way back to me . . .
The beautiful words brought tears to her eyes.
“Riley, I know our paths went different ways, but I’ve never stopped loving you,” Brendan said. “When I saw that interview, it reminded me that true love deserves a second chance. I still think we could have a lifetime of adventures together. We could travel like we used to, only now you can write your novels using inspiration from all the amazing places we’d visit. Together, we could have it
