They reached him then. Cora Jane gave his hand a squeeze. “Is B.J. inside? I’ve been dying for him to teach me one of those games he’s so fond of.”
Boone merely nodded, unable to tear his gaze away from Emily.
When they were alone, he said, “I thought you’d decided against coming for Christmas.”
“That’s what I thought, too,” she confessed. “But then I got back to my big, lonely house in California and started thinking about where I wanted to be. I’d been imagining this holiday for so long, all of us here together. I knew there was only one way to make that happen. I had to swallow my pride and come back.”
He frowned. “Your pride?”
“It kicked in when you didn’t want me to come with you to get B.J. I started thinking that was the way it was going to be forever, that Jodie would keep finding ways to interfere and cause problems. I figured sooner or later you’d get tired of it and I’d be the one who’d lose.”
“Never!” Boone said adamantly. “This thing with Jodie will get resolved. I may have to initiate legal action, even guarantee her some visiting rights, so she’ll know B.J. will always be in her life. Maybe that will be enough to make her see reason.”
“And if it doesn’t?”
“Then she’ll be the loser.”
Emily shook her head. “B.J. will be the loser, Boone. You don’t want that.”
He sighed heavily, aware that she was right. “No, I don’t want that.” He pulled her closer, touched his lips to hers. “This is my problem, though. I will figure it out.”
Though he’d meant to be reassuring, he saw a shadow pass across her face at his words.
“Shouldn’t we be figuring things out together?” she asked quietly, pulling away from him. “Especially the important things like this?”
Boone backpedaled at once. “Of course. You’re right. I just meant that I’m the one bringing the Jodie situation into the mix, so it’s my responsibility.”
She didn’t look a hundred percent satisfied by his explanation, but she let it go, tucking her arm through his and leaning into his side. “It’s hard to believe just a couple of days ago we were freezing on a porch in Aspen, and now here we are outside without a jacket. It’s even chilly in Los Angeles right now, much more like Christmas.”
Boone smiled. “Well, I’ve never known anything else at Christmas, so when people talk about wanting snow and cold for the holidays, I don’t quite get it.” He looked into her eyes, thinking that maybe now was the time to tell her about what he’d decided. “But if you want cooler air, how about next Christmas in L.A.? I imagine I’ll be pretty busy out there around that time of year.”
She stared at him in confusion. “What are you talking about?”
“We’re opening our next restaurant in Santa Monica next summer. That means I’m going to be spending a lot of time out there for the foreseeable future. Can you think of anyplace I could stay?” he inquired casually. “It would need to be in a good school district for B.J.”
Emily was apparently left speechless.
“Em, what do you think?” he coaxed.
She regarded him with wide-eyed wonder. “You’re serious? You’re coming to Los Angeles?”
“Well, you do have a lot of work to do out there, and I’m not interested in a long separation,” he said. “It seemed like a reasonable solution.”
“But the other restaurants?”
“Pete’s going to be in charge of the East Coast side of things, at least for now.” He looked deep into her eyes. “You haven’t given me an answer yet.”
A smile tugged at her lips. “The only question I actually heard in there was something about a place to live. Obviously I know of a lot of excellent hotels.”
Boone chuckled. “Okay, I suppose I did gloss over the obvious question. Would you consider marrying me, putting a roof over my head and helping me find a school for my son? I’m thinking this would need to be a very long-term arrangement. Forever, even.”
“Yes,” she said with satisfying enthusiasm, as she threw her arms around his neck and kissed him. “Yes, yes, yes!”
When the kiss ended, Boone discovered they had an audience. Cora Jane was watching, her eyes shining. B.J. looked confused.
“You and Emily are getting married?” he asked, as if wanting to be sure.
Emily knelt in front of him. “If it’s okay with you, we are,” she said. “What do you think?”
“Will you be my mom?”
Emily glanced up at Boone as if seeking guidance, but he said nothing. He knew she’d find the right words.
“I will never, ever try to take your mom’s place,” she told him softly. “But I will love you with all my heart just as if you were my son.”
“What would I call you?”
“Whatever feels right,” she said. “You can keep calling me Emily, if that’s what you want.”
B.J. shook his head, then looked at his dad. “I want to call you Mom,” he said. “Dad, do you think my real mom would be okay with that?”
Tears stung Boone’s eyes. “I think she’d approve of anything that makes you happy.”
“She won’t think I’ve forgotten her?” B.J. asked, clearly worried.
“She knows you haven’t forgotten her,” Boone assured him. “She’ll always be in your heart.”
“And in yours,” Emily said to Boone. “There’s room enough in there for all of us.”
“Amen to that,” Cora Jane said, joining them.
B.J. grinned. “This is going to be the best Christmas ever,” he said, then added excitedly, “And once we live in California, I’m going to Disneyland all the time.”
“Maybe not all the time,” Boone corrected. “And this will still be our home, too.” He pulled Cora Jane close. “We have family here, after all.”
Emily had tears streaming down her cheeks. “Why do I feel as if one of us should be saying, ‘God bless us, everyone’?”
“Because you’re sentimental,” Cora Jane said, giving her hand a squeeze. “I have to say
