Sawdust and Mistletoe

by Michelle Pennington

  I had a great time last night. Except for the heart attack in the parking lot. Have a good day.

  And just like that, Hunter lightened the tight knot in her chest. She was still scared of what the future held, still protective, but the warmth and humor of his words spread through her like honey and sunlight. Did she dare call it happiness?

  She threw back the blanket and got out of bed, motivated to get her design nailed down and call Sharon to approve it before the morning was over so she could get to work. This was what it meant to be your own boss, right? To get going even when no one was making you do it? Luckily, it also meant she could stay in her pajamas.

  As she walked into the kitchen, she called Olivia. A few rings later, a drowsy voice mumbled hello on the other end.

  “Good morning! Hurry up and get your butt over here.”

  “Ava, it’s only seven-thirty.”

  “I know, but we have work to do today. Let’s go, sleepyhead.”

  “Coffee…” she mumbled before she hung up.

  Laughing, Ava made some scrambled eggs and toast, then opened her laptop in front of her. By the time Olivia arrived, she had two different design themes worked out, and just needed Olivia to help her choose.

  “Which one do you like best? The Candy Wonderland or the Night in the Northwoods?”

  “Whoa. You came up with these this morning?” she asked, flipping through the inspiration pictures Ava had put together in PowerPoint presentations.

  “Yep. I was already mulling them over after we sifted through the themes for the past few years, so it wasn’t too hard to pull them together.”

  Olivia studied them. “I love them both, but I think the Candy Wonderland is more colorful and might be easier to pull together. I shudder at the thought of stringing those lights for the night sky in your Northwoods design.”

  Ava felt a prick of disappointment, but she loved both designs. And she’d been afraid the Northwoods design was too subtle anyway. “Okay. Let’s brainstorm some more and send it to Sharon.”

  The morning passed quickly and they emailed the presentation to Sharon before lunch. Ava and Olivia celebrated by opening a package of cookies, but they’d only eaten half of it when Ava’s phone rang.

  “It’s Sharon,” she told Olivia. She answered and the woman said the words Ava had been hoping for.

  “I love it. All of it. Especially the idea about making the flowers look covered in sugar. Good job. I’ll run it by the committee, but that’s just a formality. I’ll let you know as soon as it’s approved and you can move forward.”

  Ava hung up and tossed the phone on the couch cushion beside her. She stretched her tense shoulders and grinned. “That’s a relief. I’ve been so stressed about that. Now I feel like we can get going. Well, as soon as it’s official anyway.”

  “Speaking of things being official, what’s going on with you and Hunter?”

  Ava glared at her friend. “Nothing. And I don’t want to talk about it.”

  “Come on. We tell each other everything. I told you all about Brad.”

  “Yes, and I wished you hadn’t.” Ava stood up and grabbed the package of cookies. “We’ve had enough of these. I think I’m going to be sick.”

  “Avoidance.”

  Ava put the cookies away and shut the cabinet door a little too hard. “What do want me to say? The man turns me inside out. He is almost my perfect ideal.”

  “Almost?”

  “Yes. Almost. Because his one big flaw is a deal breaker.”

  Olivia stared back at her from her perch on the loveseat, her eyes concerned and worried. “What is it?”

  Ava paced between the couch and the kitchen counter. “I’ve known from the beginning that he was just here for a visit, but—”

  “Surely that wouldn’t be a big deal if you loved each other though.”

  Ava sighed and continued, “But, he’s also the kind of man who never stays in one place. From things he’s said, I’ve realized that he would never be happy settling down here in Willow Falls. Or even in Colorado, which he calls home. And I can’t do that.”

  “Are you sure you couldn’t find some way to make it work?”

  “I don’t see how.”

  “Oh, Ava, I’m sorry.”

  “It’s okay.” Ava sat on the couch and leaned her head back on the cushions. “I’m just glad I didn’t fall in love with him.”

  “Mmm-hmmm,” Olivia said.

  Ava caught Olivia’s sarcasm, but before she could say anything, her phone rang. “Oh good. It’s Sharon.”

  But when Sharon spoke, her voice held none of the excited warmth it had before. “Ava, there’s been a bit of a hiccup. Someone on the committee is fighting me.”

  “About the theme? I have another one I could propose.”

  “Not exactly. It’s more about having you as a designer.”

  “Why? Who is it?” Ava’s stomach clenched. This couldn’t happen. She’d pinned all her hopes on this job.

  “I think I can answer both questions at once. Phoebe Garland.”

  “Oh my gosh. She’s best friends with Marcia.”

  “Yes, I’m well aware. I’d forgotten all about that connection. No doubt Marcia is angling to get the job back. Or at least keep you from having it.”

  Ava looked at Olivia, who was watching with big, questioning eyes. “So, can Mrs. Garland veto my contract?”

  “No. I have final say and the support of the rest of the committee. But her husband is one of our biggest contributors, and if we lose his financial backing, we’ll struggle. I’m working on it. Give me a day or two to figure things out. I’m so mad over this I’m about to burst into flames.”

  When they hung up, Ava sat in shock until Olivia screeched at her. “Tell me what happened.”

  Ava filled her in. “So, it looks like there’s nothing to do but wait and cross our fingers. Don’t worry, I’ll still keep paying you in the meantime. But if this doesn’t work out, we might both have to find new jobs.”

  Olivia came over and sat on the couch next to her, pulling her in for a hug. “It’ll work out. I know it will. And karma will come after Marcia and Mrs. Garland. Can you believe it? And after we made her house so beautiful.”

  “We did, didn’t we?” Ava straightened, struck by the irony of it. “I hope her stupid glitter ornaments are shedding all over her house.”

  Olivia laughed but shrugged. “She has a maid service.”

  “Of course she does.” Ava said, “So she has time to go sit around on committees and cause trouble.”

  “And lounge around her house in her negligee and drink till she passes out.”

  Ava burst out laughing. “Oh my gosh. Remember Hunter’s face when he saw her. I was panicking at the time, but, oh my gosh, that was funny.”

  “There, now do you feel better?”

  “Yes, the laugh helped, but we’re still in trouble. And all we can do is wait.”

  “Well, you could tell me the story about that decorated tree over there. I’ve been trying not to ask you about it all day, but I give up.”

  “That’s a complicated story.”

  “I’m counting on it.”

  ***

  When Olivia went home that evening, Ava walked around her house closing doors and checking locks. Checking on the garage, she flipped the light switch and stepped into the cold room. It was the first time she’d been out here since Hunter had shown them the dollhouse yesterday. The smell of sawdust tickled her nose and she was swamped by the emotions that were now connected to that particular scent because it belonged to Hunter.

  She set the boxes down and walked over to the dollhouse. She knelt down in front of it, wincing at the cold pavement beneath her knees. It was so well crafted that she had no doubt it would turn into an heirloom. Even the delicate staircases he’d built between the three stories would likely stand the test of time. It was a testament to the man’s skill, but more importantly, to his kind heart. It was such a sweet, selfless thing for him t
o do for a little girl he loved. She couldn’t remember her father ever spending this much time on her, but Hunter did it for his niece. Maybe he wasn’t exactly like her father.

  There wasn’t much time left until Christmas and a lot of work to do on it, even though she’d been making furniture for it in her spare time since Hunter had asked her to help. And if she got the go-ahead on the Candy Cane ball, she’d be so busy she wouldn’t have time to do it later. Now was the perfect time.

  Ava dug through her craft supplies and went to work at her kitchen table. She cut a piece of thick cotton canvas and painted an eight inch by six-inch floral rug for the living room. She got out her needle and thread and sewed little throw pillows from fabric scraps, stuffing them with cotton balls. Then she pulled out her stack of decorator magazines and went through them page by page looking for pictures with clocks and artwork she could cut out and glue to the walls after they were painted.

  A little while later, her phone rang. She glanced at the screen and sighed before answering the call. “Hello, Mom.”

  “Hi, sweetheart. I haven’t heard from you for a week.”

  “Sorry, I’ve been busy.”

  “With the Candy Cane Ball.”

  Ava was not in the mood to tell her mom that whole story, so she just said, “Yeah. It’s a lot of work.”

  “I’m sure it is. I wish I could see it, but your father and I can’t afford to go to something like that. You’ll have to take lots of pictures so I can see my baby’s work.”

  “I’ll be sure to do that,” Ava said. All the stress that her crafting had been holding at bay swept over her. Hopefully, she wouldn’t have to call her mom and tell her it wasn’t happening after all.

  “And how are things with Hunter.”

  “Mom, do you ever wonder why I don’t call you more often?”

  “Of course. Why wouldn’t you want me to know what’s going on in your life?”

  Oh, the passive aggressiveness. “Mom, I promise I’ll tell you before we elope.”

  Her mom screamed into the phone, so Ava pulled it away and rubbed at her ear.

  ‘Oh my gosh, my baby girl is getting married.”

  “Mom, no. I was teasing you. We aren’t even dating.”

  “What? Don’t do that to me.”

  “I thought you didn’t like the idea anyway because he’s too much like dad?”

  “I have my concerns, but there’s a strength in him that’s missing in your dad. I can feel it. He’ll be more reliable.”

  “The weatherman is more reliable than dad, so that’s not much of an argument.”

  “Oh, but he cares about you. I could tell.”

  Warm flutters started in Ava’s stomach. “You think so?”

  “Definitely. The chemistry between you is obvious. Why don’t you invite him over for Christmas Eve?”

  Ava started thumbing through the magazines again. “I’m sure he’s planning to be with his brother’s family.”

  “Invite him anyway, just in case. Maybe he can fix my kitchen drawer that keeps getting stuck.”

  “Mom, I’m not going to bring Hunter over to take over dad’s honey-do list. I’ve got to go now. I’m super busy.”

  “Okay, but the invitation stands.”

  Ava sighed and chuckled as she hung up. For some reason though, she was feeling down again. Her eyes landed on the little Christmas tree in front of the living room. Just looking at it made her feel a little better. She thought about turning on some Christmas music to keep her company while she worked. She’d never live it down if either Hunter or Olivia found out, but she’d make sure they didn’t.

  She scrolled to her super-secret Christmas playlist and connected her phone to the blue tooth speakers in the living room. Bing Crosby’s smooth voice filled the room as Ava picked up her scissors again.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Just as Hunter was serving himself a second bowl of chili from Krista’s stove, his phone rang. When he saw it was Ava, his heart began to pound, and he wondered if this was the moment she said she didn’t want to see him anymore.

  He stepped out of the kitchen to answer it and sat on the couch facing the Christmas tree. Taking a deep breath, he said, “Hey, Ava. You called.” Then he gritted his teeth at how dumb that sounded.

  “Yeah. You left me with a dollhouse that needs to be painted over here. Are you going to come help me?”

  He relaxed a little when the ax didn’t fall. But this didn’t mean that she wasn’t interested in anything romantic. She was just stuck with his project taking up room in her garage. “I can come over in a little while if you want me too.”

  “Of course I want you to. I’m not painting this by myself.”

  Okay, so she was throwing some mixed signals there. But he’d take it.

  “See you soon.”

  He strode back to the kitchen and picked up his bowl again. He started shoveling it down before he even sat at the table.

  “You in a hurry all of a sudden?” Krista asked, chuckling.

  “Yeah.” He saw Krista and Josh share a look. “What?”

  “Are you going over to see Ava?”

  His lip twitched. “Maybe.”

  “You better watch out,” Josh said. “When you go running every time a girl calls, things are getting serious.”

  “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  Josh raised an eyebrow. “Oh yeah. Who’s the married one here?”

  Krista reached over and shook his arm. “Leave him alone.”

  “I want to see Ava,” Molly said, looking up from her dinner.

  Hunter smiled at her. “You guys got to be friends, huh? Still want her to come over and watch a movie with you?”

  “Yes!” Molly got up and stood in her chair. She waved her spoon around. “Ava’s my best friend.”

  Josh laughed, but Krista told her to sit down and finish eating.

  “You don’t mind, do you?” he asked her. “I should have asked you first.”

  Krista smiled. “Don’t worry about it. I’d be happy to have her over anytime.”

  “Thanks. I’ll set it up.” He stood up and put his bowl in the sink. Then he grinned at Josh. “Don’t wait up for me.”

  Josh and Krista’s laughter followed him out the door.

  When he got to Ava’s, he could see that lights were on in the garage, but the door was shut. He went over and knocked on the big metal door. “Ava? It’s Hunter.”

  “Come around through the house,” she called to him.

  “Okay.”

  He found the front door unlocked, and went in. As he passed through the living room, he glanced at the tree they’d decorated together. It still looked perfect. Of course, she didn’t have a three-year-old constantly redecorating it like Josh and Krista did.

  When he came into the garage, he found Ava sitting on the floor on top of a blanket with a space heater next to her. She smiled as he came in, and it lit him up inside.

  “Sorry I made you walk all the way around, but I just got it warmed up in here and I didn’t want to let the cold air in.”

  She motioned to the paper plate in her hand and said, “Grab some paint. It’s over there on that table.”

  “What color?”

  “Yellow.”

  Hunter walked over and saw the plastic tubs filled with acrylic craft paint. There were at least a dozen shades of yellow. “Which one?”

  “Um…lemon curd.”

  That was a ridiculous name for paint, but he shrugged and started sorting through the bottles. None them said lemon curd, so he picked one at random. She was watching him though, and before he could squeeze any onto one of the plates, she said, “No. That’s buttercup.”

  She put her plate down on the cement floor and came over to help him. As she stood close and leaned in to sort through the colors, he paid no attention to what she was doing. It was just so nice to have her close, to be with her. How did he miss her more every time they were apart?

  She turned, an
d her arm brushed his.

  “There.” Her voice shook a little as she handed a bottle to him.

  He raised an eyebrow, trying to decide if she was reacting the same way he was, but her expression was closed off. He looked at the bottle, “This just says lemon.”

  She shrugged. “Add a few drops of white to it and it’ll be perfect.”

  As she walked back over and set down with her paint, he mixed the yellow and white, picked up a craft brush and knelt down next to her. “What am I painting?”

  “The kitchen.”

  Hunter nodded and dipped his brush. He’d had the dollhouse sitting up on blocks so he only had to bend over a little to reach. He’d almost finished one wall of the small dollhouse kitchen before Ava shifted.

  “So, it turns out that my gig with the Candy Cane Ball is in jeopardy.”

  Hunter turned to look at her. “Really? Why?”

  “Remember Mrs. Garland?” When he scrunched his eyebrows together, she added, “We were doing her house when you came to work for me that first day.”

  Hunter chuckled. “Ah yes. The lace monster.”

  Ava smiled. “Yes. That’s her. Turns out she’s definitely a monster. She’s best friends with Marcia, and she’s also on the fund-raising committee for the ball.”

  Nodding, Hunter started painting again. “Trying to get the job back for your old boss, huh?”

  “Yeah. Either that or she thinks I did a terrible job on her house.”

  “It can’t be that. It was amazing.”

  “Yeah, well, whatever it is, the whole deal is on the line.”

  “It’ll work out,” Hunter said, hoping to reassure her.

  “I’m not so confident. But at least I have another client to keep me busy for now.”

  Hunter straightened up and leaned back to check his work. “Oh yeah? Who is it?”

  Ava laughed, “Molly of course.”

  “Oh yeah. Speaking of Molly, don’t forget she wants you to come over. How about tomorrow night?”

  “I’d love to.”

  “Great! She’ll be excited.”

  A half smile tugged at the corner of Hunter’s mouth. She was so sweet. She smiled back and leaned to the side to start painting one of the upstairs bedrooms. This brought her incredibly close to him. The smooth skin of her neck and her gleaming, blonde hair were inches from his face.