Bringing Home Christmas

by Vicki Hinze

  “I know you don’t wish him harm. Goodness, Lauren, after all he’s been through, that would be heartless.”

  “What has he been through…exactly?” Lauren asked.

  Her mother stuttered, clearly flustered.

  Afraid she’d pushed too far, Lauren backed off. “Never mind. Don’t say a word. I’ll ask him myself.”

  Relief washed over her mother’s face. “Darling, I think that’s a grand idea. Long overdue, and a grand idea.”

  12

  December 21st

  5:30 PM

  The phone rang.

  In her mother’s kitchen, Lauren answered, “Hello.”

  “Lauren, it’s David. How was your mom?”

  After filling a tea cup, Lauren sat down at the breakfast bar. “She looks a lot better. Jessica was waiting on lab results to confirm it, but physical signs are the infection has stopped spreading and just maybe the antibiotics are kicking in.”

  “That’s great. Does she look better?”

  “Yes, she does.”

  “It’s rattled me to see her like this. I can only imagine what it’s done to you.”

  He really cared about her mother. Lauren could hear it in his voice. “I’ve had root canals that didn’t make me as nervous.”

  “Did Jessica have any luck, finding nurses to help Mrs. Wong?”

  “I texted you on that.”

  “Didn’t get it.”

  Probably the weather. “It’s done. People were signing up so fast, Jessica had to forfeit one of her two days. Everyone had a story of something wonderful Mrs. Wong had done for them or their kids and wanted to help.”

  “And that right there is one reason I love it here.”

  “Me, too.” Was Holt Ridge big enough for both of them?

  “She’s going to be so excited.”

  She was. “I thought maybe we could stop by and tell her on our way to dinner.”

  “What if we announced it at the dance?” David said. “She’s going to want to thank everyone.”

  “That’ll work.” Lauren nodded. “It’ll be a nice touch, and it’s good for the kids to see how the community comes together to help each other.”

  “Speaking of help,” he said. “I, um, wondered if you’d do me a favor.”

  Now that was unexpected. “If I can.”

  “My leg has exceeded its daily dose. Would it be too much trouble for you to pick me up and we ride together to Pope’s Catering? I know we agreed to meet there, but it would be best if I didn’t drive anymore today.”

  “Of course. I’ll be there in about fifteen minutes.”

  “Thank you, Lauren.”

  “No problem at all.” She hung up the phone, certain his leg had to be killing him or he’d never ask for a favor, especially from her.

  Caroline walked in and shrugged out of her coat, then went straight for the teapot. “It’s wickedly cold out there.”

  “They’re calling for more snow. One to two inches.” Lauren smoothed a hand over her black skirt and sweater top.

  “I’ve been to see Rory. He’s going to do the Santa stint, but I’m not sure the kids are ready for it. He’s ticked to the nines.”

  “Why?”

  “That’s the thing. When I told him Reverend Wong would fill in if he couldn’t handle it, he got really upset. He said he’d do it, and he intended to see it done.”

  “He’s actually looking forward to it.” Lauren gasped. The recluse forced to interact. “What else could explain that kind of reaction?”

  “I don’t get it,” Caroline said.

  “You don’t have to,” Lauren told her. “Just be there to keep him from snapping at the kids. He’s supposed to be Santa. Someone who wants to see and spend time with them. No one can remind him like you.”

  “I wasn’t planning on going.”

  “What you were planning isn’t significant. I wasn’t planning on being here and doing all I’m doing either.”

  Caroline frowned, but she knew she’d lost. “Fine.”

  “Fine.” Lauren shrugged into her coat. “Oh, I have a question.”

  Caroline poured her tea. “Shoot.”

  “Did you take some papers out of Mom’s planning packet and put them on the work table in her She Shack?”

  “No.” Standing at the stove, she turned toward Lauren. “You know I hate to go into that place. All that clutter gives me the creeps.”

  “Dad forbade it. That’s why it creeps you out, but you went in last night.”

  “Just to grab the candy canes and get out of there.”

  That was true. “So, you didn’t put the papers on Mom’s work table?”

  “No.” Caroline lifted her cup. “What kind of papers were they?”

  “Not important.” Lauren said, wrapping her scarf at her neck. “Has anyone else been in there?”

  “No, not that I know—wait. David,” she said. “He put the candy canes and ribbons in there for Mom.”

  Shock rippled through Lauren’s body. “So, if her mother hadn’t done it, and Caroline hadn’t done it… Lauren chided herself. David?

  She was being ridiculous. Why on earth would David remove the papers and redo work he knew had already been done. That would be absurd. There had to be another explanation. He hadn’t been any more eager than she about them working together on this. At least, at first. “Did anyone help him?”

  “I’m not sure,” Caroline said. “Paul Miller was out in the backyard with him, but whether or not he went into Mom’s She Shack, I have no idea.” She stretched her back. “If you’re going to be at Pope’s Catering at six, you better get a move on.”

  13

  December 21st

  5:45 PM

  When David was seated in her mother’s silver Navigator, Lauren closed the door. “Sorry. I got tied up last minute.”

  “We’re good. We’ll make it to Kenneth’s by six.” He shivered. “Man, the temperature is dropping like a rock.”

  “The weather report is warning of another two-inches of snow before morning.” She pulled away from the curb in front of his house and tried to ignore the lump in her throat. It once was to have been their home. How Lauren had loved that house. She couldn’t believe he’d bought it anyway. “Is that going to create any problems for the sleigh rides?”

  “Bailey says, no. We looked at the route and I didn’t see any danger areas, though I defer to him. Who better knows Hillside Park than Bailey Austin?”

  “No one that I know of,” Lauren agreed. “I love that park.”

  “It’s special.” David propped his cane between his knees, parked a hand on its handle. He’d been using it for a long while to position it so absently. “We couldn’t ask for a better place for sleigh rides or the bonfire. The guys have been gathering wood for days.”

  “The fire chief has checked it all out, right?”

  “This afternoon. Bailey had him come out while the two of us were there. We’re set.”

  “And the vendors?”

  “Start arriving early in the morning. It’ll all be ready to go long before the Critter Parade.”

  She smiled. “I’ll bet every kid on the Ridge is too excited to sleep.”

  David grunted. “I’ll bet a lot of adults are, too. I am.”

  “Really?” She spared him a sidelong glance and braked to a stop at the corner Stop sign.

  “Absolutely.” He nodded. “I never had any of these traditions growing up. In our neighborhood, people didn’t know their neighbors’ names, much less interact.”

  “One of the pitfalls of big city living. It’s like that in Atlanta, too. People pretty much stay to themselves.”

  “Another perk of living in Holt Ridge.” He glanced out the side window.

  “Is that why you came here and started your company?”

  “It’s one of many reasons,” he said. “With my leg, I no longer work in the field, but I have staff all over the planet. They do the field work. That freed me up to choose where to live. My physic
al location doesn’t impact the business at all.”

  “That’s good.”

  “It is.”

  Curiosity burned and in it she summoned courage. “David, I take it from what you said your injury isn’t a pulled muscle. It’s permanent.”

  “It is.”

  “What happened to your leg?” He didn’t respond, and she added, “I know you said it was an ill-timed accident. That you were somewhere you shouldn’t have been, but what exactly does that mean?”

  “I was injured on a job.”

  “Negotiating a contract?” That had been his specialty.

  “Reviewing a site.” He paused, then finally continued. “There was an equipment accident. I learned the hard way that a man is no match for a ton of machine.”

  She got chills all over. “You’re lucky you lived.”

  He looked right at her. “I am.”

  Had the possibility he wouldn’t live existed? Looking at his sober expression, she thought it might have. She pulled into Pope’s Catering’s parking lot. She had more questions, but the time for them had ended.

  Maybe that was just as well. Her emotions were in turmoil. A world without David? She couldn’t wrap her mind around it.

  He was being deliberately evasive, too, which she’d never known him to be. But an accident that could have cost him his life and had left him permanently injured likely was too painful a memory to recall and discuss. He’d relive it every time. She couldn’t do it. She shouldn’t expect him to do it, especially when explaining wasn’t necessary and she had no right to ask.

  They went inside. Kenneth was seated at his desk in the little office in the back of the kitchen. “Come on back,” he shouted out and then stood up. “Glad you got here okay. Snow’s really coming down.”

  “The roads aren’t bad,” Lauren said, “but there sure is a chill in the wind.”

  “Hope that passes before the Critter Parade. Baxter doesn’t much like the cold. It’ll make him a cranky host.” Kenneth smiled but there was no humor in it.

  Lauren glanced at David, then back at Kenneth. “I’m sure Barbara has a coat for him.” Baxter had more clothes than most people.

  “True.” Kenneth rubbed his hands together. “You two ready to taste test the dinner for the dance?”

  “Sure am.” David said.

  “I’ve set you up a table over there.” He motioned to a quiet corner. “Go on and sit down.”

  The table was draped in white linen with a small floral arrangement as a centerpiece and a candle already lighted in its middle. “How pretty,” Lauren said.

  “Glad you like it.” Kenneth turned to her. “All the tables will be set this way, of course. Barbara’s handling that. Sit down. Sit down. Everything’s ready.”

  As they worked their way through the meal, Kenneth stayed out of sight, which seemed a little odd. Lauren had several questions, like why there were three meat choices and a Vegan option. That seemed like a lot of extra work for an event.

  “I’m making a list of questions we can ask. I think he’s in his office on the phone.”

  “Ah,” she said to David. “That explains that.”

  “So, tell me about your life in Atlanta.” David tested a bit of roast beef. From his expression, he approved.

  “I still teach. Third grade now instead of first. And I still love it. Aside from that, I work in a neighborhood garden in my spare time. James and I do. It’s safer work as a team.”

  “Is James a neighbor or someone special in your life?”

  “We’ve dated for a while. He’s a good man, but I wouldn’t say he was special.”

  “What would you say?”

  “He likes to garden.” She hiked a shoulder. “And he has the potential to be special.” That was true. He really was a great guy. Just not for her. She’d tried. She’d wanted to feel what she did with David, but she just didn’t. Of course, there’s no way she would reveal that to David.

  “Will he be coming here for Christmas?”

  She hadn’t invited him. They weren’t serious. They just did things together sometimes to avoid doing them alone. “His family gathers in Vermont every Christmas. He’ll be going there.”

  “I see,” David said, and she feared he really did. “I promised Reverend Wong I’d chaperone a youth group at the bonfire. I could use another set of eyes, if you’re available.”

  Her lips curved in a sly smile. It faded to uncertainty.

  “What?”

  It was hard being with a man so attuned to your nuances. “Us being together at this outing could ramp up speculation about us. Do we want to risk it? They’re just calming down.”

  “The different faces at Granny’s.”

  Lauren nodded.

  He tilted his head. “It could ramp up speculation, or it could put it to rest, which would be a good thing.” David took a sip of wine. “I’ll risk it if you will.”

  “Why not? I’d planned to be there anyway. Might as well make myself useful.”

  They finished their meal, lavished praise on Kenneth, and signed off, giving their approval. As they were leaving, Lauren asked, “Mr. Pope, who required this sample dinner?”

  He stammered then lifted his arms. “You two are new to this. Always a good idea. Keeps you from worrying.”

  No one had required it. He’d taken it on himself. “Well, it was wonderful. They’re in for a treat.”

  “Thank you.” He opened the door, signaling them to depart. She supposed he’d had a long day and was eager to wrap up and get home.

  Back in the car, David snapped his seatbelt into place. “I ate way too much.”

  “So did I. But it was great.” Quiet. Intimate. And she and David had fallen right into their old pattern of talking about anything and everything. And they’d laughed. Oh, but it’d been a long time since she’d laughed like that. She had the feeling that it had been a while for him, too.

  Back at his house, she pulled to the curb and stopped. “We’re all set for tomorrow?”

  “Completely,” he said. “I’ve run the checklists multiple times. We’re ready.”

  “What time should I be at the park for the vendors?” she asked.

  “I’ve got it covered. You’ll need to help Tom and Sylvia get the critters in order for the parade. It’s going to start on West Main, about two blocks down, go through the Circle, then on to Hillside Park. Awards will be given out from the stage there.”

  “Sounds great. So, noon is good?”

  “Parade starts at two o’clock sharp, so noon should be fine. Others will handle things. You’re just there to look reassuring, in case anything odd comes up.” He grasped the handle of his cane. “I enjoyed our dinner, Lauren,” he said softly. “To be honest, I was a little nervous about it.”

  She had been, too. “Why?” Throughout all of this, they’d gotten along well. And it wasn’t the first meal they’d shared since her return.

  He let her see pain in his eyes. “For all the reasons you’d think.”

  When she started to respond, honestly having no idea what to say, he held up a forefinger. “Let me just say, thank you. You’re an amazing woman and, under the circumstances, you couldn’t be more gracious.”

  How did she respond to that? Thank you seemed trite. Anything else, ungracious. And she wasn’t at all sure she wanted to be gracious. She wanted to flat-out demand he tell her why he’d sent that text and ended them. That’s what she wanted to do…but she couldn’t. It’d create all kinds of tension and they had a busy couple of days to get through.

  Maybe by the end of them, she’d understand why he appealed her to in every way as much as he always had. As if he’d never shattered her heart and walked away. How did he do that?

  How could she let him?

  Love.

  Feeling very much at its mercy, she nodded. “It’s been different than I expected,” she told him. “I’m glad about that.”

  “So am I.” He stepped out of the car, closed the door and limped to his fro
nt door, then disappeared inside.

  “Lauren Holt, you’re an idiot. Why didn’t you just ask him? He was waiting for it. Expecting it.”

  She pulled out into the street and headed home. “Maybe, just maybe, you’re not ready to hear his answers.”

  Sad truth was, maybe she wasn’t. After everything that had happened here after the breakup, the last thing she needed was to learn it had been her fault. Guilt flooded her. It might have been. She’d gotten so wrapped up in the wedding, she’d lost track of the man. She hadn’t seen that then, but she saw it clearly now. And maybe that’s why he’d texted them getting married would be a mistake.

  14

  December 22nd

  12:00 PM

  Tom and Sylvia’s son, Paul Miller, assisted Binks in getting the lineup settled in two blocks from center circle, in front of the library. Binks would get great candid shots of the Critters Christmas Parade as the contestants entered the circle.

  There were, of course, a few little hitches, but nothing major that wasn’t resolved in just a few minutes. One of the Adams boys lost the wheel on his wagon, and his bloodhound, Thirsty, wasn’t much enjoying the bumpy ride, but Tom Miller ran over to his hardware store and had Thirsty’s ride rolling smooth in no time.

  The costumes put smiles on everyone’s faces. Baxter led the procession into the circle. He was dressed as Santa with the exception of him sporting a red bow tie and a dapper cap instead of the typical Santa hat. Barbara confided Kenneth hadn’t wanted to confuse the kids into thinking Baxter was really Santa.

  Someone’s cat, Lauren had no idea whose, rode with Baxter in a bicycle cart. It was female and dressed as Mrs. Claus.

  “This is really something,” David said from beside her.

  “I think it’s my favorite event of all.” Lauren laughed. “Everything okay at the park?”

  “Ready and waiting,” he said.

  Lauren scanned the critters coming into the circle. “I thought you only issued a few waivers.”

  “I did.”

  She cast him a doubtful look. “I’m seeing a lot more than cats and dogs, David. I’m seeing a turtle—”