by Kate Kasch
As Gabe walked away, Adrienne stood alone in the hallway feeling foolish - like someone just punched her in the stomach. How could she have been so presumptuous, to think Gabe would be interested in getting back together with her? It had been years since she abruptly walked out on him. He probably had a girlfriend!
“What’s wrong,” Gretchen walked up next to her, “Is everything okay?”
“Yeah, it’s fine. It’s just Gabe . . ..”
“Oh yeah, I see how you two look at each other,” Gretchen smiled.
“No, no – it’s not that. It’s actually the opposite of that. I’m pretty sure he hates me.”
“Um, no. Not possible,” Gretchen shook her head. “I hear he hasn’t dated anyone seriously since you left.”
“Really?” Adrienne asked, feeling a little better.
“Really,” said Gretchen. “Now enough boy talk – let’s get back to work.”
“Right. Yes. What should we do next? Start decorating the family room?”
The two girls gathered garland and bows and wreaths and started to decorate the family room. With Christmas music playing, the sisters continuously reminisced about each item they came across – sharing memories and laughing. Gretchen held up her and Adrienne’s stockings and the sisters paused and stared at each other. Adrienne stoppe what she was doing and joined Gretchen. They carefully placed the stocking holders that spelled out “NOEL” on the mantel, and then hung their Dad’s stocking under the N, their Mom’s under the O, Adrienne’s under the E and Gretchen’s under the L. When they were finished, they stepped back and admired their work.
“It’s just as I remember it,” said Gretchen. Adrienne nodded her head in agreement.
Around 5 p.m. everyone was feeling exhausted. The few men Gabe and Nick had helping had gone home, and Adrienne and Gretchen plopped themselves on the couch. The family room and dining room were decorated. There was garland wrapped around the staircase railings with big bows at the curved bottom of each side. Lighted garland illuminated the mantel with the stocking holders, ornaments and two large gold candles. Above it hung a giant wreath with a large gold bow. Crystal snowflakes hung from the chandelier in the dining room. The dining room table was set with a gold runner down the center. Candles, pinecones, and silver and gold balls lined the runner. All the empty bins had been moved back up into the attic, and any other bins still filled with decorations were moved to the back den. A warm glow filled the clean space, with candles and twinkle lights galore. Their mom would be proud.
When Gabe and Nick came inside, they couldn’t believe their eyes.
“This is absolutely gorgeous,” Nick exclaimed.
“It really takes me back,” Gabe said quietly.
“But you know what you still desperately need?” Nick asked. The girls look at him confused.
“You need to decorate that poor Christmas tree!”
Everyone now turned to look at the sad looking bare Christmas tree, and they all started to laugh.
“I have an idea,” Gretchen smile. “Why don’t we light a fire, pour some wine, order takeout Chinese food, and all decorate the tree together!”
A huge smile formed on Nick’s face, “I love it. I’m in.”
But Gabe and Adrienne hesitated. “You’ve been here all day, Gabe. If you need to go . . .”
“You can’t go!” Gretchen said to Gabe. “You worked all day, now it’s time for the fun. Come on!”
Gabe started to come around, “Okay. Okay—I can stay for a little while.”
“Yay! Okay, I’ll go get the wine. Adrienne, you order the food.”
Before long, all four friends were laughing and telling stories as they trimmed the tree. The fire was blazing, Christmas music played in the background and the room was filled with warmth and happiness. It was one of the best nights Adrienne and Gretchen had in a very long time.
On the kitchen counter, Adrienne’s cell phone buzzed constantly as she missed texts and emails from New York.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
The next morning, while sitting at the kitchen island with their coffee and leftover pastry, Adrienne and Gretchen stared at the chalkboard on the wall. There was a big number ‘3’ looming over them and a long Christmas to-do list in front of them.
Harkins Christmas List:
Mow lawn
Trim bushes
Paint house
Clean gutters
Fix roof
Paint front door
Fix front porch/pillars
Paint and Re-hang shutters
Rake leaves
Dust
Wash floors
Clean refrigerator
Buy Christmas tree
Decorate interior
Exterior Christmas lights, wreaths
Clean bathrooms
“It’s a bit overwhelming, isn’t it?” Adrienne said.
“We just have to focus on all the things we’ve gotten done already. Look what we’ve accomplished in two days!”
“But I feel like we’ve done the easy things. I'm pretty sure it takes a couple days to paint a house, or fix a roof . . . And you know what’s not on there?”
“What?”
“Sign up for the contest. We need to go down to town hall today and officially sign up. We should probably go right at 9 a.m. when they open – it’s usually less busy then.”
“You’re right,” Gretchen agreed. “Well, there’s no time like the present. Let’s get dressed and get moving – we have a busy day ahead.”
While upstairs getting ready, Adrienne’s phone rang. Without thinking, she answered it.
“I assume you’re on your way into the office?”
Elaina.
“Oh my goodness, I forgot. It’s Monday.”
“You forgot it’s Monday? Adrienne what is going on? We have a busy week, and you need to be here.”
“I’m actually having a bit of a family emergency – and, so, I’m in Connecticut.”
“Connecticut? Okay, family emergency – right,” Elaina sighed loudly. “You can have today off – but I expect to see you here bright and early tomorrow morning. And we will be deducting this day from your time off.”
“I’ve never taken time off.”
“Now you have, haven’t you? Fix whatever is going on and get back to the city tomorrow.”
Adrienne finished getting dressed and met Gretchen downstairs. On the drive into town, needing to tell someone, she blurted out, “My boss just called me.”
“Oh, really? Is everything okay?”
“Not exactly. She says I need to be in the office tomorrow . . . and the rest of the week.”
“You told her you couldn’t go, right?”
“Not exactly. I don’t know what I’m going to do.”
“What do you mean? You can’t leave, Adrienne.” And then, “You know, this is so typical – you bailing out when things get hard – rushing off to work and work and work and not care about anything going on around you,” Gretchen was surprised by her anger.
Adrienne glanced over at Gretchen. Her mouth was drawn in a straight line, eyes squinting with indignation.
“You can’t blame me for all the problems in your life, Gretchen. I had to work hard. And if I remember correctly, you took off too after mom and dad died.”
Gretchen didn’t say anything; she just continued to stare out the front window.
“I’m not going into work tomorrow. Okay? I’m not going to leave. It’s just that I’m up for this promotion that I’ve been working really hard for, and they announce it at the end of the year . . .But I am going to stay here and help out. I’ll figure something out with work later.”
Arriving at Chestnut Ridge Town Hall, Adrienne took a moment to admire the old building’s brick façade and large rounded columns. Right now, across the large triangular pediment hung a large sign announcing the Christmas Home Decoration Contest. Upon seeing the sign, Adrienne and Gretchen smiled at each other, doing their best to move past their argumen
t.
At the receptionist desk, a woman in a white blouse had her back to the girls as she spoke on the phone. Once she hung up, she spun around and both girls’ mouths dropped open in surprise.
“It’s you,” they both said at the same time. And then, even more taken aback, turn to each other, “You know her?”
“Ladies, what a lovely coincidence,” Angela said with that dazzling smile.
“You work here in Chestnut Ridge? I thought you worked at iTech?” Adrienne asked.
“I’m an independent contractor in the tech space, so I travel all over helping different companies with their systems. I was just filling in at iTech for the day, since I know the owner. And now, the Chestnut Ridge Town Hall has asked that I help them update their computer software – so here I am! Such a fun coincidence, don’t you think?” Her voice was like a song, her hazel eyes sparkled.
“It’s wonderful!” Gretchen matched Angela’s enthusiasm.
“Now, what can I do for the two of you?” she straightened out her perfectly white, perfectly tailored pantsuit.
“We would like to sign up for the Christmas Home Decoration Contest, please,” Adrienne said.
“Well, isn’t that exciting! All you need to do is fill out this paperwork here,” Angela handed them a clipboard and pen.
As Adrienne started to fill out the entrance form, Angela and Gretchen chatted like old friends. Just as Adrienne was handing back the clipboard to Angela, the group of women was interrupted by a booming voice.
“I see you were serious about the competition, Ms. Harkins.”
Adrienne looked over and standing there in his over-the-top three-piece-suit was Mayor Jessup.
“Oh, hello there, Mayor,” Angela said cheerfully. “Ladies, do you know Mayor Jessup? You should get to know him, since he is one of the judges of the Christmas Home Decoration Contest!”
“You are one of the judges?!” Adrienne practically yelled.
“I am. Isn’t that fantastic? And don’t worry, Ms. Harkins, I am a fair man,” he said with a crooked smile. “Good day to all of you, and Ms. Harkins, best of luck.”
“He is creepy,” Gretchen said as he walks away.
“Oh, he’s not that bad, once you get to know him,” Angela said.
“Not bad? He’s the worst. He wants to buy our house when it goes to auction. Now we have no chance of winning at all – we might as well not even enter.” All the hope was sucked out of Adrienne’s body within seconds. “It was already a long-shot, now it’s just downright impossible.”
“Don’t think that way, Adrienne,” Gretchen pleaded. “There is more than one judge on the panel. Mayor Jessup does not get to decide alone.”
“She’s right,” Angela piped in. “There are five judges in the competition. The Mayor is only one of them.”
“See! We can’t give up now,” Gretchen said.
Pulling their little red rental car up to 22 Oak Street, Adrienne and Gretchen gaped at the scene unfolding at their house. Adrienne blinked her eyes a few times to be sure they weren’t playing tricks on her. There was a whole slew of people on their front lawn. Two men stood on ladders cleaning out the gutters, one guy had a hedge trimmer and was shaping the hedges expertly. Two men were on either side of the door raking leaves out of the bushes and collecting the leaves that were falling from the gutters.
Adrienne and Gretchen slowly got out of the car and stare in disbelief. Spotting Gabe, they rushed up to him.
“What is all this? Did you do this?” Adrienne asked him.
“I just let people know what you two were trying to do – I didn’t have to ask. You see over there?” He pointed to a man in a buffalo plaid winter hat. “That’s Pete Wallace. Your Dad gave him a loan to start his own landscaping business. He brought some of his employees over to help and show his appreciation. And over there,” Gabe pointed to an older gentleman, “that’s Charlie Matthews – your Dad gave him a loan over 20 years ago – he owns Matthews Garden Supply shop in town. He has offered to provide any type of greenery you need to spruce things up.”
Adrienne and Gretchen were speechless. Gretchen grabbed Gabe in a giant hug, and Adrienne had her hands clasped together at her heart, wishing she could also wrap her arms around Gabe.
“Let me continue,” Gabe said. “Right over there where they have started prepping the house to be painted, is Kurt Jeffries. He owns an indoor/outdoor painting company – and you guessed it, your Dad gave him the loan to get started.”
“I can’t believe they would do this for us,” Adrienne looked around in awe.
“Your family means a lot to this community,” Gabe said. “And this is just the beginning.”
Gretchen ran inside and a moment later emerged from the house with her camera. She walked around the yard taking photos of all the workers. Adrienne followed Gretchen around, stopping to thank every person who showed up to help.
Adrienne spied Gabe picking up clippings from the bush trimming, and she smiled shyly. He offered a small smile back. The fact that there were still people in this world, right here in Chestnut Ridge, that were so generous and kind astonished Adrienne. These people were helping in the freezing cold, a few days before Christmas, donating their precious time to help her. And they expected nothing in return. The thought formed a lump in her throat, and Adrienne swallowed hard to keep the tears away.
A little bubble of hope floated up to the surface – and she had an idea. She ran in the house and up to her bedroom, grabbed some old speakers she used to listen to in high school, and then hit up the garage for an extension cord. She ran the extension cord from the front family room out the door and plugged in the old speakers. Connecting her phone to the speakers, Adrienne blasted her favorite Christmas channel. As soon as “Jingle Bell Rock” came on, everyone working paused and looked over at Adrienne. Within seconds the lawn was filled with singing, some dancing, mostly from Gretchen who miraculously found Nick and hadn’t left his side since, and even a few cheers. Satisfied with herself, Adrienne walked over, picked up a rake and started to pitch in.
After a long day of yard work in the frigid temperatures, Adrienne and Gretchen snuggled under blankets in front of the fireplace eating big bowls of pasta. The wind whistled outside, but the girls were warm and cozy as they sipped hot chocolate and sank into the couches, their bodies exhausted.
“So much got done today, can you believe it?” Gretchen asked.
“I know, but I’m still nervous about how long it will take to paint the house. I think they mostly got it all prepped today, which now it looks even worse after they power-washed it and removed all the shutters. I’m worried about getting the whole exterior painted, the roof and the front porch pillars fixed in time – we only have two days left!”
“We just have to believe. We have to believe it will work out,” Gretchen said with determination.
Adrienne smiled at Gretchen, wishing she could feel as confident.
“I don’t want to upset you, but I feel like we should bring this up – what are you going to do tomorrow? Are you going into work?”
Adrienne was silent for a long time before she answered, “I think I have to go in tomorrow. I’ll leave really early and drive in, and try and be back in Chestnut Ridge by 6 p.m., that way . . .”
“Adrienne, why do you feel the need to do that? Aren’t you allowed a few days off around the holidays?”
“It’s my job, Gretchen. And I know I messed up this year keeping up with the bills, but for the three years before that, my job helped us keep this house. I have committed to something and need to see it through. It’s the responsible thing to do.”
“And what about the house?”
“You’ll have to run the show here tomorrow. It shouldn’t be too hard – Gabe and Nick will be here to help, at least part of the day.”
“Shouldn’t be too hard? Weren’t you just saying how many big projects still need to be finished, and that we only have two days?”
“Gretchen. You can do it
. And I’ll be home by six to help out.”
Gretchen rolled her eyes but said nothing.
A loud crash echoed through the quiet house. Adrienne and Gretchen jumped up off the couch, eyes wide and ears alert.
“What was that?” Adrienne asked.
“I have no idea! It sounded like it was coming from the garage.”
The girls quickly walked through the kitchen to the door that accessed the garage. Adrienne opened the door and her mouth dropped open.
“Oh no!” she stared into the once empty garage.
“Is that a tree?!” Gretchen screeched.
“It must be from the wind. Thank god we didn’t park the rental car in here. It would be crushed.”
“What are we going to do?” Gretchen started to panic.
“This is the last thing we need right now – like our problems aren’t bad enough.”
“I’ll call Nick. He’ll know what to do.”
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Gabe and Nick sat at a high-top table at the Chestnut Tavern, sipping their beers slowly and listening to a live band sing upbeat Christmas songs. The two met years ago when Nick was opening Saint Nick’s Tree Lot and needed a lawyer to help with the business. Both Giants fans and interested in working with their hands they discovered they had a lot in common and became fast friends. With Nick’s family all living in Pennsylvania, the Perkins’ family welcomed him with open arms. He was now at Sunday dinner every week with Gabe’s parents and siblings and was even the godfather to one of Gabe’s nephews. They were now more like brothers than friends and knew each other better than anyone. That’s why Nick was quick to notice Gabe was extra quiet and distracted that night.
“Okay, what’s going on? You have been acting weird for days. Is your mom still mad we missed Sunday dinner last night? Or is it having Adrienne back here that’s got you all freaked out? What’s wrong?”
“I’m not freaking out. And yes, mom is still mad we didn’t show up to dinner last night. I told her you met a girl and I was just being your wingman. I can’t tell her it has anything to do with the Harkins family.”