Christmas in Bayberry

by Jennifer Faye

  Wes lowered his hand. “You must be the niece.”

  The niece? “So, you’ve spoken with my aunt?”

  “Yes, I have. She’s the one who showed me to this office. You must have been out with your flyers and coupons.”

  Aunt Penney had done this? Without consulting her? Kate’s lips pressed into a firm line. And then she recalled Aunt Penney mentioning she wanted to talk. Was this what she’d had on her mind last night?

  The man had made a mess of her desk. There wasn’t even room for her coffee or the muffin she’d snagged from Aunt Penney’s kitchen. With a frustrated sigh, she headed for the doorway.

  She paused and glanced at him. “I’ll be back.”

  He flashed her a brilliant smile. “I look forward to it.”

  Really? She strode away. Once she spoke to Aunt Penney, this would be all cleared up.

  Her aunt hadn’t said so, but everyone expected when she retired that Kate would take over the candle company. After all, she was the last living Taylor. There was no one else to take over.

  Unless the company was sold.

  But that was never going to happen. The candle company was as much a part of her as it was a part of Bayberry, and that’s how it would remain.

  She marched into her aunt’s office. “Why is there a stranger in—”

  Her words faltered. There was no one in her aunt’s office. Her aunt wasn’t at home. So where was she?

  Kate walked through the office, glancing in cubicles and saying good morning to everyone. No one knew where to find Aunt Penney. Kate checked the kitchen and the factory. At last, she made it to the warehouse, which was all aflutter with activity as pallets were being rearranged, making way for the annual holiday sale.

  And there was Aunt Penney in the middle of everything. She was pointing this way and then that way. Employees, wearing white hard hats, were following her instructions as the forklift lifted a pallet and hauled it toward the back of the enormous building.

  The sale had always been one of her aunt’s pet projects. She liked to do something a little extra special each year. It wasn’t just a sale. It was more like a holiday party, with baked goods and hot apple cider. Something told Kate this year would be no different.

  The only thing that was different was the increased discount. That had been Kate’s idea. Without a large influx of cash, they wouldn’t be able to make the necessary updates. Their supply would dwindle and sales would evaporate as customers flocked to suppliers with ready inventory.

  If they could draw in more people, then hopefully, they could add those people to their new email list. That way people wouldn’t forget about the Bayberry Candle Company when the holidays were over. Any time customers needed a special gift, they’d go to their website or stop by their gift shop at the front of their office building.

  The candle company didn’t just sell wax candles. They had soy candles, custom-shaped candles, votives, lanterns, candelabras and so much more. Kate wanted to put together a comprehensive online catalog and expand their online sales. But Aunt Penney wasn’t quick when it came to change. Word-of-mouth and newspaper advertisements had always been enough in the past. Traditions were deeply ingrained in the residents of Bayberry.

  Kate moved to her aunt’s side. “So, you didn’t like the new arrangement?”

  Aunt Penney shrugged. “I just thought the way we always have things would be easier for customers to find things. I hope you aren’t disappointed if we keep things the same.”

  “You know, sometimes change is for the best.” Her aunt was too stuck in her ways, Kate thought.

  “I hear you, but this arrangement does flow better.”

  Kate nodded. “Okay. I understand.”

  The lines bracketing her aunt’s eyes smoothed. “That’s good. I guess I should have discussed the change with you since you’ve been helping me set up, but we’ve been missing each other a lot lately.”

  “Actually, that’s why I was searching for you. Could we talk a moment?” She didn’t want to have this conversation in front of everyone. “Maybe over there.” She pointed to an empty part of the warehouse.

  “Is something wrong?” Aunt Penney searched her face for answers. Then she turned to another employee, handed off a clipboard, and asked him to keep things moving.

  When they were away from everyone else, Kate asked, “Did you forget to tell me something?”

  Aunt Penney’s eyes widened. “You mean the man in your office?” When Kate nodded, her aunt continued, “I’m sorry. I’ve just had so much on my mind lately. Sometimes I think I’d forget my head if it wasn’t attached. Anyway, about him. I did attempt to warn you last night.”

  “I know. I’m sorry I had to run off. But I’m listening now. Who is he? And what is he doing here?”

  “I’ve hired Mr. Adams to do some consulting. And, well, you don’t actually use your office all that much—”

  “I…” She was about to argue but realized her aunt was right. “I guess not.”

  This time of the year, Kate was usually on the go most of the day, and then she worked on her laptop at home in the evening, updating the accounting records. It wasn’t the best arrangement, but when you were the niece of the owner, some allowances were made.

  Aunt Penney sent her an appreciative look for not making a big deal of it. “I knew you’d understand. I appreciate your sacrifice as we have limited space. And Mr. Adams needed someplace quiet with some privacy to do his work.” She paused. “Maybe you could show him around.”

  “You mean around the factory?”

  “I guess that too, but I was thinking about around town. Help him get comfortable in Bayberry.”

  Kate grew worried. “How long is he staying?”

  She didn’t like the thought of him being in her space. She had her chair adjusted just the way she liked it. And her desktop monitor was tilted just perfectly. And now his stuff had already pushed her things out of the way. She’d even noticed that her silk flower arrangement and favorite mug had been moved to the top of the file cabinet.

  “Not that long.” Aunt Penney patted her arm. “He’ll be out of here by Christmas. And come the New Year, you’ll have your office back.”

  The business shut down between Christmas and New Year, letting the employees enjoy the time with their families. It was a well-earned reward for the big push leading up to Christmas.

  “But that still doesn’t explain what he’s doing here.” Kate had a sneaking suspicion she knew the answer, but she wanted her aunt to confirm it.

  “Well, ah…” Her aunt’s gaze didn’t quite meet Kate’s. “I thought it was time to bring in someone with an objective perspective and experience in these matters to give us guidance for the future.”

  She’d guessed right. Wes was some sort of business consultant. But what changes would he recommend? And would her aunt be okay with them?

  “But we can’t afford him,” Kate said. “At least not at this particular moment.”

  “About that…I called an old friend of mine. We keep in contact—Christmas cards, birthday cards and such. We also talk on the phone. I remembered her mentioning her son was a business advisor. And I called in a favor.”

  “So he’s doing this for nothing?” Something about that didn’t seem quite right.

  “I’m paying him out of my own funds.”

  “You can’t do that. It isn’t right.”

  “It is right.” Aunt Penney’s gaze finally met hers with steely determination. “We’re in a mess here, and we need some help getting out of it.”

  “But we have the holiday sale. It’s going to be bigger and better than ever. And I’m having posters made up for the Candlelight Dance, with Bayberry Candle Company prominently displayed as the sponsor. And I’ve been working on our online newsletter. The number of subscribers is growing. Things will be back on track in no ti
me.” Kate hoped she sounded convincing.

  Aunt Penney reached for Kate’s hand and gave it a squeeze. “I hope you’re right. But if not, you should get out there and spread your wings. Maybe move away. You never know what you’ll like until you try it.”

  Move away? Was she serious? “Aunt Penney, you know I would never leave you.”

  “Oh, Kate. How did I get so lucky to have you in my life?” Her aunt looked at her lovingly. “But you can’t stay in Bayberry for me. You have to live your own life, wherever it may lead you.”

  “But my life is right here.”

  “How do you know, if you won’t even give yourself the chance to try another town or live in the city? Hang on a sec.” Aunt Penney stepped forward to speak to one of the warehouse workers. “John, I think we’re going to need another box of red tapers for the sale. And the green ones, too. Could you see that those are pulled?”

  John nodded. “Will do. Do you need anything else?”

  “Not right now. Thank you.”

  Once the man had moved on, Kate spoke up. “Aunt Penney, we’ve talked about this before. I’m not leaving Bayberry. And that’s final. So it looks like you’re stuck with me.”

  Aunt Penney arched a brow, like she did every time she didn’t agree with Kate. “And what about having your own family? And don’t say you don’t want one. I know you do.”

  Kate shrugged. “When the right man comes along, he’ll love Bayberry as much as I do.”

  “And if he doesn’t?”

  “Then he isn’t the right man for me—”

  “Hey, Penney.” Fred Nicholas walked up to them. He was a jolly man with a deep, contagious laugh. He smiled at them and his blue eyes twinkled. “Hi, Kate. I saw your flyers around town. Lots of people are excited about the upcoming sale.”

  Fred was the kindest man. Because of his snowy white hair and matching beard, Kate had always thought he looked like Santa. She wasn’t the only one. All of the kids in town called him Santa and he never corrected them. How wrong could they be when his name was Mr. Nicholas?

  “Thanks, Fred,” Kate said. “It’s always good to hear that people are excited about the candle company. Let’s hope the added discount this year will bring people from far and wide.”

  “Don’t you worry, Kate,” Fred said with a sparkle in his eyes. “This Christmas is going to be the best ever.”

  “Oh, Fred,” Aunt Penney said, “don’t be making promises you can’t keep.”

  He turned to her aunt and the look in his eyes softened…as if she were the only woman in the world. “You just have to believe it’ll all work out.”

  Worry churned in Kate’s empty stomach. Only she and her aunt knew the trouble the company was in. But if Mr. Wesley Adams didn’t know about the trouble before he arrived, he would soon enough.

  “We don’t have long until the sale,” Aunt Penney redirected the conversation back to business. “And I need to get the setup rearranged.”

  “There’s a lot to move,” Fred said. “But we’ll have things the way you want them.”

  “Thank you, Fred. You’re the best.”

  His smile grew brighter at her aunt’s compliments.

  Fred was a lifelong resident of Bayberry and had been a fixture at the candle company for as long as Kate could remember. When something needed doing, he was the first to volunteer, whether it was the town’s Santa or driving food to the sick and the shut-ins. And he was quite fond of Penney. Everyone in Bayberry knew it. Except for Aunt Penney.

  Both he and Aunt Penney were easygoing and generous of heart. And with Aunt Penney’s white hair, she’d make a perfect Mrs. Claus. Kate couldn’t help smiling at the thought. She’d mentioned once to her aunt that if she were to give Fred a chance, they’d make a really cute couple. Aunt Penney had immediately shot down the idea, exclaiming that Fred was her employee and nothing like that could ever happen. But Kate still thought her aunt was making a mistake. Kate longed for some man to look at her the way Fred looked at her aunt.

  Her aunt turned to Kate. “I have to go. But don’t worry. I promise all this stuff with the company is going to work out, just maybe not like you’re imagining. Maybe it’ll work out even better.”

  Aunt Penney turned and walked away, leaving Kate to digest this information. What exactly did her aunt have in mind?

  If things didn’t turn around soon, people would be receiving pink slips this year in their stockings instead of bonuses. Kate prayed the email campaign she’d started online would take off. Otherwise, she had the feeling that Mr. Wesley Adams would be playing the part of Ebenezer Scrooge this Christmas.

  Chapter Five

  The next morning, Kate rushed to get ready for work, which resulted in another time-saving messy bun. Before work started, she planned to put up the office Christmas tree. It would lighten the mood around the office. With the mechanical malfunctions of late, employees were a bit down.

  The tree was where everyone placed their grab bag gifts. And then, on the last day of work before the holiday, they opened them. Some were funny, some were sweet, but no matter what, they brought a smile to everyone’s face.

  And though financial trouble was brewing in the background, Kate wasn’t going to let it overshadow the holiday for everyone. Wearing a red and white sweater and a pair of dark jeans, she rushed to grab her red coat with the Rudolph pin on the lapel that Aunt Penney had given her for Christmas years ago. She pulled on boots, wrapped a white hand-knit scarf around her neck, and pulled on matching gloves as she rushed out the door.

  The air was extra crisp that morning. Kate turned up the collar on her jacket and snuggled deeper in her coat. But as she took in the Christmas decorations in the neighbors’ yards—reindeer, snowmen and other lawn ornaments—she was soon distracted from the cold.

  She neared the town square and caught the time on the clock. It was ten till seven. She wouldn’t have much time to decorate before work. When she neared the Steaming Brew, she hesitated. There was no way she could be in and out of there in a couple of minutes. By the looks of the line, it was going to take at least five minutes to place her order. And that was five minutes she didn’t have.

  With a frustrated groan, Kate kept walking. Sometimes sacrifices had to be made. But her morning coffee…ugh!

  She forced a smile as she passed Bayberry residents and said good morning. She just needed her morning dose of caffeine and she’d feel more like her chipper self.

  When she reached the office, she decided to grab the boxes of decorations from storage before she moved to the kitchen to start the coffee. After all, she had to pass by storage on the way in, and the kitchen was at the other side of the building.

  She slipped off her coat and switched from her boots to her indoor shoes. Then she made her way to the storage room. When she opened the door, she was surprised by how much stuff had been shoved in there. Sure, she’d been in here many times over the years, but she’d never slowed down to take inventory of how many boxes had collected over the years.

  The storage room wasn’t that large, and fortunately, Aunt Penney had insisted that each box be marked. Kate’s gaze moved from top to bottom of the first shelving unit. No Christmas boxes. She moved to the next shelves and scanned down to the bottom row. Nope, Halloween decorations. She continued to the end of the row.

  She turned around to look at the next set of shelves—and there they were. She lifted them off the shelf, stacking them on the floor. There were more Christmas boxes here than she’d expected. And it was too narrow and dim in the storage room to sort through them here. She’d take them to her office. Holding two cardboard boxes, she headed out the door and hurried down the hallway, anxious to get the tree trimmed.

  When she reached her office doorway, her gaze landed on the cluttered desk. This was not at all how she normally kept it. A frown pulled at her lips. She’d forgotten that she’d been temp
orarily evicted.

  She turned and stacked the boxes in the hallway. Knowing time was ticking by, she kept moving. It took a number of trips, but finally she had moved all of the boxes next to the fresh-cut tree that had been delivered yesterday.

  In the background, Christmas carols played from speakers placed throughout the building. As the lyrics to “The Twelve Days of Christmas” filled the air, Kate sang along. Absorbed in her task, she grabbed a folding chair to reach the top of the tree. Standing on it, she still couldn’t reach the upper branches. She climbed down and yawned as she rushed to the janitor’s room.

  Kate grabbed a stepladder and headed back to the tree. Except the ladder took up a lot more space, so the boxes had to be moved once more. She set to work wrapping the tree in white lights from the top to the bottom. Usually there was more than one person decorating the tree, but this year, with the mechanical delays, everyone was rushing to get ready for the biggest sale ever.

  Still, that meant Kate had to move the ladder back and forth as the tree was much too large to reach around it. She’d just gotten to the middle section when employees started to arrive. Luckily, not many people came in this direction.

  “Good morning, Kate.” MaryJane Harris stopped to admire the tree. She tucked her shoulder-length brown hair behind her ear. “You’re started early. Could you use a hand?”

  “If you don’t mind, it’d make stringing the rest of the lights easier.”

  “Sure.” MaryJane’s mouth lifted at the corners. “Let me just put my things in your office—oh, wait, I forgot that guy kicked you out of your office. Can you believe him?”

  “It wasn’t his fault.” Kate couldn’t believe she was defending him.

  MaryJane snorted. “Who is he, anyhow? An auditor? A tax guy?”

  Not wanting to get into this with MaryJane, who was the sweetest lady, but a talker—a big talker—Kate said, “I don’t know exactly what he’s doing.” Which was sort of true. “He’s working with Aunt Penney.”