She slipped her handbag over her shoulders and grabbing her gray pea coat, shrugged into it.
She took a deep breath.
It’s okay to leave the safety of the house. He doesn’t know where I am. He can’t find me.
She had a lightness in her step as she went back downstairs where Adam waited. He stood in front of the fireplace, the embers grown cold. When she got back, she would light it up again.
Claire waved, her smile bright, as they walked past.
The cold air slapped her in the face as they stepped out of the alcove onto the sidewalk. The roads were clear, only a couple of cars out and about this early. With it being the off season, there were few tourists.
They turned left and walked downtown. They passed a couple of shops that were closed, but most were open, even though not busy.
“It’s a lot different from Boulder,” Adam commented.
“A little,” she said, with a small smile. Having grown up in Houston, anything outside of Denver was somewhat foreign and laid back.
“What do you do in Boulder?”
“Aunt Allie didn’t tell you?”
He shook his head. “She said you work at the university.”
“I do. I’m a history instructor.”
He stopped. Looked at her, puzzled, for a minute. “You have a Ph.D.?”
She smiled. Shook her head. Turned back to wait for him. “Just a masters.”
“Just a masters,” he said, walking again. “Impressive.”
A couple on bicycles breezed past them on the road.
“How are you not there now?” he asked.
“I’m teaching online at the moment.”
Chapter Eight
There were so many questions Adam wanted to ask. There was a piece missing to the puzzle. Tabitha Black hadn’t just shown up to visit Aunt Allie for Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving had come and gone and she was still here. Besides, she had never visited before. He would have known.
“How long have you been teaching there?”
“Four years.”
Yes, definitely a piece missing. In four years, she should have visited by now. And if she had, he would have known it. Being what he considered shop mates – they shared an attic after all, he knew when Aunt Allie had company and she had never had company.
“But you’re not from here.”
“No. How can you tell?”
He smiled. “Something in the accent.”
“I grew up in Houston.”
“Do you always teach online?” he asked.
“Usually a combination,” she said, stopping to admire a window display. He followed her gaze. The display was a winter wonderland – a little village replete with a church and several houses, a little horse and buggy. Very Norman Rockwell.
She gasped and giggled when a little train chugged through the town, sending little puffs of smoke into the air. “I love it,” she said.
He glanced at the train, but locked his gaze on her face. She smiled in delight, her eyes bright.
She turned, smiling, and gazed back at him. Something snagged in his heart and he couldn’t think. “You’re beautiful,” he whispered.
Her eyes wide, she turned back to watch as the last car of the little train disappeared into the store. “Let’s follow,” she said, mischievously.
He followed her into the store. Nodded to the clerk behind the counter. He’d seen the clerk before, but didn’t know her by name.
Tabitha followed the train as it wound around the right side of the store and headed back toward the display window.
“I love your train,” she told the clerk.
“Thanks,” the girl said. Waited a beat. “We sell them.”
Tabitha looked back at the girl. “Really?”
“Sure. Actually we only have one left.”
“Where?” Tabitha asked.
The girl pointed to the back. It’s on the back wall. You can’t miss it.”
Adam followed Tabitha to the back of the store. The girl had been right. They couldn’t miss the train display. The box was about four feet long and two feet wide. There were other boxes with extra track. They also sold the little houses and trees.
Tabitha looked at Adam, her face bright. “We could run this along the ledge behind the checkout counter.”
“How would you turn it around?” he asked.
“Oh,” she said, crestfallen now. He didn’t like being the one who put that expression on her face.
“You could run it around the tree and around the fireplace.”
His comment didn’t bring the smile back to her face, but instead, a look of consternation.
“Maybe,” she said.
“I think we can figure something out.” Even if she couldn’t use it, he could put it in his shop. He could use something to liven the place up.
Without even looking at the price, he put two boxes of extra track on top of the box and carried it all to the checkout counter. They could no doubt order it from Amazon and save a bundle, but there something about taking something home from the store and having it right away that couldn’t be replicated by mail order.
Tabitha looked around a bit at the little houses for sale that went with the train set while he checked out. He asked the girl to hold it for him until they came back by to pick it up.
As she approached the counter, she pulled out her wallet.
“It’s already paid for,” the girl said.
“But --”
“Come on,” Adam said, taking her hand. “She’ll hold it until we come back this way. You can buy lunch.”
“I was going to buy it,” she said, once they were back outside on the sidewalk.
“I know,” he said, “but this way, when Aunt Allie wants to put it up after Christmas, I can put it in my shop all year round.”
“I see,” she said, a knowing smile on her face. “You’re trying to get joint custody of the train.”
“Guilty,” he said.
“So you’re going to just let us borrow the train for a few weeks.”
“My shop could use a little excitement.”
“You’ll have to give me a tour.”
“Gladly,” he said. “This afternoon?”
“Sure.”
They walked along Main Street, stopping now and then to window shop. He learned that she wasn’t interested in the clothing stores or the sports stores. She was mostly drawn to the souvenir shops. He learned this not by what she said, but by watching what drew her attention.
“You grew up here?” She asked as they waited for the light to change so they could cross the street.
“Born and bred,” he said, taking her hand as they crossed the intersection.
“And you’ve always lived here?” She asked.
“No.” He shook his head. “I left when I was eighteen and joined the Air Force.”
“Right,” she said. “You told me that. But, I mean, other than that.”
“Nah,” he said. “I lived in Denver for a few years. You hungry?”
“A little.”
“They have good burgers here.” He nodded toward Penelope’s Old Time Burgers.
“A little, yeah,” she said, glancing at her watch. “I didn’t realize it was so late.”
Even though it was noon, they were the only customers.
“Are you sure it’s good?” She whispered.
“It’s the off season. And a weekday. Trust me.”
They went to the counter and ordered burgers and fries. After ordering, they went to sit at a booth near the window. A family with two preschoolers walked by. A couple on a motorcycle parked in front on the street and came inside.
“See,” he said, tapping his finger on the table in front of her.
She grinned. “I believe you.”
“You’re used to the city,” he said.
“And Boulder.”
He laughed. “And Boulder.”
“What?”
“Boulder’s a city.”
; She cut her eyes. “Of course it is.”
“You miss Houston,” he said.
She shrugged. “I miss my family. Otherwise I don’t mind.”
Their food arrived and Adam let it drop. He didn’t like the sadness that came over her features when she talked about missing her family.
Adam had slipped lunch in there. He hadn’t made a big deal out of it. He’d just asked her to take a walk – no doubt to get away. Then asked if she was hungry.
All in all, it was pretty smooth.
Tabitha didn’t want to talk about her family. She missed her parents and her sister. Not to mention her brother, Justin, who lived in Boston. She’d been closest to him and he was the one she saw the least.
This was the first Christmas they wouldn’t be together. Her parents and younger sister had planned a cruise and her brother had a baby. She could visit them, of course, but under the circumstances, had decided to spend Christmas here with her mother’s sister instead. She didn’t want to intrude on her brother’s family time.
Just once. She’d give them this year.
“I’m looking forward to putting the train together,” she said.
“Me too,” he said. “Do you like your burger?”
“I do,” she admitted. “You were right. Again.” She smiled at him.
She liked the way he looked at her. Straight on with no hesitation in his eyes. Bobby had always turned away and lowered his eyes. She’d thought he was shy. That’s one of the things that had attracted her to him.
Bobby taught at the university, too, but he taught part time, so all his classes were online. He was something of a loner, though she hadn’t known that at first.
Their engagement had been quick. They’d been assigned to work together on a committee to update the history curriculum. They ended up working at her house on the weekend. . . and one thing led to another. . . he’d ended up spending a lot of time there. They hadn’t dated exactly. They had just started hanging out. Tabitha was a little fuzzy on why she’d married him. She had been about to turn thirty years old and something just pushed at her to get married. It seemed like time and Bobby was there.
They had been married by the justice of the peace at the courthouse. No fanfare. Not even any family present. He didn’t have any living family, so she had gone on impulse and told her own family after the fact.
That was not a mistake she would make again.
She blamed it on a mid-life crisis. It could happen at thirty.
After lunch, they went by and picked up the train. Tabitha stopped and admired the store’s display again before they left.
“It looks idyllic, doesn’t it?” Adam asked.
She smiled at him. “Yes, it does.”
They stepped out onto the street and she gasped. “Look! It’s snowing!”
He took her hand and kissed her knuckles. “There’s something magical about that first snowfall,” he said.
“It is magical,” she said. And she felt truly happy in that moment. Not worrying about Bobby took a huge load off her shoulders.
Went they got back inside the Book Nook, Adam went out back to bring in firewood while Tabitha opened the box with the train set. She sat on the floor and unwrapped all the little pieces while he built the fire. There were a couple of customers and the fire drew them to pick up a book and settle in next to the fire.
Adam stood a minute and studied the area. “We could send it around the tree and in front of the fireplace.
“Okay,” she said, excited to get started.
Both crawling on the floor, they worked side by side, putting together the train track.
With about half the track down, they sat back and studied what they had done so far.
“Should we go left or right here?” she asked.
Adam scratched his head. “Right. Then we can come out over there.”
“How long have you two been together?” An older man sipping hot chocolate asked.
Tabitha and Adam looked at each other. Her eyes widened and he grinned.
“Oh,” Tabitha started to answer.
“Not very long,” Adam said. “We’re a cute couple, aren’t we?”
The man agreed. “Has he asked you to marry him yet?”
Tabitha felt her face flush. She shook her head with a sideways glance at Adam. He was enjoying this!
“You better snap her up before somebody else does,” the man told Adam.
“That’s good advice,” Adam said. “You hear that sweetie? We should get married.”
Tabitha felt her heart rate increase. A ringing shot through her ears and she knew she was about to have a panic attack. She got off the floor, muttered something, and raced toward the restroom.
She heard them talking as she hurried away, but couldn’t understand their words.
She dashed into the restroom and closed the door. She pressed her hands on the counter and took deep breathes. Just like her counselor had taught her.
As she looked in the mirror at her reflection, her thoughts began to clear. Adam was a nice guy. Adam wasn’t like Bobby.
Chapter Nine
“I told you. He likes you,” Claire said, the next morning as they prepared to open the book store.
Tabitha tried not to smile - was unsuccessful. She shrugged. And went to unlock the front door. It was a little early, but there were a couple of customers huddled outside the door. No sense in making them wait when they had warmth to spare inside.
“You like him?” Claire asked as Tabitha stopped at the counter to straighten a stack of books written by a local author, but it was more of a statement, than a question.
Tabitha lowered her eyes, but couldn’t keep from smiling. “He’s likeable and he’s been a great help to me and Aunt Allie.”
Claire shot her a knowing glance, but shifted her attention to a customer who approached the counter with a question.
Tabitha went back to the storage room to open a shipment that had come in yesterday while she was getting Aunt Allie from the hospital. She had assured her aunt that she would take care of everything. It would be a few days before Aunt Allie could work again.
Her gaze strayed toward the back door. She knew they often kept it unlocked during the day. But she couldn’t help feeling a little off-balance - vulnerable even, with it unlocked.
She walked over, locked the door and took a deep breath. Better. She would talk to Aunt Allie about keeping it locked from here on out. Whoever needed to come in could use the front door - Adam included. How could it be any harder for him to walk in the front door instead of the back?
As she checked items off on the invoice, her thoughts settled on Adam. He’d been being neighborly, she supposed. She’d never really had any neighbors that she’d gotten to know, but she was sure that there were people out there who took care of their neighbors and helped out when they could. After all, this was a small town. Things were different in Houston and even in Boulder. Everyone did their own thing and rarely noticed their neighbors.
Though she’d never really had a neighborly neighbor, she knew when a man was being a little more than just neighborly. She allowed herself to admit that Adam had been showing more than neighborly interest in her.
She shook her head and tried to pull herself together. She was doubtless just projecting. She was feeling something toward him, so she thought he must be feeling it, too. She’d have to find a way to make sure those feelings she had for him got nipped in the bud.
She had no business even thinking about a relationship - of any kind.
Tabitha Black was not available.
Chapter Ten
His blonde hair was a little too long and needed washing, but he had a charming smile with a dimple on one side. He was a little thin, too, but was tall. He had the look of a college student about him, but he never had any books with him. Most of the college students who came in and hung out had a backpack as a constant companion and usually they had books scattered everywhere while they read or studied. He look
ed more like he belonged on a beach than here in an Estes Park bookstore. His name was Lance.
Aunt Allie didn’t mind the college students who came up from Boulder and Fort Collins and Tabitha certainly didn’t. Besides the fact that her real world revolved around them, they made the place look busy and that brought in other customers. Soon, they’d all be going home for Christmas and business would doubtless drop along with the disappearance of the college students.
Tabitha knew that Claire had turned him down - repeatedly. It made her wonder why he kept coming around.
She went out back to gather more firewood. Her fireplace plan still seemed to be working and she was inclined to keep it up.
“Let me help you with that.”
Tabitha whirled. She didn’t recognize the voice, but it was the blond guy, Lance, shooting her that charming smile.
“No need,” she said, “I’ve got it.”
“No, really, I want to help,” he said as he started to pick up the firewood.
Tabitha hesitated, but decided she didn’t mind having some help. The customers enjoyed the fire much more than she got to, so why shouldn’t she let one of them help?
“You’re new around here,” he said, as he started toward the door. Tabitha glanced at the four pieces of wood in his arms. It wasn’t enough to bother going outside for. “Will you get the door,” he asked, when she started picking up some wood.
The hair on the back of her neck tingled as she walked past him to open the door. They dropped the wood into the wood pile next to the fireplace.
“Let me take you out,” he said.
“What?”
“On a date. Let me take you on a date.”
“No,” she said, shaking her head.
He squinted his eyes at her. “Why not?”
“I’m seeing someone.” It wasn’t exactly true, but she’d had to come up with something fast.
“I don’t care,” he said, glancing at her hands. “You’re not married. Let me take you to a movie.”
“I’m not available,” she repeated. “Besides, you’re too young.”
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