Christmas Catch-Up II (River's End Ranch Book 37)

by Pamela M. Kelley

  "I used to think she might be a teacher or a writer. Now, maybe she'll be the next Taylor Swift!" Wade said as he joined the conversation. Maddie smiled happily and shared the news that they were having a boy.

  Bernie felt a pang of sadness or jealousy—she wasn't sure what it was—but she immediately felt horrible for thinking that way for even a moment. She gave Maddie a big hug and congratulated her. "I'm so happy for you. That's exciting news." And she really was happy for her. And for Lily, too.

  She felt an arm on her shoulder and looked up to see David. He brushed a wayward piece of hair out of her eyes and gave her a quick peck on the lips.

  "What was that for?" she teased him.

  "Just wanted you to know I love you, and I'm thinking about you. And to remind you that your time will come."

  She sighed happily as she glanced around the room. "I know it will. I was upset for a minute, but I'm fine now. I'm thrilled for Lily and Maddie. They're having a boy you know?"

  "They are?"

  She laughed. "Maddie and Wade."

  "Ah."

  A moment later they were surrounded by people again as everyone gathered around the kitchen island and nibbled at all the food.

  "This is a wonderful idea, dear. What did you call this party again?" Jaclyn asked.

  "Boxing Day. It's a UK custom that I heard one of the overseas ranch visitors talking about. The day after Christmas just seemed like a good time to get friends together that you didn't see on the holiday itself. A lazy day to relax and eat."

  "I'm good at that," Lily said, and Maddie laughed.

  "That's all I do these days. More fun to do it with all of you."

  "What is in that green dip?" Barbi asked. "It's amazing," Ryan agreed as he dipped another chip into it.

  "It's like a hummus but with white beans."

  "I need the recipe," Ryan said.

  Bernie smiled. She was flattered that an accomplished chef like Ryan wanted the recipe for something she'd made. She had to admit, though, the dip was probably the best thing she knew how to make.

  "So, Jaclyn, who are you and the fairies going to fix up next?" Wade asked as he reached for a French onion soup tart.

  Jaclyn laughed. "I don't know just yet, but the fairies have been buzzing around. They're getting ready for something. I suppose we'll find out soon enough."

  "Speaking of buzzing around, is something new going on up at the ranch?" Jack asked Wade. "I've noticed more traffic coming into town lately, a lot of it heading up your way."

  Bernie looked at Wade, curious how he'd answer Jack. Even though Jack was a cop in town and her brother, Bernie never shared ranch business with him. She had to agree with Jack though. She also sensed that some kind of change was in the air, but Wade hadn’t shared anything with her yet. He’d been taking a number of calls recently with his door shut though, which wasn’t like him. Wade was usually an open book with her.

  "Just a few different things we're working on. If there's any news to report, you know I'll be in touch."

  Bernie smiled at Wade's non-answer. He was good at that.

  Jack nodded. "All right, then. Pass me one of those pastry things with the onions, would you?"

  Two hours later, after the last guest left, David and Bernie cleaned up and then collapsed in the family room. The cats joined them as they relaxed and gazed out the window. It was still light out, and the view over the lake was breathtaking. Bernie never tired of looking at the water. It was so serene and calming. David had built the house into the side of the mountain, so it seemed to hover over the water below.

  "Did you have fun?" David asked.

  "I did. It was great to see everyone. It was exactly what I needed."

  "I'm perfectly happy with our little family, you know. Me, you, Tiny and Buttercup. You're all I need, and I'm not in any hurry for anything to change. I just wanted you to know that. Let's just not even worry about it."

  Bernie nodded. "Thanks for saying that. I think I have been stressing too much about it, just stressing in general as that's the nature of my job." She grinned. "But I thrive on it, too, so I'm not complaining. I agree with you. I'm just going to try to relax and enjoy our life together and see what the future brings."

  David leaned over and kissed her. "I think the future is going to bring a very happy New Year."

  Bernie smiled. "I think so, too."

  Melissa and Jack

  Missing Melissa

  The sun was just starting to set as Jack pulled the truck into their driveway. Melissa smiled, and she heard Roger bark as they reached the front door.

  "I'll take him out for a walk and then see you inside in a bit."

  Roger went dashing outside as the door opened and Melissa watched the two of them walk off. She hung up her coat, took her shoes off and made her way into the living room where her Maine Coon cat, Misty, lay in the corner of the sofa. She stretched lazily when she saw Melissa and took her time sauntering over to say hello. She also stood by her empty food bowl, waiting.

  "And I thought you were just happy to see me!" Melissa laughed as she fed her and then made herself a cup of tea. She took it into the living room and got comfy on the sofa. She opened her laptop and checked her email. There was one from an agent wondering if she would be interested in selling her audio rights to her mystery and congratulating her for ranking so well.

  That was interesting. Melissa had been so busy with Christmas that she hadn't checked her book's ranking in a few days. She went to Amazon, pulled up her book and almost fell off her sofa. Somehow, her little mystery had climbed into the top one hundred in the entire store. She'd also gained more than fifty new reviews.

  She then went to look at BookReport, the software program she used that told her how many books she'd sold. She guessed it was probably up a little since her ranking had improved. But what she saw when she opened the program shocked her so much that she restarted her computer to make sure it wasn't a crazy fluke. It wasn't. The same numbers came up again. Her little mystery was now earning some impressive amounts.

  She was thrilled. Not because of the money. Truth be told, both she and Melanie had received generous trust funds when their parents died years ago, and while they weren't rich, they were comfortable and money wasn't an issue. But what did thrill her was knowing that readers liked her book. That's all she wanted, to reach readers and to entertain them, hopefully bringing them the same kind of joy she felt when she lost herself in a good book.

  "What are you looking so pleased about?" Jack said as he and Roger came into the room. Roger raced over to her, gave her a few licks hello and then flopped at her feet. Jack joined him and settled next to Melissa. "What are you up to?"

  "I hadn't checked how my book was doing for a few days. I just had a nice surprise."

  "Yeah, sales are good?"

  "Very good. People seem to be liking my book!"

  Jack laughed. "Of course they do. You sound so surprised."

  "Well, I hoped that they would, of course. But you never know. I was terrified that they might not like it."

  Jack shook his head at the very thought of it. "And they love it right? So, when will your next book be ready?"

  "It's with Eloise now, being edited. Hopefully, it will be ready in another week or two. And in the meantime, I'll start the next book tomorrow morning, before I head to the store."

  "Are you sure it's not too much for you? Doing both? You could always sell the store."

  "No, it's perfect. You know I like to get up early, and that's my best time to write. If I do it for a few hours, the rest of my day is great. It's funny—it's like a physical need. When I skip a day or put it off until later in the day, it hangs over me all day, and I feel anxious. Silly, huh?"

  "I don't think so. You're a creative person. It's just who you are."

  Melissa was impressed that Jack understood her so well.

  "It's true. And I love going to the store, too, and being around other people that love books and seeing what they ar
e reading and liking. It's the best of both worlds."

  She took a sip of her tea and then asked Jack, "How's everything going with your job? Anything interesting happening in Riston?"

  Melissa knew Jack loved his job, too, keeping Riston safe. Fortunately, there wasn't a lot of crime in the small town. Just petty stuff and traffic issues, mostly.

  "The usual stuff. I am curious what's going on at the ranch, though. Wade didn't say much, but my radar is up. I can sense something going on. You haven't noticed anything, have you?"

  "Not really. Melanie said that he’s been in a lot of meetings lately and seems exciting about something. I'm sure we'll find out, eventually."

  "Right. I'm sure we will. I think I'm just bored because there really is nothing else happening at the moment."

  "Well, that's a good thing, isn't it?" Melissa thought back to what she and Jack had to deal with when she first came to town. "I kind of like boring."

  Jack leaned over and kissed her. "I know what you mean. I'm glad that business is over. And I'm never bored as long as you're around." His phone buzzed, indicating a text message was coming through. He read it, texted back and forth a few times and then looked at Melissa. "I just got a message from my friend, Benjamin Turner. His whole world has just changed."

  "What happened? Who is he?"

  "He's one of those instant billionaires...multi-billionaire, actually. He founded a tech company a few years back, took it public, and the stock went crazy. He's brilliant, and he's moving here to Riston."

  "Why would a billionaire move to Riston?" That made zero sense to Melissa.

  "He had an older sister that recently died from breast cancer. She was a single mother and had a baby girl. Ben's moving here to raise her."

  "Wow. That's a big change."

  "Yeah. I met him playing trivia a few years ago. He was staying at the ranch for a month-long vacation, just to get away. Wade got to know him and invited him to join us for trivia. He liked the area a lot. Says he bought a seventy-five-acre ranch here."

  "What will he do with that?" Melissa was fascinated.

  "Enjoy his privacy probably. He doesn't get much of that in Silicon Valley. The media follows his every move. Especially since he's moved into investing in the entertainment industry. He bought a hockey team last year, has financed a few movies, bought some other businesses. Everything he touches turns to gold."

  "I would think he might be bored here." He sounded to Melissa like he belonged in a city.

  "I think he's hoping people will leave him alone. As long as he has an internet connection, he can work anywhere."

  "I suppose so," Melissa agreed. It was the same with her. If she was just writing, she could do that from anywhere. "I look forward to meeting him. Maybe I'll base a character on him. He sounds interesting."

  "We'll invite him to trivia."

  "We'll have to find him a babysitter, or maybe a nanny," Melissa said.

  "Yeah, I wonder what he will do about the baby? I imagine he'll have to get some help. Do you know anyone?"

  "No, but I could ask around at the Kids’ Korral. Someone there might know of someone."

  Misty jumped up onto the sofa, and plopped down between the two of them and started to purr. Jack reached over and scratched her behind her ears.

  "Someone was feeling ignored.” Melissa laughed.

  "It was a fun day today. I hope Bernie and David make that a tradition. I'd never even heard of Boxing Day before, but if it means a chance for good friends to get together, I'm a fan."

  "Me, too." Melissa yawned and snuggled closer to Jack. "It was a great day."

  "So, what are we going to do for New Year's Eve?" Jack asked.

  Melissa laughed. “Have you forgotten already? Melanie is getting married the Friday before and she and Bryan are having a big party on New Year’s Eve to celebrate their wedding.”

  “I’m sorry, I totally forgot about your sister’s wedding. It sounds like a great way to ring in the new year.”

  “I couldn’t be happier for her. I’m sure it will be fun.”

  “Of course it will. We’ll be with family and friends.”

  Jack pulled Melissa in for a kiss, and looked into her eyes.

  “It will be fun because you’ll be there. Do you know how much I love you?”

  Melissa smiled, “I think I do, and I love you too. So much. We’re going to have a wonderful New Year’s Eve.”

  * * *

  Thank you so much for reading!

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  Also by Pamela M. Kelley

  Six Months in Montana

  Mistletoe in Montana

  Mischief in Montana

  Match-Making in Montana

  Winter in Ireland

  The Wedding Photo (a friends to lovers romance)

  Trust (Waverly Beach Mystery Series #1)

  Motive (Waverly Beach Mystery Series #2)

  River’s End Ranch Series

  Veterinarian’s Vacation

  Charming Chef

  Cute Cowboy

  Merry Manager

  Bernie’s Birthday

  Missing Melissa

  The Wedding Photo

  Up next, watch for Nashville Dreams set in the country music world. I think of this one as my big soapy saga—true love torn apart by amnesia and a scheming billionaire with political ambitions. Coming very soon…

  About the Author

  Pamela M. Kelley lives in the historic seaside town of Plymouth, MA near Cape Cod and just south of Boston. She has always been a book worm and still reads often and widely, romance, mysteries, thrillers and cook books. She writes contemporary romance and suspense and you'll probably see food featured and possibly a recipe or two. She is owned by a cute little rescue kitty, Bella.

  Connect with Pam

  www.pamelakelley.com

  pam@pamelakelley.com

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  White Bean Holiday Dip Recipe

  We have this every Christmas Eve, along with the lazy lobster casserole. It’s bright green, because of the parsley which also gives it a fresh, bright flavor, along with the lemon juice and garlic. It’s also fast and easy to make.

  2 cans cannellini white beans

  1 lemon

  1 cup flat Italian.parsley

  1 big clove garlic, minced

  2 tablespoon water

  2 tablespoons olive oil

  Dash salt and pepper

  Drain and rinse beans, add to food processor. Juice lemon and add along with garlic and parsley. Pulse until smooth, add water and olive oil and pulse again, scraping down the sides and adding a dash of salt and pepper. Serve with tortilla chips or raw vegetables.

  Lazy Lobster Casserole Recipe

  My family makes this every Christmas Eve. We are fortunate to have access to fresh lobster where I live. If you don’t, you’ll be happy to know, this recipe is equally delicious with just about any kind of seafood, or even cooked chicken! Enjoy.

  1 pound fresh lobster meat, chopped into roughly 1 inch pieces

  1 stick of butter

  1 sleeve of Ritz crackers

  2 tablespoons sherry (optional)

  2 tablespoons chopped, fresh, flat parsley

  Melt 3/4 stick of butter in a small bowl. In a medium casserole dish, place lobster, and pour half the melted butter over and stir to coat. Add crumbs and parsley to the remaining melted butter. Mix well, and then pat over top of lobster meat, until evenly coated. Cut remaining butter into small pieces and dot over top of stuffing. Drizzle sherry evenly over the top, and bake for about 25 minutes at 300 degrees.

  Serves 3-4

  French Onion Soup Wonton Bites

  This is not my recipe. But I’m including the link to the blog where you can find the instructions. They are out of this world delicious. My friend Melissa made them recently for a tailgate party an
d we all went nuts and have been making them ever since. It’s all the flavors of French Onion soup, the caramelized onions, gooey cheese and flaky pastry, which is just a wonton wrapper that you bake in a muffin tin!

  Link to recipe.

  It would make a great appetizer or side dish too for any roast beef dinner. If you make these, or either of the other two recipes, please let me know what you think!