by Belle, Josie
Maggie felt her face flame hot. Sam was flirting with her! Gone was her usual ability to verbally spar with him. She felt as if her tongue were stuck to the roof of her mouth like she’d just eaten a peanut butter sandwich. As if he knew this, he grinned and his eyes crinkled in the corners while dimples bracketed his smile.
“See you around, Maggie,” he said, and he winked at her.
Maggie stood staring after him until he rounded the corner. What was she going to do with that man? Since he had confessed a month ago that he still cared about her and not just as a friend, she’d had no idea how to deal with him. Did he mean it? Was he just playing with her, trying to get her guard down? She didn’t know.
There had been an evening a while back where she and the GBGs had been in Maggie’s shop prepping for her big opening. They’d spotted Pete Daniels, who owned the local coffee shop, the Daily Grind, and Sam both headed toward her shop carrying flowers. Given that Maggie had just been released from the hospital, the girls had deduced that they were both bringing flowers for her. They had been wrong.
Pete had arrived at her shop with his peach-colored roses and a hug of sympathy for what she had been through. He had asked her to dinner previously, just as friends, so Maggie wasn’t surprised by the gesture. Sam and his calla lilies had never arrived, so Maggie had figured the calla lilies had been for someone else. She had never found out who the lucky girl was. It had left Maggie in the awkward position of putting Pete off while she tried to figure what was happening between her and Sam, because even though Pete had said dinner was just as friends, she had the feeling it had been more than that. Was Sam seeing someone else? He certainly seemed to be in a better mood these days. Her usual pipeline into the local gossip had been sadly lacking in information on their handsome sheriff.
In the meantime, Sam seemed to turn up regularly at her shop, and he was always charming, but he never broached the subject of them being more than friends again. Maggie wondered if perhaps he was over her once and for all and really did just view her as a friend he could tease and flirt with, a friend who was safe. The thought was depressing.
The door to the stationery shop burst open and out poured the GBGs, each of them carrying an armload of wrapping paper. Maggie shook her head, dispelling thoughts of Sam, and focused on her friends.
“Foil, reversible, and Janice threw in two spools of matching ribbon,” Claire said, holding out her bag for inspection. The others did the same, and Maggie was pleased with the haul. This would make it more than cost-effective for her to offer free gift wrap.
“You are a cheater, Maggie Gerber!” Summer shouted from the front door. “A big, fat sneaky cheater! I’ll get you yet.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Maggie said, careful to keep her face neutral. “Happy shopping!”
“Oh, shove it up your chimney!” Summer bellowed, and slammed the door shut.
They were all silent for just a moment until Laura let out a giggle and the rest began to snicker, too, causing Joanne to bust out laughing. Claire looped her arm through Joanne’s and dragged her away with the others following as they hurried back to Maggie’s shop.
Laura helped Maggie set up her window display, advertising the free gift wrap with any purchase. They chose a big square box that they wrapped in gold foil and then used a green velvet ribbon as an accent. Laura came up with the idea to prop open the top of the box and put the free gift wrap message inside the lid.
It was just after lunch when Sandy, Maggie’s niece, and her three-year-old son, Josh, dropped by the shop.
“Auntie Maggie!” Josh cried as he raced in the front door and ran across the shop to her.
Maggie turned and opened her arms, scooping Josh up into a warm hug. He had just turned three, and she was sure he had grown at least an inch since she’d seen him at breakfast that morning. She planted a kiss on his blond head and set him back down.
“How’s my big guy?” she asked.
“We saw a train,” he said. His eyes were huge, as if he was still enthralled by what he had seen.
“Where?” she asked him.
“Hammer store,” he said. Maggie looked over his head to find Sandy smiling.
“Hardware store,” Sandy explained. “They put up a huge Christmas display with a miniature village and several model trains that they have running nonstop. I really thought we were going to be there all day.”
“Oh, I love those little villages,” Maggie said. “I’ll have to go and check it out.”
“Now?” Josh asked hopefully. “We go now?”
“Auntie Maggie has to stay in her shop,” Sandy said.
“She does, but I don’t,” Laura said. She knelt down on Josh’s level, and asked, “Do you want to show me the trains?”
“Yes, yes, yes,” Josh said, and he jumped up and down. “And maybe we’ll see Santa.”
Sandy gave him a worried look. “Josh, we talked about that.”
He looked at his mother with such stubborness that Maggie raised her eyebrows and smiled at her niece.
“Oh, wow,” she said. “Sandy, you looked just like that when you were three and determined to get your way. You about drove your mother crazy.”
“Remind me to send her a sympathy card,” Sandy said with a sigh.
“What’s the trouble?” Maggie asked while Laura led Josh over to the little play area Maggie had set up in the corner of the shop to occupy kids who came shopping with their moms.
Sandy let out a sad sigh. “He wants to ask Santa to bring his dad home. I’ve explained to him that his dad is a soldier and he can’t just up and leave Afghanistan, but Josh has his heart set on asking Santa. Ugh, I don’t want the magic of the holidays to be ruined for him because Santa can’t grant his wish.”
“Oh, sweetie,” Maggie gave her niece a hug. “I’m sorry. That is a tough one.”
Sandy hugged her back. “I never appreciated how complicated parenthood could be.”
“Welcome to the club,” Maggie said. “Not to be a complete downer, but as they get bigger, their problems do, too.”
Sandy sighed and glanced at her son with a worried gaze.
Maggie watched Laura playing with Josh, and she realized how similar their childhoods were, except that Laura’s father had been a police officer killed in the line of duty when she’d been even younger than Josh. Maggie could only hope that Sandy’s husband, Jake, made it home and got to be the father to Josh that her Charlie had never gotten the chance to be to Laura.
When Jake had been deployed, Sandy and Josh had come to live with Maggie. Sandy’s own mom, Maggie’s sister, had moved to Florida several years ago to take care of their aging mother. It worked out for both of them. Maggie could help with Josh so Sandy could go to school, and it kept the house from being too quiet after Laura had left for college.
“We’ll make Christmas special,” Maggie said. “No matter what, we’ll keep the magic alive for Josh.”
“Thanks, Aunt Maggie,” she said. “With Mom living in Florida with Nana, I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
“Speaking of your mom,” Maggie said, “when are they planning to arrive?”
“Christmas Eve,” Sandy said. “Which is only two weeks away. It’s going to be a full house.”
“That’s all right,” Maggie said. “That’s what the holidays are all about.”
“Well, on that note, if Laura is serious about watching Josh, I’m going to attack my shopping list,” Sandy said. She gave Maggie another squeeze and then said good-bye to Laura and Josh.
Laura gave Sandy a five-minute head start before she caved in to Josh’s repeated requests to go back to the hammer store. Maggie watched them go. There was something very familiar about seeing Laura and Josh together, and she realized it was almost like watching herself twenty years ago.
The bells on the door rang, and Maggie looked away from the window to greet her customer. The pretty woman who entered was almost unrecognizable. Oh, she still wore glasses and dressed conser
vatively, but there was a new assertiveness in her stride and a sparkle in her eye that hadn’t been there before.
Bianca Madison, presently the richest woman in town, had been sledgehammered by a boatload of tragedy over the past few weeks, but instead of quitting she’d dug in her heels and stood her ground. Maggie was proud of her and was pleased to see that she was holding her own.
“Hi, Bianca,” Maggie said. “How are you?”
“I’m doing great,” Bianca said.
Bianca beamed at her, and Maggie blinked. Bianca had been through an awful lot over the past few months, not the least of which had been the death of her mother.
“Is there any particular reason?” Maggie asked.
“Yes. In memory of my mother, I’ve decided to uphold the tradition of the annual open house, but this year it’s going to be a holiday ball,” Bianca announced. “I’m going to have it the weekend before Christmas, and everyone in town is invited.”
Chapter 3
“Are you sure?” Maggie asked. “You’ve been through an awful lot, and a ball is a huge undertaking. And I’m sure you’ve noticed it, but the weekend before Christmas is next week.”
“Yes, I know. It’s perfect. It won’t give me a second to be sad. Doc, er, I mean Dad and I talked about it, and he and Max agree that planning a party might keep me from missing my mother so much during the holidays. Besides, I think she would have wanted me to continue the tradition.”
Maggie studied the young woman before her. “I think it’s an excellent idea. What can I do to help?”
“Stock as many ball gowns as you can,” Bianca said. “It’s going to be black tie.”
“Oh, this is going to be fun,” Maggie said.
“Do you think so?” Bianca asked uncertainly.
“Yes, absolutely,” she said.
Maggie turned and scanned the area of her shop reserved for formal wear. She had a decent collection started, but she could have used about twice as many gowns.
“I just wish I had more formal wear in house right now. I wasn’t planning to load up until prom/wedding season,” Maggie said.
“I’m so glad you said that, because I happen to have a truckload of gowns that I hope to donate to your shop,” Bianca said. “They were Mother’s and Grandmother’s and some of my old ones, too. Given that I’m a half foot taller than they were and a few pounds heavier than I used to be, there’s just no way I’m ever going to fit into any of them again.”
“Are you sure?” Maggie asked.
Bianca nodded.
“I don’t think I can take them as a donation,” Maggie said. “Why don’t we consign them? I mean, your mother’s and grandmother’s gowns are vintage couture. I’m sure they’re worth a fortune. You have to take a percentage of the sales, or I won’t be able to carry them in good conscience.”
“No,” Bianca said. “I want to do this. Consider this a thank-you for all that you’ve done for me.”
“That is very generous, but Bianca, your half sister is still trying to claim the entire estate is hers,” Maggie said. She hated to mention it, but she felt she had to. “I don’t want to see you penniless.”
Bianca smiled at her. “I won’t be. I have great faith in my attorney.”
“So things are going well with you and Max?” Maggie asked.
Bianca’s face turned a charming shade of pink, and Maggie smiled. Max Button, who had been a friend of Maggie’s since he’d tutored Laura in high school math, was the local boy genius. Although now that he was in his twenties, he wasn’t exactly a boy anymore. Maggie had known that he and Bianca had begun seeing each other. They were the perfect pair, and Maggie was pleased that it seemed to be going so well.
“Still, until the court settles the matter, I insist you take a commission,” Maggie said. “I won’t feel right about it otherwise.”
Bianca gave her a put-upon look that resembled Max at his most exasperated. Maggie laughed.
“Oh, you are spending a lot of time with Max, aren’t you?” she asked.
Bianca’s blush deepened into a brighter pink. “Is it that obvious?”
“You just made the exact same face he makes when I exasperate him,” Maggie said. “Which I do often.”
“Max adores you,” Bianca said.
“And I him,” Maggie said. She put her hand over Bianca’s, and said, “I’m glad you two have found each other.”
Bianca smiled and nodded. “He’s quit delivering pizza, and he’s gone to work for Judge Harding.”
Maggie raised her eyebrows. “Slacker, ever-student Max has taken a real job?”
Bianca nodded. “And he’s got me playing the piano again.”
Maggie was so excited she came around the counter and hugged Bianca hard. “This is wonderful. Oh, but what about his art history degree?”
“He’s finishing it,” she said. “I told him he didn’t have to get a real job for me, but he said I gave him a reason to grow up.”
Maggie leaned close and whispered, “Do not tell him I said this, but I think I might miss seeing him at the Frosty Freeze in the summer.”
“Me, too,” Bianca sighed. “But he swears this is what he wants.”
She sounded bewildered, and Maggie chuckled. “It sounds like he’s in love.”
Bianca clapped her hands over her cheeks and her eyes widened behind her glasses. “Do you really think so?”
Maggie nodded, and Bianca dropped her hands from her face and grabbed Maggie’s hands in hers. “Oh, I hope you’re right, because I am head over heels in love with him. He’s just the smartest, funniest, nicest . . .”
“Bianca, are you talking about me again?”
Maggie and Bianca spun to face the door, where Doc Franklin had entered the shop without them noticing.
“Hi, Dad,” Bianca said. The name sounded awkward on her tongue, and Maggie figured it was going to take a while for Bianca to get used to having a dad again. “We were just having silly girl talk.”
“Well, silly girl, how about our lunch date?” Doc asked.
“Oh, that’s right,” Bianca said. “I’m sorry, I got caught up talking to Maggie and completely forgot.”
“No worries,” he said. “Is there any chance you can join us for lunch, Maggie?”
“Thanks, but I brought my own, and I’ve got to hang around here,” she said.
“Okay, how about you come back to work for me, then?” Doc asked.
“If only I could fit four more hours into my days,” Maggie said. “I’d be back in a heartbeat.”
Maggie had been Doc Franklin’s bookkeeper for over twenty years, but after buying her resale store, she’d had to quit working for Doc to give the shop her full attention. Doc was not taking it well and had offered her the old job back every time she’d seen him since.
“Your job will be there if ever you change your mind,” he offered.
“Thanks, Doc,” Maggie said.
“You’re not going to change your mind, are you?”
“No,” she said.
He heaved a sigh, but Maggie knew it was more for effect than anything else.
Bianca’s phone chimed, and she fished it out of her purse and glanced at the display.
“Oh, it’s a text from Tyler Fawkes,” she said. “He’s agreed to drop off the dresses—if you are willing to take them?”
“On consignment,” Maggie said, and Bianca nodded and looked at her dad. “I’ll just call him and tell him it’s a go, and I’ll be ready for lunch.”
Doc nodded and watched his daughter step away to make the call with the look of a proud dad. He had only discovered she was his daughter the month before, and although it had caused a major rift in his marriage, he seemed to be making the most of having Bianca in his life.
“You and Bianca seem to be getting on,” Maggie said.
“She’s a delight,” he said. “We have so much in common; it’s really been amazing getting to know her. I wish Alice would . . .”
His voice trailed off, and
Maggie patted his hand. Doc had had an affair with Bianca’s mother, but he hadn’t known that Bianca was his child until Bianca’s mother died. Given that his wife, Alice, had been unable to have children, the thing she’d wanted most in life, she took his having a child with someone else as the ultimate betrayal, and she had left him.
Maggie couldn’t blame Alice, and neither could Doc, but it was clear to Maggie that Doc still loved his wife, and he struggled with losing her.
“Give her time,” Maggie said.
“I don’t suppose I have any choice,” he said.
Doc forced a smile as Bianca rejoined them.
“It’s all set,” Bianca said. “Tyler will deliver the dresses today, which is perfect, as the invitations will go out tomorrow.”
“I can’t wait to do my window display,” Maggie said. “This is going to be the best holiday ball ever.”
Invitations were not necessary, as word of Bianca Madison’s ball began to spread through St. Stanley with the roar of a wildfire.
Maggie and Tyler had just finished unloading his truck into her storage area at the back of the shop when Joanne arrived to ask Maggie if she’d heard.
Maggie waved good-bye to Tyler and closed and locked the door behind him. It had been a long day, and she was ready to go home and snuggle Josh while they shared some hot chocolate and cookies.
Joanne’s eyes were huge as she took in Maggie’s storage room. “Bianca gave you all of these to sell?”
“Yep,” Maggie said. “I’m selling them on a consignment basis.”
Joanne fingered a gorgeous chocolate velvet gown with an empire waist and cap sleeves. With her long, dark hair, she’d look like a heroine right out of a Jane Austen novel if she wore the gown.
“Do you want me to put that one aside for you?” Maggie asked. “I’m going to be doing inventory tomorrow.”
Joanne took it off of its rack and held it up to her front. She glanced up at Maggie, and her face crumpled.
“Don’t bother,” she wailed. “I’m too fat for it.”
Maggie’s eyes went wide. “Oh, honey, don’t be silly. You’re not too fat. You’re just pregnant.”