Sleigh of Hope

by Wendy Lindstrom

  “Of course,” Adam replied. At one time Radford may have issued the directive because he questioned Adam’s character, but the man was just looking out for his daughter.

  “All right then,” Radford said, putting his hand on Adam’s shoulder and nudging him toward the sleigh. “Rebecca can manage the team if you run into trouble.”

  Adam faced Radford man-to-man. “There won’t be any trouble. I promise.”

  With a confident nod, Radford headed to the sleigh. “Let me fetch your aunt and send you on your way then.”

  As Adam greeted his aunt Evelyn and the kids, Rebecca remained on the seat, her face reflecting the joy he felt inside.

  He still couldn’t believe her father was loaning him their best sleigh and trusting him and Rebecca to take it out alone. Of all the things he could have wanted for Christmas, being with Rebecca topped the list.

  Within five minutes he sat beside Rebecca easing the sleigh down the street while their families waved them off.

  As soon as they had pulled away from the house, she giggled. “Did you think Daddy would ever do this?”

  “Not in a million years,” he said, drinking in her rosy cheeks and sparkling eyes.

  “He thinks a lot of you, Adam.”

  Not long ago Adam would have expected to hear anything but that sentiment from her father. They hadn’t gotten off to the best start. But as he gazed at Rebecca’s beautiful face he knew loving her was worth all the risk and heartache.

  “We decorated the sleigh this morning then Daddy drove over to Cavneys’ farm to get that barrel of cider that’s strapped to the back.”

  He nodded, wondering if Radford would be this kind when Adam asked to marry his daughter.

  “Mrs. Cavney was happy that we will offer cider at our stops.”

  At what age would he consider Rebecca old enough to marry?

  She bumped against him, jarring him out of his amorous stupor. “You better watch the road or I’ll have to take the reins.”

  He grinned. “I’ll keep us safe, sweet Rebecca. Today and always,” he said, enjoying her surprise over his endearment. Although he thought of her as his sweet Rebecca, he’d never shared that with her, until now.

  Now he felt like a man sitting beside his sweetheart. He guided the team onto Main Street, vowing to honor Rebecca and her father’s wishes by being a gentleman and by keeping them safe. But someday, when he and Rebecca were married, he would borrow this sleigh and take her for a ride – just the two of them. He would tell her how her presence lifted his spirit, how the sight of her made his knees weak, that with her by his side he could face anything.

  “We’re here,” she said, smiling up at him.

  “Where?” he asked, acting lost and confused.

  Laughing, she reached for the reins. “I’ll need to drive after all.”

  “You might have to if you keep looking at me like I’m a delicious Christmas cookie you want to nibble on.”

  Her laughter floated across the winter landscape as they pulled up at Anna’s Hermitage House. Rebecca’s sweet laugh had always filled him with joy, but there was a part of him that hurt knowing Leo wouldn’t be with them.

  Boyd and Claire lived across the street and Boyd came over to help load the sleigh. Anna and the ladies had organized the baskets according to their list, so each home would get exactly what was needed most.

  It took twenty minutes for Boyd and Adam to load the sleigh so the first items out would be on top and last out on the bottom. When they finished, the sleigh was mounded like rising dough in a bread pan.

  As Adam surveyed the crates, pails, baskets, and barrels he felt immense gratitude to everyone who contributed. “I guess it’s time to go,” he said, excited to make the deliveries, but unable to shake the feeling that Leo should be with them.

  As Boyd helped Anna onto the seat they heard a shout down the street.

  Cyrus rolled up in a loaded wagon. Leo sat beside him, hailing Adam as he jumped to the ground. “Got room for me?” he asked, surveying the overloaded sleigh.

  Surprised, Adam looked up at Cyrus sitting atop the wagon, covered with snow and smiling like a boy. “We got several loads of slabs delivered this morning. I’ll finish this one up now. There are a lot of happy families in town because of you, young man.”

  “You should have seen their faces,” Leo said. He strode through several inches of snow and stopped beside the sleigh. “I’ll tell you about it while we deliver the baskets. I can go along, can’t I?”

  Happiness expanded Adam’s chest. Leo wasn’t just asking to ride in the sleigh, he was offering the friendship that Adam had nearly destroyed.

  But the sleigh was full and there wasn’t room for four on the driver’s seat. If he took Rebecca, Anna had to go along. That wouldn’t leave room for Leo.

  The situation knotted Adam’s gut. He wanted to be with Rebecca more than anything in the world. But Leo was offering friendship that Adam could not turn away again.

  Rebecca was responsible for getting the sleigh and the festive decorations. How could he ask her to stay behind? He didn’t know, but that’s what he had to do.

  “Hold up,” Boyd said. He looked up at Anna. “Why don’t you stay home and let Leo ride along with Adam and Rebecca. Cyrus and I will follow behind the sleigh and drop the rest of these slabs along the way. We can keep an eye on things.”

  “I’ll be sorry to miss the fun, but not sorry to stay in my warm kitchen,” she said, allowing Boyd to help her down.

  Adam couldn’t contain his jubilant hoot as he playfully wrestled Leo.

  “When you two quit your dancing, I could use a cup of that cider,” Boyd said, heading toward the cider keg.

  Turning Leo loose, Adam helped Rebecca pour cider into tiny canning jars from the crate her mother had sent along for that purpose.

  “This is going to mean so much to our neighbors. Thank you all for everything.” He turned to Rebecca and Leo. “Thank you for helping.”

  Anna hugged him with tears in her eyes. “Thank you, Adam. Contributing is healing.”

  “And exhausting,” Boyd said, making everyone laugh. True to form, he was keeping the moment light for the women who needed no reminder of their own troubles. “It’s time to get moving. You’ve got a lot of stops to make before supper.” He turned his empty jar bottom up and placed it in the crate.

  “I will see you all later,” Anna said. The ladies returned their empty jars then waved a joyful goodbye as Adam drove the sleigh out Main Street toward their first destination. Boyd and Cyrus followed far behind, a nod to Adam’s integrity and allowing him and his friends to make this journey on their own.

  “I didn’t expect you to come along,” Adam said to Leo, who was seated on the other side of Rebecca.

  Leo’s smile faded. “Do you mind?”

  “Of course not, you dolt!”

  “Good. I was worried I’d be too late to catch you,” he said. “Mr. Darling took me to the orphanage to see my friends before we went back to the mill for that last load.”

  Rebecca exchanged an incredulous look with Adam before she turned and hugged Leo. “I’m so glad you got to see your friends!”

  Adam’s chest tightened for an instant but he swept the jealous thought from his mind. There was nothing wrong with Rebecca and Leo becoming friends.

  “Were they surprised to see you?” she asked.

  Leo nodded. “Sure were. Mrs. Darling made up a basket for them and the other six kids there. They will all get a nice Christmas Eve dinner and new winter scarves. I promised my friends I’d help them find a home like Benny and I got.”

  “I’ll help, too,” Adam said, and he meant it, even if that home was his own.

  “Here’s our first stop,” Rebecca said, pointing to a small clapboard house on Chestnut Street where a pile of slabs and a mess of sawdust sat in the side yard and curls of smoke rose from the chimney. “Looks like they will have a warm fire for Christmas.”

  Adam pulled the sleigh up in front.
“Let’s all deliver the first basket together,” he said.

  They carried two baskets, a sack of flour, and a crate of canned goods to the door.

  When Mrs. Sackett opened the door and saw the three of them offering her family a Christmas meal and several more after that, she burst into tears. Three boys appeared in the doorway behind her, curious to see what was making their mother weep.

  Mr. Sackett rounded the corner of the house with a saw in his hand. When he absorbed what was happening, he shook his head, his expression a mix of suspicion and disbelief. “Who sent this?” he asked in a way that made Adam nervous. Men like Mr. Sackett were proud and didn’t take kindly to charity.

  Adam didn’t want to offend anybody. He exchanged a concerned look with Leo and Rebecca, hoping for guidance, but they said nothing. “Um... all this is from... um, well, it’s from the Sleigh of Hope.” As he gestured to the magnificent sleigh behind him, Leo and Rebecca stepped aside.

  The eyes of the Sackett boys widened and they jostled each other trying to get a closer look.

  “We would like to share a cup of cider with all of you,” Rebecca said, giving Mr. Sackett the smile she used when wanting to sway her father to her way of thinking. “The Sleigh of Hope is about spreading hope and goodwill. Please share in the spirit of our adventure and pass it along to others.”

  Adam knew the instant Mr. Sackett gave into Rebecca’s sweet invitation. His shoulders lowered and a resigned look came to his eyes, as if he were tired and welcomed a helping hand wherever it came from. “Cider sounds nice,” he said, nodding to his family that it was all right to accept their gifts.

  While Mrs. Sackett and the boys took everything inside, Rebecca and Leo ran to the sleigh to pour the cider.

  Adam waited outside because he had something to say to Mr. Sackett. “There’s a big pile of slabs at Old Gus’s place that should be a bit easier for you to cut up than the items in his old furniture shop. I don’t suppose you’ve been charging to help him out.”

  “Course not!” Mr. Sackett said, his brows slashing downward, revealing the level of offense he’d taken to Adam’s comment.

  “I didn’t think you were,” he said, looking Mr. Sackett straight in the eye. “There’s no shame in helping one another,” he said. “That’s all this is, Mr. Sackett. Friends helping friends. Neighbors helping neighbors. We give what we can. We receive with gratitude when we must.”

  For several seconds Gordie Sackett said nothing, just looked at Adam as if he were trying to settle things in his mind. Finally, he sighed as if shrugging a great weight off his shoulders. “I always think it’s my elders that have wisdom to share.” He watched Leo and Rebecca return carrying five jars of cider, their faces reflecting their joy of giving. “Guess there’s something to be learned from everyone.”

  “I agree, Mr. Sackett.” Adam had learned many lessons this Christmas season, the most important from Cora and Benny who welcomed each other without judgment or jealousy. And he’d learned from Leo, who had nothing to give but his friendship.

  He carried that spirit of love and generosity from house to house as they delivered baskets and pails and sacks and crates of goods to families in desperate need of hope. Sleigh bells signaled their arrival, calling those families to their windows and doors, inviting them to enjoy a cup of cider and partake of the gifts brought by the Sleigh of Hope. With each departure, Adam received more than he gave.

  Three hours later they pulled up at the greenhouse where their families were waiting to celebrate with them, and Adam finally understood the answer to the puzzle his father had given him.

  His soft laugh drew questioning looks from Leo and Rebecca.

  “Is something funny?” she asked.

  He shook his head. It wasn’t funny at all that he had been so thick-headed and blind. “The gift of each Christmas is giving,” he said. “My dad was trying to explain that the day we started working on Cavneys’ home, but I didn’t get it until today.”

  He reached around Rebecca and extended his hand to Leo. “This is long overdue, but I’m sorry about... everything,” he said. “If you and Benny think you want to come back, I promise to be a much better brother than I’ve been so far.”

  “I don’t want to be your brother,” Leo said, punching Adam’s shoulder. “I want to be your best friend.”

  Adam’s throat filled with emotion. “I’d like that.” He rubbed his smarting bicep. “Are you sure?”

  Leo hopped out of the sleigh and looked up at them. “The Darlings are good folks. Mr. Darling knows more about music than I could ever hope to learn, but I sure enjoy hearing about it and playing his guitar. He says he’ll take me to the orphanage to see my friends, and even try to find homes for them. Mrs. Darling’s mothering is just what Benny needs, and now that she’s watching Cora each week, he still has a playmate. I could do without all Mrs. Darling’s fussing, but I like the way she talks,” he said with a grin, letting Adam know that he enjoyed Tansy’s fawning and just didn’t want to admit it. “It’s a good home for me and Benny.”

  Suddenly, no one had anything to say. Breaking the awkward silence Rebecca said, “We should get the team settled.”

  Spurred to action, Adam guided the sturdy matched bays into an enclosed shelter at the side of the greenhouse that would keep them out of the weather until Radford took his family home for the night.

  While he helped Rebecca out of the sleigh, Leo waited outside, shouting for them to hurry up because he was starving.

  Adam smiled down at his sweetheart, knowing Leo was going to be a little hungrier by the time he and Rebecca left the shelter. Neither of them spoke but her eyes, shining in the lantern light, welcomed him. Heart pounding, he lowered his head.

  Before his lips touched hers, something hit the back of his head with a solid thump and spray of snow that covered both of them.

  Rebecca sputtered and wiped the snow off her face.

  Adam felt the back of his head, covered with packed snow, and knew instantly what happened.

  Leo stood at the shelter entrance laughing. “What?” he said, trying to look innocent. “You said the gift of Christmas is giving.”

  Rebecca laughed, but Adam could only shake his head. “If it takes the rest of my life, Sullivan, I’ll pay you back for this.”

  “Well, I plan to be around that long, so you’ll have plenty of opportunity,” Leo said. “Your uncles are pulling up. Now that I’ve kept you two out of trouble, snuff those lanterns so we can go eat. I’m starving.”

  “You’re always starving,” Adam said, wondering if he should throttle Leo or thank him.

  The sleigh was empty now, but as Adam put out the lanterns, his heart was full in a way he’d never experienced.

  He escorted Rebecca out of the horse shelter, knowing Leo and Rebecca’s friendship was the best gift of all.

  THE END

  Thank you for reading Sleigh of Hope. If you enjoyed this story please consider posting an online review, which can help other readers find great books and promote an author or book you love.

  I’m planning to release Adam and Rebecca’s book in 2013. Sign up for New Book Alert at www.wendylindstrom.com. You can also find me on Twitter @WendyLindstrom and Facebook www.Facebook.com/AuthorWendyLindstrom

  You will find more Grayson Christmas “moments” in Shades of Honor, Lips That Touch Mine, and Kissing in the Dark.

  Read more about Adam and Rebecca in Kissing In The Dark at www.wendylindstrom.com/work/kissing-in-the-dark

  Series Order:

  Shades of Honor

  http:/www.wendylindstrom.com/work/shades-of-honor/

  The Longing

  http://www.wendylindstrom.com/work/the-longing/

  Lips That Touch Mine

  http://www.wendylindstrom.com/work/lips-that-touch-mine/

  Kissing in the Dark

  http://www.wendylindstrom.com/work/kissing-in-the-dark/

  Sleigh of Hope

  http://www.wendylindstrom.com/work/sleigh-of-hope/ />
  The Grayson Brothers Boxed Set (4 books)

  http://www.wendylindstrom.com/grayson-brothers-series-boxed-set/

  Dear Readers: Even with many layers of editing, mistakes can slip through. If you encounter typos or errors in this book, please send them to me at http://www.wendylindstrom.com (via contact link).

  AUTHOR'S NOTE

  Upstate New York is a beautiful, timber-rich area, populated by sugar maples that explode with color every autumn. Abundant forests of black walnut, oak, and majestic pines sweep down across mountain foothills and give way to miles of sweet-smelling grape vineyards that skirt the shores of Lake Erie. Creeks and gorges cut winding paths from mountain to shore, bringing water and power and life to towns built along their banks. In the midst of this land you’ll find the quaint village of Fredonia where this story takes place.

  I spent many years living in Fredonia, learning about its rich history and enjoying life in this small connected community.

  As I wrote Sleigh of Hope and revisited Fredonia and the Grayson family, I returned to a time when families and communities came together to help each other, to promote peace and goodwill, and to give hope to those in need.

  For the sake of historical accuracy, the Grayson men wouldn’t have hunted turkey for their Christmas meal. By the late nineteenth century wild turkeys were reduced to extremely low levels because of excessive logging and farming that reduced their habitat. As agriculture shifted west after the American Civil War the woodlands gradually recovered and New York once again became a beautiful, timber-rich state with plentiful wild turkey.

  Thank you for indulging the small liberties I’ve taken with the setting and history of Fredonia—a wonderfully romantic setting for a story of love and hope.

  Peace and warmest wishes.

  ~WL

  Electronic Books by Wendy Lindstrom

  Historical Romances:

  SHADES OF HONOR

  THE LONGING

  LIPS THAT TOUCH MINE

  KISSING IN THE DARK

  SLEIGH OF HOPE

  GRAYSON BROTHERS BOXED SET