The Twelve Dogs of Christmas

by Lizzie Shane

  “I know many of you have met Ally Gilmore in the last few weeks and seen what an asset she is to our community,” Ben said as Ally approached the steps up to the stage. “It seemed like it was the least we could do to try to help her keep the shelter open.” Ally climbed up to the stage, and Ben came downstage to meet her, Partridge waddling at his side. “So tonight, we aren’t just having our usual pageant. The twenty-second annual Pine Hollow Christmas Pageant is now the First Annual Pine Hollow Christmas Pageant and Furry Friends Fundraiser.”

  Ally froze, staring at him with wide eyes. He caught her hand to keep her from retreating as a ripple went through the audience.

  “Tonight, thanks to generous donations from local businesses, a number of unique Pine Hollow experiences will be up for auction on the town website. We have a fully catered event from the Cup, a three-tiered pastry tower from Magda’s Bakery, a princess party from Deenie Mitchell, as well as private ski lessons, a year’s worth of snowplowing, and many more incredible opportunities. Bid early, bid often, and be generous. We want to keep Furry Friends open for as long as we can, so this is the one time no one will be annoyed with you for being on your phone in the middle of the pageant.” A ripple of laughter went through the crowd. “We’ll have some of our donors up here throughout the night to tell you about the prizes you can win. All auctions close at midnight.”

  Ben’s gaze dropped to where he was holding Ally’s hand. Now for the hard part.

  He could have ended right there. He could have urged her offstage and said the rest in private, but tonight he had something to prove. He knew the town was watching, but he didn’t look at them. He looked right into Ally’s eyes and nervously cleared his throat, the sound loud through the microphone he still clutched in a death grip.

  “For the last few weeks—” Ben broke off, starting again. “I know I’m not the easiest guy to—uh. Crap.” He’d practiced this in his head. He had the words, but now they were all jumbled up.

  “What are you doing?” she whispered.

  She looked so gorgeous. Dark curls knotted on top of her head like they had been the first time she’d stormed into town hall. A red Christmas dress hugged her curves, but it was her eyes that killed him. The dark brown depths watched him warily, as if afraid he was going to hurt her—and he never wanted to hurt her again.

  “I love you,” he blurted loudly into the microphone.

  The audience gasped, including Ally, and words began spilling out of Ben’s mouth.

  “You make everything that overwhelms me feel manageable because I know we can do it together, but that isn’t why I want you—not just because you make it easier…Crap, I’m doing this wrong.…I want to share things with you. Everything. With you. I…You.” He forced himself to breathe. His face felt like it was swelling. Was it possible to go into anaphylactic shock from nerves? “This is all for you. Because you do have a place here—whether it’s with me or not, but I really want it to be with me. I’m sorry. So sorry. About everything. I know I’m not exactly a catch. I know I’d be getting the better end of the bargain, and you have no reason—” He was going to asphyxiate. He was going to pass out from panic. That was dignified.

  “Ben,” she whispered, and he focused on her eyes. The warm, crinkling humor in them grounded him.

  “I’m messing this up,” he whispered back. “Save me?”

  * * *

  Ally stared up at the man of her dreams, trying not to laugh as he bumbled his way like a wrecking ball through his big romantic moment—but she wouldn’t have had it any other way. Ben always wanted everyone to see the poised version, the perfect version. He was annoyed by his flaws and his vulnerabilities. But he was throwing them open to her and everyone who loved him tonight.

  She could feel the audience’s eyes on them. His parents, her grandparents, Deenie and Connor and Elinor and the mayor and her wife. The whole town was here. And he was holding her hand, onstage, in public. But he hadn’t stopped there. Ben West didn’t do anything by half measures.

  His face was also turning a concerning purple color.

  Ally stepped forward, closing the distance between them before the man she loved passed out in front of the entire town. “I’m the lucky one. I’m crazy about you, Ebenezer West,” she told him, close enough now that the microphone caught her words—and all their friends and neighbors sighed.

  He grinned, his eyes dropping to her lips—

  “Uncle Ben!” A hiss from the wings stopped him. They both looked over to where Astrid stood offstage, waving something that looked like a hobo stick. Ally frowned, but Ben just grinned.

  “Right. Sorry. Now.” Ben gave Astrid a nod and she marched onto the stage, carrying a long pole—with a cluster of mistletoe tied to the end. She angled the bough so it dangled directly above their heads, fighting a smile.

  “I screwed up the mistletoe thing before.” Ben looked down at Ally with a crooked grin. “Wanna try again?”

  The smile on her face must have been brighter than the spotlight. She felt like she was glowing, radiating happiness out of every pore. She gripped his lapels, tugging him down to her as she went up on her toes. “Absolutely.”

  Ben pulled her snug against him and smiled through the hoots and calls of encouragement from the audience—one of which sounded distinctly like Deenie. Ally was smiling so hugely she wasn’t sure she’d be able to stop long enough to kiss him. He hesitated with his smile about an inch from hers and slowly slid one hand along the side of her face, threading his fingers into her hair, and the rest of the world faded away. It was just him, and her, and the mistletoe. Ally wet her lower lip and Ben’s gaze tracked the movement. Then he was closing that last inch.

  Her breath suspended, his lips touched hers, and she was home.

  Choirs began singing “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” in her head—and it wasn’t until moments later when Ben lifted his head that she realized they were singing in real life too. She was home. The people of Pine Hollow were cheering. The mayor shouted, “Best Christmas pageant ever!” And Ben called, “Don’t forget to bid on the auction items!” over the melee.

  Then he kissed her again as her mother’s favorite song played.

  And Ally had to agree. Best Christmas ever.

  Chapter Thirty-Eight

  Partridge?!” A shriek of delight echoed off the rafters as Astrid flung herself at him. “Oh my goodness, thank you, Uncle Ben! Thank you, thank you, thank you! You are the best uncle ever in the history of uncles! And Ally!” Astrid pulled away from Ben to throw herself at Ally. “Thank you so much! I know you did this!”

  “I can’t take credit. This was all your uncle,” Ally protested, but Astrid didn’t hear her, too excited to be contained, already wrenching herself away and bounding across the room.

  “Grandma! Grandpa! We’re getting a dog!”

  “I think she likes her present.” Ally tucked herself against his side on the couch, grinning.

  Christmas morning was in full swing. The Gilmores had arrived before dawn—which wasn’t that early in northern Vermont, but it had still been dark out as Astrid rushed everyone into the living room, barely pausing to greet Colby, Partridge, and Copper in her excitement. Astrid had torn through her presents, ricocheting from elation to delight and back again—and that had been before she realized her single greatest wish had been granted. Partridge was here to stay.

  Ben had wrapped a box with a note saying Astrid could keep Partridge—since that seemed safer than trying to put the bulldog in a box. He watched her fling her arms around Partridge. It was hard to stand in the way of that much happiness. He was going to have his work cut out for him keeping her from adopting an entire menagerie if she kept falling in love with the dogs at the shelter—since he knew Astrid wasn’t going to stop volunteering now that Furry Friends would be staying open.

  Right on cue, the Jaws theme played in his pocket, and Ben fished out his phone. This was one email to the town account he wasn’t dreading.

  “U
h oh,” Ally groaned, leaning close. “What is it this time? It better be good for Christmas morning. Did Santa break another roof that needs to be repaired?”

  “Not that I know of.” Ben angled his phone so she could see the screen. “Connor just emailed me the final tally from the fundraiser last night.”

  Ally peered at the numbers, her eyes going round. “Ben…”

  “What do you think? Wanna stick around for a while and run the shelter?”

  Ally met his eyes, her own misty. “You know I’m not going anywhere.”

  They’d talked for hours last night—after he’d made a spectacle of himself at the pageant, they’d snuck backstage and found a convenient curtain for both of them to hide behind.

  They’d worked out a plan, which her grandparents had loved when they’d all discussed it over eggnog after the pageant. The money from the fundraiser would keep the shelter afloat until Ally could put the rest of her plans for turning Furry Friends into a Pine Hollow pet mecca into action. She would rent the farmhouse from her grandparents so they could still afford to move to the Estates right away. Deenie was even considering letting her sublet go and moving in with Ally.

  And maybe down the road, when Ben finished his remodeling projects and he and Astrid were looking for more space…well. There was plenty of space at the farmhouse. But that was a possibility for another day.

  Delia and her wife, Margaret, had stopped them after the pageant last night to put in an application for Peanut, so the shelter’s population was down to Dolce and her unclaimed puppies, but with the money from the fundraiser, the shelter would be well funded for months to come and able to take in more dogs in need.

  Ally had also told him about her plans to sell her photos at a local farmer’s market, where he had no doubt they were going to be a huge hit. The photos she’d framed for him and Astrid were already perched on the bookcase on either side of a framed photo of Katie and Paul. He hadn’t realized what a difference a few photos could make until he saw them and everything felt a little more right, a little more like home. The only thing that could have made them more perfect was if Ally was in them, too.

  The photos were the best present he’d opened all day—though the Keurig “from Astrid,” no doubt with her grandparents’ financial assistance, had definitely come close.

  As Astrid bounded around the room, Ally reached under the tree to snag a wrapped present about the size of a book before returning to his side on the couch.

  “What’s this?”

  “I have one more present for you,” she murmured, her voice low enough not to attract the attention of the rest of their families.

  Ben frowned. “You already gave me the photos. You trying to show up my mug?”

  His gift already paled in comparison to hers. He’d gotten her a coffee mug—a simple white mug with the outline of Vermont in black and the word “home” tucked inside a heart. He’d thought it was cute at the time, since coffee was sort of their thing, but that was before he’d teared up opening the pictures she’d framed of him and Astrid.

  “I love my mug,” she insisted. “And it isn’t a competition. And even if it was, you would win because you saved the entire shelter.” She shoved the present into his hands. “Just open it, Scrooge.”

  He laughed, tearing the paper, but when he pulled off the wrapping his smile froze in confusion. It was a snapshot in a small frame, but he couldn’t figure out why she’d framed a blurry image of the top of a tree and a fraction of roof. It looked like a mistake. He met her eyes and found them sparkling at him.

  “Remember when I was taking pictures of the square, and I slammed into a certain grumpy Scrooge and spilled coffee all over him? Turns out my finger hit the shutter right as I hit you. This”—she pointed to the photo—“is the exact moment we met.”

  A startled laugh burst out of his mouth, and he pulled her close. “Best present ever.”

  “Me? Or the photo?”

  “Guess.” He drew her toward him.

  When they finally broke apart, Ally was flushed. She leaned into his side, watching Astrid roll around on the floor with Partridge. “Now that you’ve saved the shelter and made Astrid’s entire life by letting her have a dog and fixed the roof on the community center and given Pine Hollow a Christmas pageant they’ll be talking about for years to come, what are you going to do for your next trick?”

  “Take a nap?”

  Ally arched a brow. “So no immediate plans to run for office?”

  He groaned. “Delia got to you.”

  “She makes very good points. You would be amazing.”

  “I’m barely keeping it together as it is.”

  Ally rolled her eyes. “What fun is keeping it together? I’m gonna teach you to love the chaos, Ebenezer.”

  “Rescue dogs and Christmas pageants and all?”

  “Absolutely.”

  Four weeks ago he would have protested. He would have fought against that vision of the future tooth and nail. Chaos would have been his nightmare, but now…

  Christmas debris was everywhere. Ally curled against his side. Colby snored at their feet while Copper growled a piece of ribbon into submission. His parents were laughing at a story Ally’s grandmother was telling, complete with exaggerated gestures. It was a loud, messy Christmas morning—and it was perfect.

  “We’ll see,” he grumbled. He had a reputation as a Scrooge to protect, after all. It wouldn’t do to give in too easily—even if he had already filled out the paperwork to be on the ballot.

  Astrid bounced over, flinging herself beneath the tree in search of more presents.

  “Now that you have a dog, I never have to give you another present ever again, right?” Ben teased her. “I seem to remember something about how you would never ask for anything ever again if you could just have a dog.”

  “I don’t know,” Astrid said from her position on the floor, slanting Ally a sideways look. “I wouldn’t mind a little brother.”

  Ben groaned as Ally burst out laughing. “Slow down, kiddo,” he advised. “Take the win.”

  But as Astrid dove back beneath the tree in search of more loot, he looked at Ally, tucked beneath his arm, her eyes glinting at him, full of humor. His heart squeezed—and a baby didn’t sound like such a bad idea. More chaos. More responsibility. More on his already overflowing plate.

  More joy. More laughter. More reasons for his heart to swell.

  Ben smiled, his voice low, just for Ally’s ears, “Maybe Christmas after next.”

  She laughed, but her eyes searched his and her smile grew still. “Maybe,” she whispered back.

  They’d figure it out as they went along, but right now, sitting in his house, with Partridge groaning and rolling onto his back with all four feet flung into the air and Colby snoring loudly, with his parents laughing and Ally’s grandfather nodding off in his chair and Paul and Katie’s picture smiling down at them all…right now Christmas was almost perfect.

  Then he leaned down and kissed her. And it was.

  Acknowledgments

  Writing is a solitary endeavor, but no book makes it into the world without a team behind it, and that is truer for this book than most. Deepest thanks go to my amazing editor, Leah Hultenschmidt, who had the original idea for a small-town dog shelter Christmas book and then helped my first draft become exponentially better with her notes—while geeking out with me over David Tennant. Thank you for making this experience so wonderful—and thanks also to the rest of the team at Forever Books for welcoming me into the Forever family.

  Also to my agent, Michelle Grajkowski, without whom I never would have had the chance to write the Pine Hollow series, thank you so much for your faith.

  Huge thanks to my beta readers—Kali, Kris, and, of course, my mom—who read everything I write and are the best sounding boards in the world as I talk my way through revisions. (And to my dad, who listens even though he has no idea what I’m talking about.) You are saints. All of you.

  Thank you also
to my writer friends who talk me through plot holes, especially Kim Law. You’re the best brainstorming partner I could ever ask for—and if we sometimes get sidetracked talking about The Bachelor, that’s just part of our “process.”

  I also must thank the many dog shelter workers, volunteers, and fosters who so generously shared their stories with me as I was researching this book, especially those at Speak for the Unspoken. There are so many dogs out there in need of good homes, and these people work tirelessly to find each dog their forever home. They are absolute heroes.

  And finally, I need to thank the canine inspirations for this book, the past and present fur babies I was lucky enough to love: Darby, Brady, and Byron. Bruno, Stinker, Tok, Shadow, and Lani. Biscuit, Jelly, Mia, Brianna, and Gracie. May we all be fortunate enough to have a pup wriggle their way into our hearts to stay.

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  About the Author

  Contemporary romance author Lizzie Shane was born in Alaska and still calls the frozen north home, though she can frequently be found indulging her travel addiction. Thankfully, her laptop travels with her, and she has written her way through all fifty states and over fifty countries.

  Lizzie has been honored to win the Golden Heart Award and HOLT Medallion, and has been named a finalist three times for Romance Writers of America’s prestigious RITA Award®, but her main claim to fame is that she lost on Jeopardy! For more about Lizzie and her books, please visit www.lizzieshane.com.

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  A VERY MERRY MATCH

  by Melinda Curtis

  Mary Margaret Sneed usually spends her holiday baking and caroling with her students. But this year, she’s swapped shortbread and sleigh bells to take a second job—one she can never admit to when the town mayor starts courting her. Only the town’s meddling matchmakers have determined there’s nothing a little mistletoe can’t fix…and if the Widows Club has its way, Mary Margaret and the mayor may just get the best Christmas gift of all this year. Includes a bonus story by Hope Ramsay!