Homecoming for Christmas

by Ciara Knight

  “Why’d he do that?” I asked.

  Mom snagged her little fanny pack that she still used from 1993, slipped it around her waist, and headed for the door. “You’ll have to call him to find out.”

  Dad opened the front door for my mom, always the gentleman even after thirty something years of marriage. “News flash, you might not always be right.”

  They left me standing in my empty space, alone. Something I wasn’t ready for, so I was thankful that it was time to shower and change and head to Blacktail Mountain.

  I locked up and eyed the closed knitting store. In the front window, I spotted something red and white. I crossed the street and a sign came into view. My heart lurched at the sight of the For Sale sign in the front window of Nana’s Knitting. He was selling out. Not just leaving Christmas Mountain, but selling his grandmother’s store. My anger turned to bone crushing feeling of true loss. No matter how many times I said it out loud to convince myself Brent wouldn’t be returning that sign was the final message I couldn’t ignore. He really was gone.

  Twenty-One

  The massive lobby of the Pine Tree Inn with massive wood beams and a large stone hearth made me feel like a Christmas mouse in a mansion. This place screamed big resort, big dreams. Big money. I’d be lucky if someone even spoke to me about a possible partnership with the outdoor adventure company once it was up and running. My only issue was that I needed a name.

  A grown woman with brown hair stood next to one of the massive real decorated trees. It was Faith, but not the Faith from eight years ago. She had been brainwashed by Coco Chanel.

  I opened my arms and welcomed Faith into a hug. “It’s so good to see you.”

  She squeezed me tight. “It’s good to see you, too.”

  We stepped back eyeing each other for a moment. She was dressed up and looked amazing. I’d lived in bathing suits and jean shorts for years. I’d only recently exchanged them for my pink hiking boots, jeans, and flannel. Emma entered the lobby dressed like a model. Mental note, request friendship clothing makeover for the near future.

  “I feel like I’ve died and woken up in a winter wonderland,” Faith said in a wistful tone.

  I eyed the ornate decorations and posh furnishings. “But for wealthy people.”

  Emma watched our gazes flutter around the grand area. “Follow me.” She took our hands and weaved us through the guests in the lobby. We entered a back door labeled for employees only and I felt like I was breaking a rule. I liked the three of us hand-in-hand like old times, but with less angst. Okay, still some boy angst remained, but that wasn’t between us anymore. Different men, different day, different lifetime.

  We weaved through a corridor like a secret passage way and exited into a kitchen. Not just any kitchen. It was Biltmore Estates meets Top Chef.

  The kitchen bustled with activity, but she kept hold of us until we reached a small table in the corner topped with designer, scrumptious looking deserts.

  She released us and waved us to the table. “Ladies.”

  I gladly took my special seat and felt like a princess. A mountain climbing, boot wearing princess, but no less special.

  “I can’t believe you made top chef here.” Faith scanned the room with a look of a child at Disney World on Christmas Eve.

  Emma joined us and offered her soft, humble smile. “So, what’s going on with Brent, Ash?”

  “Nothing that I want to talk about right now. I just want to eat my feelings.”

  Emma and Faith exchanged glances, but I wasn’t ready for their questions, so I picked up my fork and dotted the white table cloth with its prongs.

  I wanted to ask Emma about Adam, but I wasn’t sure how much Faith knew. Maybe she’d share if I did. “Me, too. I already told Emma, so I might as well tell you. Brent Donnelly made his great escape. He was supposed to go in with me on a business venture, but he hasn’t called or texted or emailed anything since his no show to sign the lease on the store. He must’ve attended the Ash Academy for Avoidance.”

  Both girls offered their wounded puppy expressions and pats on the hand.

  “It’s fine,” I mumbled.

  “Is there anything we can do to help?” Emma asked.

  “Not unless you have connections for my new outdoor adventure business,” I said in a teasing tone.

  “I’ll text you the GM’s info. She’s savvy and is always looking for more services to offer the guests, so she’ll at least listen to your pitch.”

  Hope entered my life for the briefest of moments for the first time in several days. “I was joking, but thanks.”

  We each devoured a pastry or two in silence. I felt like we were old dogs licking our wounds in the corner of the barn. I cleared my throat, “You are an amazing chef. If my grandmother is right and the way to a man is through his taste buds, you’ll have no trouble snagging Adam.”

  “I wish it were that easy,” Emma glanced around the Kitchen then leaned forward. “Not a good place to chat about him since he is a guest here right now.”

  “How scandalous,” Faith whispered, and we all giggled like school girls, it echoed from our past around the kitchen.

  “What about you, Faith? Anyone we should be whispering about in your life?”

  Faith shook her head “Oh no, you’re not getting any tid bits of my love life until you spill.

  Faith and I bantered back and forth like we were still in sixth grade discussing Bully Bobbie and his beastly brotherhood. The three boys who always teased the girls until they moved away in eighth grade.

  The thirty minutes flew by and I was sorry to say goodbye to my friends. The words Ms. King had us receipt all those years ago echoed in my mind. She had been right. We had a friendship that had lasted all these years even when we were apart. We had been called back to each other and I believed I’d be friends with them forever.

  That night I was called home as if a siren sang to me in the night and I took out the friendship bracelet and had Mom tie it on my wrist. I had seen the one on Morgan and wondered if any of the other girls still had theirs. I wanted to wear mine even if they didn’t. It was a promise that I’d forgotten about that now I vowed to keep.

  Twenty-Two

  Christmas Eve arrived, and I threw myself into my work. It’s what I was good at. I’d already figured out the monthly budgets, I was talking with Pine Tree lodge about a partnership, and I’d set up the website. All I needed was a name for the company. Something that fit Christmas Mountain and what I was trying to achieve, but I couldn’t think of it.

  “Ash come on we need to go,” Mom called from downstairs.

  I closed my laptop and groaned. “Do I have to go?”

  “Yes, everyone in town is going to church and then to a candle lighting ceremony. It’ll be beautiful. The entire town shuts off the lights except for the Christmas tree and we all stand around with our candles.” Mom huffed. “Aren’t you the one who fought to get the town back together?”

  “Fine. I’ll go. I guess I have to face the town and get all the questions over with now.” I slid my arms inside my wool coat and plopped my pink hat onto my head.

  Dad held up mom’s coat and she slid her arms inside then gave me her half-grin. “What questions?”

  “You know. What happened between you and Brent? Why’d you chase him out of town? Will you be a spinster forever?” My heart ached not about being alone the rest of my life, but about not seeing Brent again.

  “You’re being silly, now come on. Dad and I want to take you somewhere to show you something we found that’ll be perfect for the business.”

  Dad opened the front door and pointed above his head at the Mistletoe. “Gotta pay the toll.”

  Mom and Dad lip locked in a scene that was both touching and nauseating at the same time.

  “If you two are done, I thought we had to leave.” I liked seeing my parents happy, but it didn’t make it any easier to face Christmas alone.

  The night air filled with the smell of coming snow and Chris
tmas spirit. At that moment I knew I needed to do something. I wanted what my parents had. The adventure with the man I loved. Everyone wanted me to call Brent and face the truth, but I wanted more than that. I wanted to show him we could figure this out together.

  I was the one who left last time, so I knew one thing. I’d wished Brent had come after me and he had, but I didn’t know it. All I did know was that it was my turn to go after him. To let him have his life the way he let me have mine, but to try to work out some sort of arrangement. I wouldn’t just let him go this time. I’d fight for him.

  I pulled out my phone as I walked to the truck and booked a flight for the day after Christmas. I’d stay for the extravaganza, but then I’d fly to Wyoming. I’d make his father accept me, and I’d show Brent that he could have his father, his business, and me. There was no reason he couldn’t have it all.

  We drove through town in Dad’s old pickup truck all scrunched together, but since the heater didn’t work it was a good thing. He headed up the mountain along the winding road. “Where’re we going?”

  “I told you, to a place that’s important for your business,” Dad said.

  We reached the overlook and Dad pulled off. “I think my tire’s low, give me a second.”

  Dad hopped out and went to the back of the truck. The door squealed, and I turned to see what he was doing, but he slammed it shut. “Hey, Ash, I need your help.”

  I hopped out and he handed me a big blanket and a lantern. “Here hold this for a minute.”

  The town clocked chimed. I turned to look over the ridge at the lights glistening in town. The twinkling looked like stars on the ground and a light dusting of snow felt like Christmas Magic falling over Main Street. It was magical. The spot I’d dreamed of for years. I was lost in thought when the truck cranked. I turned to see it peel out of the overlook parking. “Wait, what are you doing?”

  He swung the truck around, leaned out the window and called, “I love you! I only want you to be happy.” And he headed back down the road into town.

  What the…I stood there holding the blanket and lantern with my mouth hanging open as if I was trying to catch fireflies.

  “Don’t be mad at him.” Brent’s voice carried from the rocky edge of the hill. “I begged him to bring you up here. He won’t be back until I text him.”

  I couldn’t turn, because I was scared that I was imagining him.

  “I know you’re probably angry with me, Ash. Please, let me explain.”

  I opened my mouth to speak, but I didn’t know what to say. I eyed the dark, winding road and then back at Brent. The dim light from the moon made it hard to see his features so I turned on the lantern.

  “I know you’re thinking about running but look around. Where are you going to go?”

  No. I wasn’t. For the first time, I didn’t want to run away.

  He took the blanket out of my hand, tucked it under his arm, and offered his hand.

  “Follow me.” I knew where we were going. The spot I’d dreamed about all these years. The fantasy I’d built in my head that was never meant to be. Now, I had to face it all. The hopes the dreams the promise and the pain.

  I held out the lamp to see the path down to the flat rock outcropping that overlooked the city. It was as beautiful as I’d imagined. I was here, finally, with Brent.

  Blankets were already piled on the ground and tea candles surrounded them with dots of golden light. Two fluffy pillows, rose petals, and a bottle of champagne rested in a silver bucket. “What’s all this?”

  He dropped the blanket on the ground and took the lantern from my hand, setting it next to the pile of blankets. “I’m so sorry I hurt you.” Brent reached to pull me into his arms. I fought the tears pooling in my eyes. “I’m sorry I ever made you think I didn’t want a future with you.”

  He gripped the top of his dark cap until it rose above his ears. The dull light was enough to see the pain in his eyes, the tightness in his expression. “I went to strike a deal with my father.”

  I finally found my words. “So, you chose to work for your father.”

  He pushed the hat back onto his head and grabbed my arms, pulling me against him. “No. I never wanted anything from my father. I wanted to do it on my own.”

  I squirmed in his grip and he released me throwing his hands up in the air. “Don’t you understand? I humbled myself not because I wanted money for myself, but because I wanted money for you.”

  “I don’t want your father’s money.”

  “Even if it saved the Christmas Mountain Community Center and provided contacts for your business to thrive in Christmas Mountain? You could stay and be with your family and live better than you did growing up. I couldn’t watch you live in poverty, unhappy. Not again. You always hated it growing up. You’d escaped, made a life for yourself, and thrived. How could I ask you to stay in Christmas Mountain and suffer the same fate as your family?”

  The truth of his words sucker punched me, and I thought I’d never breathe again. “I was wrong…about everything. I don’t care about money. My parents are happy, they’ve always been happy. I see that now. I wanted so bad to give them more, but I never saw what they had. Love. The kind that makes a person complete and fulfilled. Money can’t buy that. I know, I tried to find happiness through success, it doesn’t work.”

  “Do you really mean that?”

  I edged toward him but kept my hands at my side. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “Because you would’ve said no, and I had to give you the world, Ash. You deserve the world.”

  My chest ached to touch him, to kiss him, to love him.

  “I’m not doing this right. Please, sit. Give me a chance.”

  I took a long breath. “I can do that.”

  We settled on the blankets but remained far enough apart that we didn’t touch. It was awkward and confusing. My emotions twisting and turning with fear of what he might say next. He poured us each a glass of Champagne. Tired of the silence I cleared my throat and managed to speak. “What did your father say?”

  He handed me a glass and I took a sip, but he set his aside and faced me. “That he would give me everything and more. Christmas Mountain would thrive, your business would thrive, the Christmas Mountain Community Center would have enough funding that you’d never have to worry again.”

  “I guess you worked things out with him, then.”

  “No,” he said, his voice grave and empty.

  “I don’t understand.”

  “It came at a price. As anything having to do with my father does.”

  I abandoned my glass and scooted closer to see his face better in the light. “What was the price?”

  “You.”

  With one word everything I thought was turned upside down. “So, you gave me up and you’ll remain with your father?”

  He shook his head and sighed, looking out over the town. “For years, I tried to live up to my father’s expectations. I attended the college of his choice, I took over the business of his choice, but I wouldn’t marry the girl of his choice. I felt like I was sitting up on this overlook watching life go by…you go by.”

  I tried to follow him, to keep up with his thoughts. “You didn’t ask me out growing up because you’d disappoint your father?”

  “No, not exactly. You always thought I was rich and had it all, but I didn’t. The only thing I ever wanted was you, but you were the one girl I couldn’t approach. I couldn’t win over. I flirted, but you never invited it to go any further. I guess part of me was torn between two worlds, and if I was going to stand against my family, I had to know I had you.”

  “Are you giving me up now? Did you choose your family?” My voice cracked.

  He closed the space between us. His face inches from mine, his expression intense and searching. “I tried, but I failed. Ash.” He cupped my face and I couldn’t help but lean into his palm, to savor in his affection. “I’ve waited fourteen years. From the day you danced and sang at your first Chris
tmas extravaganza in your little skirt. You had me from the first note, the first smile, the first glance. I wasn’t brave enough to tell you then, but I’m brave enough now. My only fear is that my love for you has caused you pain.” He studied my face for a moment, his finger traced my chin and across my lips.

  His attention was like fairy dust being sprinkled on me. My heart sped, pulse pounded, adrenaline shot through me better than any adventure I’d ever experienced.

  “I told my father to keep his job offer, his manipulation, that it would never make me happy. That the only way I’d ever be happy is if I was with you. I won’t have money to save the center, or to take you on wild adventures, though.”

  “I don’t care about that.”

  “But you need new experiences. We won’t be able to travel the world or have a big house. You’ll be bored searching for the next adrenaline rush.”

  My words burst through the fourteen-year barrier. “Brent Donnelley, you are the ultimate adrenaline rush.” I saw the love in his eyes. “You are all I need.”

  Tears rolled down my cheeks, but I didn’t care if he saw them. I didn’t care about being tough and independent and better off than my parents.

  “Do you really mean that?”

  “Yes,” I whispered. “I already decided I wasn’t going to let you go. I booked a flight to Wyoming.” I pulled my phone from my jacket pocket and showed him the reservation.”

  His chest rose and fell rapidly. He cupped the back of my neck ready to kiss me, but he paused. “You’re amazing. I have to ask you something” His gaze hopped and skipped around the area. “Wait. This isn’t right.”

  He stood up and reached into his pocket. “I don’t want to waste another minute of our lives, we’ve wasted too much already. I want to make you a promise that you know that I’ll keep. That you’ll never doubt my intentions again.”

  My breath caught somewhere between shock and hope.

  He pulled out his grandmother’s ring. “I want you to have this. I know how much you loved it.”