“No. No, no, no!”
She’d promised to take care of Chrissy if Daniel had to leave. Had he been called in, and forced to leave his daughter with Lena?
Karynn whirled around the suite, and was ready in record time. She reached the top of the staircase in time to see Savannah headed up with Chrissy in tow.
“Hi, Miss Karynn!” The child trilled a sunny greeting and ran ahead of Savannah to wrap both arms around her legs. “Are you all better? Miss Savannah said you were not having a rise-and-shine morning.”
Karynn managed a smile she hoped was reassuring, and drew the little one into a warm hug. “I’m all better now. Did you have breakfast?”
“Uh huh.” Chrissy grinned, and her ponytail bounced up and down in time with her chin. “I had a boiled egg with Miss Savannah.”
“One boiled egg?” Karynn sent her sister an outraged look. “Your daddy didn’t make you eat more than that?”
“Daddy went bye-bye with Miss Lena.”
So Daniel was off to work, and Chrissy was here. He’d chosen to trust Karynn with his most precious possession…even though she’d failed to be on hand to accept the responsibility.
“Vanna, thank you for filling in for me. I should’ve said something before you came downstairs, but I—” She broke off. No excuse was good enough. She’d let Daniel down and put her sister in the position of accepting shared responsibility without advance notice. “I’m so sorry. I should’ve come down with you.”
“You’re not making sense. What is it you should have told me?” Her sister pulled out the fuddy-duddy face, and Karynn almost laughed. She’d forgotten about the silly alert because she hadn’t seen it since…when? She couldn’t remember. Perhaps she’d been less fretful than either of them expected.
Which had everything to do with Daniel.
She ignored the painful pinch in her heart. “I volunteered the two of us to take care of Chrissy, but you were asleep when I came upstairs last night. I didn’t get a chance to tell you, and I forgot this morning.”
“Oh. So what’s the big deal?” A little crease marred Savannah’s smooth brow. “Chrissy didn’t want to go, and I said she could stay with me. Are you sure you’re all right, Sis? If you need to go back to bed, do it. Seriously. I promise I won’t drown you in ice water.” She hiked one eyebrow and managed to look downright wicked. “Although it would be such an awesome payback!”
Karynn laughed. “That’s almost too kind. Thanks, but I’m up. I just need to get something to eat.”
“Chrissy and I want to take a drive through Hope Creek, and see what fun we can find. You coming?”
Chrissy tugged at Karynn’s hand. “Come with us, Miss Karynn. Please?”
“I want to grab a banana first, and…do you think I might find one more of those very popular eggs in the dining room?”
“You can find three more. There were four, but I ate one all up. Hurry, Miss Karynn, a’fore someone else gets ’em all.”
“I’ll take the pipsqueak upstairs for a visit to the little girl’s room while you’re finding food.” Savannah eyed Chrissy’s outfit. “And we need to get her coat and mittens. Come on, Chrissy-cake.” She dug a hand into first one jeans pocket and then the other. “Ah, here it is. What do you think, kiddo? Will your daddy’s key work for me, or only for him?”
“You’re silly, Miss Savannah.” Chrissy giggled.
“Silly? Me?” Savanah took the child’s hand and the two hurried for the stairs, where—despite their supposed rush to be off and going—they stopped.
Karynn frowned. What now?
“One. Two. Three!” Woman and child jumped into the air and onto the first step. They hopped upward, one stair at a time.
The center section of the facility rose all the way to the second-floor ceiling. A U-shaped landing fronted the guest rooms on the upper floor, providing a grand view of the beautiful lobby below. With the high ceiling and open layout, sound carried well, and Chrissy’s high, sweet laughter echoed throughout the inn.
Karynn watched them all the way to the top. The child’s elated giggles touched the hurting places in her soul like healing fingers. And Savannah…she’d never been prouder of her sister than in that moment—whole-heartedly lost in Chrissy’s world, willing to be a child herself to give a little girl a friend.
“That’s the sound we love to hear at Christmas Inn—any time of year, of course, but especially during the Christmas season.”
She whirled toward the reception desk, where a young woman stood with her elbows on the high counter. Dark brown eyes complemented beautiful, creamy skin and long, straight, dark hair. Adorable dimples played hide-and-seek with a warm, natural, open smile that reached out to Karynn and drew her toward the desk.
“Chrissy’s a special child. My sister and I have both fallen in love with her. And this place…well, I think it’s meant to ring with the voices of happy children.”
“Well, she’s certainly happy.” The woman’s soft laughter wrapped around Karynn’s heart like a sweet, familiar hug. As if, although she’d never met this woman before, she’d always known her.
“I’m Karynn Michaels. Suite 2.” Introducing herself to strangers didn’t come easily to Karynn, but she did it now without hesitation. “I haven’t seen you around before.”
“Lydia Cutler, IT tech. My job is to drag this delightful, but technologically backward facility into the twenty-first century. I’m behind the scenes most of the time.” She opened a gate at one end of the reception area and rounded the counter to stand directly in front of Karynn. “Would you think it terribly strange if I said I’d like to hug you, Karynn Michaels, Suite 2?”
Karynn opened her arms. Lydia did the same, and then they were heart to heart. Karynn felt as if they’d been in this moment a thousand times before. She knew nothing about Lydia Cutler except her name and occupation, and that she enjoyed the laughter of children. Yet, in some impossible way, she knew her as well as she knew Savannah.
In this woman, with her beautiful, dimpled smile, she’d found a soul sister.
Lydia pulled away and then lifted both hands and touched her fingertips to Karynn’s face. “We’re going to be friends, you and I.”
“We already are. I think…we’ve been friends forever.”
“Oh!” Lydia blinked. One dimple peeked out, and then the other. “Oh, my. You’re absolutely right.” She looped an arm through Karynn’s. “I was getting ready to take a break. Walk with me? I know it’s cold, but I love winter in Hope Creek. Besides, we have a lifetime to catch up on, don’t we?”
Karynn hesitated. She wanted to accept the invitation, but Chrissy was so excited about exploring Hope Creek…and Lydia wasn’t going anywhere.
“I wish I could, but—”
“Hey, Sis!” Savannah called from the top of the stairs. “Change of plans. It’ll be an hour or so before we leave. Chrissy’s already wrapped up in one of her favorite movies. Want to join us for some fairy tale fun?”
Darren must’ve called. Savannah wasn’t one to carry on about missing her husband, but Karynn had noticed periods of uncharacteristic quiet, and far-off expressions at odd moments. She was feeling this first lengthy separation from her adored hubby.
“You two go ahead.” She stepped to the bottom of the staircase. “I’ll meet you here, an hour from now.”
“Alrighty then.” Savannah narrowed her gaze and studied Karynn for a moment, then raised hands and eyes to the ceiling. “I won’t ask. See you later.”
Karynn made a quick trip up to grab a jacket, and then she and Lydia set off through the snow-covered grounds, arm in arm.
“Have you seen the chapel?” The sparkle in her new friend’s eyes rivaled the glitter of sunshine on snow. “It’s small, but jam-packed with charm. And the bell tower! You have to hear the legend of the Christmas Inn Chapel bells.”
The bells. Daniel had teased her about the ‘sappy, sweet, magical’ bell tale.
Lydia squeezed her arm. “And you’ll tell m
e why you look so sad. Off to the chapel!”
They headed north on a walking trail that followed a narrow, meandering waterway on their right—Jingle Bell Creek, Lydia informed Karynn. On their left, bright Christmas lights reflected off icy surfaces in the garden area, turning the frozen world into a kaleidoscope of refracted color.
Karynn noticed a huge, bright red, sleigh-shaped structure on the far side of the gardens. Complete with a slide, several swings, and a maze of climbing equipment, the cheery, over-sized vehicle clearly catered to the enjoyment of children. She’d have to make sure Chrissy visited the big sleigh.
A narrow footpath wound through the garden’s snow-laden bushes, trees and flowerbeds. Benches bordered the path at regular intervals, and Lydia pointed out statues of various heights and diverse style. They stood between and peered from behind the foliage—angels in one area, a number of happy-faced elves and a large Santa in another. A full, life-sized nativity scene held majestic reign near a tiered waterfall that, even with all three levels frozen in place, was stunningly beautiful.
Just past the gardens, they came to an arched walkway spanning Jingle Bell Creek. “This is North Pole Bridge.” Lydia laughed. “Don’t you just love the little touches of Christmas everywhere on this property?” She pointed back the way they’d come. “South Pole Bridge crosses the creek at about this same distance on the other side of the inn.” They crossed the short bridge, and Lydia made an abrupt left. “Here it is.”
Karynn couldn’t hold back a tiny gasp. She’d never seen anything so perfect.
Tucked into the edge of an enormous wooded area, a small white clapboard church stood like a sentinel of righteousness over the ice and snow-covered corner of Christmas Inn property. Karynn’s charmed gaze raced over the tiny, one-story building. The most striking feature of the chapel soared into the sky from directly over the double oak doors—a bell tower, crowned at its topmost point by a white cross.
From where the two women entered the glade, they had visual access to only one side of the church, but Karynn caught her breath at the three stained glass windows along its length. Sunlight caught the varicolored, multi-shaped panes and spilled beautiful prisms of blue and green, red, yellow and purple onto the pristine snow surrounding the building.
“Oh, my…this is perfect. It’s just…absolutely…stunning!”
“It is, isn’t it?” A touch of huskiness in Lydia’s voice reflected her deep love for the little chapel. “Come look inside.”
They stepped through the double doors and into the smell of fresh paint, wood polish and cleaning products.
“Ariana’s been working out here every free moment. She’s determined to make it ready for a Christmas Eve prayer service—the first in…well, far too long. When I was a kid, Hope Creek families looked forward to meeting here in this little church on Christmas Eve. But the doors have been closed and locked for years. I’m so excited that Ari and her family are bringing back the old tradition.”
“It sounds beautiful.”
“It is.” Lydia swung in a slow circle, her appreciative gaze sweeping the small sanctuary. A long, full skirt flowed around her legs in graceful waves. “Don’t miss it, Karynn, even if you have to change a dozen different plans to make it happen. You’ll be blessed, I promise.”
The wood floors creaked and groaned as they made their way to the front of the room. Karynn was pleased to see the stained glass windows she’d admired from outside were duplicated on the opposite wall. Antique pews gleamed with freshly applied elbow grease and wood polish, but also bore a deep sheen created by years of churchgoers sliding on and off their surfaces.
They sat on the first row, and Lydia filled Karynn in on the chapel’s history. “Ari’s great-great grandfather, Angus Christmas, was among the first to settle in Hope Creek. He and his wife lived in a small, split-log cabin while he built this chapel. He went to great expense to have the bells shipped in so folks could ‘hear the call of the Lord.’” She chuckled. “I can’t help wondering how his wife felt about the bells, considering her home was subpar, while her husband focused all that labor and love—and money—on the house of God.”
Karynn slanted her a guilty, sideways glance. “I hope she was a better Christian than me. I’m afraid my attitude might have been less than desirable for a minister’s wife.”
“You and me both. Still, Angus the bells were used for lots of things besides announcing services. They tolled for births and deaths, weddings, funerals…any time folks needed to know about something, the bells called them together to hear the news. This bell tower played a big part in Hope Creek history.” She nudged Karynn’s arm. “Legend has it that the bells took on a life of their own. If a couple was destined to fall in love, the bells tolled when they kissed.”
Karynn glanced at her companion, surprised to find Lydia’s big eyes full of wonder. “You—you don’t believe that?”
“I don’t disbelieve it. Too many things in life are beyond explanation. Nothing’s impossible.”
“Well…I guess that almost makes sense.”
Gabriel’s mysterious disappearance last night flashed through her mind, but she shoved the memory aside. Dreams didn’t count. And Daniel was right. The whole Christmas Inn bells legend rang of sappy, sweet and magical—ergo, the stuff of fairy tales.
“So, you know the bell story.” Lydia spoke into the short silence following Karynn’s doubtful concession to possibility. “Now tell me what I want to know. Why are you so sad, Karynn?”
8
Karynn drew a deep breath and then…talked. More than she’d talked to anyone since she and Daniel used to share their every thought for hours on end.
She told Lydia about high school in Quillpoint, and about Daniel…how much she’d loved him, and the awful, lonely place her world became when he and his family moved away. She shared her parents’ death, and the horrific nightmares that followed, and continued even now. Tears fell, and she didn’t even mind that show of weakness, because Lydia cried with her.
She recounted her surprise when Daniel showed up at the bell table her first night at Christmas Inn, and mentioned Gabriel, sharing with Lydia how the man’s sweet smile poured peace and calm into even the most tense of situations. She even shared her strange encounter with the Italian gentleman by the lobby fireplace, what he’d said and how he’d disappeared the moment he’d given her that strange, cryptic message.
She caught her breath, barely able to believe she’d become so chatty with someone she’d met less than an hour ago. For the first time since she started spilling her heart, a twinge of self-consciousness struck, and she lowered her eyelashes.
“Of course, I’m pretty sure I dreamed that last little bit.”
“Really? Because I don’t think you did.”
Karynn chuckled. “You think he really went ‘poof’ and disappeared?”
“Uhm…I’ll say it again. All things are possible. You know, I spoke to Gabriel when he checked out.”
“He—what? Gabriel’s gone?”
“He left early this morning. He was so pleasant, and you’re right about his smile—it felt like someone poured a cup of calmness into my spirit. I had the weirdest inclination to beg him to stay…maybe forever.”
“I wish I could have said goodbye.”
“Well, I’m sure there’s a reason it didn’t happen.” Lydia’s dimples winked in and out. “I asked why he was leaving so soon, and out came that glorious smile. He said he’d done what he came to do, and it was time to go.”
Karynn nodded. “The night my sister and I arrived, Gabriel told us he was in Hope Creek to deliver a message from an old friend.”
After a moment of contemplative silence, Lydia took her hand and gave it a squeeze. “And you don’t see a connection between your visit with Gabriel last night and that special delivery message of his?”
“Connection?” She frowned a little, even as her heart picked up speed. “What are you saying?”
Lydia swiveled on the pew so
she could look square into Karynn’s eyes. “Maybe Gabriel visited you last night in a dream. Or perhaps he really was there with you beside the fireplace. It doesn’t matter, does it? What he said though…that matters, Karynn. He brought you what could be the most important message you’ll ever hear in your lifetime. And you know what else?”
“Wh—what else?” Karynn spoke through numb, uncooperative lips.
“You know exactly what it meant, but you don’t want to accept it. We never have to decode messages from God, sweetie. He always speaks in a language we understand.”
“You think Gabriel came here for me?” Karynn shook her head. “Why? To tell me about past and present and future? About high roads and paths that go backwards?”
“I do. I believe he came to tell you all those things.” Lydia leaned in to kiss Karynn’s cheek. “And don’t forget the part about not letting your will get in the way of God’s.” She stood. “As much as I hate to leave right now, I really have to get back to work.”
“Of course—and I kept you here while I ran on and on. I hope it doesn’t cause you any trouble at work.”
Lydia laughed. “I couldn’t talk them into getting rid of me, not with my mother and Lizzie set on making me a lifetime fixture at the inn.”
“Maybe they will. When I go back home, I’ll enjoy thinking of you here, listening to the laughter of children inside the inn, and making special trips here, to the chapel, on your breaks.” She stood to give Lydia one last, quick hug. “Do you mind walking back alone? I’d like to sit here for a while.”
“Not in the least. This is a good thinking place. We’ll talk again soon, my new old friend.”
Then Karynn was alone, with Gabriel’s words ringing in her heart like carillon bells, tolling a message of utmost importance.
****
Daniel left Lena at McGhee-Tyson Airport and navigated heavy traffic out of the terminal.
Back on the 35 freeway, he relaxed against the seat and huffed out a breath. No more exits until he reached US 411, and that was a straight shot into Hope Creek. Barring any unpleasant surprises, he’d be there within the hour.
Love at Christmas Inn Collection 1 Page 26