Chapter 23
Chapter Twenty-Three
His creativity was humming along.
Saturday morning, Justin was up bright and early. Normally, he’d spend the weekend working on his manuscript, but things were different since Felicity came back into his life. So, he fed Sunny and took her out for a very brief walk before they headed over to his parents’ house.
On the drive there, he couldn’t help but wonder if Felicity losing her job and returning to Kringle Falls was some sort of sign. Maybe this was their second chance to be together. As soon as it had crossed his mind, he was shocked at his train of thought.
He knew better than to hope that Felicity would stick around Kringle Falls. She’d already mentioned that she was looking for a new job in the city. If he was looking for a sign, that was definitely a neon blinking sign to keep her at arm’s length.
He wasn’t going to fall for her again. He wouldn’t let himself.
But he did remember how her face had glowed the night before when he told her they were friends. And friends take care of friends. That was why he had special plans for the day.
He let himself and Sunny in the back door of his parents’ house.
His mother looked up from the kitchen table and immediately smiled.
“Good morning. It’s good to see you.” Her gaze moved to Sunny.
“Both of you.” She got to her feet and rushed over to take Sunny from him while he took off his coat and boots.
“Aren’t you just a cutie?” His mother practically crooned over the dog like she was her grandbaby.
He looked at his mother with the dog in her arms. Maybe he should adopt Sunny. Then his mother could fuss over her and forget about grandbabies—at least for now.
His mother returned Sunny to him. “She’s just as adorable as I’ve heard.” She moved to the sink to wash her hands. “I just made a fresh pot of coffee.”
“Mom, I don’t have time to stay.”
She waved away his words. “There’s always time for coffee.” She opened the cabinet and pulled out a mug. “So, what has you out and about this early on Saturday?”
“I was wondering if I could borrow a rolling pin.”
That got his mother’s brows to rise high on her forehead. “A rolling pin?” When he nodded to confirm, she asked, “I didn’t know you baked.”
“I don’t.” Then he went on to tell her about Felicity putting up the tree for her mother and finding the heirloom ornaments in pieces.
“That’s awful.” His mother moved to the corner cabinet where she kept her baking supplies. “So, you don’t want any old rolling pin.”
He described it to her the best he could. Thankfully, she had some idea what he was talking about. “You want something special. Let me see what I have.”
He quietly waited, hoping that she’d have what he needed—something that would put the smile back on Felicity’s beautiful face. If his mother didn’t have the special rolling pin, his mind raced as he tried to come up with an alternate plan that would make her smile.
“Here we go.” His mother straightened with a rolling pin in her hand. “I think this is what you’re looking for.”
He looked at the embossed rolling pin with a paisley pattern. He hoped it was what Felicity needed. “Thank you. And could I borrow some cookie sheets?”
“Certainly. I have plenty of those, as you well know. You boys do love your chocolate chip cookies.” She pulled a couple out of a cabinet and placed them on the counter. “What else do you need?”
“For you to keep this to yourself. You can’t go telling Felicity’s mom because it’s supposed to be a surprise. Felicity wants to replace the broken ornaments and give them to her mother as a Christmas present.”
“My lips are sealed.” A hopeful gleam sparkled in her eyes. “I’m so glad you and Felicity have patched things up. Because you were always meant to be cradle to grave.”
“It’s not like that, Mom.” He frowned.
“But—”
“Mom.” There was a firmness in his voice that he didn’t use often with his mother.
She exhaled a dramatic sigh as she rolled her eyes. “Okay. Okay. Forget I said it.”
It was impossible to forget. Because the more time he spent with Felicity, the more he wondered if it were true. Not having time to worry about it, he pushed the thought to the back of his mind.
“Mom, can I ask you for one more favor?”
“Sure. What is it?”
“You might not want to agree so quickly.”
Her brows rose. “Why?”
“Because I need you to watch Sunny later this afternoon.” He wasn’t so sure she’d be onboard with the idea.
She hesitated and looked at the puppy. “I think we can manage. Why? What do you have in mind?”
“It’s a surprise for Felicity…”
So much to do, so little time.
After going to bed and being unable to sleep, Felicity had read Justin’s manuscript. It was good. Really good.
She didn’t have time to linger in bed and think about him, although it was tempting.
But there were the costumes to finish, the Kringle’s annual Christmas party was that evening, and Justin had something special planned for them.
The fact that he wouldn’t tell her what he had in mind did have her worried.
She started the day by working more on the costumes for the children’s play. They were really starting to come together. She just hoped the children—and especially the parents—liked the alterations she’d made.
It was mid-morning when she received Justin’s phone call.
He asked her to come over to his place. Curiosity had her dropping the costumes on her mother’s dining room table and heading out the door.
When she reached his apartment, she rapped her knuckles on the door.
Immediately, she heard Sunny barking out her greeting.
It made Felicity smile. The pup was adorable.
She really hoped that Justin decided to keep her. They belonged together.
The door swung open, and Sunny rushed out. The dog jumped up, placing her paws on Felicity’s pant leg. The puppy looked up at her with those big brown eyes that were impossible to say no to. Felicity leaned down and scooped up the puppy.
Justin smiled. “You two look good together. Maybe you should—”
“No.” She knew exactly where he was going with that comment. And she would adopt Sunny in a heartbeat if her circumstances were different. But at the moment, her whole life was in flux.
“Fine. But you two make a good pair.” He stepped back and ushered her inside. “Come on. We have things to do.”
Once inside, she yawned. “What sort of things?”
He frowned “It doesn’t look like you got much sleep.”
“And it’s all your fault.” She sent him a pouty look before following him to the kitchen.
“How’s it my fault?”
“I started to read your book and I couldn’t put it down.” She yawned again.
“Really? I mean, you actually liked it?”
She nodded. “You are a gifted writer. But I did make some notes.”
“Wait. You finished the whole book.”
She smiled. “You forget that this is my occupation. I’ve learned to read quickly. If I didn’t, I’d never have any hope of staying on top of the slush pile.”
His forehead wrinkled. “What sort of notes are they?”
“Nothing for you to worry about.” When she noticed the V-shaped lines form between his brows, she said, “I promise. I’ll send you the file when I get home.”
He nodded but still had a hesitant look on his face. He turned his attention to Sunny, who was trying to climb his pant leg. He bent over and picked her up.
“Relax. If you don’t like my notes, you don’t have to use them. I was only trying to help.”
As he scratched beneath Sunny chin, he said, “I really appreciate it.”
“Just do one thing for me.”
“What’s that?”
“After you finish the changes, send it back to me. I’d like to read it again.”
He paused as though he was giving it some thought. “I can start this evening, but we have plans right now.”
“What sort of plans?”
He moved off to the side and gestured to the kitchen counter. There sat the largest box of baking soda she’d ever seen. Next to it were a couple large containers of baking powder. When she sent him a puzzled look, he held up an embossed rolling pin.
She gasped. “You did it.” A smile bloomed on her face, making her eyes twinkle. “You found one.”
He couldn’t help but smile back at her. “I did. I hope you like the pattern.”
She stepped closer to have a look. “I do. It’s beautiful.”
“I printed off the instructions I found on the internet.” He handed them to her. “Unless you have other instructions you want to use.”
She glanced over the directions. “No. These will be fine. I can’t believe you did this.” She reached out and hugged him. “Thank you.”
She stood there with her arm around him, perhaps a moment too long. With much regret, she pulled away. She took a seat at the kitchen island to read the instructions.
He retrieved a saucepan from a lower cabinet. They worked together to assemble the mixture and put it on the stove to heat up. They even took turns stirring the concoction. After it was heated enough, they put it into a mixing bowl and covered it to let it cool.
Justin made some coffee and handed her a cup. “We can sit in the living room while we wait.”
“Oh. Okay.” She moved to the couch. “So, how’s your second book coming?”
He shrugged. “It’s still in the beginning stages.”
“I’m sure it’ll be as good as the one I just read. I can’t wait to read the revisions.”
He smiled as color crept into his cheeks. “You don’t have to say that.”
“Why? It’s the truth. But…” Then she wondered if it would be okay if she offered him a bit of advice. She really wanted to see him succeed at getting published.
“What?” He was staring directly at her. “I can see it on your face. There’s something on your mind. So, out with it.”
She hesitated. Then she figured it wasn’t that big of a deal. “I was thinking for the second book, you should make sure to have your hero evolve.”
“Evolve?” He looked surprised by her suggestion. For a moment, he didn’t say anything, and she was waiting for him to tell her no. Then he asked, “How?”
“Well, I was thinking…” She paused, knowing his immediate response would be to reject the idea. Still, she had to put the idea out there. “I was thinking he could start a romance.”
Justin rolled his eyes. “I actually thought you were going to suggest that for the first book.”
Since he didn’t immediately reject the idea, she ran with it.
“It didn’t need it. But with the second book, you want to challenge the hero in a different way.
I’m not saying by the end of the book that he has to be madly in love, but if he had a love interest, maybe a love-hate sort of thing, it would keep the reader wondering will they or won’t they. ”
He didn’t say anything at first. Perhaps he liked the concept. She hoped so. “I think it would open up so many more avenues for the series.”
And then he started peppering her with questions. While the dough cooled, they continued to talk about his book. They threw around ideas for the plotline. At one point, Justin grabbed pen and paper to jot down some of the things they came up with.
She couldn’t recall seeing him so animated.
She thought of her prior job. In the beginning she was full of enthusiasm, much like him, but by the end, it was more like drudgery.
But by then she was so invested in getting the promotion that she couldn’t see how miserable the competitive climate and workload was making her.
She didn’t know what the next chapter of her life would be, but she wanted it to be different—less cut throat.
The kitchen timer went off. They returned to the kitchen. He kneaded the dough. Then she used a standard rolling pin that his mother had included with the other things. When she had the right thickness, she ran the embossed rolling pin over the dough.
Carefully, they used the snowflake cookie cutters to cut out the soon-to-be ornaments.
She couldn’t stop smiling. She wasn’t sure if it was all of the happy memories that came rushing back to her or if it was Justin’s company.
He had been talkative and goofy, just like he used to be around her.
This was seriously turning out to be one of the best days of her life.
Not because of anything special they were doing, but because she, at last, had her oldest friend back in her life.
She had missed him more than she’d realized.
She placed the last dough snowflake on the cookie sheet. “Is the oven warm?”
“About that, I was thinking we could let them air dry.”
“Oh.” The smile slipped from her face.
“Perhaps we can slip them in the oven when we get back.”
“Back? We’re going somewhere?”
He smiled and nodded. “I have another surprise for you.”
The next thing she knew, he had her bundling up in some outdoor clothes that he’d borrowed from some friends. After dropping Sunny off with his mother, they headed to Hutter’s farm.
They used to go there when they were kids to sled ride. They had the biggest hill just perfect for sled riding. She couldn’t believe he’d planned this day. It was exactly what she needed.
Using two big innertubes, they set off down the hill.
She laughed and smiled until her cheeks grew sore, and then she laughed and smiled some more.
And when she started to get cold, Justin produced a thermos of hot chocolate.
They raced down the hillside a few more times before it was time to call it a day.
She had to get ready for the Kringles’ Christmas party.
She was exhausted by the time they got back to the apartment building, but in a totally good way. No matter how tired she was, she was still going to the party. She didn’t want to miss any part of this Christmas.
When they reached the second floor, she paused. “Are you sure you won’t go to the party?”
He gave a firm shake of his head. “Not a chance. Everyone will want to set me up with their granddaughter or niece. I’ll just stay home and work on the notes you made for the first book. Don’t forget to send them.”
“I won’t.” She was disappointed he wasn’t going to the party, but she understood. “Thank you so much for today. I honestly can’t remember the last time I had so much fun.”
“But I will give you a ride to the party.”
She shook her head. “You don’t have to do that.”
“I have to go back out anyway to pick up Sunny from my parents.”
“Oh. Well, in that case, I accept. How about you meet me at my place in say, an hour? Will that work?”
He nodded. “I’ll be there. And the notes…”
“I won’t forget. I promise.” She turned to walk away but then paused and turned back. “Today was really special. I haven’t had that much fun in years. Thank you.”
And then she walked away. But her thoughts were solely on Justin. He was such a great guy. She really wished she hadn’t accepted the invitation to the party. She’d have much rather spent the evening curled up on the couch with Justin to watch a Christmas movie.