Chapter 16
Chapter Sixteen
Aday off…
Plus snow…
Equals a morning restocking the shelves and tidying up the store. With the blinds drawn, hiding the big lazy snowflakes twirling and falling to the ground, Holly turned on some Christmas music. “A Holly Jolly Christmas” played in the background while she worked.
At her feet, Tater Tot played with a couple of his toys. He had a little stuffed duck that squeaked. He would pick it up with his mouth and toss it into the air. Then he’d set off chasing it. He did this over and over again.
Holly didn’t normally work on her one day off. But Christmas week started on Monday. She needed to be prepared for last-minute shoppers.
No matter how busy she kept herself, her thoughts were constantly returning to Colin.
She thought she would have heard from him the prior evening after his emergency, but he hadn’t called.
She decided it was probably for the best because she wasn’t up for talking.
Still, she couldn’t deny that she liked having him around.
He wasn’t complicated like Roger and Billie Jean.
What was she supposed to do about them? She tried to get closer to them, but they kept her guessing at their true intentions. It had her wishing they were still in California. And that just added to her guilt. Perhaps she was jumping to conclusions about them. Maybe she needed to slow down.
Knock-knock.
Holly straightened from where she’d been organizing a display shelf. Tater Tot barked and ran to the locked door. Who could that be? The Closed sign was in the window.
Her hand went to her hair. She hadn’t done much with it that morning, other than to pull it back in a ponytail holder. And she was wearing some old sweats. Perfectly comfortable but not something she wanted people to see her in.
Knock-knock.
Tater Tot continued to bark. Who is it? Please, don’t let it be my parents. She straightened her clothes and swallowed hard.
She crept toward the door. She peeked through a small gap in the blinds. She gasped. It was Colin. What was he doing there?
Her heart started to pound. She wasn’t prepared to see him. But with the yappy pup beside her, there was no way he would believe she wasn’t there.
With a resolved sigh, she flipped the deadbolt. She leaned down and picked up the puppy. When she eased opened the door and the pup spotted Colin, he let out some excited barks. The dog had good taste.
Once Colin stepped inside, she closed the door and then put down the wiggly pup. Tater Tot barked before jumping up on Colin. As Colin petted the dog, Tater Tot quieted. Her puppy was totally eating up the attention.
A minute or so later, Colin looked at her. “I hope you don’t mind I stopped by.”
She moved back to where she was rearranging a display. “No. Not at all. I’ve just been working this morning. What’s up?”
His face creased with twin lines between his brows. He looked like he wanted to say something, but he remained silent. She wondered if it had something to do with her parents. She hoped they hadn’t done something else to upset people.
The suspense was eating at her. “Colin, what is it? Just say it.”
He shook his head. “It’s nothing.”
“It’s obviously something.” She straightened, giving him her full attention. “And I’m not up to playing twenty questions after last night.”
He shifted his weight from one foot to the other. “I understand. I just thought you’d be upset about me having to duck out last night.”
“Why?”
“Because it’s that kind of thing that has ruined every relationship I’ve been in. The women say they love animals, but when the animals take priority over them, they are no longer on board with my job—with dealing with the interruptions.”
She moved toward him and placed a hand on his forearm.
“I’m sorry you went through that. But you forget that I’ve known you all of my life.
” She smiled at him. “I remember when you found a sick little kitten and brought it home. You wouldn’t leave that kitten’s side, even though the veterinarian told you the kitten wouldn’t make it. You never gave up hope.”
A little smile lifted the corners of his mouth. “And just to prove him wrong, Tiger lived to be sixteen. She was a great cat.”
“You’re a great veterinarian with a huge, generous heart. Don’t ever make someone choose between your calling and them.”
“I won’t.” He looked as though he wanted to say more, but he didn’t.
“Do you mind if I continue to work while we talk?”
“Not at all. Can you use some help?”
She wasn’t one to turn down a generous offer, since it was seldom one came her way. “Could you sort the soaps on the shelf?” She pointed to the one next to him. “Some people don’t pay attention and randomly throw soaps in any old basket.
“Sure.” He turned to the designated shelf and got to work. “Did you just make these?”
She shook her head as she organized a different shelf. “No. I’ve been preparing for Christmas for the past few months. I knew with it just being me running things that I had to be prepared. So, I spent the summer making extra soaps. And this fall, I created a bunch of gift baskets.”
“Wow. I’m impressed. How is it that I didn’t know you actually made the soaps?”
She shrugged. “It’s an old family tradition. In fact, I still use recipes written out by my great-grandmother, some by my grandmother, and then it skipped a generation.” She didn’t want to discuss her mother. “And now I’m working to come up with some soap recipes of my own.”
“Are any of the soaps in the shop your own creation?”
She shook her head. “I haven’t perfected any recipes yet.”
“I bet you’re just being a perfectionist. I’m sure they are good.”
She shook her head. “They can’t just be good. They have to be special.”
“Says who?”
“My grandmother. My great-grandmother.”
He smiled and nodded. “I understand.”
They continued to work together for the next half hour. She couldn’t believe he was taking time out of his busy day to help her with the shop. She appreciated it. No one she’d ever dated had lent her a hand like this.
After she finished sorting the last basket, she turned to him. “Thank you. I owe you.”
“Good. I intend to collect now.”
“Now?” She had no idea what he had in mind. She was hesitant when she asked, “What is it?”
He gripped her shoulders and stared into her eyes. “I’d like you to go to lunch with me.”
Before she could answer him, there was a rapid knocking at the door. They both looked toward the door, but with the blinds drawn, they couldn’t see who was on the other side. Tater Tot went into a barking frenzy as he raced toward the door on his little legs.
“Holly! Holly, are you in there?” It was Billie Jean’s voice. “The lights are on. You have to be in there. Holly, open up.” She resumed knocking, only louder this time.
The absolute last thing she wanted to do was open the door and let Billie Jean and Roger inside. She did not want to deal with them. She needed a day off from their special kind of stress.
“Do you want me to tell them to go away?” Colin asked.
She did. She really did. But she also realized that this was her problem, not his.
“It’s okay. I’ll deal with them.” She walked to the door. Then she stopped and looked back at Colin. “Could you hold Tater Tot?”
Colin nodded as he strode over to her. Once Colin had the wound-up pup in his arms and was moving away from the door, she released the deadbolt and opened the door.
“Oh, Holly, there you are.” Billie Jean looked relieved. “I’ve been out here knocking on the other door and now this one.”
She wanted to turn the woman away, but she didn’t. Holly pushed the door open wider. “Would you like to come in?”
Billie Jean didn’t say a word as she hustled inside. Holly stuck her head out and looked around, but she found Billie Jean was alone. “Where’s Roger?”
Her mother frowned at her use of her father’s first name. “He had a headache. He’s at the B&B, waiting for the painkillers to kick in. But I thought it would give us a chance to talk alone.”
Holly got an uneasy feeling. She didn’t know why. “I’m sorry, but that’s not possible. Colin’s here. We have plans.”
Colin glanced up from holding Tater Tot. “Hello.”
“Hi.” Billie Jean smiled at him before turning back to Holly. “Can we talk? Please.”
“Can we do it another time?”
“It’s important.”
Holly couldn’t think of anything important they had to discuss. Her neck and shoulders tensed as she once more closed and locked the door. With reluctance, she turned to Billie Jean. “What do you need?”
“You.” Billie Jean sent her a smile that was supposed to put her at ease but it didn’t.
“I want to apologize to you about last night. We should have told you about our project, and then it wouldn’t have caught you off guard.
” Billie Jean sent her a pleading look. “We never meant to upset you.” She reached into her coat pocket and pulled out some cash.
She held it out to Holly. “Here’s some money to cover the lunch.
We never meant for you to pay. If it’s not enough, let me know. ”
Holly took the money. She didn’t stop to count it. Instead, she stuffed it into her pocket. “Thank you.”
She was caught off-guard by Billie Jean’s act of kindness. The stress she’d been feeling since last night eased away. Her neck didn’t feel tense any longer.
In that moment, Holly felt guilty for jumping to the wrong conclusion about them. She wondered if it was too late to try to salvage some sort of relationship with them.
“I, well, we would like to invite you to lunch,” Billie Jean said. “It’s on us, and you can pick the restaurant. What do you say?”
“I, uh…” Her gaze shifted to Colin, but his back was to her as he worked to keep Tater Tot quiet. Her gaze swung back to Billie Jean. “I already have lunch plans with Colin.”
“Oh. I see.” Billie Jean sent her a knowing smile. “Colin, would you mind if we all had lunch together?”
Oh no. She didn’t foresee this happening. Should she stop Billie Jean and tell her no? Or should she see if Colin was willing to go along with it? If so, then she could give them one more chance. This lunch surely couldn’t go as bad as their last meal, right?
Colin turned. His gaze met hers first. She couldn’t make out what he was thinking. Then he looked at Billie Jean. “Sure. We could make that work.”
“Good.” Billie Jean smiled. “Where would you two like to meet?”
Holly looked at Colin, and he shrugged. She instantly knew where they should go. “The Kringle Cup Café. It’s the best in town.”
Billie Jean nodded. “Okay. We’ll see you there in say, an hour?”
“Sounds good,” Holly said. After Billie Jean was gone, she turned to Colin. “I’m so sorry about this. If you don’t want to go, just tell me, and I’ll make an excuse.”
He shook his head. “That’s not necessary. I’ll go.” Then he gave her a quick once-over. “Are you going like that?” When she glanced down at her sweats, he said, “I mean you look adorable.”
“Oh no. I have to go get ready.” She ran to grab her coat. On her way out, she paused at the door and turned back. “Aren’t you two coming?”
Colin picked up Tater Tot while she turned off the lights. She hoped this lunch went well. She knew they were running out of chances.