Chapter 2
Easton
I buzzed through the office just like I did every afternoon, walking behind Violet’s desk on my way to Tim’s office to give him an update and clock out.
She was frowning and squinting at something on her computer screen. I didn’t know how the woman managed to look so pretty even when she was deep in concentration.
Today she was wearing the teal cardigan I liked so much. The one with the tiny ruffles on the hem.
Scanning her desk, I spotted my carved wooden box, and warmth spread through my chest. She hadn’t tucked it away in her purse. She’d put it out on display for the whole office to see.
And then I saw that she’d added the ornament to her tiny desk tree. I gave myself a secret grin. With the way Violet loved Christmas, I’d thought she’d get a kick out of it.
The ornament itself had come from the Silver Pines gift shop, but I’d made the box by hand. I’d spent a week whittling the box into shape from an old oak stump on my property. Then, a couple more days engraving the image onto it.
It wasn’t a work of art worthy of a museum, but I’d enjoyed making it, nonetheless. Especially knowing that it would go home with her.
I soundlessly passed right behind her, catching the faint scent of her perfume. And just like every other day, she never looked up. I wasn’t sure the woman knew I existed.