Sleigh Bells Ring (Hickory Hollow #2)

Chapter 1

Tyler

So this was where the Gunny grew up.

Not that I’d seen the whole of Hickory Hollow.

But from where I was at the edge of the parking lot, which was just inside town limits, I had a clear view straight down Center Street.

It was…picturesque, I guess I’d say. As though someone had lifted a movie set directly from a holiday romcom and plunked it down in the wilds of northern New York.

Typical storefronts, streetlamps with festive flags, and the house across the street was decked out in evergreen garland, bows, and bells.

Even the wooden sign on the lawn, proclaiming it to be the Cumberland House, Tourist Center, had greenery wound around it.

It was fucking cute, actually. And the air was crip and clean, the hint of snow on the frigid breeze.

It looked like the town had seen some snow, as there were a few paltry piles in the corners of the lot, but the rest had melted.

If Hickory Hollow was anything like the place I grew up in Connecticut, it wouldn’t be long before there was too much snow to be dealt with.

My phone beeped and without even looking, I sighed.

That damn alert. Fucking bane of my existence.

But it was my life now and if I wanted to keep living, I had to heed the warning.

I shot a text to my parents letting them know that I had arrived safely, because otherwise they’d worry.

Then I took a quick glance at the number and hopped out of the truck to run a couple of laps around the empty lot. Hopefully, that would help.

I’d just completed my third circuit when a little electric sedan buzzed into the lot and parked next to my truck.

The man who bounded out of the driver’s seat was all smiles and elfin hat, the long tail wrapped once around his neck.

He was beaming and extended his hand, something jingling as he walked toward me.

“You must be Tyler! I’m Morgan. It’s an honor to meet you.” He shook my hand vigorously. “Your parents are lovely.”

I had to chuckle. “They are. Thank you. Dad wanted to make the trip again, but I convinced him to let me handle it.”

Movement caught my attention and I turned just my head to see Gunnery Sergeant Barrett McKinnon unfolding himself from the passenger seat.

My heart thumped and a strange sort of relief washed over me.

Gunny was as big and broad as ever, and even though we hadn’t served together in years, there was a part of my lizard brain that still interpreted his presence as safety.

He held his arms open and I left his boyfriend to walk straight into them.

Gunny squeezed me hard and thumped my back.

“You look good,” he murmured in my ear before he stepped back and really assessed me. “You doing okay?”

I opened my mouth, ready to tell him I was just fine. But before I could speak, he slipped his hand to the back of my neck and squeezed. He glanced quickly in Morgan’s direction.

“Baby, why don’t you get the lights turned on? Give us a minute, hm?”

“Of course,” Morgan said, shooting us a curious glance. He ran off to do the Gunny’s bidding. Only when he was well out of earshot did Gunny give me his full attention again.

“Give me the truth,” Gunny commanded softly.

I blew out a breath and considered my options. If I lied, he’d accept it. He wouldn’t push. But he’d also be on me like soy sauce on a wonton and I didn’t want that. Besides, he was the reason I came home safely from a fucked-up deployment and I owed him honesty in all things.

“I’m good.” Which was the truth. Right this moment, everything was fine. Gunny narrowed his eyes, but his lips quirked up just a notch on one side. He saw right through me, which wasn’t a surprise. “Therapy helped.”

All Gunny did was nod and squeeze my neck again. “Still in therapy?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Okay.” He turned and nudged me forward. We started walking. “Come see the new space. It took longer than we wanted, but we got a permanent structure built for the markets. You saw what we rigged up last year when your father delivered the sleigh.”

I chuckled. He’d sent pictures, just like I’d asked him to.

I had to admit, it had been creative but not exactly the most festive.

But it had been great to see that sleigh I remembered so fondly from my childhood being put to good use.

My dad had offered to donate it again this year, and allow Morgan and Gunny to keep it, with the caveat that, if Dad ever needed it again, he could borrow it.

Really, it was just gathering dust in Dad’s barn.

My parents didn’t keep horses anymore. They’d decided a few years ago to sell off most of the forty acres to a neighboring farmer for his hay, and just keep a two-acre parcel.

They had dogs and chickens and two goats, and that was enough for them in their retirement.

Now, instead of the temporary structures I remembered seeing in the background of those pics, there was a permanent U-shaped building. And in the center, under an awning, a concrete pad. Spotlights illuminated the space.

“We’re so thrilled and grateful to have the sleigh again,” Morgan said when we were close enough. “Especially since the one we used to use turned out to be broken beyond repair. Or, I guess, it would have taken too much to restore it?”

Morgan glanced at Gunny, who nodded. “It wasn’t worth the cost of restoration, and Harris didn’t have any sentimental value in it. He only kept it because Morgan used it each Winter Festival.”

“But now we have yours! Which was a big hit last year. And look, we even have a gate here to lock it up so it stays safe while it sits here.” Morgan hustled to one of the walls and fiddled with something.

A second later, an extendable gate swung out.

His proud smile had me grinning too. “Barrett thought of it, since we aren’t hiring security this year. This building locks down tightly and—”

His ringing cell phone cut him off and he immediately dug it out of his coat pocket. One look at the screen had his face falling. He looked at Gunny with a grimace.

“Trager again?” Gunny asked with a growl in his voice.

Morgan nodded. “I better take it.”

Gunny didn’t look happy about that. He narrowed his gaze. “If he gives you shit, give the phone to me.”

Morgan rolled his eyes, but a soft sort of smile graced his lips. “I can handle him.”

That didn’t dissuade Gunny. “I know you can. But you don’t have to.”

Morgan blew him a kiss then answered the phone, immediately stepping away from us. I watched him for a moment, seeing the way he hunched over. It could have been because of the wind and he was no longer in the little alcove that shielded him. But I didn’t think so.

I gestured with my head. “What’s this all about?”

Gunny sighed and scrubbed a hand over his face.

“Morgan rented…well, he called them tents but they were more than that. Four times a year, for seven years, Morgan used Trager’s company to rent the structures for the markets.

By the second year, when they proved to be the most popular draw, Morgan wanted a permanent structure.

But he didn’t have time to do the research, put in the proposal, all that. Until now.”

The unspoken “until me” was there in his voice and really, I thought Gunny had every right for the hint of smugness in his voice.

Gunny and I hadn’t talked a lot in the past year, but we made it a point to catch up, especially after he heard about what happened to me.

When I hadn’t felt like talking, Gunny had no problem filling the silence with all the shenanigans he and Morgan got up to.

So I’d heard all about the different events and markets the two planned and executed throughout the year.

“But now?”

Gunny never took his gaze off Morgan. “Due to scheduling conflicts, we didn’t get to break ground on this project until after the Autumn Market this year.

When Morgan called Trager to let him know we wouldn’t be renting anymore, the man had a…

problem with that. He’s been harassing Morgan ever since. ”

I squinted. “It had to be a blow to lose that contract. But that doesn’t justify being an asshole.”

“Exactly. Morgan prefers using local resources. Trager is based in Purchase.” Gunny gestured north, so I assumed that was the direction that town was located. “And my sweetheart is a people pleaser who would rather smother the fire with his body than burn any bridges.”

I snorted. “Why Gunny, that was downright poetic.”

“Fuck off,” he grumbled, but his mouth ticked up. “One conversation with the man and I can guarantee he’d stop calling.”

“Which is why Morgan won’t let you talk to him,” I surmised and Gunny’s grunt confirmed it. From where we were standing, we could hear Morgan’s raised voice and I figured it was better to distract Gunny before he stormed over there and took over. “So how are we going to get this sleigh into place?”

“I’ve got people coming,” he responded absently. It wasn’t until a minute later when Morgan angrily hung up the phone, that Gunny’s shoulders finally relaxed. Morgan turned toward us, took a deep breath, and smiled before walking back over.

“He’s a tool,” Gunny said.

“He’s taken care of. Don’t worry about it. Did you text everybody?”

Gunny gave Morgan a flat look. “No.”

Morgan opened his mouth, surprise flashing across his features, before he paused and chuckled. “You’re right, Mr. Logistics. That was a dumb question. What’s the ETA?”

“Sixty seconds.”

I had to chuckle. They were cute, there was no denying that.

And I was enjoying the show. Even better was when Gunny was right and a minute later, two vehicles pulled into the lot.

Two men got out of one car, and a man and a young woman got out of the other.

Introductions were made but honestly, I didn’t retain the information.