Chapter Seven
Christmas Eve
Another Christmas alone…
Abby had just returned from her mother’s house, where they’d had dinner with friends and exchanged Secret Santa gifts. She ended up with the best gift. It was a cute little basket with fuzzy socks, a nail polish kit, and bath bombs. She’d already put on the teal-colored socks. They were so soft.
With the Christmas tree lights on, Abby curled up on her couch with pen, paper, and her laptop. Instead of going out, she was staying in and planning Sadie and Reed’s engagement party. A frown pulled at the corners of her lips.
It wasn’t that she minded planning the party; it was that she wasn’t supposed to be doing it alone. She knew she could call Carrie and Kate. They would drop everything to help her, but it was the holidays, and they were with their significant others. Abby didn’t want to ruin it for them.
Besides, Brad was supposed to be helping her.
She hadn’t heard from him since he abruptly left Bayberry.
She originally thought he’d skipped out because he didn’t want to help with the party, but a day later, Sadie told her that there was a serious problem with the business.
Sadie didn’t give her any specifics, but that had been a few weeks ago. Surely by now the problem was resolved.
She reached for her phone. Before she had time to talk herself out of it, her fingers moved over the screen as she sent Brad a message.
Abby: Silver or gold?
She was prepared for him to ignore her, but she wasn’t going to make it easy on him. She set aside her phone, not expecting him to get back to her. Instead, she turned her attention back to her laptop as she looked at all of the party decorations.
It appeared the whole town wanted to celebrate their engagement, so this was going to be a big party. They’d already reserved the community hall. Something told her this was going to be a huge wedding. But that wasn’t her problem…at least not yet.
Ding.
She picked up her phone, wondering if it was Sadie pestering her again to go out with them that evening. There was the annual Candlelight Dance at the community hall that evening. But she didn’t have a date. And she certainly didn’t want to be a third wheel.
When she picked up her phone, she was surprised to find Brad’s name on it. She honestly didn’t think he’d take time to respond to her.
Brad: Silver
Brad: Wait. What’s it for?
She let out a laugh. Typical man. Answer the question and then find out what it’s referencing.
Abby: The color scheme for the engagement party.
Brad: Are those the only color options?
Abby: White?
Brad: It’s not very colorful
The problem was that Sadie hadn’t had time to figure out the color scheme for her wedding party. So, it was impossible to coordinate the decorations with the wedding colors, and they were on their own to come up with something pretty.
Abby: What do you suggest?
Brad: Blue
Abby: Blue, what?
Brad: Silver and blue decorations. Everyone likes blue.
Abby started to type a response, but then she paused. Blue and silver. It did sound pretty. And Sadie had on a blue sweater the other day, so she obviously approves of the color.
Abby backspaced until her response was erased. And then she started again.
Abby: Blue and silver approved.
Abby: Any ideas about what to do with the guest list?
Brad: What about it?
Abby: Abby wants it to be a surprise party. But the whole town will want to attend.
Brad: And…
Abby: The more people who know, the bigger chance of Reed finding out.
Brad: …
The three dots kept blinking on the screen, as though he was writing something. But then the three dots disappeared. Had he erased what he’d written?
Maybe he’d gotten bored of party planning. Or perhaps he’d gotten distracted by work. Then she glanced at the clock to see that it was after eight in the evening of Christmas Eve. He shouldn’t be working.
With a sigh, she set aside her phone. She turned her attention back to her computer, but then she hesitated. She still had no idea if she could pull off a big “surprise” party. Maybe they would be better off changing it to a small and intimate affair.
Ding. She reached for her phone.
Brad: Plan the party incognito.
She frowned as she read his message a couple of times. Incognito? She didn’t get it.
Abby: ???
Brad: Plan the surprise party but call it something else. Like a birthday party.
The lightbulb went off in her head. Oh! Good idea. She paused to give it some thought. Who did she know with a January birthday? And then it came to her—Kate. She could get her to go along with the idea.
Abby: Great idea. Did anyone ever tell you that you’re good at being sneaky?
Brad: I’m not sure how to take that.
Abby: In this instance, it’s a compliment.
Brad: Compliment accepted.
Abby: I thought you would have come back for Christmas.
She automatically pressed send before she had a chance to reconsider her words. She stared at the words on the screen. It sounded like she wanted to see him, but that wasn’t the truth. She’d be fine if she never saw him again. Maybe she should explain…
Abby: I mean so we could work on the party plans.
Backspace. Backspace. Backspace…
Brad: I’m spending the holiday with my mother.
Abby didn’t know why she hadn’t thought of him being with family. She supposed there was a bit of lone wolf in him. Or maybe she’d read him wrong.
Brad: Aren’t you with your mother?
Abby: I was earlier. I could only eat so many sugar cookies.
Brad: Now I understand.
Abby: Understand what?
Brad: Why you’re party planning on Christmas Eve.
She frowned as she stared at the message. He was judging her? From everything she’d learned about him, he was a workaholic.
Abby: What are you doing this evening?
Her question was greeted with a distinct silence, or in this case, a lack of messaging. Did he have a date? The thought left an uncomfortable feeling in the pit of her stomach. She chose to ignore the sensation.
She should just leave him alone. After all, she had the party plans to focus on. And now that she had a color scheme, she could get on with ordering the rest of the decorations, as well as the invitations.
Knock. Knock.
The sound startled her. Who could that be? She glanced at the time. It was going on nine o’clock. Her friends—Kate, Carrie, and Sadie—would all be at the Candlelight dance. So, who was knocking at her door?
She set aside her laptop and rushed to the door. When she peered through the peephole, she saw her friend and next-door neighbor. Sienna was about her age, maybe a year or two younger. She was a single mom with an adorable little girl.
Abby swung the door open. “Hey, Sienna.”
Sienna stood there, holding her daughter’s hand. “I’m sorry to bother you. Annie and I were making some sugar cookies for Santa, and we ran out of sugar. And the store in town is closed. Would you have any extra? I promise to replace it.”
“Ah…” She had to think if she had any left. “Yes, I think I do. Come on in.” She turned and headed into the kitchen. “I don’t know how much I have left. I haven’t made it to the store since I baked.”
“We just need a half a cup or so.”
Ding.
So, now Brad decides to respond to her. It was almost like he knew she was distracted and wouldn’t be able to rush over to pick up her phone. She was still curious if he was on a date.
She pushed thoughts of Brad to the back of her mind as she opened the kitchen cabinet. Inside was a yellow sack of sugar. When she picked it up, she found it was half empty.
With it in hand, she turned to Sienna and Annie. “It doesn’t feel like there’s much left. I hope it’ll be enough.”
“Thank you.” Sienna accepted the bag. “Feels like it’ll be plenty. We really appreciate this, especially Santa.” She glanced down at her daughter. “Right, Annie?”
Her three-year-old daughter wordlessly nodded her head.
After they left, Abby couldn’t help but think about how reserved Annie always was.
They were new in town, and Abby hadn’t had a chance to get to know them better.
But she knew there wasn’t a husband or father in the picture.
In that moment, she knew what her New Year’s resolution was: to slow down and take time to know people better.
With a smile, she headed back to the couch.
Ding.
It seemed like Brad was in a chatty mood. She picked up her phone and found that only one of the two messages was from him. The other was from her mother reminding her that Christmas brunch would be at eleven…just like it was every year. She typed back that she wouldn’t be late.
She moved back to Brad’s message.
Brad: I’m on a blind date. *frowning emoji*
A smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. Not that she wanted him to be miserable.
Abby: What happened to Christmas with your mother?
Immediately his response pinged back at her.
Brad: She set me up on this date. My mother does not have good taste.
Abby let out a laugh. His mother was playing matchmaker. She counted herself as fortunate that her mother had never tried such a thing. She inwardly shuddered at the thought of who her mother would set her up with.
Abby: Have fun!
Brad: *frowning emoji*
Buzz-buzz.
The ringing startled her. Surely he wasn’t calling her when he was out on a date with someone else—even if it was a blind date. She looked down at the phone, which was still in her hand. When she saw Sadie’s name, she breathed a sigh of relief.
Abby: Gotta go!
For the rest of the evening, Brad kept intruding in her thoughts. She really wanted to know if his date had gotten any better. Just as quickly, she would remind herself that it was none of her business.