Chapter Eight #2
At first, Mallory was rigid in his arms, but as the song progressed, Hollis felt her relax and lean into him. He thought he even heard her sigh softly as they swayed.
“Nancy is dancing with Mr. Alps,” Mallory said, tipping her face up to look at Hollis.
Her lips were dangerously close to his in the moment, and his focus was there to read what they were saying over the music. He looked over her shoulder. “Ms. Lester is dancing with Charlie.”
“Charlie?” Mallory asked. “My grandpa Charlie?”
Hollis nodded. “I invited him and Eleanor when they were at the tree farm the other day.”
Mallory turned and waved, turning back to Hollis excitedly. Once again, her face was close.
Linda had put on a great party, but she’d forgotten one detail that Hollis wished he had right now—mistletoe. An excuse to kiss the woman in front of him was all he needed.
Someone tapped on his shoulder. “Mind if I cut in, young man?”
Hollis turned to see Nan standing there holding onto a rolling walker. Her eyes were twinkling as she met his gaze.
“Of course not, Nan,” he said, surprised to see her.
“Grandma!” Mallory released her hold on Hollis and cautiously gave Nan a hug. “Hi.” She pulled back and looked at Nan.
Hollis worried for a moment that Nan might get frustrated if she didn’t recognize Mallory.
“Excuse me, dear.” Nan smiled brightly. “I hope you don’t mind if I steal your date for a dance?”
Mallory shared a glance with Hollis. “Oh. Of course not.” She gave Hollis a nod. “In fact, I think I’m going to go find Pop to dance with.”
As Hollis began to dance with Nan, he waited to see what she would say.
“I went to a dance once,” she finally said, looking up at him. “I think.” Her brow wrinkled.
“Yeah?” he asked.
“Mm.” She looked younger as she swayed, lost somewhere between her past and the present moment. “I don’t remember his name, but I recall how he made me feel.”
“How’s that?” Hollis asked, encouraging her to keep talking.
Nan held on to him firmly as the festive music played. “Love feels like falling. Terrifying and futile to try and stop.” She closed her eyes for a moment.
Hollis wondered if she was thinking of Mickey. Of course, she was. That was her late husband. As they swayed, her eyes closed, her wrinkles seemed to soften, and an expression of peace washed over her.
“I’m floating,” she said quietly.
Hollis suspected she was lost in a memory when usually she was lost without them. He didn’t let go when the song ended, and neither did she. Not until she looked at him again, a thin sheen of tears in her eyes. “Nan? You okay?”
She looked confused and upset, and Hollis’s stomach knotted in dread.
“Nan,” a man’s voice said from somewhere behind Hollis.
Hollis turned toward his grandfather, who’d tapped his shoulder. “Pop.”
“May I have this dance?” Pop asked.
For a moment, Hollis thought his grandfather wanted to dance with him. But then Pop reached for Nan’s hand, and Hollis stepped away.
Nan’s confusion shifted subtly as she looked at her new dance partner, her eyes becoming clearer. Nan and Pop had always known each other. They’d both grown up in Bloom. Even so, most were strangers to Nan these days, and Hollis hesitated to leave Pop to possibly upset Nan.
“Don’t you have someone else to go find?” Pop glanced over his shoulder and winked at Hollis. “I think I saw her at the punch bowl.”
Hollis turned to look in that direction, and sure enough, Mallory was there, preparing a cup of bright red punch. He looked at Pop again, but his grandfather and Nan were fine. Laughing even.
“Thank you for the dance, young man,” Nan said, and Hollis got the message. He wasn’t needed, not here. Instead, he was needed more at the refreshments table. Or, rather, what he needed was there.
The rest of the evening passed in a whirl of music and laughter. Hollis found himself dancing with resident after resident, each one eager to share their splintered memories of Christmases past. He even danced with Eleanor as Mallory danced with her grandpa Charlie.
“You need to come visit me sometime soon. We’ll have a cup of tea, and I’ll loan you a book,” Eleanor said, holding on to him tightly. She’d fractured her pelvis a couple of years back, and Hollis knew she was still a little unsteady on her feet.
“Not sure I’ll have much time for reading in the future,” he said honestly.
Eleanor beamed brightly. “Ah. Love does take quite a lot of time.” She glanced over at Mallory. “A woman is like a book that you never stop reading.”
Hollis took a moment to process that thought. Eleanor was always talking in book quotes. “Which book is that from?”
Eleanor patted a hand on his chest. “Those are my words, and it’s the truth. When you find the right woman, think of her as a book that doesn’t end. You always have to keep turning the pages and discovering her.”
“Why are you giving me love advice, Eleanor?”
Eleanor laughed. “Love is contagious, I suppose. Once you’re in it, you want everyone else to be in it too.”
Hollis loved that Eleanor and Charlie had found love late in life. It was inspiring to watch the two of them together.
Charlie returned and interrupted their dance. “Don’t even think about stealing my lovely bride.”
Hollis lifted his hands, palms out. “I wouldn’t dream of it.”
Eleanor visibly blushed as Charlie pulled her back in. Then Hollis looked around for Mallory, spotting her on the other side of the dance floor.
He watched her twirl an elderly gentleman around the floor, her face beaming. Mission achieved. That’s all he’d wanted for tonight. To see everyone here have fun, but especially Mallory.
As the night wound down and residents slowly began to return to their rooms, Hollis walked over to the punch bowl. Pop sidled up next to him, a knowing glint in his eye.
“That Mallory,” Pop said, nodding toward where she was chatting animatedly with a group of residents, “she’s something special.”
Hollis nodded, unable to take his eyes off her. He’d had a hard time taking his eyes off her all night. “She really is.”
Pop clapped a hand on his shoulder. “You know, son, sometimes the best things in life are worth taking a risk for.”
Before Hollis could respond, Mallory was making her way over to them, her cheeks flushed and her eyes bright with excitement.
“Hollis, I’m so glad you made me come.” Impulsively, she threw her arms around him in a quick hug.
Hollis savored the brief contact, wishing he could hold on longer. “Practically kicking and screaming,” he teased as she pulled away. “You seemed like you needed a little Christmas cheer. And I guess I did too.”
“You?” She lifted a brow. “You’re Santa Claus in the flesh.”
Pop chuckled. “Don’t let this big lug fool you. It’s all show. Sometimes the biggest smiles hide the loneliest hearts. I knew that the first time I caught him trespassing on my farm.”
Hollis was amazed by how many memories Pop still had, even though so many had vanished to wherever memories go when they were lost.
“I’ll remember that.” She nudged him slightly. “Word in the room is that they’re kicking us out in five minutes. Dance is over at eight.”
“Oh, man.” Pop swung his arm with exaggerated disappointment. “I was just working up my nerve to ask Nancy to dance with me.”
“The recreational therapist?” Mallory glanced around the room. “Don’t worry, Pop. I’ll find her and ask her for you. I think there’s still time for one more dance.”
Pop gave her a wink. “Then you and Hollis here can have one last dance too.”
As they said their goodbyes and headed out to Hollis’s truck, he couldn’t help but feel a sense of accomplishment. He’d seen a glimpse of the carefree, joyful Mallory she could be when she wasn’t lugging around the worries and responsibilities that weren’t solely hers.
Driving home, with Mallory humming softly to the Christmas carols on the radio, Hollis wished the night didn’t have to end. As he pulled up in front of her house, he turned to her. “I won’t try to walk you to your door. I got the memo loud and clear that tonight was not a date.”
Mallory’s soft brown eyes were warm. “Wow, all that dancing really wore me out and I, um, have an early shift at the hospital.”
“Really? Haven’t you worked three twelve-hour shifts already this week?”
She glanced up. “Are you keeping tabs on me?”
He shook his head, even though, yeah, he kind of was.
“I’m covering for one of the other nurses so she can attend some family stuff for the holidays. The extra shifts help with Nan’s care.”
Hollis nodded. “Nursing. Visiting Nan. Putting on a play. Don’t burn the candle at both ends. You’ll burn yourself out.”
She breathed a laugh. “I may have been close to doing just that, but tonight was good for me. It was fun.”
“Laughter is good medicine,” Hollis said. “Just let me know when you need more. I’m at the ready if it means keeping you from burning out.”
The air between them felt charged—at least to him. Even knowing that tonight wasn’t supposed to have any romantic implications, he found himself leaning in, drawn by some invisible force—a string that had always pulled him toward Mallory. As he leaned, however, Mallory blinked, breaking the spell.
“Thank you, Hollis,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper. Then she gathered her bag, avoiding looking at him directly. “Good night.”
He watched as she slipped out of the truck and walked up her driveway to her front porch. Then he expelled a long breath as she disappeared inside the home. “Night, Mal.”
Driving home, Hollis wondered if it was his imagination or if something had shifted between them tonight. It might not have been a date, but it felt like more than friendship.
The Rustic Nail Ornament