46. Christmas Eve
FORTY-SIX
CHRISTMAS EVE:
Bailey had done her best to prepare Reeves for the tree lighting ceremony at Whiskey Mountain Lodge. “This is what I invited you to last year,” she told him, hoping to break him out of the stupor he’d fallen into.
He’d come to a complete stop just inside the doors of the lodge, and Bailey could admit the transformation of the main area was quite impressive. “We were here three days ago,” he said.
Bailey smiled and linked her arm through his, leaning her head against his bicep.
“All my aunts and uncles work on it,” she said.
“They got the tree this morning and set it up, and they used to decorate the whole thing before anyone would arrive, or they’d let guests do it.
But now, anyone who wants to come a few minutes early can add something to the tree. ”
She looked up to the second level where Stockton stood with his new girlfriend, Hannah. She leaned out over the railing and hung something on one of the upper branches. Stockton did the same, and they smiled at one another, something magical hanging in the air.
Christmas magic, and Bailey loved how it infected her too.
“We can do some of the decorating?” Reeves asked.
Bailey took a step forward, clearing the area in front of the door as Reeves went with her. “Yeah, come on,” she said. Two ladders still stood near the tree, and that middle section always seemed a little bit bare.
“If you want to get up on one of the ladders,” Bailey said. “I’ll hand you ornaments.”
“All right.” Reeves moved to the closest one and climbed up a few steps. “There’s plenty of empty space here.”
Bailey started to sort through the boxes of ornaments that remained, finally selecting one with blue, pink, purple, and gold spheres covered with silver embellishments. They still had hooks in the tops, and Bailey lifted the lid and handed up the first one to Reeves.
They’d planned to stay at Whiskey Mountain Lodge tonight in a couple of the upper rooms, to be here to celebrate Christmas with her family tomorrow as well. Reeves claimed not to have any traditions past making his dogs a special meal and eating ham sandwiches for a couple of days.
The barking of dogs met her ears, and Laney quickly turned toward Sir and Pansy, who both got to their feet. “It’s okay,” Bailey said. “They’re just my momma’s dogs, and you’ve met them before.”
Reeves had asked Boston to check on his goats that night and in the morning, and he’d agreed. Bailey loved that they had such a large network of people they could ask for help.
Hydrangea let out a howl and a couple of high yips, then her tail started to wag like crazy as Momma’s two big dogs entered the living room.
“Sorry,” she called from around the corner, only making an appearance a few seconds later. By then, Sir and Pansy had greeted Stonewall and Carlisle with plenty of sniffing and circling happening.
Bailey waved away her concern as Hydrangea paced on the couch, whining in excitement several feet from the bigger dogs. “They’re fine,” she said.
“I knew someone had arrived,” Momma said. “Because they were really keen on coming out here.”
“It’s just us.” Bailey handed Reeves the last ornament from the box, then smiled at her mother and received her hug. “It’s Reeves’s first time here,” she said. “And he wanted to decorate the tree.”
“You guys have lovely trees at your place,” Momma said as they parted.
“Nothing like this,” Reeves called from the ladder.
Bailey picked up another box of ornaments, this one all red and gold, and frowned at it.
Reeves chuckled. “You can put red ornaments on the tree,” he said. “This isn’t even yours.”
Bailey glared up at him for a moment. “Just so you know, there will not be any red ornaments on our Christmas tree.”
“No, ma’am,” he said, his voice serious, but his face filled with teasing. “I wouldn’t dream of it.”
Bailey simply found the color abrasive and liked blues and silvers much better than red and green.
“Ah, it is Bailey,” Daddy said as he came down from upstairs, grinning for all he was worth.
“Merry Christmas, Daddy,” Bailey said, and she eased into his arms as well.
“I think this side looks good.” Reeves climbed down from the ladder and dusted his hands as if he had been doing terribly difficult work. “Howdy, sir.”
Daddy chuckled, shook Reeves’s hand, and then pulled him into a hug. “How many times do I have to tell you not to call me sir?”
“At least one more.” Reeves grinned at him and moved over to hug Bailey’s momma.
“Listen, Bailey,” Momma said, and her breath dried right up in her lungs. Reeves had told her that she started harder conversations with the word “listen,” and she realized she’d gotten it from her mother.
Momma exchanged a look with Daddy, whose countenance didn’t dim one bit.
They looked at her again as a single unit, almost as if they had rehearsed it.
Then they both looked at Reeves. Bailey did too, and found him grinning from ear to ear.
He tucked his hands in his pockets and gave them a slight nod.
“What’s going on here?” Bailey asked.
Everyone looked at her again, and she couldn’t help the way her heart thumped in her chest.
“We wanted you to light the tree this year,” Daddy said. “You didn’t want to make a big deal of it last year, and we understood that, but—” He looked at Momma.
“We don’t think it will be a big deal this year at all,” she said. “You’re our daughter, and it makes sense.”
Bailey’s first inclination was to refuse. Then her mother’s words sank into her ears. It makes sense. No one would think anything of it, and since she had waited a year, it wouldn’t be a heralding of her homecoming either.
“All right,” she said, and all the tension in the lodge faded away.
“All right.” Daddy clapped his hands. “Glad that’s settled. Now, have you two had Rosa’s breakfast empanadas? Because if not, you’re in for a real treat.”
Later that evening, Bailey had changed into her Christmas Eve dress, a glittery, navy blue gown that bordered on black.
She’d found it on clearance, and it reminded her of the night Christ was born, with the gems sewn into to the bodice throwing starlight around her.
She’d pulled her hair back on the sides, added a wave to it, and spent a couple of hours alone in her guest room to prep for the party.
Now, though, the lodge filled with her aunts and cousins. She’d already seen and greeted Tex and Abby and their three kids, as well as Trace and Everly, Harry, Belle, and baby Lyric, and his half-siblings.
Otis and Georgia, Joey and Adam, OJ and Anna—as well as Joey’s beautiful baby daughter—were there, of course. They sat right in the front row, almost as if Momma and Daddy had told them Bailey would be lighting the tree this year. They for-sure had.
It’s just the flip of a switch, she told herself, the words becoming a recitation as she found Reeves and sat beside him in the second row, on the very end. He acted as an excellent shield for her at big events like this.
She loved him all the more as he leaned over and shook hands with Luke and started an easy conversation with the man. They had become friends, and Reeves had brainstormed with Luke about future videos for his channel.
She hadn’t seen Gabe or Morris yet, but Mav had arrived with Dani, Boston and Cora, and his younger children as well. She leaned forward and tapped Otis on the shoulder.
The man turned back to her and said, “Howdy, Bailey. You look mighty pretty.”
“Thank you.” She smiled. “Is Blaze coming?”
“I think he and Faith took their kids to her sister’s this year,” Georgia said, also turning to greet her.
Joey nodded and kept up the steady patting on her daughter’s back.
“Gabe and Morris are doing their own thing this year too,” Luke said from the other side of Reeves. “So they won’t be here.”
The door kept opening and more people came in. Colton and Annie Hammond, as well as Ames and Sophia and their two older boys—Chris and Lars—who ran the K9 Academy with their dad. Wes and Bree also arrived, but all of their adult children lived out of town.
“There’s Jem,” Otis said, and he stood halfway and raised his hand, so Jem and Sunny and their two younger children could come sit by them.
“Oh, they’ve got Rosie too,” Georgia said. “Do we have an extra seat for her?”
Reeves stood up. “She can have mine. I’ll get a chair from the kitchen.”
Bailey stayed in her seat, her stomach a ball of nerves, and she wasn’t even sure why.
Reeves returned about the time Rosie stepped past Bailey and said, “Howdy Bailey,” in what sounded very much like a Texas cowgirl twang.
She’d been riding the amateur circuit that year and had won the whole thing.
Bailey put her arm around her and squeezed her shoulders. “It’s good to see you, Rosie.”
“You too.”
The door stopped opening and closing; Reeves positioned his chair on the end of the row next to Bailey, and she would now have to move past him to make it to the bank of light switches on the wall.
Momma and Daddy entered the room and stood in front of the Christmas tree with Daddy holding a microphone. “Welcome to Whiskey Mountain Lodge,” he said.
Momma brought her hands together in applause, and the room erupted.
Reeves reached over and took her hand in his, squeezing her fingers tightly.
She looked at him, an entire conversation happening in less than a second.
Yes, she’d have eyes on her, and then the tree would be lit, and everyone would ooh and ahh at that, and she could fade into the background again.
You came home for things like this, she told herself.
“After we light the tree,” Daddy said. “We’re going to move into our new event space, where all the stockings have been hung. Everyone should have one, and if you have any gifts you meant to put in them, hopefully you can get there before the owner of it empties it.”
Several murmurs moved through the crowd as the excitement grew, and Bailey found herself smiling.