Candy Cane Dreams (Mistletoe Meadows Sweet Christmas #6)

Chapter 1

Chapter One

K ate Woolbert tightened her grip on the steering wheel and watched the snowflakes as they fell lazily down, drifting up and over her car windshield as she drove through the sleepy town of Mistletoe Meadows.

The street lights, with large lighted outlines of Christmas trees, candy canes, or snowmen anchored around them, made the snow glisten and glitter as it slid past her car as she motored slowly down the street.

Everything she owned was in her car, although she wasn't thinking about that as she looked at the dark storefront windows that somehow, despite the early hour and the lack of anyone walking around, still managed to seem warm and welcoming.

She left Baltimore shortly after midnight because she hadn't been able to sleep.

She still had several hours before she was supposed to meet with Principal Stevens about her new job as school counselor, which started after the holiday break.

But since her old job had ended at the end of November, they had agreed that she could spend the month of December hanging around the school, helping where she could, and getting to know the teachers and students and their parents.

It was the kind of opportunity that existed only in a small town school.

Small towns.

She looked again at the sparkling Christmas decorations, the cheerful, yet dark, store windows, and wondered again how she'd ended up here, because she didn't really think of herself as a small town girl.

A light caught her eye, something a little different, a little warmer than the rest, and she looked across the street, her gaze catching on a cute, weatherbeaten sign in the shape of a candy cane. Then she looked below the sign to the yellow light that had caught her attention.

Behind the counter, a man—impossible to tell his age from where she was in her car—stood at the counter, dumping ingredients into a large mixing bowl.

A white apron was tied around his waist, with a picture she couldn't discern, but she guessed probably had something to do with Christmas on the front of it.

It was faded and worn, and yet somehow still cheerful and Christmasy, even though she couldn't see the details.

Someone was up early this morning. As early as she was.

Although he hadn't driven from Baltimore. He was happy, content to do his job in an old store in a small town, where he'd probably lived all of his life.

It wasn't something she ever saw for herself, but... somehow the idea of living in a small town didn't seem quite as repulsive as it had through her teen years and college years.

Her roommate, Nelly, had constantly raved about the amazing close-knit, family-like atmosphere of her small town.

But Kate had been determined that she would remain a city girl.

After all, teaching in an inner city school for an impossibly low wage was one way to give back to her community, wasn't it?

Her car inched down the road, and she lost sight of the man in the window as she pondered that question.

It didn't feel like she was giving anything back.

The things she was teaching at the inner-city school didn't really help her students at all, and she wasn't allowed to talk about her faith.

Not even a word. And yet, she could tell them all kinds of lies about genders and sexuality and despicable things that went against every moral code she might have, and it was perfectly okay. How was that serving her children?

It had become a moral dilemma for her, and then the terrible breakup last Christmas of the engagement that she thought was going to lead to a happily ever after for her had ripped everything out from underneath her, and she had started applying for other jobs in other communities, although.

.. again, she wasn't sure she wanted to be a small town girl.

Somehow, she found herself in a parking lot at a church at the edge of town. She turned around and started driving back through, ostensibly looking for places for rent.

Baltimore’s high rents and low wages had left her with very little savings, and she needed someplace cheap and fast.

Her savings would dwindle exceptionally quickly if she had to stay at a hotel for very long. Not to mention, the closest one was forty-five minutes away.

She turned around and tried to justify the second trip through because she needed to find a place to stay, and she might have missed a for-rent sign.

But deep down, she knew it was because the town made her feel like she was curled up in an ugly Christmas sweater, a mug of cocoa in one hand, a fire blazing in the hearth, as she read a good book and the Christmas tree twinkled in the corner beside her.

How did a town give a person a feeling like that? She never felt like that in the city. But she loved the hustle and the bustle and the busyness and the fact that there was always someone awake, and she never felt alone. Weren't small towns lonely? And dead? Boring?

The yellow lights of the candy shop caught her attention again along with the man, still behind the counter, still working, still doing what he always did, she supposed.

This time, she noticed the elaborate candy cane display in the window and the sign that said "Handmade Candy Canes."

Did people actually handmake candy canes?

She didn't even know that was a thing.

But the store just seemed so cozy, the display so blatantly Christmasy, and the man obviously content with his work. He wasn't on his phone, and he didn't even look up as her headlights flashed by.

What would it be like to be so grounded and rooted in one's life?

Kate set the feeling aside. More than likely, small towns were not for her, but it would be a nice change of pace, give her a little bit of something to put on her résumé to beef it up some, for the time when she got her next job at a big school in the city.

And not as an assistant counselor, but as the head counselor.

She told herself she had to familiarize herself with the town, the people, and the things that they did. Now she knew there was a candy cane shop in town, and a man who was up early to get started making something unique.

By the time she rolled through town again, she hadn't seen any for-rent signs, but the place was starting to come to life and dawn had started to break over the top of the eastern foothills.

The Blue Ridge Mountains were to the west, although the town was high enough up that she felt like she was living on one.

Maybe they were. She didn't really do a whole lot of research into the topography; she had to admit that she was surprised to see snow in Virginia this early in December. Who would have thought?

Certainly not her, although when her college roommate, Nelly Bushnell, now Nelly McBride, had taken her home for holiday break one year there had been snow the last day, if she remembered correctly.

The whole family had gone out and played in it, and Kate had joined in with them, but at the same time she had felt like it was a little. .. juvenile.

She still had another thirty minutes before she could conceivably show up at the school, and even then she would be early.

Parking at the church where she'd turned around twice, she got out of her car, being sure to lock the door since it contained all of her worldly possessions, and then started walking up the street slowly, taking big lungfuls of the mountain-scented air.

It felt crisp and cool and somehow cleaner than the air she was used to breathing. Was that a thing?

It had to be in her imagination. Air wasn't cleaner in small towns. Cities had done an outstanding job of becoming more environmentally friendly and Baltimore hardly ever had to deal with smog or anything of the sort anymore.

"Kate!"

Kate turned around at the sound of the female voice.

She thought she recognized it, and a smile took over her face as she saw her good friend, Nelly.

Now Nelly McBride. Nelly had gotten married over the past year, which had been bittersweet for Kate, since she had also planned a wedding for earlier this year, except last Christmas, her fiancé had called it off. On Christmas Day morning. Of all times.

Shaking those bad memories out of her head, Kate returned Nelly's hug, listening as Nelly introduced her husband, Roland McBride.

"It's good to meet you," she said, shaking the hand that had been offered.

"Nelly always talks about what a great friend you are. Sounds like you guys had some fun times in college."

Kate smiled. Nelly had been a fabulous roommate, kind and considerate, and while she had always been up for a good time, she'd also been a great study partner as well.

"Those were the days," she said with a small smile.

Nelly nodded. "I was so bummed that you weren't able to make it to our wedding."

"I'd had that mission trip scheduled for years, and I didn't want to miss it.

" Her heart had always been in helping underprivileged people, children especially.

But lately she'd begun to wonder if maybe the way she'd been helping ended up not really being much of a help.

Giving people things never seemed to make them better.

And in fact, she'd seen real life data that had shown that when children were given things instead of having to earn them, it made them worse.

That study was one of the many things that had gotten her thinking and had inspired her to resign her job and apply for other jobs, including the one here in Mistletoe Meadows. That, and the fact that Edward had broken up with her.

"Have you found a place to stay yet?" Nelly asked, her head tilted slightly to one side, her eyes sparkling with joy and happiness.

It was amazing how being with the right person could do that to a person. Nelly just seemed to glow.

Kate pushed down the little frission of jealousy that threatened to steal her peace and happiness.

She was happy. Of course she was. She was starting a new job in a new town. She had been hired over all of the other applicants, and Principal Stevens was excited about the job that they were going to do together.

And so was she.

"No, I haven't. That was part of the reason I was walking around town. I thought maybe I had missed a sign or something. Are there no places for rent here?"

"The market is tight, that's for sure," Roland said, his voice sounding grave and serious.

He and Nelly looked at each other and seemed to nod a bit before Nelly turned to her and said, "But you could stay with us. We're living with Roland's mom right now, and my grandma moved in too. But there's plenty of bedrooms in that big old farmhouse."

Nelly was going to go on, but Kate put a hand up, cutting her off.

"That is so very generous of you, but I couldn't possibly impose on Roland's mother's house."

There was no way she was going to take her up on that offer. A person just didn't do things like that. It was one thing to go home with her for a couple of weeks over the holidays. That had been bad enough, but to move in with newlyweds and the groom's mother? And some other woman? No way.

"Seriously. We'd love to have you. And there's plenty of room in the house."

"If you don't mind my siblings dropping in once in a while. We're all family there. My mom will probably put you to work too."

"I couldn't imagine living there without working.

But of course, I would pay rent, except.

.." She couldn't explain that she had very little money, but it also just went against her sense of what was right.

Because she could see that Nelly really wanted her to.

Would that be so terrible? Her moving in with Nelly and her husband and his mom and their grandma?

Yeah, they seemed sincere, and maybe things were different here in a small town versus where she grew up in the city, but in Kate's experience, people really didn't want to be imposed upon like that.

So she rebuffed Nelly's efforts to get her to change her mind, firmly saying that she would spend more time hunting for a place to stay.

"Then at least stay with us until you find a place. It would be cheaper than a hotel."

"That's very nice of you. If I don't find a place by the new year, maybe I'll take you up on it."

Nelly looked disappointed, but she nodded.

The new year was a month away; surely she would find a place by then.

"If I can't get you to stay, at least come for supper tonight," Nelly said, smiling and giving her an appealing look.

She had already said no to the offer of lodging; she could hardly turn down supper. Although, there was still that part of her that didn't want to impose.

"You're not going to be putting anyone out.

There's always plenty of food. No one's going to cook anything different if you come.

There's just... friendly faces and hearty food.

" Roland didn't seem like he was begging her, but he was simply laying out the facts.

Did he really not mind people descending on his house?

"You talked me into it," she said, still unable to believe that it wouldn't be an imposition. At the very least, they would have more dishes to do.

"Awesome. We'll see you tonight at six. Does that work?" Nelly said, her eyes shining like Kate had just given her a hundred-dollar bill, rather than an agreement to eat supper with her. Maybe Kate was looking at it all wrong.

She tucked that thought away for later. It was possible that she was mistaken, although she had been raised to give other people a wide berth and respect their privacy and family. Again she thought that maybe it was the difference between growing up in the city and growing up in a small town.

After a little bit more small talk, they parted ways, with Kate going back to her car and heading toward the school.

As she passed by the candy cane shop one more time, she glanced in the window and saw a little girl staring silently at the man, who appeared to be talking.

Other shops were open on the street now, and the town had, if not come to life, at least started to wake up.

Maybe that little girl would be at school in a bit, and perhaps Kate would meet her, along with all the other children.

It was going to be a big difference from the school that she had been at, a much smaller student population. Less than a quarter of what it had been at the inner city school where she had worked.

In one way, she was looking forward to possibly knowing the name of every child, which Principal Stevens had assured her every teacher and administrator knew.

Kate somehow found that exciting and unbelievable at the same time.

Regardless, a little thrill of excitement went through her, for the change if nothing else, as she got in her car and headed toward the school.