Chapter 10 Holly
HOLLY
The early morning air was cool and crisp as Holly’s feet hit the weathered boardwalk in a steady rhythm.
Beside her, Jack matched her pace easily, his longer stride adjusted to keep them running side by side.
Duke bounded ahead of them, his golden coat catching the first rays of sunlight as he raced toward something only he could see, then circled back with obvious joy.
This had become their routine over the past five days. Something easy and comfortable that had developed naturally. Morning runs followed by breakfast before they dove into the renovation work that filled their days.
Holly found herself looking forward to these mornings more than she probably should.
Their relationship had developed without labels or official dates.
Just moments that built on each other. Jack standing close as he showed her woodworking techniques, his voice low and patient as he explained the grain of different woods.
His arms wrapping around her from behind to help her get the sanding angle right, his hands guiding hers with a gentleness that made her breath catch.
Lingering touches that lasted a heartbeat longer than necessary.
Easy conversations that ranged from trivial to profound.
And the goodnight kisses on the cheek that had started casually but now lasted a moment longer each night, both of them lingering in that space between friendship and something more.
Then the casual “see you tomorrow morning for our run?” that had become their way of saying goodnight without really saying goodbye.
It was unspoken but real. And Holly found herself both terrified and exhilarated by it.
Jack broke the comfortable silence between them as they rounded the curve where the boardwalk met the beach access. “I haven’t asked yet, but it’s been a day and I have to know.” He glanced at her, his expression open and curious. “What’s it like having Gabe home?”
The question was simple, but the weight behind it made Holly’s chest tighten with emotion.
How could she put into words the joy of having her son home?
Of watching him with Trinity, seeing them together after months of separation.
Of hearing his laugh echo through the inn’s hallways.
Of knowing that when she went to sleep at night, he was just down the hall instead of halfway around the world in some dangerous place she couldn’t even picture.
But then the fear flooded in, cold and sharp. The boot. That medical boot on his foot that she’d pretended not to see at first, as if ignoring it would make the injury less real.
Until Christopher had told her what really happened.
“Christopher told me how Gabe got injured,” Holly said quietly, her pace slowing slightly without her meaning to.
“Saving hostages. Going into a situation that was already compromised.” She swallowed hard.
“The reality of what my son faces, what he’s been facing for years, while I’ve been pretending the danger isn’t real. ”
She’d been doing that, hadn’t she? She distanced herself from thinking about it too deeply. Because if she let herself really think about the missions Gabe volunteered for, the risks he took, the violence he walked into regularly, she would drive herself completely insane with worry.
“Especially after what happened to Abigail,” Holly continued, surprised to hear herself speaking the words aloud.
She found Jack so easy to talk to. Over the past five days, they’d learned so much about each other, shared things she hadn’t shared with anyone.
“I knew that if I let myself think about the danger Gabe faced every day, I’d fall apart.
And I couldn’t do that. I had to keep strong and together for Trinity. ”
Her voice caught slightly. “That little girl had already lost her mother. She couldn’t have her grandmother falling apart every time her father deployed.”
So Holly had learned to compartmentalize. To push the fear down deep and lock it away. To smile and wave when Gabe left for another assignment. To read his carefully edited emails and pretend she didn’t see what he wasn’t saying between the lines.
But seeing that boot, hearing Christopher’s explanation of what had actually happened, had cracked that careful distance wide open.
Jack reached over and squeezed her hand briefly. The gesture was simple but grounding, and Holly felt tears prick at her eyes.
She’d learned about Jack’s past over these five days too.
His previous marriage to Pamela. How she’d walked out on her husband and three-year-old daughter for what she called a “better life.” Never looked back.
No birthday cards. No Christmas presents.
No phone calls on Jane’s birthday or holidays.
Just cut her daughter off completely, as cold and final as slamming a door.
Holly couldn’t fathom it. As a mother, she couldn’t imagine ever doing something like that. And then to destroy Jack’s business out of spite years later because he dared to become successful after the divorce? The vindictiveness of it still shocked her.
What kind of woman did that? What kind of mother?
“Holly?” Jack’s voice pulled her from her spiraling thoughts. “Are you still with me?”
“What?” Holly blinked, realizing she’d gone silent, her mind spinning through everything.
She slowed to a walk and then laughed when she saw Duke skid to a stop ahead of them. The dog had been racing forward and suddenly realized his humans weren’t running anymore. He came hurtling back toward them like a golden bullet, his tongue lolling happily.
“Sorry, my mind was just on other things.” Holly smiled up at Jack as they both caught their breath. They stretched their legs, the movement familiar and easy after five mornings of this routine. She reached down to scratch Duke’s ears, and the dog leaned into her touch with obvious contentment.
“I said you haven’t spent much time with him,” Jack said, and guilt clouded his eyes. “Between me occupying your time with the inn renovations and my daughter having roped Gabe and Trinity into helping with the ballroom, I’m afraid you’re not having much of a vacation or family time.”
“Are you kidding?” Holly straightened, looking at him with genuine surprise. “Jack, we’re having the best vacation ever. All of us.”
She meant it. Trinity was happier than Holly had seen her in years.
The light had come back into her granddaughter’s eyes, the easy laughter that had been missing since Abigail died.
Charlie seemed more relaxed, the tension she usually carried in her shoulders easing a little more each day.
Even Gabe, despite the injury and the medical boot, seemed lighter somehow.
“We love it here,” Holly continued. “The inn, your family, all of it. The Christmas family feels like we’ve known you for years, not just days.”
They started walking again, cooling down as they headed back toward the inn. Duke trotted ahead, occasionally stopping to investigate interesting smells along the path.
“I’ve noticed changes in Gabe,” Holly said thoughtfully. “He’s been helping with the ballroom despite the boot. Trinity’s been trying to get him involved in everything.” She smiled slightly. “She has all the subtlety of a twelve-year-old when she’s matchmaking.”
Jack chuckled. “I’ve noticed. She’s been working overtime trying to push people together.”
“Both our daughters seem to have that tendency,” Holly agreed. “Though I have to admit, Trinity’s happiness here has been worth any lack of rest or traditional vacation activities. She’s blossomed.”
They walked in comfortable silence for a moment, the sound of the waves and Duke’s occasional snuffling filling the quiet spaces between them.
“Have you noticed how close Isabella and Christopher have gotten?” Holly asked, changing the subject slightly.
Jack nodded, a knowing smile crossing his face. “Hard not to notice. The way they look at each other. How protective Christopher has become. My mother would tell you it’s the inn’s Christmas magic weaving its spell.”
He said it with gentle humor, but there was something underneath the words. A belief, maybe, or at least an acknowledgment that something special happened at this inn. That people came here heavy with grief or problems, and somehow the place created space for new beginnings.
“I’m starting to believe in your mother’s magic and predictions,” Holly admitted. “I’ve now seen two of my loved ones falling in love. Charlie with Logan, and now Christopher with Isabella.” She shook her head in wonder. “Something I never thought I’d see those two ever do.”
“Why’s that?” Jack asked, genuine curiosity in his voice.
“Charlie’s been married to her career for as long as I’ve known her,” Holly explained.
“She’s a brilliant attorney, completely focused on building her career.
I don’t think I’ve ever seen her date anyone seriously.
And Christopher?” She smiled fondly. “He’s never stayed anywhere long enough to put down roots.
Always moving to the next assignment, the next place.
I worried he’d spend his whole life running. ”
“And now?” Jack prompted.
“Now I’m watching him look at Isabella like she hung the moon,” Holly said softly.
“Watching him paint his nails with glitter polish because it makes two twelve-year-old girls happy. Seeing him actually consider staying somewhere, building something permanent.” She paused.
“It’s the inn. Your mother’s right. There’s something special here. ”
They were approaching the inn now, the building coming into view with its warm lights and welcoming presence. The sun was rising over the ocean behind them, painting the sky in shades of pink and gold.
Holly found herself thinking about that magic Jack’s mother talked about. How it seemed to be weaving through all of them, creating connections and opening hearts that had been closed.
And maybe, just maybe, it was affecting her too.
She didn’t say it aloud. Wasn’t ready for that conversation yet. But she felt it warming her chest like the sunrise warming the sand beneath their feet.
They reached the inn’s entrance, and Jack turned to her with that soft smile that made her heart do complicated things.
“Breakfast after we shower?” he asked. “Before we tackle that second-floor woodwork?”
“Sounds perfect,” Holly agreed.
They parted with a lingering look that said more than words could, and Holly watched him head toward his workshop before she turned toward the inn’s main entrance.
As she stepped inside, she was surprised to see Gabe coming down the main staircase. The sun was barely up, and here was her son already dressed for the day, moving carefully with the medical boot but with clear purpose in his stride.
“You’re up early,” Holly commented, crossing the lobby to meet him at the bottom of the stairs. Maternal concern was automatic, ingrained after thirty-two years of being his mother. “You’re on vacation, sweetheart, you know you can sleep in now. Like you used when you were on school vacation.”
“That was a blast from the past and a long time ago. I couldn’t sleep,” Gabe said, but there was something in his voice that caught her attention.
Not restlessness exactly, but determination.
“I thought I’d get an early start helping Jane with the ballroom.
Trinity, Maddy, and Christopher are not back from Isabella’s yet, and he messaged to say he’d be back later.
So I figured Jane could use an extra pair of hands. ”
Something tugged at Holly’s heart as she looked at her son. Really looked at him.
She saw the lines around his eyes that hadn’t been there six years ago. The way he held himself with military precision, even in casual clothes. The careful way he moved, not just because of the injured foot but because he’d learned to always be aware, always be ready.
Her beautiful, broken son who’d been pushing himself to the breaking point for six years.
She knew he volunteered for the most dangerous missions.
Christopher had told her that much, though he’d tried to soften it.
She knew Gabe took assignments that would terrify her if she knew the full extent of them, that he seemed to be looking for something in the violence and chaos of combat zones.
Running from his grief instead of through it.
And standing here in the early morning light, watching him prepare to spend his day helping with decorations and renovation work, Holly wished with everything in her that some of Julie’s Christmas magic would touch her son’s wounded heart.
That whatever healing happened at this inn, whatever peace people found here, would find its way to Gabe. That he could stop running and start healing. That he could forgive himself for whatever he was punishing himself for.
Because if anyone deserved peace, it was her son.
“That’s kind of you,” Holly said, keeping her voice light even as emotion threatened to close her throat. “I’m sure Jane will appreciate the help.”
Gabe nodded, already moving toward the hallway that led to the ballroom. As he walked past her, he hugged her and kissed her cheek. “Love you.” He smiled, calling over his shoulder, “See you later, Mom.”
“Be careful on that foot,” Holly called after him, unable to help herself.
He raised a hand in acknowledgment without turning around, and then he was gone.
Holly stood in the lobby for a long moment, listening to the inn settle around her. Somewhere upstairs, she knew Charlie was probably rising. Through the windows, she could see Logan heading into his workshop, Duke trotting faithfully at his heels.
And in the ballroom of this beautiful, magical inn, her son was trying to outrun ghosts that wouldn’t let him rest.
Holly closed her eyes and silently asked whatever magic lived in these walls. Whatever force Julie Christmas believed in that brought broken people together and helped them heal.
Please, she thought. Please let my son find peace. Let him open his heart again. Let him stop punishing himself for surviving when Abigail didn’t. Let him remember that he deserves to be happy too.
Then Holly squared her shoulders, wiped the moisture from her eyes, and headed upstairs to shower and change.
There was work to do, a vacation to enjoy, and a family to hold together.
But in her heart, she carried that wish like a candle flame in the darkness.
That somehow, someway, the Christmas magic would touch her son’s broken heart and remind him how to heal.