Chapter 34
HOLLY
I’d fucked up. I had kissed Paul again and not only that, I’d pulled him closer and wanted more.
A simple mistletoe kiss had quickly turned almost frantic.
God knows what would have happened if Willow hadn’t come to find us when she did.
I knew I’d frustrated Paul by not wanting to talk to him afterwards.
He’d stalked off to the café van and Willow had muttered that he was back to his old grumpy self. That felt like my fault.
There was no time to dwell on it, though. We had to hurry to get ready for our grand opening. My mum and the other local business owners she had found to join her in the craft tunnel had arrived and set up their things on the tables.
Dylan turned on the birch tree lights and also the lights we’d strung outside the farmhouse. The cloudy day made everything twinkly despite the fact the sun hadn’t quite set yet. It did look magical already.
Georgia messaged me then to say she hoped the opening would go well.
I hadn’t felt this nervous about any other event I’d done.
To start with, at Grant’s company, I wasn’t as invested as I was for events that were under my name.
Georgia’s wedding had been the one I had put my heart and soul into the most.
But for some reason, I was more nervous now.
Maybe because it felt like I had so much to prove with this.
Mistletoe Lane was make or break for my business but also, I needed to prove that Willow and everyone here were right to believe in me and to trust me.
I needed to prove Grant Rivers wrong. And everyone from the past that made me feel like I needed to run away from things.
I could have left when Karl told me Grant had been bad-mouthing me.
I could have quit Wynter Wishes like I’d quit Birchbrook ten years ago.
But I’d stuck it out and this would now decide if I had been right to do so.
Or not.
Dylan left his dad and brother in the warm farmhouse to welcome the people staying in the Airbnb cottages.
They would be one of the first people in the winter wonderland.
I volunteered for social media duty and went around taking snaps to post everywhere, declaring that we were open.
The two employees Willow hired manned the entrance and Santa’s grotto, and the ice rink company stood ready to start the ice sessions.
Willow planned to walk around greeting visitors, making sure they were happy and that everything was running smoothly.
But we waited together for the first cars to turn into Birch Tree Farm.
I glanced back to see Paul was prepping the coffee machine.
He had put a tiny Christmas tree in the window of the van, his only nod to the season.
I hoped he would at least smile at his first customers, but I also couldn’t blame him if he didn’t.
I was giving mixed signals. Not on purpose, though. I just felt so confused.
Telling myself to focus, I posted on social media that Mistletoe Lane was open for its first Christmas then I turned to Willow. ‘Ready?’
She took a visible deep breath. ‘I’m ready,’ she said with a nod.
‘We’ve worked really hard,’ I told her. ‘People are going to have lots of fun here. Try to have fun as well, okay?’
‘You too,’ she replied with a grin because she probably knew that I was just as much of a perfectionist as she was. ‘Oh, look!’ She pointed as a car pulled into the farm. And then we saw a family start walking over from the cottages with Dylan leading the way. ‘It’s time.’
‘It’s time,’ I agreed. ‘I’ll make sure the ice rink is okay.’
I had to walk past Paul’s van to do this and I paused to watch him writing what people could order on the chalkboard that was propped up in the open hatch. He’d rolled his sleeves up and I caught sight of the strong arms that had held me so tightly earlier.
‘All set?’ I asked him lightly as I passed.
‘Sure,’ he replied, not looking at me.
I glanced at the menu and paused. ‘What’s this?’ I asked, seeing my name. I stepped closer to read everything.
Seasonal Specials:
Holly’s hot chocolate
Christmas spiced latte
Pat’s peppermint mocha
Cranberry sausage rolls
Brie and cranberry toasties
Paul’s gingerbread muffins
Birchbrook Christmas cake
Pat’s snowman cupcakes
‘Holly’s hot chocolate?’ I asked as Paul finally stopped writing and looked at me.
He shrugged. ‘Seemed fitting as I created it for you.’
‘Paul…’ I began, wondering why it felt like a lump was forming in my throat.
‘We also have normal coffee and tea and soft drinks but knowing people in this crazy town, they will only want the festive treats,’ he said, ignoring my stunned expression as he gestured to the cakes in front of him. They looked incredible.
‘Holly, come and meet my friend Amy – she’s going to take some content for social media,’ Willow called as she walked to the ice rink with a pretty blonde woman.
I swallowed the lump down in my throat and hurried over to them, unable to explain to Paul how I was feeling.
How weirdly touched that had just made me.
I’d never felt like I had belonged but seeing my name on the café menu, I’d suddenly felt like I did.
* * *
It was early evening on the farm, and I was exhausted but relieved.
It had been a successful opening day. We’d had a steady stream of visitors and people were tagging us on social media and more tickets were being booked each hour for the rest of December.
The excitement and happiness on the faces of the visitors assured me that they had felt the Christmas magic we’d tried so hard to create.
As I wandered through the tunnels, I went over to my mum’s table. She was helping a customer, chatting with them happily. I’d never really seen her work. She started the business after my dad left and as I’d moved away soon after, I wasn’t at home to watch her business grow.
I looked down at her designs – pretty silver jewellery with gemstones, birthstone jewellery and rings that represented different flowers. Then there was a selection of festive pieces.
‘This is pretty,’ I said, touching a silver bracelet with sparkly snowflakes hanging from it.
‘You should have it,’ Mum said, reaching for it. She pushed up the sleeve of my coat and fastened it around my wrist. ‘Fits you perfectly.’
‘I have to pay you for it.’
‘Have it as an early Christmas present,’ she replied, letting go of my arm.
I lifted my wrist and twirled it so the snowflakes caught the twinkling lights above us. ‘Are you sure? It’s lovely.’
‘Of course!’ She smiled. ‘I’m glad you like it. I never gave you anything I made because I thought you’d prefer fancy jewellery…’ She looked away quickly. I caught a glistening in her eyes.
‘This is more special than something I could buy,’ I assured her. ‘How has it been today?’
‘It’s been great. I’ve made a few sales plus people have said they will tell their family and friends they can buy their Christmas presents here.
Thank you for thinking of this, Holly. I honestly think this is wonderful for the town.
I’m sure the city has spectacular Christmas things but I’ve never seen anything more magical. ’
God. I felt myself tear up then. I always told myself that it didn’t matter that my mum and I weren’t as close now like we were when I was younger, but maybe I’d been lying to myself. Because knowing she approved of Mistletoe Lane and was happy to be a part of it meant a lot.
‘Thanks, Mum.’ I hesitated before continuing. ‘My old boss has been bad-mouthing me in the city, so it will be really great if this does well. Maybe it will bring more business my way.’
Mum looked at me in surprise. ‘Why would your boss do that?’
I told her quickly what had happened before anyone else came to her stall.
‘He tried to tell the local paper I’d embezzled money but thankfully, the reporter spoke to me about it and he said he’s looking into doing an article about it.
But I don’t know if it’s a good idea. Maybe I should just leave Grant alone now. ’
‘Sounds like he is someone who thinks he can do whatever he wants and get away with it; that’s not something you want, is it?’
I shook my head. ‘But maybe he’ll succeed in ruining my business if I pursue it?’
‘It sounds like he’s doing that already, love. He put you in a terrible position making a pass at you and then how he reacted afterwards, it’s frankly appalling. I will support you whatever you decide but he might just keep doing things like this if we don’t do something.’
I smiled at the word ‘we’ like she thought we were in this together.
It made me feel better. ‘I know. Georgia was all for kicking his ass a long time ago. I maybe did what I often do,’ I confessed, looking down at my bracelet.
‘I ran away from him and my old job but his shadow followed me regardless.’
‘Some things you can’t run away from, love,’ Mum said. ‘I know it can seem like the easy way but did it make you happy in the long run?’
That question hovered in the air. She wasn’t only talking about leaving Grant without telling anyone what he’d done, but about me leaving my home and not facing anything that had happened here, or with my dad. Was I happy? I hadn’t been for a long time, no.
‘I want to be happy,’ I said, stepping back as a family walked into the tunnel and headed over to the stall.
Mum caught my eye. ‘You’ll work it out.’
She seemed so confident, I wished I could believe it too.
I left her talking to the family and carried on walking through the tunnels past a father taking photos of his daughter with the ponies who were enjoying a carrot treat.
I thought about my own father. I’d had no contact with him since he left and I often told myself I was better off without him.
Maybe I was but the unfinished business between us had kept me up at night a few times.
I never told him how I felt about him leaving or the mess he left us with, or how it made me scared of staying put, of facing problems, and of falling in love.
It was all kept locked up tight and I was scared to let it out but something was telling me that maybe my mum was right; it was stopping me from being happy.
Out of the tunnels, the Christmas tree and ice rink glowed ahead.
I could hear people laughing and letting out little screams when they wobbled on the ice.
Beside the rink, Paul’s van had a queue of four, and more people were sitting on the benches holding hot drinks as they watched the skaters.
It was a beautiful scene. I took a photo and posted it on the Mistletoe Lane accounts along with the ones for my business and I tagged Birchbrook Café and the farm.
I had a feeling we really had something special on our hands here.
Paul looked over then and caught my eye. I lifted my hand to wave to him and he pulled out his phone, typing something quickly before he served the next person.
I looked down as my own phone lit up with a message from him.
Let me take you out on the ice rink when we close tonight? I won’t let you fall.
I lifted my eyes to see him handing a man two hot chocolates.
They had whipped cream and a chocolate flake in.
Holly’s hot chocolate. This was a man who had created a drink just for me and was now serving it with my name on it like he didn’t mind people knowing that he cared about me.
I didn’t need Willow or her friends to tell me that wasn’t typical behaviour from Paul Ryan.
And here I was back in my hometown thinking about kissing my old childhood best friend again.
Definitely not typical behaviour from me either.
But there was something in the air. Before now, I would have laughed at anyone believing this was Christmas magic at work but standing here in this spot right now, it felt like maybe it was.
Taking a breath, I decided to believe in it.
Okay, meet me here later.