Chapter 9 #2
“Fair enough.” She’s made some good points about why she shouldn’t even be on the list, and now that I’ve got to know her a bit, I’m not sure either.
What if the list is out of whack because I’m not married and Mrs. Claus isn’t monitoring it?
But he was grasping at straws, trying to come up with all the reasons that meant he could just be with Cora without the pressure of the Naughty List and his needing a spouse.
But that wasn’t happening. Everyone in his world was waiting and watching him.
They needed a solution that would ensure they wouldn’t descend into the Dreamfall.
The Dreamfall was the final fading—a state of suspended existence where a Legendary lingered unseen and unremembered, sustained by neither belief nor purpose, unable to return.
If the Yearweave was powered solely by Black Lumen, the Dreamfall would be inevitable. There was so much at stake.
“I’m not going to fail.”
“I never thought you would,” Jack said. “I like you and her together. Who says you can’t find a way to make that work for you?”
Could he? Could he change her mind about more than just the magic of Christmas?
That warm, fuzzy feeling was back and it made her uncomfortable.
This was just one afternoon, she warned herself, not a family for life. But her inner child didn’t care. That girl enjoyed the freshly baked cakes and cookies that were in baskets and bowls on every surface of the kitchen and living room. The main meal was just as delicious.
Cora admitted she’d never thought turkey could taste this good. She had two helpings along with more starch than she’d eaten in the last year combined. But the mashed potatoes were so buttery and so creamy, they were to-die-for.
Nick laughed as she sneaked another small scoop of cranberry sauce onto her plate.
“Football made you hungry?”
“Yeah,” she said, not feeling at all self-conscious about her plate. That joy that he’d talked about, was this it? Nick’s plate had been piled even higher, and he was on his second serving too. “I’m definitely going to need my evening workout. Sometimes I skip it.”
“I always skip it in the evening. If I don’t workout in the morning, I’m not doing it,” Nick said.
“You strike me as more disciplined than that.”
“Oh, I am, but the day gets away from me once I’m in my workshop.”
“Designing toys?”
There was a rosy flush to his cheeks. “Mainly I’m in there building and refining prototypes, that type of thing.”
Having been to his workshop, she could see why he’d get lost in there. She wouldn’t, but he would. He’d belonged in that space in a way she hadn’t belonged anywhere else.
“You seem very disciplined,” he mentioned around a huge mouthful of turkey.
“I am. Routine is one of the things that was lacking when I was growing up.” It took all of her willpower to stop talking there. To not reveal what her therapist had shared with her about feeling insecure and how routines had become her safety blanket. Who wanted to discuss that at a family meal?
“How’d you two meet?” Wendy asked Nick.
“She fired me,” Nick said.
“Hey,” Cora said, lightly punching him on the arm. “But I rehired you.”
“That you did.”
“Why’d you fire him?” his dad asked.
Cora shook off her emotions. She’d been justified in letting him go. “When I took over running the Winter Wonderland festival, Nick didn’t really understand the direction I was going in so I had to cut him out. It wasn’t just Nick—there were other vendors that didn’t fit our new vision.”
“But then the vision changed,” Nick said. “She needed someone to help her out. She came to me and of course I was the bigger person and forgave her.”
“That’s not the way I remember it,” she said wryly.
Nick squeezed her leg under the table and her brain stopped working. Warmth spread throughout her entire body. When he pulled his hand away, she missed it.
“We came to a mutual agreement,” Nick said, like nothing had happened, but her thigh felt branded by his touch.
Maybe she just needed to get laid. Maybe that was the answer to this lust thing she had for Nick Bari. Ha! No maybe about it.
“More like blackmail. He had a lot of demands.”
“Like what?” Wendy asked.
“That I work in his booth every day,” Cora stated. “Of course, we had to negotiate that one. I’m in demand at the festival. I’m only going to be there when he is.”
“That sounds lovely,” Wendy said. “You two will have a lot of fun together. What exactly is it that you do?”
“I’m the director of the event. I coordinate all the different activities, hire all the food and beverage, retail and toy vendors. I approve each year’s offerings. We always feature a new hot drink, baked good, and of course, a new toy.”
Talking about work always put her at ease. She smiled as she looked at each of the people around the table. “This year we’re featuring Nick’s WonderHaus. I’m very excited to talk about it tomorrow morning on The Today Show.”
“You’re going to be on national television?” Nick’s dad asked.
“For the third year in a row. The festival has really benefited from the extra coverage and of course our vendors also benefit from it as well,” she explained. Humble brag maybe, but it was the truth. She was proud to see her hard work paying off.
Everyone was speechless. Of course they were. It wasn’t like Pine Falls, Vermont was the kind of place that normally drew national attention. Her management of the festival had brought lots of money and new jobs to town.
“That’s interesting. What kind of baked goods do you offer?” Wendy asked.
“Usually something that looks incredible but can also be replicated at home.
We sell the product itself, but also recipe books and baking kits. Last year it was a matcha-tea-flavored butter cookie shaped like holly with some raspberry-flavored berries on it.”
“You put a lot of time and effort into your work,” Wendy noted.
“I do. I can’t reveal this year’s cookie yet but it’s going to be special.”
Nick watched her with a serious look on his face. When she noticed, he winked at her. “You can trust us,” he said.
“I’m sure I can. But I fired someone for leaking the cookie recipe last year so it wouldn’t be right for me to do it now.” Even now she felt a tinge of remorse at her actions, but there hadn’t been another solution. The company’s policy was clear and everyone knew the rules.
“No, it wouldn’t,” Pete agreed with her. “There are consequences to every action.”
“Definitely. And it wouldn’t be fair to apply the rules to one person and not to another.”
Everyone thought she was demanding but she asked nothing more than what she gave herself.
The conversation moved on and Cora stared down at her plate. She’d talked too much. Nick had pointed out more than once that she was a talker but it was her way. She didn’t like silence and she had never really learned how to have a conversation without getting defensive and justifying her choices.
“They like you,” Nick said as they were cleaning up after dinner.
“Who?”
“Everyone.”
Cora didn’t know what to say. Nick’s simple words made her feel very warm and cozy inside.
His family was odd, there was no denying it, but they were also kind and generous and warm.
They rarely all agreed about any topic they discussed, but they had an open debate that was enjoyable to listen to.
Everyone’s opinion was respected. There was no black and white divide at this table, no enforcing of one person’s perspective to the exclusion of others.
“What about you?” she couldn’t help asking. “Do you like me, Nick?”
“I do. More than I should.”
She wasn’t the only one then.
“Than you should? Why should? Is it the marriage thing?”
“That and … other things.”
“Like what? Like not believing in Santa? Come on, you don’t really take that seriously, do you?” He’d brought this up last night and she’d assumed he was joking or meant it metaphorically. He couldn’t really mean—
“What he stands for, it’s a source of pervading hope and kindness.”
“Good for goodness’ sake,” she said on a laugh. But she noticed he’d dodged the question. Again.
And yet, being around his family was like stepping through Alice’s looking-glass.
She’d seen families like this on TV but never been part of one.
Even the men she’d dated, when they’d taken her home to meet their parents it hadn’t felt like this.
There was something so special about the care they extended to each other.
She basked in it, treasuring this time and knowing she’d remember this Thanksgiving for the rest of her life. It might be an illusion, but it sure was powerful.