Tangled up in Tinsel (Christmas Tree, PA #2)

Chapter 1

Amber

I have been given the opportunity of a lifetime.

I don’t have to remind myself of this as I pull into the wide, expansive parking area of the huge mansion outside of my small town of Christmas Tree, Pennsylvania. It sits on the hill, overlooking the town like it is a little bit too good to associate with the rest of us.

I don’t mean that in a mean, snobby way. I mean it in an...elegant and beautiful way.

I don’t know. Maybe I put too much stock in inanimate objects, but that suits my profession as an interior designer. I specialize in Christmas decor, especially this time of year.

I am booked solid, but yesterday, I got a call at eight PM from Samuel Barrage’s secretary that her boss, Samuel Barrage, billionaire, had an issue with the decorator who was supposed to be decking out his mansion in all things Christmas, and she wasn’t going to be able to finish the job. Would I be interested?

Would I be interested? Um, YES!

I did manage to control myself, mostly, but there you have it. The reason I am standing in front of the Barrage mansion in Christmas Tree, PA.

Technically, I’ve heard that Samuel’s brother actually owns the mansion and Samuel just uses it for his business. I don’t know, and I don’t care. I’m here to decorate it and get paid for it, and I’m really, really hoping that will lead to more jobs for me from our town’s only billionaire.

I take a deep breath and walk up the steps. I have one day to make this mansion look the best it’s ever looked, decked out in royal Christmas beauty.

I’m not really worried about whether or not I can do it. The lady I spoke with told me that it was already partially done, the decorator just couldn’t finish because of some kind of emergency surgery. There is a huge get-together here tomorrow night, and everything has to be perfect.

I believe I am also supposed to have help, and that reassures me as well. But one of my strengths is the fact that I can take whatever I’ve been given and figure out how to make things work. I always make deadlines, and my work is the absolute best.

This is a huge opportunity. One that I do not intend to mess up in any way.

I don’t know whether to go around to the side door, or to the back door, or one of the other doors, but I decide that being indecisive is not going to get me where I want to go, so I march right up the front steps and knock on the door.

It opens immediately, almost as though someone was expecting me, and I look into the eyes of a sweet older lady dressed in a black-and-white maid uniform.

She bows slightly and says, “Welcome to the Barrage mansion. How can I help you?”

“I’m Amber Rogers, and I’m the interior decorator here to finish decorating the mansion.”

The lady’s mouth opens in an O, and her brows go way up above her glasses. Then, she looks at me over said glasses and says, “All right. Follow me.”

I’m pretty sure she was surprised, but I’m not sure why. She should have been expecting me, right? Was I not what she expected? It’s not like I haven’t lived in this town all my life. And while I don’t know this lady personally, if she works here, she’s almost certainly seen me around town.

Christmas Tree is the kind of small town where everyone knows everyone else. It’s all decked out for Christmas even though Thanksgiving is barely over. In fact, it’s not even December yet.

The housekeeper or maid, or whoever she is, leads me down a huge hallway, taking more twists and turns than I can remember, and shows me to a room that is nothing but storage boxes and sheets that cover what I assume to be the decorations I’m going to be using.

Maybe I was a little bit overconfident.

“Here is everything. I believe the original decorator has some notes and ideas written down along with directions for what she was doing. I understand it will not be easy to come in and decorate behind her, but...the party tomorrow is rather important, and Samuel can be a very demanding boss.”

I’m not sure what she’s saying. And part of me wonders if I don’t perform up to his specifications if I’m going to get paid.

Maybe I should demand payment upfront, but it didn’t even occur to me. I was so excited to get the call that I didn’t even ask about payment. Maybe they’re not paying me. But if I pull this off, I should get so much work it won’t matter whether or not they pay me. At least, that’s what I tell myself as I stand in the doorway and look at the room filled with boxes and bags and oddly shaped sheet-covered objects.

“I’m not sure what happened to the instructions. But I will find them and make sure they get sent to this room.” The housekeeper pauses. “Make yourself at home. The entire downstairs is supposed to be decorated, except for the kitchen, of course. If you have any questions, you can feel free to text me.”

She proceeds to give me her phone number, and I at least have the presence of mind to yank my phone out and plug it in.

This is bigger than I thought. I’m going to need to walk around the mansion and see what’s already been done. And then I’m going to have to figure out what decorations they have and what I can use.

All that is going to take me at least an hour, or maybe two. I don’t even know where I am in the mansion.

“If you could get me those instructions, that would be really helpful,” I say, realizing that if I can at least have an idea of what to do, that could shave off some time while I try to figure things out myself. There is no way I can come up with anything unique of my own and even try to put it into motion, since I know I need to be done by first thing tomorrow morning.

“What time does it need to be finished?” I ask, even though I know I have it written down in my phone notes. I want to confirm.

“Brunch starts at eleven. You should be out of here by ten, to give us time to clean up anything that you leave behind. I really can’t give you any more time than that.” The housekeeper gives an apologetic glance as though she knows that I have been set with an impossible task.

That’s fine. I’m good at doing impossible things.