CHAPTER 24 DECEMBER ON HONEYSUCKLE
Christmas Eve arrived clear and cold.
Honeysuckle Street was strung with white lights. Evergreen wreaths hung from lampposts. The courthouse lawn displayed a simple Nativity scene maintained by several local churches.
The Book Nook closed at four.
By three-forty-five, Clara had sold the final gift card, wrapped the last book, and answered the last desperate question about what to buy a father who “didn’t read much.”
At four, she locked the door.
Then she turned the sign to CLOSED and stood still.
Her first Christmas without June.
The grief arrived quietly.
Eli found her behind the counter.
“You okay?”
“No.”
He waited.
“I miss her.”
“I know.”
“I keep wanting to tell her how the shop did.”
“Tell her anyway.”
Clara looked at him.
“I know she’s with the Lord. I know that. But I still want her here.”
“Of course you do.”
Clara cried against his shoulder.
Later, they joined Diane, Anna, Noah, Maggie, and Reverend Hale for Christmas Eve service.
The sanctuary glowed with candles.
The congregation sang familiar hymns.
Clara sat between her mother and Eli.
When the pastor read of Christ’s birth, Clara felt grief and joy occupy the same heart without canceling each other.
After service, they returned to the Book Nook for supper.
Maggie brought enough food for twice the number of people.
Noah opened one early gift: a wooden book box Eli had built, with his name carved into the lid.
Diane gave Clara a framed photograph of June standing outside the Book Nook in 1998.
Clara held it carefully.
“She sent that to me years ago,” Diane said. “I thought it belonged here.”
Clara placed it on the counter.
At ten, everyone left except Eli.
They walked outside.
The street was nearly empty.
Their breath showed in the cold.
Clara looked at the shop window. Behind the glass, June’s photograph stood beneath the soft lights.
“Merry Christmas, Aunt June,” she whispered.
Eli took her hand.
They walked to the courthouse lawn and stopped near the Nativity.
Clara bowed her head.
“Thank You, Lord Jesus,” she said softly.
Eli squeezed her hand.
No more words were needed.
On the walk back, snow began to fall lightly.
Not enough to cover the street.
Just enough to catch the lamplight.
Clara smiled.
“What?” Eli asked.
“Nothing. It’s beautiful.”
“Yes.”
He was looking at her.
She noticed.
“Very subtle.”
“I wasn’t trying to be.”
She laughed.
They stood beneath the Book Nook sign and kissed on Christmas Eve.
Then Clara unlocked the door and they went inside where it was warm.