Chapter Forty
CHAPTER FORTY
Christmas morning, Riley and her mother headed to the inn a bit earlier than usual. Riley wanted to cook the French toast casserole at the inn so it would be warm from the oven. They also wanted to get there before Luke opened his presents as they had a few more to add under the tree. Riley and her mother had picked up a few small gifts for Franny, Aidan, and Luke.
They got there just in time. Riley had just put the casserole in the oven when she heard footsteps followed by Luke’s excited voice.
“Santa came! He found me.”
Aidan was right behind him, looking amused. “Of course he did.”
Franny came down a moment later and helped herself to a coffee, then joined everyone else in the living room. She had a little basket with her with several small bags inside it and handed one bag to everyone. They all looked the same, except Luke’s was a bit bigger.
“Oh, Franny, you didn’t have to get us anything,” Riley said.
“We picked up something for you, too.” Her mother handed Franny a similar-looking bag. They were all red bags tied with a curly silver ribbon.
Riley laughed when she recognized it. “We gave Joe lots of business!” She and her mother had made up a bag filled with Franny’s favorite cheeses: the Manchego, Saint-André, and the honey goat cheese. They added a box of crackers, too.
“Oh, thank you both. I’ll enjoy some of this today,” Franny said.
Riley and her mother opened their bags from Franny and they were both the same, a box of pecan turtles and raspberry truffles. “Thanks so much, Franny,” Riley and her mother said at the same time.
Luke opened his bag from Fanny and it was a huge milk chocolate Santa. “This is awesome! Thanks, Franny.” He jumped up and gave her a hug and she looked thrilled. Aidan looked in his bag and saw the same chocolates that Riley and her mother had received. He thanked her as well and they turned their attention back to Luke, who was about to open his big gift.
“Do you have any idea what that is?” Riley asked him.
Luke grinned. “I think so. I told Santa what I wanted.” He ripped open the package and screamed with happiness. It was an electric toy railroad set, complete with several trains and a track.
“Can I set it up now, Dad?”
“Why don’t you open your other gifts first and then we’ll figure it out.”
When Luke opened the gift from Riley and her mother he screamed again and ran over to hug them both. “How did you know I wanted this one? I didn’t tell anyone, not even Dad.”
Riley laughed. “It was a lucky guess. I saw how much you liked the railroad when we went to Edaville.” Aidan had also told her that he was getting Luke the train set.
“He can set that up here in the living room if he wants to. It could go around the tree. That might be fun to watch,” Riley’s mother suggested.
“Are you sure?” Aidan asked.
“Yes, I think that will look really cool,” Riley added.
“Around the tree it is, then.” Aidan picked up three small gifts from under the tree and handed one each to Riley, her mother, and Franny. “I got you all a little something, too.”
Franny opened her gift and held the pretty buttercream candle up. It was in a shimmery glass holder. “Thank you, Aidan, this is really lovely.”
Her mother received a similar candle and thanked him. Riley reached into her bag, expecting a candle but instead pulled out a copy of Hannah McIntosh’s newest book, a Christmas rom-com. Riley was touched.
“Thank you. I love her books. How did you know?”
He smiled. “Lucky guess. I was in the store poking around and saw it on the new releases table and it sounded like something you’d like. I know how much you used to love watching When Harry Met Sally… and all those holiday romantic comedies.”
“Thank you. I’d been meaning to pick this one up, and just hadn’t had a chance yet.”
Aidan looked at Luke, who’d opened all his gifts by now and was anxious to set up his new train set.
“Hey, buddy, let’s clear this stuff up and bring everything upstairs except the trains. We’ll eat some breakfast and then get your railroad set up.”
By the time Riley and her mother were done serving breakfast and ready to head home before going to Amy’s house for brunch, Luke and Aidan had the railroad all set up. It looked really cute as it circled around the Christmas tree. Luke was totally mesmerized by it. Aidan gave them a wave as they headed out.
“Thanks again. We’ll see you all later tonight.”
When they got home, Riley’s mother filled her slow cooker with the leftover potatoes and tenderloin from the night before as well as carrots and celery, beef broth, and a sprig of rosemary.
“This should work for soup for supper tonight at the inn,” her mother said as she put the lid on the pot and checked the settings. Once that was set, Riley made them both fresh cups of coffee and they took them into the living room to relax for a while, before heading to Amy’s for brunch.
They sipped their coffee, nibbled on some leftover coffee cake, and exchanged their gifts. And laughed. They’d both given each other similar things, books that they thought the other would like and that they’d probably lend to each other when they finished and several sweaters. Riley loved the pink cashmere cardigan that her mother had found for her.
“I haven’t had one of these since high school. Thanks so much.”
“I remember how much you loved it. And they never go out of style,” her mother said.
Her mother loved all her gifts, especially the charcoal-gray fisherman-knit sweater that Riley had been so excited about when she stumbled onto it in a local gift shop. Her mother always commented on how much she liked Riley’s fisherman-knit sweater, yet she didn’t have one of her own.
A few hours later, just after one, they headed off to her sister’s house with a bag of gifts for everyone, some cheese and crackers, and a bottle of Cabernet to go with the prime rib that Amy was cooking.
When they walked into her sister’s house, Riley was hit with the smell of roasting beef and the sweet scent of powdered sugar. There were stacks of wafer-thin pizzelle cookies on the counter.
“The girls helped me make them and we just dusted them with sugar a few minutes ago,” Amy said.
“We had to wait for them to cool,” Bethany said as she ran over and gave them both hugs. Emily was right behind her. They’d already opened their gifts from Santa and there were piles of toys and children’s clothing under the tree. Riley put their gifts under the tree and then joined her mother and Amy in the kitchen.
“What can I do to help?” Riley asked.
“Not a thing. Everything is done now. The prime rib just needs a few more minutes. I just finished mashing the potatoes. The broccoli is in the microwave. Oh, I know. You could open the wine and pour us all a glass. And let’s open some presents.”
Riley found four wineglasses and poured a half glass for all of them. They went into the other room and exchanged presents. Riley loved watching the girls open their gifts, they got so excited over the littlest things. She and her mother got them toys and books mostly. They knew Amy had plenty of clothes for them. More sweaters and books were exchanged with Amy and Rob.
When the prime rib was ready, they ate in Amy’s elegant dining room.
“You’re really going back to the inn for another meal tonight?” Amy asked.
“It’s just soup,” Riley’s mother said. “It’s simmering away in the Crock-Pot. It’s no work at all. I just hate to think of people being alone in an inn on Christmas. It seems like the least we can do. Some of them have become friends. Plus we’ve known Aidan and Luke for years.”
“Aidan and Luke. It was like a blast from the past seeing him at the tree lighting. He still looks the same. And his son looks just like him.” She looked at Riley. “What is that like for you? The two of you were always together in high school. And you looked pretty close last night.” She smiled. “You almost looked like a family sitting there together on the sofa. Are there still any sparks there?”
Riley took a sip of wine. She’d always loved being around Aidan and it had been really nice catching up and spending time with him while she was in Chatham. It made an uncertain time a little easier. And there most definitely were sparks, but she didn’t feel comfortable saying it out loud.
So she smiled and avoided answering directly. “It has been great seeing him and Luke. I am still with Jack, though,” she reminded everyone. “We’re going to a New Year’s Eve party in Manhattan.”
“Oh!” Did she imagine it or did Amy look disappointed to hear that she was going back to Manhattan and to Jack? “That sounds fun. I guess that means you’re probably taking the job?”
Riley sighed. Just the mention of the job and moving back to Manhattan seemed to put a damper on things. But it was almost time to make a decision.
“I haven’t officially decided. But it probably would be the smart thing to do. It’s a good job, and the salary is higher than what I had.” Riley just wished she was more excited about it.
“Well, as long as you think you’ll be happy there, that’s the main thing,” Amy said. It was clear though, from her tone and expression that she had doubts that mirrored Riley’s own.
Riley sighed and took a bite of prime rib. It was cooked perfectly pink in the middle. Would that job make her happy? She was still unsure about working at the same company as Jack. That didn’t seem as smart. But he was all for it. Every time she thought about going back to the city and accepting that position she felt tense. But she chalked it up to nerves. Changing jobs was stressful. And you never knew if it was the right job until you were actually in it. She supposed there was only one way to determine if it was the right move for her.
Riley and her mother headed back to the inn with the big pot of beef stew. Earlier at her sister’s house, when she was full from their meal and the cookies after, she didn’t think she would be hungry again. But it was hours later now and the stew smelled pretty amazing. When they got to the inn, Riley put a package of dinner rolls in the oven and her mother plugged the Crock-Pot into an outlet in the dining room to keep the stew warm.
Soon after they arrived, the others gathered in the living room and Riley’s mother invited everyone into the dining room. Riley took the hot rolls out of the oven and put them in a basket. She’d already set the butter out earlier. Everyone helped themselves and talked about how they’d spent their day.
“We loved the brunch at the Chatham Bars Inn,” Elsa said.
“There was so much food,” Henry added. “We went early and we made several trips up to the buffet. And then we came home and needed a nap!”
“We went to the movies,” Luke said. “We saw the new Marvel movie and it was awesome.”
“It was pretty good,” Aidan agreed. “And the theater was packed. We went early to make sure we got good seats.”
“It was much better than I expected. All those special effects. I can see why people love those movies,” Frannie said.
“We had a nice time at my sister’s house. She’s a good cook and the girls were so cute,” Riley said.
Everyone agreed that the beef stew was excellent. Both Aidan and Henry went back for second helpings. When they finished, everyone brought their bowls into the kitchen and Riley quickly rinsed and put them in the dishwasher. They all gathered in the living room and Riley’s mother set out a stack of the pizzelle cookies that the girls had made with Amy. Amy had insisted on sending them home with a big box of them because the recipe made so many and she knew they could use them tonight.
The cookies were one of Riley’s favorites. They were delicate and faintly tasted of anise and sugar and reminded her of a very thin waffle. They were light as air so it was impossible to just have one.
They decided to watch the classic Christmas movie It’s a Wonderful Life. Riley sat on the big sofa with Aidan and Luke. Elsa and Henry took the love seat and Riley’s mother and Franny both sat in the comfy club chairs. They took a break halfway through the movie and Riley went to make Luke and Henry a hot chocolate. Everyone else was too full. Aidan came with her, to help.
While Riley stirred the mix into the hot water, Aidan surprised her. He took her hand and looked her in the eye.
“Riley, I just wanted to say, these past few weeks, seeing you again, well, it’s been wonderful. It took me back and it made me realize that I still think we could work. I still feel that spark, and I wonder if you do, too?”
Riley slowed her spoon. She hadn’t expected Aidan to say anything like that. It had crossed her mind more than once that he was still as attractive as ever and he was so easy to be around. She enjoyed spending time with him and with Luke. But she was with Jack. And about to join his company. She didn’t say anything and Aidan cleared his throat.
“I know the timing might not be the best. I know you’re with Jack. I don’t know him but if you’re happy with him, I don’t want to get in the way of that. I just had to tell you how I’m feeling. Before you decide to go back to Manhattan.”
Riley nodded. “I am still with Jack, and we are happy. And I still have a home in Manhattan. It’s been wonderful spending time with you and with Luke. I’m just not sure the timing is right, again. I’m sorry, Aidan.” The last thing she wanted to do was to hurt him again, so she didn’t want to start something that she couldn’t finish. That wouldn’t be fair to Jack either.
He smiled sadly. “I figured as much. Can’t blame a guy for trying.”
They headed back into the living room with the hot chocolate and watched the rest of the movie. By the time it ended, everyone was yawning and they all said good night. Aidan gave her a hug before she left and she squeezed him tight, inhaling his familiar fragrance. “Merry Christmas, Aidan.”