I’d not forgotten about all the activities this town holds for Christmas. You’d think it was one of those movies they show during the holidays. Almost every day there’s an open house or a decorating competition of one kind or another. However, the town’s children performing the Nativity is one of my favorite events. The rest could be rather overwhelming.
“Do tell. I’m assuming that it’s the same as usual?” I tried to quell my sarcasm as I joined her in the massive kitchen.
“Well, not every night,” she replied.
I raised my eyebrow. “Oh yeah?”
“Okay, almost every night. But it’s Christmas. It’s about being together. Don’t be a grinch.” Disappointment spread across her face.
“I’m not being a grinch! I want to spend time with my family. I’m here for almost two weeks. We will have some time together, just relaxing as a family, right?”
She reached her hand across the island in the kitchen to take mine. “I promise we’ll have lots of time together as a family. And I want to make sure you and I are able to have some sister time too. The moms club is having a cookie exchange, aka wine night with cookies, and you and I are going to attend without the kids or the husband. Just us girls. I have lots of awesome things planned to make this year special.”
“I’m excited, Robin, I promise.” I felt the need to reassure her. The elephant in the room, my well-known lack of holiday cheer, had yet to be brought up, which was refreshing and yet ominous. I was waiting for the topic to arise, prepared to defend myself. And then there it was.
“I know you’re not completely thrilled with all of the festivities, but I appreciate you making an effort. Particularly for my children.” Her tone shifted to slightly stern with me.
My face got hot. “I’m not going to ruin your Christmas wonderland, Robin,” I replied defensively. I resented the implication that I was going to make the holidays something other than enjoyable. We’d already been through this before, and I was tired of hearing it. I never spread my ill feelings toward the holidays to her, and certainly not to the girls.
“I didn’t mean it like that, Sam.”
“Well, how did you mean it, Robin? If you didn’t want me around, then what am I doing here?” Part of me was almost looking for a reason to leave in that moment, even though deep down I wanted to be there, celebrating with my family.
“I never said I didn’t want you here. Stop putting words in my mouth!” We were both growing upset, and her voice became higher pitched. “I lost them, too, you know. I loved them too. It’s not just your grief. It was Mom’s favorite time of year, and it used to be yours. Don’t lose that.” She paused and softened her tone. “I didn’t mean to make you feel like I don’t want you here. I’m sorry if it came out that way.” A tear rolled down her cheek.
I got up to hug her, pulling her into my arms, and tried to control my own tears. I avoided family so that I didn’t have to feel this way. It was going to be a hard two weeks. “Robin, I’m sorry. I know you lost them, too, and I didn’t mean to make you feel like it’s all about me. I’m actually very excited about wine and cookies with the girls and the show and whatever other amazing winter adventures you have planned.”
I began to laugh a bit, lightening the mood. I wasn’t excited about all of those things, but I could pretend. Robin was all I had left, and I wasn’t going to ruin Christmas for her and her family just because I couldn’t move on.
“What do you say we practice wine and cookie night right now?” She wiped her tears away and let out a small laugh.
“I think that’s a grand idea.” I hugged her again and then took it upon myself to peruse the wine rack. The wine rack was a bit of an understatement. It was actually a rather large section of wall that had a built-in wine storage unit. The selection wasn’t lacking either. My sister had a good job. She worked as a project manager in technology, and her husband, Michael, was a financial analyst or something like that. I wasn’t totally sure except he talked about investing a lot, and they made a ton of money between them. Their house was huge and beautiful.
The holiday decorations were like what you’d find in a magazine. From the garland along the bannister, to the multiple trees of varying sizes around the house, the decor was amazing. If the holidays made you feel good, this house would be the Vatican for your joy. Robin had the majority of my parents’ decorations, and I had noted them throughout the house earlier that day. Intertwined with her and Michael’s things, they seemed right at home. I’d be lying if I said that it wasn’t striking and magnificent really, but it was still a reminder to me of what was lost more than anything else.
The rest of the evening, I caught up with my sister, talked about the million and one activities we were participating in, and played with my nieces. Their excitement over seeing me gave me a reprieve from my pretending, and I ended the night tucking them in with a story. They wanted me to read the Nutcracker to them, which was my favorite holiday story growing up as well. As I settled into my bed that night, the handsome stranger from the coffee shop crossed my mind again. I wondered what he was doing, and for some reason, I wondered how he felt about Christmas.
Chapter Six
Jason
There’s no such thing as a vacation when you’re self-employed, but I was determined to take a few days off to enjoy the holidays and all the fun things going on in town with my girl while she was still young and full of Christmas spirit. I didn’t want her to spend her entire week off hanging out with me at the shop or the hangar, so I rallied to get all my loose ends tied up. She wasn’t always going to be a kid and that innocent and excited about everything, so every moment counted. She had choir practice after school, and one of the moms was going to bring her home afterward, so I had a little bit of extra time to myself. I hadn’t finished giving my plane a tune-up, and that was the first order of business.
Several folks had already called me asking if they could rent time with me up in the air to view the lights and spend a romantic flight with their loved one. It was so awkward that people could have a romantic experience with me three feet away, but it was good money, especially around the holidays, and it wasn’t always a couple. In fact, I’d booked a flight for Robin Jameson, who wanted me to show her sister the lights. Robin’s sister was in town visiting for the holidays, and Robin’s twin daughters were in Emily’s class, so I happily agreed to fly them around later that week.
I couldn’t help but be on the lookout for Samantha while I was out and about. Hoping to see her again, I milled around the coffee shop longer than I needed to when I ran into Gabe again. He seemed to pop up at the oddest times, and I was still confused by our previous conversation but also equally intrigued. I decided to grab him a coffee and join him on the bench outside, weather be damned. We had plenty of snow already, but all the sidewalks were clear, as were the benches around the square. Families had already begun their vacations, and it was lovely to see so many people enjoying time together.
I picked up the coffee for Gabe and headed over to his bench. He didn’t seem to be cold or even in need of anything really. He was just watching people and smiling when I approached.
“Afternoon, Gabe. I thought you might like a coffee to keep warm.” I handed over the paper cup.
“That was very kind of you to think of me,” he replied.
“You’re welcome,” I said.
We sat silently for a moment before he finally broke the ice on our conversation.
“So, are you all ready for Christmas, Jason?” he asked me.
“I think so. I had a few errands to run today, some last-minute gifts and such.”
“Will your parents be joining you and Emily for Christmas?” he asked me. His question surprised me, but he seemed to know things, so I answered.
“No, they’re in Maine now. They retired there, and we all agreed that with the impending weather, it was better that they stayed off the roads.” I paused. “How did you know my parents don’t live here?”
; “I told you, Jason, I know all kinds of things.”
“Who are you?” I asked pointedly. I didn’t want to befriend some weirdo stalker guy who knows about me and my kid, and if he thought he was going to get something out of us, he was mistaken.
“Oh, I’m just a harmless old man, Jason. You needn’t worry.”
“How do you know so much about everyone in this town? Are you from here?” I asked.
“Oh no, I’m not from here. I’m just a very good listener. You’d be surprised how much people say around someone who they perceive as invisible,” he replied.
“How did you find yourself in Friendship?” I asked. Feeling bad that he felt invisible, I wanted to know more about him. No one should feel that way, and maybe he was just a kind old man.
“I tend to go where the magic is. Friendship is full of Christmas magic, you know,” he said. His gaze drifted back to the people shuffling around the square, and he smiled. “Just look around you. I know you can see it too.”
He was right. I always felt that way about Friendship. But how he knew that was still lost on me. And it was a weird conversation to be having. Yet I didn’t cut and run either. “This town definitely takes its Christmas celebrations seriously. There’s no doubt about that. Have you been here before?” While he seemed familiar, I was quite sure I’d never met him before, and no one else seemed to know who he was or where he came from.
“No, this is my first time here.” He smiled joyfully.
“How long have you been here?” I asked.
“I just arrived recently. And I told you before, I listen.” He turned to me. “Have you seen Samantha yet?” he asked.
“Samantha?” I repeated, buying myself time to come up with an answer. “I don’t even know her.”
“That isn’t what I asked, now is it, Jason?” He grinned. Even through my embarrassment, I couldn’t help but smile back.
“No, I suppose it isn’t, Gabe.” I chuckled at the situation and at how I was feeling. Even though there was nothing to be embarrassed about, I couldn’t help but feel a little uncomfortable talking to him about her. I had only had a single encounter with her, which was awkward at best. Yet she’d been on my mind constantly, and somehow he knew. “I have not seen her,” I admitted.
“You will,” he replied.
“Gabe, what’s all this about Samantha? Seriously?” It was one thing to have a new woman in town on my mind, but it was entirely another to have this homeless man weighing in on the situation.
He took in a deep breath. “Jason, some things you’ll need to figure out for yourself. But here’s what I can say.” He paused as I leaned in, on the edge of my seat. “Samantha is someone that should be in your life.”
“How could you possibly know something like that?” He was back to sounding crazy again.
“May I ask you a question?” he asked, ignoring mine.
“Sure, go ahead,” I replied.
“Okay. Are you happy?”
“I’m as happy as anyone else, I suppose.” I wasn’t sure where this was going, but I did give it some real thought. “Why do you ask?”
“Happy means different things to different people, right?” he asked.
“Of course it does.”
“But there are some things that everyone needs in their life to be truly happy.”
“What are those?” I asked.
“There’s many. Love, growth, certainty, uncertainty, significance. These are all important components of true happiness.”
“I see.” I thought over what he said for a moment, but wasn’t sure I understood where he was going with it or what it had to do with Samantha.
“You will,” he replied.
Gabe stood up and looked down at me. His shaggy hair was unkempt, and his tattered jacket had seen better days. He smoothed out the front of his coat with one hand before returning it to the coffee cup, which was surely keeping his hands warm.
“Is there anything that I can get you, Gabe? Do you have a place to stay? It gets very cold here at night.” He had to be sleeping somewhere, and with the storm approaching, I was concerned whether or not he’d be able to survive out on the streets. He may have been strange in many ways, but no one should be sleeping out in the snow.
“Oh, I’ll be just fine.” He picked up his small bag and readied himself to leave. “Don’t you worry about me, Jason. I’ll be just fine.” He began to walk away but then stopped and turned back around to me. “You deserve to have all of those things in your life, Jason, most of all love.”
“I have plenty of love in my life, but thanks, Gabe,” I replied. I had my daughter. I had my parents. I didn’t need more. I was content.
“There’s still a little piece of your heart that needs filling, my friend. Don’t turn away from it, even if it doesn’t make any sense to you. It will.”
I didn’t know how to respond to what he said. I felt like my heart was plenty full. Clearly our conversation was over, though, and when he was about twenty feet away, I called out.
“Take care of yourself, Gabe.”
“I always do,” he replied without turning back around. As he walked away, I noticed a limp I hadn’t seen before.
I sat on the bench for a few minutes, watching Gabe hobble away and mulling over our conversation. He was a strange guy, but he also seemed rather insightful in many ways. His constant reminders of Samantha were off-putting at first, but somehow it just made me want to get to know her, and a twinge of disappointment I hadn’t run into her yet crept into my mind. If she was here visiting, I was bound to see her at one of the many events over the next week, but what would I say? Hey, the homeless dude you bought coffee for the other day said that you need to be in my life, and I’m inclined to find out why. What do you think? Unlikely to happen.
Gabe had disappeared. I had lost sight of him, distracted in my own thoughts. I knew I needed to get off the bench and get going. The afternoon I had to myself would be over soon, so I decided to head over to the toy store. I needed to pick up the bike I had ordered for Emily and get it home before she got back to the house.
Chapter Seven
Samantha
I still had a bit of shopping to get done, but I didn’t want it to interfere with any of the family time we had planned, so I headed downtown while the girls were still at school, and Robin and Michael were still at work. Of course I wanted to get some coffee first, so I made the coffee shop my first stop. I had borrowed some new gloves from my sister, who thought my exchange with the mystery man was hysterical. She grilled me incessantly to try to figure out if she knew who he was. She probably did, and when I blushed telling my story, it sent her into full detective mode.
I grabbed my coffee quickly but cautiously this time, looking around for any hot guys I might accidentally run into. Alas, there were none, just the usual folks grabbing their afternoon fix like me while out running holiday errands.
The next stop was the toy store. I’d already gotten the twins a couple of cute outfits that I’d found in Florida, but being the cool aunt that I am, they needed fun gifts from me too. They no longer dressed alike, and while they were still very close at eight years old, they had developed different personalities. Daisy was much like her name, full of energy and a bit of a dreamer with an active imagination. She loved reading. Delilah was her scientific counterpart. She had explained to me how the cells in the body do a variety of things, and from what her mother told me, she enjoyed taking things apart to see how they worked.
The toy store in Friendship was small and unique, full of unusual gifts for children. Everything from children’s books to stuffed animals to mini laboratories was available there, so I knew I’d be able to find something fun. I could’ve taken the trek out to the mall, but it was over an hour away and would’ve been crowded with miserable people. Not to mention the fact that the gifts wouldn’t have been as cool and different. While meandering through the aisles, I found exactly what I wanted. An artist kit for Daisy and a miniature forensic
s laboratory for Delilah complete with fingerprinting and investigation tools. They’d love them.
As I walked toward the register to complete my purchase, I heard a familiar voice. It was him. The mystery man. He was in the toy store. My heart rate picked up, and my stomach dropped. I wasn’t sure if I was excited or scared, but before I could hide behind the giant teddy bear in aisle four, I was spotted.
“Samantha?” he asked. He knew my name. How did he know my name?
“Oh … uh … hi there,” I replied, attempting not to look like I was about to hide behind a colossal stuffed bear.
“How are you?” he asked, grinning broadly. He was just as handsome as I’d remembered with his closely shaven beard and striking blue-gray eyes that shone from the light in the storefront’s window.
“I’m good. I’m good.” It was like I’d forgotten how to form complete sentences. For an editor, I was lacking in any use of the English language.
“That’s good to hear,” he said. I wanted the moment to end, but I also wanted to think of something adorable or clever to say. If I could smack myself in the forehead without him seeing I would have.
“What are you shopping for?” It was the best I could come up with. Dorky small talk was what I’d been reduced to. I edit bestselling novels for a living, and I couldn’t come up with anything better than What are you shopping for in a toy store at Christmas.
“Oh, my daughter’s bike. It’s about that time for an upgrade, so of course Santa needs to get one.”
I knew it. He was married with kids. Of course he was. Who would let a stunner like this guy go? I bet his wife was a knockout too. “That’s awesome. I’m sure she’ll love it. How old is she?”
“She’s eight. She’s at choir practice for the show right now, so I’m taking advantage of a few minutes to myself to get this taken care of. Who are you shopping for?” He looked at the items I was holding and then met my gaze again. “Looks like you’ve got an artist and a scientist on your hands?”
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