by Beth Ehemann
A CRANBERRY INN CHRISTMAS
Copyright © 2016 by Beth Ehemann
Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the above author of this book.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.
Cover Design- Letitia Hasser from Romantic Book Affairs
www.rbadesigns.com
Editing- Holly Malgeri from Holly’s Red Hot Reviews
www.hollysredhotreviews.com
Formatting- Tami Norman from Integrity Formatting
www.integrityformatting.wixsite.com/integrity-formatting
To Melissa Brown…
You have been with me from the very beginning, talked me off more ledges than I can count and stopped me from deleting every single book no less than four times.
Thank you for all of your support, encouragement and guidance.
I would be completely lost without you.
And I do NOT say this with scorn. ;)
Dedication
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Epilogue
A Note from Beth
Acknowledgements
About the Author
“Good morning,” Kacie said in a soft, sexy tone. My eyes stayed glued shut but I felt her scoot over and snuggle into my side. I tucked my arm under her and pulled her tight against me.
“Are you gonna wake up?” she asked after a minute, swirling her fingertips around on my chest.
“No,” I answered, still refusing to open my eyes.
“Brody!” she said playfully, poking me over and over.
“Do I have to?”
“Kinda. The girls will be barging through that door any second asking about the tree. We promised them we’d go get it today, remember?”
I groaned, not wanting to wake up yet. “What time is it?”
“A little after seven.”
“Seven?! Kacie, my tryptophan hasn’t even worn off yet from yesterday. Let me stay in my turkey coma for a little bit longer.”
She trailed a few tiny kisses along my shoulder. “You’re leaving first thing tomorrow morning. Let’s not waste the whole morning sleeping.”
A wicked grin crept across my lips as I cracked one eye open and peeked down at her. “You’re right. Sleeping is lame. I can think of a much better way to waste the morning.” As I started to roll over on top of her, our bedroom door flew open, the doorknob banging hard against the wall. “Or not.” I sighed and fell back on the bed.
“Can we leave now?” Emma exclaimed, charging toward us like a rhino.
Kacie sat up quickly. “Emma! Shhhh! You’re gonna wake your sisters.”
“Too late,” Piper said dryly as she walked into the room with her eyes barely open. Lucy followed right behind her, yawning as she carried Grace in her arms. They all plopped down on the foot of the bed as Emma shot us an innocent grin and shrugged.
“Okay, well, how about we have some breakfast, then we’ll go get the tree?” Kacie asked, just as Grace broke free from Piper’s arms and sprinted across the bed and threw herself into Kacie’s lap.
“I was thinking about something,” I said. “You know how yesterday you mentioned, like four hundred times, how you want this year to be the most perfect Christmas ever?”
A small, embarrassed smile spread across her lips. “Yeah?”
“Well, what if instead of getting our tree from the Boy Scout lot like we always do, we head back to Sullivan’s Tree Farm? Ya know . . . take the big tractor out, pick the perfect one and cut it down ourselves?”
Emma’s mouth dropped open and her eyes widened. “Really? Can we, Mom?”
“Yeah, can we?” Piper added excitedly.
Kacie pressed her lips together, looking at each of the girls and back down at me. “We haven’t done that since the twins were little.”
I nodded. “Exactly.”
“Let’s do it!” she said with a big grin, her green eyes sparkling. “We’ll have breakfast, then bundle up and go get the perfect tree to go with our perfect Christmas.”
Emma threw her arms up in the air in celebration as Piper jumped off the bed and danced around.
“Ooooh—” Piper froze suddenly and slid her eyes over to Kacie, “—can you make the perfect blueberry muffins for a perfect breakfast?”
Emma nodded in agreement and stuck out her bottom lip, giving her mom puppy dog eyes.
“I could go for blueberry muffins too,” Lucy mumbled into the quilt without lifting her head.
“Okay then. Muffins it is,” Kacie said with a giggle. She turned and looked down at me with soft, sincere eyes. “Thanks for suggesting the tree farm thing.”
I shrugged, returning her smile. “Sounds like a fun day with my five favorite girls.” She grinned back at me, crinkling her nose up just the way I liked it. I tucked a piece of hair that had escaped her messy ponytail behind her ear. “You’re kinda cute first thing in the morning, you know that?”
Her eyebrows shot up. “Am I?”
“Yeah, you are. Come here.” I grabbed the sleeve of her pajamas and pulled her toward me. She leaned down and gently put her lips on mine.
“Ewwww!” Piper called out. “They’re doing it again!”
Kacie cracked a smile against my mouth, but didn’t move.
“Seriously,” Lucy groaned. “You two are so gross!”
They both made gagging noises as they hopped off the bed and hurried out of the room, Emma trailing right behind them. Kacie pulled back and shook her head. “One day they’re going to appreciate how much we love each other.”
“That might be true, but I doubt they’ll ever appreciate how much we make out.” I laughed and rubbed her back.
A little while later, with bellies full of blueberry muffin and yogurt, we closed the door behind us and were on our way to the tree farm. Rocks crunched under the tires as we pulled into the parking lot.
“Wow! It’s crowded.” Kacie said, looking out the window.
I shrugged. “I’m not surprised . . . it’s the day after Thanksgiving and the weather is nice today. All I’m saying is they better have some of those donuts or I’m gonna turn into the Hulk and start pulling trees out of the ground with my bare hands.”
Kacie rolled her eyes and shook her head.
“Ooooh, I remember those donuts,” Piper said from the backseat.
“Yeah!” Lucy agreed. “They were huge and warm and soft and cinnamony.”
Kacie turned from the window and looked straight at me with a funny look on her face. “And last time we were here, Brody ate all of them. Remember that too?”
Lucy and Piper laughed in unison as I pulled the SUV into the first parking space I found. The girls sprang from the car, clearly eager to pick out a tree. As we mad
e our way to the cabin, they chattered excitedly about what kind of tree they wanted.
“I want a tall one,” Lucy said.
Piper shook her head as she spread her arms far apart. “No, let’s do a really, really fat one. The tall ones are too hard to put the ornaments on.”
“That’s what we have Brody for!” Lucy laughed, peeking back at me.
“Really?” I teased. “You only keep me around to hang the ornaments on the top of the tree?”
“Pretty much,” Lucy joked.
“Not me.” Kacie wrapped her arm around my waist and squeezed. “I keep you around for lots of reasons.”
Her sexy little smirk was an invite I could not turn down. I dipped my head and put my lips gently against hers.
“Seriously?” Piper squealed as she rolled her eyes and walked faster. “Oh my God! Can you at least not do it when you’re with us?”
Kacie let out a small giggle and pulled back quickly. “Fine. No kissing in public.”
“Thank God,” Lucy groaned.
As soon as we walked through the door to the huge, weathered red barn that served as the warming house for cookies and hot chocolate, the smell of cinnamon and sugar filled the air. Lucy, Piper, Emma and Kacie all closed their eyes and inhaled deeply with tiny smiles on their faces.
“Can I help you?” a cheerful voice asked.
We turned to see a young woman with a warm smile standing behind us. She looked from Kacie to me and her mouth dropped open. “You. You’re Brody Murphy!”
I returned her smile with a nod. “I am.”
Her hands flew up to her mouth. “Oh my God. You’re you! I’m a huge hockey fan. Huge, huge hockey fan! I can’t believe you’re standing in my barn!” She dropped her hands and continued rambling. “Well, not my barn—it’s my mom’s barn—her name is Barb. She’s a Wild fan too. I can’t wait to tell her you were here. Sorry, I’m a little excited.” She finally stopped talking and took a breath, a nervous grin still plastered to her face.
I snuck a quick glance at her name badge. “Hi, Kerrie.” I held my hand out to her.
“Oh my God, you said my name.” Her hand trembled as she shook mine back. “This is the best day ever. Can I have your autograph?”
“Of course!” I said, gently pushing Grace’s stroller toward Kacie.
Kerrie hurried around the wooden counter and pulled out a piece of plain paper. “Here, sign this. Write anything.”
I took the pen from her still-shaking hand and started writing.
Kerrie peeked down at the piece of paper and started giggling way harder than my note deserved. “Oh my God. You are too funny! I’ll tell you what. You guys go out and find the perfect tree and while you’re gone, I’ll fix you up a warm batch of your very own donuts. Maybe even one to take home too.”
“Deal!”
“We normally put twelve people on a wagon, but do you guys want your own?” she continued.
I glanced back at Kacie, who was nodding enthusiastically, then back at Kerrie. “That would be awesome. Thank you!”
“Sure thing. Just give me a minute.” She pulled a walkie-talkie out of her back pocket and started talking into it as I turned and stepped back to Kacie.
“Since I started playing hockey, I’ve gotten tables at the best restaurants, tickets to sold out games and shows, hell . . . I even got a free car once, but I can honestly say having a fresh batch of donuts made for me might just be the best perk yet.”
Kacie laughed and shook her head. “I think the fact that it’s getting us a private wagon to go out and find our tree is my favorite perk.” She looked up at me and blinked a couple times. “What an amazing start to the perfect Christmas.”
I put my hand around the back of her neck and pulled her against me. “What’s with this perfect Christmas thing, Kacie? You keep mentioning it.”
“Can we go over there and look at the ornaments?” Lucy interrupted, pointing her thumb toward the Christmas Shoppe in the corner.
“Sure,” Kacie nodded. “But look with your eyes. No touching. Got it?”
Lucy, Piper, and Emma nodded and ran off.
Kacie bent down and unzipped Grace’s coat a little bit near the collar. As usual, she’d fallen sound asleep the minute we put her in the stroller, but it was warm in the barn and her upper lip had started to sweat.
“Are you ignoring my question?” I asked.
“No,” she shook her head before letting out a heavy sigh. “I don’t know. You know that Christmas has always been my favorite holiday, but I’m feeling more nostalgic this year for some reason. I don’t know if it’s because I turned thirty, because the girls are in their last year before middle school, or what . . . but I’m just feeling like life is too short and I want an amazing Christmas.”
I nodded slowly. “I get it . . . and I agree. Life is moving too damn fast lately and I want to slow it down too.”
Her eyes dropped. “Part of me feels like this is the last year that Lucy and Piper are still little, ya know? Pretty soon we’ll be dealing with mean girls, pushy boys, and periods.”
A chill bolted down my spine and I shuddered.
She looked at me curiously. “What was that for?”
“That. All of that.”
“Brody, we have four daughters. You’re going to have to deal with those things eventually. Especially hormones and periods.”
My eyes bulged in horror and I crammed my fingers in my ears. “La, la, la, la, la, la, la.”
Kacie grabbed my forearms and tugged on them. “Knock it off, you big baby. Periods aren’t that big of a deal.”
“For you! You have a uterus!”
She smacked my chest as she looked around, “First of all . . . lower your voice. Second, be serious with me. You might really have to deal with this someday.”
I stared at her for a second, desperately trying to find an escape hatch to our conversation. “I’m definitely not dealing with periods.”
“You might not have a choice.” She shrugged. “What if I’m not home when they get it for the first time?”
Panic shot like lightning bolts through different parts of my body.
She waved her hand in front of my face. “Hello? Earth to Brody?”
“Well,” I finally said, “that’s easy. I’ll stick them in the bathtub and call you to come home immediately from wherever you are.”
“The bathtub?!” she exclaimed dramatically. “Brody, you cannot put them in the bathtub.”
“Sure I can,” I joked with a shrug. “Dads are for beating up boys, moms are for periods. I think I read that in a book somewhere, so that makes it official.”
Kacie shook her head, letting out a heavy sigh. “What am I going to do with you?”
I couldn’t stop the mischievous grin that instantly formed on my lips. “Well, we are in a barn and I know what barns do to you, so . . . there’s an idea.”
I got up early the next morning to see Brody out the door for his road trip. He was only going to be gone a couple of days, but I never let him leave without walking him to the door and kissing him good-bye. Shortly after he left, the girls got up and were sniffing around the kitchen, trying to find something for breakfast.
“What do you guys want me to make you?” I asked through a yawn.
Piper shrugged.
“You know what sounds good?” Lucy asked in a dreamy tone. “Breakfast at Gigi’s.”
I tilted my head to the side and pressed my lips together, thinking about her proposal. I was beyond exhausted and the thought of my mom making breakfast for the five of us was more than a little appealing. “That does sound good, doesn’t it? Let’s go!”
“Yessssssss!” Lucy hissed, pumping her fist in the air.
“Should we change?” Piper asked.
“Uh . . .” I stammered, looking down at each of them, still in their pajamas. “You know what . . . no. We’ll drive over today. Everybody in the car!”
My mom lived less than a hundred yards away, through a small p
atch of woods. We typically walked through the path, but given our current outfits, a car ride seemed more fitting.
The girls giggled the whole twenty-second ride over to my mom’s and, as I pulled up to her inn, they jumped out of the car and sprinted up the wooden steps.
“Look at all you adorable little ragamuffins,” I heard my mom say as I took Grace out of her car seat. I propped her on my hip as I climbed the steps too.
“Morning, Mom.”
“Hi, sweetheart.” As I got closer, she scrunched her eyebrows together. “You look like hell.”
“Thanks,” I said with a laugh. “I feel like hell. It was a loooooong day yesterday.”
She reached out and took Grace from me. “Well, come on in and I’ll make you all breakfast while you tell me about it.”
As I plopped down at the island, the girls ran down the hall to my old bedroom that my mom had turned into a playroom.
“Did Brody leave?” Mom asked as she opened the fridge and pulled out two cartons of eggs.
“Yeah, a little while ago.” I rested my elbow on the counter and my chin in my palm.
“Did you guys pick out a tree?”
“Yep. It took forever. I swear we walked the whole property three times before we found one we all agreed on, then when we got it home we needed to open it and let it sit for a while so we baked cookies.” I reached into the bowl of grapes she had on the island and popped one in my mouth. “So after all that, they decorated the tree, completely trashing my family room in the process, and we put them to bed. Then Brody and I cleaned up the kitchen and family room before we finally went up to bed ourselves.”
Mom turned and stared at me with wide eyes. “I’m exhausted just listening to all that.”
“Don’t get me wrong, it was a great day, just a long one.” I yawned again.
“After breakfast, why don’t you leave the fab four here and go home for a quick nap?” She asked as she started cracking eggs and dropping them in a bowl.
“Thanks for the offer, but I promised them we’d watch a few Christmas movies today, so that’s our plan.”
She grabbed a whisk and started whipping the eggs quickly. “You’re a good mom, Kacie. Trees . . . cookies . . . movies . . . It’s gotta be hard doing all that when Brody is gone so much.”
